Cross Effects- The RP

[OPOI]

Good, that's one huge threat out of the equation.

Shirou stared at Touzaki's retreating back, internally sighing in relief. During the asshole's speech, Shirou had been certain he would attack, and was thus prepared to blast him to kingdom come if he had so much as twitched in Shirou's direction. He had never been happier she the psychopath had put away the sword, after spouting some hypocritical bull crap about killing people. This was a man who literally worked as a man so he could keep enjoying the thrill of killing and had literally seconds earlier attacking everyone in sight, not Gandhi.

Now there was only Rider. Memory of what she had done threatened to take over him once again, but this time, Shirou forced his anger down. His goal over the years had warped due to his experiences, but in the end, Shirou would still go for the path of least casualties when possible. Killing Rider would only worsen the situation at this point. Besides, he could tell that both the vampire next to him, and that strange teenage girl would help him if the Servant goes insane.

He would be backing down this time around.

Keeping his eyes firmly on Rider, Shirou raised his hand, causing everyone in the area to tense, including the girl who had just introduced herself as Isabella. The swords in the air flickered for a second, before all of them shattered simultaneously, in a manner which reminded of fireworks. The loud bell-like peals of shattering metal echoed once again in the alleyway.

He decided to take the initiative this time. Discarding his Magus Killer guise, Shirou smiled wryly at the those present, his now-golden eyes warm.

"Judging by your actions, most of you know me, but I'll introduce myself anyway. I'm Emiya Shirou. Now, what are we gonna do about this situation?"

[lantzblades]

Taiga shook her head  " um, no, that's fine, you go ahead I'm ok by myself, thank you for answering my question" she replied backing the the wheel chair up to turn and continue down the hall.

[Cherry Lover]

Rider noticed her opponents expression change. For a moment, she hoped he had fallen for her distraction attempt. But, then, the same arrogant smirk appeared on his face, and he looked back at Rider again,  before replying to her comment.

"Let me ask few things. Why should I care about dying?"

Damn, it didn't work.

"Well, dying would rather ruin your fun, wouldn't it?", she said, dryly.

As the man put his hands on the Katana, Rider tensed again, preparing for his next attack. But, instead, he addressed her once more.

"Why should I fear a magus over a powerful spirit like you? Especially a coward who targets little girls?", he said, disdainfully.

Hearing that, Rider laughed to herself. Only a complete and utter moron would want their food to fight back. And, only an idiot would consider avoiding a fight they neither needed nor wanted to fight cowardly.

Then, he pointed his sword at Rider once more, and continued.

"Also, why do you look away in a battle? Do you think you can afford that kind of attitude against me? Or is it that you want to get away?"

Yes, I do want to get away.

But, Rider felt it was probably best to say nothing. The guy clearly didn't hold "cowards" in partiuclarly high regard, and, further, seemed to equate intelligence with cowardice. Replying would likely only enrage him, and that wasn't what she needed right now. Angering him would make him even less likely to do the sensible thing and go after Shirou who, right now, seemed like a significant threat.

Shirou's response to the newly-arrived girl made it clear that he was someone who put killing people who he considered as "dangerous" above all else, even protecting the lives of innocents. And, he clearly seemed to have decided that both Rider and her opponent were "dangerous", judging by the extra swords he had traced, and which were all pointing directly at the two of them. He was clearly not Sakura's husband, or anything like him. He would always protect people first and foremost, and would only kill if absolutely necessary, whereas this Shirou seemed to see killing as the first resort.

Worse, her comment about Sakura hadn't calmed him down or made him consider his actions more carefully. Instead, it had engraged him. He seemed to have forgotten his reasoning entirely and was focussing on her. He had even summoned the twin blades that acted as his primary weapon.

It was obvious that something bad had happened to Sakura in his past, and it had clearly driven him to take the attitude he did. The only question was what. Mentioning her clearly affected him deeply, but not in the manner she had expected. Given his attitude, it was quite possible he'd even killed Sakura himself. The very thought of that enraged Rider, and she had to hold herself back from attacking him right that instant. She considered her next move. Perhaps she should ask him for more details of his past. Or, perhaps, she should just kill the asshole and be done with it.

But, before she could come to any decision, she noticed that the moron she had been fighting was now heading straight for Hakuno.

Shit.

Rider tensed herself, preparing to jump down and intervene. Instead, though, he turned and addressed Rider once more.

"Or maybe that's because you couldn't eat properly? If I remember correctly, you were about to feed on her prana, right?"

Then, suddenly, he threw a punch at Hakuno's shield. Rider prepared to jump in to defend her. But her shield held up easily and, instead of following through with his attack, he simply taunted the girl, espousing more of his bullshit philosophy.

"See? That's why you're trash. Why didn't you use it earlier, girl? You could have avoid getting in such a crappy situation. If you have the power, you should use it. Protecting yourself is the most important."

But, fortunately, the girl seemed unphased by his comments, and never let her shield waver or drop. Rider was finding herself more and more impressed all the time.

"If anyone here is 'trash', it's you, asshole. Attacking and killing people just for the fun of it doesn't make you smart or strong, it just makes you a prick", Rider responded.

However, he ignored her, and continued addressing the girl.

"Seems like eyepatch and blondie are worried 'bout cha, though I ain't sure it's for the same reason. However, playboy other there might be willing to finish you off."

Rider bristled at the comment. Whilst Shirou didn't seem to be explicitly targetting the girl any more, he certainly didn't seem overly bothered about her well-being, and would clearly kill her off without a second thought if he had to. The man then turned back to her once more.

"I say we let crybaby go." He sighed for a second. "As of you, eyepatch. If you need prana so badly that you'd attack someone with such a low amount, must be because you're really in need of it? In that case, I'll let you off for today. Just get back when you're at full strength." His tone was amused, but no trace of mockery showed in it. It changed quickly though, when he pointed his blade in Shirou's direction. "In exchange I demand a challenge with you, lower-than-trash."

Thank the gods.

Whilst it hadn't happened quite as she'd expected, the moron had agreed to leave her alone. Of course, he had demanded a fight at a later date, but she had no intention of actually taking him up on that. If he happened to find her around, then she would have to deal with it, but hopefully she could either convince him she wasn't fully-powered, or else she would have allies to assist her.

Speaking of allies, as the idiot continued asking around for someone to fight him, she heard the voice of a young man addressing her.

"yo, Rider you want some help?"

She couldn't remember if her name had been mentioned yet, but the way he addressed her made it pretty clear he knew her personally. A few minutes ago Rider would have been very shocked at that, but after meeting a clearly alternate version of Shirou and a girl who had summoned Archer, the idea of there being people around who knew an alternate version of her was no longer particularly implausible-sounding.

Still, unlike the Shirou standing opposite her and still pointing swords at her, this guy seemed friendly enough, and keen to help her out. Even if she didn't need his help with the katana-wielding asshole any more, some assistance in dealing with Shirou would be very helpful. She didn't particularly fancy having to dodge all those swords in a narrow alley. But, before she could respond, Rider heard a loud and clearly angry voice in her head.

Everyone can your bloody aggression right the hell now.  If you keep raging about like this, someone will get hurt or worse, and that isn't kosher.  So everyone just back off so we can reasonably settle this and get everyone's stories straight.  So weapons the fuck down and everyone back the hell up before I get shirty.

Rider was somewhat used to being shouted at mentally. Sakura had done it a few times when she had done something particularly objectionable which Sakura couldn't talk about publically. But, even so, it wasn't a pleasant sensation. Before she could react, the blonde woman followed her mental yell with a somewhat calmer, although still loud and clear, verbal statement.

