Fate/Reach Out (F/SN + SMT:P4 Crossover)
- Thread starter KishouTheBadger
- Start date
That reaction is gonna be funny as hell. And really it's just deserts for Shinji who never learns anything from his mistakes. How he was ever considered for a route during Fate Stay Night, I can't explain. Hell if you think about he's the perfect opposite to the Fool protagonists. They learn and grow from their mistakes and friendships, while he only ever used people and blamed them for his mistakes.
If anything Caren is the best for the Hanged Man Arcana compared to her father Kirei. Her abilities rely on her destroying her own body to locate demons and generally anything evil after all, so she's extremely self-sacrificial.
FoxOnPie
Into the Dojyaaniverse
- Location
- Napkin store
True, but the Hanged Man also represents paradoxes, which is one of Kirei's big things.
Here's a thought! Hanged Man is both of them!
The problem is that after the last chapter, I don't know how Shirou would go back to him after everything he said about his father. And I have no clue how Caren would just end up in Inaba without a very good reason.
As far as the outside world goes, Inaba is plagued by a few murders and a kidnapping. Which is hardly unusual in RL. I don't know why the Church would think that place is infested with demons or vampires and send someone to take care of it.
As far as the outside world goes, Inaba is plagued by a few murders and a kidnapping. Which is hardly unusual in RL. I don't know why the Church would think that place is infested with demons or vampires and send someone to take care of it.
- Location
- Zurvan, the Sea of Dreams
Maybe if Shirou calls Kirei and tells him about the strange happenings in Inaba? Shirou may be stubborn, but he's not stupid, and lives are literally at stake. He may dislike Kirei, but Kirei is the only skilled magus Shirou knows, and I'm assuming Kiritsugu told Shirou enough about the Holy Church for him to know that they're probably the better group to contact in a situation like this than the Mage's Association. There aren't very many other places for Shirou to turn to for help, and all it would take is one phone call to set in motion a series of events that could bring Caren to Inaba as the Church's representative.
It wasn't so much a "route", as it was an option to team up with him instead of Tohsaka. The idea was that during that variant of the plot, you'd get to see Shinji's better qualities, but it was cut (much like the planned Ilya, Caster, and Rider routes).
A high Luck stat is enough of a reason to explain Taiga's resistance to hypnotism, at least according to Persona 4's game mechanics:
Persona 4: Official Strategy Guide said:
BTW, that's some critical hits delivery machine machine you've got in there, especially if Taiga's Persona comes with above-average-critical-rate physical attacks (ex. Power Slash, Mighty Swing, Cruel Attack, etc.) and/or skills like Rebellion/Revolution and hopefully someday a crowd-pleaser called Power Charge.
Alternatively, those physical skills "with a chance" of inflicting a status ailment (ex. Arm Chopper for rage) may also benefit of a high Luck/high Strength Persona.
I've got a personal favorite for the Hanged Man Social Link too, but it comes from the other side of the crossover:
Persona 3's main character, a.k.a. the Great Seal
I'm not really sure if Shirou would be willing to take that chance. If the Burial Agency is anything like I'm picturing it and they end up arriving to the conclusion that the Midnight Channel is heretical enough to deal with, they're likely to consider Persona Users like the Investigation Team as part of the problem and mark them for extermination.
Still a better option than the Mage's Association. Magi are likely to come in, "take samples" and ship them for experimentation.
Sometimes I wish Type-Moon would rerelease F/SN with all routes they never got around implementing. It seems like Type-Moon forgot how to develop visual novels. I mean Nasu wrote Mahoyo in the '96 and the trial version was released 15 years later. To say nothing of Tsukihime remake and.. and I'm entering into rant-mode. I better change the subject now.
On other matters, thinking about how Shirou could deal with the reveal of the supernatural to Taiga, I found myself wondering if something like the following could end up happening if he decides to tell her about the Nasuverse but consciously avoids mentioning anything about Personas:
Shirou: *annoyed* For the final time, Fuji-nee. I'm a magic user but I do not know any spells to "charm girls" or how to make a love potion or anything like you're suggesting. Really. Why do you keep asking that?
Taiga: Just... checking. It would have explained a few things.
Shirou: What things?
Taiga: Nothing! All this talking made me hungry. How long until dinner is ready?
Shirou: *shakes his head* We should wait for Dojima-san and Nanako-chan to wake up first. There is some dry mochi in the kitchen for snacks, though.
Taiga: Agemochi? I knew there was a reason why I missed you.
Shirou: *raises an eyebrow* Because I cook for you?
Taiga: *nods sagely* Because you cook for me.
Shirou: *sighs* I missed you too, Fuji-nee.
Taiga: ...really?
Shirou: *smiles* How could anyone not to? *more seriously* I'll check on Dojima-san and Nanako-chan just in case. Could you call Sakura? That priest probably hypnotized her and left her at her home, but I want to make sure.
Taiga: *looks at Shirou oddly, but begins to smile* Will do. Anything else?
Shirou: Can you stay over tonight?
Taiga: *freezes in place* W-What?
Shirou: I want to ask you a few things about your side of things this morning and explain you few others before I leave tomorrow. It could take a while.
Taiga: ...okay. But aren't you getting kinda bossy lately? *crosses arms* I may be a muggle, but I'm still your older sister, you know.
Shirou: I don't know what a "muggle" is, but er... *rubs the back of his head with one hand* Can't I be the demanding little brother from time to time?
Taiga: *keeps silent for a short while, arms still crossed* ... I shall allow it.
Shirou: Thanks, Fuji-nee. I better get to it, then. *turns to look for the Dojimas*
Taiga: *says something inaudible*
Thou art thou, and thou art I. Thou hast established...
Shirou: *turns around, surprised, and stares at Taiga*
Taiga: What? D-Did you h--? What?
Shirou: *sighs loudly*
Taiga: Just... checking. It would have explained a few things.
Shirou: What things?
Taiga: Nothing! All this talking made me hungry. How long until dinner is ready?
Shirou: *shakes his head* We should wait for Dojima-san and Nanako-chan to wake up first. There is some dry mochi in the kitchen for snacks, though.
Taiga: Agemochi? I knew there was a reason why I missed you.
Shirou: *raises an eyebrow* Because I cook for you?
Taiga: *nods sagely* Because you cook for me.
Shirou: *sighs* I missed you too, Fuji-nee.
Taiga: ...really?
Shirou: *smiles* How could anyone not to? *more seriously* I'll check on Dojima-san and Nanako-chan just in case. Could you call Sakura? That priest probably hypnotized her and left her at her home, but I want to make sure.
Taiga: *looks at Shirou oddly, but begins to smile* Will do. Anything else?
Shirou: Can you stay over tonight?
Taiga: *freezes in place* W-What?
Shirou: I want to ask you a few things about your side of things this morning and explain you few others before I leave tomorrow. It could take a while.
Taiga: ...okay. But aren't you getting kinda bossy lately? *crosses arms* I may be a muggle, but I'm still your older sister, you know.
Shirou: I don't know what a "muggle" is, but er... *rubs the back of his head with one hand* Can't I be the demanding little brother from time to time?
Taiga: *keeps silent for a short while, arms still crossed* ... I shall allow it.
Shirou: Thanks, Fuji-nee. I better get to it, then. *turns to look for the Dojimas*
Taiga: *says something inaudible*
Thou art thou, and thou art I. Thou hast established...
Shirou: *turns around, surprised, and stares at Taiga*
Taiga: What? D-Did you h--? What?
Shirou: *sighs loudly*
Last edited:
No one but Shirou hears the establishment of an Arcana.
zaiaku
The Ignorant Guru
- Location
- Alamo, Texas
No, what happened was that Taiga said something under her voice at the same time shirou got the "You made an S Link" message, so when he turned around to look at her in surprise when he made the S. Link; Taiga thought Shirou heard her say whatever she muttered that may have been embarrassing.
Chapter 26: Never the Same
KishouTheBadger
Psychic Mech Pilot
Chapter 26: Never the Same
<><><>
It was close to dark when Ryotaro Dojima came to, that much he knew. He quickly recognized his surroundings as the guest room he was occupying at Shirou's house (honestly, the place was so big it could house all five of them with rooms to spare). He tried thinking back over the day's events: he woke up sore from last night, had breakfast, and got into an argument with Taiga. Then they spent the afternoon shopping, walked to the park… and from there it was a blank.
He quickly left and checked Nanako's room next door. To his relief, she was sleeping soundly, so at least nothing bad happened since passing out. He slid the door closed as quietly as possible before leaving to find Shirou and the girls. Hopefully they might shed some light on what happened earlier.
He didn't get far before hearing a crash, followed by yelling. The cop's hand quickly reached for his revolver tucked into the holster mounted on his waist and pulled it out, allowing the barrel to point loosely at the floor as he continued moving forward. He sneaked through the hallway, treading lightly as to not advertise his presence. If this was some mugging or another crime being involved, then the poor idiot had picked a bad day and place to do it.
I'm on vacation, damn it, he thought bitterly. And the last thing I need tonight is for some dumbass to ruin it!
Dojima came around the corner in time to see Taiga pulling a taller man he had never seen before down to her eye level. After another tense moment the man dusted his robes before commenting on tea and leaving through the front door. Shortly after that, she walked over to Shirou and hugged him and soothed his tears. Now the detective felt like he was eavesdropping on something he shouldn't.
Still, at least his worry about some form of disaster was unfounded. For as sporadic and impulsive as the woman was, she had a firm head on her shoulders whenever family was involved. What he saw just now might have been a rare instance of Taiga stepping up as a legal guardian.
With a smile, Dojima holstered his gun and quietly watched as the two walked off. "I accept your apology, Taiga." He would, of course, say that to her at a later time.
For now, he allowed himself to step out the front door and take a smoke break. As relaxing as the trip had been so far from work, little things kept popping up and stressed him out to exhaustion. He knew there were probably more instances than the whole dinner episode last night but for the life of him he couldn't remember what.
Where did the time go, he wondered? Already it was close to sunset, and he wasn't sure if anyone had dinner yet. Still, the view from atop the hill was quite something, seeing all the streetlights starting to glow with yellow-white. His gaze followed the street down to all the eastern-styled buildings even as he leaned against the Emiya house gate and fetched his lighter.
Fuyuki City was something else, and he noticed more than one car parked along the street. Not that any of them were that car.
Ryotaro's thoughts drifted as he snapped the lighter to his cigarette. Things were simpler when Chisato was still alive. He only had a few things to worry about; work and making coffee, both duties he excelled at. He loved his daughter very much but felt that unless he avenged her mother, he didn't deserve to call himself her father.
At least Nanako was happy now. He didn't want to think about how heartbroken his daughter would have been had he ended up breaking another promise.
Dojima exhaled a puff of smoke building in his mouth, but it could have easily passed as a sigh. "Ally of Justice," he recalled. "If only I had a semblance of your optimism, Shirou."
"Dojima-san?"
The detective turned to see a familiar lavender-haired girl approach him from the street below. Somehow between his wandering thoughts and the dimming sky, he failed to notice her arrival. "Oh, Sakura. You went shopping again at this hour? I thought we had dinner already planned."
Sakura had in each arm several bags of groceries, with tail ends of veggies and fruits most evident. If the weight of them all was any bother, she didn't let it show. Rather, she tilted her head and frowned at him. "You don't remember?"
Ryotaro casually dropped the cigarette to the ground and stomped the embers out. "Honestly my mind's a blank after that trip to the shopping mall. But I do remember buying a whole lot of food for some sort of big dinner. Anything more seems like an excessive waste."
"You're right," Sakura smiled. "But this is actually the food we bought earlier today."
"Come again?"
"You were all tired after the shopping trip, so we rode back here by bus," the Matou girl explained. "But in the haste to get home, Senpai left the groceries at the bus stop so I left to fetch them."
"Ah." It made sense, though Dojima couldn't help but to feel there was something missing from the whole picture. "Are your parents all right with you visiting this late?"
The girl's mouth twitched as if fighting a frown before settling to a sad smile. "Well, it's just my brother and grandfather. As long as I head back after dinner, they won't mind me staying over."
It was obviously a sensitive topic, as Sakura didn't mention her parents at all. In fact, she kept most of her personal life to herself despite Shirou or Nanako sounding so interested. She didn't like talking about school or her home or what she had been doing over the month since Shirou left. Her mannerisms had been so polite that it was easy to overlook her dodging questions or explaining the bare minimum.
As much as he was curious as what Sakura was hiding, this was neither the time nor place for that. She was Shirou's close friend, and for now that was fine for the detective.
"I see," he said. "Well, we really appreciate your company. Thank you, Sakura."
Sakura smiled in a way befitting a kind housewife. "You're welcome, Dojima-san. Now, let's go get dinner ready before Fujimura-sensei throws a fit."
<><><>
"Feeling better?"
