Deepening Friendships


When Shirou had first visited the laboratory of doctor Kix in order to collect the Wolpertingers, he'd been fresh out of luck. Both the doctor and the rabbits had been out at the time, so he'd returned to his room empty handed.

The next day though, when he tried again, he entered the laboratory to actually find someone inside.

"So you are the troublemaker I've been hearing so much about."

It was a tall and lean man, with a bald head and impressive blue tattoos that covered every bit of skin that would normally be reserved for his hair. His wiry frame had a lot of muscle, far more than one might expect from a doctor, and when he reached out to shake Shirou's hand, the redhead noted the surprising strength of his grip.

That, coupled with the many scars and the tired, worn look in his eyes even when he smiled, led Shirou to believe that this man had probably served as a soldier for a while, or perhaps as a mercenary. In any case, he'd seen plenty of combat and had witnessed death firsthand on many occasions, whether as a warrior or a doctor.

"I suppose I can't deny that I've caused a fair share of trouble around here. Doctor Kix, I presume?"

"You presume correctly, lord Fujimaru."

It was indeed the man whom Shirou had come to see, and since further introductions didn't seem to be required, the redhead cast a quick look around, trying to find the Wolpertingers he knew should be somewhere in the vicinity.

He came up empty though.

"I was expecting you, sir." Doctor Kix said, drawing the redhead's attention back to him. "There's been some chatter around the Department that you came to my lab yesterday to speak with me, but that you missed me by unfortunate happenstance. As such, I decided to remain here today, in case you would try again. I am pleased to see that I was right, sir."

"Thank you for that, and there's no need to call me 'sir'. You can just call me Shirou." He knew that formality and hierarchy were valued greatly in the Magus Association, but he'd never cared for such high-mindedness himself.

"I'd rather not, sir." Doctor Kix outright refused however, being the first to ever do so, which honestly left Shirou a little bit stunned.

"…Very well, doctor." He recovered quickly though, and took a metaphorical step back, maintaining some professional distance. "I take it you also know why I am here?"

"I do. You are here for the Wolpertingers. The Phantasmal Creatures that manage to continue existing in the World of Man, even in the very heart of London itself." There was a moment of hesitation, before he ploughed on. "If I may be so bold as to ask, sir, do you know how they manage such a feat?"

"I have a suspicion, but nothing concrete yet." Shirou lied outright. There was no other way to call it. He did know exactly why and how the Wolpertingers managed to survive in London, at the very centre of human civilisation, and he chose not to share his knowledge. What else could that be called but lying?

"Is that so, sir?" Of course, he was a terrible liar, always had been, so it was no surprise that the doctor didn't quite seem to believe him. For a moment, it seemed as if he was about to be interrogated, but then doctor Kix inclined his head. "Very well. It is not my place to question a True Magician anyway."

Saved by his reputation!

Shirou nearly breathed a sigh of relief when doctor Kix backed down. His guise as a Sorcerer sure was convenient sometimes. It almost made him feel bad about complaining about it so often.

Almost.

"I am sorry to say we have not made any significant progress on our end either. We have done extensive research on all four of them-"

"Extensive research?" Shirou interrupted him, not liking the sound of that at all. "What kind of research?"

"Pardon me, sir. I chose my words poorly. I analysed them through non-invasive spells and scans, before taking several blood samples that I subjected to a more thorough study. I assure you that the Wolpertingers did not suffer in any way, shape or form."

"That's good to hear." Seeing that the doctor wasn't lying, Shirou's concerns were assuaged. "Did you find anything of note during your research?"

"I am afraid not, sir. I couldn't find anything about them that's out of the ordinary. Well, aside from them being Phantasmal Beasts of course." Doctor Kix rubbed his clean-shaved head in slight embarrassment over his supposed failure.

"Do you need more time with them?"

"…That is a tempting offer, though not for the reasons you think, sir." Doctor Kix looked even more embarrassed now, actually glancing away for a moment. "The blood samples I have taken are sufficient for further study, but to be honest with you, sir, I'll be sorry to see them go anyway. I fear I might have become rather fond of them."

"You've become fond of them?" That honestly took Shirou aback. The doctor was clearly a Magus, not to mention the top-researcher of the largest and most powerful Departments of the Clocktower, while the Wolpertingers were Phantasmal Beasts. That any affection was to exist between them seemed nonsensical.

But he sensed no lie in the man's words.

"Yes, I have become fond of them, though I also have to admit that the fondness isn't mutual." If the doctor became any more embarrassed, he'd be blushing like a maiden. "They mostly ignore me, except if I come bearing food. They seem much more attached to the Vice Director than me."

"To Lore- To lady Barthomeloi?" Shirou almost referred to her by her first name, but remembered just in time that he was trying to defuse the accursed rumours, not inflate them.

"Yes, for some reason. They throw themselves at her feet, begging for attention, while I'm only good to fetch lunch and clean up after them." Doctor Kix pulled a face, but it was clearly meant in jest, for the twinkle of amusement never left his eyes. "Actually, they're not that different from the rabbits I used to have as a kid. Proud as lions, they are."

"I see." That was certainly… interesting, but Shirou wasn't too worried. Knowing Sakura, she'd have them eating out of her hand in no time. "And where are they now?"

"Ah yes, if you would please follow me, sir. I'll take you right to them."

"Lead the way."

Doctor Kix led Shirou deeper into the laboratory, and deeper, and deeper, and the redhead soon noted that the place was a lot bigger than it seemed at first glance. It really went on for quite a while, to the point where it became almost ridiculous.

The Department of Policies really had to have deep pockets to finance all of this, which was further confirmed by how well-stocked and well-maintained the place seemed to be. Rows and rows of white benches were awaiting eager researchers, while countless centrifuges, thermometers, and incubators were lined up to serve.

The cabinets were stuffed to the brim with reagents, desiccants, denaturing agents, and buffers, and large boxes full of pipettes, beakers, test tubes, and vials were standing just out of sight, though very much available should they be required.

Shirou was a little less enthusiastic about the knives and other surgical implements that he could see lying around everywhere, but as long as the researchers here restricted themselves to animal-cadavers and the corpses of people who'd given informed consent, he had nothing to complain about.

Fortunately, there was no shortage of either cadavers or corpses to work on in the coolers of the laboratory. Shirou had heard rumours that a lot of people who agreed to give their body to science actually ended up in the Clocktower after their deaths, and he now knew that to be true. It wasn't entirely proper, as that meant their informed consent wasn't fully informed anymore, but since there was a surplus of bodies donated to medical science and this practice contributed to keeping Magi away from living people, Shirou was willing to close his eyes to it.

In any case, Doctor Kix's laboratory truly was a marvel. It was a testament to Policies' wealth, and a clear sign that they weren't stingy in the slightest when it came to providing for their employees. A text-book example of what a laboratory should look like.

There was one problem with it though. One big problem.

The place was entirely bereft of people.

It wasn't a metaphor, or a dramatic exaggeration. It was the simple truth, spoken as it was. From the moment Shirou had entered the laboratory, he hadn't encountered another soul aside from doctor Kix.

Which was odd. It was evident that the place was frequently visited and used, judging from all the traces of human activity everywhere, and it wasn't that early in the morning that people should still be sleeping, so by all accounts, the laboratory should be stuffed to the brim with researchers and doctors working on their projects while enjoying the generosity of the Barthomeloi-family.

It certainly shouldn't be abandoned. That made no sense at all, and frankly, the utter lack of people combined with all the lab materials lying around gave the place a rather eerie vibe.

If zombies suddenly started coming out of the cabinets, Shirou wouldn't be surprised.

Doctor Kix didn't seem to consider it necessary to explain anything though, walking on steadily without even looking back. It didn't even seem to be an act, an attempt to hide possible embarrassment over the lack of employees. He just genuinely didn't seem to care.

Then, perhaps this was normal after all?

…Except it wasn't. No matter how Shirou tried to look at the situation, this couldn't be normal. There obviously were supposed to be people here. The sheer lack of them was entirely out of the ordinary.

Unless of course, they'd chosen to stay away because they knew he would be visiting today?

That would certainly explain it, though it would also be a little depressing. After hearing all the stories from his father and later Rin about how terrifying the Magi at the Clocktower could be, it felt strange to be the one scaring them instead.

Fortunately, Shirou didn't have to think about that for very long, as he and doctor Kix soon reached a secure-looking door. Made of stainless steel and further strengthened with various Enchantments, it appeared quite capable of withstanding the focused attack of several minor Phantasmal Beasts.

Any notion that the Wolpertingers had been locked in there was disproven though when doctor Kix simply pushed the door open and walked through. He didn't take any measures against sudden attacks, nor did he demand that Shirou take point. He seemed entirely unconcerned about his safety, and that actually relieved Shirou a fair bit.

After all, it strongly indicated that the Wolpertingers weren't aggressive, or at least not to the point where it was necessary to restrain them. He'd already been pretty sure they weren't actively dangerous, as either Lorelei or lady Montmorency would have warned him otherwise, but this was welcome confirmation.

They nevertheless remained Phantasmal Beasts though, creatures born from the inhuman wild, so he didn't let his guard down completely as he followed after the doctor. According to Lorelei, they had killed several people in the Black Forest, if only after having been provoked severely, so he shouldn't think of them as harmless.

As the one responsible for their presence in the human world in the first place, and as the only Demigod in existence, it could be said that he had a duty to take care of them and to watch over them. To make sure they wouldn't harm anyone else. A duty he meant to take most seriously indeed.

Sakura would get her Magical rabbits, as promised, and as long as the Wolpertingers didn't attack anyone ever again, all would be well. However, if things were to go wrong, Shirou was ready to intervene. Should it become necessary to put them down, he wouldn't hesitate to do so, just like he'd killed the Nokken, now over a year ago. Such was the resolve of someone who wanted to become a Hero of Justice and prioritised human lives above all else.

But then he actually entered the Wolpertingers' pen, laying his eyes on the infamous creatures he'd heard so much about, and that hardy resolve melted at once, like so much snow in a furnace.

"Here they are. These are the Wolpertingers." Doctor Kix informed him graciously, if a bit redundantly, beaming like a proud uncle. "Aren't they adorable?"

They were. Adorable to the point where Shirou was left utterly speechless.

The three whelps, barely the size of small dogs, rushed towards him immediately, and started inspecting him thoroughly, pushing his feet and shins with their noses.

Between those adorable noses, their stubby front legs, their floppy ears, and their round, curious eyes, they were the cutest creatures Shirou had ever seen, bar none. It simply couldn't be expressed in words how adorable they were, and even though he could clearly sense their Mystical and wild nature, the redhead wanted nothing more than to grab and cuddle them forever.

Kill them when they turned aggressive? Impossible! What inhuman wretch could possibly do something so heinous?! They were too cute to ever be evil!

The mere sight of them was enough to make his heart melt into a puddle, but although he could have looked at them for hours more, he forced himself to wrench his gaze away from them and towards the mother instead.

Large as a wild boar, though far rounder and fluffier, she was noticeably less cute than her offspring, though still rather cute in her own way. When his eyes met hers however, Shirou was once more robbed of all his killing intent, for those eyes held an immense intelligence and wisdom, far surpassing most of his classmates, both at Homurahara and at the Clocktower. The sort of intelligence and wisdom that belied rational thought, and a possible sense of higher morality even.

He had wondered over the past weeks whether the Wolpertingers would be able to understand him if he tried to communicate with them, but looking at the mother now, he didn't doubt that they could, perfectly well.

"They seem to have taken a real shine to you." Doctor Kix noted, sounding more than a little surprised. "They never responded this well to a guest before. You must be a good sort then, according to them at least."

"Just a coincidence, I'm sure." Shirou tried to assure him, suspecting strongly that their interest in him was born more from the fact that he was a nascent god than because they necessarily liked his character.

"Perhaps it is a coincidence." Doctor Kix allowed, and Shirou breathed a minute sigh of relief when the man seemed to drop the matter again. "Or perhaps it is because the Vice Director likes you so much. All the better, I suppose, considering you'll be taking them with you."

"Indeed." Shirou looked back at the mother, before he decided to approach her, noting from the corner of his eyes that the younglings promptly followed him. They certainly liked him well enough, and so far, it seemed as if the adult Wolpertinger approved of him as well, which was confirmed when she allowed him to place a hand on her head.

He was a little surprised when she suddenly licked his wrist, but since it was clearly a gesture of affection, he soon grinned back at her, scratching her behind her ears.

"Well, I'll be." Doctor Kix muttered, sounding taken aback again. "She certainly never let anyone do that before. You might be a natural, sir."

"Perhaps." Shirou agreed thoughtlessly, before he gave in to his baser desires and scooped up all three baby Wolpertingers in his arms, to thoroughly cuddle them. "Thank you for taking care of them until now. If you ever want anything in return, don't hesitate to contact me."

"My pleasure, sir."

Being a nascent god, Shirou was rapidly developing his own sense of Clairvoyance, his ability to discern truth from lies and see through walls and other obstacles like they weren't even there. Though nowhere near as potent as the Clairvoyance of Gilgamesh or Solomon, it meant that very little could escape his gaze these days.

Its greatest weakness however was the fact that Shirou needed to concentrate at least a little bit to effectively use it, and now that he was completely absorbed in cuddling the four Wolpertingers, he missed how Doctor Kix narrowed his eyes in confusion.

The redhead didn't know it, but the behaviour of the Wolpertingers, especially the mother, was nothing less than outright submissive, as if they'd found the new leader of their pack. A reaction that no Phantasmal Beast, regardless of its rank or power, should ever display towards a human.

Even lady Barthomeloi hadn't gotten that treatment, nothing close to it even, and the fact that Shirou Fujimaru was placed on such a pedestal immediately was a source of bewilderment for the good doctor.

He had no idea what it meant, no idea what could possibly explain it, so he ultimately decided to just blame it on Fujimaru being a Sorcerer. It was the go-to excuse that so many had used before him, and he saw no reason not to use it again.

He would be reporting it to the Vice Director however. Maybe she could make sense of it.


Being the Queen of the Clocktower, Lorelei Barthomeloi always had to maintain some degree of impartiality, both towards the families of the Aristocratic Faction and the families of the Magus Association as a whole. She, just like her predecessors, had to be very careful not to show favour towards any individual or family in particular, because even a single thoughtless act could critically damage the careful balance that the Ruling Families had worked so hard to establish and maintain.

