It's a dream I have every once in a while. Sometimes I wish I wouldn't have it, because I know how it ends. But... it reminds me of my parents and uncle. I'm afraid I might forget them if I didn't have this dream.

"See, Papa? I told you I could do it!" I exclaim, looking just behind me, pointing at the TV screen. Music and an ending sequence play.
"You've gotten really good at that game," Dad remarks happily, looking down at me. He strokes my hair and smiles. "Now you've got to keep your promise. You got to play, so now you've got to go do your magic training."
"I know," I reply, pouting. Magic training isn't very fun. You can do neat things with it, but what good is it when you can't use it whenever you want? Reluctantly, I get up from my Dad's lap and walk outside. When I get there, I see Mom talking with a guy with dark hair in brown clothes. Standing next to him is a girl about my age... her hairstyle's pretty cute! She doesn't seem to take any interest in me or her Dad's conversation with my Mom. Oh well.
"There you are, Kiyo-chan! Did you win your game?" Mom turns to me and asks.
"Yeah!"
"I don't understand what your Papa sees in those contraptions. I worry that your brain will rot..." Aww, not this conversation again! "Anyway..." She turns back to the man and sees him and his daughter off. I wish I could've talked to her.

I didn't like magic training, but my parents were still really nice. It's too bad, these days didn't last forever. One day... One day, my parents were murdered by a serial killer. I was at my uncle's apartment over in Shinto, but... maybe if I was there, I could've done something!
My uncle adopted me, but all I did was cry. I missed them so much. It was bad enough they were killed, but thieves broke in not long afterwards and ransacked the house! All I have to remember them by are my Dad's old game console and my magic crest. My uncle (my Dad's brother) was kind, but it's not the same as having my real parents. But... even he died! A fire broke out that wiped out most of Fuyuki, and he was caught in the middle of it. My parents sometimes said something about a "Grail War", that must be what it was! I was all alone, until....

Tsukimiya Kiyomi (月宮　清美): You. A new transfer student to Homurabara Jyogakuin. Your father came from a line of Shinto priests, your mother from a minor family of magi. You have shoulder blade-length pink hair, normally worn down with small twintails clipped up. You're a bit short for your age, and have a decent figure. You've inherited the magic crest of your mother's family, which had a strong lightning affinity. You're a bit innocent, but no fool; you don't know that another Grail War is about to start, but you know a Grail War happened ten years ago and you were trained by your mother in its use. You live in a large apartment with your 'onee-chan', Alexandra Richards. Your purpose for transferring to Homurabara is to meet someone you've idolized for some time now.

Alexandra Richards: An American heiress who moved to Fuyuki just after the Fourth Grail War to help fund the rebuilding of the city. Stereotypically, she has shoulder-length blonde hair, blue eyes, and a nice body. She can be a bit stuck-up, but cares deeply for you. She informally adopted you not long after arriving in Fuyuki.

Emiya Nadeshiko (衛宮　撫子): Adopted daughter of Emiya Kiritsugu.
Ryuudou Hajime (柳洞 一): One of Nadeshiko's friends, in training to be a miko at Ryuudou Temple.
Matou Yuriko (間桐 百合子): Older sister of Sakura and another one of Nadeshiko's friends.
Kotomine Mirei (言峰 美礼): Representative of The Church, overseer of the 5th Grail War.
Kuzuki Makoto (葛木 まこと): Teacher at Homurabara. Somewhat strict, but well-liked.

"WAKE UP!"
"Kyaaaa!" I scream with a start. Standing over me, wearing her pajamas, is Onee-chan. I could tell she must've just got up, but... she's pretty, even now! "S-sorry... did I oversleep?" I cry, looking at the alarm clock.
"No," she says, "I just felt like waking you up myself. I guess you had that dream again?" I reply with a nod. "You're tough to get up when you have that dream, y'know."
"Sorry, Onee-chan."
"Don't apologize about it, it's something you can't do anything about. Come on, I made you breakfast." I smile a bit, thinking about how terrible her cooking was until I made her get a cookbook. To begin with, it's not often she cooks... I guess she wants me to get a good start on my first day to my new school: Homurabara Jyogakuin. It's a bit far, but I can make it if I head out early enough. Yawning and stretching, I get out of bed and change into my old school uniform. I guess a sailor-styled uniform is going to make me stick out, but I can't help it, I don't have a Homurabara uniform yet! I brush a bit of dust off of an old red-and-white gaming console, stare happily for a few minutes at the poster on my door, then go eat breakfast.

