View: https://youtu.be/YJhC70dPN2Y
[Berserker]
[Taiga]
[The man]
Thanks to @Armoury for the beta!
—
Your home… your father's home was in chaos. Men in suits that cost more than your entire kitchen were moving about, boxing up everything you owned and rather speedily moving it all to box trucks out front. It was a bewildering, confusing sight. It was something you understood but your brain didn't want to accept, like a bedroom you saw every morning after oversleeping, what was normally familiar was alien and confusing… and more than a little aggravating in your case. You understood the points both Taiga and Raiga were making, but it was also your home. It rather hurt to see it packed away like a seasonal decoration.
You were also pointedly in the way, as anytime you tried to do much of anything a rather polite, but firm 'friend' would take the box from you and urge you to step aside and let them handle things. You didn't much enjoy having the Yakuza in your home, you didn't much enjoy them
coddling you either. Perhaps that is what led you outside for something resembling peace and quiet, not that you got particularly much of that with the men also in the process of disassembling everything that was in the shed for transport. That was also what led to you bumping into your new servant once more, the woman had moved little and said less after your 'conversation' this morning, having transitioned from merely following you around to simply… staring at things. She was curre
ntly standing roughly where she had been the night before fighting the monster, her eyes looking off into the forest behind the house, a faint clump of snow in her hair.
It wasn't snowing heavily this afternoon, in fact, it had barely snowed at all. But she had been still enough to have made a collection of it regardless. If she noticed, she apparently didn't care, her eyes unblinkingly staring off into the woods. She was also still in her armor, clumps of white covering the scarred silver in places like gauze in a wound. She… wasn't really looking at anything you noticed, her eyes were wide and unfocused, not paying the slightest bit of attention to the men deliberately moving around her.
She could hardly even be described as breathing… actually come to think of it, you weren't even sure if she was doing that. The gigantic hole near her stomach may have taken a chunk of her lungs as well. Servants were definitely unique beings.
"I'm Shirou," you say quietly. "Shirou Emiya, are you… my servant?"
The woman blinks slowly, then turns her head towards you. The action lethargic and drawn out, her green eyes first land on your lips, then draw themselves up glacially to your own. "...Yes." She says, her voice quiet.
"Are you alright?" you ask.
She simply stares at you, not responding.
"Do you… need anything?"
The same story, her eyes start to slowly unfocus, looking beyond you towards the house and the world beyond.
"Is your name… Berserker?" you try again.
She turns her head forward again, gazing off into the forest. Could she even hear you? Or was she merely ignoring you… or was there something worse going on? You frankly couldn't say, you didn't much understand how servants worked, but you would expect most people with a wound like she had would be more than a little dead. Could she not heal? Did she not
want to heal? "Is… your wound okay?"
Berserker blinks, then cranes her head down to look at her stomach. She stares at it wordlessly for several seconds, then, raising her head, nods. Then, without a word she walks forward, her armored boots clanking against the ground as she wanders off around the back of the house. You started to move towards her, almost on instinct, but catch yourself as you see someone far more difficult to deal with making her way across the compound towards you. Taiga, being followed by no less than five men bedecked in fine suits. She stops just a few feet away from you, then glares behind her with her hands on her hips. The men almost immediately back up, then scamper back towards the house like chastened dogs.
Taiga then turns back towards you, then, to your surprise, reaches out to grab you by the arm. Without a word she starts walking forward again, attempting to drag you towards the back fence of the estate. You let her do so, stumbling for a second before following along. She stops just before the hole the monster made the night before, her head turning this way and that as if to ensure privacy. You didn't exactly have it, there were far too many people around now to have anything resembling privacy. But the noise at least would ensure a quiet conversation would remain relatively unheard to outside listeners.
Her hands then move to your shoulders, and you are reminded for the first time in a bit that you were actually slightly taller than Taiga now as she looks up into your eyes. "How long have you known about this magic stuff Shirou?"
Your first instinct was to lie, to do what Kiritsugu had always taught you and to keep magic secrets from those that weren't a magus already. But the cat was already out of the bag and had gone back to set it on fire. There was little point in lying about it, especially since you could see Taiga's servant watching you both. The brown-haired woman poking her head around a corner of the house to likely deliberately show you were under her watchful eye. Your servant was here as well, though in Caster's case she was currently in your shadow, in both an effort to keep an eye on you as well as get out of the way.
Perhaps she was also just shy. You didn't dare ask.
"Kiritsugu knew magic, but he only taught me a little. Did he mention it to you?"
Taiga shakes her head. "I saw… a lot of weird things in Sakura's house, and my… servant…" Taiga frowns at the phrase, apparently finding distaste in it. "She explained the gist of things to me. I still don't fully understand everything that's going on."
You tilt your head. "If it makes you feel better, I barely have any idea what is going on. Kiritsugu only taught me the basics, and I've never had any talent for it. What happened at the Matou household?"