 "Now, do I have everyone's attention and we can behave like reasonable adults?"

Rider quickly considered the situation, before desummoning her nails and changing back into her casual outfit. She had no desire to provoke a conflict here, and if one did arise she could summon up her nails in a matter of milliseconds. Plus, her most obvious enemy had turned his attentions elsewhere, although Shirou had seemingly not accepted the blonde's ultimatum absolutely. He did, however, desummon Kanshou and Bakuya, as well as some of his swords

Interestingly, he had also called the blonde a "vampire". Which was somewhat ironic given that she'd acted to prevent Rider drinking the girl's blood....

Rider turned to look for the man who had addressed her earlier. In the darkness, she could see a seemingly-attractive young-looking blonde man who, oddly, seemed to be wearing a shirt similar to the ones Shirou used to wear when he was younger.

"I'm fine for the moment, thanks, whoever you are. If we do start fighting I'd be glad of your help, though", she said, kindly.

Then, her attention returned to the girl. Now that the immediate danger was gone, Rider couldn't help but notice that she seemed somewhat unsteady. Maintaining her shield was clearly taking a toll on her. But, before she could ask the girl about it, her attention was drawn back to the idiot blood knight. Entirely predictably, he seemed to be taking the vampire's attempts at reconciliation with a large pinch of salt.

Then, he turned to address Shirou.

"And what is safe exactly? Is it when shield girl has a round in the head? Purplehead may have attacked her but that's the result of a need." He makes a pause before shrugging. "Well, she likes to play with her food but that's her way, not judging this." Shuya nodded to Forest. "You got in her way when she tried to feed but don't you do the same to humans? How's that different? So, unless you have double-standards, I doubt you'd say it was wrong to attack the girl." With an accusatory finger pointed towards Shirou. "Which leads to this guy. I don't know if he has a personal grudge with the girl, but those who kill their own kind for no apparent reason, got a few screws loose."

Oddly, the moron actually made quite a few good points. The blonde who had tried to stop her feeding was a vampire who, if anything like the vampires in her time, would surely regularly kill for food, and Shirou's very first act had been attempt to put a bullet into the head of an innocent girl. Although, at least the vampire did seem to acknowledge her need for prana and was willing to help sate that need, so she was at least consistent. Shirou, on the other hand....

Then, his disgust evident, the man fired one last insult at Shirou and walked off. Rider then turned to Shirou and added her opinion.

"You know, Shirou, he's right. The only one of us who has tried to kill that girl is you. I just wanted some prana, so I could protect your son."

Meanwhile, the newly-arrived black-haired girl expressed her opinion of the now-departed man.

"What a moron", she said.

Rider certainly couldn't disagree with that statement. Then, the black-haired girl stared at her intently for a moment, before walking over to the schoolgirl and, kindly, asking her if she was hurt. In response, the girl finally took down the shield that had been protecting her, and replied to the other girl.

"I'm not hurt, maybe a bit battered and bruised, but I'm fine."

Rider was glad to hear that the girl wasn't seriously hurt, although she did still seem somewhat unsteady on her feet. Then, the girl pointed up at Rider, and spoke to the black-haired girl once more.

"She's a bit scary, but she saved my life, and I don't think she wants to fight, so we don't have to worry about her."

Hearing that, Rider smiled a little. As the girl talked about Shirou, though, Rider could see her getting even more unsteady. Quickly, she jumped down from the lamppost, landing close to the girl, but not close enough that it could be seen as a threatening move. Then, as she walked towards her, she responded to her, softly.

"No, I don't want to fight, and nor am I going to steal your prana. I'm sorry for attacking you, but I need to be able to protect my master's son, and for that I need prana."

Then, she walked over to the girl and placed her hands on her shoulders, steadying her. Then, she leant down and whispered in her ear, her voice thick with lust.

"But, you know, there are more pleasurable ways of transferring prana, if you're interested. Since I hurt you, I'll even let you punish me. You can do whatever.. you.. like..", she said, almost singing the final few words.

Then, the black-haired girl came over, taking hold of the girll's hand and giving her words of reassurance. In response, Rider let go of her shoulders, but stayed close by, nodding along to the black-haired girl's words of reassurance. Then, when the black-haired girl had finished talking, Rider added her comments, backing the black-haired girl up as she healed the injured and exhausted girl.

"Honestly, you're worth a thousand times what that idiot is. You know, you remind me of my master, in a way. You're a very strong girl, emotionally and magically. But, most importantly, you seem like a good person, with a good heart. Even if you were completely powerless, I would rather the world be full of kind and determined people like you than assholes like him.

 If you want, I can help train you. I helped my master learn after the war, and now she's one of the most powerful magi around."

Of course, Hakuno probably wouldn't realise just how much of a compliment Rider had just paid her by comparing her to Sakura, but the rest of the statement was pretty clear.

Still, they had to deal with Shirou still. The black-haired girl was right that he probably wouldn't just let them go. And, as she said, there was also a possible issue with the new arrival, although hopefully he would accept Rider's polite refusal of his help and keep out of the battle for now. Still, at least her kindness to the schoolgirl had meant that the black-haired girl, who was apparently called "Isa", was willing to trust her now.

Then, to Rider's relief, Shirou finally dispelled his swords, and introduced himself

"Judging by your actions, most of you know me, but I'll introduce myself anyway. I'm Emiya Shirou. Now, what are we gonna do about this situation?"

To her annoyance, he seemed to have entirely ignored her previous comment. Still, Rider felt it was only polite to introduce herself.

"Hello, everyone. My legal name is Tohsaka Raida, but just Rider is normal. And, Shirou, what I want to know is why you tried to kill this poor girl...." 

[Elf]

Forest gritted her teeth as the Pretty Boy Demon made his statement about her.  The little wanker knew nothing about her.  Yes, she knew she was an odd duck, doing what she did.  It had caused enough questions over her long, lonely existence.  However, she was not like that.

What she was didn't constitute who she was.

Just idiots like that little pillock didn't know that as he calmly strolled away.

However, she sent at him, You know nothing about me, you presumptive cunt.  So get off of it.  Then she smirked, thinking to herself, Being telepathic can be quite handy, especially when I want the last word.  She looked around at the people around her, including the new little magic user who introduced herself as Isa, the poor brunette who looked utterly exhausted, the now introduced Emiya Shirou, and Rider.

There was also a blond teenage boy who asked Rider if she needed help playing Batman on a rooftop.  People were holstering weapons, which was what she wanted and were seeming willing to talk.  Tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, and she heard Rider's words to the poor girl, and shook her head.  She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and adjusted her fingerless gloves.

"Are you okay, Poppet?" Forest asked the brunette teenager, peering at her to see if she was truly wounded.  Then she looked around and asked, "Is everyone okay?"

******

Lancer had watched the hilarious proceedings until things turned dark.  The familiar decided to break his arm in punishment.  Poor Rin and Archer, the bowman understandably needing to go tend to his Master if she was in danger, had no idea what to do with such a display.  Lancer on the other hand grew up with one of the scariest witches who ever held a grimoire.

He nodded to the duo and said, "Go, I'll take care of the lad."

Then he touched down in front of the boy and said, "My Landlady would be right pissed if I left you with a broken arm like that, boyo."

[lantzblades]

Satoshi hopped off the rooftop and into the light of the street, his clothes were those of Archer save that these were worn, cracked and torn in places and it was clear that he was slightly too small for the outfit although not embarrassing so. Tied over his right arm was the gorgon breaker mask of rider's. His own swords although unnamed appeared to be kanshou and bakuya hanging from his belt, truth be told they while magically forged possessed none of their abilities  otherwise.

