#another thing that makes me think a lot is that when fuyuki asks how he feels. he replies to him not to worry

[khlorhine]

Jjk oc opinions

Kitagawa Tamaki edition

I don't have any new art so make do with this slightly older drawing that was hidden in a week old post. Please click the link for info on her background. That's her boyfriend to the side as a human, his name is Fuyuki Mitsuya.

It's mentioned later in the post but I prefer reading powerscaling stuff over shipping stuff so correct me if my characterisation if a character is wrong. I love making cursed techniques. Ask me about cursed techniques, I'll happily brainstorm some with you. I feel like my chaarcter is too much of a Mary sue because other than two characters in here everyone is either indifferent to her and doesn't hate her.

Mai Zenin

Mai only hung around Tamaki because she was strong. It's the same reason why Mai hangs around Todo although she prefers Tamaki over him because she didn't have as bad as a personality as him and she finds it easier to get along with girls. Tamaki liked this type of relationship at first because Mai didn't point out her irregularities, just silently judges her. Mai stopped after Tamaki got into a fight with her dad, Ogi, which in turn caused her to get into a fight with Naoya and lose. It put a bad impression on her clan so she just stopped talking to her for a while. She realised she relied too much on other people like how she relied to much on Maki back when she was in that clan. After that they're doing pretty great together. Also Tamaki’s trying to teach Mai how to use rct because she wants to see what a cursed technique reversal would look like with construction.

Kasumi Miwa

The only thing they had in common with one another was the fact that they used swords. There is another swordsman, two years above them (oc: Sai Mizuhara) but hes a first grade and barely had time to train her. Tamaki couldn't train very well with her since she doesn't have a technique to build on so she manipulated Miwa's cursed energy in a way that would emulate a few of her non innate techniques until she got the hang of it. In contrast Miwa helped her with barrier techniques because she just sucked at them, thinking they were literal shields rather than seperators of different zones. After Tamaki went through a switch in weapons their weaponry training started to pick up the pace. Their personalities don't mesh well though, Miwa thinks she's scary in the the same way she thinks Todo and Kamo are scary because she's always itching for a fight.

Kokichi Muta

Mechamaru has information on her that only the principal has like the fact that she killed her boyfriend, and when he came back as a curse she turned him into a human curse hybrid. His heavenly restriction was unfortunate but his (oc: Mitsuya Fuyuki) was deliberate. He empatises with him because it wasn't his choice in the matter, therefore he can't bring himself to like her. Tamaki does not like him either because his technique has a lot of potential that he just does not take advantage of.

(Ok I know this is opinions but there's like a whole body swapping part where a curse switches their body and I wanna write it so bad but I literally only have a third of Tamaki's backstory (mind you backstory it's still in the first arc) written so writing something like two arcs ahead is just stupid. Basically they start to respect each other because in Tamaki's body, mechamaru develops a heat blueprint (refer to the licked post up there) and Tamaki does some insane RCT in his body that can only be done with his amount of cursed energy using it basically how mahito does with his own body but with RCT. This is because mechamaru wants to live in a body where he's not in pain all the time and Tamaki wants to prove to him how cool his body is and also because she wants her body back she can't do her experiments as well as she normally can in his body)

Aoi Todo

He mistakenly thought she had a thing for cursed spirits when he first saw her and he respected her on the basis that she wasn't boring until she corrected him, telling him she would quite literally date anyone who talked to her because she talks too much about jujutsu and nobody liked her at her old school, which caused them to get into a fight. They're pretty good allies though since they're both strong and the fact that they were both initially trained by special grades before their enrollment. (I realise most of the characters compare her to him but I really am bad at describing relationships when all I want to do is make up overpowered abilities. I'm more of a powerscaler than a shipper)

Momo Nishimiya

She's kinda weak so I can't go on a tirade about improving techniques with my oc because tool manipulation in theory is super awesome but I don't know the limitations of her abilities. It's definitely not weight since she can carry a fucking panda and three humans including herself on the broom. It probably has to do with focus, I guess she just can't split it between two different tools but if that's the case why can't she carry around a spare knife to throw at someone when she's not on her broom. That leads me to another theory where she can only manipulate objects she herself cursed but she's not part of the main cast so why do I even care so much.

Being serious here, Nishimiya is cool with Tamaki because she often breaks gender norms though Tamaki cannot get along with her because she used to care so much about not being normal that having a reminder that she's actively go against that makes her freak a little because she already knows all that she just doesn't want anyone to vocalise it to her. Also she feels her technique is under utilised.

Noritoshi Kamo

Noritoshi does not like Tamaki because she's experimented with making human curse hybrids before. Her obsession with his evil namesake ancestor doesn't help either. He can respect her for her strength but Tamaki genuinely can't understand why his clan is in the big three when the six eyes and ten shadows are much better techniques than blood manipulation which doesn't help their relationship. She beats the fuck out of his half brother (oc: Takayoshi Kamo, he's doing illegal stuff so it's justified sort of), takes away his technique(s because he eats a death painting and gets blood manipulation) so now he just sees her the same way he sees Todo. Bad personality but reliable. Also free rct. She heals him when he asks and she's also teaching him how to use it as long as he does her favours like ask his half-brother stupid questions in his jail cell or give her his blood or let her take a peak at the remaining eight death paintings. Stuff like that.

Arata Nitta

Arata just sees her as a bit overbearing because she fixates specifically on him for rct training. His technique is really useful in medical situations and Kyoto tech does not have a dedicated healer. This so also because she killed her boyfriend and in the moment developed rct but was very sucky with it so having someone like Arata to step in would've been pretty good so it's mainly done out of guilt for being a sucky person.

Iori Utahime

Utahime understood her situation from Gojo and tried her best to guide her in the right direction. Tamaki, at the time, couldn't respect her at all because she only cared about hyper offensive techniques and her aggression fucked her over in a few fights. After that Utahime suggested she practice weapon forms, kind of like Utahime's dances and she got better at handing her emotions and started respecting her teacher.

Yoshinobu Gakuganji

He wants her DRUGGED, BEAT, EXCECUTED, BURNED, AND THROWN INTO THE OCEAN. jk it's not that serious but he does want her dead. She used to work with Geto and he thinks she's a bad influence on his students since he cares about them so much. He's a traditionalist in every way and everything Tamaki does is the complete opposite of what he wants. He prefers her in Kyoto tech rather than Tokyo tech because this way she can be closer supervised and taken care of the moment she steps out of line unlike in Tokyo where Gojo would be prevent that.

Tsukumo Yuki

They can respect each other but they just don't get along. Yuki wants a world without cursed energy but jujutsu is the only thing Tamaki is good at so to take it away would make her life miserable. It doesn't help that Tamaki’s technique could also be used to increase or reduce someone's cursed energy levels or take away techniques so Yuki has an excuse to bug her. They like to talk about research but it gets real awkward when Yuki tries to bring up that subject. It also gets awkward when Tamaki starts accidently talking about evil ancestor Noritoshi because no jujutsu sorcerer likes him. Tamaki really likes Tsukumo in terms of jujutsu. She knows rct, domain expansion, it's very heavy hitting which is what Tamaki likes.

Suguru Geto

He was her mentor. They have pretty similar techniques since they can both manipulate curses so he was a great teacher for her. Geto can give commands to his cursed but they can think for themselves, Tamaki's just takes away whatever free will they have and contorts their body since she can't manipulate their souls, just the part of them that is cursed energy but whatever overlap they had was very helpful. Initially he wanted to keep her away from all this because she didn't hate non-sorcerers. He's got a soft spot for her and while he was dying, rather than tell her to regroup with the others he told her to go to Satoru Gojo because that kind of path would've been better for her. Shes not very grateful for that because she could've been working with Kenjaku if she had gone back but she doesn't hate him for that because that's just stupid and he was a really nice teacher to her.

Kenjaku

He inherited Geto's soft spot for her when he took over his body. She has a very clear obsession with him because of his want for pushing jujutsu to its limit meanwhile Kenjaku thinks she's a great back up body if Geto's were to ever perish because she's got a good technique. Kenjaku's genuinely never heard of her before he took over his body but he finds her interesting even without her technique with what he knows now. They don't share the same opinions on some things though. Kenjaku is very disappointed with all his creations because they never go beyond himself, meanwhile Tamaki loves his creations because they're the physical proof of what jujutsu could be and the building blocks of most of her creations which she loves very much so she could never understand why he'd even be disappointed. Being able to create something, anything is an amazing feat, especially for someone as academically challenged as she is.

Choso

Tamaki really likes him but never tried to talk to him because she knows Noritoshi finds her gross for liking Kenjaku but she doesn't care because they still work together fine regardless of that but with Choso so she wants to respect his boundaries and they are never forced into working with eachother so they can't even form a similar relationship to what she has with Noritoshi. Choso doesn't hate her though because if Yuji is fine with her then he is too. He knows she only likes Kenjaku for his research but telling this to her isn't his main priority since they're not really a big thing in eachothers lives.

Yuji Itadori

They met after her head injury so she was a bit crazy compared to how she was with Megumi and Nobara when they talked. She was in the room when Sukuna revived him and his body was what interested her the most because it was strong like someone with a heavenly restriction but also held tons of cursed energy thanks to sukuna's fingers. She's weird around him because of sukuna, she likes to ask questions about what it's like being a vessel and holding another person inside your body so obviously he thinks she's weird but from what he's heard from Kugisaki and Fushiguro she's reliable so he thinks that too.

Megumi Fushiguro

They met when she was working under Geto. Tamaki never told him this though but he was aware of the fact that she's a curse user, he just chose not to mention it to anyone but Gojo picked up on it because duh he has the six eyes. Megumi thinks she has a good personality since she got along with his sister in the time Tsumiki was still alive and conscious. During the sister exchange event he was surprised to see her again as a sorcerer and not a curse user and they exchanged contacts after it. The ten shadows is a very good technique so she's really excited to see him eventually tame all the ten shadows. (That never happens through megumis hands) At least she has his permission to disect him when he dies.

Nobara Kugisaki

They initially met in a one off interation when she was still working with Geto. Nobara thought she was kinda wimpy but the wimpy type that she should protect because she's a city girl and not used to the countryside. During the sister exchange event Nobara was happy to see her and was pleasantly surprised to see Tamaki be a bit unhinged. They also got each others contact after that. Tamaki also enjoys Nobara technique. Techniques that are accociated with the soul are really interesting to her.

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For the next bit I have to say Tamaki was involved in the night parade on Geto's side like she was literally with him and fighting yuta and stuff and she also fought a few of the Tokyo seconds years.

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Maki Zenin

Tamaki thinks she hates her for being aligned with Geto when they met. Maki can empathise with her because Tamaki did it to practice jujutsu when she couldn't under her uncles supervision and Maki moved from Kyoto to Tokyo so she can get revenge on her clan so they're not that different. Tamaki thinks her heavenly restriction is cool and (unlike another person with a heavenly restriction) she's making the most of it. Maki would like to see what weapons Tamaki has inside her cursed spirit's inventory. (It's mainly non-weaponty like furniture, dirt, sand, stuff that you can throw at an opponent and now care about wasting stuff)

Inumaki Toge

Not much to say to eachother. They don't talk (haha get it) so they can't form personal opinions on each other. She can form opinions on his jujutsu though. It's decent but the drawbacks aren't worth it in her opinion for someone of his caliber but he's utilising it the best he can and he's a fast runner. She's never seen him do hand to hand or use weapons and imbue them with cursed energy. Maybe it's a binding vow to increase his speech technique.

Panda

He's a panda, pandas don't hold grudges or at least that's what I think he would say. She thinks his technique is OK but it's really all Yaga's doing so she's not very interested in him.

Yuta Okkotsu

He beat her in a fight once and all he got from that is that she's mentally unstable and should seek help (she won't). Because he's not much of a fighter his opinion of her ties strictly to her background and not her capabilities. He can relate with her because they both have dead lovers that they kind of brought back from the dead in a weird and twisted way. He thinks she should try to let her dead bf go because it'll help her mental health (She really doesn't want him to point that out though because she know it's healthier for her but she just doesn't want to let him go).

Kinji Hakari

He thinks she has a lot of fever. She's always itching for a fight so he likes her. Tamaki likes him, he's easy to get along with and he's also the basis for a few of her moves. Their domain hand signs both come from the seven lucky gods and the 24 devas (benzaiten and bishamonten) so they're good buds.

Kirara Hoshi

Tamaki thinks her technique is really cool while Kirara likes her for her hair. Somehow it's not damaged from all of Tamaki's black hair dye. (Idk what else to say, Kirara has only ever been shown using it once as far as I'm aware, defensively but I'm sure she makes good use of it. I can imagine it being used as a homing missile and stuff. It's such a cool concept.)

Satoru Gojo

So they officially met after Geto's death and he kind of sees her as the last bit of Geto, like a gift from him to Gojo. Obviously this means he has to protect her but it was her choice to go to Kyoto tech so it was harder to do the from Tokyo, especially with how much trouble she causes but shes still somehow alive. Gojo thinks her curse is kinda cute, if not a bit unhealthy. Love is a curse and something something idk where I was going with that. Tamaki honestly regrets not going to Tokyo tech to study under him. He's very strong and with his six eyes he could honestly give her some really helpful pointers. She knows more than she should about him because of Geto lol.

Shoko Ieiri

Besties honestly. Shoko was the one who helped refine Tamaki’s rct. Every once in a while Tamaki goes to Tokyo to talk to her and also take off some of her workload.

Masamichi Yaga

He can make an army but he chooses not to, the fuck? At least everyone who comes out of his school is strong.

[the-himawari]

A3! Takato Tasuku - Translation [SSR] MANKAI Memory (3/3)

*Please read disclaimer on blog; default name set as Izumi

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Guy: Did everyone get a glass?

Azuma: Alright, let’s toast.

Tsumugi: Happy birthday, Tasuku! Cheers!

Hisoka: Cheers.

Homare: Happiest of births, Tasuku-kun!

Izumi: Happy birthday, Tasuku-san.

Tasuku: Yeah, thanks.

Izumi: I think this every time, but the fact everyone drinks together to celebrate the birthdays in Winter troupe gives off a different feeling from the other troupes.

Tsumugi: That may be so. But there are lots of kids who have become adults now too.

Hisoka: Time flies.

Azuma: As everyone changes, it’s fun for me to keep doing this same things like this.

Guy: Right. The promise of celebrating on a certain day makes the year more interesting.

Homare: Indeed. Though… we just feel like drinking as well.

Tasuku: Don’t get carried away and drink too much. We have an after party after this.

Homare: Why, of course.

Azuma: Come to think of it, Tasuku shot his birthday bromide with some robots, right?

Homare: They must have been memorable items of his with Tsumugi-kun.

Tasuku: …Well, yeah. They reminded me that we actually loved acting all the way from back then.

Guy: Hm… that must have been so for Takato.

Hisoka: He was a theatre junkie since birth?

Homare: Oho! Yes, if it’s Tasuku-kun, then even his baby cries had acting potential!

Tasuku: No they didn’t.

Azuma: You two imagined and acted out lots of different things while playing with those toy robots, right?

Tsumugi: Yeah.

Option 1: “What kind of acting, for example?”

Izumi: What kind of acting, for example?

Tasuku: Like battling as fellow rival robots… or joining forces to fight, and so on.

Tsumugi: There were also times we went to rescue our friends or travelled to find new parts to use for our strong, special moves.

Homare: You acted out many different situations, hm?

Hisoka: They’re all about robots too.

Izumi: (Both of them must have been really absorbed playing with the robots in their hands.)

Option 2: “I hope you’ll try that again another time!”

Izumi: I hope you’ll try that again another time!

Tasuku: Err, there’s no way I’d do that.

Tsumugi: If you think of it like a puppet show etude, then wouldn’t it be possible?

Azuma: Exactly. You can use them as props.

Tasuku: I mean, you might have a point.

Tsumugi: Tasuku himself can become a robot or something!

Azuma: Sounds great.

Guy: I would also love to see Takato acting as the role of a robot.

Tasuku: Um… I don’t know about that…

Izumi: (But I'm sure Tasuku-san would get into his role and play the robot properly once he gets started.)

Izumi: Anyways, these robots have been maintained in fairly pristine condition, huh?

Tasuku: I was surprised about that too. There are scratches from when I played with them, but the blocks are intact and they were stored neatly.

Azuma: You have a wonderful family with a great brother and great parents.

Tasuku: …Yeah, that’s true. I was reminded once again how much they cared for me.

Tsumugi: It also made you feel like seeing Fuyuki-kun again, didn’t it?

Homare: If so, then why don’t we hold our after party at Tasuku-kun’s family home?

Tasuku: Ha?

Tsumugi: I’m sure Fuyuki-kun would welcome us.

Tasuku: I can’t deny that, but let’s not…

Izumi: Fufu. Let’s do that at another opportunity then.

Hisoka: That’s something more to look forward to.

Guy: Yes, indeed.

Homare: Next time we visit, I shall compose a poem about Tasuku-kun’s robots. I will ask your brother to listen to it as well.

Tasuku: You don’t need to.

Azuma: I’ll find another drink that Fuyuki-kun will enjoy.

Izumi: (Though he says that, Tasuku-san looks really happy too.) (I’m glad Tasuku-san is blessed with such great acting friends.)

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previous |

[megashadowdragon]

fgo theory is caster cu really odin 

comments : 

There is also the 10 bond CE for him being the Yggdrasil Tree, which is very Norse. (the fact he needs a bunch of Yggdrasil seeds may also be a bit of a hint.) Interestingly, the Wickerman festivals were held throughout Europe (Areas such as England and Scotland) and were regarded as a neo-pagan festivity. Chances are, if CasCu really is Odin, it is highly likely he will take action in the English Lostbelt second part. I think itd be really cool, but if that was the case itd be more likely Cu caster was a Cu-Odin fusion similar to Scathach-Skadi. We know its within Odin's ability to do a fusion like this due to how he did the same for Skadi. It also explains how caster cu retains the protection from arrows and disengage skills. It also makes more sense how he's kept his identity a secret, because it's not false that he is Cu.

www . reddit . com/r/grandorder/comments/lkw9xm/summary_of_the_caster_cu_chulainnodin_theory/

At absolutely no point does he ever give his name or makes any mention to it.

Other Servants who initially don't give their names say that they'll give it to you later. Caster does not even bring up the subject.

In the Garden of Sinners crossover event, he says "there's no Cú Chulainn here". It's treated as a gag, but...

In the Singularity F Memorial Quest, he's the only Servant referred to by his Class name instead of his True name.

In Lostbelt 6 he finally introduces himself... as Grimnir. This is an alias that Odin uses in the Grímnismál.

He's not supposed to be the Caster of the Fuyuki Grail War in the first place. In the original reality, it's Medea, while in FGO reality it's Solomon. Material states that Singularity F is the result of data colliding, and Caster resulted from that. However, in that case it should be either Solomon or Medea who appear in Singularity F, not Cú Chulainn.

One of his lines goes as following: "Isn't bit boring to play a game that never ends? For better or for worse, it's like you can't move the pieces forward, yeah?" Is he talking about Singularity F? At any rate, this sounds weird.

His Final Ascension art and animation update features two white wolves. Odin is stated to have two wolves named Geri and Freki.

His second Noble Phantasm, which he mentions in one of his My Room lines, is called "Ochd Deug Odin - Seal of the Great God". It's an exceedingly powerful Rank A Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm with potentially Game Breaking effects, but what's interesting is its description: it activates by chanting its True Name and using all 18 primordial runes granted by Scáthach at once (keep in mind she taught him the Norse ones) and it "temporarily unleashes the power of the rune possessed by the Great Odin". Aside from the weirdness of him even having that Noble Phantasm in the first place (he's not supposed to have Wickerman either, but at least we get an explanation for that), why can't he use it? (Potential Game-Breaker status not withstanding).

In the North America version of the game, his Bond Craft Essense is called "Yggdrasil Tree". That's taken from Norse Mythology, so why would a Celt have it?

In addition, the Yggdrasil tree has a particularly strong tie to Odin. The Ygg bit is another name for him, and according to legend at some point he hanged himself from one of its branches to gain wisdom.

For some reason, he's in the Nordic Fields during Boudica's 3rd Strengthening Quest.

During Valentine's Day in the return gift scene, he talks about the Human Order Incineration and the Human Order Reorganization - a.k.a. the Lostbelts. Somehow he knew about the Lostbelts before the game even got to that point.

In the 2019 Valentine's event, he's seen reading the book "Scandinavia's Beautiful Mountains".

In the FGO mats, Sigurd takes special notice of him and then has a Double Take. He also seems confused about him in his material profile. The fact that Sigurd noticed Caster is odd, but it should also be noted that Sigurd encountered Odin a number of times in his legend, thus making him one of the most likely people to recognize him.

Scáthach's Interlude brings up a LOT of questions. The regular Lancer Cú Chulainn says that his power is reduced because half his Saint Graph is missing. Mash suggests that the reduction in power may be because he was separated in numerous classes, but Lancer Cú is surprised that he can be summoned as a Caster. In addition, there are several Servants summonable in numerous classes, and none of them has this problem. There's a possibility that the other half of the Saint Graph went to Caster, and he's using an external source to stabilize it.

According to the Arcade version of FGO, it's impossible for any version of Cú Chulainn to be summoned without Gáe Bolg or the skill "Martial Arts Disciplining in the Shadow Country". Yet Caster has neither, thus making him an impossible summoning.

Not very noticeable in the English version, but he occasionally slips into using the "washi" pronoun during dialogue. For those who might not know, "washi" is actually pretty formal, and contrasts Cú Chulainn's much more casual "ore".

A lot of his official art has him looking subtly different that the other versions of Cú Chulainn.

He has lighter-coloured hair in all of his artwork, and Fate/Grand Carnival gives him wrinkles under the eyes. This trait is usually used in anime to show a character around 40-50 years old; an age that Cú Chulainn never reached.

In his card art and formal outfit card, his eyes are almost orange rather than red. In addition, one eye is always at least partially hidden.

In his April Fool's card, he has different facial features than the rest of the Cú Chulainns.