"Y-yeah," Shirou sniffed under his guardian's hands. He rubbed his face before she could see his eyes, and she smiled at the child-like action. "I'm sorry, it's just-"
"I know," she said. "That priest guy was an ass and if we see him again it would be too soon."
Taiga hated that man Kirei Kotomine, everything about him screamed "dickhead" from his affable façade to his brutal verbal punches. While she still felt dizzy from that vivid dojo dream, she knew that the priest found her in the forest and said something that made her feel sleepy. Next thing she knew she was in Shirou's house and hearing about Kiritsugu's secret agent lifestyle.
If Kiritsugu were alive, she'd punch his lights out (may he rest in peace), so she settled with the alternative on the mean priest.
"But enough about that," she said as she led him further down the hallway. "You really should get to bed."
"But what about dinner?"
"After the long day we had, I think we can all skip one meal and just settle for a big farewell breakfast tomorrow."
Normally Taiga wasn't one to skip any kind of meal (especially if Shirou or Sakura were cooking it) but she had too much on her mind to just suddenly start stuffing herself. As for Shirou, it wasn't a satisfactory answer to him, but he didn't have time to give a rebuttal. Or rather, he stopped and stared at a familiar spot.
Taiga felt her arm jerk on dead weight, and turned to him with slight annoyance. "The answer is no, Shirou. You need to rest."
"It's not about dinner," he shook his head, still staring ahead. "It's just… this is where Dad-"
His voice fell silent at the memory, but she understood. She urged him forward, to sit along the open space engawa that split the traditional hallway from the inner park of the household. It was similar to the night that Shirou remembered. The beautiful garden, the slight chill of the wind, all that was missing was the light of the moon, having just gone through its new phase.
"So how did Kiritsugu die?"
His reverie gave way to worry and shock, turning to the older woman kneeling similarly next to him. She didn't stare at him accusingly or cross-examine him, but expressed genuine curiosity regarding the late Kiritsugu Emiya. All things considered, she deserved to know.
Silence dragged on between them, before he smiled and recounted the tale. "It was five years ago during the winter. Dad didn't move around much back then, so he would just laze around most days. Maybe he knew he was dying, because that night he just blurted out, 'When I was a child, I wanted to be a superhero.' I asked him what he meant, and if he had given up. It got me angry just thinking about it back then.
"He said that he did give up. 'Being a hero is a time-limited thing, and it becomes hard to call yourself one when you grow up.' I believed that, if only because he said so."
Taiga shook her head, and made a knowing laugh as if to say "Only you, Shirou."
"I decided then and there that I would take his place. I was younger than he was, so it was only right. I wanted nothing more than to make it come true. He laughed. He sounded content and relaxed, with a smile on his face. His last words were, 'Yeah. I'm relieved.'
"It didn't even occur to me that he died right then, smiling. Maybe I just thought he would wake up in the morning, or maybe I was so used to death since the Fire. I wasn't sad or anything but, I still cried without realizing it, like deep down I knew he was gone but just ignored it."
There was nothing else to say after that; Taiga's father arranged the funeral after all, and they were there during the small, private service. Comforting silence passed between them, staring at the sky slowly shedding its autumn glow.
"You really are an idiot," she smiled sadly, still staring ahead. "Couldn't you at least ask for help?"
"Dad was the only one who taught me magecraft," he admitted. "And even then he stressed that I couldn't tell anyone else."
"Mage-what?" Taiga blurted incredulously, before shaking her head. "Nevermind. Not important. What is important is why you couldn't tell anyone, let alone me. Am I really-"
"You're not a liability, Fuji-nee," Shirou cut-in. He knew how depressed his guardian was earlier today and didn't want her to feel even more insecure because of a kept secret. "Only a magus could properly train another magus, and the less… non-magi people know about us, the better."
"Then he too was an idiot," said Taiga. "He just ups and dies the moment you say you'll pick up where he left off, and he doesn't even so much as tell you of someone else to teach you? No notes or pointers or anything?"
"I know a few things, like how to forge a circuit. I'm good enough at it that my life isn't in danger anymore."
Whatever good humor and teasing Taiga had, it died at the end of his sentence. Her head turned to his deliberately slow, and he watched as her facial expression morphed to one of fury. Usually reserved to whoever called her by that nickname. "What."
It felt as if the whole hallway shook from her quiet fury. Shirou fought the urge to gulp before quickly placating her. "Not anymore! I've gotten used to the pain, so the worst I get… off is-" his voice and resolve softened as he saw her face scrunch further. "-a short… concussion?"
The seconds that followed might as well be called "eternity" with how threateningly close the boiling point was. "So what exactly do you do?"
"Fuji-"
"Tell me." The tone was steady and calm, but held dominance like an animal holding down its prey.
"W-well, I focus my magic energy to take the form of a burning rod and direct it into my spine-"
"Your spine," she repeated skeptically, immediately cutting him off. Already uneasy at this angry, serious front of his guardian, Shirou nodded.
"You turn magic into a burning rod and shove it into your spine." A nod.
"Where the base of your central nervous system is." Another nod.
"Which covers your entire body and even connects to your brain." …the fourth nod was hesitant, as if suddenly realizing the suicidal lengths of such training for the first time. He swore he could feel his own spirit dwindle four times over.
"And Emiya-san taught you how to do this?" she asked in a low, predatory voice. It was the first time he heard her refer to Kiritsugu by his family name.
"S-sorta," he admitted. "He taught me how to feel out for a Magic Circuit in my body and I went from there."
It shouldn't be possible, but Taiga's glare managed to narrow even further down, and made Shirou feel that much smaller. "By 'went from there'… you mean on your own?"
"Yes."
"Without him being completely sure that smoldering your nervous system was the right way, let alone watched you as you did it safely?"
"…yes?"
A single twitch of her eyebrow was made in response, and slowly turned her gaze back to the open garden in front of them. He quickly tried to reason with her, making quick excuses. "But it's okay now! I no longer pass out all the time, and if I can't handle the risk of magecraft, I can't properly call myself a hero, right? I know what I'm doing, Fuj-!"
"Hey!" It wasn't so much as Pixie's sudden interruption that interrupted her tenant but how furious she sounded when she did. "My status of existence might be in question, but I'm still part of a race that is commonly linked to magic and fantasy. No Shirou, you don't know what you're doing."
Shirou frowned. After Amagi had been rescued, Shirou took a more curious approach at his connection with his Personas. He had learned from trial and error (as well as getting confirmation from his Personas) that they could hear what he said and heard, and feel emotions towards those of his Social Links. A misconception to this was they couldn't read his mind, which was a good thing as it meant he still had a semblance of privacy, and vice versa.
Usually their input was minimal, mostly towards strengthening bonds with others. But he would still get comments such as these, with no safe way to talk back. So he turned away and whispered under his breath. "Look, I'd be the first to admit that I'm still a third-rate magus, but surely if I keep working hard I can-"
"Shut up and Listen!" Startled by her Taiga-like tenacity, Shirou did as the fey Persona ordered. "Remember that sheath I told you about when you were fighting your girlfriend's Shadow? ("She's not my girlfriend," Shirou quickly chided.) I still don't know why you of all people have it, but in a nutshell it's a super healing artifact that can keep the bearer immortal if needed. Even now it's emitting energy to slowly heal the wounds you got from that fight, but you can't tell that, can't you? That's because instead of turning on your switch, you're pretty much sticking your fingers directly into a power outlet and drawing out prana that way. It goes without saying that you keep getting shocked to death this way too, or at least should have.
"The only reason you're even alive is because Av-er, the sheath, is fixing the nerves you keep burning off. That includes breaking down the circuits you keep stubbornly shoving inside each time. I never said anything before because I didn't know that you kept doing… this to yourself. But now I realize it's not just some one-time mistake but the very definition of insanity. Your entire body is screaming at you, and its saying 'Stop killing yourself you blooming git!'"
Shirou had the decency to look embarrassed. He knew that Pixie, much like Yosuke, meant well behind the teasing and criticism. He couldn't refute that she had a point and he took his magecraft training too much at face value (especially when she was the closest he could get to a well-meaning fey on the issue). But still- "I know my body better than anyone, and I don't think it hates me that much."
"Thou art thy not, for thy art an idiot."
…Et tu, Izanagi?
"I'm gonna kill him."
His mental arguments forgotten, Shirou turned to see his guardian trembling with a calm façade. "Fuji-nee?"
"I'm gonna kill him," she growled again. "I'm gonna kill that bastard, and shove Tora-shinai right up his ass when I do! I don't care if he's already dead!"
She was suddenly standing straight, screaming toward the heavens. "Do you hear me, you absentminded jackass?! I'm gonna fucking kill you!"
<><><>
By the time Dojima and Sakura returned to the house, they heard Taiga's primal yell and mentally prepared for the worst. "Oh no," they chorused.
It wasn't long before they saw an angry yet comical teacher, flailing her arms, eyes glazed over to a pure white, and roaring much like a certain big cat. Surprisingly enough, she was held back by Shirou, arms locked under and over her shoulders, as the red-haired teen did everything in his power to keep her from storming out.
"Let me go damn it! I'm gonna kill that bastard so hard he'll feel it in whatever afterlife he's in!"
"Fuji-nee, please! I can explain-!"
"You've already explained plenty! You were taken advantage by a guy who clearly had a problem with authority enough to just not care how you lived your life after he was gone! Hell, even Dojima here knows how to properly raise a kid, and he doesn't just randomly go on-!"
Taiga had pointed to Dojima midway during her rant, but upon double-taking that he was in the room, her erratic behavior died in place of meek embarrassment. Both she and Shirou righted themselves from their grapple and snapped their arms to their sides as if it didn't happen at all. "A-ah! Dojima-san! And Sakura-chan! W-what a pleasant surprise!"
Seconds passed, but blank stares didn't look fooled or deterred after what just happened. Shirou grimaced in defeat. "You heard all that?"
Lacking tact, Dojima decided to just cut to the heart of the matter on his own hypothesis. "Were you really planning on killing that priest from earlier?"
Shirou and Taiga stiffened, as if surprised he would come to that conclusion. In the detective's peripheral vision, he also saw Sakura shift uncomfortably. "…you saw that too?" Shirou said carefully.
"I didn't hear much; just some yelling and Taiga here making a threat to kill him with high heels." In spite of herself, Taiga laughed nervously. "What was that all about, anyway?"
Taiga turned her gaze to a family portrait to the side. "Let's just say he didn't have any kind words for the late Kiritsugu Emiya."
Dojima could think of nothing to say about that. He would assume that this Kiritsugu guy was all right in his book, saving a young boy and adopting him as his own. The fact that said boy happened to be his nephew Yu Narukami was beside the point. But he couldn't fight this nagging doubt that there was more to Shirou, let alone Fuyuki City, than just a tragedy or two.
"Uhhh."
The soft moan and sudden appearance of Nanako was enough to disarm anyone of the current topic. Indeed, the sight of her rubbing her eye upon the side of her hand both enamored them of cuteness and shamed them of possibly awaking the young girl.
Nanako took one look at everyone in the room, frowning. "Are you fighting again?"
Taiga smiled. "No Nanako-chan. We're not fighting."
"We were just," Shirou added, before exchanging looks with his guardian. "Catching up."
Nanako then smiled in relief, and opened her mouth to say something. Whatever she meant to say was drowned out and forgotten by the low, drumming growl of several stomachs, including hers.
"I guess we could all use that Shirou-class dinner about now," Dojima joked with a smile. "Good thing Sakura brought the groceries." Sakura hefted an arm full of bags for emphasis, also flashing a smile.
"Thanks Sakura," her upperclassmen praised as he took one of the bags off her hands. He didn't notice the bashful red coloring on her face.
"Where did you get these anyway?"
"As I told Dojima-san just before, Senpai forgot them at the bus stop, but everyone was too tired to realize it beforehand. I simply went back to fetch them while you all took a nap."
"Is that what really happened?"
Sakura blinked. Taiga's question was innocent enough, but her gaze was unreadable and daunting. It had to be just one of her moods, as no one in the room remembered what happened earlier today. "Of course, Sensei."
Taiga's expression didn't change right away, still staring at her student for several seconds more. Shirou was worried that she might say something to counter the story Sakura told them (as he was very willing to accept the gift horse for what it was).
Then, the young woman shrugged and dropped the issue. "Just checking." She turned to head out of the dining room/kitchen. "Follow me, Nanako-chan. We have to fetch some new seating pillows."
"Okay, Tiger-nee!"
Taiga froze. And as soon as she did, so did Time itself. There was dead silence. Everyone was afraid to move, but none more so than Nanako. The pressure in the room grew as Shirou, Sakura, and Ryotaro slowly turned towards Taiga, almost worried of what reaction will occur.