"Miss, next time you use T.P.C. Please aim instead of the wide broadcast. And as for you Shirou, if you did try and kill that girl Kiritsugu says I have to punch the stupid out of you and grandpa is not someone I intend to disappoint" he said  calmly

[Daiki]

"N-no no, Kitty knows that it was a misunderstanding, you don't need to break any more limbs!"

 "Kitty wants you to get that arm fixed as soon as you can, alright?"

Ruu nodded.

"Understood."

"Just make sure to ask what's going on before you do this sort of thing in the future. And try to get that arm fixed properly."

The familiar didn't understand why they were making such expressions.

"It will heal if Ruu waits. It always does."

The familiar just sit up where he stood. Looking at the sky as if he had forgotten about his surroundings. However, when  Rin spoke again he answered without looking at her.

"You can go now. Just please get that arm fixed, and listen to Mister Asshole's advice!"

"Will do after it heals."

Of course, it would take days for that but time wasn't an issue for the familiar.

"Be careful, Kitty." He added, almost absentmindedly.

His focus on healing required for him to fall asleep. He was about to use the self-hypnosis right when someone landed before him.

"My Landlady would be right pissed if I left you with a broken arm like that, boyo."

Ruu recognized the blue-haired man from before, which triggered a weird expression on his face, akin to a smile, but not quite.

"Ah, Wolfy!"

He tried to salute him with his broken arm before realizing he could not. Still, he was curious about something.

"What is a Landlady? Is it like Uuoruuocon Master?"

The familiar was for some reason able to relax in presence of the warrior of the spear. There was a wildness in him that put him at ease, him who was a creature born to be close to nature. The curiosity devouring him as seconds went, the familiar bit on left sleeve.

----

"Honestly, you're worth a thousand times what that idiot is. You know, you remind me of my master, in a way. You're a very strong girl, emotionally and magically. But, most importantly, you seem like a good person, with a good heart. Even if you were completely powerless, I would rather the world be full of kind and determined people like you than assholes like him."

Isabella gave a calm nod at that.

"Agreed." Seems like trusting the Servant was the right call. "Could you imagine that? A world full of morons like him? I would rather have a zombie breakout than that." She said on a cheerful tone.

"If you want, I can help train you. I helped my master learn after the war, and now she's one of the most powerful magi around."

Blue eyes stared in Rider's direction with surprise.

"Excuse-me but you don't look like a Caster." She hesitated an instant. "Did something happened to your Master?" It may have been the reason the woman had to give chase to others in order to gather some prana. She didn't want to pry too much into privacy but it sure would help if they could contact the Master. Servants were supposed to get energy from their Masters, after all. If she was in danger, maybe helping the Master would solve the problem of prana for the Servant.

"Is everyone okay?"

Isabella jumped literally when words cut her thoughts.

It was the psychic lady. Isabella didn't notice her approach. She wanted to answer when the blond man decided to take control of the situation. His outfit had obviously known better days and was a bit too large for him. He gave some sort of advice and turned to the magus killer.

"And as for you Shirou, if you did try and kill that girl Kiritsugu says I have to punch the stupid out of you and grandpa is not someone I intend to disappoint."

What?

This guy is the son of Emiya Shirou? Now that she looked carefully, there were similarities. However there was a more pressing matter.

"I don't think threatening him with a punch will help, no matter who you are." She let out loud enough for the guy to hear her.

Isabella wouldn't bet on the likeliness of Shirou stepping down with that.

[Cherry Lover]

So she is alone, Kiyoshi thought after the girl responded to him, before backing her wheelchair up, and preparing to leave, clearly putting her politeness first.

Sure, she claimed to be fine, but she was only eight. He couldn't just leave her alone, and he didn't know if anyone else in the hotel would be willing to help her. Indeed, they might even hurt her. This town didn't seem like the sort of place where a wheelchair-bound eight-year-old would be safe, even indoors. Worried about her well-being, he desperately looked for an excuse to stop her from leaving.

"No, it's OK, I'm sure my Aunt has just gone out to help someone. It's better if I wait here for her to come back, otherwise she'll just go out looking for me again. Please, stay here. This town isn't safe, especially for a defenceless young girl", he said, politely and calmly, trying as hard as he could not to startle her.

Whilst he was mainly saying it to stop the girl walking away out of politeness, what he said did actually make sense, now he thought about it. Aunty Rider would expect him to be here, and if he went searching for her they could miss each other.  And, the companionship of the girl would also be welcome. This was a strange town, and having someone of his own age who he could talk to would make it seem a little less scary.

Most of all, though, he just wanted to help her. Aside from his usual nature, he felt strangely protective of this girl, perhaps because she reminded him somewhat of his father. He simply couldn't bear the thought of her being left alone with no-one she could trust. Particularly if, as it seemed, she had no family to rely on. Alone in this town, she wouldn't stand a chance, but with his magic and, eventually, Aunty Rider's power, they could protect her.

"Look, I might not look like it, but I'm actually a magus. And, my Aunt is an extremely powerful...."

He paused for a moment, thinking how best to describe his Aunt. She likely wouldn't understand what a "servant" was, but telling the truth might scare her. Eventually, he decided to just leave it ambiguous for now.

"Well, she's extremely powerful, well beyond any modern human. As long as she's around you'll be safe from harm."

[lantzblades]

Taiga didn't know exactly who this boy was but calling himself a magus and using terms like modern human were not a good sign. Deciding to feign ignorance as she usually did Taiga replied softly. "do you and your aunt play one of those. MMORPG's?"

[Alice]

Hakuno was a bit startled as Rider jumped down right next to her. However, the beautiful Servant didn't seem to bear her any ill will, so she calmed back down pretty quickly. The bespectacled woman spoke to Hakuno softly as she got a bit closer to the exhausted teenager.

"No, I don't want to fight, and nor am I going to steal your prana. I'm sorry for attacking you, but I need to be able to protect my master's son, and for that I need prana."

Prana? That must have been the energy I felt. Given how exhausted I feel, it must be associated pretty closely with my stamina as well. Archer needed something like that too I think, when he was badly injured. That means... Servants need Prana to survive...

Hakuno turned to the lavender haired beauty and smiled. "I understand, it's OK. Sometimes people will do things that are questionable for the sake of protecting someone they really care about. Besides, I only got jostled a bit, and everything turned out fine in the end."

Not that I liked what you did with my breasts, but... in the scheme of things, it's something minor. You still seem like you can be quite nice when you're not angry or in need of sustenance, so I'm more than willing to let that slide.  

Hakuno felt herself falling back a bit still, even while the black haired girl still kindly held her hand, but she felt Rider steady her before she could fall. She smiled back at the Servant, grateful.

Like this, this is really nice of her. Maybe she's just scary when she's stressed, and the breast thing was just a result of-

"But, you know, there are more pleasurable ways of transferring prana, if you're interested. Since I hurt you, I'll even let you punish me. You can do whatever.. you.. like.." The Servant leaned down to whisper this in her ear, the sound of longing in her voice, the final words nearly sung with pleasure. Hakuno swallowed, her cheeks a bit flushed.

...Never mind. This kept happening in the Moon Cell too. Do I just naturally attract women like this? Still... as much as she seems to want me, she still seems nice. ...Just a bit scary sometimes.

As for the prana thing... somehow I get the impression that she wants more than prana from me. But I feel bad for Forest having to cover for me. If I could lessen what she'd have to do if nothing else- i-it'd just be like a kiss or something, right? Just like Kiara did that one time, to transmit that program? Nothing further than that, is it? 