Tying to the above, Odin is known for disguising himself as an older man, usually a wizard, in a hood, and he's missing an eye. Missing eye aside, Caster fits most of that criteria, and as pointed out above, most his art hides his eye anyway. Odin gave said eye in exchange for wisdom, and there are a few remarks that Caster is getting smarter.

In the original Fate/stay night, Emiya draws a connection between Gáe Bolg and Odin's spear, Gungnir. Considering that he has picked up things like Rho Aias and Caladbolg, we can probably take him at his word. In his animation update, Caster throws his staff above the enemies heads, and then it changes tragectory to attack them from behind. While this could easily be a reference to Gáe Bolg's actual method of killing in the myth (it entered the victim through the asshole), it could also be a reference to how Odin would throw Gungnir above the heads of his enemies to declare a war.

Another detail from his animation upgrade is that his Instant Runes often take the form of a Valknut; this symbol according to some scholars is associated with Odin.

There are overall several indications that Caster will play a significant role later in the story: he's featured in the trailer of Lostbelt 6 and received his animation update during the Lostbelt 6 livestream, and Word of God has implied several times that we will be returning to Singularity F at some point.

Tying to the above, in one of My Room conversations, he say's he'll teach you how to use Runes later. Maybe it's not Blatant Lies after all.

Caster and Odin share several personality traits. Both of them are known as "the raging one", are strongly tied with the concept of war, magic, and wisdom, and both of them are The Gadfly - as Caster displays in Singularity F when he tries to get Mash to activate her Noble Phantasm. In addition, in various events Caster seems to have a gambling problem, which is also one of Odin's traits. Not to mention "summon me as a Lancer" works for Odin too.

The recent Lostbelt 6 update also adds fuel to the fire. In My Room dialogues, Scáthach tells him that his Rune magic is slightly different from what she taught him. He asks Sigurd not to look at him with the glasses, when he sees Brynhildr he muses that this must be fate/karma and specifically refers to Scáthach-Skadi as "Lostbelt Skadi."

His new battle lines from the same update are just as interesting.

"Witness the essence of the Rune magecraft taught by Scáthach... Sure, let's go with that." Along with Scáthach accusing him of his Rune magic being different, this could easily imply that he didn't learn them from her.

Another line is that "he doesn't have the noose of his neck anymore". As an above point states, this Odin did this to learn his runes. The noose bit also never happened to Cú Chulainn.

One of his victory lines references "wolves and crows" and that he has "no idea what they're talking about". The crows part could be a reference to the story of Cú Chulainn's death, which features a crow sitting on his corpse, but the whole quote seems to better reference Odin and his pets; the wolves Geri and Freki, and the crows Huginn and Muninn.

Lostbelt 6 also gives his a buff to his Disengage skill. More specifically, it's actually two buffs that activate back-to-back, with the first called "At the Fountain" and the second called "Sacrifice to the World Tree". Very specific, game.

In Lostbelt 2, it is outright stated that it was Odin who fused Skadi and Scáthach together. Who says he never did it before?

[hasspartacusdoneanythingwrong]

The Flame-Soaked City, Part 3

We rejoin our heroes with their first servants as they search for the cause of the Fuyuki Singularity. Unbeknownst to them, they have acquired the ire of a certain serpentine servant! How will they handle the Wrath of the Medusa? Check it out below the break!

(As before, mental speech is between <> triangle brackets. When the person fronting switches, there’s a line break with three hypens.)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 4

Obligatory tags: @haspaulbunyandoneanythingwrong @hasishtardoneanythingwrong @hasquetzdoneanythingwrong @hasabbydoneanythingwrong 

Marie: We’re doomed.

Cris: I have absolutely no idea what you mean. I think I did great for a first time!

Jeanne: <I really do not think twisting the knife is a good idea right now…>

Marie: Well if you had bothered to read any of the preparatory materials you would! We knew Spartacus was a possibility, but…

Marie: He is the Hero of Rebellion. His purpose in life is to destroy any sort of control one human has over another. And you are his MASTER. Do I really need to spell out to you the kind of jeopardy he puts this entire mission in? Experienced mages would last seconds with him in a normal grail war, what chance does a novice like you have?

Cris: I’ve met experienced mages. I’m surprised he has so much self-control.

Jeanne:<Cris!>

I can just tell Jeanne’s about to harp at me again, but I really don’t care right now. Today’s been shit, my face hurts, and I don’t even have that stupid spell to help me get around.

…But as fun as poking at the director is, it’s not going to make this argument end faster.

Cris: Ma’am, I know he’s a risk, but so is everything else we’re doing here. Realistically, none of us should be alive right now, and even ignoring the danger we were in, we’re now in a part of a history that, by all rights, shouldn’t exist. At the very least if Spartacus turns on us, I can hear him coming from a mile away.

Spartacus: That is correct, young miss! When I rebel I do so proudly, so the world may know of my love!

Cris: Finally, someone on my side.

Cris: Wait, how long have you been listening in?

Spartacus: The entire time!

Cris: <I have no idea how to respond to that.> Mash, are the assassins back from scouting yet?

Mash: I think I see them now, Senpai!

Jeanne: <If we are heading out, I should be in front.>

Cris: <Fine by me. At least that way we’ll have some idea what’s going on.>

---

A small surge of mana later, and I can sense the members of our travelling group again. Olga Marie is heading over to Mash, who has “Saber Lily” following her around like a lost puppy. Spartacus wanders off near the edge of camp, and off in the distance is….

That is not an Assassin.

Jeanne: Mash, Saber, be on your guard! Marie, what are the odds of a friendly servant wandering around out here?

Saber Lily: Ready!

Marie: Impossible. We’re in the middle of the Fuyuki Grail War. Even if the servants weren’t involved with the singularity’s creation, they’d consider us an opponent.

Jeanne: <Is it just me, or is something off with their spirit origin?>

As they drew closer, I could feel their spirit origin more clearly. It was very different from the servants we summoned, almost as if their origin had been bent, twisted out of shape by some force. I think they are a cavalry class?

Jeanne: <Fascinating…>

Kat: <You can ogle later, they’re here!>

???: Hm. I thought Caster was the only one left. No matter. You there, the master! Give up your life now and I’ll make this quick.

Jeanne: Mash, are you ready for a fight?

Mash: I’ll do my best, Senpai!

???: Ah, fresh prey then? This will be a treat. Is this your first fight? Let a veteran give you some advice!

Faster than I could think, she lunged forward for an attack. A dull clang as Mash barely blocked the attack, and then she was back where she started.

???: Be careful what you say and do- for once you say “Fight”, the battle has already begun!

The enemy servant was incredibly fast, bouncing from one position to another to strike at every angle. Thankfully Mash was keeping up, circling around us almost as fast as the enemy, but even I could tell she couldn’t keep it up for long. With every strike we were getting encircled ever tighter.

Jeanne: Saber, stay close to Mash and see what you can do to strike back.

Saber Lily: On it!

Saber tried her best, but the enemy is simply too fast. Every time she got into position for a counterattack, the other servant changed their angle of attack so she could not land a blow. This is not going well, where on earth is-

Jeanne: Spartacus!

Spartacus: Yes!

The berserker was standing well outside the battlefield, watching the fight drag on.

Cris: What the hell are you doing!?

Spartacus: This is a fight between equals, I have no right to interfere!

Cris: ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS?

Spartacus: Yes!

Jeanne: <We are going to die here.>

Kat: Hey Lily, if you knew where Rider was going to be, do you think you could hit her?

Saber Lily: I think so, why?

Kat: I’ve got an idea!

Jeanne: <The floor is yours.>

---

I step up, and all the magic feeling’s gone. We can hear stuff though! Rider’s still runnin’ around, bouncing off of Mash’s shield. I hear a clang in front of me, so I step back, out of the safe zone.

Shadow Rider: FINALLY!

I hear a lot of movement on my left, and then Lily’s sword must’ve hit, because the whole left side of my body got super warm for a second. Also we weren’t dead, that was a big hint.

Jeanne: <Do you have any idea how dangerous that was??? Are you insane?>

Cris: <Ask yourself that question again, and just… really think about it this time.>

Marie: Do you have any idea how dangerous that little stunt was? Are you mad?

Kat: Yes! But it worked, didn’t it? Good job Lily! I knew you could do it!

Marie: I… *sigh* If the singularity doesn’t do me in, the heart attacks will.

Mash: Please never do that again, Senpai.

Suddenly everyone got real tense again.

Mash: Senpai, another servant incoming!

Jeanne: <Let me check!>

---

It was the Hassans this time, thank God.

Hundred Personas: Our humblest apologies, we should have stationed some of our numbers nearby in case of such an attack. This will not happen again.

Kate: I’m just glad she wasn’t using her noble phantasm! Things coulda been a lot worse.

Jeanne: What did you find out from scouting?

Hundred Personas: There is a large source of energy in the west, it’s likely what’s causing the singularity. We lost a few Hassans trying to investigate.

Hundred Personas: More importantly, we noticed two other servants on our way back. We could not engage them directly, and they are both heading in this direction. We have a few minutes, at most, before they arrive.

[number1mongrel]

Fire Flowers

This is my fic for @kumeko for the @fateverse-exchange ! An all-ages everybody lives AU diartoria fic with the Emiya family!

Summery: The Emiya family goes to a summer fireworks festival. Artoria invites Diarmuid along as well.

It was Irisviel who first heard about the Fuyuki summer fireworks festival. Artoria was not surprised in the least that she’d immediately decided they were all attending. The next week was spent shopping and waiting in anticipation, with excited buzzing throughout the Emiya house.

It was then a few days before the event that Artoria approached the woman in question as she was reading yet another brochure. “Lady Irisviel… May I ask you a favor?”

Instantly dropping her small book of info on various festivals, Irisivel said, "Of course, Saber! Anything!”

“Might I… invite Lancer along with us? His Master and Mistress don’t allow him to have many days off, even now that the war has been over for some time, but…”

Irisviel smiled with some other emotion that wasn’t immediately clear. She laughed. “Yes, I think you should do that,” she said. “I’m sure it would make him very happy.”

When the day did finally come, the Emiya family—now a group of five when it had been three only six months ago—with Diarmuid in tow arrived at a hillside near the river, on the outskirts of Shinto. The hot summer evening was alive with music and cheerful voices. Warm bright lanterns illuminated the park in front of them, with hanging decorations, stalls, and outfits splashing their rainbow of colors into the mix as well. The scents of the various food options created an aroma acting as a haze of delight encompassing the entire area. 

“A real festival!” Irisviel declared, clapping her hands together with an awed look on her face. “Yes, this is just how I hoped it would be.” She was dressed in a floral pink yukata she’d bought just for the occasion. The fabric was still new, the pink hydrangea pattern bright and crisp. Her hair was tied in a beautiful updo, held together with a matching hydrangea pin.

Artoria snapped out of her mouthwatering smell-induced haze and said, “This is certainly quite a gathering. It’s not that similar, yet it does remind me a bit of the celebrations we had in my time,” she said. The black suit she’d worn during the war had been replaced with a long airy dark skirt and a short-sleeved light blouse. 

“I was thinking the same thing,” said Diarmuid next to her. With his new clothes he seemed to blend right into the modern world. He was dressed fairly professionally for the event; his forest green dress shirt was well-ironed but not stiff, allowing him a casualness to his appearance despite the outfit. He had the sleeves buttoned-up to the elbows, exposing his muscular forearms. His black slacks similarly walked the line between formal and informal. Artoria thought it was fitting for a man who was most at home in nature and yet was now in the service of a prominent mage.

Illya had eyes wide with excitement, but she still stuck closely to her father’s plain faded yukata. Being around so many strangers could be scary for any child, nonetheless one who had lived completely sheltered until recently.

Then there was Shirou, practically swinging with energy holding Kiritsugu’s hand. Despite the fact his original parents had died in an accident not that long ago, he seemed to fit right into the Emiya family like he was there all along. “Let’s go!” he said. 

Kiritsugu gave a small laugh. “Yes, we’re going, we’re going,” he said, starting to walk forward. The warm relaxed expression he wore now was nothing Artoria could have imagined from him when she was first summoned.

As the family began walking towards the entrance, Irisviel stopped, turned around, and took Artoria’s hand. “I almost forgot,” she said, giving her a coin purse. “Just in case we get separated and you want something to eat. Feel free to spend all of it. It’s really no trouble.” 

Artoria gave her thanks and Irisviel went back to walk with the others. Once she was gone, Artoria opened the purse and widened her eyes at the amount. “She is really too kind…” she said with a light sigh. 

“Well,” said Diarmuid. “Shall we follow them?”

They went through the entrance together, both of their eyes wandering through the unfamiliar sights, as well as the massive amount of families and couples that seemed to be here. Children were running around in masks with toys held high above their heads, not seeming to pay notice to any adults they might be getting in the way of. 

“It’s very crowded,” Artoria said, furrowing her brow as she was just barely able to avoid colliding with another man. 

“It is,” Diarmuid agreed, practically gleaming. 

Artoria spotted Irisviel and the rest buying cotton candy at a stall a short distance away. Her mouth opened as she locked eyes with the fluffy sugary treat. She had entered targeting mode.

“Would you like some, Saber?” Diarmuid asked. 

Artoria cleared her throat. “It would be a waste not to try it while we’re here,” she said.

They went over to the stand as well. Artoria took out the coin purse. “May I have two of these treats please?” she asked the worker.

Diarmuid took his wallet from his pocket, but Artoria shook her head. “You are my guest. For this, at least, I would like to treat you,” she said.

The man looked between her and Diarmuid and gave them a confident smile. “Two cotton candies coming up for the lady and her date,” he said.

“Her what?” asked Artoria. 

Irisviel, standing nearby, giggled.

Diarmuid gave a light shrug. “It must be a modern word the grail didn’t teach us.”

They received their cotton candies and went over to where the rest of their group was sitting at a picnic table. Kiritsugu and Illya were on one side, with Irisviel and Shirou on the other. Both benches looked to have room for one more person. 

“Saber! Come here!” Shirou said.

Without a second thought, Artoria slid into the side with the mom and son duo. Diarmuid remained standing, avoiding eye contact with Kiritsugu. 

“Oh!” Artoria exclaimed after taking a bite. “It’s very sweet!”

“It’s incredible!” Irisviel exclaimed. “It’s soft at first, like the name would suggest, then after only a moment it melts completely in your mouth!” She took another bite.

Illya and Shirou seemed to be enjoying it as well, eating theirs so fast they were sure to get a stomach ache later. Kiritsugu was eating slower but seemed to be enjoying himself just as much.

Artoria looked to Diarmuid and watched as he took a small and hesitant bite. “It’s good,” he said, a smile replacing any apprehension that had been showing before. “So this is what sugar is like. It is quite remarkable indeed. To think in our time a mere taste of sugar would have been beyond our understanding, and here is an entire ball of it.”

Something in what he said had bothered her. “Have you not tried much of modern food since you’ve been summoned? It’s been almost six months since the war ended.”

“Ah… Well, since we are still Servants that do not require nourishment, my Master thought it was unnecessary and wasteful for me to have anything. Though back during the war he did have me eat a piece of one of Caster’s monsters because he thought it might increase my magical energy.” The memory of the last part seemed to be enough for him to grimace at the cotton candy and slightly push it away.

Artoria felt her dislike of Kayneth begin to swell. “I see…” she said. “Well there is plenty to try here. Lady Irisviel has given me this money to use as I see fit, so I shall spend it trying various treats with you.”

A softer and gentler smile now came to his face. “Thank you,” he said.

Artoria’s heart sped up a bit. How strange… her magic resistance should still be protecting her from his curse.  

They kept eating, with Illya even letting Artoria try some of the different flavor she got. Once they had all finished, they got up and kept moving, but only walked around a few minutes before stopping again. A rich, belly-filling smell accompanied by a beautiful sizzling noise preventing Artoria, Shirou, and Illya from moving any further like they were trapped in a bounded field. The only such culprit could be something fried.

“Okonomiyaki,” Kiritsugu said. “I think you would like it, Iri. And that cotton candy certainly wasn’t enough for dinner. How about we have some of this?”

There was unanimous agreement on that front. Diarmuid took out his wallet once again, but this time it was Irisviel who shook her head. “Let Kiritsugu do this. He may not say anything about it, but, well…” She gave an apologetic grin and looked at the back of her husband, who paid for the food with no indication he could hear them.

With an unsteady glance at the couple, Diarmuid lowered his head like he was going to kneel for a bow before remembering such a thing would be conspicuous here. Instead, he simply said, “Thank you. You honor me and my lord with your kindness, even if it is unnecessary.” 

Soon, several fluffy savory pancakes were cooked to order, covered with a drizzle of mayonnaise and other toppings. The aroma of the finished product was even stronger than when it was cooking. The group moved off to the side of the crowded path, not even waiting until the treat had cooled before digging in.

While the others began eating, before Diarmuid could even take so much as a bite he had to fend off a few curse-stricken women who approached him asking for his phone number. By the time that was over Artoria had eaten more than half of hers. “How does this fare?” he asked.

“Excellent,” she said, then blew on another piece to cool it down before putting it into her mouth. She was so focused on eating it seemed that was the only answer she could give at the moment.

Diarmuid began eating his as well. “Though the ingredients and the taste are different, the fact that this contains wheat makes it feel familiar. Certainly more than the cotton candy. Hm, yes, I would say I like this a lot.”

Now completely finished, Artoria nodded. “You put it rather well.”

Despite not being finished with their own okonomiyaki yet, Illya and Shirou seemed keen to move on and keep looking around. “I’m sorry Saber,” Irisiviel said, as she was being pulled. “I’m not sure we’ll be able to stay in any one place for very long. We’ll meet up again in a bit, alright?”

“Yes, don’t concern yourself with waiting for me. I hope you are able to have fun together.”

The rest of the family took off and she turned back to Diarmuid, who for some reason was giving a concerned glance towards the ground. “Is something the matter?” she asked.

He shook his head. “It is nothing worth mentioning. I just wonder… is it truly alright for me to be here with the rest of you? Am I not getting in the way of your time spent with your Master?”

“Not at all. I am hardly here to spend time with that man anyway,” she said. "As for the others, I am living with them now, and we all get plenty of time together day to day. Regardless of that, though… I invited you here because I wanted to. We did not get the honor of finishing our duel during the war, but now that our spirits are trapped in this era for the time being, nothing would give me greater pleasure than spending time with you, Diarmuid Ua Duibhne.”

The soft smile he had before returned, and his cheeks began to look the same color as the sweet treat he’d had not long ago. “Thank you. Your words are extremely kind. More so than a mere knight like me might deserve,” he said.

“Well that is just utter nonsense,” Artoria said. “You are one of the finest knights I’ve ever faced in battle. Have you forgotten the times you have bested me? I do not wish to brag, but that is not an easy feat. Your knack for strategy, as well as your strength and speed, are simply remarkable. You can wield your two lances better than most can ever wield one.

“Besides your skills with the spear,” she continued before he could interrupt, “I respect your sense of honor and chivalry, and, frankly, I appreciate your respect for me as a king. Thought not unexpected, I’ve found recently that many others seem to disagree with my ideals…” She shook her head and looked back to him. “You are also simply a pleasant person.”

“Are you certain you are not the one famous for their charms?” Diarmuid teased with a grin. Though still blushing, his eyes were full of kindness. “You certainly know just the right thing to say.”

“Historically that has not been the case for me. However, you are quite easy to talk to, perhaps because I am not your king.” 

With one more fond look at her, he turned back to his okonomiyaki.

Diarmuid continued eating, with Artoria standing by his side watching the crowds pass as she waited for him to finish. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Memories came flooding back to her. The celebrations she’d attended as a young girl, the Christmases where she’d eat and dance and sing with everyone else. And then there was the sword in the stone, and the Christmases after where she stood and watched, observed her people do those same things, where she’d take the plainest and smallest cut of meat, as the people around her drank and celebrated to their hearts’ content.

Opening her eyes again, she saw Diarmuid next to her, close to done with his food; his famous beauty bathed in the various colors of light shining all around them. The way he ate, he was unconcerned with manners—not unexpected for a Celtic knight—but yet his movements were so graceful and precise, Artoria could see why so many would fall for him, even without a curse. Why that thought came to her mind just now she couldn’t say.

He finished his last bite, licking his lips and swiping the back of his thumb across them. Crumbling his paper plate, he dropped it in a nearby trash can and asked, “Is there anything you would like to do?”

Artoria looked around and spotted some carnival games down the aisle of stands. “What would you say about continuing our duel off the battlefield? Though not as honorable as a fight to the death, these games here seem to require some amount of skill and dexterity.”

Diarmuid nodded. “An excellent idea,” he said.

They went back into the crowd, walking until they came across a shooting game. A few children ran away just as they approached, laughing and clutching their prizes in hand. The booth had several shelves of prizes ranging from candy to figures to stuffed animals. Artoria saw Diarmuid’s eyes scan the shelves, lighting up as they made contact with a toy plush dog. 

Diarmuid then picked up one of the guns sitting on the ledge and turned it over in his hands. “Despite being given the knowledge of how to use these, I have never seen one up close. Although I’m sure you have, as your Master is very fond of these types of weapons.”

Artoria sighed. “Yes, he is,” she said flatly. She leaned over to look more closely at the gun. “Is it safe to have such a deadly weapon used for a mere child’s game?”

The teenager running the booth, sweating from the summer heat and the bright lights, gave them a strange look. “Um… they’re not real. They just shoot corks. If you can hit the prize with the cork it’s yours,” he said.

“I see.” Artoria picked up one of the other guns. She held it at arms’ length and nodded to herself, before she two began twisting it in her hands. “It’s very light. I assume that is because it is made out of plastic as opposed to metal. And the way you hold it…. This is not a weapon that can be used as an extension of one’s own body.”

“Indeed,” Diarmuid said. He tried lifting it up in aiming position at the prizes, tilting his head and adjusting the distance of the gun from his chest. 

The game operator shifted around uncomfortably and stared at them in confusion. “If you want to play, that’s two hundred yen each. Otherwise, could you step aside please? There are other people who would like a turn.”

“Ah,” said both Artoria and Diarmuid, looking behind them to see three or four people who looked like they were starting to get impatient.