Shirou quickly stepped forward, hoping to whisk his sister away from harm. "N-now Nanako, why don't you come help me in the-"
"Nanako-chan. Say my name again. Without the honorific."
Taiga's tone was even and calm, but it was a calm façade before the storm. It was also one that couldn't be ignored for any reason, so Nanako followed through with an innocent, cute whisper.
"T-…tiger?"
The namesake's shoulders hunched. Shirou felt goosebumps and static run through his body, as if the natural order of the world bent to Taiga's whim. But it was clear now that whatever was happening, Nanako was going to face it full force. "That… is…"
Shirou couldn't allow that. It wasn't her fault that she didn't know about the trigger word, and he couldn't let his younger sister take the wrath of his guardian. With all the energy he could muster and forgetting all about dinner, he sprinted in the space between the two, hoping to take whatever punishment in her place. Even as his guardian turned and lunged forward with arms outstretched, he didn't run or guard and took it full force.
So, even as Nanako was lifted up from the ground, held by her under arms, he was ready to intervene. To do so, he grabbed the closest thing he could find (Taiga's sheet metal poster, left on the floor since last night). He could only imagine the sheer rage she was hiding from under her brows, slowly raising up to see her face to face. He jumped with his arms pulled back overhead, but could only watch as she uttered the vengeful words of-
"SO ADORABLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLE!"
Time had one question on its mind, and that was a big fat "WHAT".
Still, Time resumed on as the danger was averted, and order was restored. Only a few individuals in the Emiya household failed to catch the memo, and stared at the teacher's smiling face with confusion. Her smiling, sparkling face, radiant with pure joy.
Of course, that's not to say that her two words had a strong effect as well. So caught off guard, Shirou could do nothing but drop down like a rock, sliding on his face across the floor mats, and crash loudly into a wall at the other side of the room. No one else present noticed his flying face-fault.
Nanako broke out of her stupor first, smiling at the unexpected praise. "Really?"
"Of course, my little apple girl! I never thought I'd hear anyone say my name with such affection before, but YOU! Just hearing you say my name is like a little kitten's cry! Oh, this isn't a dream, is it? Prove me wrong, Nanako-chan! Say it again!"
Nanako broke into a big grin, and complied. "Tiger!"
Taiga squeed. Never before had a sentence with those two words existed, but to the shock of everyone else in the room, it actually happened. "Say it again!"
"Tiger!"
Taiga squeed again, and it still didn't convince the others that it wasn't a dream. Maybe it was being completely overwhelmed by this development, or he happened to be largely relieved that the worst case scenario didn't happen, but from his corner of the room, Shirou Emiya eventually fainted.
As both Taiga and Nanako resumed playing and laughing, almost forgetting about dinner entirely, Dojima turned to the purple haired girl and pointed. "Has… that ever happened before?"
Sakura shook her head, still staring.
<><><>
Evening, Emiya Shed
The rest of the night had ended without incident. Shirou prepared a large, traditional Japanese-course meal of assorted rice, seafood, and dishes (all simmered, grilled, and steamed). Everyone had their fill, made light conversation of the day's events but generally ignored what happened after shopping. As far as Shirou was concerned, no one had seen or done anything remotely dangerous, and he trusted his guardian to keep the Kotomine episode to herself.
Now that it was late, Shirou snuck out of the house for the annex to try and gauge his Persona skills and magecraft. He didn't regret the choice of helping Nanako sleep last night, but the timing of demons attacking him couldn't have been worse. He needed to prepare in privacy else another outbreak could happen, and he didn't think there was a priest waiting for him at Inaba.
It had been sometime since he had been inside. Everything was as he left it; the toolkit was on the center mat, the spare materials were in the corner to the right, the Taiga was leaning on the old TV, and the-
Shirou's mental checklist came to a screeching halt and he double-took towards the TV (one of the more recently fixed devices in the shed, actually), realizing that he wasn't alone in his makeshift workshop. "Fuji-nee?!"
"Hiya!" she casually waved with a smile. She didn't look at all out of place, but for the life of him Shirou didn't remember Taiga ever entering the shed.
"Wh-what are you doing here?!"
"I was about to ask you the same thing." Her smile went from friendly to strained, as if expecting an answer she wasn't going to like. "You weren't planning on smoldering yourself again, were you?"
Shirou blanked as he tried to think of a liable excuse. "W-well… I don't need to now. Although now that I think about it, my circuit is kind of…"
Taiga's frown was now evident. "Shirou, I understand that you love and respect everything Kiritsugu stands for. I've only been the unassuming muggle up until recently, so I can't say how much it affects me. But there has to be a better way to this magic stuff than what you're doing now. What are you, a hero or a masochist?!"
"If it's the latter," gabbed Pixie. "It would make sooooo much sense." The magus twitched, but more or less ignored her.
"I don't need another way," Shirou insisted immediately. But between Taiga's scowl and another impending fey argument, he quickly backpedalled. "What I mean is, I don't know any other way, so I learned to make do with what I have. The only magus I know for miles (if he can even be called that), is Kotomine, and, well…"
Taiga had the decency to wince. "Yeah, not happening."
"Besides, dad warned me not to attract attention of other magi. Fuyuki City is actually a very spiritual place, so it's monitored by a 'Second Owner', or elite magus, like a lord to the land." Shirou frowned as he recalled Kotomine's words. "In hindsight, maybe all of dad's past actions were reason enough that he was considered an outlaw, and moved here without the Second Owner's consent, let alone the Magic Association."
"Well that's just great," the teacher groaned. "Not only is he the biggest terrorist the world's never known, but he's also an illegal immigrant. Okay, then what about that Association you mentioned?"
"Just as bad," said Shirou. "They're a bunch of like-minded magi that keep tabs on one another and the status of magecraft. But all they care about is keeping the existence of magic secret. Even if one of their own was misusing their research on human lives, they'll turn a blind eye if it's discreet enough."
"Oh my god," she paled in horror.
"I know, which is why I'm worried about what's happening in Inaba," he said without thinking. "If there's really a magus behind the murders, then the Association may not interfere at all."
Taiga shot a glance at him, a mix between shock, anger, and realization. "Inaba?"
Shirou realized that he once again put his foot in his mouth, and the God Persona had two words to perfectly convey the feeling.
"Thou damneth."
"SHIROOOOOOOOOOOOU!"
The next twenty minutes would be a one-sided argument trying to reason with a tiger-roaring storm. Thankfully most of it was muted in the confinements of the shed.
<><><>
"-AND OF ALL THE STUPID, BULLHEADED STUNTS YOU COULD THINK OF, YOU'RE TRYING TO CATCH A SERIAL MURDERER WITH MINIMAL WAGE BUDGET WEAPONS, TWO HIGHSCHOOL GIRLS, A KID IN A BEAR SUIT, THE NEWS MEDIA, AND A MAGIC TRICK THAT YOU COULDN'T GET RIGHT FOR THE LAST TEN YEARS?!"
Wounded, dizzy, and now prone on the floor, Shirou struggled to stand back up. "I-it's actually five years-"
"LIKE THAT MAKES ANY DIFFERENCE!"
"-And Yosuke's helping too."
A bamboo sword struck his head for his trouble, slamming him back down to his stomach. "WHO THE HELL CARES?!"
Meanwhile, Yosuke Hanamura was walking home before he doubled over in pain, but didn't know how or why he did so.
Shirou had tried in vain to drop the topic, but his guardian was persistent and a very good "persuader". She even brought her dreaded Tora-shinai with her; it deceptively looked like a normal shinai, and happened to had a tiger strap tied around the grip just under the guard (and even came with a tiger-striped cover case). The strap was the sole reason why she hadn't advanced further than 5-dan in Kendo; having accessories on your weapon was considered disrespectful, and had disqualified her on the spot more than once. Of course, the Kendo students at Homurahara were more than relieved that she may never become a famous Kendo champ after feeling her skill and power in person.
Shirou could only take so much pain before he started talking. Taiga now knew the general gist of what the Investigation Team knew, but he barely managed to keep the true supernatural topics out from Taiga's beat-down; the Personas/Shadows, Midnight Channel, and Teddie's world. His guardian had enough on her plate to worry about.
"Why?"
Shirou blinked. He was surprised to hear Taiga's voice sound so soft and weak, like a whisper. He had been so used to hearing her loud and energetic, even when upset, that it was almost out-of-character for her to be quiet. As he looked up to the woman towering over his bruised and battered body, he saw that she was not an angry teacher anymore, but a sad, worried sister.
"Why do you keep doing this to yourself, Shirou?" she said. Her voice was steady, but tears were falling free from her face. "You've almost died so many times already, most of them in this very room and I never even knew! Have you ever thought of what might happen if you died? How sad it would make me? Or Sakura-chan? Or Nanako-chan?! For god's sake, she just lost her mother! Do you want her to lose her brother too!?"
"Fuji-nee…"
"And if so, why as a magus, huh?! You just told me they didn't give a rat's ass for anyone but themselves! And Kiritsugu? I can't even imagine what kind of hell he went through just to try and do the right thing, only to get hated for it! I want to hate his guts, but I…"
Her body shook with sobs, and she covered her eyes with her hand in some semblance of control. "This isn't just some strung-along favor habit either, isn't it? You can't… you just can't say no to someone in trouble, can you? Even if you might end up dying too? Damn it, Shirou, why?"
Shirou didn't say anything. Rather, he didn't know what to say, as his mind was still reeling at what he saw. His guardian, Taiga Fujimura, was angry. That much was obvious. But she was also openly crying and upset for his life. She always had a caring heart, and perhaps a touch of innocence like a child, but it never occurred to him as to how much he meant to her.
He felt inclined to let her know just why this was so important to him.
"Fuji-nee," he said, and then waited for her to stop sniffling and look at him. "I never told anyone else, not even dad, but… when he saved me from that fire I could barely recall bits and parts of my old life. The furthest I could remember is trying to survive, to get away from the fire and death around me.
"He found me just as I close to giving up. And the strangest thing was, he was smiling. Smiling and crying, as if so relieved. All I could think of at the time was how jealous I was, and why he was so happy to see me. And when he told me he was a sorcerer, and a hero, it made sense to me. He was happy because he helped me. If nothing else, I want to keep his dream alive and spread that happiness to others too."
He would have said more, but Taiga lunged towards him and vice-gripped him into a hug. Her shinai feel to the floor forgotten. "Stupid!" she cried, running her face over his brick red hair. "Stupidstupidstupidstupidstupid!"
Shirou was torn. Was she calling his dream stupid? Why couldn't she understand? He wanted to push her away, to yell at her, but couldn't. Not because her grip was so tight. In fact it seemed desperate. He wanted to be mad, but he found himself worried for her.
"You don't need to do stuff just to make people happy! I'm happy you're in my life every day! I'm happy you cook for me and Sakura-chan, and are so easy to tease! I'm happy you never intentionally call me by that nickname, and just take your dues to make me feel better! I'm happy to know you're doing so much for others, even when I tell you otherwise! I'm happy you're alive, Shirou. Every day. And I'm sure when he found you in the fire, that that was what Kiritsugu was thinking too."
Happy… for being alive? Was such a feeling even possible?
"So please," Taiga wept on his shoulder, and rubbed his back in circles. "Whatever you do in your life, whether it's fixing junk for a living or going into god-knows-where for rescues… I'll support you all the way. Just promise me that you'll come back alive each time."
Alive… he remembered feeling so relieved that Yosuke had survived the chandelier drop, but it was muted on the adrenaline of still fighting Shadow Yukiko. And Yukiko herself; after seeing two people killed after left inside the TV world, it felt amazing to make a difference and save her life. A feeling he knew the others shared, especially Satonaka.
He never intended to die, at least not without making sure one more life was saved. But would the lives of others move on after his passing? Could he have easily moved on with the case if Yosuke had died that day?
Was the act of saving others the same as knowing someone is still alive? The two ideas could work in tandem, but weren't so tightly closed together either.
When he thought about it… he was glad that Taiga was alive in his life too. He owed her so much, even beyond the Dojimas and his friends on the Investigation Team.
Shirou closed his eyes and returned the hug as tight as he could. "I'll come back alive, Fuji-nee. I promise."
He felt her head nod against his head, relieved.
Another bond, and another arcana, marked with the Roman Numeral "XIX". In his mind's eye, Shirou saw a card depicting a yellow-gold sun in the center of the card with black pointed waves. The Sun's circle had a highly detailed face, stylized in Victorian-like art. Shades of warm colors from red, orange, pink, yellow and purple surrounded the sun and were divided in thin line breaks as if highlighting the illuminating nature of the star's heat waves.
Thou art I, and I am thou.
Thou hast established a new bond.
It shall bring thee closer to the truth.
Thou shalt be blessed by Personae of the Sun Arcana.
For the first time, Shirou embraced the forming of the bond just as he embraced his surrogate sister.
<><><>
???
"Conditioning complete. You're welcome."