But Hakuno was distracted from her thoughts by the sound of Forest's voice. The distraction was a bit welcome. "Are you okay, Poppet?" The teenager looked up at her, and nodded. "I'm OK, just a bit worn out and scratched up, otherwise I'm fine."

As Forest asked around to see if everyone else was alright, Hakuno was then addressed by the girl from before, still holding her hand, her expression gentle.

"You shouldn't let it get to you. What that jerk said, I mean." There was determination in the girl's eyes as she continued on, her voice filled with resolve.
"You're not trash. In fact, the shield you cast was high tier, albeit a bit unstable, but still pretty powerful. I would say you have great potential, all you need is practice and a good teacher. You can only do with the tools at hand at a particular moment. You were alone and attacked, yet you survived. That's a victory in itself and will help you improve."

While the jerk mercenary's words hadn't bothered terribly beyond reminding her of her helplessness, the young magus's words cheered Hakuno some, and filled her with some hope. If that was true, then even if she was weak now, with some training she could stand on her own two feet. Even if she suspected there would be times that she'd still not be strong enough and would have to depend on Archer, the thought of having the chance to not burden and even fight alongside her Servant beyond just throwing support his way filled her with determination.

The girl continued, giving Hakuno a genuine smile.

"Besides, rating people based on sheer power is dumb. There are as many possibilities as there are people. Being talented doesn't place you above others, since they surely do something better than you in another domain. That's why people are interesting and that's the reason we should help each other as much as possible. If you look at it that way, there are no more weaknesses, no more discrimination. Everyone's equal."

Then the girl proceeded to cast a spell, and while Hakuno didn't feel any less tired, or feel her Prana replenish so she could use the shield immediately again, she did feel some strength return to her, which made her more steady on her feet. As the girl worked, Rider took the opportunity to speak.

"Honestly, you're worth a thousand times what that idiot is. You know, you remind me of my master, in a way. You're a very strong girl, emotionally and magically. But, most importantly, you seem like a good person, with a good heart. Even if you were completely powerless, I would rather the world be full of kind and determined people like you than assholes like him." The Servant paused for a moment. "If you want, I can help train you. I helped my master learn after the war, and now she's one of the most powerful magi around."

Hakuno couldn't help but smile at the kindness she was being shown.

Plus it shows just how nice Rider can be. Though all this flip-flopping from really nice to really scary... it's giving me a bit of emotional whiplash.

She looked to them both, grateful. "Thank you very much, both of you." She addressed them each individually. "And thank you for healing me, I appreciate it." She turned back to Rider. "And thank you for the offer to train me, I may take you up on it. Oh! And thank you for saving me earlier." She would have thanked Forest as well, but she seemed a bit busy checking on everyone. Hakuno made a mental note to do so later, if she ever got the chance.

The young Magus finished with her spell, seeming to be satisfied with her work. "Here, it should help you a bit. The mark will only last for few seconds, don't worry.  Though, if my sister were here, she could treat the bruises, afraid I don't possess that skill. See? Good example to what I said earlier." She said the last part with a wink, which got a bigger smile out of Hakuno.

In response to what Hakuno had said about Rider, the girl chuckled, but seemed pleasant enough about it. "Couldn't imagine you were attacked by her earlier. I like that part of you."

In response to what Hakuno had said about Shirou, the young Magus looked back at the mysterious young man. "Yeah, not sure it'll be easy though. He's the Second Magus Killer for a reason. Even with the psychopath gone, there is no guarantee he will let us go."

Hakuno's eyes widened. The Second... Magus Killer?! Within Hakuno's heart there was no doubt- even if they shared similar appearances, or even the same name, there was no way that this person was her Archer. There was enough strangeness going on that Hakuno suspected there had to be something else going on. Everyone seemed to be from different places, similar, but not quite connected to each other... Was it possible that this Shirou was simply from some sort of different timeline?

Thinking back, while she hadn't been paying close attention due to the circumstances, Rider seemed to recognize him, and also seemed shocked at his actions. So then... yes, that had to be it. Something went wrong in this Shirou's past, something to make him different from Archer. Archer... the more she thought on this, the more Hakuno wished that her Servant would return to her side. Despite all the warmth she'd been shown by these nice women, it still didn't feel quite right without him.

Hakuno's attention was brought back to the young magus girl as she turned back to her.  "I don't know about that Servant, but I'll trust your judgment for now. Which leaves these two. If we can talk them down, we're good. " She indicated Shirou and another man that Hakuno just now noticed, who had yet to introduce himself. Visibly a bit nervous now, but like Hakuno herself, still trying to stay strong regardless, she introduced herself.

"I'm Isabella Rizzi; friends call me Isa, so please call me that."

Feeling sympathetic towards Isa for feeling what she herself felt to an extent, the teenager gladly introduced herself in exchange. She smiled warmly as she spoke, hoping to bring her new friend some comfort. "Isa's a pretty name. It's nice to meet you too! I'm Kishinami Hakuno. Most people just call me Hakuno, but if you have a nickname for me, that's fine too."

To Hakuno's surprise, she noticed Shirou making his blades vanish as he introduced himself as well.

"Judging by your actions, most of you know me, but I'll introduce myself anyway. I'm Emiya Shirou. Now, what are we gonna do about this situation?"

Funny that you're taking that attitude, given that you tried to bury a bullet in my brain not too long ago.

Still, even if she was far less inclined to do so with him than she was with Rider, Hakuno still was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for now, especially if it meant that the conflict would end at last.

As Rider now formally introduced herself as well, Hakuno closed her eyes, quietly praying that this nightmare was over at last.

***

While preparing to leave, the duo of Archer and Rin was still somewhat hesitant due to a certain... grim display, from the small familiar they were leaving behind. But from the shadows Lancer revealed himself, addressing the two with a nod. "Go, I'll take care of the lad."

Rin sighed with relief, looking back at the Servant holding her, who also seemed a bit less tense. With a shout of gratitude from Rin and a nod from Archer, the pair took off once again, heading for their destination with all the speed they could manage.

The pair at last arrived on a rooftop overlooking what seemed to be the remnants of a somewhat messy and large confrontation. A number of figures stood gathered below, most of them gathered around a teenaged girl with brown hair.

Archer observed with a significant amount of relief that the girl was Hakuno, who was from what he could tell from this distance a bit battered, but still alive and well. 

"The brunette girl... is that your new master?"

Archer nodded, almost smiling a genuine smile. "Yes, she is. I was worried we wouldn't be able to reach her in time, but she seems to be alright."

Rin couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy at Archer's reaction. Still, she couldn't help but be a bit happy too. Their mission was almost accomplished. She turned to her former Servant, her expression curious. "What's her name?"

Still looking down at the crowd below, he answered, "Kishinami Hakuno." The bowman's expression was now a bit of a frown as he looked at some of the other people in the crowd. "Rider, from the 5th War- she's there too." 

Rin looked down after him, her eyes widening. "That is her! And-" Rin's eyes widened further. "That- it can't be..."

Archer's eyes narrowed and his voice darkened. "Emiya Shirou. Not the one we knew for certain, as he seems a bit older... Plus something seems a bit off with him..."

Archer looked away from this potential past self and back at the rest of the crowd below. "Anyone else you recognize?" While Archer couldn't recognize anyone else really, from what he could tell, the tall blonde woman was likely a vampire. He found that quite intriguing. Judging from the looks of everyone else, she was also the most likely one to be Lancer's landlady Fore. A vampire landlady huh? Interesting... 