“My apologies, sir,” the former said with a slight bow. She looked back to Diarmuid. “Well? Shall we see who shall be the victor of that toy dog?” 

Diarmuid looked a bit surprised but gave a small laugh and nodded. “Yes, a fair wager indeed, Saber,” he said.

They paid the fee and took up arms, standing so close side-by-side they were practically touching. 

“Though we are both already experts of sword and spear, I don’t suppose this will allow us to qualify for the Archer class,” Artoria said.

“We certainly shall see,” Diarmuid responded. After flicking his eyes back to her one more time, he took his first shot. It missed, just barely, hitting the wooden ledge right below the dog instead. It was much closer than would be expected of someone who’d never held any sort of gun before, but that was warrior’s instinct and the Grail’s knowledge for you.

Artoria narrowed her eyes, aiming the barrel right at the nose of the dog. With the same amount of concentration she would use for a mana burst, she pulled the trigger. Another miss, this one going slightly too far to the right and passing by the dog entirely.

Not wasting any time, she reloaded her weapon, fired her next shot, and— 

“Holy shit…” muttered the game operator. 

Artoria’s cork had collided with Diarmuid’s own second shot, knocking each other off path, leading to another miss.

“Has your aim improved so much in just one shot?” Artoria said, putting in another cork.

“Alas, I am not that skilled,” Diarmuid said, reloading his own gun. “It was pure chance.”

Still, both of their shots had seemed to be on aim to hit the target if they hadn’t hit each other first. They were clearly getting better as they went along with this, and with one more shot one of them should be able to do it. It just came down to who could shoot first.

Artoria kept her gaze firmly on the toy as she raised to shoot once more, listening to the sounds of Diarmuid raising his as well. They would end up firing at nearly the same time again. The barrel only wavered once or twice before steadying right in the goal zone. And with that, quick as her fingers could, she fired her third shot. And according to her ears, Diarmuid had done the same.

Observing the half a millisecond as only a trained warrior could, Artoria watched both corks fly towards the toy, nearly identical in their path. They were both close now, soon to hit. The one that would get there first was— 

The soft thud of the cork hitting the stuffed dog was not nearly loud or intense enough to portray the atmosphere that had just occurred. Nevertheless, the teenage boy on the other side of the booth clapped his hands together. 

“We have a winner!” he said. He walked to the back where the prizes were and removed the dog—judging by its color and the shape of its plush head, it was probably meant to resemble a greyhound—from its perch and brought it back over to the contestants. 

He stuck it over the counter. “For you, Miss,” he said.

“Thank you,” Artoria said, smiling as she took it from him. It was soft, in both the texture of its fur and how it was stuffed.

“Congratulations,” Diarmuid said earnestly, placing the gun back in its place. “It was a fair duel but you have bested me. I suppose you are the one who shall be summoned in the Archer class next time.”

They walked away from the booth, their place immediately taken by others behind them. 

“Simple luck,” disputed Artoria. “There is little room in such a game for strategy.” 

She tilted her head, and with a simple satisfied smile to herself she stuck out the dog towards him. “Please take this,” she said.

“But you won it fairly.”

“I only picked this as the prize because you seemed fond of it.”

Having no counterargument to that, Diarmuid took it from her and held it lovingly. He played with its ears between his fingers and said, “Thank you, truly. It reminded me of the dog I had when I was alive. I would like to properly repay you someway.”

He stopped walking as they passed a stand selling various masks. Some were traditional designs, some animals, and others characters from children’s television shows. “Would you like one of these?” he asked.

“If you are going to insist on buying me one anyway…” She picked up a lion mask. “This one seems nice.” 

Diarmuid pulled out his wallet and paid the man standing nearby as Artoria put on the mask. “It looks lovely. I think it suits you very well,” he said after turning back to her.

His compliment made her chest swell again. Why… she had never cared when someone complimented her like this before. “Thank you,” she said, turning it to the side of her head to see. “Shall we move on to the next game?”

They went goldfish-scooping next. Unlike the shooting game, though...

“Ah, this is much more difficult than it looks,” Diarmuid said with a wince as his third scooper broke, letting his captured fish escape to freedom. Well, momentary freedom before it was caught again by someone else.

“Ha!” Artoria cried as swung in with another fierceful scoop. It cupped a panicking fish for only a moment before the paper burst, and Artoria’s arm finished its swing with nothing to show for it. 

She fell to her knees. “Utter defeat… I have been bested by the fragility of these scoops.”

Diarmuid raised a hand to his face to stifle a fit of laughter, turning away as his shoulders trembled with mirth.

Artoria frowned and folded her arms. “Does my failure amuse you, Lancer?”

He shook his head and looked back to her. “No, no. My apologies. It was just… a rarer side of you. It’s rather cute.”

Her face now felt rather hot. “Not you too… Lady Irisviel already insists on teasing me in such a way,” she sighed.

Diarmuid picked up another scoop (his last for what they paid), and said, “I see. I meant no offense, but I will refrain from referring to you in such a way from now on… Oh?” While he was talking, he had made his final attempt, and now held a flailing goldfish. 

“I’m impressed,” Artoria said. “It seems you are the one who has bested me this time.”

They got the fish wrapped to be taken home in a plastic bag full of water. Diarmuid held it up to stare at the creature swimming around, then handed it towards Artoria. “This will make a nice gift to your Master’s children,” he said. “I’m afraid if I give it to my lord it will only end up the victim of some mage experiment.”

“You should be the one to give it to them. They will appreciate it just the same. If you are worried about their opinion of you, you need not be,” she said. “Though it might not be obvious from their excitement, they seem rather comfortable being around you despite not knowing you very well.”

“I was a father of four children,” he said, eyes full of a longing bittersweet nostalgia. “Though the circumstances… Well, anyway, I suppose I am simply used to being around them. They might be picking up on that. You seem rather well with them too. They treat you like you like a member of their own family. You also… You’ve already spent much time with them at this point, so I understand.”

Artoria smiled and nodded, thankful that he had not asked a question she didn’t want to answer. “Yes…The days seem to pass quickly. It’s been rather nice.”

Diarmuid looked like he was going to say something else when a voice called out to them.

“Oh Saber! There you are!” Irisviel came running over towards them. A few strands of her updo had come loose, creating a cloud of silver around her head. 

“Lady Irisviel,” Artoria said, gripping Irisviel’s arm to steady her as the latter ran out of breath. “Is everything alright?” 

Once she’d recovered, Irisviel grabbed Artoria’s hand and started to pull her in the direction she’d just come from. “Yes, everything’s wonderful!” she exclaimed. "Shirou and Illya got these little yo-yo balloons filled with water. They’re having so much fun playing with them! Kiritsugu won them some prizes too. Oh and I got to try shaved ice! It’s very cold but also sweet!”

“I’m glad you’ve been able to enjoy yourself,” said Artoria as she was dragged along. “But… might I ask where you’re taking me?”

“The fireworks should be starting soon, so I thought we should all get together and watch them. Oh, but we still have a little time, and there’s another snack I thought you’d like to try.”

They swam back through the crowd, with Diarmuid following close behind them. The sun was indeed beginning to set, and more people than ever seemed to be bustling about, searching for good viewpoints to watch where the fireworks were going to be set off.

Kiritsugu and the kids were waiting for them by another food stand, sharing a basket of the treat in question between them. 

As the scent hit her, Artoria perked up again, already feeling her stomach beginning to growl despite having eaten not that long ago. 

“They’re octopus pieces fried in little balls,” Irisviel said. 

Artoria nodded, looking at the booth where the person was preparing a fresh batch. The banner at the top said “takoyaki”, and a sign underneath listed a few different types for sale. Her eyes were drawn to the one at the bottom of the list, with the image of several chili peppers surrounding it, and the label reading “Hot!”. 

She looked to Diarmuid and saw him standing by Illya and Shirou. “Would the two of you be interested in this fish?” he asked them, holding out the bag.

They both cheered. Shirou looked to Kiritsugu, who nodded, but Illya took it in her hands without even bothering to check. The goldfish was swimming in circles, unaware it had changed owners.

“Thank you, Mr. Lancer,” Illya said, with Shirou adding his own thank you as well.

Diarmuid smiled. “Make sure to take good care of it. It needs to be properly cared for. Even a tiny fish is a big responsibility.”

The two children nodded. 

“We can stop off at the store to buy supplies on our way home,” Kiritsugu said. He looked at Diarmuid, whose smile turned a bit awkward in return.

“Lancer…” said Artoria, pointing to the spicy takoyaki listing. “What do you say about making this our tie-breaker challenge?”

Diarmuid looked at the label and considered, folding his arms. His stuffed dog from earlier was tucked in his elbow. “Food with a taste that hurts you… I have heard my Master complain about it. I would say I am fairly curious to try it myself,” he said.

“I have had some since my summoning here, but it was all relatively mild. I’m interested to try this as well.”

“Oh, a contest?” Irisviel asked, practically fluttering with excitement. “That sounds like fun. I can’t handle spicy food, but I’m excited to watch!”

Artoria ordered the hottest option of takoyaki, and in a minute she was holding a paper basket filled with ten little battered balls. They were warm, heating her hand through the paper, cooked to a beautiful golden brown and covered with sauce and spices. The smell of them stung her nose along with making her mouth water. 

She and Diarmuid each took a piece with a toothpick. “The one who stops first shall lose. Or otherwise, the one who eats more shall win,” the former said.

“Yes, that works,” said Diarmuid. “Shall we?”

The rest of the Emiya family watched as they raised the takoyaki to their mouths. “Ready, go!” called Irisviel, cupping her mouth with her hands.

They both took a bite.

“Mm!”

“M-mm…!”

Artoria’s mouth filled with an unfamiliar pain. She was burning, her mouth was on fire. Her eyes pricked with tears. And yet, the taste was exquisite. Absolutely delicious. Chewy and soft, fluffy and spicy. But still, it hurt so much she wasn’t sure how much more she’d be able to eat.

Though, Diarmuid appeared to be worse off. His eyes were also watering, and his face was flushed red. He swallowed and coughed, holding a hand over the bottom of his face and sniffing. 

“Too much for you to handle?” Artoria teased, picking up a second piece. 

Diarmuid shook his head, forcing a grin on his face and shakily taking another one as well. “It was a surprise,” he said, voice raspy. “However, it is nothing I can’t handle.”

Artoria’s second bite hurt more than her first. The pain compounded. What was before just a few spots on her tongue now coated the roof of her mouth and her throat as well. But the taste was just as good. If she could just focus on that… 

“Ugh…” Diarmuid swallowed, wincing. His tears had spilled over and were running down his face. He held out his toothpick to pick up another, but hesitated.

Not letting that opportunity pass by, Artoria quickly grabbed another. Her mouth was getting numb. She could barely focus on what was in front of her. Yet she could do this. Even as the white-hot spiciness caused her own tears to fall, she was starting to feel like she wanted more. If she just ate another one before she could simmer in the pain too much, the delicious flavor would allow her to go faster, and she could win.

She took her fourth as Diarmuid took his third. They were getting close to the end. Diarmuid looked like he was nearing his limit. Still, despite her strategy, she couldn’t last much longer herself. 

Shirou and Illya cheered them on, continuing to eat their own non-spicy takoyaki.

Artoria could barely see over her tears, her face and lips burning now along with her mouth. Despite how good it tasted, she wasn’t sure she could handle any more. If it was any other sort of pain she could handle it. She was a knight, and a king. She was not weak. But this was still new, and she had no tolerance. The idea of losing in a battle of food frustrated her, but there was nothing to be done. Her toothpick trembled just above a fifth piece. With reluctance she stabbed it in and brought it close to her mouth. No, it was too much. There was no way she could. “I…”

“Concede,” Diarmuid said. He coughed again, his voice jagged and brow knit with pain. His flushed face was shiny with sweat and his eyes were slightly swollen from the tears. It was not a look Artoria had seen on him before. So vulnerable and uncomposed… What had he said about her before? A rarer side… It was… 

“Saber wins!” Irisviel cheered.

Grateful she didn’t have to eat another bite (though she might try again another time), Artoria breathed a sigh of relief. She traded the basket with Irisviel, who offered her a napkin and a plastic cup full of water. Not wasting any time, she gulped down the water and cleaned off her face with the napkin. Her mouth still felt like the Battle of Camlann, but the pain was slowly dissipating. “You did well, Lancer,” she said. Her voice was pretty hoarse herself.

He wiped himself down as well after drinking his own cup. “In my life I participated in many drinking and eating competitions with my fellow knights, but this was by far the most interesting one, despite my loss.” He started laughing, and this time made no effort to stop it.

Oh, the word was cute.

As she came to this realization, an announcement came over the loudspeaker stating the fireworks would start in five minutes.

“Oh, quickly, let’s go!” Irisviel said, grabbing both of them. 

The party of six walked a bit more, leaving the densely-packed booths and finding an empty spot on the nearby hill. It was still crowded, but now they had an unobstructed view. The chattering excitement of the crowd was reaching a peak. Laughter and cheers surrounded them from every direction.

That was all merely a backdrop as Artoria stood there thinking. She’d always known Diarmuid was beautiful and charming. She thought of those models she’d seen on advertisements around the city, styled and posed to catch one’s eye and draw them in. That was his curse after all. But that couldn’t be what this was. She didn’t feel her heart flutter and pull towards him upon their first meeting, the way Irisviel had described his curse as working, but that seemed to be what was happening now. 

The first of the fireworks went off, shooting overhead and exploding into a yellow flower of light. It reminded her of Excalibur’s glow. A shining warmth that filled her heart. A warmth...

A second and third firework followed suit, of blue and green this time.

Artoria watched, her eyes wide, and smiled to herself. So that was it. A feeling she’d stamped down in her original life. One she had only just begun to feel for Guinevere before it was too late.

She wasn’t a fool. She must have known it somewhere in her the moment she’d asked Irisviel if it was alright to invite him. The Grail had been the only thing that had mattered to her. But the Grail was gone, and they were still here. 

The fireworks continued with deafening bursts, the crowd and Emiya family alike cheering at the gorgeous display. Artoria looked away from the sky to the profile of Diarmuid’s face. Any physical traces of their competition earlier were gone, leaving just his handsome features. She looked into his golden eyes, with the colorful explosions above reflecting off of them. 

He noticed her gaze and met it with his own.

Artoria was certain her newfound feelings were showing on her face, and from the way Diarmuid looked at her now, she knew he felt the same way. 

The fireworks continued around them, but for the rest of the show, all they could look at was each other.

[tamamatango]

Let’s talk about Kururu, again

Apparently the fandom is growing all of a sudden so I feel like talking about Kururu again cuz that’s all I know how to do and it’s been a while

First off disclaimer that fandom is fandom and anybody can interpret any character any way they want and if you like to portray a character a certain way for whatever reason go for it, more power to you (unless you put them in pedo/incest relationships that are displayed as good in which case fuck you). But in my personal Kirbpinion(TM) the Funimation dub was a fucking mistake because so many fan content creators write a way different Kururu than what he is in canon cuz the dub never got to his best episodes and also upped the sadism to ridiculous levels. Listen I know it’s funny to joke that he’s the kind of guy that has 3 medieval torture chambers but hear me out. Kururu is by no means a perfect person, he’s genuinely pretty rude/blunt (though sometimes his straightforwardness is justified :P), has an ego, sometimes acts pretty gross around others and likes extreme and elaborate pranks way way way too much BUT.

Assuming you’ve watched far enough into the series (like 100+ eps) I do not really understand the interpretation that he doesn’t care about anyone and that friendship and love are things he is totally incapable of. He says that yes but if you pay enough attention to his dialogue it becomes pretty apparent that he displays this attitude for multiple reasons. One is that he does genuinely have a hard time expressing the emotions he feels and often has awkward/guarded ways of doing so. But also he says many times over the course of the series that he has a “reputation” to keep up and wants people to call him a jerk; he wants to look cool and rebellious all the time and he thinks a nasty apathetic attitude is what earns him that status (not claiming that’s a healthy mindset, mind you). He wants to have full control over the way people see him and he gets super frustrated and humiliated when he can’t. This is probably why he gets so upset when people talk about how unpopular he is, because he’s spent so much time honing his image to a T and is like why the fuck isn’t this working?! In other words even though sometimes he is just an actual pain in the neck a lot of his asshole antics are part of a carefully manufactured persona, and he will do anything down to labeling his own memories to prevent other people from seeing through his facade and discovering the parts of him that are vulnerable.

And God forbid anyone does figure out that he does care quite a bit for the people around him, or at least if he didn’t at first he does now. Early on in the series he was commonly referred to as “depressing” and while the meta reason is probably just the anime writers just didn’t know how to adapt the character yet (he started out a little differently in the manga), in canon I believe he was just even more inclined to push everybody away from him, and as he began to get used to working in a group he gradually opened up. He commentates on how “soft” he’s gotten since he came to Earth a couple times, and the fact that he’s surprisingly one of the most loyal to Keroro out of the whole team (in many episodes where everyone abandons Keroro for being dumb he leaves last) and goes out of his way to help when he thinks it’s warranted (he asks for money when things aren’t dire yeah but hey labor deserves compensation :V) shows that he is dedicated to his team. There’s even episodes where he doles out some kind of moral lesson to the squad in his own Kururu-y way, especially to Keroro and Tamama. Even the Hinatas he’ll pitch in to protect when he has to, and we all know he’ll pretty much drop everything if Saburo needs him.

Speaking of which. I think the unspoken reason why he’s best friends with Saburo (besides the surface-level stuff like they’re smart and nerdy and seen as enigmas by everybody else) is because Saburo is the only other person in the cast who understands Kururu’s particular struggle of putting on airs as a means of self-defense all the time. He basically has a carefully managed celebrity life (that he has to constantly work to hide in anime canon), a somewhat formal/reserved public life, and the more quirky enthusiastic side of himself he only shows when alone and to the few people he’s close to and god damn that just sounds like the most exhausting juggling act ever. He has an outlet to free himself through his art but he still has to live with nobody quite knowing what he goes through on a daily basis, which is probably why we see him off on his own for most of the series (until he gets to warm up to everybody better...wonder who that sounds like) and occasionally have his bouts of frustration and insecurity like in 229 where he says “fuck it I’m gonna fight the apocalypse alone because I need something to do,” 354(? I think that’s the number) where he talks about just dropping everything and starting over, and I think one of the Christmas eps where Giroro has to like beg him to go to the Hinatas’ party cuz he says he’s “busy” even though he’s just sitting around pretty much (UPDATE: it’s 294 the implication is probably that he has his show or something but cmon that’s only like an hour lol). I am going off on a tangent now but anyway the point is he and Kururu are the most complicated communicators of the cast and they share feelings only they understand which is why they can more or less read each other’s minds and know exactly what to do when the other is in trouble.

Back to Kururu. Keroro, from what I can tell, is the closest to him out of the Platoon; Keroro gets freaked out by Kururu’s pranks sometimes yeah but they have a lot of common interests as the fun-lovers of the group and Kururu’s also kinda been interested in Keroro enough time follow him around for almost his entire life up to this point so there’s that. He also gets along with the other people he‘s around; we know he and Aki get along from the beginning because of how dynamic their personalities are but later on he gets close to Fuyuki to the point where they just hang out for the heck of it sometimes, and even though Natsumi is very justified in generally disliking him (many of Kururu’s more Eugh moments tend to involve her) even she seems to rely on him often, and in the cursed puppy episode she knows all his favorite foods by heart so she must care in some fashion lol. Dororo and he aren’t evidently super close but I think they get each other on some level as the (in-universe) least popular of the platoon and Dororo at least respects his abilities, and has clearly come to figure out his subtleties based on 229. Giroro and Mois...things get complicated. Just putting on record that I’m not a fan of either ship between Kururu and them. I’ve said this before but I think Giroro and Kururu are in a turbulent sibling-adjacent relationship in that they have completely opposing attitudes but they have a begrudging sense of respect for each other and, ultimately, they’re teammates, so they’ll defend each other when someone they don’t know tries to mess with them. I really don’t think the flirty stuff on Kururu’s end goes beyond teasing and I got kinda sick of that running gag if I’m being honest. (You can probably tell which frog I ship Kururu with by now :P) Mois went from something of a rival to Kururu to his lab partner, which is probably why he goes easier on her than he used to and even strikes up something of a friendship because the only other person he knows that might be capable of handling his technology is an Earthling who’s still against the invasion despite his lax attitude so. She helps :V

Now the question is why Kururu acts like he does if his relationships really aren’t all that bad and I think there’s two components to this. I’ve made it clear by now I think he’s autistic but your mileage may vary there. I think personally his childhood did something to the way he processes things as well. In Secret of the Kero Ball, he’s got a bandage on his head which may imply he got hurt somewhere and then he almost drowned which canonically definitely did something to him lol, was mostly seen alone so who knows if he has a family he still talks to, and then he got drafted into the army and placed into a high-ranking position of great responsibility at a very young age; it’s kind of a no-brainer why he rebeled and got demoted eventually. I’ve got plenty of headcanons about what his early days in the Military did to him but that’s for another day because good God this post went on too long.