"I fail to see how any of this benefits me."
"Maybe not you specifically, but this guy? I'll be honest; I didn't have high hopes for him. He was the underdog in all aspects, and was closer to relate with a normal civilian than a hero or mage. It's because of all of his crutches that he actually fooled himself into being something greater than he already is. All that, as well as his stubborn attitude, would have marked him dead before the real fun started! I just made sure to beat some of the moron out of him so he would survive a bit longer."
"You cannot force change onto others."
"Actually I can; I'm the all-powerful granter of wishes and desires! I'm the Holy Grail, bitch!"
"…and more people remember the Happy Squirrel Arcana than they do you."
"Heh, cute. Anyway, all I did was poke some bitter souls down there to have a crack at him. I didn't personally manifest myself as a moth to involve a third party member. Again."
"I simply guided her to where she wanted to be. Her choices were made by her own accord."
"Like Tatsuya's? Oh wow, nice glare. But seriously, I can't wait to see how this one will react. Maybe instead of a right hook, she'll give you a swift kick to the-"
"Enough. If you are done with your games, do not endanger Shirou Emiya's life any further until the year is over. The Gods of Fog still have their judgment to make, and his presence is critical."
"Gah, these steam-powered deities are ruining all my fun. Fine, I'll keep my hands off for a little while longer… but no promises."
"Normally I would expect that from you, but your tone does little to ease me even then."
"And with good reason. Remember when I said this place was roomy? Well, it turns out there was a tenant here before me, and he's not the forgiving type."
<><><>
May 5th, Morning, Fuyuki Station
Nanako looked around the busy station, asking a question that circled everyone's minds. "Where's Tiger-nee?"
Shirou hadn't gotten much sleep last night; on top of everything that led to a new Social Link at the shed, he had to stress what he knew to his guardian and make sure she would keep her knowledge and awareness of magecraft to herself. The risk of running into the Second Owner was slim since Shirou managed to do it for a decade, but it was still a risk to have her either lose her memories or be killed on sight.
As he, Sakura, and the Dojimas waited in the train station lobby, the red-haired teen couldn't help but feel nervous. It was one thing that Taiga missed breakfast this morning (which on its own was enough cause for worry), but she left no note or message saying if she would see him off or not. He hoped it was just her oversleeping due to what happened last night and wasn't tracked down by the Second Owner.
"Um, I'm sure Fujimura-sensei will be here shortly, Nanako-chan," Sakura assured the young girl.
Dojima turned his gaze to the clock. This station was so much more crowded than the one at his town, with so many people getting ready to return to their homes. He held Nanako's hand to make sure his daughter didn't get lost in the confusion, who in turn was holding a bag of her souvenirs from the Shopping Mall. "Well, we got another ten minutes before the train leaves. If she doesn't show, we'll have to get on board. Unless, of course…"
His gaze turned to his nephew, still staring towards the outside of the station to see his guardian run in animatedly like usual. The detective's facial features softened. He couldn't get Taiga's words out of his head, about using Shirou as a convenient babysitter for Nanako. Such a role may not bother Shirou in the slightest, but it still seemed unfair to the teen. He had half a mind to suggest to Shirou that he should stay here in Fuyuki with Taiga and Sakura, but wasn't sure how to say it.
"Hmm?" Shirou blinked, noticing Dojima's intent stare. "Is there something wrong, Dojima-san?"
Dojima sighed. "There you go again. I was hoping you would drop that habit by now and call me 'uncle' or something. We're not strangers anymore."
"Sorry," Shirou scratched his head sheepishly. "It's just… you don't feel like an uncle to me. You're more like the big brother I never had."
"Brother huh?" Dojima smiled in spite of himself. "Well, I can sort of relate to that feeling. What, do you want to call me 'big bro' too?"
"I was actually wondering when to start calling you 'Doji-nii'."
Dojima stared at the now embarrassed teen, and then threw his head back while roaring in laughter. Convincing his nephew to stay behind was now the furthest thing from his mind. Shirou quickly joined in, and the girls giggled with them.
"Seriously?" he asked after calming down. "That's the best you could come up with?"
"I almost considered 'Ryuu-nii' but I didn't think that would be fair to Fuji-nee."
"Hmmhmm~! No, it wouldn't!"
Shirou, as well as everyone else, nearly jumped when they heard her voice. But turning to the smiling teacher, one wouldn't think she wasn't already there or they were just waiting for her. This was the woman that was known as the human jet-coaster, who would always sprint to her classroom just after the morning bell.
Punctuality was not her forte by any stretch of imagination (except when food was involved).
"Fuji-nee?! When did you get here?" asked Shirou.
"Just now," she said. "I would have been here sooner but I was getting a few things ready. First off, where's that little apple girl?"
Nanako jumped forward, as if springing from a hiding spot. "Here I am, Tiger-nee!" she smiled with arms outstretched.
Taiga immediately swooned and knelt to the girl's height, hugging her. "Oh, you're just so precious! And that smile! I bet I can make it bigger!"
"How?"
"Why, because I got you something of course!" With a flourish, Taiga reached behind her to a pile of suitcases and book bags piled together in a heap. Shirou nearly gaped at the sight as he wondered how his teacher snuck, much less managed to carry, all this stuff to the station with her.
But that was quickly dismissed as she pulled and flourished something from a shopping bag on top of the pile. "Ta da!"
In her hands was a yellow t-shirt in Nanako's size, with a picture of a platypus cartoon in the center. "Oh, wow! A platypus!" she eagerly accepted the gift and held it up closer to her face. "Haha! It looks so funny!"
"I thought you'd like it. Happy Children's Day, Nanako-chan!"
The last day of Golden Week, made in celebration of the happiness of children. The festivities were of a high note for kids Nanako's age, but as it was also the day that they would be returning to Inaba, Shirou could only make some mochi rice cakes as snacks. Nanako loved them, of course, just as she loved the t-shirt.
"Thank you!" the young girl beamed, before hurrying over to her father's side. "Dad! Dad! Look at what Tiger-nee bought for me!"
Shirou smiled at the animated gestures Nanako made, and how flustered but happy Dojima looked as well. He turned to thank Taiga on Nanako's behalf, but was surprised to see her almost glaring at him. "What?"
"Don't get any ideas," she said seriously. "Only Nanako-chan gets to call me that."
Oh, so that's it. Honestly, it wasn't that big of a loss to Shirou. True, it hurt a little to know that his younger sister got so close to Taiga like that, but he was just as close with her and she was just that impressionable. "So you gave Nanako a t-shirt, but only gave me a lecture?" he teased.
"Of course not. Your gifts are right here!" Taiga gestured to the pile of luggage behind her and lifted two of the top most bags before handing them to the magus.
"Now this bag has all sorts of magic booklets, from parlor tricks to occult theories. This bag too, actually, but it's more of the latter than the former." Each bag was forced into Shirou's arms, and he slowly started to feel the weight pile on as she continued. "Oh, and I got you some self-help manuals on social interaction, a few workout guides to help you exercise, a couple of old textbooks from Homurahara to study, and finally a small collection of English classics to pass the time and brush up on your language reading skills. I'm talking The Great Gatsby, Lord of the Flies, a lot of Shakespeare plays-"
"Fuji-nee!" By the time the final bag was handed to him, Shirou could feel his back and legs bend under the pressure. He allowed himself to breath once he gently put his luggage down, before turning to his guardian. "I… I don't need all this."
"Oh yes you do. From what I hear you're falling back into bad habits. It's good that you have some friends to hang out with, but I'd rather you have some books to read and get smart. Your first exams are coming up, you know!"
The magus sighed. Even before she learned about his secret, Taiga was not one to take no for an answer. It was much simpler to accept whatever she had to offer, if only to be considerate of her feelings. "So I just take all of this with me?" he asked, already wondering if there would be enough space in their compartment.
"And one more thing," she said, reaching over her shoulder again. This time she handed him two black cloth-wrapped cylinders that, he realized, had been slung over her shoulder from the start. One was short and thick like a document tube, and the other was long and thick like a fishing pole.
Shirou recognized them almost immediately as a wrapped yumi bow and covered bow case respectively. "This is-"
"Your old archery equipment," smiled Taiga. "Just as Ayako-chan left it."
From near the Dojima's, Sakura gasped. "S-sensei! Is that even legal?!"
"Well, I happen to monitor the Kyudo club as a faculty member on top of Kendo, so I feel that I get a say on who can take what out of the school grounds. And even if I wasn't, I asked Ayako-chan for her permission. She was practically ecstatic since it might convince you to join up next year. She wishes you had a good Golden Week and to have a safe trip back, by the way."
"As much as I appreciate the thought, I can't accept this," Shirou quickly argued. "I still haven't recovered from that injury-"
"You mean from the hazardous shipping accident?" she asked incredulously. "That was almost a year ago, and you dodged my strike just the other night! There was no way that was some fluke!"
Taiga was glaring at him with a knowing look in her eyes. Of course he knew that she knew now that he'd suffered far worse than a broken shoulder bone or burned skin. There was also the fact that he was getting involved in a life-or-death scenario to find a murderer.
"It doesn't hurt to practice what you already know," she added. "Consider it a hobby to keep yourself safe while you're down there."
What Dojima heard was a way to keep Shirou occupied and not act on impulse, to which he approved of. What Shirou heard was a way to stop using magecraft for the duration of the case, which he had mixed feelings about.
From a practical viewpoint, it wasn't a bad idea. It would save money by not having to buy a bow himself, and he still remembered how to use one. It just felt weird holding his club bow again after he quit, and had convinced himself that he needed more time to practice and become a hero.
In hindsight, it was probably one of the dumbest decisions he had ever made.
"All right," he said. "But I don't know where I can use a bow though, since Yasogami doesn't practice archery."
"Actually," Dojima spoke up. "There have been rumors that Shinto priestesses used to practice archery at the Tatsuhime Shrine a long time ago. No one lives there anymore, but it's worth a look if you're interested."
Shirou thought this over… for a few seconds, before shrugging. "That settles it." He then tucked the wrapped bundles under his arm as he lifted his bags with Dojima's help.
"We better hurry," said the detective. "The train looks about ready to leave."
Indeed, more people were filing in the cars and the crowd outside was thinning. If they missed it, they wouldn't make it back until tomorrow night.
Nanako turned to the Fuyuki girls and waved with a big smile, her t-shirt tucked in her other arm. "Bye Sakura-chan! Bye Tiger-nee!"
"Come visit again!" Sakura smiled.
Taiga simply opted to lean down and give a light peck on the girl's cheek. "Don't be a stranger, now!"
Nanako giggled and hurried on.
"It was great seeing you both again," Shirou bowed. "I'll be back before you know it."
"Take care, Senpai." Sakura bowed as well, and fidgeted. Nothing more in her body wanted to go and hug him goodbye, but she couldn't. No matter how much she wanted to, she just couldn't.
Unaware of the other girl's inner turmoil, Taiga had her own dilemma of how to say goodbye. But as deep as it might have been, it was short-lived as she always did what worked for her in Kendo: go with instinct.
So, before Shirou walked away, she lightly grabbed his wrist to hold him in place, leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, much like she did with Nanako. "Good luck," she whispered in his ear, and pulled away smiling.
Shirou only stared at his guardian confused. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had that kind of intimacy with his surrogate sister (or anyone else for that matter). He reasoned that it was just a chaste kiss shared by siblings and that it was her way of showing how much she cared now.
So why did it feel so damn embarrassing?
"Amore, Cu Shirou," the voice of Cu Sith spoke for the first time since his fusion. "Hints of love and affection are evident in the one you call sister. It's all kinds as well. Family Storge is most evident, followed by platonic Agape, affectionate Phileo, and… is that a hint of Eros I smell?"
Shirou's face only grew that much hotter as he ducked away and hurried off. He ignored the seemingly oblivious Taiga, still smiling and content. He also ignored Dojima and Sakura staring slack-jawed, one more shocked than the other. He couldn't ignore Nanako, who somehow managed to cheer him up.
"Getting kisses from your family isn't so bad," she said to him. "I get them from Dad every night when he puts me to bed!"
As both his daughter and nephew left for the train, Ryotaro Dojima stayed behind and stared incredulously at Taiga. For her part, the teacher stared back confused, before slightly glaring. "You're not getting one."
It took a moment for him to realize the implication, and stammered. "Th-that's not-! Gah, never mind. Just… thanks for having us over."
"Anytime," she smiled, although it quickly turned nervous. "So, uh, about that whole head injury?"
He smiled and ruffled his own hair, absent of any wrapping medical tape or swollen bumps. "All water under the bridge."
Taiga shot him two thumbs-up, a wink and an upbeat smile. "Nice~!"
Dojima chuckled; just something about this woman made every day feel like a vacation, which he was thankful for. Tomorrow he would be back to late night shifts and finding criminals, but he was thankful to get a weekend worth of rest.