While I'm eating, Onee-chan (her name's Alexandra Richards, but I call her Onee-chan) grumbles a bit. She isn't very happy that I decided to transfer, especially given that this is my last year in High School. But someone's there I've been dying to meet with.... I'm so excited! I hope she's nice!
"Your old school was closer, and it's better known too! I hope you don't fall in with some bad people..."
After swallowing my egg, I told her, "It's an all-girls school. There won't be any guys there to take advantage of me, and it has a decent reputation. You just worry too much!" I finish eating and getting ready.
While I'm at the front door putting my shoes on, she starts biting her thumbnail. "Kiyomi, you be careful out there, okay?"
"Onee-chan...." I smile and give her a big hug. "I'll be alright, you're acting like I'm never coming back!" I put my other shoe on, grab my bag, and wave goodbye. "See you later!" Onee-chan waved back, but never really changed her expression. What's with her this morning?

I guess I took a little too long with breakfast and reassuring Onee-chan, I have to run a bit to get there. On the way, I see a path that leads up to a temple. I'm curious, but keep going, I still need to get to school.
I get there and I'm early! It never hurts to be early on your first day. It leaves a good impression. That, and I needed to find the guidance office and....
My thoughts are interrupted when I accidentally run into someone. I, er.... sort of fall on top of her. Oops. Why wasn't I paying attention?! H-her chest is kinda warm...
"Would you mind getting off of me, please?" she asks. It was hard to tell if she's being sincerely nice or holding back some serious rage.
"I-I'm so sorry!" I stammered, and immediately get up. I looked at my run-and-hit victim. She's pretty, with long black hair put up in twintails. She carries herself almost like royalty, I think. It reminds me of Onee-chan in a way. And there's something else about her, but I can't quite put my finger on it. "I-I'm..." I start to introduce myself, but when she shoots me an angry glare, I shut up. Did I get her that mad?
The glare disappears in an instant and is replaced with a smile. "I'm sure I'll see you again soon," she says, and walks off.
A few students had gathered by that point, and were whispering. I ask one of them, "Who was that?"
"I guess you wouldn't know, you're new here. That was the school idol, Tohsaka Rin! She's sooo cool!" Oh great, my first day, I'm making an enemy of the campus queen. "She's really nice, and everyone here likes her!"
Another student clears her throat and corrects the statement, "Almost everyone." This student had short, dark hair and wore glasses. "I don't trust her."
"Hajime, you've never gotten along with her, have you?" a different girl said. She had bright orange hair, braided in the back.
"No, Emiya, and I doubt I ever will. We're wasting time here, I still need your help in the student council room..."
"Ah, right!"
The two walk off. They seem alright, I guess. The small gathering disbands, and I go about my day.

Class ends without incident (I'm glad I didn't get placed in Tohsaka-san's class), and I was able to get some uniforms! The ones here seem more professional than the one I'm wearing now, I sort of want to go home and try them on. And there was that temple I passed by... But I still haven't found the person I'm looking for! I overheard some students say that she was in the Archery Club building. What should I do?

[] Go home
[] Visit the Archery Club.

[] Archery Range
I guess we're looking for Sakura, Ayako, or Taiga? I hope Taiga.

>>15512
>but you know a Grail War happened ten years ago and you were trained by your mother in its use.
Aw crap, what a typo. Goddammit. The PC was trained in the use of her magic crest by her mom. Blah.

[*] Archery range

I'll have to read this later

[X] Go home

[] Visit the Archery Club.

The temple can wait, it's not going anywhere. Besides, from what other students were saying, she's an English teacher at this school. But then, why did we have self-study today? Hmm. I walk to the Archery Club's building and go inside. When I go in, I see club members lined up, taking practice shots at the range.
While I'm watching, a purple-haired girl approaches me. She has a ribbon tied to one side of her hair. "Excuse me, can I help you with something?" she asks with a tentative smile. "Perhaps you're here to join the Archery Club?"
"O-oh, no, I'm not here to join. I'm looking for Fujimura Taiga-sensei. Is she here?" I ask, while returning her smile.
"Yes, she's having a meeting with Onee-.. er, our Vice-Captain and Captain." A meeting? Hmm. Well, I guess teachers sometimes have to miss class if important club activities are involved, right?
"I see... Oh, I should introduce myself, my name's Tsukimiya Kiyomi. Nice to meet you!"
"I'm Matou Sakura. It's nice to meet you too." She's got a nice smile... But I get the feeling she's not always that happy. My train of thought is derailed when I see the meeting disband. One girl storms away, definitely unhappy. She has wavy, dark blue hair. When she passes by us, she shoots Matou-san a glare, and leaves the building. For her part, Matou-san just cringes a bit.