In short: Kururu is possibly the most complicated character in the show and the F in Flanderization stands for “Funimation.” That’s it I’m never writing another essay about pee-color frog again I will make real content again at some point I promise

[shima-draws]

Psst tell us the Keroro aus

uwu

So I had two main ones and one sort of minor one that was more of a concept

The minor one was basically “What if Akuaku had swallowed Keroro and gained his abilities after all?” And I made an Akuaku!Keroro design for it and everything!! I’ll have to dig it up lol

As for the other two—

One was sort of a sad concept where during an invasion attempt, Keroro’s sick and therefore pushes too far (because he’s a dumbass) and there’s an accident with their invasion robot. Fuyuki gets seriously injured as a result and Natsumi kicks Keroro out of the house, who goes without a fuss because holy fuck he almost killed his best friend. Keroro develops a guilt complex, everyone is panicking because Keroro actually left for real and they cannot find where he went because he was actually smart and disabled anything that Kururu could use to track him, Natsumi feels AWFUL because it was really a spur of the moment thing, and when Fuyuki recovers and asks them all where Keroro is they’re all like 😬 and he has a breakdown because his best friend might be gone forever, and Fuyuki KNOWS Keroro’s blaming himself for everything when it really wasn’t his fault. Meanwhile Keroro winds up in another city and somehow mysteriously got transformed into a human (the original idea behind that was that the transformation was a result of the sickness he had, tho I can’t remember why I wrote it that way lol). This actually makes it easier for him to blend in and try to move on and make sure that the Platoon can’t find him. He meets a girl named Sakura (haha cringey OC) and starts living with her while he tries to figure out what to do about the invasion. Back to the Hinatas, everyone starts desperately searching for Keroro, but they can’t find him anywhere (and Kururu can’t even track his life energy because oop!! He’s not a Keronian anymore!) so it’s all honestly one huge mess. Eventually Fuyuki is the one to find out where Keroro went because he bumps into him in the city Kero now lives in, and Fuyuki’s just like “Gunsou?!!” and Keroro’s just like “Oh SHIT OH FUCK” and panics and immediately tries to make a run for it cjsnncnsnsn

Fuyuki manages to convince Keroro to come home (obviously) and Sakura joins the gang. I had a whole other plot after that where Dark comes back to Pekopon with a warning about some dark forces invading or something like that lol and there’s fun ship war times because high school me loved drama and love triangles. That’s about as far as that idea got at least with concepts, it’s not really an AU and more of a canon divergence thing haha

And the other one. Whew! This one’s my favorite still!! The idea was that Pekopon did get invaded, but not by the Platoon—they got completely taken over by the Keron army and all of the humans were taken in as slaves. Keroro, despite his high position in the army, becomes uneasy when he sees how the humans are being treated. (I mean in canon he’ll go on rants about how Pekoponians are useless creatures only meant to be slaves but I don’t think he’d ever want to see them actually get hurt;;) After witnessing some of the soldiers beating a helpless human teen (and guess who it is. Yeah. It’s Fuyuki uwu) Keroro’s like okay nope I’m out of here and decides to desert the army. He’s like what’s the point of invading if you can’t make it fun?! What’s the point of destroying a planet with so much culture and Gundam models smh. It takes a little convincing but eventually the rest of the Platoon decide to come with him!! (Besides Dororo who agrees right away and is like thank GOD.) And so begins their grand adventure of taking down the army with their little ragtag team and resorting to hit and run tactics. Eventually their rebel force starts to gain more members until they become quite a respected group, even though they’re marked as traitors. Keroro’s like did I seriously start a revolution?? I can take major credit for this!! Lmao

At one point they realize oh shit this is a thing that we are doing and we’re going to need some major help. So Kururu’s like if we can’t rely on Keronians why don’t we rely on Pekoponians? They have the advantage in numbers, we just need to rally them. So this starts a big rescue mission to retrieve five to start off with (the Platoon’s partners!!) Kururu’s the one to pick them all out and Keroro sees Fuyuki’s file and goes !!!! How the FUCK did you know that this kid was the one to make me question everything and Kururu’s just like >:3c

They go get their Pekoponjins and the rescue mission is a success! Keroro and Fuyuki bond a lot on the way back to base and Keroro’s like oh my god why would the army try to hurt someone so wonderful and kind Fuyuki has literally never done anything wrong in his life ever. (And that’s a fact.) Keroro starts calling him Fuyuki-dono to make him feel more comfortable and they fall back into their regular routine in canon and it’s soft. Everyone else bonds with their human partners and the entire Platoon is like yeah okay we’re definitely going to save this planet and invade it the RIGHT way. The rest of the AU is basically just about their fight against the Keron army, tho there’s tons of shenanigans all in between, Dark gets involved because of course he does this is me we’re talking about, Kururu and Saburo create an AI program modeled after Keroro called DK-666 (reference to the last ep ;) ) who wreaks havoc, there’s more shenanigans, and angst, and it’s a good fun time

[writer-and-artist27]

Servant Kei

In honor of three years of friendship and the Fate things we’ve been talking about. For you, Lang ( @langwrites ). :) Os ( @owlsofstarlight ), you can try to read this too, I did my best to filter out the worst things of Fate for you.

Happy friendversary. 

Have a Servant Kei and a Mage Tomo about to go into Fate/stay night’s infamous Fifth Holy Grail War. Inspired by this long ask thing from the day before.

Obligatory Fate OST theme here. And an alternative song choice if you want to listen. 

-----------------------------------------

“…Why do I know a whole other magic system now.” 

Saber’s sudden urge to commentate nearly made me drop the books in my hands, but once I straightened myself, I swiveled my head to see her sitting on the ground, arms crossed over the green jacket she was wearing. If not for that single gesture, the way she was sitting could’ve struck me as her meditating with the posture. 

Then again, she was here. Katana strapped to her back and all. Explanation was still needed to get everyone up to speed.

“Thank the Grail?” I said hesitantly over the tomes I was supposed to study, exhaling as gently as I could to not alert her of the fact I was nervous. “In every Holy Grail War so far, no matter what culture or time period a Servant is summoned in, the Grail automatically teaches said Servant mage culture and the customs of Fuyuki. Kinda to get around language barriers and all that. Or, uh, I think that’s how it’s set up. I don’t know too much about the Grail. The Clock Tower was really tight-lipped about it.”

Saber still seemed put off, as her frown merely deepened with my attempt at exposition. “Makes sense. I know all of those words, but the order's new and I can tell there's tons of missing context.”

“It… happens like that?”

Saber raised her head to give me a funny look.

“S-Sorry,” I said sheepishly, putting the books down on the nearest table. “I… well, I didn’t think I’d be able to participate in the Holy Grail War. There was supposed to be another mage who was going to be sent by the Clock Tower to participate, but somehow, I got sent along instead when I’m not even that emotionally prepared for it.” 

Why was I being so honest with her anyways? Was it the aura? Or… 

“And you didn’t think you’d be able to summon me?” Saber said mildly, kindly even, if I could make that stretch. 

She felt familiar.

“Nope.” A small, sarcastic laugh left my lips as I sat on my knees to match her sitting height, bowing my head. “My family isn’t very well known for magic. And Lord El-Melloi II wanted to participate more than me. He was the only one who fought in the Fourth War from the Clock Tower and survived, and he was a teenager then. Yet the Clock Tower somehow… well, found me. And I summoned you.”

The bright red lily-shaped Command Seals on the back of my right hand were painful and kindaaaaa hard to ignore.

“A new Servant who’s experiencing the War for the first time ever with a student for a Master?” Saber laughed dryly too, and I could tell she wasn’t all that amused at the situation. “We’re screwed,” she said sarcastically before pausing, proceeding to add, rather candidly too, “I can probably break into anything. I can also kill… basically everything.”

“Where do you get that confidence from?” 

Saber shrugged this time, uncrossing her arms. Her messy black cowlicks brushed her shoulders as she glanced away to mutter, “War. Lots of it.”

Well. “That… might actually come in handy.” 

Saber gave me a single wary eye. “What are you thinking, Master?” 

“Well,” I folded my skirt under my knees while adjusting my sitting position to look at Saber properly, “I was thinking that you’re definitely human, not someone to be messed around with nor a plain Familiar my teachers keep trying to brainwash me into treating you as, and I want to get to know you better?”

The funny face was back. “Anything else?”

I tilted my head to look into her black eyes and smiled softly. “I would like your help in dismantling the Greater Grail, Saber?”

Saber’s eyes widened. She scanned me, up and down, up and down a few times before focusing back on my face for eye contact. Then she smirked. “You’re serious.”

“It’s caused my mentor Waver Velvet enough pain, Saber,” I added in the same mild tone, shrugging as politely as a lady could. “And besides, the Grail’s corrupted enough. There’s no more wishes to grant when I don’t have a wish and I know you’d rather be anywhere but here. I can tell you want out, I want out too, so,” I shrugged again, trying not to laugh, “let’s work together to make the world a better place without magic?”

The smirk widened on her face. “So we’re going about the spiritually cleansing properties of setting a whole complex on fire. I’m up for that."

The breath I didn’t realize I was holding left my lips in a big huff. Thank god. “Glad to hear it. I’m tired of all this Magecraft stuff and hiding away from everybody.” I smiled back while raising a hand towards her for a shake. “Hoshino Tomoko, a Mage who doesn’t want to be a Mage. What’s your name?”

Saber met my eyes before extending a hand of her own to finish the handshake, her grip firm. “Kei,” she said simply, smirk still on her face. “Saber Class Servant, Gekkō Keisuke. Just keep it at Kei.”

“Then, Tomo for me?” I offered.

“Sure,” Kei allowed.

“Aye.” My smile widened. “So, Kei,” I let go of her hand to gently nudge her shoulder instead. “How do you feel about killing a corrupt sadistic priest?”

[fuwafuwamedb]

.Hack//Gilfection Pt 3 (Gilgamesh, Hakuno, Rin, BB)

.//Chapters//. – 1 – 2 –

___

Rin was a pain in the ass.

This was the area she had decided on. She wasn’t new to the game, or so she said.

It was a little difficult to believe that she wasn’t a new player with the way she was carrying her character. No grip control. No mindfulness for that large broadsword of hers. She pulled it along behind her like a boat anchor that had been forgotten. When she went to hold it over her shoulder, which she did when they reached the doors to the place, she awkwardly shuffled and tried holding her blade one handed over her shoulder.

That didn’t work, as her dropping of the weapon gave away.

He probably could look at her stats, but it was easy enough to guess what level she was.

And Enkidu had thought that I was hopeless.

The music alone was solemn. The floors were dusted, coated with a texture layer to show that the place had been all but abandoned. Even the air, although clear, held a slight series of flakes, tiny pixels that worked like dust particles in the air.

They moved forward, through the rows of pews.

Only one thing was really worth seeing in this place. There were no rooms to go to, no other areas to visit. The whole immaculate building held but one space, one that was filled with only a singular point of interest: a statue.

Gilgamesh frowned, knowing that figure.

“Take this.”

The girl from before, adorned in white, had looked exactly like this.

The only difference was that she hadn’t been covered in chains. The torn dress on the woman’s body was plastered against herself too, doing nothing to help with the sight of her being trapped beneath metal chain links and locks.

“…There’s no one else here.”

Rin frowned, stepping to the side of the room and looking around. “There’s no one here at all…”

There wasn’t.

Gilgamesh turned his gaze to the altar.

The epitaph… Nanna… Ishtar… Ereshkigal…

The writing was faded from there.

“AH!”

Rin’s shout caught his attention, sending him spinning on his heels, his blades coming to hand and slamming into the beast that had appeared. The small gremlin was easily destroyed, falling back with a small roar.

“…You… You didn’t even flinch…”

“Should I?” Gilgamesh put his blades away. “It’s just a regular weak monster.”

“Yeah… Yeah. Weak. Right…” Her eyes drifted to the statue. “The statue looks so sad…”

What a fool.

He turned his gaze back to the statue for inspecting.

It didn’t take long now.

Rin moved to his side, her hands going to the fencing between the statue and the rest of the room. Her gaze turned downwards, her body trembling a bit.

“I guess… you’ve probably figured out that I’m a noob too, haven’t you?”

Gods, what a child.

Why was he here again? The statue was interesting, possibly enough to give him a clue where to go to find Enkidu’s avatar in this game, but…

“My um… My boyfriend played this game a lot.” Her voice lowered, like she was confessing some secret. “The idiot always got on before bed and would fish in the stream. He let me play once or twice with him, but we didn’t really go to areas. We just fished. He liked the Mac Anu area for that kind of thing.”

“Uh huh.”

“He invited me again, this time, to go to an area. He’d cleared it out and it had this great big moon in the background. I thought maybe… maybe this time he had another reason for inviting me, but the world changed.”

“Things went to a coding area with no scenic view?”

“No, it was a place that had these running numbers and there was this almost lava like place, but the lava didn’t look right.”

He’d just said that-

“Cu managed to smack my PC, totally destroying it. I was so mad and I was yelling at him for ruining the computer that he forced me to take such careful attention to, but…”

“He didn’t wake up.”

Rin looked at her hands, shaking her head. “He lay there so quietly, Gilgamesh. I’ve never had him be that quiet before.”

She’d be useful.

The next area they could go to was that area that the woman had mentioned. Wherever this moonlight area was, he wanted to go straight there next.

“Cu mentioned this code when he had the goggles on. I thought-“

“Let’s head back.”

The heart to heart wasn’t necessarily something he was interested in, but it had given him an insight into the fact that others could have suffered this. There could have been others. He would have to check the forum board when he got out of this area and checked the other.

Rin nodded, “You’re nicer than I thought.”

“Sure.” They could go with that.

He still needed her to work with him. No point in opening his mouth and pointing out the many flaws in her method of thinking, beginning with and not limited to simply trusting any character that came crawling-

BAM!

The doors flew open at the entrance.

A figure, adorned in silver and white armor, held her blade in hand. Her brown hair was loose, flowing over the feathered paldrons on her shoulders and her red accents to her attire showing just beneath her cloak.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!”

“We could say the same to you!” Rin shouted. “YOU’RE BEING RUD-“

“THERE’S NO TIME! GET OUT OF HERE!”

What did she-

The world was glitching, the area beginning to fade a moment before something dropped down.

“Shit!”

Rin leaped behind him, her blade held in both hands. Gilgamesh found himself pulling out his twin blades, but the other was already running forth.

She flew like a great bird, slashing down upon the golem. Her blade cut cleanly, her eyes filled with a deep, defiant look that made his damn heart flutter. He could hardly breathe as he watched the woman spin on her feet, taking that weapon that had just slashed at the golem and sending it slamming into the golem’s gullet.

In and out, a perfect stab.

The world glitched again, a strange green armor coming onto the golem.

“What’s happening?! What the fuck is that!?”

“…Shit, another glitch. These computer viruses have been making these bastards have unlimited defense. It’s basically invincible,” the stranger woman growled.

“…This must be what got him,” Rin breathed. “Get out of the way, I’ll kill it!”

“You idiot!”

She was already sprinting forward though, her broadsword in hand as she rushed at the giant golem. There was no stopping the idiot. She was going to end up getting her character killed!

“Damn it!” The armored woman rushed after the woman, slamming her body against the other. The golem slammed a fist towards the two, nearly smashing them to bits.

The book.

Gilgamesh paused.

Open the book.

Book?

The power it holds can bring forth either salvation or destruction at the whim of the user.

[You used the installation Book, Book of Twilight.]

The controllers were shaking in his hands. The nerve sensors were burning, hurting his hands. He could see a flashing in the background, the world around his character vanishing away and a white base background appearing.

The attire his character had was changing.

Gone was the random red clothing. Symbols were growing up the sides, a deep red set as the color of the fabric turned to gold. He could see the gloves he had, glowing with the same color as the computer virus around the golem.

The color focused, forming a ring around his arm. It blasted a focused ray of light, a series of numbers shooting forward until-

It struck right as the beast went to kill the two nearby.

The golem hit the floor, giving the perfect opportunity.

His armored, feathered knight struck forth, her wings fluttering in the air as she stabbed the beast to die. The final roar rang out again, but this time, the glitches were gone.

As Gilgamesh felt his hands shaking, his body covered in sweat, he felt his character fall to his knees. The figure ahead rose up, her blade slowly being pulled forth from the beast.

“I see…”

See?

“You’re the same… the same as that virus. To think I’d be saved by someone like you.”

“Someone like me? Woman, I should be asking you about that knowledge of the beasts and computer viruses.”

“Recently, there’s been a lot of places damaged by viruses. It’s ruining the game, damaging people’s lives, creating a world that cannot continue. Anyone with that virus… your virus, should be struck down immediately.”

Well, that was a shame, he was looking for the cause of the trouble here too.

“Draw your sword!”

“Draw? Bullshit, woman. There’s no use in that.”

“There is for me.”

The woman was preparing to rush forward when Rin stood up. Her heel slammed against the stranger’s hip.

“YOU! What the hell did you say your name was?”

“I didn’t.”

“Well?!”

“…Hakuno. My name is Hakuno.”

“Put your damn weapon away, Hakuno! Gilgamesh just saved your life and the first thing you do is threaten to kill him?”

“Woman, do you understand what kind of cancerous-“

Rin kicked her again.

“He. Saved. Your. Life!”

“…I still don’t trust you.” Hakuno set her blade back into her sheath, her eyes glaring daggers. “…You did save my life…”

“I did.”

What was her character address in this game?

That’s who he needed on his party. She had to be either an extremely attractive woman or extremely boring.

“I need time to think. That’s why I’m sparing you. If I find out that you are indeed responsible, then I will be killing you.”

She needed to give him her information immediately.

Home address. Phone number.

Body in his bed.

“What an asshole,” Rin shook her head, sighing. “I’m logging out for today. I need to visit my boyfriend in the hospital.”

She logged out, her character vanishing from his side.

He took a deep breath, debating on how to proceed.

~

“That was rather childish of you, knight of the Moon Cell, descendant of the ancient mages of Fuyuki.”

Hakuno paused, glancing over her shoulder at the woman that was standing atop the cathedral. It was impossible to mistake that voice, that purple hair.

“I do not speak to hackers.”

She tried to continue forward, knowing that the woman wouldn’t let him off that easily.

Sure enough, the fool was warping, moving to another of the spindles. BB’s long black coat fluttered softly in the wind as she giggled away with her wand in hand.

“That guy, he’s a friend of your partner’s.”

That, of all things, made her pause.

“Enkidu?”

[pyropsychiccollector]

Fate Zero: Part 5

           Irisveil flinched as she walked by a moonlit window in the castle. She dropped to her knees and gripped her wrist. In her mind, she could see flashes of lightning as something approached.

           “Irisveil…?” Erza spotted the downed to the Caucasian woman and hurried to her side. She bent down to Irisveil’s level. “What’s wrong?”

           “I… another Servant is approaching the castle! It’s just like them to launch a frontal assault just after Kiritsugu’s left…!”

           Erza frowned as she’d seen flashes of lightning outside, too.

           “Lightning and that unscrupulous appearance… It can only be Rider.” Her brow furrowed as she considered this turn of events. “But why would he attack…?”

           Irisveil shook her head to clear it.

           “It doesn’t matter… We must meet him head-on, at least for Kiritsugu’s sake!”

           The two of them then hurried to the entrance of the castle. Just as they were arriving, the Iron Dragon Slayer barged through the doors with Lily holding him and Waver up. Gajeel’s eyes lit up as he spotted the scarlet knight.

           “Yo, Saber!” Gajeel grinned cockily as Lily set him and Waver down. He lifted an arm up in a lazy greeting.

           “R-Rider…?” Erza’s brow furrowed as she didn’t know how to respond to his casual attitude. … Or that barrel he was carrying.

           “I came ‘cause I wanted to see your castle!” He looked around mildly. “Sheesh… Kinda gloomy in here, don’tcha think? I almost thought this was Lancer’s place for a sec… And what’s with the armor? You gonna go out to fight someone right now? You don’t hafta be stiff and formal around me!”

           Erza’s eyes narrowed as she began to draw conclusions from Gajeel’s presence.

           “Rider? Why are you here?” The scarlet knight asked with some exasperation. “We’re all under a ceasefire until Caster is eliminated…”

           The dark-haired man belted out a chuckle as he slung the barrel over his shoulder with ease.

           “That’s why I’m here! Never gonna get another opportunity like this! You’re stubborn about not allying with me, so I figured we could at least share a drink and catch up on old times… C’mon! Stop lookin’ like a statue and show me around! You gotta have a garden we can relax in…The castle’s way too dusty to be in!”

           At the Iron Dragon Slayer’s obstinance, Erza and Irisveil shared a look before tentatively agreeing to allow the enemy Servant and Master entry. Once they were in the center of the garden, Gajeel punched open the barrel and sat down cross-legged. Erza, obligingly, kneeled and sat in front of him, watching as he dipped the ladle in and had his first taste of the wine. Gajeel merely grinned roguishly at her.

           “The Grail’s said to be fated for the hands most worthy to possess it… And the epic battle here in Fuyuki will determine who exactly that person is! And if it’s a means to simply decide that fact… there’s hardly a need for bloodshed. After all! If we Spirits can agree on our rankings, then the matter can simply settle itself!” He dipped the ladle in again and handed it over to Erza, who cautiously accepted it before downing it in a swift gulp.

           “I take it, then, you want to compare your ranking against my own, Gajeel?” Erza asked with an arched eyebrow, handing the ladle back over to him.

           “Heh, indeed I do…” Gajeel chuckled lightly. “We’re both members of Fairy Tail, so we both got pretty big dreams to achieve! Think of this more like a Grail ‘Dialogue’, I guess, rather than a Grail War. The one most suitable for holding the Grail will become clear to us… as we each have our fill and converse.”

           Erza frowned as she looked behind the scheming grin and mischievous eyes of Rider. He was after something else, but she couldn’t even begin to imagine what his motivations might be. The Gajeel that she remembered was one who ‘smashed fists and asked questions later.’ But this decidedly more mature Gajeel… A lot had to have happened after her death. It was the only reasonable explanation.

           “Hey, hey, who said you could start the party without me, Junkyard?”

           Erza tensed as she recognized the voice, as well as the third Servant who materialized and casually walked into the center of the garden.

           “N… Natsu…” The scarlet knight stammered, completely bewildered. Gajeel scratched the back of his head, looking none too innocent.

           “Yeah, well… I saw him in town tonight and thought I’d invite him to our little gathering.” The dark-haired Servant cocked his head at his fellow Dragon Slayer. “You’re a little late, ain’t ya? ‘Course, you did walk on foot, unlike me...”

           Natsu rolled his eyes, making a vague gesture with one of his bandage-wrapped arms.

           “I’m all for drinks as much as the next guy, but you really wanna hold your little banquet here? In this depressing place? You could do better than this, man.”

           The more Natsu went on, the more uneasy everyone except Gajeel felt. This was the guy who threatened to kill anyone that interfered with the ‘honorable’ fight between Heroic Spirits, after all. At his old friend’s attitude, Gajeel merely smirked and held the ladle out to him.

           “Don’t get yer panties in a bunch! The place doesn’t matter, so long as we’re all here! Gramps would tell ya the same thing, y’know.”