One part of that was that she didn't take on apprentices, for accepting someone as a student was in itself a massive show of favouritism on her part, one that any enterprising Magus could leverage to their advantage, often at the expense of others.

However, she had now made an exception for Tohsaka Rin, a Japanese Magus of little renown but surprising skill. Lorelei had weighed the need for her supposed impartiality against her fondness for Shirou, who was the one who'd requested she teach miss Tohsaka, and found that the latter mattered more to her.

Also, it couldn't hurt to create another link to the most politically involved Sorcerer in centuries, or so she'd say if someone asked for an explanation.

Her allies might grumble and her enemies might cry foul, but Lorelei didn't worry about that. Her largest point of concern was actually that she might prove to be utterly inept at teaching a student in the first place, having no experience whatsoever. She'd tried to prepare as well as she could with the available literature, but that was no substitute for actual experience. Hence, during the first lesson, which happened quite abruptly, she felt rather unprepared.

She needn't have worried though.

Tohsaka Rin was a dedicated, serious, intelligent, and kind young woman whose drive and sincerity didn't allow her to give anything less than her utmost in anything she attempted. She often only needed a few words of explanation or perhaps a small demonstration before she was able to connect the dots herself. As far as apprentices went, she was nearly ideal.

Still, Lorelei didn't want to slack in her responsibilities as a teacher. Even if Rin was an excellent student, that was no reason not to push her to be even better. Learning Magecraft was all about breaking one's limits, so on the second day of training, she took the young woman to a private training facility and had her cast spells until she dropped.

Not literally, as overheating one's Magic Circuits was too dangerous, but they went far indeed, establishing a baseline for Rin's current abilities.

For now, they didn't care about finesse or technique. Lorelei just ran Rin ragged, giving her no respite as she ordered her to cast spell after spell, carefully observing both the results and Rin's physical condition.

She had her blow up training dolls, tear gouges in the stone-covered floor, cut reams of paper into neat little fragments with air-based spells, melt iron with fire-based Magecraft, and demonstrate her greatest feats in Gemcraft. Then, when the black-haired girl was done with all that, she had her do it again, but faster and with more targets.

Though First-Rate Magi like Rin and Lorelei were powerful indeed, their stamina when continuously casting their most potent spells was actually quite low. Magical Energy was a precious commodity for a reason, being slow to form and quick to be used, and even possessing hundreds of Magic Circuits couldn't offset that forever.

Most Magi made sure to compensate for that, for instance by taking Mystic Codes or gems with them, or by regularly switching between Magecraft and physical combat, but since that would defeat the purpose of the exercise, Lorelei didn't allow for such compensation this time. Rin had to get by on her own reserves alone.

That she lasted upwards of twenty minutes anyway was quite impressive in light of that. The black-haired girl might even have tried to continue past that point, but Lorelei put a stop to it. Thoughtlessly pushing past one's limits with Magecraft was extremely dangerous, and not something to be done lightly.

"That's enough for now, miss Tohsaka."

Rin let out a massive sigh of relief in response to the order, sagging in exhaustion as she halted the outward flow of Magical Energy, which caused the three dozen gems that had been floating around her to fall to the ground.

Frankly, it was all she could do not to fall to the ground as well.

Her Magic Circuits, both the ones in her body and the ones in her Crest, were painfully empty, and this was reflected in her body, which now felt three times as heavy as before, to the point where she struggled to keep her eyes open. Her vision was spinning, her head felt remarkably light, and there was a strange sensation in her stomach that resembled nausea but was subtly different in a way she didn't know how to explain.

Safe to say, Rin had reached her absolute limit. Never before had she been pushed to the brink like this, to the point where she'd truly given her all and more. She'd done all she could, and now, all that remained was waiting anxiously for Lorelei's assessment.

Fortunately, she didn't have to wait long.

"Your reserves are… adequate." The Vice Director spoke slowly and meticulously, not wanting there to be any misunderstandings at this point. "The quality of your Magus Circuits is well above average, as is their quantity. Your Crest is quite decent as well, especially for its modest age, and you have incorporated it excellently into your body. Furthermore, you use the Magical Energy available to you with great efficiency, allowing you to continue longer than many Magi with greater lineage and reserves than you. Nevertheless, there is still much room for improvement."

"Of course, my lady." Rin would never be so arrogant as to assume that she had perfected her techniques, so the conclusion did not come as a surprise.

"Your talent for handling gems is quite impressive, as is your talent for wanton destruction." Lorelei eyed the destroyed training dolls in the corner, vanquished earlier by Rin's most powerful offensive spells, with a glimmer of approval in her eyes, before she bent over and picked up one of the gems for a proper look, tossing it back at Rin when she was done. "But by the standards of my family, your skill is still hopelessly inadequate in nearly every conceivable way."

The remark stung, but it was nothing that Shirou couldn't kiss better that evening.

"Your Magic Circuits have been strained enough, so I will not ask that you practise your technique any further today, but over the coming hours, we shall discuss at length the theory behind your spells and the ways by which you can improve." The Vice Director continued, appearing rather pleased that Rin didn't show any petulant anger or disappointment in response to the harsh but fair assessment. "After that, I will assign to you some… 'homework', as I believe it is called."

"Homework, my lady?" It wasn't a word that Rin had expected to hear at the Clocktower, but it seemed reasonable enough. Probably.

"You will study that gem I handed to you and assess by yourself the inadequacies you see in your own work. At our next session, you will present to me at least three strategies in which you plan to better your Enchantment techniques, based on the theory I am about to impart onto you. Should your work be satisfactory, I will aid you in the process of implementing those strategies. Understood?"

"Understood, ma'am." Rin nearly saluted, but managed to change it into a grateful bow at the last moment. "I will make sure to live up to your expectations."

"Excellent." Lorelei graced her with a small nod in acknowledgement of her promise, before she held out a hand and cast a wordless spell to lift the remaining thirty-five gems off the floor. "To give you some perspective before we begin the lesson, I shall demonstrate a technique I developed myself. Observe."

With but a gesture of her hand and a muttered, three-word incantation, Lorelei instantly filled all the gems to the brim with Magical Energy, simultaneously attuning each one to a different element or domain and radically changing their shapes to the point that no two figures looked alike. There was a Ouroboros, several different flowers, a star, multiple animals and fictional beings, a number of Runes, and something that looked suspiciously like Shirou's face.

It was absolutely incredible, and it showed a control over her own Magical Energy that bordered on terrifying.

One of Rin's most vivid youth-memories was her father demonstrating one of his spells to her, a spell that Enchanted one of his gems and changed its shape into that of a Pegasus, a flying horse. Back then, it had seemed like a miracle, and even now that she'd matched and exceeded that level of skill, that memory was still tinted with admiration.

But now Lorelei did the same with less than one-tenth the effort, with thirty-five gems at once, all while not breaking eye-contact with Rin herself for a moment, making her father's achievement feel utterly inadequate and meaningless. It was a show of skill so overwhelming it almost felt like a display of dominance.

It wasn't though. This was no more than a demonstration meant to give Rin an idea of how to go about improving her own techniques. A sign of kindness more than anything, from a teacher who was doing her best to live up to expectations.

Which frankly made it even more overwhelming.

Had she been Shirou, she would have let her jaw drop, perhaps stuttered out a few words of heartfelt praise, but she wasn't that lovable oaf. She was a Tohsaka, whose elegance was her defining feature.

"A most impressive display." She smiled cautiously at her teacher, gaining heart when no disapproval appeared on the lady's beautiful features. "I shall not rest until I can match your prowess."

A very diplomatic answer, which was good enough for Lorelei, who nodded in response.

Unbeknownst to Rin however, the brunette would have appreciated Shirou's hypothetical response much more. She herself possessed a very minor form of Clairvoyance, in the form of unique Mystic Eyes, and as a result, praise given from the heart made much more of an impression on her than praise given diplomatically. She could literally feel the sincerity after all, or the lack of it.

In any case, that concluded the practical part of the training session, and the two ladies moved on to the more theoretical part, relocating to Lorelei's office again, where they could talk to their heart's content in peace and privacy. Lorelei had a great deal of knowledge she wanted to impart, and Rin was ready to absorb it all.

Naturally, their main point of discussion was Gemcraft.

Gemcraft was an interesting branch of Thaumaturgy, that found its origin in the ancient world, potentially being used far before humanity had even come into proper existence, though the veracity of that claim was impossible to prove. It had a rich and storied history, having been developed at all corners of the world pretty much independently, and because of that, it actually consisted of a great number of different yet similar fields all grouped together under one name.

It might seem straightforward at first glance, but any who approached it lightly, lured by the fact that the beginner-spells were relatively easy yet effective, would soon realise that its surprising complexity made the field impossible to master for all but a select few.

True Gemcraft required a mixture of calculation, natural-born talent, and unwavering dedication that bordered on zeal, the latter two of which made it impossible to wield for people such as Emiya Shirou, who did not care for the field nearly enough to properly pursue it.

Rin did possess the necessary calculating nature, talent and zeal however, as did Lorelei, naturally. For them, using Gemcraft was no different from holding up a football using only their knees. A bit difficult, but ultimately nothing complicated, as long as they practised enough.

Though Lorelei had not spent as much time on developing her aptitude for Gemcraft as Rin, because there were many other fields that also demanded her attention, her high-grade tutors, extensive collection of reading materials, demanding family, and once-in-a-millennium Sorcery Trait nevertheless gave her a far greater mastery over the field, so there was much she could impart onto her eager apprentice.

Too much, some might say.

By the time that lady Montmorency arrived, about an hour later, to remind her boss of her tightly-packed schedule, Lorelei was barely halfway through the planned lecture, and it was with regret that the brunette had to conclude the lesson prematurely.

"There was much I still wanted to teach you." She said, her elegant eyebrows scrunched up in a frown. "It will have to wait. I apologise."

"Oh no, please don't! I was reaching my limits anyway." Rin had done her utmost best to keep up with the Vice Director's explanations, but after an hour of intense listening, her attention-span was rapidly approaching its end. "If we had continued much longer, I would have lost focus."

"Noted." Lorelei committed that fact to memory, that Rin's ability to absorb new knowledge lessened greatly after an hour, and resolved to adjust her lessons accordingly. "Give Shirou my regards."

"Your warmest regards?" Rin couldn't resist the temptation to tease her a little, but was taken aback when the teasing went right over Lorelei's head.

"Yes. My warmest regards."

It was coupled with a smile wider and warmer than any the Vice Director had given Rin, or indeed anyone who wasn't Shirou. If there had been any doubt that the bond between those two ran deeper than just friendship, that doubt had just been obliterated.

And as she was ushered out of the office by lady Montmorency, Rin was left bewildered, though not, as one might expect, by the fact that the Greatest Magus of the Modern Age was interested in her boyfriend. She'd known that already.

No, she was bewildered by that warm and wide smile.

How on Earth could a mighty and revered woman like that possibly be so cute?!


"He truly is back then?"

"He is. I just confirmed it myself."

"I see. That is… concerning, especially considering his actions so far."

"Heh, I'll say! He gave you lot a right beating, so much so that they're even calling it the Night of the Broken Moon now!"

Two figures were sitting on a park bench at the very edge of London, in the middle of the night, having claimed it for themselves to have a private conversation.

Several intricate Bounded Fields had been erected around them, making sure any eavesdroppers heard nothing of value, but frankly, they were hardly needed. London was an immense city, filled with countless weirdos and vagrants, so two more oddballs hardly attracted any attention, from anyone.

But both men were paranoid bastards, so the Bounded Fields had been put into place anyway. Just in case someone of importance happened to stumble upon them by sheer happenstance.

It wasn't as unlikely as one might think.

"We lost Gladstone." The first figure, a tall fellow with red hair and wide ears, sighed despondently. "A shame. I rather liked him."

"He was amusing, in his own way." The other man, though he could barely be called such, agreed. "But there are many others like him. Don't waste your time on mourning. Rather, make sure to cut your losses. Gladstone Phamrsolone won't endure torture on your behalf."

"Oh yes, I imagine that dear Gladstone is squealing for his life right now, giving Policies the identities of everyone who has ever associated with us. Don't worry though, I cut my losses ages ago. The Enforcers won't be able to track me down any time soon."

"Are you certain of that?"

"I… Well, less certain than I want to be, honestly. Policies has never been my biggest fan, even before all this, but I was able to stay ahead of them because they didn't care all that much about me. If Gladstone revealed everything though, I might become an actual priority now. To be safe, I'll have to skip London for a bit, if you don't mind."

"I don't mind. I won't claim that you don't matter in the grand scheme of things, because you do, but I have several agents ready to take your place during your temporary absence. It is far from ideal, but it'll have to do, for now."

"Aw, I knew you loved me."

"If that is what you want to believe, go right ahead."

"Hehe." Though the red-haired figure was certainly guarded around his companion, he did let out a small chuckle of amusement. "What about Haruri though? I don't think Gladstone was kind enough not to grass on her when he turned his cloak again."

"…Do you have any way of extracting her from the Clocktower on such short notice?"

"I might. I'll need a few things though, things that only you can provide."

"…Name them."

It was obvious that the not-man didn't actually care at all about Haruri, but when he received the list of necessities and established that procuring them would be a small matter, he saw no reason to refuse. He gave his redhaired accomplice a small nod, prompting a grin from him in return.

"As soon as you deliver the goods, I'll put something together to get Haruri out and arrange shelter for her."

"You think she hasn't been arrested yet? That is a surprising amount of confidence in Gladstone's resilience."

"With some luck, her position will have kept her safe so far even if Gladstone didn't."

"If you say so. But if you don't mind me asking, why are you going to such lengths for someone you barely know?"

"Why would I not? We're compatriots, who risked their lives together for a common cause. It would be quite awful if I just abandoned her after all that. Besides, she's a bright girl, she might be able to help me with a few projects that I have going on."

"As a fellow researcher or a test-subject?"

"Excuse me?! What exactly do you think I am?! I'd never use a friend as a test-subject!"

The not-man turned towards the redhead with an inquisitive gaze, peering at his face and expression to gauge his honesty, before letting out a soft sigh when he saw the sincerity in his eyes.

"I do not understand you Magi at all, even after so many years."