Archer turned back to Rin to see what her response was, but she shook her head. "The young girl looking after Kishinami-chan I think I recognize from the Clock Tower, only when I saw her last, she was younger. Other than that, I don't really see anyone I recognize." Rin frowned as she gazed at a blonde man in the crowd, however. "...Is that guy wearing your outfit?"

Archer took a look for himself. "So he is. Heh, didn't think it'd catch on quite that fast. Still, given where are, there could be any number of explanations."

Rin nodded. She gestured to the figures below. "Things seem pretty calm now from what I can tell. Should we go down there?"

Archer contemplated for a bit. While he was a bit concerned that having them enter so suddenly might stir things up again, Rin was certainly right about it seeming much calmer now, and since the majority of those present seemed concerned for his Master's welfare... well, as long as they announced themselves, they should hopefully be fine.

Archer nodded, and took Rin into his arms once more. Rin braced herself for impact as the Servant jumped off the rooftop all the way to the ground. Girl in tow or not, he still managed to land a bit hard but gracefully, straightening himself and allowing Rin to gently drop onto the ground.

Rin placed her hands up in supplication. "We're not here to fight, we're just here for Kishinami-chan!"

Hakuno, in response to her name, looked up at the two new arrivals. Rin? She's here too? And-

"Master, are you alright?" The Servant's steel grey eyes met the soft brown ones of his Master- however, there was a softness to them as he laid eyes on her once more.

Hakuno gazed right back, a jubilant smile crossing her face as she caught sight of her dear partner. "Archer!" She ran straight up to him, but stopped and crossed her arms over her chest, her expression changing to a bit of a pout. "Where've you been?"   

He gave her his trademark exasperated smirk. But there was a heaviness behind it that showed more than a hint of guilt. "Believe me, I've been rushing to get here ever since I first found myself here. Unfortunately there were a few delays. See, there was Lancer, and also this somewhat masochistic famili-"

But Archer was cut off in mid-sentence, the rest of his words being replaced by a bit of a grunt as his Master seemed to almost tackle him, before wrapping her arms around his waist and squeezing, her face buried into his abdomen. He could feel a bit of moisture in that area, and realizing what was going on, gently wrapped one of his own arms around her.

He could barely hear it even with his enhanced senses, as her words were somewhat muffled by her position, but she said, softly, "please don't leave me again."

His eyes softened even more, the fingers of his free hand gently moving through her hair. He leaned down a bit more so he was closer to her. Softly, he whispered, "I swear on my life I won't leave your side again so long as that's what you desire as my Master. I'll do everything in my power to ensure this never happens again."

Hakuno sniffled a bit as she looked up into her Servant's eyes. "Y-you don't have to take it so seriously you know. Even if you can't always be here or make it here on time, I know you're doing your best."

"Even so... this is one promise I intend to keep."

Rin couldn't help but look on at this display and feel what she'd felt on the rooftop again. Only this was worse. It almost hurt even. She'd never seen Archer be this gentle or compassionate with someone before... not even with herself. She attempted to suppress those feelings, telling herself that they were useless to a magus of her talent. Still... the loneliness she had felt before seeing Archer again seemed to intensify just a little bit...

The embracing pair suddenly realized that they had an audience. Archer blushed just a bit as Hakuno let go, quickly drying her eyes and trying to mask her brief moment of upset as she turned back to face the group. She too blushed just a bit, more than a bit embarrassed after being so successful with putting up a brave face for everyone. She still stayed close to her Servant, however, grateful to be in his presence once more.

Trying to stop himself from blushing, the Servant addressed the group before him. "Ahem... First of all, could any of you tell me which one of you is Fore? I need to speak with her briefly if possible."

Hakuno tugged on his sleeve and gestured towards the vampire. "You mean Forest? That's her over there."

Archer turned towards Forest. So I was right, Archer thought, allowing himself a bit of smug satisfaction at his correct deduction. He calmly looked her in the eyes as he addressed her. "So you're Lancer's landlady, huh? He's on his way, but he had to stop and take care of something first."

Archer took a quick look around the area again, noting that there was unnatural damage to the pavement and other signs of battle strewn about. With a sigh, he addressed the crowd at large. "Anyone care to tell me what exactly happened here? While I doubt this alleyway was particularly charming to look at to begin with, it looks like an absolute mess now."

[Cherry Lover]

That's odd.

Whilst the girl obviously wasn't aware of magecraft, Kiyoshi couldn't understand how the girl had managed to come to the conclusion that he was talking about a game. Why would he be bragging about his prowess in a game in order to show that he could protect her? True, she was only young but, even so, her response implied she was somewhat lacking in intelligence or common sense, not to mention extremely innocent.

There's no way someone that innocent could survive here. I need to convince her to let me protect her.

"No, I mean I can do real magic. Not the tricks you see on TV, but actual real magic, like Harry Potter or Merlin.

As for my Aunty Rider, well, she's a mythological being, and my mother's familiar. She was summoned over thirty years ago, and she's been protecting us all that time."

Aware that the girl was still somewhat apprehensive, Kiyoshi explained his past, and that of his Aunt, as gently as possible, being careful to avoid anything that might upset her, like explaining the Grail War. Even he didn't know the full details just yet, his mother and father saying they would explain when he was a bit older. What he did know, though, made it obvious that it wasn't particularly pleasant.

Still, he knew that words probably wouldn't be enough. He needed a demonstration. The question was what.

Normally, he'd just pull his swords out of thin air. But, given the girl's current wariness, he was worried that doing so might frighten her to the point that she would leave. However, unfortunately, he didn't really have anything else he could do. Unsure what to do, he looked around for a bit, and spotted Kuro getting out of the bed he had been tucked into and walking towards him.

Of course!

Nothing said that it had to be his magic.

"Kuro, come here!" he said, tapping on his shoulder.

The little familiar, only a foot high, quickly approached him, before climbing up his body and perching on the shoulder he had tapped.

"This is my pet, Kuro. My mother made him for me using her magic."

Then, he addressed the familiar.

"Kuro, give the girl a wave."

As instructed, the little shadow familiar raised his giant arm up until it was slightly above his head, and then gently waved his hand in the direction of the girl.

[Daiki]

A modest pub in one of the most infamous streets in town, itself lost in the depths of a district long discarded by law enforcers. The place was filled with the worst kind of scums you could find, murderers, rapists, slavers, terrorists... It reeked of alcohol, tobacco, sweat and remnants of blood. A paradise for mercenaries as the owner also was the middleman dealing with the bigger contracts around.

It's in this shady place, under a buzzing bulb barely giving any light, seemingly about to die out, that the two men were exchanging words. Both were sitting at the table, each savoring his own drink with more of less moderation.

Larger and taller than his interlocutor, Touzaki Shuya gave an appreciative grin when tasting the mead. He had removed his vest and everyone could see in details the solid build barely kept in check by his sleeveless t-shirt. But most people were uneasy since his stump was clearly exposed to anyone present. A self-inflicted wound which gave birth through a long and refined process to the large and solid katana sheathed by his side. The weapon was fitting its wielder, truly an extension of himself, in more than one way.

"Not bad". He said, filling his own glass with the brown liquor. "That's at least one thing this place can offer."

The man facing him, emitted an amused sound. Not particularly handsome, especially in comparison to the wild charm the half-demon exuded,  his face hidden behind a pair of sunglasses and a genuine smile. The man was dressed up for what looked like an important meeting, his gray tuxedo attracting the eyes more than Shuya's missing limb. The man was playing with the liquid poured in his glass as if trying to perceive its secrets.