           Slowly, Natsu accepted the ladle, shooting Gajeel a strange look. He then chugged it as fast as Erza had before handing it back to Rider and sitting down cross-legged like Gajeel. His gray cloak fluttered behind and around him as he sat. Waver was making covert, panicked gestures at his Servant, as he did not trust Natsu to keep his composure for long, but Gajeel didn’t seem to care.

           “Well… the location’s depressing as hell, but I guess the company’s S-Class.” Natsu flippantly admitted, crossing his arms before shooting Erza an impish smirk. Gajeel groaned at the corniness of that line, but Erza barely seemed to register it, her eyes and ears firmly locked on Berserker. Seeing Erza’s distracted state, Natsu frowned before digging into his cloak and pulling out three chalices, tossing one to Gajeel and sliding one over to Erza. “There, now it’s a party~… When I saw you luggin’ that big barrel around, I knew you’d forget somethin’ so simple.”

           “YOU PICKIN’ A FIGHT WITH ME, PUNK?!” Rider bellowed with an enraged expression, only earning gales of laughter from the Fire Dragon Slayer.

           “Oh, trust me, Junkyard… When I throw the first blow, you’ll know it. ‘Cause it’ll be the finishing blow~…” Natsu smirked with a tinge of darkness and mischief. Gajeel just grumbled at the jab and let it slide ‘just this once’, since they were in Erza’s presence. Natsu cackled at the last bit. “That’s true… Never lets us have any fun, but wrecks just as much crap! That’s our Erza~…”

           When that still didn’t produce a reaction from the scarlet knight, Natsu snorted and muttered under his breath.

           “Geez, tough crowd…”

           Gajeel rolled his eyes and filled his chalice by dipping it in the barrel.

           “Maybe if ya weren’t tryin’ to be so macho, smartass!”

           “Never saw Levy complain.” The Pyro shot back at him.

           “Yeah? Well, it fits me, not you.” Rider persisted with a smirk. “You always had this dumb ‘innocence’ to ya… Oh, you were a cocky bastard, sure, but you were never ‘cool’ about it.”

           Natsu actually tensed at that jab, and stared down at the chalice in his hands, his reflection in the wine looking back up at him.

           “… That was a lifetime ago, Junkyard…” Natsu muttered with far less energy than before.

           The air became oppressively silent. Rider let out an aggravated groan as his eyes panned between Berserker and Saber, who both had eyes averted from each other.

           “… So! Who wants to talk about the old glory days?” Gajeel swirled his wine around casually, eyes once again panning between them. “And I don’t mean the days before Erza died…”

           Erza’s head snapped up as she stared at Gajeel in shock, wondering if he’d predicted her thoughts from earlier. Natsu just eyed the Iron Dragon Slayer dubiously, swirling the wine in his cup as well. Rider rolled his eyes at their reactions.

           “No one wants to go first? Fine. I’ll kick us off, but you gotta follow up, Salamander.”

           Berserker’s eyes narrowed warningly at Rider’s cocky smirk.

           ~*~

           Cobra cocked his head at the figure seated under a tree just outside the range of the Einzbern’s bounded field. He hadn’t moved for over twenty minutes, and he was staring at Cobra with a neutral face. … A neutral, slightly disfigured face – had clearly suffered something internally, not too long ago. But still, further observation had proved the man to be in otherwise healthy condition.

           … Which made Assassin wonder.

           “You’re not gonna join the party up there?” Cobra asked nonchalantly, hands shoved in his pockets. His eyes panned to the castle in the distance. “Probably safer up there than down here.”

           Kariya Matou smirked back at the Servant. A confidence Assassin couldn’t quite place.

           “Berserker’s doing this for that woman. His self-control can still go out the window if anyone comes to mess things up… That’s why. I need to be his eyes… Because he deserves even just this one night of peace…”

           As Cobra studied the young mage shrewdly, heaved out a sigh after several long moments.

           “… You hardly need to tell me. I know better than Scarlet and that old scrap of iron… just what Salamander turned into.” He clenched his fist staring down at it with conflicting emotions. “I’m still loyal to my Master, but I empathize with Salamander. Neither of us ended up how we thought we would. I thought I’d die alone, only one friend left to grieve me, if that… and Salamander would die a hero’s death, mourned by hundreds. Talk about reversal of fates.”

           At Assassin’s humorless chuckle, Kariya frowned.

           “Just what is Natsu to you?” Kariya asked, voice slightly laced with suspicion. “Legends say you were once enemies, and that you only became allies when greater threats arose, such as Tartaros and Alvarez… And what’s more, you largely kept to yourself if you could help it. Legends say that’s how you chose to spend your freedom.”

           Cobra rolled his eye at the caution Kariya displayed, but it was understandable. Their age had come and gone – long gone. It made sense not all historical facts made it to the present.

           “Salamander isn’t a friend.” The maroon-haired man put it bluntly. “But still. He’s not an enemy. After he convinced that old man of his that I wasn’t gonna ‘do’ anything to Cubelios, I just couldn’t see him as an enemy. Still not ‘friend’, but… He did more than most, even if I never asked for it. I wound up doing him some ‘favors’ after he left the Guild. He helped make sure Cubelios would never suffer the same fate as Scarlet, so I was obligated to lend a hand. Well, I insisted that I was obligated… He still tried turn down my help.”

           Kariya’s eyes softened as he imagined it.

           “Sounds just like him…” He murmured, but Cobra merely shook his head.

           “Maybe like he is now, but he definitely wasn’t like that before. His vengeance ended up forcing the Guild to catch some flak, and Iceman was one of the ones actively hunting Salamander down to bring him ‘home’… Though over time, Fullbuster just got more and more pissed at Salamander’s selfishness, and really began to loathe his once-friend. That old scrap heap should have known he was inviting disaster by approaching Fullbuster for this ‘Dialogue’… Thank Kami Salamander thought three steps ahead, even if I wasn’t ‘guaranteed’ to lend a hand.”

           Despite all of Assassin’s dark reflections, Kariya smiled and dipped his head, staring at the forest floor.

           “Friend or not, you still agreed to help… Thank you.”

           Cobra snorted at the appreciation, and was about to snap a retort, when his keen senses picked up rapid movement incoming from somewhere in the distance. His body tensed, and Kariya noticed this.

           “Fullbuster bringing his crackpot Master to turn this into even more of a clusterfuck…? Sure. Why not.” Assassin huffed. “The things I do for you, Salamander…”

           Kariya’s frown deepened.

           “I take it this means El-Melloi is going to ignore the ceasefire issued by the Church?”

           “With everyone lowering their guard, the perfect time to strike is during a ceasefire, don’t you think?” The maroon-haired man asked rhetorically. “Fullbuster is here for Salamander. His half-cocked Master is here to take out any unsuspecting Masters. It’d be a decent strategy, but they’re arrogant. Scarlet and the old scrap heap aren’t gonna just let Fullbuster get at Flamebrain… That doesn’t even factor in my interference.”

           Kariya stared down at the ground with a speculative expression.

           “Emiya is probably going to kill El-Melloi. Natsu’s told me about that man’s tactics.” And how they pissed the Dragon Slayer off.

           Assassin turned his eye on the young Matou appraisingly.

           “Unless you warn Dragneel in advance, like you intended to do from the start.”

           Kariya stared back with a grave expression, but said nothing.

           ~*~

           Erza looked down into her cup as Gajeel’s account came to a close. She felt such a wellspring of emotions, hearing about their old friends and comrades. As always, much had happened; such was the Fairy Tail way.

           But still… it was so strange to hear how life went on, after the curtain on her life had fallen.

           “I’m glad so many of you had families… You, especially, Gajeel.” The redhead mustered a bittersweet smile at the Dragon Slayer. “You and Levy deserved it.”

           Rider rubbed under his nose smugly, grinning madly.

           “Proudest moments of my life, raising those kids… Spending every day with Levy… I’d do anything to live another life with her!” He shook his head, correcting himself. “… No, scratch that. I’d want another life with Fairy Tail, not just Levy.”

           Saber elegantly arched an eyebrow at the Iron Dragon Slayer.

           “And so that’s why you’re fighting in this Grail War? Reincarnation for all of us?”

           Rider nodded solemnly.

           “Definitely… I’m not sayin’ we ‘deserve’ a second chance at life… Just that, since the Grail is offerin’… One more life couldn’t hurt.” He smirked.

           Saber returned his smirk with a soft smile.

           “It’s a very honorable goal… And makes me feel bad for being selfish, on my part.” She stared up at the night sky wistfully.

           Gajeel crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow.

           “Well, what wish do you have? Can’t be that bad.”

           At that, Erza’s cheeks gained a little bit of color as she returned Rider’s gaze.

           “… I want to be reincarnated with Natsu.” Her eyes panned over to Berserker. “Live another life with him. I didn’t even give a thought to the rest of the Guild, as embarrassed as I am to admit it. Even if it’s in this present age… I would… I would just enjoy living that second life, free of past burdens and traumas.”

           Natsu’s gaze was fixed on the wine, a careful mask of neutrality covering his face. Gajeel frowned thoughtfully.

           “S’not bad, see? Can’t blame ya for bein’ a little selfish… I think everyone wants a fresh start, at some point in their life.”

           “Very true…” Erza frowned, concerned about Natsu’s face not changing expressions ever since Gajeel’s reminiscences began. “… But Gajeel. I have to ask… in all that you spoke about, not once did you mention Natsu. Why?”

           Rider, for all that he knew that question was coming, grew uncomfortable as the topic had been breached. He gave Saber a determined glare.

           “Some things are best heard straight from the horse’s mouth, Erza… For all the progress we made as a Guild after you died, you have to realize – not all of us ‘could’ move on.” The Iron Dragon Slayer turned his hard stare onto Berserker next and grunted. “Not all of us got a ‘Happily Ever After’.”

           When Natsu still refused to speak up, Erza’s concerned gaze roamed back to him.

           “Natsu…?”

           At last, the Fire Dragon Slayer lifted his gaze from his cup. When he did, Erza couldn’t help shivering at the look in his eyes. Old. Weary. Defeated. Broken. Haunted. All of these emotions and more flitted through his eyes… Emotions that she never thought Natsu would ever feel. But there they were.

           “I did the only thing I was good at anymore.” He breathed out raggedly. “I couldn’t save you. And I wouldn’t risk the others – couldn’t. Not after losing you. So I went off on my own. And I destroyed. To the day I died, I destroyed until I was completely numb…”

           Saber felt a pit form in her stomach at Berserker’s explanation. Her eyes took on a pleading look.

           “Destroyed what, Natsu…?”

           His dead stare never wavered.

           “I didn’t rest until I destroyed all Dark Guilds even remotely connected to the bastards who took your life… And in the end, that was all I had in me. ‘Cause the last guys managed to take me out… though I made damn sure the death was mutual.

           The pink-haired man then shot Rider a dark look.

           “That’s why I’m fighting. I’m not worth the effort to reincarnate… So when I win the Grail, I’m gonna make sure Erza never died in that battle. I’ll take her place. Because having Erza around will keep Fairy Tail soaring to greater heights. All I did was become a butcher and a loner. Erza never deserved to die – not like that.”

           Saber stared painfully and sorrowfully as Natsu declared this with finality. Natsu had always been so strong, always able to endure the greatest of hardships… She knew he was capable of feeling sorrow. He had been so torn up when Lisanna had seemingly died, and he had grieved when Igneel had been killed in front of him… Natsu never took death well when it came to friends and allies, but he somehow always found a way to soldier on. If not for himself, then for his friends. His family.

           She never once expected her death to have been the one to break him. And it stabbed at her heart that she had been the cause, even if she didn’t have control over it.

           ‘I drove you to this…’ Erza thought forlornly to herself.

            She’d been special enough, important enough, to him that her death would leave an impact. So very long ago, she had dreamed of him refusing to accept that she had died, and soon after she woke up and had promised him that she wouldn’t sacrifice herself ever again… And she had kept her word. But apparently, it was fate that her death would wrench at his heart, no matter what… Would drive him to be reckless.

           Her eyes in that moment became determined. Natsu was still glaring at Gajeel, who was glaring right back, so they weren’t looking at her. But that was fine. She was used to keeping these boys in line.

           ‘I drove you to this, Natsu. So it’s my responsibility to bring you back. And I will.’

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works 1 - 25 (FINAL) | Waver OVA

Much like the Fate/Zero post, this is mostly a set of notes which has already been released and is preserved here because of the difference editing makes. There was one completely insensitive, uninformed note and a note which I was writing down to be “more in character” which I’ve removed in all instances of the notes, though - it’s better you not know what was being said there. 

F/SN UBW 1 (Prologue)

Now that’s the Rin I know from fandom whispers.

Turns out this is ep. 0 and there’s actually 12 eps…

This brunette reminds me of Maiya.

This wavy haired guy’s a Matou? Geesh, he somehow reminds me of the Great B*stard Archer.

Miss Fujimura’s a bit of a non-sequitur…

If I remember the fan whispers right, his name is Issei Hyoudou…? (Or is that the High School DxD guy?) Update: Issei Hyoudou is the High School DxD guy, this is Issei Ryuudou.

If people die when they are killed, then machines should, too.

I already know from checking up previous info that UBW is for the 5th Holy Grail War and Shiro Emiya is part of it.

The button says “voicemail”…well, it’s actually rusu, where rusuban denwa = answering machine (denwa = phone, so rusu means something like “protecting the house (while you’re gone)”). The best way to translate it would be “voicemail” though.

Fuyuki  Church (Kyoukai)? Rin has them on her voicemail???

I seem to remembr reading that this white-haired character is an alternate universe Shiro Emiya…but I guess we’ll find out later, huh?

Hmm…I’ve seen this Command Seal before. I think it might be Dewbond’s profile pic, in fact…which tells me that he likes Rin.

The compulsion the guy is talking about reminds me of Steph from NGNL and how she was forced to fall in love with Sora.

Rin’s treating this like a gacha game…LOL.

Pride vs. pride, huh? Anyways, I think the really entertaining thing of putting me under the pump like this is that I have such an incomplete understanding of how the Fate/ universe works that the outcomes of everything create enough entertainment for those who’ve committed to said universe. The things that I do know might be really late-game though – such as the white-haired Servant being an alternate Shiro – so I have my own surprises to confirm.

“The Archer class really is made up of archers!” - …and people die if they are killed, y’know? (<- I know this from the memes. I won’t cover Deen/Stay Night, people don’t normally recommend it.)

Why is a cup omnipotent, anyway? Cups don’t have the ability to have knowledge. By the way, I bet Rin’s acquaintance will have something to do with this.

Rin’s Holy Grail War work reminds me of my own experience with piano. Basically, I grew up doing it, so I never questioned it until I thought about what I really wanted to do. I expect Rin will be the same way.

Hmm…Sakura and…the Great B*stard?

Rin says all of this about “crude garbage”, so all I can focus on is the bin off to the side…LOL.

Oooooooh…so this appearance of Sakura is why people put F/Z before this.

Saber…the reason she’s so popular is because she appears in so many incarnations of Fate/ that she’s basically become a poster girl for it.

F/SN UBW 2

There’s something that pisses me off about Sakura. It’s probably because she’s fairly submissive, like a girl who was written to be a guy’s fantasy.

The OP and ED was subbed the first time, so the fact this isn’t is interesting.

I think I’ve seen these scenes before…probably because they look exactly like the setup for Today’s Menu for Emiya Family.

Hypoxia.

Sakura’s boobs jiggled…urgh…

This episode feels a lot more like a VN intro.

Some of these scenes were from a different perspective in the prologue, so I’ll try to skip them.

Stove = heater, if you didn’t catch on.

Oh hey, Emiya isn’t part of the archery club anymore…but there’s some evidence that an alternate Emiya became that Archer Rin has.

That’s Ilya, isn’t it…?

Emiya’s magic incompetence reminds me of Waver.

Shinji is Sakura’s older bro??? I never heard of this…? Step-bro, maybe?

I read one of the labels on the machine – makanai setto – and turns out it’s a [meal] set for staff (teachers).

This series’s messages are like anvils…even more so than F/Z.

Where does Emiya work…? (For some reason, I call Kiritsugu that but Shirou “Emiya”.)

Archer’s not in white…not that much, anyway.

“…I really nearly was killed.” – Yes, and people die when they are killed, Emiya. You said so yourself in Deen/Stay Night.

I know this iconic scene where Emiya stares at Saber! I’ve seen it in all the screenshots and everything.

F/SN UBW 3

The blindfolded woman in the OP is apparently Medea. I think I mentioned her offhandedly in one of the WP posts I did, so I didn’t expect to see her so soon.

Most of this ep is explaining this stuff to beginners. I can skip that.

I don’t get the appeal of Rin, but then again, I’m neutral at best on tsunderes.

Shoten Books? Like, Bookseller Books? How redundant…

“[G]enuine fake priest” - …LOL wut?

Why is Kirei giving me Equilibrium vibes…? Oh, it’s because he has silly hair that reminds me of Christian Bale. That’s why.

Most of this episode was recap from F/Z, so I skipped it.

F/SN UBW 4

I’m laughing – this new Berserker reminds me of Tsukasa (Dr Stone).

Ah, same old Gilgamesh. He’s just in different clothes.

Kiritsugu felt like he actually was a character. Emiya? Just a blank slate, really.

Welp, that was over fast…

F/SN UBW 5

I’m getting sick of Rin’s tsundereness, fast.

Okay, crash course in types of Servants. I needed this.

*Saber reveals the outfit is from Rin* - Ooh, Shiro, don’t go judgin’ Rin like that…

Oh-hoh, Sakura does archery, huh?

I bet Kuzuki actually is a mage. That’s how these things always turn out, no?

Actually, I think Emiya might be a better match for my piano experience. There’s this one person who played at a higher level of piano than I did, but they kept telling me that I was way better than them at piano (although I don’t know if that was self-deprecation and/or inflating my ego). As I mentioned in my relation to Rin, I forcibly cut it out of my life because my parents chose it for me – in short, no desire to hit the target, in one way of speaking.

I can see why Fate/ needed a cooking spinoff now…LOL.

Shinto = New City, with a particular combo of kanji.

Are these Touken Ranbu enemies, Rin…? (They’re called Historical Revisionists, technically, and I specifically refer to enemy wakizashi.)

I seem to remember from somewhere Sakura is Caster’s master…hmm. Another thing to confirm.

F/SN UBW 6

That Rin reaction face! I’ve seen it before!

LOL, that “I haven’t been sleeping lately” is relatable.

Medea is one of the only Servants that was originally a woman, so…it’s interesting to see she’s been given a chain as a method to keep up (but also vaguely annoying to see her have such a short skirt). A chain weapon seems to be the sort of weapon for an agile user, with possible sexual overtones (if you want to interpret it that way), so it seems like it came straight from a male fantasy of a woman.

Rin is the sort that places a lot of stock into obligations, I see.

F/SN UBW 7

I learnt how to read the word “mirage” in Japanese somewhat recently (in comparison to the basics, which I learnt through a CD-ROM maybe…15 or so years ago?). It’s shinkirou.

I find it interesting that these eps. are marked as Fate/Stay Night and the series is Fate/Stay Night UBW, because Deen/Stay Night (as I’ve been referring to the Deen version of F/SN) looks pretty different to Ufotable’s F/SN, judging by that “People die when they are killed” meme.

The subbers spelt “specialty” wrong…

Well, Emiya, being in a room with a girl…alone…you really are a typical VN lead, aren’t you?

LOL! I knew Kojiro was also part of this series and I think I knew he was an Assassin, but s***! He’s an absolute looker!

…and *sigh* Caster is using her sensuality against men. A regular Fujiko Mine, she is.

I think my heart did something when Archer gave that intense stare at Caster, too. This is no time for a reverse harem!

F/SN UBW 8

Ahh! Kojiro Sasaki’s (this Assassin’s) so hot! I love it!

The only person who can beat Saber is another swordsperson, huh? Logic checks out.

That blue ring looks like the one at the start of Shinchou Yuusha’s OP.

F/SN UBW 9

I thought Shinji was gonna barf, but that was actually laughing…that’s what happens when you don’t have the volume on.

This replacement Gilgamesh (Shinji) sucks…

Just squinting at Caster’s chest…boobs do not work that way, people. Fabric goes over things like that, it doesn’t tuck itself so neatly around them.

I think Rin’s a real idiot for ignoring that Shinji is a Master and a mage…

I almost thought Shiro was gonna kiss Sakura for a second there. Apparently you should approach an unconscious person from behind and tap them on the shoulder (as opposed to going from the front to listen for breath), in case they try to punch your lights out.

Watching Eizouken, which doesn’t have girly runs for the girls, and then watching this makes you aware even Rin is capable of girly running…(LOL?)

Gee whiz, I was so sure this purple lady with the whip was Medea and a Caster-class Servant. So she’s a Rider??? Update: So it was Caster, masquerading as Rider…is that how it goes…?

So is this a locked-room – or locked-school – mystery…?

F/SN UBW 10

This is basically “You wanna go?” from Saber.

Considering the coronavirus, these words (about people getting out of the attack completely healthy) seem sort of weird…

Samosan? Seppa seppa? What dialect is this???

*Emiya asks Issei to strip* - Ooh…this is why Fate is popular with women…*thinks of the fact this was a male-oriented VN first* Maybe.

I still think the Great B*stard kinda looks like Kyo from Fruits Basket (…not that I ever mentioned it earlier).

I just realised Taiga’s shirt is striped orange/black…like a tiger.

The amount of still frames in this episode, in comparison to the usual number, is significantly higher.

F/SN UBW 11

I just realised Kinoko Nasu means “mushroom” and “eggplant” if not exactly written the way it is…what a name…

*something about being useful to others* - U-Uwaaaaah…Emiya! Stop reminding me of all the things I’ve done at the cost of myself!

Hmm? I googled Rin’s birthday and I thought she was a Leo – she’s an Aquarius (Feb. 3rd).

Rin absolutely steamrolled Emiya, LOL.

I get the feeling Archer is saying “Only you can save yourself”.

F/SN UBW 12

Randomly, there is a Volkswagen.

*something about Emiya photosynsthesising* - Rin, that’s not how people work…

Batting centre? How can girls go there in skirts without flashing anyone? That’s taking into consideration how short Rin’s skirt is, y’know…(Practicality comes first at all times, people…well, not for Saber, who’s wearing stockings, but I worry about Rin, as you can see.)