"Aw, shucks, that's nice of you to say."

"It was not intended as a compliment."

"Perhaps it wasn't intended, but it certainly was a compliment. If you still don't understand us, we remain something of interest to you, and if we remain something of interest, it means we haven't become boring yet. From one of your kind, not being boring is the greatest praise one can receive."

The redhead spoke candidly, and the not-man nodded thoughtfully, unable to argue with that logic.

"What will you do once you depart London?" The not-man eventually continued, changing the subject. "You mentioned a few projects?"

"Yes, I have some stuff going on with Mystic Eyes, and I'm just dying to know why Mystery is suddenly increasing in the world, but first, I think I'll Summon a Servant."

"A Servant? How will you do so without an active Holy Grail?"

The cost in Magical Energy of Summoning and especially Upkeeping a Servant was immense. In Grail Wars, most of that cost was shouldered by the Grail, which made it possible for all Magi involved to Summon a Servant of their own, but without such aid, the average Magus would be drained in minutes, while prodigies would survive, but with so little Magical Energy left that their own use of Magecraft would be severely limited.

Neither of those were desirable outcomes.

"I can handle it." The redhead was a prodigy among prodigies however, completely confident in his own ability, and the not-man decided it wasn't worth trying to convince him otherwise. "I just need a catalyst to summon the Servant I want. I hoped that I could steal the piece of Iskandar's cloak that Waver still keeps with him, but he moved it somewhere else, and I don't know where. I'll need something else that belonged to the King of Conquerors."

The small rant was concluded with a hopeful gaze, and the not-man sighed again.

"I'll see what I can do."

"You're the best, Stanrobe!"

The mention of a name was of course against all safety protocols, but since they were completely alone, in the middle of the night, hiding behind several Bounded Fields, Stanrobe Calhin let it pass.

When dealing with types like the red-headed fellow, it was important to be flexible and forgiving. That would yield the best results in the least amount of time. They usually closed up under pressure, but if you let them speak, they'd spill everything they knew in short order.

Most humans would not be able to stand the redhead's presence for long. He could be rather defiant, sometimes intentionally so and sometimes unintentionally. He always had a smart remark ready for when he was criticised or otherwise scolded, and he seemed incapable of taking anything seriously, cracking jokes at the most inopportune of times.

Stanrobe hardly cared though. He was too old to be bothered by a youngster's words, and besides, being a spymaster meant that you had to have a thick skin, especially when dealing with Magi and mavericks.

Did Stanrobe sometimes want to rip the redhead's head from his shoulders? Of course, but then, he wanted to do that to every human he came across. There was nothing particularly vexing about keeping his cool in this particular instance, especially since being patient yielded such good results.

Gladstone Phamrsolone on the other hand had been the kind of person who needed a bit of pressure to spill what he knew. When dealing with him, Stanrobe always put on his meanest look, to thoroughly intimidate that pathetic wastrel of a man.

It had actually been quite fun, and if there was anything Stanrobe would miss about that fellow, it would be to see him squirm in discomfort and fear, to see him doubt his every choice that had led him into Stanrobe's claws, but then give in to his greed anyway.

Amusing indeed.

"When I have a Servant on my side, even the Enforcers will think twice before carelessly chasing me." The redhead was still chattering away, already rubbing his hands in glee as he celebrated his imagined victory. "Servants are far greater than Magi after all. From what I heard, they are equal even to your kind, Stanrobe."

"They might very well be."

Being an ancient Vampire, Stanrobe knew far more about Servants than most, and he had to acknowledge that even he would be hesitant to face one directly. However, his redheaded companion didn't seem to realise that there was a great variety between individual Servants.

While the likes of Heracles, Arjuna, Minamoto-no-Raikou, and Siegfried were indeed more than a match for any Dead Apostle Ancestor, the other side of the coin held Servants like Shakespeare, Mata-Hari, and Simo Häyhä, who were relatively weak.

But then, the redhead seemed to be aiming to Summon Iskandar, the King of Conquerors, who was mighty indeed, so there was little need for concern.

Provided he actually managed to Summon the Servant he was after of course, or indeed any Servant at all.

"I know what you are thinking, Stanrobe, but I assure you that I am more than capable of executing such a quaint little ritual, or my name isn't Doctor Heartless!"

Once more, the name was spoken out loud without compunction, utterly ignoring every safety measure in existence, and although Stanrobe was normally the patient sort, the urge to throttle his companion was great.

Unfortunately though, he was still too useful to be killed like that. Doubly so if he actually managed to procure a half-decent Servant.

Admittedly, keeping him on a leash would be far, far more difficult when he had such a potent weapon at his disposal, but the rewards would be more than worth the extra effort.


"Hey there! Yahoo!"

The shout was easily audible over the clamour of the Clocktower's main hall, but Rin, who was just on her way back to her chambers after finishing the lesson with Lorelei, ignored it. It likely wasn't meant for her.

"Yahoo! Rin!"

Okay, so it was meant for her.

Turning around to seek the person who'd called out to her, Rin quickly scanned the hall, before her eyes fell on a familiar figure in the nearby cafeteria.

Long, blonde hair done up in elaborate coils, a very stylish and expensive outfit, and curves to die for, the figure was instantly recognisable as Luvia, the young woman whom Rin had helped a few days prior.

She looked delighted that Rin had turned around in response to her calls, that she'd managed to make herself heard and understood, and she motioned for the black-haired girl to join her at her table.

Naturally, Rin didn't accept immediately. She usually rather disliked suddenly running into people she knew, mainly because it made her feel vulnerable and caught off-guard, as if they were seeing things they shouldn't. Also, it happened with depressing regularity that supposedly coincidental meetings weren't actually a coincidence at all.

But then, Luvia wasn't one of the people from school, or even from Fuyuki, who needed to be fooled with an idol-mask, and since the Clocktower wasn't that big, it wasn't unthinkable that two acquaintances would run into each other by pure coincidence. What's more, Luvia wasn't a rival or enemy, at least as far as she knew, so she had very little reason to attack or otherwise harm her.

All that was to say that this was unlikely to be some kind of ambush, so after only a cursory check to make sure that there were no suspicious figures loitering around, Rin made her way over to Luvia, figuring she might as well hear her out.

The blonde's bodyguards were still present, both the tall, black guy and the elderly butler, but they were both much more unassuming this time, doing their best not to stand out. Sitting at their lady's table, nursing cups of coffee, they now seemed more like servants than warriors, and even though Rin knew that they remained as dangerous as ever, she felt much less threatened as a result.

Funny how that worked.

"Luvia." She acknowledged the blonde when she arrived at the table. "Why did you call me over?"

"Why? Well, no reason, I suppose." Luvia laughed, motioning for Rin to sit down already. "I just wanted to chat for a bit. Or am I disturbing you?"

"No, not at all. I just finished my… morning routine." So far, they had both been sparse with personal details, recognising that being too open would likely just complicate matters between them, and Rin was pretty sure that being the Vice Director's apprentice was a very personal detail indeed, not to be revealed lightly. "I don't have anything scheduled for the afternoon."

"That's a relief!" Luvia's smile was a bit too wide to be genuine, but the fact that she tried to set Rin at ease in the first place was a mark in her favour. "Please, sit down. If you want anything to drink or eat, it's my treat today."

"How generous of you." Rin was no longer hurting for money, but she wasn't going to say no to a free lunch. She was still an elegant lady though, so she made sure not to select anything too expensive from the menu. That would be rude.

Luvia quickly flagged down a waiter, also placing her own order and that of her bodyguards, and Rin's opinion of her increased even more when she paid for them all without batting an eye.

She liked generous people after all.

"How have you been, Luvia? Have you settled in yet?" Rin decided to be the first to break the silence after the order had been placed, though more out of politeness than real interest.

"Oh, I've been grea-!" Luvia started out with a beaming smile, giving the expected nonanswer, before she suddenly stopped, and her smile turned into a slight grimace. "No, I shouldn't lie. Things have been going… less than ideal."

"I'm sorry to hear that." It was a platitude, but a sincere one. "Is the situation very bad?"

"Oh, no, I wouldn't call it bad. It's just… not as good as I hoped." The blonde wore a complicated expression, one that normally wouldn't really give anything away, but that Rin could read like an open book. She recognised it after all. She recognised it very well.

She herself had often looked like that, in the privacy of her own home, back before she'd come to know Shirou and Ayako, before she had reconciled with Sakura. It was the look of someone who was completely stuck in a situation that couldn't be called bad, but also certainly not good. Someone who was just ploughing along, hoping against hope that something would change in the near future.

Maybe Rin could have ignored it in the past, reasoning that Luvia had to be able to handle herself, but now that she had practically stumbled her way into happiness and love, having been rescued from that hopeless situation by a wonderful fool, she couldn't stop that glum look from tugging at her heartstrings something fierce.

Damn her conscience for suddenly forcing all those emotions on her.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" The offer passed her lips before her brain could fully catch up, but Rin didn't regret making it. Helping others was generally quite pleasant, and if nothing else, it'd score her some points with her altruistic fiancé.

"Huh?" Aid was not offered lightly in the Moonlit World however, especially not to veritable strangers, so Rin wasn't surprised when Luvia blinked in shock, before giving Rin a very critical look, searching for any signs of deception.

There weren't any though. The offer was made in good faith, with no ulterior motives. No matter how hard Luvia searched, she'd find nothing amiss.

"That's very kind of you." The blonde ended up saying, the scepticism making place for a nonplussed expression. "I don't know what to say."

"Yes or no would be a start." Rin joked, in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"Heh." The chuckle was born more from a place of politeness than anything else, but it was something at least. "What a strange offer. I can tell you're sincere, but surely, you must know that no Magus would ever allow a stranger to interfere in their personal affairs? Even if it is to ostensibly aid them?"

"Of course I know that, but I wasn't offering to meddle in your affairs. I was offering to help." Rin corrected her, pointing out the subtle difference. "Perhaps you want to vent about a smaller, personal problem, or perhaps you want to take your mind off things by playing a game with me. Maybe we could train together if you're the sort of woman who likes physical exercise, and maybe we can even go a few rounds in the sparring ring, if you dare."

Luvia had relaxed when Rin explained that her offer of help was a casual and unintrusive one, smiling at the offer of playing a game together, but when Rin mentioned the sparring ring, she perked right up again, unable to hide the flash of interest in her eyes.

"Sparring, you say?"

"Indeed." Rin grinned at the blonde's unhidden interest, her blood warming up at the thought of matching herself against a fellow Magus, one who wasn't an unbeatable Demigod. "It seems you're rather eager, aren't you? I wonder if you can back that enthusiasm up with any skill."

"How would you like to be crushed?" Luvia wasn't going to take that lying down, rising to the challenge. "Swords? Spears? Spells? Or just hand-to-hand?"

"Hand-to-hand, though we can use Reinforcement-spells as well."

"You're on!"

They shook on it, both girls grinning widely, not a trace left of the earlier morosity that had threatened to swallow the conversation.

Luvia's bodyguards didn't look too sure, perhaps being concerned about possible accidents, but they didn't protest, recognising it would be futile at this point. Their lady could be immensely stubborn once she'd decided on a course of action, so the chance that she could be talked out of the duel was vanishingly small.

The black-skinned bodyguard, Clown, was mainly resigned, more than used to his lady's impulsive nature by now. She often made his job of protecting her more difficult than it needed to be, but he didn't care. His duties didn't change. He would just have to watch the coming fight carefully, ready to step in if he saw anything untoward or if he saw a threat to his mistress.

The butler on the other hand, Auguste, actually looked rather pleased. Pleased that his mistress, whom he'd seen grow up from a precocious young girl to the fine lady she was now, was having fun. It'd been far too long since he'd last seen her smile like that, since the light in her eyes had been doused by the cruelty of life, and not only did the sight warm his old heart, it also greatly improved his opinion of the young lady Rin.

Never before had his mistress connected with someone as quickly as she had with lady Rin. They'd only met twice, and already, his mistress was confiding in her, joking with her, and now even sparring with her, things she barely, if at all, did with anyone else, even her own sister.

They'd bonded so quickly it almost became suspicious, but try as he might, Auguste couldn't bring himself to even think of doing something as callous as advising lady Luvia to stay away from lady Rin. The innocent look of happiness his mistress wore as she stormed off towards the training grounds with her new friend was seared into his heart, and had to be protected at all costs.

Luviagelita Edelfelt's wishes and safety remained his foremost priority, naturally, but should lady Rin ever find herself in trouble and he was in a position to help, he'd make sure to protect her too.

Nothing less for his mistress' new and only friend.


When Shirou returned to his room in the afternoon, Wolpertingers now safely stored away in his Vault, he wasn't surprised to find it empty.

Ophelia should still be in the Department of Policies with her new team, getting an introductory course on her new job and position, and even though Rin's lesson with Lorelei had finished about an hour ago, he knew there was no shortage of miracles and wonders in the Clocktower that could have captured her attention on the way back, thereby delaying her return.

The idea of the black-haired girl wandering the Clocktower on her own did make him worry a bit, but that was a worry he'd have to suppress. Rin was her own woman, quite capable of taking care of herself, which meant there was no reason for him to stay glued to her side all the time.

So when he left his room again a few minutes later to go and look for her, it wasn't out of concern or worry for her safety, but only because he was bored and he missed her. Nothing else.

Honestly.

Finding a single person within the entirety of the Clocktower would normally be a tall order, but Shirou had a very good nose and a deep familiarity with Rin's scent. It was a wonderful scent, that went without saying, and also very distinct, at least in his opinion. It was the scent of his fiancée, his lover, the woman he wanted to share his life with, and it never failed to cheer him up.

He realised that sounded rather creepy, and might even make him seem like a stalker of sorts, but he had always been very open about his abilities to the people around him, especially his girlfriends, and he had offered, on multiple occasions, to make them a Charm that would hide their scents from him. They'd always refused, but he kept the option open anyway.

In any case, he was just going to tentatively assume for now that Rin wouldn't mind being tracked down. Using his nose, he followed her trail, tracing her steps to find her, like an overgrown bloodhound.

That his nose first brought him to the Clocktower's main hall was no surprise, as everyone passed through there at least once a day, but it did come as a surprise when Rin's trail suddenly veered sharply to the left and headed straight for the training grounds.