"You seem bitter, hybrid." His tone was measured, having a drop of joy, yet not to the point to be insulting. "Did something happen to darken your mood?" The mockery was obvious in the last one but the mercenary didn't pick on that.

Shuya gulped down and let slip a grimace as he remembered what happened earlier.

"Just something I'll take care of later." He answered darkly. "More importantly, what do you want of me, Valken?"

The other man became serious all of the suddenly, a strange contrast with his previous behavior. Getting up, he walked up to the battered jukebox sitting not too far from the table, inserted money and set a bunch of songs to play. As he sit back, his smile returned.

"Yeah let's talk business now." He provided an envelop which Shuya grabbed at once. "I would like you to find this one and deliver it to the place mentioned here, in two days from now on."

Shuya looked at both the photo and the sheet of paper detailing an address. After a second, his eyes darted at Valken in a suspicious pattern.

"You cunning fox, observing me all that time..." He grinned like a devil. "What do you plan to do?" His voice low, telling to not joke about it.

Valken's answer came on a neutral tone.

"Can't tell something about that, only the middleman, as you know."

The mixed blood let his gaze wander over his drinking companion's face for a bit.

"Won't be easy. How much do I get out of it?" He asked with greed.

Valken shrugged apparently amused.

"How much do you want?"

"Don't care about money."

"What do you want, then?"

"Gimme a worthy opponent."

Valken emptied slowly his glass before throwing Shuya a glance as he stood up, preparing to leave.

"In that case, you won't have to search far. Partner's pretty strong."

The half-demon stood up quickly and looked at the man with a threatening aura.

"If you lie, I'll find you, you know it."

Even werewolves would have been scared by the murderous intent but Valken let it slide on him like water.

"I'm not lying."

Shuya let out a curt laugh.

"Then you got a deal."

[lantzblades]

Taiga listened intently to Kiyoshi and smiled politely as her mind worked to add up the information. Kiyoshi was from another reality, one where her father was not with her mother and while she would not fault Kiyoshi for it the idea was unnatural and in some way a betrayal. She of course saw with her radar like sense the familiar Kiyoshi was talking about but magic was a secret as far as she was concerned  so her reply was obvious.

"I'm afraid kuro's trick is lost on me Kiyoshi as I cannot see your pet, or anything else for that matter"

[OPOI]

Shirou snorted slightly as he listened to Rider's excuse for her actions. Prana to protect a son which didn't exist. The Servant was clearly sugar coating her words, manipulating everyone so that he became the enemy, after it became abundantly clear that he would not fall for her machinations. He opened his mouth to start a tirade on exactly how the Servant had been planning to take said prana and the falseness of her goals, only for those words to die as he spotted a pair of spectators literally jumping off the roof of a nearby building.

What the hell was going on in this town?

This thought raced through Shirou's head as he tracked the duo's descent into the alley. A very familiar duo, both if whom, like Rider should have been dead. There was no mistaking the distinctive red clothing, the trademark hairstyles: black twin tails and swept back silver hair not unlike his own. Nor that surge of inexplicable hatred as he watched the Servant lower the girl to he ground.

Tohsaka Rin and Archer. Shirou groaned slightly, massaging the side of his head as he tried his best to comprehend the situation. Whilst it was possible for Archer to have been re-summoned by another Master like Rider had been, Tohsaka Rin was dead. He had held her in his arms as she bled to death from a knife wound to her stomach, trying his best to make her passing gentle and I eventful as the impossibly kind girl deserved. And yet here she was, in the flesh, wearing her trademark red T-shirt, impossibly short skirt, her raven hair in rather girlish twin tails; smiling somewhat sardonically at everyone around her.

What was happening? Were the ghosts of his past rising up to haunt him?

Would she be here as well?

His thought was interrupted as the brown haired girl, Hakuno, he believed; diving into the arms of Archer, the Servant holding her close with clear affection written on his face. To the side, Tohsaka watched uncomfortably, her eyes full of sadness and a hint of...jealousy? Could it be that Tohsaka wasn't Archer's master? Was it instead...Hakuno?

Maybe he should have tried harder to eliminate her, but deep down, past the cd logical shell he had built around himself, he knew he wouldn't have forgiven himself for trying so hard to kill a seemingly innocent girl.

Suddenly, the pair broke off their embrace, seemingly embarrassed at their boldness. It reminded him of a pair of love struck teenagers, and frankly, it was a heart-warming thing to watch. Even if shoed him of what he sacrificed and denied to those unlucky enough to get caught in the cross-fire, cliched as it was, such simple acts, even amongst enemies, reminded Shirou of what it was he fought for, why he still ultimately had faith in humanity.

Archer, cheeks still slightly red and voice slightly sheepish, having finished his business with Hakuno and the vampire,  asked a question that Shirou, despite being a participant, also wanted to know the answer to, "Anyone care to tell me what exactly happened here? While I doubt this alleyway was particularly charming to look at to begin with, it looks like an absolute mess now."

How had he termed it? Clusterfuck was insufficient...

"Well...it's a bit hard to explain..."

Can't give an abridged version, going to have to start from the beginning.

"Let's just say your Master was attacked by Rider, then stopped by the vampire over there. I...misinterpreted the situation, and attempted to save her in the most painless and least damaging way from what I perceived to be a bloodthirsty vampire and a soul-eating Servant. Let's just say it snowballed from there..." Shirou said, scratching his head slightly, ignoring the growing urge to hurl insults in Archer's direction, an itch which grew the linger he stayed in his future self's company. It would not do to aggravate the Servant...yet. Though Shirou highly doubted Archer would be pleased that he had tried to shoot Hakuno, if his memory was correct, the Servant had practically bragged to have done the same acts. He should understand.

[Cherry Lover]

Rider smiled as the girl showed great understanding of her situation, and then blushed luminescently as Rider propositioned her. She was just too cute, especially when teased, and really nice. Not to mention hot. Rider felt that she just had to have her. At the same time, though, this wasn't someone she wanted to take by force, not after the kindness and understanding she'd displayed. No, this girl would give herself to Rider willingly and freely, and Rider would make sure to give her much pleasure in return.

Then, the younger black-haired girl piped up, cheerfully.

"Agreed. Could you imagine that? A world full of morons like him? I would rather have a zombie breakout than that."

Rider's response, though, was less cheerful. She knew all-too-well what it was like to live with people like that.

"I can't only imagine it, I've lived in such a world. I've seen the very same people revered as heroes for murdering people on the whims of the gods. I've seen 'hero' after 'hero' come seeking out me and my sisters even as we lived in seclusion on our island, just to claim the glory and spoils of defeating us. I killed every single one to protect my sisters, until I eventually turned into a real monster", Rider responded, the anger and bitterness clear in her voice.

Then, the young girl continued.

"Excuse-me but you don't look like a Caster", she said. That was followed by an uncertain pause and then "Did something happen to your Master?"

"I am not a Caster, no, but in my time knowledge of magic was normal even for people who didn't specialise in it. I am no expert, but I can at least teach her the basics", Rider responded.

Then, her face became much more serious. Whilst Sakura was safe right now, probably more so than she would be here, she was almost certainly going to be extremely distressed when she found out what had happened to her son, and Sakura being distressed wasn't something Rider liked to see.

"As for my master, well at this precise moment she's either making love to her husband, frantically searching for a way to rescue her son or telling off her sister for screwing up and sending us here in the first place. It depends if they've got word to her yet.

She'll probably find a way to this world eventually, her sister does possess the ability to traverse dimensions, and nothing will stand in the way of her protecting her children. But, until she does, I'm without a prana source, and I can't trust anyone else to release me from any contract I might make when she does arrive. And, this place is too dangerous to leave her little boy unprotected. She would never recover if any harm came to him. So, I need prana."