People find blushing tsunderes cute…I kinda get it for male tsunderes, but for Rin…not really.

Ack! Another double episode!

Why does this ominous vibe on a bus remind me of Harry Potter…? (Then again, the first things I remember of the movies were a shrunken head and a bus that could squeeze through gaps, which might explain things.)

Hmm? So what is Kuzuki’s place in Caster’s life, huh? Who’s controlling the puppet?

Come to think of it, who is Assassin’s real Master? If Caster has control of him, that means he belonged to someone else before that, right?

I feel sorry for Assassin. I mean, he has to keep talking to Caster with his body torn open like that…

“Princess of Colchis” – So Caster is Medea! Maybe Scott (who said I was wrong about that) was thinking I was referring to Rider. Rider and Caster do look awfully similar…but wait, so what was the real identity of Rider, then? Update: Reading over the notes, I was mistakenly referring to Rider as Caster, hence the comment.

Wolverine!Kirei strikes again, it seems.

Lel, I forgot about Lancer…and Berserker, now that I think of it.

F/SN UBW 13

So this is Brave Shine, huh? It doesn’t sound familiar at all…

…aaaaaaaaand of course Saber is in a fancy white dress. It’ll sell a lot of figures – in fact, I think I’ve actually seen Saber figures with that outfit while browsing for Nendoroids and other merch as of late.

F/SN UBW 14

Well, this blonde guy’s hair is nice…but he’s basically Shou Tucker all over again. (I haven’t even completed Fullmetal Alchemist in any form – I just know what the guy did because the fans talk about it a lot.)

Gosh, evil begets nothing but more evil, huh? (re: Kirei and blondie here)

I gotta facepalm - this blonde dude really shouldn’t have maltreated Medea. She has a reputation for a reason.

It took me a few tries and the brightening of my screen to figure it out, but Caster spotted Kuzuki.

Gilgamesh, what the f*** did you do to those poor maids?! (Even if they were homunculi…)

The subbers appear to have spelt “homunculus” slightly wrong…

F/SN UBW 15

“Going through the front door would be a bad idea.” – Yeah, and people die when they are killed.

I really respect Illya now…and can see why she got her own spinoff.

This snowy mountain makes me realise exactly why they chose Ufotable for Demon Slayer.

F/SN UBW 16

I was wondering what Gilgamesh had torn out of Illya…ew.

I was watching Shazam the other day and a piece of advice the titular superhero gives is “Look out for number one.” (i.e. yourself) Rin has much the same mentality.

I seriously facepalmed when they tried to protect each other. One person should learn to stand down in the relationship for that to work.

Hmm…so this means Lancer’s Master is male, huh? (Why is that Master still a mystery anyway…?)

I facepalmed the third time (the second was soon after the first) when Emiya thought he could seriously protect Rin from Lancer. Knowing who Lancer’s Master is a much bigger priority right now, man – this isn’t a romcom!

I like Lancer’s sideways gaze, LOL.

*Archer comes in* - Well, hasn’t it been a while since we saw this guy? (voice drips with sarcasm)

“druther” – Hmm? I’ve never heard of this word before. Apparently, it means (when used as “If I had my druthers…”) “If I had my way…”.

Hmm? What’s this? There are two pendants instead of one…?

F/SN UBW 17

There’s a lot of shots centring around Lancer’s butt…LOL. (Or is that just the female gaze I’m forcing on to this?) Even still, because Lancer has an outfit like that, it’s kinda hard not to see that he does have a fine one.

“You have a lack of pride in your sword skills.” – Uhhhhhhh…I guess that’s why he’s Archer…?

I never seem to know who the Lancers are…geesh. Like, I could pick one from a crowd of Servants, but not their real names. Update: As it turns out, Karna (the one Indian Servant I had my eye on from Apocrypha) is a Lancer in Fate/Grand Order.

Apparently, Gungnir is the spear of Odin.

Kuzuki is a Master…of the Naruto run. (LOL)

Noting “sieben” and stuff, I think Rin’s magic is German in nature.

Why does Medea have elven ears, anyway…?

F/SN UBW 18

The subs suddenly turned yellow! What the heck?! (Prior to this, subs were white.) Update: Come to think of it, only Aniplex shows have yellow subs, while Funimation ones have white subs (although HiDive let you choose between white and black, the standard is white on the hardsubs). This might mean a switchover between who’s responsible for the show happened while this anime was airing.

“…within your grasp?”

Ooh, this I didn’t expect! Saber joined forces with Rin!

“…your wish was a mistake.”

*Shiro fights swords with more swords* - For some reason, I feel like I need to play some Daft Punk right now. (I don’t even like them as an artist, even though I’m meant to be the EDM expert around here…)

This all but confirms Archer is actually a Shiro Emiya from a distant future.

I just imagined an Archer whose body was made of swords. What a compelling image – a literal human weapon.

Those hand gestures…Shinji is a massive creep.

Huh? I’ve been skipping the post-credits segments for previous episodes because I’m binging, but there’s a post-credits segment here…

Hmm…this next-ep preview had a rook (or a king? I’m no good at identifying chess pieces by their appearance) with a red glowing symbol on it facing what appeared to be the symbol of the Saber class. What an interesting representation of the upcoming inevitable faceoff.

F/SN UBW 19

Wouldn’t it not make sense for future!Shirou to kill present!Shirou? I mean, you know the time travel paradox…if you kill the present guy, the future guy doesn’t exist.

“Sorry about that, punk.” – LOL. Lancer’s great.

Hey, wasn’t Kirei dea-oh right. In fiction, when there is no corpse, you can’t have assumed the character died. They probably skedaddled off somewhere, heavily bleeding and/or on the edge of death…and I’m assuming that was how Kirei got out of his scuffle too.

All this talk about ideals makes me wanna play Odd Future for some reason, LOL. (Well, the first line of that song is “I keep my ideals”, no?)

“…it is you who is disobeying orders.”

A eunuch, huh? Rin, you do know that a eunuch has his *erhem erhem* cut off…right?

Okay, people. Why must women be the source of the Holy Grail? This is only the 2nd time I’ve gotten to this point and you’ve got enough men to fuel the Grail instead. Why not use them??? Update: It’s safe to say I get my wish later.

“You’ve been removed from the bounds of time.” Subbers, I know you’re under pressure to produce subs, but please proofread…? Pretty please? Update: I should proofread too. My E key is a bit dodgy at the moment.

I predicted, a few seconds before it appeared on my screen, that Shirou wasn’t the type to do things he regretted. Yyyyyyyyyyup. That’s Shirou, alright.

F/SN UBW 20

Okayyyyyy. That was not an episode title that needed to be subbed.

Oh, gosh. Can you please just knee Shinji where it hurts, Rin…? I know you’re being choked, but you could still do something lik that.

…(lol)…What the heck, Shinji’s such a self-preserving prick!

So how many times did Lancer actually die and how many times was he faking it out?

“Dying because of some order that comes with being a hero.”

So who’s Gilgamesh’s Master now…?

Hmm…I thought by saving Rin and Saber, Shirou was already a hero. Maybe it’s just a perception thing.

H-Hey, Shirou…you keep saying redundant things…

F/SN UBW 21

Why is Saber just standing there, anyway…? (Well, Shirou did say it was his fight, but…she can do something…)

Okay, whose idea was it to cut after “However…”?! That’s terrible pacing.

This series peaked quite a few episodes ago. Now it’s just stretching for time.

Um, hey. Random question. Didn’t King Arthur draw Excalibur from the sword in the stone? Is that a stone or a tree stump? It’s hard to tell since the zoom quality is funny, but…if it’s a tree stump, someone got a crucial detail wrong. Update: Nup, it’s a stone. Forget I told you.

Having sacrificed myself for over a year for other people’s sake, I can’t say I agree that giving yourself up for others is a beautiful thing. This is speaking as someone who volunteers at a not-for-profit (the charity store). In fact, having thought long and hard about the fact I’ve completely gone down the wrong path from having taken this one opportunity I was given (note I did get rejected from a similar place before I got the position I did), I’ve thought, occasionally, that sort of thing is disgusting.

Did the Great B*stard even age 10 years while waiting for this new war…?

“…left off 10 years ago.”

Uh-oh. I don’t like Shinji – you can clearly tell that from the way I’ve been reacting to him – but there’s no way you’d use him as a Grail vessel…right?

F/SN UBW 22

If I understand the pink box correctly, it says kayumino-ru which is…*checks that up* itch cream(?) Another of the boxes says either iburon or ipuron, but it seems to be some kind of medicine (although I can’t figure out what it does).

“…flashy gold jerk…” – Yup, that’s why he’s the Great B*stard. The most narcisstic of all b*stards –so narcisstic he survived a Holy Grail War without being the victor.

Lemme guess, Rin…if I know my visual novels right, then the way to establish the mana link is either kissing or sexual intercourse, right? Update: Oh well, transplantation of a Magic Crest will work too. With the way Rin was reacting, I thought it was gonna be really intimate, but…nup. It’s just them taking off their shirts for one another…*whistles and pretends to walk away*

The reason I don’t like tsunderes is that whenever they want to be romantic, you can’t tell whether they’re giving mixed signals or not. Then again, you could argue I count as one, so…uh…*sweatdrop*

Shirou, why are you so concerned for the pillow?!

F/SN UBW 23

You can barely recognise the guy (Shinji)…huh.

H-Hey? You couldn’t mean Assassin’s back, right? Update: Y-Yep, that’s Assassin, alright. At least I can gaze upon his handsome face again…(lol) (<- If you’re wondering, there’s a difference between “lol” (or “small LOL”), “lel” and “LOL”. That’s the order they’re meant to be in, going from smallest to biggest laugh.)

Had to check Wikipedia, but Monohoshizao is the pole (?) wielded by Kojiro Sasaki…well, the correct term is nodachi (which I know better as ootachi from Touken Ranbu), but it’s referred to as a pole. To add something interesting to that, the ootachi I like the most (my beloved Taroutachi) is said to be 221 cm (throwing that into a converter, about 7.25 feet) and 4.5 kg (converting again, about 9.92 pounds)...which is basically something no human should be able to use, so if the pole is anything like Taroutachi...I have immense respect for this Assassin as well.

Assassin’s treatment here reminds me of Tora from Juuni Taisen…in a sense, they got what they wanted.

F/SN UBW 24

Cue the law of equivalent exchange from Fullmetal Alchemist, hahaha.

How can you be so sure you’ll beat the Great B*stard, Shirou???

Well, that Grail’s Holey, alright…(I bet you’re groaning at my joke, yes?)

I thought Archer was dead?! How did he fling a weapon at the last moment?!

Archer, you’re disappearing! This is no time for monologuing!

Why do I get the feeling I’ve seen Rin give the thumbs-up before as well…?

F/SN UBW 25 (FINAL)

Eyyyyyy? London…? Update: Oh, it’s the Clock Tower! That OVA is starting to make sense now! (Although I will watch it next, so there’s no need to muse over it.)

Tohsaka without pigtails is…weird.

Sherou (?)

Oh, romantic infighting (voice dripping in sarcasm)…That’s not what I’m here for. This is not a harem.

Ponytail Rin. This just gets weirder and weirder. Also, she kinda looks like Ishtar from Babylonia like that.

Tiny Pigtail Rin…it gets even weirder.

*yells* See?! It is London after all!!!

Update: Prior to this point, I had Silhouettes (by Avicii) playing in my head on occasion, notably when Archer was meeting his end. When Shirou came face-to-face with Saber’s grave, it switched to So Amazing by Luther Vandross. Although I normally don’t mention what I have on my mental playlist in notes like these, I just want to make note of that because it reflects the switch in mood. (Also, this is basically an extended transition into El-Melloi’s Case Files.)

Hmph. Yeah, nothing like hindsight to make something huge look small.

Sakura and Shinji’s relationship…it reminds me of a grumpy old man and his young daughter…(LOL?)

Ryudou’s reaction to romance reminds me of Tenya (from BnHA) in his more crazy moments.

All this talk about the Clock Tower is making me think that older!Waver will show up at any moment now…

…wa-hey? Well, *spits out some held-back laughter* whaddaya know? That’s the older Waver right there!

Ufotable’s older!Waver and Troyca’s older!Waver look fairly different. Ufotable’s isn’t as attractive because his hair has an artificial sheen to it and the man’s face looks more like a snake’s head in shape, so he looks a bit dumb. Update: Certainly Troyca’s Waver has a more egg-shaped head, but at least that makes his hair look nicer, no?

Post-credits segment. Keep watching.

Huh…that segment wasn’t very substantial. Maybe Hoshiai no Sora spoilt me on that front.  

Waver OVA (REWATCH)

*yells* I still think Flat Escardos is a terrible name!

LOL, I think Waver just called out a bunch of political writers right there.

So who are these old people??? (Lennon Glasses and Old Lady here) I still don’t know. Update: You do find out later – Inorai is the old lady and Rocco is the old man.

Okay, so apparently the set of characters used for “Rail Zeppelin” is literally translated to Demon Eyes Collection Train...sounds like something out of Demon Slayer.

If Kayneth is the OG Lord and this Reines girl is the new one, how did Waver become gen. 2? *rewinds a little* She’s el-Melloi Archisorte, meaning that somehow she and Kayneth are blood-related (also note Monkey D Luffy = Luffy is his first name and Monkey is the last name with D being a middle initial, so Reines could have her names around the wrong way as well). Still doesn’t answer the Waver part of the question, though. Update: The character page of the official website says Reines is the rightful heir to the name “Lord (Lady?) El-Melloi”, but she appointed Waver to be the Lord while she waited to become of age and take the position.  

As you know, I gotta question the guy’s (Waver) age. In Fate/Zero he was 19 and he looks much the same ten years later, so his approximate age range is 19 – 29 here. Wikipedia (which I linked earlier) says the anime this OVA is attached to occurs between the Grail Wars, meaning I might not be able to get an exact age. Update: “[A]lmost 10 years”, so I’d wager he’s on the back end of the age range (24 – 29).

Ooh, another good boy (Bram). I forgot he existed…and that’s kinda nasty that he’s got the bloodline of Sola-Ui in him. Update: Oh! Younger sister! That is nasty!

The word shisho (師匠), if I’m guessing the right characters, means “instructor” (or “teacher” if you wanna bend it that way). “Sir” is Waver’s title…I’m guessing that translatio choice is because he’s not a professor in title, assuming professor titles in this are given like they are in real life.

There’s something quite cute about Waver making such an indignant face…then again, he does have permanent worry lines on his face, so maybe not.

Like, whose bright idea was it to crush on the loli? Ravioli, ravioli, don’t crush on the loli! (Then again, I’m probaby worse, chasing after older men…)

Come to think of it, Ufotable is good at action motion (see exhibit A: Demon Slayer), but not free-flowing comedic motion like Waver falling over like this. That’s probably why the show jumped studios to Troyca (aside from divvying up the work of the Fate/ universe – Ei Aoki did F/Z, after all, so it makes sense he’d have some ability to take dibs on whatever works best for his studio…although he wasn’t too involved with this, I don’t think). Update: He was supervisor and storyboarder for this OVA.

Waver: Official butt monkey of the Clock Tower. Calling it now.

Troyca animates F/Z (however briefly)…I must say, they did a good job imitating Ufotable.

All I really remember from the first time around is the car chase, which really shows my priorities in anime…heh heh.

Troyca’s CGI is more noticeable than Ufotable’s, but they’re still on of the best studios for CGI, I think. That’s why they’re on my favourites list over Ufotable (since Ufotable, by general consensus, does better work but I think it looks more artificial in parts – case in point, Waver’s hair).

Setting up a mystery, like all stories, is very much about setting up the boundaries that you’re allowed to play in later. The only thing is that mysteries get more stringently judged for logic.

Hey, whaddaya know? Waver can fit Rider’s old shirt now! (Or maybe it’s the smaller version Waver implied was given to him during F/Z.)

“[W]hydunit” (in English) – LOL? There’s “whodunit”, but not “whydunit” – stick to “motive” or “modus operandi”, people.

[hasspartacusdoneanythingwrong]

The Flame-Soaked City, Part 2

Mash, Jeanne (not the servant), Cris, and Kat's trek through Fuyuki continues! Mash has to come to terms with her new powers, while The master trio are learning how to fly blind. How will they react when their little journey gets a lot more crowded? Also, we get sidetracked and spend way too much time justifying the existence of CEs in-universe!

Part 1 here Part 3 here

(Note: anything <between triangle brackets> is being said mentally between the masters.)

Mash and Dr. Romani talked for a bit more about Mash's new condition as a pseudoservant. Before he was cut off by interference, he gave us coordinates for a leypoint, a source of magical energy that could give us a more stable connection. The heat was awful, but Mash's spirit origin was obvious enough that we could follow her footsteps to avoid the worst of the debris in our path.

Those things in the debris were nightmares, though. Mash could flatten them easily, but they were difficult to pick out in the haze, and we were already losing blood from our head wound.

As we neared the leyline’s focal point, I finally felt a source of magical energy that was different from all the skeletons that searched through the wreckage of the city.

Jeanne: Mash, is that... a human? Over there!

Mash: You're right, senpai! That's... the director!

Cris: <<Aw crap.>>

Kat: <Come on, don't be like that! The more people we find out here the better!>

Cris: <<Yeah, but she's had it out for us ever since Jeanne zoned out in the middle of her speech.>>

Jeanne: <<<I did not "zone out", you two were distracting me! How do you expect me to carry on two conversations at once?>>>

Cris: <<I don't know, but you can get plenty of practice right now.>>

Olga Marie: Well? What do you have to say for yourself?

Jeanne: Yes?

Olga Marie:...

Jeanne: ...No?

Jeanne: What are we talking about?

Olga Marie: How on EARTH did someone like you make it into Chaldea? The second it's possible, we're sending you back. We don't need fools on the front lines, especially not injured ones.

Cris: <<Smooth.>>

Jeanne: Oh, will you just-

Olga Marie: What was that?

Jeanne: ...Will you just... stay here, while I check on Mash's progress with the summoning circle?

Olga Marie: Well? Don't just stand there then, get on it!

Kat: <That was close.>

Jeanne: <<<As much as I know you would love to argue with her, Director Animusphere has a point, Cris. We're barely holding on as is.>>>

Cris: <<Oh come on! The only thing here is a bunch of skeletons, and Mash can flatten them in one punch! We're fine!>>

Jeanne: <<<Something is keeping these skeletons together, and I'd rather not deal with that while I am fucking blind, Cris.>>>

Kat: <Hey, we've all been through a lot. Let's just see how Mash is doing.>

Mash: Oh, Senpai! Perfect timing, the circle is almost complete!

Jeanne: Director, we almost have contact!

Energy flowed through Mash's shield and into the sigils surrounding it. Soon enough, Doctor Romani was with us again.

Romani: CQ, CQ. Hello, hello? Okay, the connection's back! Mash, Hannah, it's wonderful to see you again!

None of us actually went by our legal name, but it is less of a hassle than explaining the real situation, so we kept our mouth shut.

Romani: Sorry! I mean, er-

Olga Marie: Doctor Romani? Why are you running communications? Where's Lev? Put him on!

Romani: Director, you're alive? Wha-

Olga Marie: Of course I am! Now where's Lev? Why is a medic on the comms line?

Romani: I know I'm not cut out for the job, but there's nobody else.

Jeanne: What... what do you mean by that?

Romani: Currently, the surviving full time staff of Chaldea is less than twenty people. I'm the highest ranking survivor. Lev was supervising from the command room, where the blast was the strongest. There's no way he could have survived that.

Olga Marie: ...No...

Romani: All other the master candidates are in critical condition. We might be able to save a couple, but-

Olga Marie: Don't be ridiculous! Cryopreserve them immediately! We can worry about reviving them later.

Romani: Ah! Of course! I almost forgot they had that!

After putting the other masters in cryopreservation, Romani continued with his report. Chaldea's systems were crippled, and rayshifting out currently wasn't an option. Their comms were also cut off from the outside world.

Olga Marie: Very well. Romani! Continue with the repairs. In the meantime, Hannah, Mash, and I will investigate the town. If we came back empty handed the Clocktower would have my head.

Romani: Right away, Director!

The connection cut off, and the director focused on us.

Olga Marie: Unfortunately Hannah, you're the closest thing we have to a master at hand, so we'll just have to see what you can get.

Jeanne: What do you mean?

Olga Marie: Do I really have to spell it out for you? We're at a summoning circle! Summon another servant! Chaldeas was designed to power the contracts of dozens of masters, even in this state it can handle whatever dreck you can scrounge up.

Cris: Please. I'll have you know I was brought here because I have the compatibility of three masters!

Kat: <Definitely helps that we ARE three masters. Now hurry up! I wanna summon a berserker!>

Jeanne: <<<You do NOT.>>>

Olga Marie: Just try to get ONE other servant for now. Overconfidence won't help us any.

Mash and Olga prepared some materials for the ritual, and then I repeated a chant Olga fed to us. And then...

A deluge of information forced its way into our mind. Bones scattered in a desert. The tranquility of sunrise. The feeling of chains tying us down. The agony of warfare. ...A white squirrel? Each one forced its way in haphazardly, shoving the last one out of the way.

Cris: <<Hey, I think I got something solid!>>

Kat: <Me too!>

Jeanne: <<<I... kind of?>>>

The first thing I noticed once reality faded back in were the gems littering the ground around us. Even brushing against one of them brought back the flash of feeling from before, but not quite as overpowering.

Cris: <<Jeanne? Stop playing with rocks. We're surrounded.>>

The first thing Cris noticed was the dozens of spirit origins now surrounding us. Before panic could set in, one of them spoke up.

???: Now that you have command over the army of shadows, victory is at hand. You can rest easy now, Master. We are the Hundred Personas, Assassin class.

Olga Marie: What did you do, Hannah? I said one servant, not one hundred! How do you expect to control all of them?

Jeanne: I think they're a package deal, Director. Their spirit origins are almost identical.

Jeanne: We're glad to have all of you. Thank you for answering our summons.