That was odd. Rin certainly was a fit and sporty girl, who never skipped out on her exercises and always remained in shape, but she wasn't so dedicated that she'd bother to find her new school's gym on her fourth day there. She had better things to do than that.

In fact, such a thing was downright uncharacteristic for her, to the point where it honestly worried Shirou a bit. He tried not to immediately assume the worst, but he'd already been concerned for her safety despite his best attempts not to, and that was before he discovered that she'd gone down to a fairly isolated location without ever announcing such intentions to him.

Was it any wonder that his imagination was getting the better of him?

He hoped that he was just being overprotective, and that when he found her, she'd laugh at him for fussing so much, but he couldn't be certain of that. Not here, not now.

So he headed for the training grounds too, following the trail that Rin had inadvertently left for him.

The training grounds were an area within the Clocktower that was specifically designated and designed for various forms of physical exercise and physical experiments. It was where Enforcers would gather to train for their missions, where Magi would test their new forms of body-enhancement, and where the nobles of the Clocktower came to stay in shape.

Shirou had visited it once during his first stay at the Clocktower, but never came back after that. It was nice enough, but he usually did his training on his own. He preferred it that way.

Now he was glad though that he'd visited the place before. It made finding his way through the maze of hallways and corridors much easier.

The training grounds were just like he remembered them. A fairly large and open space, littered with countless gadgets, dolls, and equipment meant for physical exercise, protected and fortified with numerous spells both modern and ancient. It was clear that piles of money had been thrown at it, just like at every other part of the Clocktower, creating the sort of opulence one wouldn't find anywhere else in the world, certainly not in a gym.

At this point, it didn't even impress Shirou anymore. It amused him more than anything.

There were a few dozen people milling about, tending to their own matters, but Shirou ignored them all in his search for Rin. Black-haired, fairly short, and definitely the prettiest girl around, she usually wasn't that hard to find, even in a crowd.

Once again, he managed to pinpoint her fairly quickly, and he let out a massive sigh of relief when he saw that she was safe and sound.

Unrestrained, not under the influence of any foreign Magecraft, and clearly not in any form of distress, Rin was currently throwing down with someone in one of the sparring rings. She was grinning widely as she punched and was punched in turn, clearly much enjoying a battle against someone on her own level.

The redhead had no clue how she had ended up there, especially since picking a fight with a stranger was nothing like her, but if she was having fun, that was all that mattered. Besides, he had done exactly the same on multiple occasions, and his fights had resulted in some of his closest friendships to date.

Now that his worries had been put to rest, Shirou relaxed, and he took a short moment of deliberation, before he decided to walk over to the ring. Rin probably wouldn't mind if he watched the fight, and he was curious to see how well she performed against another Magus. Also, he noted with great approval that she was wearing her two-piece sports suit again, the one that so wonderfully complimented her-

Was that an Edelfelt?!

Shirou froze, blinking in abject confusion, before he rubbed his eyes thoroughly and looked again.

Nope, the scene before him did not change.

"Is that all you've got, Luvia?! My baby-sister hit harder than that, when she was four!"

"O-ho-ho! You're certainly a brute, aren't you, Rin?! No finesse, you're just hitting as hard as you can! Is that all you know, miss gorilla!?"

Rin was sparring with a tall, blonde girl of about her age, with blue eyes and very pale skin, whose hair was done up in elaborate coils and who wore a one-piece sports suit that had been woven from Magically-enhanced silk and decorated with various patches of Phantasmal Beast leather.

Those physical features, combined with that pathological need to show off their wealth and that high-brow laugh, almost certainly meant that this was indeed an Edelfelt, and that changed the current situation from an innocent spar to something potentially far darker.

The problem though was that Shirou wasn't sure whether he should interfere or not.

Both girls were really going at it, fighting with the intensity of gladiators who knew only one of them would be allowed to leave the arena alive, but they were smiling and laughing all the while, clearly having loads of genuine fun.

There was not a trace of hostility to be found between them, not a single sign that they had anything riding on the outcome of this battle. It was by all accounts a proper spar, though not as respectful as it perhaps should have been, with the insults that were continuously thrown to and from.

Was it possible this was just a friendly duel? A match meant to establish how well they compared to one another and nothing more? It was hard to believe, but that was what the evidence pointed to.

The redhead hemmed and hawed, unable to decide whether he should step in or not, and he was almost relieved when he noticed the bodyguards standing near the ring, most likely employed by the Edelfelt. At least he could approach them without fearing he'd be interrupting the flow of what seemed to be a merry battle, to ask them what was going on.

The bodyguards had already spotted him, unlike Rin, who was too absorbed in the battle, and they had been keeping an eye on him with increasing suspicion as he kept dawdling near their mistress and her new friend. To them, it must seem like he was a nosey creep at best and an assassin at worst.

He better go and disabuse them of those notions.

"This sparring ring is occupied, sir." The elder of the two, a lean man with an impressive amount of facial hair and a pristine butler suit, informed him in a polite yet insistent tone when Shirou approached them. "Please be so kind as to leave."

"I know that the ring is occupied, that's why I am here." Shirou replied pleasantly, hoping not to unduly escalate the situation. "I was looking for Rin, the one who is fighting with your mistress over there. I was worried when I couldn't find her in her room."

"I see." The old man relaxed a tiny bit, though the same couldn't be said for his large compatriot. "You are familiar with the lady Rin then?"

"You could say that. I'm her fiancé."

As Rin had explained, the term 'girlfriend' held very little meaning in the Moonlit World, especially among the older generations, and that was why they'd decided to make their relationship more official, to leave no doubt about their love and relationship.

"Her fiancé? Oh, pardon my harsh language then, sir. Please, join us." As if Shirou had spoken a magic word, the butler's attitude flipped completely, and he stepped aside, so that the redhead could join him in watching the ring. "Our sincerest apologies for the suddenness and unexpectedness of this honourable match, sir, but I fear that neither our mistress nor your fiancée left us much time or recourse when they decided to do battle."

"That does sound like Rin." Shirou huffed in amusement, confirming once again that for all her talk about how impulsive he was, she didn't exactly think things through either before she took action. Fortunately, that was one of the things he loved about her so much. "How long have they been going at it?"

"About twelve minutes." The elderly butler replied, looking at his large compatriot for confirmation, which he received in the form of a single nod. "Please do not mind Clown's silence, sir. He has never been one for idle conversation."

"It's fine." Shirou easily waved the apology away, though he was a little surprised that the large, muscled, and dangerous-looking man was named Clown of all things. It seemed rather unfitting. "Who is winning?"

"Neither. They seem quite well-matched. Lady Luvia is most adept at wrestling, while your fiancée's footwork and fierce attacks are most impressive indeed. If either of them has a clear advantage over the other, I have yet to find it."

He was right. As they watched, Rin managed to land a punch in Luvia's stomach, taking away her breath, but was unable to capitalise on it when the blonde swept up her leg to try and take her into a leg hold.

Rin retreated, but Luvia pursued, hitting the black-haired girl with a fierce shoulder-check that knocked her down on the ground. When she pounced on her however, Rin caught her by the shoulders, threw one leg across her middle, and flipped their positions upside down.

Luvia responded in kind however, throwing both her legs around Rin's middle and grabbing hold of her arms, before she did a back roll, aiming to reverse positions again.

Rin managed to wrench herself loose halfway through though, and they both landed hard on the ground, with some distance between them.

Clearly being an expert grappler, Luvia made to grab Rin again, but the black-haired girl quickly retreated, though not before dishing out a few quick jabs. Luvia tried again, with the same results, and again, hissing in displeasure when her opponent darted away once more.

"So the gorilla is trying to dance now!?" She mocked Rin, frustrated and elated in equal measure. "What's wrong?! No strength left?!"

"Hardly. I don't imagine you'll understand, but-"

In the middle of her sentence, Luvia attacked again, rushing forward like a boar, but Rin, quite familiar with such tricks, simply stepped out of the way once more, smiling smugly when her opponent failed to hit her again.

The smile disappeared at once though when Luvia suddenly went down low, into a sliding tackle that hit Rin's legs so hard that she was almost knocked upside down.

Hanging horizontally in the air, the black-haired girl had nowhere to go, and Luvia capitalised on it by ramming her fist into Rin's midriff, knocking the air right out of her lung, before taking her into a tight bearhug, to stop her from breathing it back in.

This could very well have been the finishing move, but unfortunately for Luvia, Rin was quite used to bearhugs. Shirou rather liked them as well, not in the least because he just liked hugging her.

In any case, the black-haired girl moved almost on instinct as she raised her arms, brought her hands together, and slammed her fists down on Luvia's head, first from above, then from the right and then from the left, nearly knocking her senseless.

With the blonde left in a daze, Rin drew up her legs, placed her knees against Luvia's stomach, and leveraged herself out of the hold, taking in deep gulps of air as she did so.

Not three seconds later, the fight continued.

"I see what you mean." Shirou hummed, glancing at the elderly butler for a moment. "They are quite evenly-matched. I do think that Rin has a slight advantage however."

The black-haired girl was definitely dishing out more than she was taking, not in the least because Luvia's fighting style resembled that of Shirou, meaning she had plenty of experience with countering it. For now, the blonde was holding strong, but at this pace, she would inevitably give in first.

"I cannot disagree." The butler sighed, seeing the same now that Shirou had pointed it out. "Lady Luvia will be disappointed, though I suppose it will be an excellent motivator as well. She's a driven young woman, who will not take defeat lying down. She will be stronger next time."

"I'm sure she will be."

There was clear fondness in the man's voice as he spoke about his mistress, a fondness that could only come from great familiarity and a close, friendly relationship. It definitely boded well for the Edelfelt's character, though it still was no guarantee. Even the most evil people could still inspire loyalty. Shirou had seen that often enough.

The butler then resumed watching the fight, his lips curled up in a small, approving smile, and Shirou followed suit, though not with a smile, but with a somewhat troubled look that seemed rather out of place.

The butler and the bodyguard didn't notice, disciplined and restrained as they were, but Shirou was acutely aware that he was watching a rather intense fight between two beautiful, scantily-clad young women, one of whom was his own girlfriend to boot. From so close, he could see practically everything, and it was all he could do not to turn red from how quickly his blood was rushing through his veins.

He could see every bounce, every twitch, every drop of sweat, and every inch of exposed skin from almost every angle, and it made his mouth run bone dry. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, his treacherous mind decided that witnessing two gorgeous girls wrestling in only their thin sports suits wasn't enough, and readily conjured up images of them wrestling while completely naked and covered in oil instead.

That really did it, and Shirou smacked a hand over his mouth, viciously biting down on his own fingers and the inside of his cheeks in order to keep his erection contained. These conjured images were pleasant fantasies indeed, and would certainly have to be revisited later, at night, but this was neither the time nor the place.

Mentally reciting one of Issei's favourite prayers, Shirou brusquely forced his thoughts away from beauty, nakedness, and oil, and towards a more analytical approach, in which he observed the fight itself rather than the lovely participants.

Through miraculous effort, he managed to distract himself, to focus on the techniques he was seeing instead of the exposed skin, and he stopped biting his hand, instead using it to rub his chin in thought.

Now firmly in a combat-mindset, he studied the girls' moves, their habits, their tricks and their traps, and by using Thor's wealth of experience, he managed to take note of several flaws in their styles. Flaws both large and small, for which he could present actual and valuable feedback.

He wasn't sure whether the Edelfelt would accept his advice, but Rin certainly would, and she'd be all the better for it.

He also shared a few of his observations with the elderly butler, and he was pleasantly surprised when the man readily eagerly engaged in a small discussion with him, showing off a remarkable expertise of his own.

Not that Shirou needed any reminder that the elderly butler was a highly dangerous individual, he'd seen that immediately, but even so, the amount of theoretical knowledge he had in store was impressive indeed.

The fight came to an end about a minute later. As predicted, it was Luvia who slipped up first, dropping her guard too low, and Rin mercilessly capitalised on it by striking her on the shoulder. More specifically, on the tendon that connected her trapezium-muscle to her shoulder, rendering her left arm temporarily unusable.

With only one arm, Luvia stood no chance of deflecting the next attack, and Rin first kicked her against the side of her knee, forcing her to crouch, and then swung her fist in a beautiful arc, clocking the blonde right on the jaw.

That was a knock-out blow if Shirou had ever seen one.

Luvia went down without another sound, dropping to the ground like a stone, and she didn't get up again.

She wasn't completely knocked out, which was a true testament to her resilience, but she was so dazed that getting back on her feet was an utter impossibility. In fact, she almost had swirls in her eyes from how dazed she was, and the world had to be spinning before her eyes.

The three onlookers silently counted the seconds, and when they arrived at ten, with Luvia remaining still on the ground, it was clear who had won the match.

"This battle is over!" The elderly butler announced, taking on the role of commentator. "The winner is lady Rin!"

"Yush!" Rin pumped her fist, grinning widely when her victory was confirmed, before she dropped to the ground as well, utterly spent after the intense battle.

"Well done, Rin-!"

"Kya!?"

Shirou had been wondering whether Rin had noticed his arrival, preoccupied as she'd been with beating her rival, and he got his answer when he stepped into the ring himself and surprised her so much she almost jumped out of her skin.

"Shirou?!" She spluttered, looking at him with wide eyes. "You're here?! Since when?!"

"Since about halfway through your fight." He replied, crouching down next to her and Tracing a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from her brows. "You fought really well, Rin. You have definitely improved since we started."

"Yes, well, of course I have." Already recovered from the surprise, Rin gave him a fierce look. "I can't let you win our matches forever. Sooner or later, I'm going to beat you."

"I'm looking forward to it." He told her, completely honestly. "Don't worry about that now though. Just rest for a while, and then you should eat something, and take a bath."

"I'm too tiiired." Rin whined in response, remaining prone on the ground. "You should do it."

"Do what, exactly?"

"Carry me, feed me, and wash me." She was entirely shameless in her demands, but fortunately for her, Shirou liked that. "It's my reward for winning. You don't get to refuse."

"Don't I? I suppose I have no choice then. What a demanding mistress I have." Shirou obediently picked her up in a bridal carry, making a show of being reluctant, though no one with an ounce of sense would have believed his charade.

He didn't leave immediately though, instead turning towards Rin's defeated opponent, in case they needed a quick dose of healing.