Rider had, of course, worked out what the girl's real motives were. Finding her master meant finding her a prana supply, and then she wouldn't need to attack girls like the one standing next to her. Not that Rider objected to that, she would rather not harm people if she could avoid it.

Then, the girl she had attacked and then saved piped up, clearly grateful for all the help she had received.

"And thank you for the offer to train me, I may take you up on it. Oh! And thank you for saving me earlier", she said.

Hearing that, Rider smiled. She would dearly like to help the girl. And, besides, the closer she got, the more chance there was of wooing her. Perhaps she could even build it into her training....

"Well, I don't like seeing innocent people die needlessly, especially not cute girls like you", Rider said playfully. "And I'm sure training you will be quite enjoyable, and you really do deserve help to defend yourself."

Then, after Rider and the black-haired girl she now knew to be called Isa had introduced theirselves, the girl she had taken an interest in returned the favour.

"Isa's a pretty name. It's nice to meet you too! I'm Kishinami Hakuno. Most people just call me Hakuno, but if you have a nickname for me, that's fine too", she said.

Aww, what a nice name.

"Hakuno is a pretty name too, you know. Perfect for a pretty girl like you...", Rider said, practically purring with attraction for the girl.

Then, Forest spoke up.

"Are you okay, Poppet?", she said to Hakuno, before looking at everyone else and asking the same question of them.

Yeah, that seems about right for her, always worried about others first. Just like Shirou....

"I'm fine, thanks. I do need a prana supply, though, if you're still offering."

Whilst Rider would dearly love to have Hakuno supply her with prana, in the absense of any willingness on Hakuno's part Forest was a more-than-adequate short-term solution to her prana issues. She was still an extremely beautiful woman, after all, even if she lacked the innocence that Rider found so endearing in the younger girl. And, she seemed like she would be willing to do almost anything if it meant ensuring that no-one would come to harm, which Rider hoped would include indulging her kinks, at least somewhat....

Suddenly, the man who had offered her help previously jumped from the roof. Now she saw him in more detail, she could clearly see that he was wearing an outfit identical to the one Archer wore, only it was clearly too large for him, and it was also clearly very old and worn. Further, he seemed to have an exact copy of her mask tied around his right arm.

How odd.

For a moment, she considered the possibility that the mask was some sort of "trophy" he had taken from a version of her that he'd killed, but she quickly dismissed that concept. For one thing, the way he'd acted towards her had been the way one would act towards an ally or friend, not an enemy. And, in any case, if she died her mask would quickly vanish, since it was, like everything she was summoned with, created and sustained using her prana.

But, even if he was friendly, he was a real enigma. He clearly knew both her and Archer, and he also bore a strong resemblance to Shirou in many ways, suggesting that he was Shirou's child. But, at the same time, he bore no resemblance to the woman Shirou was utterly devoted to. Further, even in the unlikely circumstance that Shirou fell in love with someone other than Sakura, there was no-one that she knew who could bear Shirou a blonde-haired child.

"Miss, next time you use T.P.C. Please aim instead of the wide broadcast. And as for you Shirou, if you did try and kill that girl Kiritsugu says I have to punch the stupid out of you and grandpa is not someone I intend to disappoint", the boy said.

Wait, what?

The boy's words confirmed what she had already expected, that he was Shirou's son. But, the mention of Shirou's adoptive father was very odd indeed. As far as she knew, the man had died a good five years before the Grail War, of some uncurable disease, seemingly somehow related to the Grail War he had fought in. And, yet, here was Shirou's adult son referring to him in the present tense, having taken advice from him. Good advice, admittedly, but nevertheless it was advice from a ghost.

Clearly the world in which he lived was very different from her own. But, even so, the fact that he knew both her and Archer implied that there had still been a Grail War, which both of them had survived. And that, in turn, implied that their masters must have survived the war, and still be alive. Further, she suspected it was unlikely that she would be alive and on good terms with Shirou's offspring if Sakura herself was not free from Zouken's control, happy and, if not Shirou's lover, at least important to him, as she was prior to the Grail War. That thought at least gave her some comfort, although she couldn't understand how such a scenario could arise.

Plus, the man seems sensible, judging by his comments to the asshole Shirou over there, which means his father is probably sensible too.

Overall, this was a man she could definitely work with. Plus, being Shirou's son, she couldn't help but find him rather attractive, although she wasn't besotted as she was with Hakuno.

Before she could respond to him, though, Isa replied to his previous comment.

"I don't think threatening him with a punch will help, no matter who you are."

Well, yes, true, she thought.

Whilst this Shirou did seem like somewhat of an asshole, she was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for the moment, if only to ensure the peace was kept. Things seemed to be settling down here, and the absolute last thing she wanted was a fight.

Then, suddenly, she saw a familiar red knight jumping off the rooftop, carrying a far more familiar young twin-tailed girl with a far-too-short skirt, black thigh-high socks and just the right amount of deliciously exposed leg.

Rin?

Rider wondered where she had come from. Unless something very odd was happening she couldn't be Archer's master, since Hakuno had already admitted to such. Which meant she was here from yet another different world. All she could hope was it was one in which her relationship with Sakura and Rider was good....

Archer landed, gracefully if a little hard, next to his apparent new master, before gently dropping Rin to the ground. Apparently, even a change of master didn't get rid of his feelings for Rin entirely, although that wasn't overly surprising given that he had known her in life.

Oddly enough, Rin was the first one to speak. Using the universal sign for 'we don't mean any trouble', she put her hands up and said "We're not here to fight, we're just here for Kishinami-chan!"

At that, Rider saw Hakuno look up. Oddly enough, there seemed to be some hint of recognition when she saw Rin, as if they'd met before. Which, again, was somewhat bizarre, since she had never seen the girl before, and if she were Rin's friend Rider would surely have noticed her at some point.

Then, Archer finally spoke, causing Hakuno to look towards him.

As Hakuno's eyes met those of her servant and she ran towards him, clearly delighted at his arrival, Rider's heart sank somewhat. The girl clearly loved her servant deeply, and she knew it would be very difficult for her to get past that. And, whilst she wouldn't be entirely adverse to a threesome, she doubted that either of them would be interested. Not that she would give up on the girl, but her chances seemed somewhat remote. She could see in the girl's words and emotions how much she adored and needed her servant. He was to her what Shirou was to Sakura. Her protector and, likely, lover, someone she could never bear to be without. Even so, though, she couldn't help but feel happy for the girl. After all she'd been through she deserved something good to happen. Plus, the way she softly asked him to never leave her was just adorable.

However, even as the master and servant shared an emotional reunion, Rider also found herself feeling somewhat sorry for Rin. She knew the girl's attachment to Archer, and she could see the jealousy and loneliness in Rin's eyes. Hopefully, she would be able to help ease that pain somewhat, and get some hot sex into the bargain. Rider had always found her master's sister exceptionally attractive and, to her delight, the feeling had been mutual. Whilst their mutual devotion to Sakura had prevented them from ever forming a serious relationship, there had been a large number of usually-drunken sexual encounters and, for a while at least, they had agreed to be "friends with benefits", which suited Rider just fine. Even better, it had turned out that Rin was a surprisingly kinky girl, quite happy to play along with Rider's games as long as she wasn't expected to submit to anything too extreme.

