Sakura Matou
Sakura shook in her shoes at Vanguard’s oppressive presence. It was stifling. It felt like the very air itself had paused to watch what was about to unfold. Vaguely in the background, she saw other shoppers hurriedly leaving the vicinity.
Strong.
Dangerous.
Frightening.
Deadly.
Evil.
These were the words that came to her mind as she stood still, unable to move as she watched what would unfold, simply holding onto Rin’s shirt with an ironclad grip born of fear. She didn’t want her friends and family to get hurt. Not here. Not there. Not anywhere. She wanted them all to be safe, and she wasn’t sure Vanguard would be enough.
”Rider!” Sakura sent out a plea of help through their mental connection. Her voice was full of anguish and fear, fear of danger. Fear of loss. She would have said more, but then the situation was resolved as quickly as it had begun. She breathed a sigh of relief, both audibly and over her mental link, as the red swordsman pulled the monster away. ”Wait, hold on.” She said to Rider, notably calmer, yet still very upset.
"Sakura, shall we go?" Vanguard asked her with a voice both as warm as the sun and as chilling as the bowels of hell.
“Y-yes. We should.” She said with a shiver and a nod. She turned around cautiously, making sure the hornets were directly above her and her sister, keeping a close eye on the movements of the two for her. She repositioned the bags on her arms, momentarily thinking about having Vanguard carry them before banishing such a foolish thought from her head.
No, don’t be stupid, what if he needs to defend us? She reprimanded herself. He wouldn’t be able to keep us safe. I’m not sure he can even now... She thought sullenly.
So she prepared to tough it out, taking a few steps away before Rin tugged on her arm.
Rin watched the proceedings with a frown before she grabbed Sakura's arm and said in a low voice, "What was all that about? She didn't do anything other than taking a spill with her over eager . . .” Rin paused momentarily before continuing. “It was when I pointed out that Blondie had a lack of reflection. My mentor is a Dead Apostle Ancestor and Rider enjoys drinking blood too much, yet you freak out when I mentioned she didn't have a reflection. Why?"
Sakura rubbed her forehead. Why didn’t her sister understand? It should be flagrantly obvious why! She thought, rather exacerbated at this whole debacle. Why couldn’t there be one, just one, uneventful outing? Why did this place have to be so fucking awful! She missed her old life. She’d gladly give up everything that she had in this god forsaken city for a chance to go back home. She’d gladly give up her very life for even one small chance, one infinitesimal chance, to erase all the memories she had of this awful city and go back in time three years.
But she couldn’t think like that for long.
She had to stay alive and well for Shirou and Rin. For Rider and Vanguard. For Faust.
She hated this place. She hated it so much. It sucked it sucked it sucked ItsucksitsucksITSUCKS!
“Das geht dich einen feuchten scheissdreck an!!!” She swore without thinking, she swore at her beloved sister. “N-no, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that.” Sakura hung her head in shame. She hated this. It was this city’s fault. She hadn’t been like this before. She was positive. She’d changed, and not for the better.
Not.
One.
Bit.
Sakura bit her lip, thinking about how to explain it. She didn’t want to do it here. It wasn’t something to be discussed in such a public forum.
“Nee-san...” Sakura said quietly. “I’m sorry, for swearing and then asking this of you... but... can we wait until we get somewhere more private to discuss this? Please?” Sakura asked with big droopy eyes. “You understand, right?” Sakura twinged internally at how manipulative she sounded. She briefly wondered if she was just manipulating Rin; how much of this was genuine.