At some point over the past minutes, Luvia had managed to push herself up to a seating position, and was now holding a bag of ice against her jaw, wincing every time it hit the sore spot, where a massive bruise was already forming.

"Are you alright?" He asked, just to be certain.

"Hm?" Luvia looked up, and apparently, she hadn't noticed him coming in either, for she blinked in surprise upon seeing him, and blinked again when she saw he was holding Rin in his arms.

"This is lady Rin's fiancé." The elderly butler helpfully explained, eliciting a small sound of understanding from his mistress.

"Thank you for the offer, Rin's fiancé, but I will be fine. I just need to use some healing Magecraft." Luvia gingerly touched the bruise on her jaw again, flinching when it still hurt. "When I'm no longer so tired."

"I specialise in healing. If you'd allow me?"

His offer was surprising too, apparently, as Luvia gave him another confused look, but he must have seemed trustworthy enough, for she nodded soon after.

Previously, he needed to touch people in order to heal them, but just like his other powers, his healing-ability was constantly improving, so for something so small, he now only needed to wave his hand.

Within a moment and with a glimmer of golden light, the bruise faded and disappeared.

"Wow." Luvia touched the spot again, marvelling when it didn't hurt this time. "That's really impressive! Shame it didn't help with the exhaustion though."

"So… you're both too tired to do anything?" Shirou suddenly sensed an opportunity to get something rather… difficult, over with. "Because then I can introduce you to each other."

By now, he was almost completely sure that neither Rin nor Luvia had any idea who the other actually was. The fact that they, and the bodyguards too, only used first names when addressing each other probably meant they simply hadn't revealed their last names, which had definitely been for the best.

A part of him was tempted to leave matters as they were, to not ruin the budding friendship between the girls, but the other, larger part of him knew that he would just be delaying the inevitable.

Better that they hear it now, from him, than somewhere down the line, in a potentially unsafe situation.

"Introduce us? You mean you know her?" Rin blinked at his odd choice of words, frowning in confusion. "And why does it matter whether we are tired or not?"

For once, Shirou ignored her, deciding that an explanation would be superfluous when they would understand immediately once the introductions were over.

"Tohsaka Rin, head of the Tohsaka-family." Shirou noticed how Luvia's eyes went as wide as saucers at the name. "Meet Luviagelita Edelfelt, heir of the Edelfelt-family."

The ensuing silence was deafening, as both Luvia and Rin gaped at each other, realising simultaneously that they had just made merry despite their families having been at each other's throats for centuries. Rather than hating each other on sight, which they would have done had they introduced themselves properly, they had happily fraternised together, accidentally becoming friends before finding out they were supposed to be enemies.

"E-Edelfelt?!" Rin spluttered.

"Tohsaka?!" Luvia wheezed.

It was almost funny to see them so gobsmacked, and Shirou was relieved to see that there was no sudden hate or anger mixed in with the surprise. He might not like the Edelfelt, but if Rin had befriended Luvia so quickly, she couldn't be a bad sort. Not totally.

He was much less happy however to see Clown step forward menacingly, lifting his hands into a boxer's guard.

"And I am Shirou Fujimaru." He didn't enjoy pulling rank, but if he had to live with being considered a Sorcerer, he was damn well going to use it to his advantage when needed.

Clown immediately backed down, which was good, but Shirou was almost sorry to see how the elderly butler immediately placed himself in front of his mistress to protect her, and how Luvia crawled backwards on instinct, fear rapidly replacing shock.

"I… I hope I didn't ruin the relationship you were building." He made a last-ditch attempt to salvage at least a fraction of the bond that the girls had built between them, but when it had no effect, he decided there was nothing to be gained from staying here. "I bid you farewell."

His piece said, Shirou turned around and walked away, Rin still in his arms.

No one said anything, not until the door of the training grounds had closed behind them.


After Sakura had been rescued from the clutches of Matou Zouken, she'd sworn never to use Magecraft again.

It was an oath easily made, since Magecraft was the reason she'd been hurt so much, and it was an oath easily kept, since the plum-haired girl knew very little about Thaumaturgy to begin with. Zouken had only wanted her as a sacrifice, not as an actual heir, so he'd taught her very little. She knew the basics, enough to be able to follow his instructions, but her expertise ended there.

For the first several months after her rescue, that had suited her just fine. Not knowing any spells was no problem when she didn't want to cast any in the first place. She was perfectly happy being perfectly normal, and for a long time, there'd been no reason for her to ever think otherwise.

But that was no longer the case.

In the span of only a few short months, Sakura had been attacked by a Wraith beneath Mount Enzo alongside Rin and Ayako, they had been forced to deal with mercenaries who'd been sent to spy on them, and soon, the Fifth Holy Grail War would begin, right in their own Fuyuki.

Every time so far, Rin and Shirou had done all the heavy lifting while Sakura had hidden away like a coward, and she didn't doubt that if things didn't change, the Grail War would play out exactly the same way. If she didn't do something soon, she'd spent the entirety of the War doing nothing but watching and praying, utterly unable to exert any influence whatsoever.

That was wholly unacceptable.

Sakura still didn't like Magecraft, not after so many atrocities had been committed with it, against her and so many others, but she could no longer deny its usefulness. Not after everything that had happened.

The Wraith had been defeated with Magecraft after all, as had the mercenaries, and the Grail War was fought using Servants, whose very existence was a miracle on its own. She wouldn't be able to do much if she only had her cutlery and frying pan, or even with the gun that one of Fujimura Raiga's men had given her on a whim for self-protection.

If Sakura continued denying her own talents, running away from what she could do, she would once again be of no help whatsoever. She would be forced to stay behind, watching on powerlessly while Shirou and Rin risked their lives to protect their home and the world, unable to be useful in any way.

That wouldn't do. That wouldn't do at all.

So Sakura broke her oath and began studying Magecraft again.

At first, it had only been a bit of reading, browsing through the books they had stolen from the Matou-estate before they'd burned it to the ground. Then, she'd tried to scrounge up some books from the Emiya-estate, whatever she could find really, and ultimately, she'd even peeked at the notes that Shirou and Rin sometimes left lying around.

There was a limit to what she could achieve with just reading though, and after gathering all her courage, she'd tried to reactive her Magic Circuits, to see if she could still channel Magical Energy. If she couldn't even do that much, there was little point in trying to learn any spells after all.

She'd started out very slowly, keenly aware that overdoing it after months of inaction could very well break something inside of her, but to her great surprise, it was easy. She only had to focus a bit and the Magical Energy started flowing without any issue, like water down a riverbed. There was not a hint of the expected atrophy to be found anywhere.

She would be lying if she said it wasn't the tiniest bit emboldening, and the urge to try and cast a spell, any spell, had been great.

She'd suppressed it though. Casting unfamiliar spells without thorough preparation and people to guide you was extremely dangerous, and unfortunately, Shirou and Rin, the only ones both capable of and willing to help her, had been about to leave for the Clocktower. If she'd asked them for help, she would have distracted them from their preparations, and perhaps even made them feel bad for leaving when she needed them.

Sakura did not want that, at all.

So she'd kept her silence, hoping that the Grail War, or any other kind of trouble, wouldn't start until Shirou and Rin were back home and had the chance to teach her a few things.

But then, not long after they'd left, Sakura realised that Shirou and Rin weren't the only Magi in the Emiya-estate anymore. They were the best examples, yes, but certainly not the only ones. Illya and Sella were quite capable in matters of Thaumaturgy as well, and more than willing to help her out when she asked.

And so, Sakura now regularly spent her evenings in the dojo, with Sella or Illya, first going over the basics of Magecraft again, before they tried to determine what fields she might have an aptitude for. Apparently, there were several easy tests to determine one's aptitude, and Sakura had eagerly taken most of them, with Illya's help of course.

"From what I can see, you have a talent for handling the dead. Fighting ghosts and zombies and all that." Illya said once the results came back, studying them with a critical eye. Unfortunately, those results weren't written in Japanese, or indeed any other normal language, so Sakura had no clue what they said. For that, she was entirely dependent on her boyfriend's little sister. "Okay, wow, you really have a talent for handling the dead. For an untrained Magus, this is incredible!"

"It's probably because of my Element." Sakura wanted to accept the praise, she really did, but it'd feel wrong to be so proud of something that was wholly caused by the luck of the draw. "Imaginary Numbers. It allows for manipulation of Astral Bodies, things that exist only on the level of souls, and also for manipulation of the Fifth Element, that being Ether. In addition, it allows me to access Imaginary Numbers Space, which is like a pocket dimension, only not on this plane of reality."

Matou Zouken might never have taught her any Magecraft, but he had in fact gone to the trouble of determining her Element, and he'd even deigned to explain it to her. It was one of those strangely nice things he sometimes did for her, though frankly, they had confused her more than pleased her.

Imaginary Numbers Space was an alternative space within the Reverse Side of the World from which the Magecraft concept of Imaginary Numbers originated, separate from Real Number Space that constituted the primary reality of the universe. It was essentially a large, empty void on the wrong side of the universe's axis, mostly inaccessible to humans, though some individuals with the right sort of Sorcery Trait or Element, like Sakura, could use it to store certain objects.

It was nowhere near as convenient as the Vault however, as Imaginary Numbers Space was unreliable, ever-shifting, and had a tendency to drive anyone who interacted with it insane, but in theory, it could be made to serve a similar purpose.

Not that Sakura planned on using it any time soon though, even if she managed to gain a measure of skill. Why would she use a dangerous, unstable pocket dimension when they had something so much better at their disposal?

"Oh yes, that would do it. If your element really is Imaginary Numbers, that would explain why you have a real affinity for the dead and for certain types of spatial Magecraft." Illya looked impressed that Sakura had such a rare and coveted Element, but once again, Sakura ignored the implied praise. Having a good Element wasn't her own achievement, it was just something she was born with. "But your Element isn't the only factor that determines your talents. There's also your Sorcery Trait, your heritage, your Origin, and a certain amount of luck involved. From what I can see, you have a few other abilities as well."

"I do?" That properly got Sakura's attention, and her breath quickened, as she was unable to suppress a bit of hope that she'd have a talent that would actually be useful. Useful to her beloved Senpai.

"Yes, but I can't quite make out what they are. Maybe if I tweak a few things… Ah!" Something must have gone right, for Illya smiled the next moment. "I've found it! Next to having an affinity for the dead and for Zero Space, you also have a talent for capturing and restraining."

"Capturing…?" Sakura blinked in confusion, not quite managing to process the words. "Restraining…?"

"That is the best way to put it. No matter how I look at this thing, I can't find a hint that you're any good in a fight. You have no skill at any forms of killing or wounding. You do, however, excel at restraining and capturing."

"With… With rope, or…?"

"Magecraft, I'd say." Illya huffed in amusement. "Think of things like traps, magical restraints, and perhaps even stasis fields."

"R-Right, that makes… sense."

It was also wholly unexpected, to a degree that it left Sakura utterly speechless, not sure what she should say or even feel. It wasn't what she'd hoped for, but also not what she'd feared. Something like this had just… never registered as an option to her.

One thing was clear though. Its uses were probably very little in number, and Sakura struggled to see how it could be of any real help to the man she loved.

"You don't look happy." Illya was neither blind nor stupid, so she quickly noticed that the plum-haired girl looked rather conflicted. Nothing like an aspiring Magus who had just learned about her various excellent aptitudes. "It is quite a unique talent, you know."

"I don't care about that." Sakura was no First-Rate Magus, so whether her talent was unique, rare, or utterly commonplace was wholly irrelevant to her. "Tell me honestly, Illya, are my talents at all useful?"

She asked it outright, not beating around the bush at all. She just wanted to know whether there was any point to developing her talents or whether she should just stick to basic Reinforcement and Runes.

"Useful? That's a rather subjective term." Illya pointed out, correctly, as everyone's definition of the word was different. "But if you want my opinion, then yes, absolutely! This is a wonderful talent to have!"

"D-Do you really think so?" Sakura perked up hopefully.

"Of course I do! With this talent, you can become the best dominatrix ever!"

To Illya, it made perfect sense. Sakura was already a natural domme, someone who was born to wield the whip, and her Magical Attributes wonderfully complemented that natural talent. She wouldn't need to carry around chains or rope. She could just wave her hand and truss her victi- lovers up with bindings made of nothing but Magical Energy, or she could make them sink into solid ground up to their knees, or even suspend them in midair, rendering them utterly helpless.

That mindset and instinct of hers, combined with those talents, made for the perfect package!

"You're talking about sex again!" Frankly, Sakura didn't know why she was even surprised anymore. "I was talking about battle! About fighting! I want to be useful in the Grail War!"

"The Grail War?" Now it was Illya's turn to be taken aback. "Ehm, you do know that Magi aren't supposed to fight in Grail Wars? That's kind of what the Servants are for. Us Magi are supposed to stay in the back."

"But they won't! Senpai and Nee-san won't be staying in the back! You know that!" Sakura bit out, her frustration getting the better of her. Already, she could imagine how those two would take the front in every battle they came across, while she would be unable to do anything. "They are going to fight, and I want to help them!"

It was a plea as much as it was a demand. Sakura glared fiercely at Illya, silently begging her for reassurance, even though she knew she was asking for the impossible.

"Well, that shouldn't be too much of a problem."

"…Huh."

But apparently, today was a day of surprises.

"You mean you aren't seeing it?" Illya cocked her head to the side, before she let out a giggle. "Sakura, remind me again, what is currently our biggest problem?"

"The Fifth Holy Grail War." She replied automatically, not even having to think about that.

"And who will be our greatest enemies in the Grail War?"

"Servants."

"Why?"

"Because they are far superior to even the strongest of Magi and because we cannot kill them without feeding Angra Mainyu."

"Right, so we need to capture them. And what are Servants again?"

"Limited copies of Heroic Spirits, cast into containers prepared by the Grail. They are Souls of Heroes made into special Familiars of the highest rank."

"Indeed. In other words, we'll have to capture Spirits. And who excels at capturing Spirits again?"

"…Me." Sakura finally realised what Illya was trying to say, her breath quickening in enthusiasm as raw hope bloomed in her heart. "Me!"