Rider's feelings towards Rin right now were decidely mixed. On one hand, she was her master's beloved sister, and a good friend and sometimes lover to Rider herself. But, on the other hand, an alternate version of her was responsible for them being in this mess in the first place. Right now, though, Rider was feeling somewhat lustful and, that, combined with the anger with Rin, her general sexiness and that ludicrously short skirt made Rider think she would rather like to bend Rin over her knee and give her a very hard spanking....

Yes, that would be fun. But, how do I get Rin to agree?

Rider knew Rin was very definitely bisexual in nature, but that didn't mean she would just jump into bed with every woman she met. She suspected a lot would hinge on where this Rin was from. For all she knew it could be a version of Rin that had actually murdered her sister. Although, if so, at least Rider would be able to torture her to her heart's content without any guilt....

Meanwhile, she heard Archer discussing Forest. Mostly, it wasn't of much interest to her, but the fact that she had a lodger called "Lancer" did catch Rider's ear.

What, yet another servant?

Hopefully, it wouldn't be that idiot knight that she had briefly fought in the War. Whilst she never had much chance to get know him before he was, presumably, eaten alive by Sakura's shadow, from what she had seen he was someone who lived to fight, rather like the asshole she had fought before. Admittedly, he had shown considerably less malice about it than the asshole had, but he was still someone who would seek out a fight for the sake of it, and that wasn't generally a good thing. Plus, he had apparently attempted to murder Shirou (who as far as he had been aware had been an entirely defenceless schoolboy) in cold blood solely to "uphold the rules", which was possibly the stupidest reason for committing murder she could imagine.

Then, Archer looked around the alley and, seeing the devestation their fight had caused, asked "Anyone care to tell me what exactly happened here? While I doubt this alleyway was particularly charming to look at to begin with, it looks like an absolute mess now."

Oh, shit.

Whilst Hakuno had forgiven her for the initial attack, she wasn't sure Archer would be so reasonable. She needed to be very careful about how she explained things.

Hmm, what should I say?

However, before she could come up with an answer, the worst possible person decided to pipe up.

"Let's just say your Master was attacked by Rider, then stopped by the vampire over there. I...misinterpreted the situation, and attempted to save her in the most painless and least damaging way from what I perceived to be a bloodthirsty vampire and a soul-eating Servant. Let's just say it snowballed from there..."

Hearing the way he twisted the truth to his own ends, Rider's face contorted with rage.

"What do you mean you attempted to save her? You tried to put a bullet in her head. If you were so determined to save her as you claim, why didn't you attack what you percieved as the actual threats, rather than the innocent victim? That's what a real hero would do, what the Shirou I know would have done.

But, no, not you. You didn't even attempt to save the girl, your very first act was to try to put a bullet in her head. Even if we had been what you thought we were she was not going to die immediately. But, you knew that if we did fight there could be massive destruction, and you tried to prevent it in the most efficient way you know, which was to attempt to take out the source of conflict. The fact that that source was a human being didn't seem to factor into your thoughts one bit. She was just a number to you, nothing more.

And, to top it off, you have the gall to twist the truth to try to turn her servant on the very person who saved her. The only person here who ever had any designs on her life is you. All I wanted was to take a bit of her prana, I had no intention of killing the poor girl."

Then, she turned to the blonde boy.

"Whilst you're obviously from a world very different to my own and I can't work out who your mother could possibly be, you're still Shirou's son, and you seem to have your head screwed on right unlike that idiot over there. If you need help in 'punching the stupid' out of him, I'll be more than happy to join you."

Rider, still seething with rage, looked towards Rin, picturing all the kinky games they had once played in her mind. Imagining her master's beautiful sister being spanked and tormented aroused her and calmed her down somewhat, and she composed herself.

"OK, look, perhaps I was a bit hasty there. Right now I don't have a master in this world, so I would rather avoid a fight if possible. If one is necessary, though, I will happily help you beat down that asshole. One thing I do want to know, though, is how you came to be. You're obviously Shirou's son, but you don't look like Sakura. Yet, the way you talk to me implies she is alive and well in your time. I don't understand how that can be. Those two are made for each other, yet in your time they seem to be good friends and nothing more. I just don't understand it...."

Then, she turned to Rin.

"And, honestly, I would like to know more about you, too. Is your sister safe and happy in your time? And, am I still around?"

She knew she needed more information before she could judge this Rin properly. After seeing what Shirou had become she couldn't just blindly accept she was the same as her Rin. Particularly since even Rin herself had very remorsefully admitted that only Shirou had prevented her from murdering her sister several times during the Grail War. A slight change in history could have very easily led her down that path.

Even so, she couldn't resist a little teasing.

"And, you know, Rin, if you want 'comforting', I'll be more than happy to provide it", she said with a wink.

[Elf]

"What is a Landlady? Is it like Uuoruuocon Master?"

Lancer tilted his head and said, "Uuoruuocon eh?  Well that's a bloody mouthful.  Let's just call you Ruu for short then.  People call me Lancer."

The Celt then laughed and said, "Nah, Fore's not my Master.  As fond as I am of her, I wouldn't want her my Master even if I was a Servant.  She gives me a place to stay, a roof over my head and all the spirits a man could ask for.  So, you could say she's more of my Lady, one I dedicate my spear to."  Then he scowled and said, "Even though she destroys every fucking pack of smokes I get, Brigid's Titties."

He held out his hand for Ruu to take and said, "Come on, let's go meet her.  She can help with your arm."

******

Forest scowled at the blond teenager's words and replied, "With this many people I had to broadcast or we would have gratuitous bloodshed, and only that colossal wanker would have been pleased by that." 

Little pillock, lecturing me, the vampire thought in a huff, shielding her thoughts as always.

She looked away only to have the Poppet introduce herself.  Hakuno, well, I have a name for her now then.  She smiled at that and was about to tell Hakuno she was pleased to meet her.  Then two new people, adding to the already crowded alley - Maybe this should now be a 'block party'- and Forest stared.  There was a very beautiful young Japanese woman with stunning aquamarine eyes and then the man carrying her.

Sweet Bruce Campbell.

Tall, broad shouldered, tawny skinned with white hair and eyes like steel.  His outfit left little to the imagination, and that collar was suggestive as all get out.  Yet, he seemed slightly ill at ease in that outfit, displaying his body like that.  Which was curiouser and curiouser.  Then there was that neat fact he was apparently some future alternate version of Emiya Shirou who didn't end up like the Punisher.

Forest blinked when keen sexual fantasies and thoughts were literally being broadcasted by Rider, imagining threesomes or what to do with sweet, innocent girls for fun.  If she would have fed, Forest's cheeks would have turned pink at the sheer randiness of what she was being shown in Rider's mind.  Then Servant and Master had a sweet embrace, and the sight of it gave Forest a pang, reminding her of just how lonely she was.

Lancer was a good friend, but men like him didn't have Long Term Prospects.

And the randy kept broadcasting from Rider.

Archer walked up to her and made eye contact.  She resisted the urge to look away and kept his gaze as he told her that Lancer would be late.  She rolled her eyes and said, "Of course he will be."

Then Shirou spoke up and Forest whirled on him.  "Yeah, the reasonable thing to do would have been to attack the fucking monsters, not the victim!  Buuuutttt noooo, destroy the food source to keep the monsters from fighting.  Good plan, lad, excellent sodding plan."

Her eyes met his and she said, "Look, I understand your path hasn't been an easy one, possibly with Joss Whedon levels of tragedy and angst, which I know the reference just went right over everyone's heads here, but!"  She waved her hand and continued, "Innocent blood isn't something that should be so easily shed.  If you're going to be here in my city, then you're going to play by a better set of rules than that grimdark vigilante bull shit."

She then looked at Rider and asked, "Lord and Lady, is that all you think about?"