As he turned to board the train as well, he waved back to Sakura, but she barely noticed him leaving.
The two women stayed behind and watched as the train doors close. Sakura recovered, secretly jealous of how brazen Taiga Fujimura could be with her feelings and not suffer consequences. But she had known her high school teacher for over two years (one of them she wasn't even in high school yet). And she had never seen her act so differently than she did these last three days.
The young girl turned to the teacher on her left, and the wind against her face caused her hair and skirt to sway (the latter she already had her arms down to cover herself). "Sensei?" she asked over the blowing wind. "Are you feeling all right?"
"Never better," she answered, her long dress also swaying but not enough to risk indecency. It didn't feel like a knee-jerk response but one she actually meant. Sakura could see that, as her confidence and energy had never felt so strong before.
But let it never be said that she wasn't perceptive or naïve. Taiga frowned as she exchanged glances with her student. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, you just seem so different after this whole weekend," she admitted. "Yesterday especially. Did something happen? Like… a bad dream?"
She certainly hoped her teacher didn't remember anything from the park. She liked Taiga Fujimura. She was the best sister she'd ever had. To have her die because of a breach of secrecy was horrifying, but Father Kotomine erased her memories like everyone else, right?
"A dream?" Taiga echoed, and returned her gaze to the train. It was already starting to roll away down the track. She stared at the car door Shirou had walked through, despite not being able to see him or the Dojimas.
It could be accurate to say that she had a bad dream, where she almost died in a twisted version of a dojo. Where an angry kendoka kept ranting against the world and wanted to kill everything Taiga Fujimura stood for.
It could be equally possible that she had woken up from a bad dream, and that the aforementioned kendoka was her wake-up call to how she had let the best years of her life slip through her.
Needless to say, it felt good to finally move on. She wasn't expecting to learn about Shirou's magecraft and Kiritsugu's past, but she felt proud of herself handling that curveball. She still wanted to wring the necks of them both for being Class A dumbasses though.
She loved them all the same, and had never felt more proud to have known them in her life.
Maybe someday she could help Shirou accomplish his dream through more than just a few books and rampart support. Whatever happened in that "dream" gave her something akin to a super-power. Blue butterflies, talking Shadows, it all felt so surreal. But until she had a better understanding of all this, she'd keep Shirou ignorant; he had enough on his plate as it was.
"Sensei?"
Taiga broke out of her reverie at Sakura's voice, but didn't turn to her or acknowledge her right away. Rather, she just gathered her thoughts to answer the young beauty's question.
"Let's just say," she smiled brighter than Sakura ever remembered. "I made a new friend. And her name is Kaihime."
A/N: Arc ending song is Taiyou by Bite the Lung.
<><><>
It was close to dark when Ryotaro Dojima came to, that much he knew. He quickly recognized his surroundings as the guest room he was occupying at Shirou's house (honestly, the place was so big it could house all five of them with rooms to spare). He tried thinking back over the day's events: he woke up sore from last night, had breakfast, and got into an argument with Taiga. Then they spent the afternoon shopping, walked to the park… and from there it was a blank.
He quickly left and checked Nanako's room next door. To his relief, she was sleeping soundly, so at least nothing bad happened since passing out. He slid the door closed as quietly as possible before leaving to find Shirou and the girls. Hopefully they might shed some light on what happened earlier.
He didn't get far before hearing a crash, followed by yelling. The cop's hand quickly reached for his revolver tucked into the holster mounted on his waist and pulled it out, allowing the barrel to point loosely at the floor as he continued moving forward. He sneaked through the hallway, treading lightly as to not advertise his presence. If this was some mugging or another crime being involved, then the poor idiot had picked a bad day and place to do it.
I'm on vacation, damn it, he thought bitterly. And the last thing I need tonight is for some dumbass to ruin it!
Dojima came around the corner in time to see Taiga pulling a taller man he had never seen before down to her eye level. After another tense moment the man dusted his robes before commenting on tea and leaving through the front door. Shortly after that, she walked over to Shirou and hugged him and soothed his tears. Now the detective felt like he was eavesdropping on something he shouldn't.
Still, at least his worry about some form of disaster was unfounded. For as sporadic and impulsive as the woman was, she had a firm head on her shoulders whenever family was involved. What he saw just now might have been a rare instance of Taiga stepping up as a legal guardian.
With a smile, Dojima holstered his gun and quietly watched as the two walked off. "I accept your apology, Taiga." He would, of course, say that to her at a later time.
For now, he allowed himself to step out the front door and take a smoke break. As relaxing as the trip had been so far from work, little things kept popping up and stressed him out to exhaustion. He knew there were probably more instances than the whole dinner episode last night but for the life of him he couldn't remember what.
Where did the time go, he wondered? Already it was close to sunset, and he wasn't sure if anyone had dinner yet. Still, the view from atop the hill was quite something, seeing all the streetlights starting to glow with yellow-white. His gaze followed the street down to all the eastern-styled buildings even as he leaned against the Emiya house gate and fetched his lighter.
Fuyuki City was something else, and he noticed more than one car parked along the street. Not that any of them were that car.
Ryotaro's thoughts drifted as he snapped the lighter to his cigarette. Things were simpler when Chisato was still alive. He only had a few things to worry about; work and making coffee, both duties he excelled at. He loved his daughter very much but felt that unless he avenged her mother, he didn't deserve to call himself her father.
At least Nanako was happy now. He didn't want to think about how heartbroken his daughter would have been had he ended up breaking another promise.
Dojima exhaled a puff of smoke building in his mouth, but it could have easily passed as a sigh. "Ally of Justice," he recalled. "If only I had a semblance of your optimism, Shirou."
"Dojima-san?"
The detective turned to see a familiar lavender-haired girl approach him from the street below. Somehow between his wandering thoughts and the dimming sky, he failed to notice her arrival. "Oh, Sakura. You went shopping again at this hour? I thought we had dinner already planned."
Sakura had in each arm several bags of groceries, with tail ends of veggies and fruits most evident. If the weight of them all was any bother, she didn't let it show. Rather, she tilted her head and frowned at him. "You don't remember?"
Ryotaro casually dropped the cigarette to the ground and stomped the embers out. "Honestly my mind's a blank after that trip to the shopping mall. But I do remember buying a whole lot of food for some sort of big dinner. Anything more seems like an excessive waste."
"You're right," Sakura smiled. "But this is actually the food we bought earlier today."
"Come again?"
"You were all tired after the shopping trip, so we rode back here by bus," the Matou girl explained. "But in the haste to get home, Senpai left the groceries at the bus stop so I left to fetch them."
"Ah." It made sense, though Dojima couldn't help but to feel there was something missing from the whole picture. "Are your parents all right with you visiting this late?"
The girl's mouth twitched as if fighting a frown before settling to a sad smile. "Well, it's just my brother and grandfather. As long as I head back after dinner, they won't mind me staying over."
It was obviously a sensitive topic, as Sakura didn't mention her parents at all. In fact, she kept most of her personal life to herself despite Shirou or Nanako sounding so interested. She didn't like talking about school or her home or what she had been doing over the month since Shirou left. Her mannerisms had been so polite that it was easy to overlook her dodging questions or explaining the bare minimum.
As much as he was curious as what Sakura was hiding, this was neither the time nor place for that. She was Shirou's close friend, and for now that was fine for the detective.
"I see," he said. "Well, we really appreciate your company. Thank you, Sakura."
Sakura smiled in a way befitting a kind housewife. "You're welcome, Dojima-san. Now, let's go get dinner ready before Fujimura-sensei throws a fit."
<><><>
"Feeling better?"
"Y-yeah," Shirou sniffed under his guardian's hands. He rubbed his face before she could see his eyes, and she smiled at the child-like action. "I'm sorry, it's just-"
"I know," she said. "That priest guy was an ass and if we see him again it would be too soon."
Taiga hated that man Kirei Kotomine, everything about him screamed "dickhead" from his affable façade to his brutal verbal punches. While she still felt dizzy from that vivid dojo dream, she knew that the priest found her in the forest and said something that made her feel sleepy. Next thing she knew she was in Shirou's house and hearing about Kiritsugu's secret agent lifestyle.
If Kiritsugu were alive, she'd punch his lights out (may he rest in peace), so she settled with the alternative on the mean priest.
"But enough about that," she said as she led him further down the hallway. "You really should get to bed."
"But what about dinner?"
"After the long day we had, I think we can all skip one meal and just settle for a big farewell breakfast tomorrow."
Normally Taiga wasn't one to skip any kind of meal (especially if Shirou or Sakura were cooking it) but she had too much on her mind to just suddenly start stuffing herself. As for Shirou, it wasn't a satisfactory answer to him, but he didn't have time to give a rebuttal. Or rather, he stopped and stared at a familiar spot.
Taiga felt her arm jerk on dead weight, and turned to him with slight annoyance. "The answer is no, Shirou. You need to rest."
"It's not about dinner," he shook his head, still staring ahead. "It's just… this is where Dad-"
His voice fell silent at the memory, but she understood. She urged him forward, to sit along the open space engawa that split the traditional hallway from the inner park of the household. It was similar to the night that Shirou remembered. The beautiful garden, the slight chill of the wind, all that was missing was the light of the moon, having just gone through its new phase.
"So how did Kiritsugu die?"
His reverie gave way to worry and shock, turning to the older woman kneeling similarly next to him. She didn't stare at him accusingly or cross-examine him, but expressed genuine curiosity regarding the late Kiritsugu Emiya. All things considered, she deserved to know.
Silence dragged on between them, before he smiled and recounted the tale. "It was five years ago during the winter. Dad didn't move around much back then, so he would just laze around most days. Maybe he knew he was dying, because that night he just blurted out, 'When I was a child, I wanted to be a superhero.' I asked him what he meant, and if he had given up. It got me angry just thinking about it back then.
"He said that he did give up. 'Being a hero is a time-limited thing, and it becomes hard to call yourself one when you grow up.' I believed that, if only because he said so."
Taiga shook her head, and made a knowing laugh as if to say "Only you, Shirou."
"I decided then and there that I would take his place. I was younger than he was, so it was only right. I wanted nothing more than to make it come true. He laughed. He sounded content and relaxed, with a smile on his face. His last words were, 'Yeah. I'm relieved.'
"It didn't even occur to me that he died right then, smiling. Maybe I just thought he would wake up in the morning, or maybe I was so used to death since the Fire. I wasn't sad or anything but, I still cried without realizing it, like deep down I knew he was gone but just ignored it."
There was nothing else to say after that; Taiga's father arranged the funeral after all, and they were there during the small, private service. Comforting silence passed between them, staring at the sky slowly shedding its autumn glow.
"You really are an idiot," she smiled sadly, still staring ahead. "Couldn't you at least ask for help?"
"Dad was the only one who taught me magecraft," he admitted. "And even then he stressed that I couldn't tell anyone else."
"Mage-what?" Taiga blurted incredulously, before shaking her head. "Nevermind. Not important. What is important is why you couldn't tell anyone, let alone me. Am I really-"
"You're not a liability, Fuji-nee," Shirou cut-in. He knew how depressed his guardian was earlier today and didn't want her to feel even more insecure because of a kept secret. "Only a magus could properly train another magus, and the less… non-magi people know about us, the better."
"Then he too was an idiot," said Taiga. "He just ups and dies the moment you say you'll pick up where he left off, and he doesn't even so much as tell you of someone else to teach you? No notes or pointers or anything?"
"I know a few things, like how to forge a circuit. I'm good enough at it that my life isn't in danger anymore."
Whatever good humor and teasing Taiga had, it died at the end of his sentence. Her head turned to his deliberately slow, and he watched as her facial expression morphed to one of fury. Usually reserved to whoever called her by that nickname. "What."
It felt as if the whole hallway shook from her quiet fury. Shirou fought the urge to gulp before quickly placating her. "Not anymore! I've gotten used to the pain, so the worst I get… off is-" his voice and resolve softened as he saw her face scrunch further. "-a short… concussion?"
The seconds that followed might as well be called "eternity" with how threateningly close the boiling point was. "So what exactly do you do?"
"Fuji-"
"Tell me." The tone was steady and calm, but held dominance like an animal holding down its prey.
"W-well, I focus my magic energy to take the form of a burning rod and direct it into my spine-"
"Your spine," she repeated skeptically, immediately cutting him off. Already uneasy at this angry, serious front of his guardian, Shirou nodded.
"You turn magic into a burning rod and shove it into your spine." A nod.
"Where the base of your central nervous system is." Another nod.
"Which covers your entire body and even connects to your brain." …the fourth nod was hesitant, as if suddenly realizing the suicidal lengths of such training for the first time. He swore he could feel his own spirit dwindle four times over.
"And Emiya-san taught you how to do this?" she asked in a low, predatory voice. It was the first time he heard her refer to Kiritsugu by his family name.