"Yes, you!" Illya laughed, enthusiastically patting her on the shoulder. "Shirou has been agonising for a while now about how he is going to restrain enemy Servants without killing them, which is crazy difficult, let me tell you, but if you have the Element of Imaginary Numbers on top of an aptitude for capturing and restraining others in general, and you're willing to use it, I'd say he has nothing to worry about."

Her words were like the finest of music to Sakura's ears, and she balled her fists in determination.

"I won't let Senpai down! I promise! I'll start training immediately!"

"You should wear your dominatrix outfit." Illya suggested quickly. "Magecraft largely depends on confidence and self-assurance, which can be improved by the right outfit and surroundings. That's why Magi often wear stereotypical robes or suits, and work in laboratories or underground caverns. In your case though, you should wear the costume I designed for you, to better get in the mood of restraining people!"

"That doesn't sound right, but I don't know enough about Magecraft to dispute it." Sakura knew that Illya definitely had ulterior motives, but for better or for worse, in the absence of Shirou and Rin, she was the plum-haired girl's teacher. "Fine, I'll wear that thing, but you better teach me seriously."

"I promise! Cross my heart and hope to die!"

The deal had been struck, and so, Sakura's education began anew.

She might have broken her oath never to practice Magecraft again, but she replaced it with another oath, a far more serious one, to dedicate her all to Shirou and his goals. Her body, her mind, and her Magic were at his disposal, now and always.

It was the least she could do for the man who had saved her very life and being.

For her hero.


Shirou's personal chambers in the Clocktower included quite a luxurious bathroom. It couldn't compare to the one he had at home of course, but it was stylish, beautifully decorated, and it had a bath sizeable enough for three or even four people to bathe together, which Shirou and Rin had often taken advantage of over the past few days

Right now however, despite being in the baths together again, submerged up to their chins in warm water and bubbles, with Rin snuggled into Shirou's side, neither of them could muster the energy to get in the mood for anything frisky. Rather, they were both staring at nothing in particular, not moving much at all, which made the whole affair more subdued than anything.

It was hardly surprising though, after the bomb that Shirou had just dropped.

"I can't believe she is an Edelfelt!" Rin suddenly spat, breaking the silence. "I can't believe it!"

"Rin…"

"No, I can't! She is far too kind to be an Edelfelt, and too funny, and not nearly greedy enough! Edelfelt are grasping vultures, not people like Luvia!"

"I think you may be overgeneralising a bit there. Just because they are your rivals does not mean they are evil and greedy by definition. I spoke with an Edelfelt myself several times, and I always found her to be pleasant and polite."

"That doesn't count! They were just putting on a front of politeness when speaking to a Sorcerer! Luvia was genuine though, or I thought she was!"

"I would have seen it if they were putting on a front." Shirou pointed out, but he didn't say anything else, recognising that Rin had no use for logic right now.

"I can't believe I got along with an Edelfelt!" She whined, pressing her face into his chest and kicking her legs petulantly, splashing the water all around the bathroom. "I shamed my family! I can't believe this happened!"

"Perhaps I shouldn't have told you then."

"No! No, it's good you told me. Better that I hear it from you than from someone I don't know, or worse, finding out myself at an inopportune moment. What if she'd invited me to her room to do research together and I accepted? They could have killed or kidnapped me!"

"…" That such things could realistically very well have happened worsened Shirou's mood considerably. This whole affair might seem funny in retrospect, but it could easily have ended in disaster had he not been present. "I would have saved you immediately if they had abducted you, and if they had killed you, I would have avenged you."

"Rescue is fine, but I'd rather you didn't need to avenge me."

"Of course. I much prefer you to be alive as well."

"Aw, what a wonderful thing to say." Rin kissed him on the nose, smiling for a short moment, before her scowl returned. "I'll have to devise a way to deal with Luvia in the future. I can hardly carry on chit-chatting with her now. With some luck though, we'll ignore each other from here on."

"But do you need to be adversaries?" Shirou asked, wondering if Rin wasn't passing up an opportunity to bury the hatchet with one of her family's main enemies. "Perhaps this is a chance for you to make peace with them."

"Peace? A nice concept, but I don't think that'll work." Rin shook her head in the negative, barely even considering the possibility.

"Not even if you tried to speak with Luvia about it?"

"After she sent mercenaries to spy on me and possibly do much worse?" Rin was clearly sceptical, and admittedly, she had a very strong point there.

"Right, that was rude of her." Shirou admitted, rather embarrassed that he'd already mostly forgotten about that. "But we immediately caught them, so nothing unforgivable happened yet."

"That she sent mercenaries at all is unforgivable!" Rin countered swiftly. "Besides, even if I forgave her for that, it is almost certain they'll do something similar again before long. If not to me, then to someone else. It's just how they are. Tell me honestly, Shirou, do you want to be allied to a family known for blackmail, extortion, theft, and murder?"

"…No, I do not."

"Indeed you don't. Listen, the Tohsaka-family prides itself on its elegance and reason. Don't you think that if it were possible and desirable for us to make peace with the Edelfelt, we would have done so already?" Suddenly, Rin straddled him, perching herself on his lap to look him straight in the eyes. "We compete with them for literally everything. Gems, curses, Holy Grails, and whatever else we have ever pursued. We could have been allies, working towards a common goal, but they always refused. Peace will remain impossible as long as they continue to see our Magecraft as a zero-sum game."

It was a passionate speech from Rin, and although it still felt like a shame to pass up a chance for reconciliation, Shirou could find no fault in her reasoning.

She was right. As long as the Edelfelt remained a family most often likened to hyenas, Rin could not make a lasting peace with them. They'd break it at the first opportunity to make a profit. Such people always did.

And yes, he threw the blame firmly at their feet. Rin was a sensible, honest, and kind-hearted person. She was definitely not the problem here.

When he shared that sentiment with her, she rewarded him with another kiss, relaxing against him again now that she'd been able to vent a bit and the exhaustion from the battle and the ensuing reveal finally began to catch up with her.

He used that opportunity to wash and rinse her properly, figuring he might as well do what they came to the bathroom to do, before they dried themselves off and returned to the drawing room, where Ophelia was quietly working on several documents.

"Hello again." She greeted them, a bit cautiously. When they had entered, Rin had been in a foul mood, and Ophelia, who was used to living with abusive parents, had keenly sensed something was wrong and made herself scarce. Now though, the danger seemed to have passed.

"Hello, Ophelia." Rin greeted her back, also aware that she'd scared the brunette with her thunderous expression earlier. "Sorry about my anger before. None of it was aimed at you."

"R-Right. I figured as much." Ophelia sat up a little straighter, her worries now completely assuaged. "Can I ask what happened?"

"Well, it turned out that my new friend, Luvia, is actually a member of a family that the Tohsaka have been feuding with for centuries." Rin was entirely blunt in her reply, not mincing words in the slightest as she saw no reason to keep the affair a secret. "It was a shock, I have to admit."

"Oh. That's rough." Ophelia did her best to offer sympathy, but she didn't manage it very well. She was too inexperienced with human interaction, and frankly, this situation required a master to navigate properly.

"Very rough." Rin could read between the lines though, and gave Ophelia an appreciative nod for her attempt to console her. "I hope your day was better?"

"Oh, yes, I… I had fun." The young woman replied in a voice that sounded as if she were admitting some kind of grave sin. "I… I think I'm… s-settling in."

"That's good to hear." Shirou smiled at her, putting the kettle on for a pot of tea, as it was a little too early for supper yet. "Are you allowed to tell us what you are going to be doing over the coming months?"

"I don't think so?" It came out as a question more than anything, which Ophelia herself also realised a moment later. "I'll ask the others tomorrow."

"You do that."

"And what about, Shirou?" Recognising that Ophelia had no more to say, Rin turned to the redhead instead, smirking evilly at him. "How fares the rabbit-hunt? Did you have any more luck today?"

"I did, actually." Shirou grinned back, before he opened his Vault with a wave of his hand, thereby materialising the Wolpertingers. "Behold, our new pets."

They appeared in a flash of rainbow-coloured light, and both girls gasped when the light died down.

"So cute!?" Ophelia's mouth fell open at the sight of the three baby-Wolpertingers, astounded that Phantasmal Beasts, creatures from legend that were intrinsically linked to the dreaded Reverse Side of the World, could possibly be so adorable.

"Wow." Rin was more focused on the mother though, recognising the glint of sapience in her black eyes, just like Shirou had. "It's actually intelligent? I-I mean, she. She is actually intelligent?"

Both were gobsmacked at the sight, but neither showed any signs of fear, which Shirou was grateful for. He knew that Rin at least had been reluctant to allow Phantasmal Beasts into the Emiya-estate, but it seemed she was getting over that reluctance now that she had a chance to meet them properly.

In turn, the Wolpertingers showed no fear either. Despite having been suddenly teleported just a moment ago, the younglings were already looking around curiously, taking in their new surroundings. Meanwhile, the mother quickly scanned the room for threats, before settling down when she didn't find any, apparently designating Rin and Ophelia as friendly.

Shirou hadn't expected them to make any trouble when they faced other humans besides him and doctor Kix, but all the same, he was glad to see they were so well-behaved. That boded well for their stay at his home.

"Greetings, mighty Phantasmal." Rin approached the mother Wolpertinger cautiously, addressing her politely and even adding a small bow for good measure. "It is an honour to meet you."

The boar-sized rabbit couldn't actually understand human speech, but she could read intentions and moods, so she knew that Rin was trying to greet her. In response, she pushed her nose against the black-haired girl's cheek, before licking her forehead.

"Ah?! T-That tickles!"

Shirou knew from experience that the Wolpertingers' tongues did indeed tickle, so he nodded in agreement while Rin tried to escape the mother's attention, before he smiled when he saw that Ophelia had, at some point over the past minute, scooped up the three babies, now holding them in her arms with a look of pure bliss on her face.

Completely understandable. Cute animals would do that to you.

"Can we keep them here?" Ophelia asked a few minutes later, busily scratching the Wolpertingers behind their ears, as she gave Shirou her best puppy-dog eyes.

"I'm afraid not." He had to give her the bad news however, and it was a testament to how much the little beasts had already ingratiated themselves that even Rin looked disappointed, if only for the shortest of moments. "They are in danger here, from overeager Magi, and besides, what would they even do here during the day, when we're out? It would be better if I brought them back home, to Fuyuki."

"Immediately?" Rin asked, trying and failing to keep the disappointment out of her voice.

"There's no reason to keep them here for any longer than we need to. I'll just go home for a bit, with the Bifrost, to deliver them, after which I'll come back."

With the Rainbow Bridge, Shirou could travel from London to Fuyuki and back in moments, so bringing the Wolpertingers home was a minor task at most. It probably wouldn't even take an hour, and that was if he took all the time in the world to introduce the Wolpertingers to Sakura, Ayako, and Illya.

"Oh yes, good idea. While you're there, you can tell Sakura I miss her…"

Rin's voice suddenly trailed off, her body freezing in place, which made Shirou give her a questioning look, before he recoiled in alarm when she suddenly grabbed her head with both hands, groaning loudly in a mixture of desperation and disappointment.

"R-Rin? What's wrong-?"

"The Bifrost!" She exclaimed. "By the Root, you have the Bifrost! We can go home any time we want!"

"Huh? Well, yes, that's completely true, but why is that…"

Realisation hit him like a bolt of lightning the next moment, and Shirou groaned too, wondering how on Earth they hadn't realised it sooner.

When they'd left for the Clocktower, they had said goodbye rather melodramatically to Sakura, Ayako, Illya, Taiga, and all the others, preparing to be away for four weeks. Four weeks in which they wouldn't be able to see each other.

Over the past few days, they'd spoken only over the phone, separated by thousands of kilometres of distance, unable to see each other, much less touch one another.

Except they weren't. With the Bifrost, they could go home at any time they wanted. They could theoretically go home every evening, back to Japan, and then come to the Clocktower again every morning, taking no more than a few seconds to go one way or the other.

"How did I not realise this? I'm smarter than that." Rin groaned, looking as if she wanted to bang her head against the wall, though she ultimately chose to glare at Shirou instead. "It's your fault! You infected me with your idiocy. Idiot!"

Shirou might have had something to say in response to that if he didn't still feel like a right fool. He had a means of instant travel at his disposal, yet he'd completely failed to realise what that meant.

No distance was too far anymore, and no journey too long.

"Let's go home." He said, taking Rin's hand. "We'll deliver the Wolpertingers, and we'll stay the night after that. We can return in the morning."

"Let's do that." Rin agreed immediately. "I mean, it's probably morning there now, but that's fine. I can sleep later. Ophelia, you're coming with us."

"I-I am?"

"We can hardly leave you here on your own all night. Come on."

Shirou picked up the befuddled-looking young woman while Rin snatched her documents. Then, they huddled together, Shirou summoned the Wolpertingers, who, as always, eagerly followed his commands, and he opened the Rainbow Bridge.

Within moments, they were back home, in their own living room.

"Senpai? Nee-san?"

Sakura was there to greet them, by coincidence rather than by design, looking owlishly at her lover and her sister, who had arrived back weeks before they were supposed to, with another girl and four Phantasmal Beasts in tow.

"Did you forget something?"

"No way!" Rin laughed.

"Yes way." Shirou disagreed, putting Ophelia down. "We completely forgot that the Bifrost is a means of instant teleportation, and can therefore be used to travel from London to Fuyuki and back as many times as we want in no time at all."

Sakura looked confused for a moment longer, before she too gasped in realisation.

"We're home, Sakura." Rin smiled at her, before outright grinning when Sakura nearly teared up. "I dare say we'll be home every night from now on."


When it rains, it pours.

It was a very old saying in both the Mundane World and the Moonlit World, essentially meaning that trouble rarely came alone. When things went wrong, they went properly wrong, basically pouring down on people's heads in great quantities.

Inorai Valualeta Atroholm, one of the heads of the Democratic Faction, was old and wise enough to understand that the saying wasn't always applicable, as most problems did in fact come alone and were often easily resolved, but she couldn't deny that it captured her current situation quite neatly.

"So what you are saying, is that Shirou Fujimaru is engaged to Tohsaka Rin?" She asked, just to confirm. "Tohsaka Rin, the head of the Tohsaka-family, who have been your bitter rivals for centuries?"

"Yes." Luviagelita Edelfelt, heir of the Edelfelt-family, stayed impressively cool as she responded, not batting an eye even though she'd suddenly and unexpectedly made an extremely dangerous enemy basically out of nowhere. "Yes, he told me so himself. They are engaged, and quite happily so, apparently."