Taiga frowns. "I was coming back from school and I saw her home was on fire, I rushed in there to find blood… and parts, I found her in the basement… some… ritual place, thing. I don't know. She was laying in the center of it all, I got trapped, when I called out for help my servant showed up, Sakura's servant came by shortly afterwards in a hurry to get us all out of there." Taiga crosses her arms, brow furrowed as she remembers. "It took us a long time to get back because my… new friend kept insisting on us hiding, something was apparently out and about. But then we came to see all of this." Taiga says, then places her hand to her head. "Big sister just wants a nap."
"Raiga's place has nice bedrooms at least, though I'm still not happy about moving to the compound."
"You
can't stay here Shirou, let me take care of you." Taiga replies.
"I can take care of myself, and have been for a while."
Taiga narrows her eyes. "You can cook, you can clean, and you can bathe yourself. But
I'm the one who was told to make sure you are safe, I promised Kiritsugu I would before he died. And besides, Raiga adores you and will take care of you. But I am still your guardian and will
not let you stay here. I know you are fond of the place Shirou, and I'm sorry, but it's not safe. There are holes in the roof, and the walls, and the fence, and in that woman who just wandered off." Taiga blinks, looking back to where Berserker was currently staring down at the snow on the ground. "Who is that anyway?"
"My other servant," you reply. "She doesn't seem to talk much, at least, not today. She was mouthy last night when we were fighting." You frown, debating bringing Rin up, but you still don't know the situation with that. You then debate bringing Illya up as well… but you know even less there. That, and you'd rather not give Taiga more of a headache at present.
You glance back towards Taiga, the woman studying Berserker. You had never seen her this serious… ever, come to think of it. Taiga always had a playful air to her, like she was never taking things entirely seriously. Sure, you had seen her angry, and a whole mix of other emotions. But Taiga almost never took things seriously. It was… different. "Thanks… Taiga."
Taiga's head snaps back to you, a cat-like grin on her face. "Yeaaaah? Finally seeing the worth of your big sister? Praise me more!"
"... No." You reply, then wander off towards the house, a fake cry of despair coming from Taiga behind you.
You had someone you wanted to talk to, and to your relief they were far from hard to find. The man in red was taller than most others in the house, and even if he wasn't, the long flowing red coat and black armor made him rather easy to spot in a crowd. He was currently stacking boxes up in the corner of the living room, organizing things and giving instructions to the goons around him. At your approach he paused, looking back towards you with a smile on his face. It was a genuine, friendly thing, at least it appeared to be. "You alright?" the servant asks. His voice deep, but not harsh.
You nod. "I'm fine, you… protected Sakura?"
"I did, call me Archer." The man, Archer, replies, then extends his hand towards you.
You take it a moment later, the man had a firm grip, and you knew enough of Servants at this point to know he could likely crush your hand like an overripe grape. But it was… gentle, yet paradoxically strong.
He withdraws it a moment later, "it's a duty of a servant to guard the Master."
"I've noticed," you reply. Much to your chagrin for that matter, you still didn't much enjoy the thought of Medea taking blows for you. She was strong, you knew that, but whenever you saw her you couldn't help but remember that desperate woman you found in the park near death. The fact that she was also quite literally acting as your shadow at the moment also made her rather prominent in your mind. But you push it away, focusing on Archer. "Is she… alright? Sakura? She wasn't hurt when you found her?"
The man looks from you towards Sakura, the girl currently sitting in the corner of the room. She had all of your kitchen utensils and was currently getting them sorted. "She's fine, though she'd appreciate your company."
You blink, "I'm here if she needs me, but I also figured she needs space. I know things… have been more than a little confusing for her lately."
"All the more reason for someone she knows to comfort her and give her something to find support in. Go to her." Archer says.
The man was presuming a lot, was that the servant connection? Likely, but also… you couldn't say it was wrong. Why had you not comforted Sakura more? Confusion? Or were you too wrapped up in your own thoughts to include her. That was… idiotic, there was nothing going on in your life that Sakura, or anyone else for that matter, did not outrank when they were hurting. "Fine." You reply, then turn on the spot and make your way over to her.
[Sakura]
She didn't notice you until you were sitting in front of her, her hands over hovering the silver fork set… someone had at some point given to you. She smiled as her eyes found your own. "Shirou?"
"Are you… alright? Sakura?"
Sakura's smile cracked a bit, but she forced it to stay in place as she nodded her head. "I'm fine."
You know that's a lie, and so does she. On instinct you leaned forward, wrapping your arms around Sakura's shoulders as you drew her into a hug. Sakura goes taut immediately, a squeak escaping her mouth as she doesn't quite know what to do. "I'm sorry I wasn't there Sakura."
You feel her hands gingerly wrap around your back, and Sakura lets out a slow breath into your shoulder. You feel moisture a moment later. "It's fine Shirou, I'm fine."