"S-sorta," he admitted. "He taught me how to feel out for a Magic Circuit in my body and I went from there."
It shouldn't be possible, but Taiga's glare managed to narrow even further down, and made Shirou feel that much smaller. "By 'went from there'… you mean on your own?"
"Yes."
"Without him being completely sure that smoldering your nervous system was the right way, let alone watched you as you did it safely?"
"…yes?"
A single twitch of her eyebrow was made in response, and slowly turned her gaze back to the open garden in front of them. He quickly tried to reason with her, making quick excuses. "But it's okay now! I no longer pass out all the time, and if I can't handle the risk of magecraft, I can't properly call myself a hero, right? I know what I'm doing, Fuj-!"
"Hey!" It wasn't so much as Pixie's sudden interruption that interrupted her tenant but how furious she sounded when she did. "My status of existence might be in question, but I'm still part of a race that is commonly linked to magic and fantasy. No Shirou, you don't know what you're doing."
Shirou frowned. After Amagi had been rescued, Shirou took a more curious approach at his connection with his Personas. He had learned from trial and error (as well as getting confirmation from his Personas) that they could hear what he said and heard, and feel emotions towards those of his Social Links. A misconception to this was they couldn't read his mind, which was a good thing as it meant he still had a semblance of privacy, and vice versa.
Usually their input was minimal, mostly towards strengthening bonds with others. But he would still get comments such as these, with no safe way to talk back. So he turned away and whispered under his breath. "Look, I'd be the first to admit that I'm still a third-rate magus, but surely if I keep working hard I can-"
"Shut up and Listen!" Startled by her Taiga-like tenacity, Shirou did as the fey Persona ordered. "Remember that sheath I told you about when you were fighting your girlfriend's Shadow? ("She's not my girlfriend," Shirou quickly chided.) I still don't know why you of all people have it, but in a nutshell it's a super healing artifact that can keep the bearer immortal if needed. Even now it's emitting energy to slowly heal the wounds you got from that fight, but you can't tell that, can't you? That's because instead of turning on your switch, you're pretty much sticking your fingers directly into a power outlet and drawing out prana that way. It goes without saying that you keep getting shocked to death this way too, or at least should have.
"The only reason you're even alive is because Av-er, the sheath, is fixing the nerves you keep burning off. That includes breaking down the circuits you keep stubbornly shoving inside each time. I never said anything before because I didn't know that you kept doing… this to yourself. But now I realize it's not just some one-time mistake but the very definition of insanity. Your entire body is screaming at you, and its saying 'Stop killing yourself you blooming git!'"
Shirou had the decency to look embarrassed. He knew that Pixie, much like Yosuke, meant well behind the teasing and criticism. He couldn't refute that she had a point and he took his magecraft training too much at face value (especially when she was the closest he could get to a well-meaning fey on the issue). But still- "I know my body better than anyone, and I don't think it hates me that much."
"Thou art thy not, for thy art an idiot."
…Et tu, Izanagi?
"I'm gonna kill him."
His mental arguments forgotten, Shirou turned to see his guardian trembling with a calm façade. "Fuji-nee?"
"I'm gonna kill him," she growled again. "I'm gonna kill that bastard, and shove Tora-shinai right up his ass when I do! I don't care if he's already dead!"
She was suddenly standing straight, screaming toward the heavens. "Do you hear me, you absentminded jackass?! I'm gonna fucking kill you!"
<><><>
By the time Dojima and Sakura returned to the house, they heard Taiga's primal yell and mentally prepared for the worst. "Oh no," they chorused.
It wasn't long before they saw an angry yet comical teacher, flailing her arms, eyes glazed over to a pure white, and roaring much like a certain big cat. Surprisingly enough, she was held back by Shirou, arms locked under and over her shoulders, as the red-haired teen did everything in his power to keep her from storming out.
"Let me go damn it! I'm gonna kill that bastard so hard he'll feel it in whatever afterlife he's in!"
"Fuji-nee, please! I can explain-!"
"You've already explained plenty! You were taken advantage by a guy who clearly had a problem with authority enough to just not care how you lived your life after he was gone! Hell, even Dojima here knows how to properly raise a kid, and he doesn't just randomly go on-!"
Taiga had pointed to Dojima midway during her rant, but upon double-taking that he was in the room, her erratic behavior died in place of meek embarrassment. Both she and Shirou righted themselves from their grapple and snapped their arms to their sides as if it didn't happen at all. "A-ah! Dojima-san! And Sakura-chan! W-what a pleasant surprise!"
Seconds passed, but blank stares didn't look fooled or deterred after what just happened. Shirou grimaced in defeat. "You heard all that?"
Lacking tact, Dojima decided to just cut to the heart of the matter on his own hypothesis. "Were you really planning on killing that priest from earlier?"
Shirou and Taiga stiffened, as if surprised he would come to that conclusion. In the detective's peripheral vision, he also saw Sakura shift uncomfortably. "…you saw that too?" Shirou said carefully.
"I didn't hear much; just some yelling and Taiga here making a threat to kill him with high heels." In spite of herself, Taiga laughed nervously. "What was that all about, anyway?"
Taiga turned her gaze to a family portrait to the side. "Let's just say he didn't have any kind words for the late Kiritsugu Emiya."
Dojima could think of nothing to say about that. He would assume that this Kiritsugu guy was all right in his book, saving a young boy and adopting him as his own. The fact that said boy happened to be his nephew Yu Narukami was beside the point. But he couldn't fight this nagging doubt that there was more to Shirou, let alone Fuyuki City, than just a tragedy or two.
"Uhhh."
The soft moan and sudden appearance of Nanako was enough to disarm anyone of the current topic. Indeed, the sight of her rubbing her eye upon the side of her hand both enamored them of cuteness and shamed them of possibly awaking the young girl.
Nanako took one look at everyone in the room, frowning. "Are you fighting again?"
Taiga smiled. "No Nanako-chan. We're not fighting."
"We were just," Shirou added, before exchanging looks with his guardian. "Catching up."
Nanako then smiled in relief, and opened her mouth to say something. Whatever she meant to say was drowned out and forgotten by the low, drumming growl of several stomachs, including hers.
"I guess we could all use that Shirou-class dinner about now," Dojima joked with a smile. "Good thing Sakura brought the groceries." Sakura hefted an arm full of bags for emphasis, also flashing a smile.
"Thanks Sakura," her upperclassmen praised as he took one of the bags off her hands. He didn't notice the bashful red coloring on her face.
"Where did you get these anyway?"
"As I told Dojima-san just before, Senpai forgot them at the bus stop, but everyone was too tired to realize it beforehand. I simply went back to fetch them while you all took a nap."
"Is that what really happened?"
Sakura blinked. Taiga's question was innocent enough, but her gaze was unreadable and daunting. It had to be just one of her moods, as no one in the room remembered what happened earlier today. "Of course, Sensei."
Taiga's expression didn't change right away, still staring at her student for several seconds more. Shirou was worried that she might say something to counter the story Sakura told them (as he was very willing to accept the gift horse for what it was).
Then, the young woman shrugged and dropped the issue. "Just checking." She turned to head out of the dining room/kitchen. "Follow me, Nanako-chan. We have to fetch some new seating pillows."
"Okay, Tiger-nee!"
Taiga froze. And as soon as she did, so did Time itself. There was dead silence. Everyone was afraid to move, but none more so than Nanako. The pressure in the room grew as Shirou, Sakura, and Ryotaro slowly turned towards Taiga, almost worried of what reaction will occur.
Shirou quickly stepped forward, hoping to whisk his sister away from harm. "N-now Nanako, why don't you come help me in the-"
"Nanako-chan. Say my name again. Without the honorific."
Taiga's tone was even and calm, but it was a calm façade before the storm. It was also one that couldn't be ignored for any reason, so Nanako followed through with an innocent, cute whisper.
"T-…tiger?"
The namesake's shoulders hunched. Shirou felt goosebumps and static run through his body, as if the natural order of the world bent to Taiga's whim. But it was clear now that whatever was happening, Nanako was going to face it full force. "That… is…"
Shirou couldn't allow that. It wasn't her fault that she didn't know about the trigger word, and he couldn't let his younger sister take the wrath of his guardian. With all the energy he could muster and forgetting all about dinner, he sprinted in the space between the two, hoping to take whatever punishment in her place. Even as his guardian turned and lunged forward with arms outstretched, he didn't run or guard and took it full force.
So, even as Nanako was lifted up from the ground, held by her under arms, he was ready to intervene. To do so, he grabbed the closest thing he could find (Taiga's sheet metal poster, left on the floor since last night). He could only imagine the sheer rage she was hiding from under her brows, slowly raising up to see her face to face. He jumped with his arms pulled back overhead, but could only watch as she uttered the vengeful words of-
"SO ADORABLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLE!"
Time had one question on its mind, and that was a big fat "WHAT".
Still, Time resumed on as the danger was averted, and order was restored. Only a few individuals in the Emiya household failed to catch the memo, and stared at the teacher's smiling face with confusion. Her smiling, sparkling face, radiant with pure joy.
Of course, that's not to say that her two words had a strong effect as well. So caught off guard, Shirou could do nothing but drop down like a rock, sliding on his face across the floor mats, and crash loudly into a wall at the other side of the room. No one else present noticed his flying face-fault.
Nanako broke out of her stupor first, smiling at the unexpected praise. "Really?"
"Of course, my little apple girl! I never thought I'd hear anyone say my name with such affection before, but YOU! Just hearing you say my name is like a little kitten's cry! Oh, this isn't a dream, is it? Prove me wrong, Nanako-chan! Say it again!"
Nanako broke into a big grin, and complied. "Tiger!"
Taiga squeed. Never before had a sentence with those two words existed, but to the shock of everyone else in the room, it actually happened. "Say it again!"
"Tiger!"
Taiga squeed again, and it still didn't convince the others that it wasn't a dream. Maybe it was being completely overwhelmed by this development, or he happened to be largely relieved that the worst case scenario didn't happen, but from his corner of the room, Shirou Emiya eventually fainted.
As both Taiga and Nanako resumed playing and laughing, almost forgetting about dinner entirely, Dojima turned to the purple haired girl and pointed. "Has… that ever happened before?"
Sakura shook her head, still staring.
<><><>
Evening, Emiya Shed
The rest of the night had ended without incident. Shirou prepared a large, traditional Japanese-course meal of assorted rice, seafood, and dishes (all simmered, grilled, and steamed). Everyone had their fill, made light conversation of the day's events but generally ignored what happened after shopping. As far as Shirou was concerned, no one had seen or done anything remotely dangerous, and he trusted his guardian to keep the Kotomine episode to herself.
Now that it was late, Shirou snuck out of the house for the annex to try and gauge his Persona skills and magecraft. He didn't regret the choice of helping Nanako sleep last night, but the timing of demons attacking him couldn't have been worse. He needed to prepare in privacy else another outbreak could happen, and he didn't think there was a priest waiting for him at Inaba.
It had been sometime since he had been inside. Everything was as he left it; the toolkit was on the center mat, the spare materials were in the corner to the right, the Taiga was leaning on the old TV, and the-
Shirou's mental checklist came to a screeching halt and he double-took towards the TV (one of the more recently fixed devices in the shed, actually), realizing that he wasn't alone in his makeshift workshop. "Fuji-nee?!"
"Hiya!" she casually waved with a smile. She didn't look at all out of place, but for the life of him Shirou didn't remember Taiga ever entering the shed.
"Wh-what are you doing here?!"
"I was about to ask you the same thing." Her smile went from friendly to strained, as if expecting an answer she wasn't going to like. "You weren't planning on smoldering yourself again, were you?"
Shirou blanked as he tried to think of a liable excuse. "W-well… I don't need to now. Although now that I think about it, my circuit is kind of…"
Taiga's frown was now evident. "Shirou, I understand that you love and respect everything Kiritsugu stands for. I've only been the unassuming muggle up until recently, so I can't say how much it affects me. But there has to be a better way to this magic stuff than what you're doing now. What are you, a hero or a masochist?!"
"If it's the latter," gabbed Pixie. "It would make sooooo much sense." The magus twitched, but more or less ignored her.
"I don't need another way," Shirou insisted immediately. But between Taiga's scowl and another impending fey argument, he quickly backpedalled. "What I mean is, I don't know any other way, so I learned to make do with what I have. The only magus I know for miles (if he can even be called that), is Kotomine, and, well…"
Taiga had the decency to wince. "Yeah, not happening."
"Besides, dad warned me not to attract attention of other magi. Fuyuki City is actually a very spiritual place, so it's monitored by a 'Second Owner', or elite magus, like a lord to the land." Shirou frowned as he recalled Kotomine's words. "In hindsight, maybe all of dad's past actions were reason enough that he was considered an outlaw, and moved here without the Second Owner's consent, let alone the Magic Association."