Inorai let out a deep breath, pinching the bridge of her nose to stave off the headache that threatened to build behind her eyes, wondering yet again whether the Edelfelt weren't more trouble than they were worth.

Their wealth, connections, and skills were certainly convenient, but not sufficiently so to offset the possibility of incurring a Sorcerer's wrath. Rivalries between individuals or families could get extremely heated in the Moonlit World, and unfortunately, they rarely stayed contained for long. It wouldn't take much for it to spill over towards other families in the Faction.

"That could get… seriously troublesome, for all of us." Melvin Weins, another member of the Democratic Faction and the closest they had to a resident expert on the new Sorcerer, winced in sympathy, while unknowingly parroting Inorai's thoughts. "Shirou does not like violence, but he's very protective. If he gets the idea that we are a threat to the Tohsaka, he won't hesitate to neutralise us. Permanently, if need be."

Melvin wasn't always completely honest, nor was he the sharpest tool in the shed, but on this occasion, Inorai fully believed him. It lined up neatly with everything else she'd heard about Shirou Fujimaru, and it even fitted the general profile of Sorcerers. If something got in their way, they trampled over it, often without even noticing.

It rankled fiercely, that they, some of the Clocktower's most powerful lords and greatest Magi, had to worry about a single man's moods and wiles, but such was the reality of the situation. Maybe they could defeat him if they all worked together, with a perfect plan that was perfectly executed, but even then, at least one in three would not survive, and that made it a very hard sell among Magi, who were not known for their self-sacrificing tendencies.

"This doesn't have to be a disaster though. The one good thing about this Sorcerer seems to be that he is largely content to leave things alone, provided they don't get in his way." Quentin Riedenflaus argued, taking pity on the Edelfelt heiress. "I would advise laying low for a while. All accounts indicate he will not stay at the Clocktower for very long, so you should be able to outlast him with little effort. I know that's not a permanent solution, but it is the best suggestion I can give you right now."

It was sound advice, but Inorai knew the brashness and folly of youth, so she wasn't surprised to see that Luviagelita dismissed Quentin's words out of hand.

Foolish girl. She could stand to be a little more cowardly sometimes.

"So this will truly make him our enemy." Inorai mumbled, before she let out a resigned sigh. "Not that I expected anything else, with how much our dear Vice Director has been cosying up to him."

"Oh, speaking about that, I suppose there are upsides to Shirou's engagement to the Tohsaka too." Melvin realised, snapping his fingers. "If he's already engaged, he can't marry lady Barthomeloi on top of that."

"Oh yes, quite." Inorai agreed, not having thought about that small bit of good news yet. It wasn't much, but they had to be happy with everything they could get at this point.

"Unless he means to add her to his collection of course."

"What?"

"Oh no, nothing! Just speculating out loud. Feel free to ignore me."

He didn't have to say that twice. Though his mother was widely respected and Melvin himself also had his uses, he remained an irritating gadfly. If it wasn't necessary to interact with him, most people preferred not to.

"Enough about Fujimaru. We have bigger problems than a small personal feud." Orlocke Ceasarmund, as always confined to his wheelchair, interrupted them, crossing his arms almost violently as he ignored the annoyed look that Luviagelita gave him. "Policies has been busy again. They have begun another hunt for traitors, in all three Factions."

"Again?! Has Barthomeloi gone mad?!" Garrett Frain snarled. His family was one of the Barthomeloi's most vocal detractors, and he never missed an opportunity to rail against her. "Have they not slaughtered enough of our people yet in the Purge?! How many more do they want to kill before they are satisfied?! Do they truly intend to cut us to the bone?!"

"I understand your anger, Garrett, but lower your voice, as it is misplaced here." Quentin cautioned him, holding a finger to his lips to motion for silence. "Policies had the right of it. There are indeed traitors within our ranks. Traitors who do not serve themselves, as Magi normally do, but who serve the Dead Apostle Ancestors instead."

Everyone in hearing distance scowled at the mention of those horrid abominations that had fouled the Earth for millennia already, and Garrett Frain soon deflated, realising that he could not feud with Barthomeloi for the crime of fighting the enemies of humanity.

"I heard about this too." Inorai nodded, having to invest real effort to hide her own anger. "If anything, Policies did us a favour here, as much as it galls me to admit. They tracked down these disloyal dogs with great precision, and unlike the previous time, they mostly left us to deal with them ourselves."

"Mostly?" Orlocke Ceasarmund asked with a raised eyebrow.

"They arrested Gladstone Phamrsolone, and of course the traitors in their own ranks. Other than that, they have not made any moves, aside from providing us with the traitor's identities." Quentin explained. "It seems they have no desire to worsen the relations between the Factions more than necessary."

"I don't know about that. Arresting the acting head of the Neutral Faction, right after decimating it, doesn't sound like an act of friendship to my ears." Garrett huffed, but rather than still looking angry, he wore an almost vindicated smile on his face that didn't fit his words at all.

"What are you so happy about?" Melvin asked curiously, wondering why the dour man suddenly seemed in a better mood than him. "This is quite a dire situation, you know."

"I know, and I too am furious with the traitors, but I cannot deny it gladdens me to see the Aristocratic Faction humbled." Garrett Frain was practically grinning, which was a strange sight indeed. "They were so self-righteous during the Purge that it simply delights me to know that they dropped the ball so badly this time around. Tell me, Quentin, were there many traitors among them?"

"…I don't have precise numbers, but some say that the Aristocratic Faction housed the most traitors of us all."

"Ha!"

"I don't care about what 'some say'." Orlocke Ceasarmund refused to entertain the rumours however, giving Garrett a disapproving glare, which, from him, was quite something indeed. "Nor do I care about Policies' issues. I care about our own problems first. We need to make deep inquiries, and soon. While I don't mean to cast doubt on the investigative skills of Policies' inquisitors, there is still a chance, however small, that they missed a few traitors."

He was right of course, and that was another problem added to the pouring rain that Inorai now had to deal with.

"Curse that Duke of Predation." She muttered below her breath, knowing exactly who to blame but not daring to say that monster's name, even at the very centre of the Clocktower. Then, raising her voice, she turned to the other members of her inner circle. "Is there any more bad news I should know about?"

She meant it sarcastically, but unfortunately for her, there was indeed more bad news.

"Reports from the Carillon-Observatory indicate that more and more Phantasmal Species are attempting to force a breakthrough down in the tunnels beneath the Clocktower." Deimlit Pental obediently relayed the information his family had obtained the other day. "For now, lord Carillon is holding the line, but if the Beasts make their way past him and up to the surface, we have little to no way of stopping them effectively."

Of course they didn't. Phantasmal Beasts weren't like a pack of stray dogs, to be cornered and put down at will. They were creatures from the Ancient World, mightier than any human. Fighting them required specific weapons and tactics, not to mention a great amount of power.

"Nevertheless, we are willing to try." Gabik Pental, who was Deimlit's twin brother, took over. He'd always been the more martially-minded of the two, and now, he lived up to that reputation by looking oddly eager for a fight. "With your permission, lady Atroholm, we'd like to establish a Faction-wide protocol for the eventuality that Phantasmal Beasts do reach the surface."

"A protocol?" Orlocke looked very sceptical, and he wasn't the only one. "I hope that it consists of us running away and nothing more? If you mean to take the fight to them, boy, you'll need weapons, armours, and tactics far beyond anything we have now. We aren't talking about a few Goblins or Ghouls here. These are Ancient Monstrosities, from a time when Magic was plentiful."

"We'd deduced as much ourselves, Ceasarmund." Deimlit's upper lip curled up in distaste, though in distaste of what, no one could really tell. "Attempting to fight against the Phantasmal Beasts from the tunnels of Albion is almost certainly a futile endeavour, but then, so is fleeing from them. Ultimately, it is better to face our problems head-on than to try and run away."

"Oh, that's what Waver always says!" Melvin interjected with an entirely superfluous comment, but everyone was used to that, so they ignored him with practised ease.

"So you do mean for us to fight them." Orlocke grimaced. "I am honoured by your trust and your high opinion of me, but I wouldn't last long, nor, I believe, would anyone else."

"Lady Atroholm." Recognising that he and his brother were never going to convince the cantankerous Orlocke, Gabik turned to their superior for aid. "What say you?"

"If you wish to establish a Faction-wide protocol for an impending disaster, I will not stop you. It is your good right." Inorai generally liked it when youngsters showed a bit of boldness and took some initiative, and this definitely was a bold initiative. "However, I cannot force anyone to cooperate with your efforts if they don't want to."

"But we do have your support?" Gabik pressed, as the patronage of one of the two leaders of the Democratic Faction would go a long way in getting others to listen. She'd be able to provide diplomatic aid, guidance, financial support, and a figure of authority who had been accepted by the Faction at large.

"…"

Quite frankly, Inorai could think of few things that she wanted to do less. Her time was precious and limited, and she did not have enough of it to spare that she could just take responsibility for such a large project, no matter how important. She cared, but not that much.

Not for the first time, she wished she'd remembered to bring her cigarettes with her. Haruri, her apprentice, normally took care of things like that, but the girl had been missing since the day before.

"Could you not ask McDonell for assistance?" She eventually hedged, doing her utmost to continue smiling instead of grimacing as she invoked the name of the Democratic Faction's other leader. "He has always been more involved with the administrative side of our Faction and has long been its golden boy. Not to mention he is a better warrior too."

She shamelessly tried to foist the project off on her old friend, partially because she didn't want to do the work that was undoubtedly required, but also because she genuinely thought that he was better for the job.

Inorai might be one of the Faction's leaders, but she'd never been much of a people-person. Save for a few exceptions, she didn't like interacting with others, especially not with her fellow Magi, anti-social as they were, and that went doubly so when politics were involved.

McDonell Trambellio Elrod on the other hand was her polar opposite in that respect. He was a charismatic, handsome, large, and dependable man who could make anyone, even the most distant of strangers, believe he was their best friend after just half-an-hour together. When it came to projects that involved organising a defence against enemies from the outside, he was the number one choice for leader.

In fact, Inorai was rather surprised that Deimlitt and Gabik had come to her at all. They might interact more with her than with McDonell on an average day, as she was their part time mentor, but even so, they were more than aware of the differences between their capabilities. No one who wanted a general of sorts should have skipped McDonell in favour of Inorai. That was like selecting a mouse instead of a dog to guard the chicken pen from foxes. Just a dumb idea all around.

"We asked him already." Gabik responded bluntly however, casually letting it be known that Inorai was second choice at best. "He did not have the time or capacity to help us. Actually, he said we should ask you."

"…" Inorai faked a small yawn, hiding it with her hand in order to conceal the frustration in her eyes, frustration borne from the fact that McDonell had apparently already foisted the problem off on her. Now she couldn't refuse without losing face and making it seem like she and McDonell were at odds, which was probably exactly what that insufferable man had planned.

It was positively evil, and Inorai had to take a moment to recover from the fact that her oldest friend had set her up like that.

That she'd been intending to do exactly the same to him just a moment ago had already been forgotten. To be a Magus was to be a hypocrite, and Inorai was an excellent Magus indeed.

"Very well. I'd be glad to help you." She lied, resigning herself to her fate. "As I too am quite busy however, I'll be relying on you two to do most of the legwork."

"That's what we intended anyway." Deimlitt nodded, looking so happy that she'd accepted that Inorai almost felt guilty for being so recalcitrant.

"I still don't believe this will be of any use." Orlocke grunted, still as cantankerous as ever. "If you ask me, we'd be better off going down on our knees to beg Zelretch, Aozaki, and Fujimaru to solve the issue for us. They wield Ancient Magics after all. A perfect fit for Ancient Monsters."

"We considered it." Gabik admitted, his mouth pulling taut as if he'd tasted something sour. "But Zelretch and Aozaki cannot be reliably located and haven't been seen in years, while Fujimaru is… not exactly our greatest ally, especially considering recent events."

He glanced over at Luviagelita as he said that, who responded with a huff.

"That is true, but don't forget that lord Carillon is a member of the Aristocratic Faction. If he asks Fujimaru or Barthomeloi for help, he is likely to get it. Or at least, likelier than us." Orlocke pointed out. "Then Fujimaru intervenes, pushes the Phantasmal Beasts back into the depths of the Earth, and all will be well."

"…Do you truly think it will be that easy?" Quentin asked.

"No, but allow an old man to hope." Orlocke sighed, smiling wistfully as he apparently imagined how all their problems would magically solve themselves.

A pleasant fantasy, but Inorai had no time to indulge today.

"Establish your protocol." She ordered the Pental-brothers, still fully intent on having them do most of the work. "We shall shelve this discussion until you have completed a first draft."

"It will be done, lady Atroholm." Deimlitt bowed his head, glaring out of the corner of his eye at Orlocke. "And it will not include any Sorcerers."

"That doesn't mean I can't give it a go, right?" Melvin piped up again, eagerly raising his hand. "Shirou and I are buddies. I'm sure that if I ask him for help, he'll agree. That way, we can have a protocol and a Sorcerer."

Most of them rolled their eyes at his suggestion, at the idea that Melvin's undoubtedly one-sided friendship with Fujimaru could overcome the web of political intrigue, but Luviagelita, who didn't yet know Melvin very well, became notably concerned.

"You can't do that!" She practically demanded. "He is our enemy!"

"Your enemy." Melvin corrected her, and anyone who knew him would immediately spot the delighted look in his eyes, as he found another victim to play with and jerk around. "He is too important for us to completely alienate. We have always had good relations with him, and we would like for that to continue. Certainly, you understand that he is a valued ally? More valued than, let's say, a family from some distant country that only recently joined us?"

It was nonsense of course, Melvin was the only one of them who had ever even spoken to Fujimaru, let alone had good relations with him, but it scared Luviagelita, and that was all he wanted.

Inorai couldn't blame the girl for being apprehensive. One had to be made of stern stuff not to be scared when a Sorcerer took notice of you, and doubly so if you got their attention in a negative way. Needless to say, having a centuries-long feud with their betrothed was very negative indeed.

Which was why, after Inorai met Luviagelita's eyes and shook her head to show that Melvin was talking rubbish, the girl's expression practically dripped with relief.