Each one of the servants standing before us had only the most minute of differences in their spirit origin. I'm sure if you overlayed them all they'd form the original whole. So many bodies in a single graph... fascinating...

Kat: <Um, Jeanne? You can geek out about your servant later, there's a couple others in the crowd.>

Two new servants in the crowd stood out. The smaller one approached first. Her spirit origin seemed very similar to Mash's- this one was definitely a knight class! Judging by our connection, they must be Kat's servant.

???:It is nice to meet you, Master. Since I am still in training, please call me Saber Lily. I look forward to working with you in the years to come.

"Saber Lily" was an odd name, but we knew enough about people not to pry.

Jeanne: <<<Do you two know any lily-themed swordswomen?>>>

Cris: <<Of course, I totally paid attention in our History class. Who do you think it is, Kat?>>

Kat: <The biggest lily in history is that french one... Ahah! It's d'Eon, it's gotta be! I hear she's pretty! Gah, now I hope Cris got a caster, I want our eyes healed already!>

Jeanne: Thank you for coming. I hope this won't take that long, but I look forward to our time together as well.

That just left the servant Cris pulled, which was... oh no.

As the mountain of a servant stomped towards us, their spirit origin spoke volumes about them. Its fault lines and twists showed the unmistakeable marks of being forced into the berserker class.

It stopped inches from our face.

???: I am Berserker Spartacus. Sorry to ask this, but are you a tyrant?

[poppun-chan]

The Year of Keroro Challenge Update 4 (Yes Sir)

Goodness, even though I mentioned looking forward to this one it took quite a while to write it (this has been a difficult week)in terms of watching I’m almost finished with the first season, actually, one strange thing I noticed was that the valentines episode actually lines up with valentines day. But before we get started Jlucy pointed out to me that the scene from episode 21 with the car is specifically a nod to “Castle of Caliostro” with the drivers being based on two of the main characters and the car being a nod to the Fiat from the movie. Actually I wonder if the writers for the dub had this in mind when they were writing; in the English version the driver mentions he was renting a car because he didn’t want to use his Fiat.

Either way I had planned to wait until there weren’t any text pieces to translate, but I have at least one more of these non-episode specific notes to do before we reach episode 65, so a bit on name origins (The ones for the Human characters will probably be less familiar, but still....)

Keroro-Kero, the noise a frog makes (I’ve always suspected this is actually a really common name)

Tamama-Otamajakushi, meaning tadpole (I really find myself wondering about his family background that his parents gave him a name that assumes he’s going to look like a child for a long time)

Giroro-Giro, the onomatopoeia for glaring at someone/something

Kururu-Kuru, it’s used as an onomatopoeia, a noun, and a verb, either way it refers to something twisting, spinning or turning (which is why his resonance creates a loop)

Dororo-It’s best known as a reference to the Osamu Tezuka manga Dororo, which takes place in the feudal era, it also works as a play on Doro-Doro which is the sound of something dripping

And the plan count:

Serious Plans: K66:16 D66:1 MMK:1 TMM:1

Funding Plans: K66:1

It’s a plan, I Swear!: K66:5 (I’m throwing the sports day mission in here too)

Oh look! Progress!: K66:3 

And the marker board from episode 27:

Episode 22: Now first of all I’ve always enjoyed this episode, the absurdity, the cute break down Tamama has at the end, the completely impractical but still fun plan (actually I think Tamama only comes up with three plans over the course of the entire show and they’re all more or less the same basic concept). Plus the little stealth pun when Natsumi gets angry about the shower; she shouts “Kora!” which is an interjection that can be used as a reprimand, but it’s pronounced similarly to Cola.

Actually, speaking of this part I have to admit I sort of agree with Tamama’s point that Fuyuki could just serve that cake in the fridge instead of making dinner....Actually even the bit about accounting for nutritional balance could sort of be refuted; Baked goods often contain grains and eggs, not always dairy but ice cream and cheese cake covers that, his plan allowed tuna as an exception so that’s meat covered, plus many desserts are made with fruit and there are some made with vegetables (carrot cake, anything with pumpkin in it, corn cake), sure most people would probably either stop eating before this point or simply die trying, but theoretically it IS possible to get normal nutrients that way....Yes I’ve seriously thought about this; there are quite a few characters that can be explained this way.

Finally no discussion of this episode would be complete without bringing up the infamous letter, so I’m going to try and cover this in more depth since I have the luxury of making this a separate note. First of all, it’s written really oddly; everything except the word “leader” is written in katakana which you normally wouldn’t do (hiragana only is a different matter, but in modern times it’s considered a bit childish). One big issue with not using kanji is that it’s much harder to tell what you’re trying to say, plus katakana itself is a bit sticky since some of them strongly resemble each other or other kanji (one relevant to this is katakana ni resembling the kanji for two which is often pronounced the same way). The revealed part admittedly seems phrased a bit simply, but it says “Taichou wa Tamama ni” or “Tamama’s Leader” while the full message is “Taichou wa Keroro ni Makasetamama ni” or “Keroro will be left as the leader” I suppose the closest thing in English would be if the letters were a bit more spaced apart instead of grouped together

And fun fact; Etsuko Kozakura, the woman who provides Tamama’s voice, also did the voice of Puppetmon/Pinocchimon from the original Digimon series. I just thought I’d mention this since I noticed a few....similarities between their management styles (Though Tamama just imprisoned people who crossed him instead of....deleting them)....actually watching the episode and knowing this made me look into Digimon again, did you know one of the newer series has a Puppetmon who is one of the friend Digimon that shows up every now and then? Really. They have his nose grow when he lies (including to himself) and give him some really charming moments....and he shares his English voice with Keroro, hm.

Episode 23: And it’s the clone episode! I have to confess, the bit about the clones not having a star always makes me wish there was a video of the original Keroro singing the song from the Sneetches, the one where the starred Sneetches are roasting marshmallows....I know it’s a strange association to make, but....Come to think of it, I don’t think this was a manga chapter, I’m not completely sure and I know most of the season one episodes were based on the manga, but I know a few stories were anime exclusive and I believe this was the first one, either way it’s hilarious to see Keroro being the responsible one and getting annoyed by the behaviour of his own clones (still, at least there was an easily visible way of telling them apart, which is better than what happened with Pinkie Pie, some people still theorise that they kept the wrong Pinkie).

Now for a bit of a sticky area, especially since I’ve been putting up with my grandfather’s preoccupation with this particular time for most of my life, but I noticed something a bit odd. Even now, a lot of people seem to be weirded out by the “clone salute”, but they actually switched two of the syllables in the Aliens’ name for Earth because the original term from the manga was associated with the Sino-Japanese wars (I’m not sure which, there’s two major ones and a bunch of smaller conflicts, but the second big one was during the world war) and was banned from television. I’d be curious to find out what it is that makes one war reference more acceptable than another (maybe because calling Earth “Pokopen” alludes to much longer standing conflict with a specific country? I have to admit I always wondered if the best way of handling “touchy terms” would be to find a positive, unrelated use for them so they take on a new meaning and the old one eventually falls out of use; you often hear about the power of words, but it’s actually their meanings that have effect rather than the words themselves)

Episode 24: Oh dear it’s 556, I have to admit I’ve never liked this guy (though I will admit, I like the instrumental version of his song on the Christmas album) I know for a lot of people felt the same way with Joriri eventually replacing him, but it didn’t work the same way for me.

Actually, one thing I love about this episode is how when Keroro wonders about the emotions he’s feeling watching 556 fighting “monsters” they immediately cut to Tamama; it’s almost as if the cinematography is saying “Let’s ask your resident expert, shall we?”

Actually I recently looked at the Japanese version of the full character page again, I think there’s one surprising one on there; I know 556 and Labbie are references to Space Sheriff Gaven and a character named Annie from Space Sheriff Shaider, but the character page lists their relationship as Gukyou-Kenmai or “Goofy Older Brother, Wise Younger Sister” which was the original title for a T.V. series called “Otoko wa Tsurai yo” or “It’s tough to be a man” which later became a huge film series of the same title (Often called “Tora-san” after the main character, Torajirou), spanning 48 installments and nearly three decades (only ending when the actor playing Torajiro died). The films followed a similar formula of Torajirou the traveling salesman going home to his sister’s family, walking out after getting into an argument and meeting a distressed young woman in the next town he goes to and offering to let her stay at the family’s sweet shop if she needs it. Eventually this happens and he falls in love with her, but in trying to win her over indavertantly ends up setting her up with another man and ending up disappointed, but putting on a brave face and wishing her the best before journeying to another town in hopes of getting over her and eventually becoming somebody his family can be proud of. 

The first movie was actually made to please fans of the original show who were upset that Torajirou died of a snakebite in the final episode, it also took quite a bit of convincing from the director to get the first movie made. Incidentally, the working title for the original show came from the final caption in another piece Torajiro’s actor played in

Episode 25: And here we have a Nishizawa family quarrel....which is appearently not considered complete unless enough money is spent that you could buy a small town and heavy weapons are nearly used (that’s the second time Keroro’s nearly let to Earth be destroyed only to be stopped at the last moment by the realisation that Earth is the official “Gunpla Planet”). Still there are some nice little moments (though I wonder if they ever did make that video, as long as they cut out the bits where they start to lose it could work)

Episode 26: Sports Day fun times ♪ Actually, has anyone ever noticed that whenever a show wants to slow down a sports day they usually target the scavenger hunt? Though now that I think about it, the cruel irony of all this is if they hadn’t tried to help, Aki probably would have made it in time to run in the race (or at least, the combined effect of accidentally speeding up the 100 meter dash and ruining some of the manuscripts). Though I do admit that I miss the parts from the manga where Momoka is running a race and the newspaper article at the end “Freak in tights crashes sports fest” I find it strangely hilarious the way they worded it. Also it’s amazing the things that become relevant later on, let’s see who remembers what I’m talking about.

Episode 27:  First of all, I love the way Keroro offhandedly compares renewing interest in the invasion to reviving the dead (He already knows it’s a lost cause), it’s especially interesting considering they come across the remnants of a failed invasion later on. Actually I sort of want to see a spin off about those past invaders; not necessarily a big, dramatic, action-y thing mind you, honestly I expect it would be more or less the same thing as with Keroro but in ancient times, perhaps with the human characters being the ancestors of the current ones.

Also they use the pun of kaeru meaning both “frog” and “to return” quite a lot in the series. Though I have to admit I can relate to Keroro’s feelings a bit here; all of the women in my family have been quite formidable, especially for their time, and my mother is crusading to change the child welfare system in Canada (even though she’s never been in it) and doing all of these things for political change and I sometimes feel I can’t really measure up to that, even though I don’t plan on going into a related field. Plus because of her work I’m a bit burnt out on people issues, I focus more on environmental ones.

Episode 28: This one was a bit tricky, though I always thought the effect of the cold weather on the Keronians sounded more like windburn than all out frostbite. As for the second part this officially marked the beginning of the odd sort of dynamic of Mois & Kururu, I don’t remember how much it was explored in the show apart from her sometimes being who they went with when they needed a girl to associate with Kururu, though I remember a few moments from the manga that built on it, such as the “Angol Stone” chapter.

[minussseven]

Fate/Stay Night Heaven’s Feel custom Bad End  zelretched  with Highschool DxD, 4

Issei opened his notebook and readied his pencil. “Ok. I’m ready.”

Sakura blinked. This Berserker was endearing and reminded her of Fujimura Taiga. Someone she wasn’t sure had survived her rampage on Fuyuki.

“Uh, Matou-san?” He asked, seeing the girl lose herself in her thoughts again. It was something she did a lot, and it worried him a bit. They didn’t look like happy thoughts and considering what he had felt when she’d revived him… well, he didn’t want her to think them too much. He was doing his best not to think about it too.

“I apologize.” She composed herself. “Before I start the whole story, I suppose I should introduce myself. I’m Matou Sakura. I was a first-year at Homuhara Academy, in Fuyuki City.”

“Hm, I’ve never heard of Fuyuki… and you’re younger than me. I wouldn’t have guessed.”

“Like I’ve never heard of Kuoh City,” replied Sakura. Her voice turned even more serious. “I belong to the Matou Family, a line of magi that were very involved in what I’m about to tell you. It all started with them. The Matou, the Tohsaka and the Einzbern. The Holy Grail Wars.”

Issei was entranced. “Holy Grail. Like in the christian legends? The cup that was used to gather the blood of Jesus?”

Sakura was surprised. “You seem to know a lot about it, Issei-san.”

He rubbed the back of his head self-consciously. “I had Christian friends as a kid. I went to church a lot with them and his parents were always telling this sort of stories.”

“I see. But in this case it wasn’t the real thing. They just used the same name.” She returned to the topic at hand. Long story short, the three founding families created an artifact that could grant wishes.”

“It could grant wishes!?”

“Yes. Any wish at all. But for it to materialize, or, to prepare the Holy Grail, a ‘war’ had to be fought. Seven magi were chosen by the Grail to become Masters. They would each summon a Servant and battle each other. The Master and Servant that were left in the end could then have their wishes granted.” She sighed and added to herself. “Supposedly that is.”

The boy gulped. “A battle royale… to the… to the death?”

“Yes. At the very least, all the other Servants had to be killed. But Servants are dependent on their Masters, so Masters are often targeted.” She saw his expression and gave him a smile. Despite his new appearance and aura, Issei had been nothing but a normal teenager. “You don’t have to worry about that Issei-san. You might be a Servant, but there’s no Holy Grail War. Just these cards, nothing more.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Yes. You see, at some point, the Grail was corrupted.”

“Corrupted?” He looked down at himself.

Sakura nodded. “The Einzbern tried to cheat and summon an eighth Servant. That Servant was… an evil god, so to say. He corrupted the Grail and from then on, irregularities started to happen in the Holy Grail Wars. Servants that shouldn’t be summoned, improper Masters….” She lowered her head. “I was chosen as the Master of the Matou during the Fifth Holy Grail War. I didn’t have a wish and didn’t want to fight. But… I had a connection to the Holy Grail, so I started being corrupted too.” So to speak. She’d been filthy a long time before that. “If I had been stronger, perhaps it wouldn’t have happened, but I was afraid…” She looked him in the eye. “Because of me, a lot of people died.”

“Sakura-san…” Issei reached for her but she retreated, tears glimmering in her eyes.

“However… I was saved.” By her. By him. “I alone survived. A Magician came for me and… trapped me in a place where I had… time and space for my mind to heal a little bit, and for me to gain control of the power I had gained.” Zelretch had surely intervened in some way on her body, for Sakura saw no other reason for her to have become so stable. Of all the interventions and violations, she supposed his was the best, or the least bad. Who knew what purposes and designs governed his mind? “One… day, he appeared again, to give me another chance. He gave me these Class Cards, the knowledge to use them and sent me here.” Right in front of his dying body. “You know the rest.”

Issei nodded, the notebook in his hands forgotten, entranced as he was not by the story itself, but by the incredibly sad and empty expression in Sakura’s face. “Yeah. You saved me.” He gathered his courage to speak. He couldn’t let this girl continue thinking she was evil. He could see it in every line of body. The way she smiled, the way she wouldn’t meet his eyes, the way she curled into herself, nails digging into her own flesh. “Sakura-san, you saved. That’s a good thing. Please don’t… think of yourself badly…”

Sakura shook her head. “I have a responsibility. Issei-san… so many people died because of me. No. I killed so many people, that if I’m not brave enough to end my own life, then I have a responsibility to live on and… and make the world better. Save people.” Despite herself, she smiled, half soul consuming sorrow, half exalting love. “That’s what he would have done. My upperclassman. Help people, no matter what. Save them. I couldn’t let you die, not after I’d been given this second chance. Besides,” she thought of the smile on the ancient vampire’s face, “I don’t think it was a coincidence I entered this world at that time and place. Zelretch… probably wanted me to save you, using that specific card.”

Issei bit his lip, frustrated at his failure, but recognizing there was nothing he would saythat would change her mind. Not right now. He resolved to continue to try. Sakura had saved him and he could care less about her past. He knew that, despite whatever sins she had commited, she was a good person. That was the kind of person Hyoudou Issei was, underneath the perversion. “Still. Thank you.” He straightened.

“Do you have questions about this?” Asked Sakura.

Issei raised his hand like he was in class. “Yeah! So many! Like, hm…” What was an easy question to start with? He was roiling with them. What were Servants for one? Summoning?  Maybe it was better to start at the beginning. He had a feeling Sakura had really condensed an entire fish of a story into a sashimi slice. “So, first. You’re a magi?”

“Magus is the singular form.” Sakura explained. “And I wouldn’t call myself a magus. I’m really more of a spellcaster than anything.” She’d barely been trained as a magus. In truth, she had just been a container for the Matou Crest. The knowledge was there, engraved into her flesh, but she had never truly accessed it. Even lost to the darkness of the Grail, she’d only vaguely touched upon those mysteries and just brute-forced it. Like… her sister had said.

“What’s the difference?”

“Being a magus is… a way of living. A philosophy. I can use magecraft, but I don’t follow the way, so to speak. A Magician, however, is someone on a whole new level, capable of true magical miracles, the True Magics.” But, now that she thought about it, did the ritual used by the Class count as the Third Magic?

Sakura decided not to think about it. It was too much for her, and far too soon.

“I see.” Issei nodded, writing it down. A way of living, like he, Motohama and Matsuda followed the way of the true pervert, unlike those who just occasionally watched something ero. And miracles. It was amazing. “Hmm. I know, what servant did you summon?”

Sakura felt a deep melancholy then, remembering the one who was most compatible with her. “I summoned Rider, whose true identity was Medusa.”

Issei blinked. “Wait, I think I’m missing something here.” He grabbed his head. “Medusa… I’ve heard that somewhere before. But what does Rider mean and… what?”

“Medusa is from a greek legend. A woman with snake hair whose eyes could turn people into stone.” Sakura giggled at the way Issei’s mouth opened in sudden comprehension. “It’ll make more sense if I explain properly what a Servant is.”

“Please do.” He prepared his pencil.

How to start, she thought. “Do you know what a familiar is? It’s common to see them in stories.” Issei nodded and she continue. “Servants aren’t strictly speaking familiars but they work the same way: they are depending on the magus’ energy and there is a spiritual connection between them. Servants are summoned beings with which a contract is formed.”

The Servant finished writing that down and wondered, “do we also have that? After I… came back, I knew I needed to say those words, so…”

Sakura nodded. “Yes. That was the contract being established.” She decided to leave the mention of Command Spells for later. “If you focus, you should be able to sense a link between us. Servants and Masters can share senses and feel instinctively where the other is and their state. In our case, it may take some practice, since you don’t have any experience with magecraft.”

Issei closed his eyes and tried focusing inwards. It should be just like meditation, no? Not that he’d ever meditated. At first, he felt nothing, just his own thoughts. But as he imagined a power within him, like in his mangas, he started feeling something. There was something within him… Something pulsed, like he’d been poked in the ribs, and he opened his eyes, staring startled at Sakura. He could feel it now. Vaguely, he felt her. If he focused, he could tell she was there with something other than his eyes. “This is so strange.”

She supposed it would be. “The contract has been formed correctly, so there everything is in order. We can work on that later, if you want to.”

“Definitely! This is so cool.” He wrote their names and drew a line connecting them. “Sorry for the tangent.”

“It’s no problem. Continuing, well.” Where had they been? “Servants are something like familiars of the highest rank. To properly explain what happens in the Holy Grail, well… they are very special and specific Servants.” Sakura wavered. Should she mention the Throne of Heroes or just skip to the summoning? “In the Holy Grail Wars, Masters summon Heroic Spirits. Something like the spirits, or ghosts, of legendary heroes.”

Issei’s eyes widened. “Like Oda Nobugana and the Shisengumi?”

“Those would be very good examples.”

He imagined it. “So cool.”

Sakura wondered if this what it felt like having a younger brother, starry-eyed and amazed at everything. That path led to darker thoughts, like almost every path her mind took, so she stopped it there. “However, you can’t actually summon Heroic Spirits. They are… too powerful. With the Help of the Holy Grail, Masters summon a copy of the spirit, which is put into a… spiritual vessel. That vessel is the Servant’s Class.”

“Ah,” he remembered. “You mentioned that before.”

“Yes. There are seven classes. Saber, Lance, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin and Berserker.”

“Like me.”

“Yes. What a class does is, well, contain the form of a Heroic Spirit so they can exist in the World. It gives them… It… incarnates Servants…” She searched for the right words. “Actually, it’s more like a mask. A role. Oda Nobugana, for example, has a very big legend. He could be summoned as an Archer, for his skills with a bow or… probably as a Berserker, for the part of his legend that portraits him as brutal and bloodthirsty. A Servant of a certain class is made of just parts of a Heroic Spirits legend, and has the strengths, weaknesses, skills and… artifacts befitting it. Does that make sense?”

“Surprisingly, yes.” Replied Issei. “I mean… you have to think about… legends and stuff like you could touch them and stuff but, I think I get it. The basics I mean. You can’t summon the whole ghost, so you summon an incomplete copy that fits an… there’s a word… stereotype?”

“Archetype?”

“That’s it! An archetype. It’s… ah, it’s almost like an rpg game. Sabers use swords, Lancers use spears, Berserkers are out of control… If I think about it that way, it sort of makes sense.” He explained.

A game… Sakura had never thought of it that way. There was too much at stake, too much death but… she supposed that in a way it was, no? A twisted game. “Yes. You can think of it that way. This all of course, is for normal Servants. Our case is only vaguely based on it.”

He waved it off. “No, I get it. This needed to be explained otherwise I just wouldn’t understand a single word.”

[fuwafuwamedb]

Dodging Death Pt 14 (CasGil, Hans, Hakuno, Rin, Ereshkigal)

Previously: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 , 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

___

Hakuno walked carefully over to the woman, watching her look around the children’s section of the building. She seemed more like she was looking for someone rather than looking for a book.

“Hello?”

Blondie jumped, gasping a little bit as she stared at her.

She looked so much like Rin. The blush was even the same, leaving Hakuno laughing a little and leaning forward.

“I’m sorry,” she told the blonde. “My name is Hakuno Kishinami. I noticed that you were roaming around the entire library looking for someone or something. Could I help you at all? I’m a librarian here and I know this place so well that I might as well live here.”