You didn't know how long you hugged her, you let her end it when she felt it was time. Pulling back, Sakura was smiling again, though now there were streaks of moisture on her face.
"Are you comfortable coming to the Fujimura compound?" you ask, "I'm another Master after all."
"Taiga is as well," Sakura points out.
"I'm trying not to focus on that point too hard, thinking about Taiga being involved with magic causes my brain to hurt."
Sakura giggles, a hand moving to her mouth to cover it as she does so. The sound is lovely compared to how she has normally been, and she smiles a touch wider once she pulls her hand away. "I don't mind at all Shirou, though I don't know what we'll do about school."
"School is barely on my mind at the moment," you reply honestly. "But I didn't plan on stopping attendance, I doubt Taiga would be willing to give us a pass on that either."
"She might defeat the other Master's by herself if they get in the way of her homeroom," Sakura whispers conspiratorially. Before giggling again.
"I could see it, bloody bokken in hand, standing tall." You reply.
Sakura smiles, then glances down to my yet still bloody shirt. "I'm happy you are alright as well Shirou. I was… scared."
"I had a busy evening, but hopefully now things can stabilize a fair bit."
"Hopefully," Sakura agrees. "Can you hand me that box of plates behind you?"
You help Sakura the rest of the afternoon, up until you are… 'guided' to a black car to be driven off to the compound.
—
When you were ten years old you had thought the Fujimura family compound was a castle like those of Samurai of old. The compound was surrounded by tall stone walls that hid from the outside world a large courtyard of several acres. Within it wasn't… much, admittedly, several gardens and outlier buildings, but sitting past the trees was the large, four story monstrosity sitting imperiously overlooking it all. White stone construction, golden decorated, a classical tiled roof. It looked hilariously out of place when compared to all the modern office buildings that surrounded it. Not only was the Fujimura compound the
largest plot of land in Downtown Fuyuki, it was also by far one of the oldest in general.
Originally the feudal home… apparently, of the rulers of the town, it had passed down the family for generations until now it was under control of Raiga. Of course, the ancient wooden construction that it would have been made of was long gone, but then, it, like most buildings of that sort, burned away during the Fuyuki fire. Since then it had been rebuilt into the gleaming white edifice you now saw, and… frankly it was still just as big and gaudy as you recalled it being as a child.
You tried to avoid going to this place, not that you disliked Raiga's company, the man was genuinely a friend of yours, the issue was that with Raiga there was
always some form of catch. But with a man in his line of work, you suppose that was only to be expected. At the very least the place was guarded, there were more men in suits than you could count, and you quickly found yourself escorted through the building towards your room. Raiga seemed rather eager to split you all off as he discussed something with Taiga, Sakura being guided to her own place to stay while your other servant, Berserker, just kind of stared after you from the lobby while you were dragged to your room.
Well, Raiga called it a room with a jovial laugh. It was a suite, the 'bedroom' was larger than an entire half of your house, with fine red carpet, an overly plush looking bed, and an attached bathroom. Several suits were already hanging up in an conspicuously open closet, each looking suspiciously like they would fit you perfectly. You let out a sigh, you'll need to have a talk with Raiga later, but for now, you have something else on your mind. "Caster?"
Your shadow ripples like a living thing, then you watch as the woman impossibly rises out of it. "Yes?"
"You don't need to hide in my shadow, I trust these people."
"I do not," Caster replies. "And regardless, this conserves my magical energy." Then to your surprise Caster leans forward. "Are you alright, my Master?"
… People keep asking you that. "I'm fine." You reply with what you hope is an assuaging smile.
Caster doesn't respond to that, instead her eyes flit around the room before she nods to herself. "I shall begin fortifying this… compound, as you will likely not listen to my request that we leave."
"For what it's worth I didn't want to leave my home, but they left me little choice."
Caster's eyes flit to you, anger on her face. "If you
recall master, I did not wish to stay there either. Now we are residing with two other masters who will be your enemy before this war is over."
"They are people I've known most of my life, I trust them."
"Trust is a tool that lasts as long as it takes to
abuse it, Master." Caster replies.
"Do you trust me, Caster?" you ask, frowning.
Caster stares at you for a moment, then walks past you further into the room. "You stated the spells you learned were from your Master's old books, yet I found nothing as such within the home, and you stated he did not teach you more than the basics. I have seen your magecraft," Caster looks back at you. "It is pathetic, and yet you know at least one spell that is no longer practiced. You have lied to me, why
would I trust you? I trust you to be my Master, nothing more. Which is as it should be."
"I trust
you." You reply. Fighting down the grimace, Circe made you promise not to talk about it, and you still had the mark on your tongue that tingles every time you even started to think about speaking her name.
"Foolish, for you do not even know me," Caster says. Her eyes narrowed.
—
[] [I know you, Medea]
[] [I want to, Caster]
[] [Tell her about Circe]
[] [Drop the subject]