"Well that's just great," the teacher groaned. "Not only is he the biggest terrorist the world's never known, but he's also an illegal immigrant. Okay, then what about that Association you mentioned?"
"Just as bad," said Shirou. "They're a bunch of like-minded magi that keep tabs on one another and the status of magecraft. But all they care about is keeping the existence of magic secret. Even if one of their own was misusing their research on human lives, they'll turn a blind eye if it's discreet enough."
"Oh my god," she paled in horror.
"I know, which is why I'm worried about what's happening in Inaba," he said without thinking. "If there's really a magus behind the murders, then the Association may not interfere at all."
Taiga shot a glance at him, a mix between shock, anger, and realization. "Inaba?"
Shirou realized that he once again put his foot in his mouth, and the God Persona had two words to perfectly convey the feeling.
"Thou damneth."
"SHIROOOOOOOOOOOOU!"
The next twenty minutes would be a one-sided argument trying to reason with a tiger-roaring storm. Thankfully most of it was muted in the confinements of the shed.
<><><>
"-AND OF ALL THE STUPID, BULLHEADED STUNTS YOU COULD THINK OF, YOU'RE TRYING TO CATCH A SERIAL MURDERER WITH MINIMAL WAGE BUDGET WEAPONS, TWO HIGHSCHOOL GIRLS, A KID IN A BEAR SUIT, THE NEWS MEDIA, AND A MAGIC TRICK THAT YOU COULDN'T GET RIGHT FOR THE LAST TEN YEARS?!"
Wounded, dizzy, and now prone on the floor, Shirou struggled to stand back up. "I-it's actually five years-"
"LIKE THAT MAKES ANY DIFFERENCE!"
"-And Yosuke's helping too."
A bamboo sword struck his head for his trouble, slamming him back down to his stomach. "WHO THE HELL CARES?!"
Meanwhile, Yosuke Hanamura was walking home before he doubled over in pain, but didn't know how or why he did so.
Shirou had tried in vain to drop the topic, but his guardian was persistent and a very good "persuader". She even brought her dreaded Tora-shinai with her; it deceptively looked like a normal shinai, and happened to had a tiger strap tied around the grip just under the guard (and even came with a tiger-striped cover case). The strap was the sole reason why she hadn't advanced further than 5-dan in Kendo; having accessories on your weapon was considered disrespectful, and had disqualified her on the spot more than once. Of course, the Kendo students at Homurahara were more than relieved that she may never become a famous Kendo champ after feeling her skill and power in person.
Shirou could only take so much pain before he started talking. Taiga now knew the general gist of what the Investigation Team knew, but he barely managed to keep the true supernatural topics out from Taiga's beat-down; the Personas/Shadows, Midnight Channel, and Teddie's world. His guardian had enough on her plate to worry about.
"Why?"
Shirou blinked. He was surprised to hear Taiga's voice sound so soft and weak, like a whisper. He had been so used to hearing her loud and energetic, even when upset, that it was almost out-of-character for her to be quiet. As he looked up to the woman towering over his bruised and battered body, he saw that she was not an angry teacher anymore, but a sad, worried sister.
"Why do you keep doing this to yourself, Shirou?" she said. Her voice was steady, but tears were falling free from her face. "You've almost died so many times already, most of them in this very room and I never even knew! Have you ever thought of what might happen if you died? How sad it would make me? Or Sakura-chan? Or Nanako-chan?! For god's sake, she just lost her mother! Do you want her to lose her brother too!?"
"Fuji-nee…"
"And if so, why as a magus, huh?! You just told me they didn't give a rat's ass for anyone but themselves! And Kiritsugu? I can't even imagine what kind of hell he went through just to try and do the right thing, only to get hated for it! I want to hate his guts, but I…"
Her body shook with sobs, and she covered her eyes with her hand in some semblance of control. "This isn't just some strung-along favor habit either, isn't it? You can't… you just can't say no to someone in trouble, can you? Even if you might end up dying too? Damn it, Shirou, why?"
Shirou didn't say anything. Rather, he didn't know what to say, as his mind was still reeling at what he saw. His guardian, Taiga Fujimura, was angry. That much was obvious. But she was also openly crying and upset for his life. She always had a caring heart, and perhaps a touch of innocence like a child, but it never occurred to him as to how much he meant to her.
He felt inclined to let her know just why this was so important to him.
"Fuji-nee," he said, and then waited for her to stop sniffling and look at him. "I never told anyone else, not even dad, but… when he saved me from that fire I could barely recall bits and parts of my old life. The furthest I could remember is trying to survive, to get away from the fire and death around me.
"He found me just as I close to giving up. And the strangest thing was, he was smiling. Smiling and crying, as if so relieved. All I could think of at the time was how jealous I was, and why he was so happy to see me. And when he told me he was a sorcerer, and a hero, it made sense to me. He was happy because he helped me. If nothing else, I want to keep his dream alive and spread that happiness to others too."
He would have said more, but Taiga lunged towards him and vice-gripped him into a hug. Her shinai feel to the floor forgotten. "Stupid!" she cried, running her face over his brick red hair. "Stupidstupidstupidstupidstupid!"
Shirou was torn. Was she calling his dream stupid? Why couldn't she understand? He wanted to push her away, to yell at her, but couldn't. Not because her grip was so tight. In fact it seemed desperate. He wanted to be mad, but he found himself worried for her.
"You don't need to do stuff just to make people happy! I'm happy you're in my life every day! I'm happy you cook for me and Sakura-chan, and are so easy to tease! I'm happy you never intentionally call me by that nickname, and just take your dues to make me feel better! I'm happy to know you're doing so much for others, even when I tell you otherwise! I'm happy you're alive, Shirou. Every day. And I'm sure when he found you in the fire, that that was what Kiritsugu was thinking too."
Happy… for being alive? Was such a feeling even possible?
"So please," Taiga wept on his shoulder, and rubbed his back in circles. "Whatever you do in your life, whether it's fixing junk for a living or going into god-knows-where for rescues… I'll support you all the way. Just promise me that you'll come back alive each time."
Alive… he remembered feeling so relieved that Yosuke had survived the chandelier drop, but it was muted on the adrenaline of still fighting Shadow Yukiko. And Yukiko herself; after seeing two people killed after left inside the TV world, it felt amazing to make a difference and save her life. A feeling he knew the others shared, especially Satonaka.
He never intended to die, at least not without making sure one more life was saved. But would the lives of others move on after his passing? Could he have easily moved on with the case if Yosuke had died that day?
Was the act of saving others the same as knowing someone is still alive? The two ideas could work in tandem, but weren't so tightly closed together either.
When he thought about it… he was glad that Taiga was alive in his life too. He owed her so much, even beyond the Dojimas and his friends on the Investigation Team.
Shirou closed his eyes and returned the hug as tight as he could. "I'll come back alive, Fuji-nee. I promise."
He felt her head nod against his head, relieved.
Another bond, and another arcana, marked with the Roman Numeral "XIX". In his mind's eye, Shirou saw a card depicting a yellow-gold sun in the center of the card with black pointed waves. The Sun's circle had a highly detailed face, stylized in Victorian-like art. Shades of warm colors from red, orange, pink, yellow and purple surrounded the sun and were divided in thin line breaks as if highlighting the illuminating nature of the star's heat waves.
Thou art I, and I am thou.
Thou hast established a new bond.
It shall bring thee closer to the truth.
Thou shalt be blessed by Personae of the Sun Arcana.
For the first time, Shirou embraced the forming of the bond just as he embraced his surrogate sister.
<><><>
???
"Conditioning complete. You're welcome."
"I fail to see how any of this benefits me."
"Maybe not you specifically, but this guy? I'll be honest; I didn't have high hopes for him. He was the underdog in all aspects, and was closer to relate with a normal civilian than a hero or mage. It's because of all of his crutches that he actually fooled himself into being something greater than he already is. All that, as well as his stubborn attitude, would have marked him dead before the real fun started! I just made sure to beat some of the moron out of him so he would survive a bit longer."
"You cannot force change onto others."
"Actually I can; I'm the all-powerful granter of wishes and desires! I'm the Holy Grail, bitch!"
"…and more people remember the Happy Squirrel Arcana than they do you."
"Heh, cute. Anyway, all I did was poke some bitter souls down there to have a crack at him. I didn't personally manifest myself as a moth to involve a third party member. Again."
"I simply guided her to where she wanted to be. Her choices were made by her own accord."
"Like Tatsuya's? Oh wow, nice glare. But seriously, I can't wait to see how this one will react. Maybe instead of a right hook, she'll give you a swift kick to the-"
"Enough. If you are done with your games, do not endanger Shirou Emiya's life any further until the year is over. The Gods of Fog still have their judgment to make, and his presence is critical."
"Gah, these steam-powered deities are ruining all my fun. Fine, I'll keep my hands off for a little while longer… but no promises."
"Normally I would expect that from you, but your tone does little to ease me even then."
"And with good reason. Remember when I said this place was roomy? Well, it turns out there was a tenant here before me, and he's not the forgiving type."
<><><>
May 5th, Morning, Fuyuki Station
Nanako looked around the busy station, asking a question that circled everyone's minds. "Where's Tiger-nee?"
Shirou hadn't gotten much sleep last night; on top of everything that led to a new Social Link at the shed, he had to stress what he knew to his guardian and make sure she would keep her knowledge and awareness of magecraft to herself. The risk of running into the Second Owner was slim since Shirou managed to do it for a decade, but it was still a risk to have her either lose her memories or be killed on sight.
As he, Sakura, and the Dojimas waited in the train station lobby, the red-haired teen couldn't help but feel nervous. It was one thing that Taiga missed breakfast this morning (which on its own was enough cause for worry), but she left no note or message saying if she would see him off or not. He hoped it was just her oversleeping due to what happened last night and wasn't tracked down by the Second Owner.
"Um, I'm sure Fujimura-sensei will be here shortly, Nanako-chan," Sakura assured the young girl.
Dojima turned his gaze to the clock. This station was so much more crowded than the one at his town, with so many people getting ready to return to their homes. He held Nanako's hand to make sure his daughter didn't get lost in the confusion, who in turn was holding a bag of her souvenirs from the Shopping Mall. "Well, we got another ten minutes before the train leaves. If she doesn't show, we'll have to get on board. Unless, of course…"
His gaze turned to his nephew, still staring towards the outside of the station to see his guardian run in animatedly like usual. The detective's facial features softened. He couldn't get Taiga's words out of his head, about using Shirou as a convenient babysitter for Nanako. Such a role may not bother Shirou in the slightest, but it still seemed unfair to the teen. He had half a mind to suggest to Shirou that he should stay here in Fuyuki with Taiga and Sakura, but wasn't sure how to say it.
"Hmm?" Shirou blinked, noticing Dojima's intent stare. "Is there something wrong, Dojima-san?"
Dojima sighed. "There you go again. I was hoping you would drop that habit by now and call me 'uncle' or something. We're not strangers anymore."
"Sorry," Shirou scratched his head sheepishly. "It's just… you don't feel like an uncle to me. You're more like the big brother I never had."
"Brother huh?" Dojima smiled in spite of himself. "Well, I can sort of relate to that feeling. What, do you want to call me 'big bro' too?"
"I was actually wondering when to start calling you 'Doji-nii'."
Dojima stared at the now embarrassed teen, and then threw his head back while roaring in laughter. Convincing his nephew to stay behind was now the furthest thing from his mind. Shirou quickly joined in, and the girls giggled with them.
"Seriously?" he asked after calming down. "That's the best you could come up with?"
"I almost considered 'Ryuu-nii' but I didn't think that would be fair to Fuji-nee."
"Hmmhmm~! No, it wouldn't!"
Shirou, as well as everyone else, nearly jumped when they heard her voice. But turning to the smiling teacher, one wouldn't think she wasn't already there or they were just waiting for her. This was the woman that was known as the human jet-coaster, who would always sprint to her classroom just after the morning bell.
Punctuality was not her forte by any stretch of imagination (except when food was involved).
"Fuji-nee?! When did you get here?" asked Shirou.
"Just now," she said. "I would have been here sooner but I was getting a few things ready. First off, where's that little apple girl?"
Nanako jumped forward, as if springing from a hiding spot. "Here I am, Tiger-nee!" she smiled with arms outstretched.
Taiga immediately swooned and knelt to the girl's height, hugging her. "Oh, you're just so precious! And that smile! I bet I can make it bigger!"
"How?"
"Why, because I got you something of course!" With a flourish, Taiga reached behind her to a pile of suitcases and book bags piled together in a heap. Shirou nearly gaped at the sight as he wondered how his teacher snuck, much less managed to carry, all this stuff to the station with her.
But that was quickly dismissed as she pulled and flourished something from a shopping bag on top of the pile. "Ta da!"