Oh, but the blonde blushed even more, stuttering away for a moment unintelligibly before she finally grabbed her twin tails and pressed them to her cheeks as she spoke.

Hakuno felt her heart stutter in response.

“I-I was thinking about g-getting a cat, b-but I don’t know where to find one in this city and I don’t really know anyone who I could ask to help… I-I’m really sorry. I was told I could come here to learn more about cats.”

She was so cute.

Gods, but the woman was so precious. It was herculean effort not to just hug the woman to herself and protect her from the world. Why did the universe have such sweet and gentle people like this in existence? She probably stepped on the stray ant here and there and bawled for hours.

Hakuno beamed at her, loving the question.

“I actually had a cat until recently. Let me show you the section about cats and we can talk about places to go to find your own. Do you know if you want a pure bred or a mixed bred cat?”

“Umm… a mix.”

“Mixed are known for having long lives,” Hakuno told her, leading the woman over to the animal non-fiction texts. “Although, you have to know that sometimes the mixed breeds can have inherited genetic problems that you don’t find out about until much later in life. That’s why a lot of people get pure bred cats. You know the cat’s history. You know things to look out for and you know that the cat has been raised well and who to contact if you find yourself new to having a cat.”

“You know a lot.”

“Like I said, I had a cat myself until there was an incident at my home. Before that, I had a golden Persian.”

“A gold Persian?”

“Think really big and fluffy, with this flat face that looks like a someone ran the cat straight into a window.”

The girl laughed.

Gods, she was cute.

Hakuno smiled back at her as she went on. “He was a bit intimidated by my blowdryer, but he got really used to it. Gorgeous loved it after that. He’d hop right into the bathtub with me and purr when I cleaned his coat and spoiled him. We’d eat turkey and other meats on the couch. We’d watch novellas from the Americas and we’d watch the latest crime dramas on television.”

“Aww,” the woman cooed at the thought.

“I know. I even had this backpack that I would carry him in.”

“I should get one.”

That was why she was here, right?

Taking a look at the various books, Hakuno pulled a couple from the shelves and handed them to the girl. “Try starting with these books about cat ownership. Take a while to get used to being in Fuyuki and maybe try volunteering with shelters that have cats. You’ll learn about what it takes to own a cat and you can think about what kind of cat you would like.”

“Thank you… Hakuno.”

“Of course!” Hakuno smiled brightly. “If you need anymore help, I’ll be at the front desk until closing.”

“I won’t take long! Others will need these books too, right?”

The woman was so worried for others. There was a whole collection of books about cats though. The woman must have never tried coming to one of the libraries in her own home town. Maybe she was from the countryside, somewhere so isolated that they didn’t have libraries.

Whatever the case was, Hakuno just reminded her to take her time and read before she went back to Hans’ side.

“Boyfriend trouble?”

“More like- new to the town and couldn’t speak to anyone long enough to ask for where the books on cats were.”

“Ah, a future crazy cat lady.” Hans glanced to the woman. “Surprising, but I guess you never can tell with people nowadays. Did you tell her that knitting and embroidery with Vlad is on Tuesdays and Thursday evenings?”

“No, Hans. I figured, you know, give people a chance to have a social life and find their own hobbies before relegating them to a stereotype.”

She smacked him with one of the checked in books, grabbing a cart of books to return to the shelves.

“I’m just saying,” he pointed out.

“Uh huh.”

Of course he was. Blondie was cute. She was shy, easily impressed, conscious of others to a point where there was no doubt that she was an angel. People like that didn’t come around too often and they deserved to have others be kind to them.

She really did hope that Blondie found a cat she fell in love with. She deserved a cat like Gilgamesh had been. Someone who would cuddle against her at night, purr as they watched anything on the television, and even preen as he had the blow dryer aimed at them. She would have such a good time.

“You look pleased,” Gilgamesh commented as she crossed through the art gallery towards the magazine area.

“I helped someone who was a pure sweetheart,” she told him.

“Oh?”

The man followed after her, leaning against the side of the magazine stands as she replaced the missing ones to their proper place.

“And what about this person was so remarkable?”

“She was one of those really shy people. You know the ones, where they struggle to look you in the eyes but they really don’t have any evil motive. The people that just want everyone to be happy and try their best?”

“I don’t tend to see those people.”

Hakuno nodded. “Me neither, but the girl came in and was adorable.”

Gilgamesh laughed, “So you helped her?”

“I did!”

Hakuno paused, pulling a wadded up collection of magazines that’d been crammed into the shelving out so she could fix them. Her eyes flickered over the dates, organizing them back into their proper order.

“She was asking about cats and I figured I would be able to give my opinion on them. I told her a little bit, but I left out the fact that my cat never really… stayed the same. I thought she’d appreciate knowing that her thought about having a companion would be helpful. The cuddling is nice and the companionship is really priceless. There’s something to be said for being able to hold someone close when you go to sleep or kissing someone good morning before you go to make-“

The man leaned in and kissed her, leaving the end of her sentence to hang between them.

When he pulled back, Hakuno noted the slight flush to his cheeks.

“Hey.”

He glanced at her.

“You’re cute.”

The pinch to her cheek came immediately, the darker flush staining his cheeks only making her grin more.

“Gil,” she pushed at his hand, laughing despite the slight pain.

“What have I told you about that?”

She glanced towards the front a second before pulling him in by the tie and kissing him. His hand released her cheek, his arms wrapping around her waist to press her awkwardly up against the shelving. He kissed hard, leaving her laughing a little at him.

“Hakuno-“

“I’m supposed to be working.”

He huffed, pulling back a little and leaning his forehead to hers.

“I am,” Hakuno pointed out, noting that skeptical look on his face.

“Then why kiss me?”

“Because I found you to be quite handsome, my king. Since I couldn’t call you cute, I had to find another way to let you know.”

And there was the blush to his cheeks again. The awkward cough gave her the chance to slip under his arm and pinch his back end.

She dodged the grab he made for her, hurrying to her cart and heading away from him.

“I work until close. I hope you find something to entertain yourself with.”

Those were poor words.

Dreadfully poor words.

The man seemed to find the romance novel section of the library, delving into the depths of them where only the loneliest, the most naïve, and the most sultry minded fools in the universe dove into. She could see him make conversation with the three types, laughing at their words and keeping his voice painfully low for eavesdropping.

Between him and Blondie Future Cat Owner, Hakuno found herself entirely distracted.

“So… are you going to keep trying to scan that scanned in book into the system or are you finally going to just go talk to them?”

Hakuno jumped, glancing at the monitor and grinning sheepishly.

“You shouldn’t bring guests,” Hans complained. “You lack the talent for multi-tasking.”

“I was just-“

“I know what you were up to,” he waved a hand. “Fools. So many damn fools. Do I need to remind you what happened when Rin decided to bring that idiot of a man she loves with her to work? Do I need to stress how relationships effect the mind and the spirit of work? This is why maturity is a fine wine. A mead well needed by this younger day and age.”

“Mhmm…”

“Children don’t need these frivolous nonsense about princes and princesses and happy endings and marriages. They need the hard truth. They need disappointment. Blood. They need to understand what sacrifice and pain means. They don’t need dependence and reliance. I tell you, where are the poets, the true literary-“

Gilgamesh was undoing his tie.

The man had his back to Blondie. They were like two stars in the center of the place.

Blondie was looking at her books, smiling away at what she was reading, her hand going to her chest from time to time as though whatever she was reading was hitting near and dear to her. She would look up at other times, as though the pain of other things was too much.

What a sensitive soul.

She hoped there wasn’t too many terrible things in the book that were discussed.

Meanwhile, Gilgamesh was raising a brow. The man crossed one leg over the other, holding his book low as he almost made the simple wooden chair seem like a throne. He’d brush a hand through those blond locks, raising a brow at times while at other times simply leaning his cheek to his hand.

The book lay on his lap, being turned with an almost languid maneuver.

The others watching seemed to think along the same lines that she did.

Although, she, unlike them, had to take him home with her. She would be the one sitting in a hotel room above the clouds, looking out at the skies of Fuyuki and sharing wine and gods only knew what else with him.

Hans groaned, storming towards the back.

“This younger generation is wasted on youth!”

The office door slammed shut a moment before Rin came in, setting her bag behind the counter.

“I figured you’d be with Cu.”

“I figured you’d be with your fiancé.”

Hakuno pointed, earning a laugh.

“You brought him to work with you? How is Hans taking this?”

Hakuno pointed, earning another laugh.

“Kiara see?”

“Let’s not worry about her.”

The last thing they needed was that woman roaming around. She had a vibe about her. Whether it was the fact that she was a nun or the fact that she seemed only too comfortable with hitching up her skirts whenever she sat down behind the counter to help a customer, something was off about her.

“So.” Rin pulled out her notes, grabbing a chair and scooting in close. “Study time.”

She didn’t really want to study.

Looking over the math notes, she could already feel a deep sigh coming about.

They began to work together, finding that no one was coming up to the counter right now. Not a single soul, Hakuno noticed, seemed to even want to leave the building. A few more people trickled in. She found some people moving to sit on the floor, leaning their backs against the wall as she and Rin worked on their homework.

Rin frowned a little at that too, looking up after a while.

“The library is busy tonight.”

It was, but it wasn’t.

There were throngs of people, most of whom were scattered about the floors now that the seating was filled and people taking to sitting on the arms as well.

They all seemed to face…

“They aren’t seriously watching those two, are they?”

“I think they are…” Rin was frowning a little at Blondie. “Who’s the girl?”

“Future cat owner.”

“Oh… Weird. How is G?”

“Ran away.”

Rin winced, shaking her head. “I’m sorry. Did Gilgamesh get to meet him or-“

“It was during the whole axe killer thing. I don’t really have high hopes.”

Rin winced again, patting her back awkwardly before she moved back to the math homework. Another two problems in and Hakuno found Hans tapping her shoulder.

“Rin and I will close. Take your distraction home.”

“You sure?”

Hans gave her a small look, leaving her to sigh.

“It’s not that bad, Kishinami.” Rin beamed, finding her hours extended. More pay for her.

Then again, what was she worried about hours for anyway? She did have Gil to help her…

That was a bad way to think about things. She wasn’t going to think about that again. She could support herself without needing to rely on Gilgamesh like that.

“Done?” Gilgamesh’s book snapped shut as she approached, the flash of a smile earning a stillness near them.

“I just finished,” she told him.

“We should consider what to have for dinner since you’re free. It’s early enough to indulge somewhere. I amused myself greatly with some material that might serve as interesting to you.”

She had no doubt of that.

Blondie turned, just as Hakuno glanced back.

“Go ahead to the car. I’ll be right there,” Hakuno told Gilgamesh, hurrying back and giving a small smile to her cat loving friend. “I’m leaving my shift early. If you need any help, just ask Rin at the counter. Brown hair, a little arrogant but decent person otherwise. If she gives you trouble, ask her how her to tell you about her boyfriend.”

“O-oh.”

She still looked a little out of sorts.

“I work tomorrow too, if that helps.”

“You’ve been really helpful. Cats are really sweet sounding creatures.”

“They’re wonderful.”

The girl blushed a little more, averting her gaze.

“Look um… I think I told you my name. I’m Hakuno.”

“I’m Ereshkigal.”

Ereshkigal. What an odd name. Then again, blonde hair was a bit different around here. She was probably an exchange student or something.

“Eresh. Nice to meet you.” She scribbled her number down on one of the bookmarks nearby and handed it to her. “If you need someone to show you around Fuyuki, call me up. I’ll get my friends together and we’ll help you out.”

“Really? Just like that?”

“You’re new in town, aren’t you?”

The woman nodded.

“No one deserves to be alone. Call us if you want someone to spend time with during the day.”

Gilgamesh was waiting though. She had to go.

Hakuno hurried towards the door, giving a small wave to Hans and giving Rin a good well wish as she grabbed her bag and headed out into the rain. She hopped in the car, finding Gilgamesh leaning back in his seat.

“What did you have to do?”

“Just say goodbye for now to a new friend.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” Hakuno backed the car up, beginning the drive back towards their hotel. “She’s the shy one I was telling you about. I found out her name and I let her know how to contact me if she wants to spend time with people here. She seems like a good person.”

Gilgamesh leaned back, nodding.

They turned a couple streets in that peaceful silence, the rain coming down softly around them.

“You never did ask, you know.”

“Hmm?”

“About the test.”

Hakuno stopped at the light, her hands tightening around the wheel in front of her.  

She’d completely forgotten about that. There had been a quiet evening, a standard and almost normal evening of working at the library. Enjoying Gilgamesh’s company and meeting someone new who had been as lonely as she had when she’d first moved here to go to college, she’d completely spaced on the stress of what she’d been thinking about for part of the day.

“…If you’re mentioning it, then I probably am, aren’t I?”

“Your test seemed to think so. All three of them.”

Hakuno stared at her hands, noting the light change from red to green. Her foot tapped on the accelerator to keep them from blocking traffic.

“You care about others,” Gilgamesh murmured. “You protect what’s important to you and you think on your feet. Something like this is not such a daunting ordeal when you consider that you are already well equipped for such tasks ahead of you.”

“Gil…”

“You truly are unique, Hakuno.”

Her face was burning as she pulled the car into the parking lot. She parked the vehicle into the spot from before and turned off the engine, remaining in her seat.

“Hakuno?”

“Gilgamesh…”

The small space of her car filled with silence. She listened to the quiet sounds of the parking garage before she felt Gilgamesh pull her hand into his and leaning back once more in his seat. His lips pressed to the back of her hand.

He didn’t tug or pull. He simply kissed her hand once and laced their fingers together.

“You glow when you speak fondly of others,” he told her quietly. “Not just in blushing a little and smiling, you give off this proud feeling, like you have seen something truly astounding. You tease what you find value in. You don’t hold back what you think or feel.”

She glanced over at him.

“I came to notice these things as your pet. I came to covet these facts as your lover. I will enjoy every second of encouraging them as the man whose side you stand beside.”

This man was simply too much.

Hakuno unbuckled her seat with her free hand and pulled her coveted one back, kissing his hand in return.

“You’re making me love you.”

“You speak as though you haven’t fallen already.”

[fuwafuwamedb]

A Coo For Cu Chulainn Pt 2 (Setanta, Rin Tohsaka)

Previous Part: One

_____

She was so tired.

He was getting a bit worried about her now, especially as they passed through a nearby village. Perhaps… Well, he was already running a little late. It couldn’t hurt to stop for a few minutes at a seamstress and ask if she had anything that the girl could change into.

With that in mind, Setanta knocked on the nearest door.

The hag was old as the gods, but she grinned her crooked and rotten teeth his way and opened the door, welcoming him inside and closing up the shop for him.

“She came from the fae domains then?”

Setanta nodded, resting the young maiden onto a cushion near the back.

Glancing over his shoulder, he could see the woman frowning now. Her hands were pulling leathers from the cabinets.

“Boy, are ye sure she ain’t a fae?”

“She’s not a fae. They feel different. Can’t you sense it?”

The woman shook her head, but that was alright.

He looked his newfound friend over a little more, knowing full well what others would continue to think as he carried this girl around with him. She was far too pretty. She was far too strangely dressed. The more that she was seen with him like this, the more others would think she was either a goddess or a fae.

Or worse.

There were beasts other than the Fae that the people could fear she was. He’d heard legends from across the waters of hidden people that stole away humans. He’d heard tales of the pillaging bastards that landed on their shores and stole people to work their lives away or kill in their stead.

It was important for him to take responsibility for the girl he’d summoned here.

Yes, his initial thoughts and what his fathers’ would have thought about this had been correct.

“These have adjustable loops,” the hag told him. “Make sure your lady binds them nicely to herself to protect herself from the elements. I’ll take her fabrics when you’re done. They’ll need destroyin’ before anyone else fancies a look.”

The little one was stirring now.

Setanta leaned over her, forgetting about everything just to get a closer look.

Her eyes were a deeper and more beautiful blue than any of the dyes he had seen in the villages. They gleamed like the waters in the depths of the night. They were truly somethin’.

As she awakened, she gave the smallest of a yawn, sitting up and rubbing at her eyes.

Words left her lips, but he wasn’t sure what they were.

“She speaks in tongue,” the hag whispered.

He waved a hand, frowning a little.

Maybe she was one of them foreign ladies. He’d heard of the Fae reaching out to the lands across the seas to steal maidens there too. They were not as restricted by the elements like his people were. She no doubt spoke the tongue of the southern peoples.

“Are you alright?” he asked, trying for a drawl like those odd people that lived on the southern part of their lands, by the coast that showed the lands across the waters.

“My … isn’t very good,” the girl complained.

He wasn’t sure what that second word was. Sounded like their tongue, but…

Ah, maybe they’d named their speaking. Since she knew more than one, that would make a lot of sense. He grinned, motioning to himself and the hag.

“My name’s Setanta. This is a seamstress.”

The girl looked between them a little before narrowing her eyes.

Gods, he really like that look. His chest was pounding in response, his smile only growing as he found himself wanting to hear her talk more.

“I’ll leave ya to your moment,” the hag told him.

“I must go home.”

Setanta glanced at the girl again, hearing her say that and itching at his head a bit.

“Yeah,” he laughed a little. “I don’t know how to do that for ya. I don’t actually know where you’re from.”

“I’m from Fuyuki.”

Fuyu…ki?

Sounded strange.

He shook his head, glancing to the window nearby.

“We don’t have a Fuyuki here.”

“Where’s here then?”

“Ulster.”

“Ulster?!” The girl’s eyes widened, a smile forming on her lips. “I know Ulster!”

She did?

Ah, what a lass. Just seeing the smile did wonders. She was definitely the best lass to bring alone to Chulainn’s dinner. He could still make it to the night festivities if they left soon.

“Ulster has the best coats!”

Coats?

Setanta laughed. “Lass, we have the best everythin’. Coats are just the start.” Coats. What kind of place was this Fuyuki.

“My mom told me about your coats.”

“Then your mom has good taste.” Cu handed her the garments from nearby. “Here. I can’t get ya back immediately, but if you don’t mind, I have a dinner to get to and I’m really hungry.”

“Oh… I’m hungry too.”

What a cutie! Setanta leaned in, looking up at her as she lowered her gaze. “Then you don’t mind going as my date?”

“Date?!”

“Yeah, you’ll be my lass for the night!”

“The night?! I can’t-“

“Nah! Nah! You said you were hungry too! The hag won’t have food nearly as good and I can’t have a pretty girl like you alone for the night. I’ll protect you the whole time.” He pounded his chest, grinning proudly. “Let’s get ya into warm clothes and I’ll bring ya with me. I’m sure someone there will be able to know a little more about your Fuyuki.”

The girl’s face was so pink. He had to stop himself from cupping her face and cooing away at it.

She was precious.

Utterly and entirely precious.

He hurried to the other room for a few minutes, standing by the door only to find the girl peeking it open.

“…Setanta?”

“You’re done?”

“…I need help… getting dressed.”

Her face was turning a deeper red. He laughed, waving off the hag nearby and moving into the other room again. She had the dress and the vest on, but the other straps of leather had been set down and the belts undone.

He grabbed the waist belt first.

“You must not know much about our attire since you’ve been livin’ in thin clothes like those ones there.” He fixed the belt into place, looping it through a strap in her vest. “This is to keep your daggers in. If you have anyone bother you, you keep a dagger here and pull it out to get them.”

“Get them?!”

Oh, but she looked a little worried there.

“Eh,” he shrugged, slipping the small dagger into her belt. “It’s not like you’ll need it. You’ve got me, after all. I’m… really good at protecting people.”

“I don’t need knives.”

He shrugged again, moving on to the leathers for her legs.

“Since it’s cold and we don’t know when the snow will come, these are for your legs. Maidens normally just wear another dress, but since you’re gonna be traveling with me, you’ll need something for really walking in. Skirts won’t keep your legs as warm.”

“They’re trousers?”

“Nah, you don’t need trews.”

She frowned, but he fixed another dagger into each of the leather covers for her legs.

“Then you’ll need- Ah!”

He grabbed a pair of soft boots, slipping them onto her feet.

“These are like indoor slippers,” she told him.

What were indoor slippers?

The girl said some strange things, but that was alright. She was bucking up, giving him a scowl.

“I need gems!”

“Gems?” Wee baubles?

“I use magic. I keep magic in gems and then-“

“OH! You’re a druid!”

She stared at him.

“Hold on,” he told her, rushing into the other room and grabbing his pouch that the hag had been looking after. He had a few gems from the druids he had spent time with. “Oi!”

Running back to her, Setanta held the gems before the girl.

“Are these what ya want?”

“YES! These are great!” The girl beamed, holding the gems close and smiling proudly.

“We can put them in your hair if you want.”

“Hmm?”

“Hold on. I’ll help ya. I learned for my mom.”

They were going to be really late, but he didn’t mind. The girl was smiling so much by the time that he was done that it was worth it. She held her hair in her hands and gave him that doe-y eyed look that had his insides twisting happily.

“You still don’t mind going with me to eat?”

She shook her head. “I’m really hungry. Then I can find someone and go home.”

He nodded. “No matter what, I’ll get ya home, alright?”

“Okay…”

Her hand slipped into his, her face looking away quickly.

“It’s just because I like your gems and I trust you. Don’t think that I like you or anything!”

She did.

Ah, but she did!

He couldn’t help but to grin like the fool that he was, holding her hand tightly in his own. “I don’t know your name yet.”

“My name is Rin.”

Rinn? Like land?

Ah, she must have been from a rich family then. Nobles!

Oh, but his mother would probably be rolling around on her back at the news. Her lad of a son, part human and part god, was holdin’ hands with a noble’s tender lass.

“Come on then, Rin. Remember, I’m going to protect ya.”

“We’ll see. I’m really good at protecting with my magic too!”

He was sure.

“Thanks again, lady,” he told the hag, grabbing his bag o’ things and his stick.

“Be careful, boy.” The hag told him, eyeing Rin warily.

He kissed Rin’s hand, listening to her squawk and flashing a grin the hag’s way.

This night was going to be somethin’ really special. He just knew it.

Something really good was going to happen.

His luck was turning for the better.