The relief was fairly mutual. Though they were relatively new to the scene, the Edelfelt had shown themselves capable if cold allies to the Democratic Faction. It would be a shame to lose them, to the Sorcerer, or to one of the many other enemies that the Democratic Faction had made over the years, or indeed to the enemies that the Edelfelt themselves had made, who weren't few in number either.

Even here, at the heart of the Magus Association, there were probably plenty of people who would like to take a stab at the heiress of the Edelfelt-family, which made it fortunate that Luvia had had the presence of mind to take bodyguards with her. The best of the best even.

Inorai couldn't claim to know the large, black-skinned fellow who had been introduced as Clown, though he seemed capable enough at first glance, but she definitely recognised the elderly man who was pretending to be a mere butler awaiting his mistress' orders.

Auguste Zonderland.

The Red Death.

In his youth, he'd been one of the world's most proficient mercenaries and assassins, so skilled that he had at times been compared to the Magus-Killer himself. He had taken out whole squads of enemies, several Dead Apostles, numerous wanted terrorists, and he'd even killed several prominent Magi, weathered the retribution from their families, and lived to tell the tale.

Unlike the Magus-Killer though, he had also excelled at missions of personal protection, keeping people safe from their enemies, and was quite skilled at diplomacy on top of that, to the point where Inorai was reasonably sure he could negotiate a truce even with a Sorcerer, should that ever become necessary.

She didn't know how the Edelfelt had managed to get someone like that working for them, but since it meant he was now also working indirectly for her, she was rather happy with the arrangement.

Realising that she'd been staring at him for a bit too long, and that he'd undoubtedly notice, Inorai quickly looked away again, and was almost grateful when a Homunculus suddenly stormed into their room, distracting everyone, including Auguste.

"Betram IV?" Quentin looked surprised that his personal assistant had come to interrupt them like that, and even more when the humanoid construct pushed a piece of paper into his hands.

"What's that, boy?" Orlocke asked curiously, straining his neck in an attempt to read the note as well.

"…More of our allies have been linked to the Dead Apostle Ancestors." Quentin replied after a moment of reading. "And the other two factions have found more traitors in their own ranks as well."

"How many traitors does that make in total?"

"More than twenty."

Both Deimlitt and Gabik sucked in a breath in shock, Quentin crumpled the note in his hand, and Inorai grinded her teeth in anger.

Twenty didn't sound like much when compared to the total number of Magi living and working at the Clocktower, but it was catastrophic nonetheless. It meant that on average, every Department housed at least one or two of them, which in turn meant that the bloodsuckers had information on almost every procedure and event in the Magus Association.

And that wasn't even counting the ones that hadn't been discovered yet.

"No wonder the White Wing Lord has been outwitting us left, right and centre lately." Orlocke scowled in displeasure, being an avid Apostle-hunter himself and thus not at all happy with being outmanoeuvred like that. "Inorai, I am going to make inquiries myself. This has clearly gotten out of hand. I need to stem the tide before we bleed out like pigs."

"Do as you please." Leaving the traitors at the mercy of Orlocke Ceasarmund was a horribly cruel thing to do, but Inorai didn't care. Such was the price one paid for treason. "Do share your results."

"Naturally."

The old man was wheeled away by his own Homunculus servant, off to commit his atrocities, and Inorai focused back on Quentin.

"Keep an eye on the situation for me." She ordered him, as he was the most proficient spymaster in her inner circle. "This is the third time now that we've been caught off guard. Don't let it happen again."

"I can give no guarantees." Sincere as ever, Quentin refused to make a promise he might not be able to keep. "I lack the resources, not to mention the capable personnel, to expand my network."

He was entirely blunt in admitting his own weakness, recognising that no one was served by him pretending to be more capable than he was, but he failed to realise that showing weakness also served to lure predators.

"Then allow me to help." Luviagelita saw an opportunity and went for it, physically placing herself between Inorai and Quentin. "The Edelfelt have no shortage of informants and spies available. We have eyes everywhere, all of whom can make meaningful contributions to the cause."

"You want to help me?" Quentin blinked in confusion, unable to keep track of what the blonde was saying all of a sudden. "Why?"

"To contribute! We are all in the same boat right now, lord Riedenflaus, so it is only natural that we all contribute to find a solution." Luvia beamed, practically radiating confidence and bluster as she professed her own generosity. "Or do you want to give up and throw in the towel already?"

"Throw in the…?" Quentin was not familiar with the saying, but he could guess its meaning from the context. "I assure you I have no intention of giving up."

"Marvellous!" Luviagelita's smile was so wide that it almost had to be painful. "Then let us strive together to get on top of things again."

There was a moment of hesitance, and then she reached out to cautiously pat Quentin on the back.

"We got this."

Inorai pursed her lips in slight disapproval as she looked at the byplay. On one hand, it was good that Quentin now received more help and resources to do his work. On the other, he received that help from the Edelfelt, and that meant it would come at a steep price.

Everyone knew the hyenas never did something for free. They were mercenary by every meaning of the word, and the fact that Luviagelita hadn't named her price upfront rather unnerved Inorai. The bill would always come due after all, sooner or later, and it was much better to know what was owed than to have no idea at all.

It would be one thing if she wanted money or goods, or if she wanted to use Quentin's network to her own advantage, but Inorai couldn't help but worry Luviagelita was after something else, something much more insidious.

Influence.

Influence within the Democratic Faction.

Helping others without demanding immediate repayment was a surefire way of fostering goodwill, and goodwill could be used for all sorts of purposes. Purposes that Inorai was quite sure she wasn't going to like one bit.

There was every chance that Luviagelita was aiming to jump ahead in the hierarchy, and while Inorai normally didn't care much for the ambitions of her allies and underlings, that was something she could not ignore or abide by.

Her Faction was a patchwork of different alliances and pacts, held together by nothing but a common cause and charisma, and after the severe blows that had already been dealt to its cohesion, the last thing it needed was an ambitious newcomer with delusions of grandeur.

Inorai would have to keep a very close eye on Luviagelita Edelfelt from now on. After dealing with the pleasant and affable Sofia Edelfelt for so long, she'd almost come to underestimate the family, and that would have been a costly mistake indeed.

Inorai turned her head to order Haruri to make a note of the situation, but she stilled when she remembered Haruri wasn't there.

Once again, the lack of her assistant was clearly felt, and though she'd never admit it out loud, there was a tiny sliver of concern flickering to life in Inorai's chest. By now, Haruri's absence had gone past the point of strange and into outright worrisome. As Inorai's personal apprentice, she wasn't supposed to stray far from her mentor's side, nor should she fail to check in for so long.

In her absence, the work was piling up. Several important documents were already gathering dust, numerous vital messages couldn't be delivered because Inorai had no one to entrust them to, and a lot of Mystic Codes were in need of their daily tuning.

On top of that, Deimlett and Gabik wanted assistance with their protocol, Orlocke's impromptu inquisition had to be carefully managed, and Luviagelita had be stopped from splintering the Faction from within.

If Haruri didn't show up soon, Inorai would have to do all that herself, and organise a search for that blasted girl on top of that.

When it rains, it pours.


Travelling by Bifrost truly was extremely convenient. The travel time was negligible, the comfort was excellent, and the cost, both in money and the environment, was zero. Not essentially zero, but absolutely zero.

Travelling from London to Fuyuki and back was a matter of a single thought now, and that meant that studying at a university on the other side of the world had become no more difficult or inconvenient than studying at the university down the street.

Case in point, after Shirou had teleported Rin, Ophelia, and himself back to the Emiya-estate, he soon realised that he'd forgotten the book he'd been reading in his spare time, a book on the legends and myths of Ancient Europe. One of the ways in which he prepared himself for the upcoming Grail War.

As the girls were all occupied by their own matters, Ophelia included, Shirou had no qualms about nipping back to the Clocktower in order to retrieve said book. Something that would have been utterly unthinkable mere weeks ago, but was now almost insultingly easy.

With a flash of rainbow-coloured light, Shirou was back in his personal chambers at the headquarters of the Magus Association, and he looked around for the book-

"Shirou! You're back!"

"YAARGH?!"

His heart nearly stopped, his breath hitched in his throat, and it was all he could do not to immediately vaporise the general direction the strangely peppy voice had come from.

"Who are-?!" He began to demand as he turned around, Mjolnir at the ready, before he froze in place.

"Hey hey!"

He knew that woman!

"You?!"

"Me!" The figure confirmed in a pleasant, lilting voice, before they gave him a very familiar beaming smile. "I missed you, Shirou."

It was Arcueid!

For a very long moment, Shirou couldn't believe what his eyes were telling him. Arcueid Brunestud couldn't possibly be here in the Clocktower! This… This had to be a dream, or a delusion!

No amount of denial changed what he saw in front of him however, and when several painstaking seconds went by without him waking up or snapping out of it, Shirou slowly began to entertain the possibility that she might actually be here.

"Arcueid." He ground out, eliciting a happy nod from her. "You… You are actually here?"

"Sure am."

"How?" He spluttered, keenly aware that all his Bounded Fields were still in place and that the Clocktower was supposed to have its own defences against inhuman beings. "How did you get into my room?"

"…Through the door. How else?" She gave him an odd glance, as if he were the one not making sense, and Shirou couldn't for the life of him formulate a response to that, his mind seemingly stuck on a hamster wheel.

"What are you doing here?" He eventually settled on, hoping that he would receive more of an answer this time.

"I'm here to speak with you. Grandpa said you wanted to talk." She replied, blinking innocently, before the corners of her mouth pulled down. "I wanted to come sooner, but I was really busy. I'm sorry."

"Speak with me?" The dots still failed to connect in his mind, until Shirou remembered his conversation with a certain meddlesome old man, now several weeks ago. "Zelretch sent you?"

"Uh huh. He said you had to tell me something really, really important, so here I am. Like I said, I wanted to come sooner, but I just didn't have the time."

And with that, Shirou finally understood what was going on.

He had promised Zelretch to tell Arcueid the truth of who and what he was, and the old man had in turn promised to send the Moon Princess to him, so they could have that fateful conversation. Shirou had in fact been expecting her for some time, and now, she had arrived at last.

Not at the Emiya-estate though, as he'd expected and where she would be welcomed, but at the Clocktower, a place where she was considered an enemy of humanity.

She didn't even seem to realise why that was a problem, only looking a bit down because she was late. Truly, her common sense was even more lacking than Shirou's own.

"Shirou? Are you alright?" Noticing that he'd remained silent for a long time, Arcueid gave him a concerned look, wilting slightly when he barely met her gaze. "Are you… Are you mad at me?"

An excellent question. She'd certainly shocked him, and shock could easily turn into anger, but she hadn't actually done anything that he should really be mad about. She'd only followed instructions, doing her best to visit him at the earliest opportunity, which he could hardly scold her for.

So no, he wasn't mad at her.

"It's fine." He assured her, nearly laughing when that made her perk right up again. "Better late than never, and thank you, for coming in the first place."

"No problem!"

"But, if I may ask, how exactly did you find me?"

"I followed your scent." Her reply made Shirou feel rather self-conscious all of a sudden, though he had to admit it was an interesting experience to be on the other side of that for once. "It was the strongest in this room, so I reasoned you had to be here, and although you weren't at first, you are now."

She asked no questions about how he could have teleported into his room, seemingly uninterested in that incredible feat, and Shirou decided an explanation could wait until later.

"Zelretch was right. I do have something important to tell you, but not just to you, but to others as well." Waver and Lorelei were his friends every bit as much as Arcueid, and they too deserved to know what he truly was, especially since his existence was causing quite a few problems for them. "I'd prefer it if I only had to explain this once. Would you mind if I waited with my tale until they are here too?"

"Not at all." Fortunately, Arcueid proved very understanding, though he frankly hadn't expected any different from her. "Let's go get them."

"…What?"

"Let's go get them." She repeated, proving he hadn't misheard. "Grandpa said something about a lord El-Melloi and the Vice Director of the Clocktower. That's who you mean, right?"

"It… It is." Privately, Shirou marvelled at how much information she'd gotten out of Zelretch, even as he tried to temper Arcueid's enthusiasm. "But we can't just drop in on them in the middle of the night!"

"Sure we can." The blonde princess was already making her way out of his chambers, not bothering to hide herself at all as she strolled down the hall, beckoning him to follow her. "This is important, right? I'm sure they won't mind."

"That's not the problem here!"

Left without a choice, he pursued her, desperately trying to get her to keep her voice down if nothing else, wondering just how she'd managed to sneak into the Clocktower in the first place if she was so hopeless at stealth.

She wouldn't be dissuaded though, marching on despite his protests, and Shirou soon understood that only physical force would be enough to restrain her.

That wasn't an option though, not in the least because she was every bit as strong as he was, and so, he was forced to follow after her, hoping that Waver and Lorelei wouldn't mind the intrusion and that the hallways would be empty.

He'd compared Arcueid to a troublesome little sister before, and every time he met her, she proved the moniker still fully applied to her.


Next chapter holds the big reveal, and then we get started on Shirou's descent into the Tomb of Albion.

Our poor redhead is barely back and already people are starting to make their move, often moving against him in some way, shape or form. He has become too big a fish, and it has become impossible to keep a low profile. Fortunately, he understands that.

That is not to say though that those others don't have problems of their own. They do, ranging from the personal problems, such as Sakura wanting to be more useful, to the big, faction-wide problems, such as Inorai facing multiple large problems at once at a time when her apprentice has 'mysteriously' disappeared.

Stanrobe Calhin, the Dead Apostle Ancestor in charge of all the spies in the Clocktower, is definitely having a bad week right now, with all his agents and informants being removed systematically, but he is not out of the game yet, nor is his master. Similarly, Doctor Heartless has more than enough backup options open to him as well.

Luvia and Rin already faced the end of their short-lived friendship. It was fun while it lasted, but it was unrealistic to assume that no one would recognise both of them, or that neither of them would ever let their last name slip. Now they are at odds, but strangely enough, they don't seem entirely comfortable with that.

Their issues in my story are much more serious than in canon, as befitting of the leaders of two families that have been feuding for centuries. I'm not saying they'll never get the rivalry they have in the actual stories, but for now, they're proper enemies.

That's all I really wanted to say right now. Thank you for reading and until next time.

Ted is off, to school.