In her hands was a yellow t-shirt in Nanako's size, with a picture of a platypus cartoon in the center. "Oh, wow! A platypus!" she eagerly accepted the gift and held it up closer to her face. "Haha! It looks so funny!"
"I thought you'd like it. Happy Children's Day, Nanako-chan!"
The last day of Golden Week, made in celebration of the happiness of children. The festivities were of a high note for kids Nanako's age, but as it was also the day that they would be returning to Inaba, Shirou could only make some mochi rice cakes as snacks. Nanako loved them, of course, just as she loved the t-shirt.
"Thank you!" the young girl beamed, before hurrying over to her father's side. "Dad! Dad! Look at what Tiger-nee bought for me!"
Shirou smiled at the animated gestures Nanako made, and how flustered but happy Dojima looked as well. He turned to thank Taiga on Nanako's behalf, but was surprised to see her almost glaring at him. "What?"
"Don't get any ideas," she said seriously. "Only Nanako-chan gets to call me that."
Oh, so that's it. Honestly, it wasn't that big of a loss to Shirou. True, it hurt a little to know that his younger sister got so close to Taiga like that, but he was just as close with her and she was just that impressionable. "So you gave Nanako a t-shirt, but only gave me a lecture?" he teased.
"Of course not. Your gifts are right here!" Taiga gestured to the pile of luggage behind her and lifted two of the top most bags before handing them to the magus.
"Now this bag has all sorts of magic booklets, from parlor tricks to occult theories. This bag too, actually, but it's more of the latter than the former." Each bag was forced into Shirou's arms, and he slowly started to feel the weight pile on as she continued. "Oh, and I got you some self-help manuals on social interaction, a few workout guides to help you exercise, a couple of old textbooks from Homurahara to study, and finally a small collection of English classics to pass the time and brush up on your language reading skills. I'm talking The Great Gatsby, Lord of the Flies, a lot of Shakespeare plays-"
"Fuji-nee!" By the time the final bag was handed to him, Shirou could feel his back and legs bend under the pressure. He allowed himself to breath once he gently put his luggage down, before turning to his guardian. "I… I don't need all this."
"Oh yes you do. From what I hear you're falling back into bad habits. It's good that you have some friends to hang out with, but I'd rather you have some books to read and get smart. Your first exams are coming up, you know!"
The magus sighed. Even before she learned about his secret, Taiga was not one to take no for an answer. It was much simpler to accept whatever she had to offer, if only to be considerate of her feelings. "So I just take all of this with me?" he asked, already wondering if there would be enough space in their compartment.
"And one more thing," she said, reaching over her shoulder again. This time she handed him two black cloth-wrapped cylinders that, he realized, had been slung over her shoulder from the start. One was short and thick like a document tube, and the other was long and thick like a fishing pole.
Shirou recognized them almost immediately as a wrapped yumi bow and covered bow case respectively. "This is-"
"Your old archery equipment," smiled Taiga. "Just as Ayako-chan left it."
From near the Dojima's, Sakura gasped. "S-sensei! Is that even legal?!"
"Well, I happen to monitor the Kyudo club as a faculty member on top of Kendo, so I feel that I get a say on who can take what out of the school grounds. And even if I wasn't, I asked Ayako-chan for her permission. She was practically ecstatic since it might convince you to join up next year. She wishes you had a good Golden Week and to have a safe trip back, by the way."
"As much as I appreciate the thought, I can't accept this," Shirou quickly argued. "I still haven't recovered from that injury-"
"You mean from the hazardous shipping accident?" she asked incredulously. "That was almost a year ago, and you dodged my strike just the other night! There was no way that was some fluke!"
Taiga was glaring at him with a knowing look in her eyes. Of course he knew that she knew now that he'd suffered far worse than a broken shoulder bone or burned skin. There was also the fact that he was getting involved in a life-or-death scenario to find a murderer.
"It doesn't hurt to practice what you already know," she added. "Consider it a hobby to keep yourself safe while you're down there."
What Dojima heard was a way to keep Shirou occupied and not act on impulse, to which he approved of. What Shirou heard was a way to stop using magecraft for the duration of the case, which he had mixed feelings about.
From a practical viewpoint, it wasn't a bad idea. It would save money by not having to buy a bow himself, and he still remembered how to use one. It just felt weird holding his club bow again after he quit, and had convinced himself that he needed more time to practice and become a hero.
In hindsight, it was probably one of the dumbest decisions he had ever made.
"All right," he said. "But I don't know where I can use a bow though, since Yasogami doesn't practice archery."
"Actually," Dojima spoke up. "There have been rumors that Shinto priestesses used to practice archery at the Tatsuhime Shrine a long time ago. No one lives there anymore, but it's worth a look if you're interested."
Shirou thought this over… for a few seconds, before shrugging. "That settles it." He then tucked the wrapped bundles under his arm as he lifted his bags with Dojima's help.
"We better hurry," said the detective. "The train looks about ready to leave."
Indeed, more people were filing in the cars and the crowd outside was thinning. If they missed it, they wouldn't make it back until tomorrow night.
Nanako turned to the Fuyuki girls and waved with a big smile, her t-shirt tucked in her other arm. "Bye Sakura-chan! Bye Tiger-nee!"
"Come visit again!" Sakura smiled.
Taiga simply opted to lean down and give a light peck on the girl's cheek. "Don't be a stranger, now!"
Nanako giggled and hurried on.
"It was great seeing you both again," Shirou bowed. "I'll be back before you know it."
"Take care, Senpai." Sakura bowed as well, and fidgeted. Nothing more in her body wanted to go and hug him goodbye, but she couldn't. No matter how much she wanted to, she just couldn't.
Unaware of the other girl's inner turmoil, Taiga had her own dilemma of how to say goodbye. But as deep as it might have been, it was short-lived as she always did what worked for her in Kendo: go with instinct.
So, before Shirou walked away, she lightly grabbed his wrist to hold him in place, leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, much like she did with Nanako. "Good luck," she whispered in his ear, and pulled away smiling.
Shirou only stared at his guardian confused. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had that kind of intimacy with his surrogate sister (or anyone else for that matter). He reasoned that it was just a chaste kiss shared by siblings and that it was her way of showing how much she cared now.
So why did it feel so damn embarrassing?
"Amore, Cu Shirou," the voice of Cu Sith spoke for the first time since his fusion. "Hints of love and affection are evident in the one you call sister. It's all kinds as well. Family Storge is most evident, followed by platonic Agape, affectionate Phileo, and… is that a hint of Eros I smell?"
Shirou's face only grew that much hotter as he ducked away and hurried off. He ignored the seemingly oblivious Taiga, still smiling and content. He also ignored Dojima and Sakura staring slack-jawed, one more shocked than the other. He couldn't ignore Nanako, who somehow managed to cheer him up.
"Getting kisses from your family isn't so bad," she said to him. "I get them from Dad every night when he puts me to bed!"
As both his daughter and nephew left for the train, Ryotaro Dojima stayed behind and stared incredulously at Taiga. For her part, the teacher stared back confused, before slightly glaring. "You're not getting one."
It took a moment for him to realize the implication, and stammered. "Th-that's not-! Gah, never mind. Just… thanks for having us over."
"Anytime," she smiled, although it quickly turned nervous. "So, uh, about that whole head injury?"
He smiled and ruffled his own hair, absent of any wrapping medical tape or swollen bumps. "All water under the bridge."
Taiga shot him two thumbs-up, a wink and an upbeat smile. "Nice~!"
Dojima chuckled; just something about this woman made every day feel like a vacation, which he was thankful for. Tomorrow he would be back to late night shifts and finding criminals, but he was thankful to get a weekend worth of rest.
As he turned to board the train as well, he waved back to Sakura, but she barely noticed him leaving.
The two women stayed behind and watched as the train doors close. Sakura recovered, secretly jealous of how brazen Taiga Fujimura could be with her feelings and not suffer consequences. But she had known her high school teacher for over two years (one of them she wasn't even in high school yet). And she had never seen her act so differently than she did these last three days.
The young girl turned to the teacher on her left, and the wind against her face caused her hair and skirt to sway (the latter she already had her arms down to cover herself). "Sensei?" she asked over the blowing wind. "Are you feeling all right?"
"Never better," she answered, her long dress also swaying but not enough to risk indecency. It didn't feel like a knee-jerk response but one she actually meant. Sakura could see that, as her confidence and energy had never felt so strong before.
But let it never be said that she wasn't perceptive or naïve. Taiga frowned as she exchanged glances with her student. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, you just seem so different after this whole weekend," she admitted. "Yesterday especially. Did something happen? Like… a bad dream?"
She certainly hoped her teacher didn't remember anything from the park. She liked Taiga Fujimura. She was the best sister she'd ever had. To have her die because of a breach of secrecy was horrifying, but Father Kotomine erased her memories like everyone else, right?
"A dream?" Taiga echoed, and returned her gaze to the train. It was already starting to roll away down the track. She stared at the car door Shirou had walked through, despite not being able to see him or the Dojimas.
It could be accurate to say that she had a bad dream, where she almost died in a twisted version of a dojo. Where an angry kendoka kept ranting against the world and wanted to kill everything Taiga Fujimura stood for.
It could be equally possible that she had woken up from a bad dream, and that the aforementioned kendoka was her wake-up call to how she had let the best years of her life slip through her.
Needless to say, it felt good to finally move on. She wasn't expecting to learn about Shirou's magecraft and Kiritsugu's past, but she felt proud of herself handling that curveball. She still wanted to wring the necks of them both for being Class A dumbasses though.
She loved them all the same, and had never felt more proud to have known them in her life.
Maybe someday she could help Shirou accomplish his dream through more than just a few books and rampart support. Whatever happened in that "dream" gave her something akin to a super-power. Blue butterflies, talking Shadows, it all felt so surreal. But until she had a better understanding of all this, she'd keep Shirou ignorant; he had enough on his plate as it was.
"Sensei?"
Taiga broke out of her reverie at Sakura's voice, but didn't turn to her or acknowledge her right away. Rather, she just gathered her thoughts to answer the young beauty's question.
"Let's just say," she smiled brighter than Sakura ever remembered. "I made a new friend. And her name is Kaihime."
A/N: Arc ending song is Taiyou by Bite the Lung.
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Strayed
No Gravy Beam for you.
That is not what ironic means! Oddly or surprisingly would have worked, but Ironic is incorrect.
Oh, good choice! One of the most famous tomboys in The Edo period is always fun.
Though it's still a toss up on whether or not she actually existed...
Also, the Arc ending song was amusing but apprpriate imo.
zaiaku
The Ignorant Guru
- Location
- Alamo, Texas
It's not that she existed or not that's debated, it's her achievements and actions that are under scrutiny. Sorta like a halfway reversed Tomoe Gozen, who did exist and her actions are pretty much considered historical fact.
Gah, you're right. I forget.
10000 yen for a set of chainmail? Holy fucking hell, buy all of it. Now. That's less than 100 USD, the metal alone costs more than that...
Nah, he's just that dumb.
- Location
- Zurvan, the Sea of Dreams
This is a great conclusion to this arc, and your portrayal of Taiga continues to steal the show. I think I've said this before, but this may be the best and most meaningful depiction of her I've found in fan fiction, and her conversations with Shirou in this chapter were beautiful. Her reaction to Shirou's magecraft training and ensuing tirade were priceless, and, as a reader, I greatly enjoyed seeing her knock some sense into Shirou. I also like that some time was spent on Taiga's relationship with Sakura too--that's a friendship that's often glossed over in fan fiction and is rarely explored, at least based on what I've read. And the foreshadowing of Avenger was nicely done. Thank you for sharing, and please keep up the excellent work.
KishouTheBadger
Psychic Mech Pilot
I changed it to "happened to had". Thanks for pointing that out.
And thank you to everyone else for your rampart support on this project of mine. Good news, the next gaiden chapter is on beta and should be out soon.
I also opened a poll on favorite fights, if you are so interested. Feel free to post and share your favorite fight, too.
While we wait for the next chapter to be beta-ed, I just want to share something something silly I just realized about a future Social Link (under spoiler tags just in case you decided against peeking at the Social Link outline posted some time ago):
Given that Rin is supposed to become the Tower S.L. and Cú Chulainn is a Persona of the Tower Arcana in P4, does that mean that something like the stuff under the following spoiler could happen?
- Location
- London
Warning For Marginal Behavior
But Mara makes you look so manly and not at all compensating for something.While we wait for the next chapter to be beta-ed, I just want to share something something silly I just realized about a future Social Link (under spoiler tags just in case you decided against peeking at the Social Link outline posted some time ago):
Given that Rin is supposed to become the Tower S.L. and Cú Chulainn is a Persona of the Tower Arcana in P4, does that mean that something like the stuff under the following spoiler could happen?
How about no.
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