"Hi there!" the other ranking member walks over. "Here to join up?" When I shake my head in response, she looks disappointed. "We could always use new members. We had one quit not long ago and..... Oh, I'm getting ahead of myself. I'm the Captain of the club, Mitsuzuri Ayako!" I return her greeting and introduce myself. I ask her if it's okay to talk to Fujimura Taiga-sensei. "Oh, I don't see why not, go ahead."

I wait for her to finish instructing one of the newer members. Finally! "Are you Fujimura Taiga-sensei?"
"Indeed I am!"
"My name is Tsukimiya Kiyomi. It's an honor to finally see you in person!"
"A-an honor?" I suppose I should explain... Fujimura Taiga-sensei was a well-known Kendo champion! Whenever she wasn't in a match, she always had this cute little tiger tied to the hand-guard of her shinai. That's not why I'm such a fan of hers, though. I've watched all of her tournament matches, and with the exception of her first victory, she looked
amazing! I couldn't help it, she was awesome! She could've been even more famous, had she not sustained a career-ending injury. When she was forced into early retirement, she virtually dropped off the face of the Earth... but that's how it is with fame, I guess.
"Yes, I finally get to meet the amazing Tiger of Fuyuki!" Wait, did I just hear a roar?
"DON'T CALL ME TIGER!!" she yells on instinct. "Ta-i-ga! Don't extend that last 'a'!"
"Y-yes ma'am!" I squeak. I never knew she didn't like that nickname! "I'm sorry!"
"Well, what are you here for? I guess you're not here to join..."
"I, um... I would very much like it if you could teach me your style of Kendo!" I ask of her, after some hesitation. "I don't know if your injury would allow you to, but..." I trail off, seeing her expression change from dubiousness to... a cat-like expression.
"I have a fangirl, in this day and age? That's great!" she exclaims, giving me a monster hug. S-she's stronger than she looks. "I'll tell you what. I'll be busy for a couple of days, but I know of a dojo and a sparring partner that I can set you up with, but I'll still supervise! How about that?" Sparring partner? I just want to be taught by Fujimura-sensei....
"I'd love to!" I say anyway. "Where is your dojo?"
"W-well... it's sort of not really technically mine, you see... it's a friend of mine's. But we're practically family anyway, and I don't see why she'd turn you away. In fact, I know she wouldn't! And maybe this would give her some incentive to get back into Kendo!" She holds her hands together, somewhat giddy. "I'll tell you where it is tomorrow,
okay? It's a bit late and I'm kinda hungry, so..."
I look outside to see the sun setting. Time went by kinda fast. I hope Onee-chan isn't worried.... more worried... about me. Guess I should get home and tell her the good news! "Okay then, I'll see you tomorrow!" As I turn to leave, Sensei stops me.
"Here!" She hands me a shinai (where was she keeping it?) with a little tiger strap. It's her legendary(?) Tora-Shinai? For me?! "I expect you to take care of it, okay?"
"Thank you so much, Fujimura-sensei!" I bow deeply to her and take my leave. I go back into the main building to get my bag and head home.

Looks like everyone's gone home for the day. It's kinda peaceful, and I can fant-... er... reflect upon my meeting with Fujimura-sensei. I sling my bag over my shoulder and leisurely walk out of the school building, admiring the Tora-shinai. This is so awesome...! "Fujimura-sensei was pretty nice," I muse to myself. "I just hope that..."

DODGE. DODGE. DODGEDODGEDODGEDODGEDODGE. Something tells me to hit the dirt. NOW. I do so, and see something fly past my head. It can't be! Curse magic?! I hop back to my feet to see someone standing by the front gate.
"Well, well. Seems like you're not just a clumsy oaf after all," says my attacker as she walks into the light. T-Tohsaka-san?! "Maybe not clumsy, but still an idiot. A magus transferring here, when a War is about to start? You're pathetic!"
"W-war? A Grail War? The last one was just ten years ago!"
"Don't act like you didn't know." She points a finger at me. "I don't need competition from a moron like you. Stay still and I promise you won't feel a thing."
S-she's serious! I can feel the bloodlust radiating from her, she wants to kill me! "Tohsaka-san, please! I don't want this! I'm not here to fight in a Grail War!"
"Liar! Don't think you can talk your way out of this!" Her finger begins to glow with a black light. She's about to shoot that curse magic at me again! I...

[] Try to defend myself.
[] Run. Run my ass off.

>>15540
[] Defend yourself via seduction

Running is for cowards, defend yourself.

We've got Tora-Shinai, let's send Rin to band camp with it.

Hopefully I didn't screw up Nasuverse Magical Theory too much in this fight. Also, good job on not running. We're not Emiya, after all.
___________________________________

At times like these, I wish I'd had more magic training, and I've never fought with magic before. Gah. Running won't do much good, she'd get me eventually. I tighten my grip on the Tora-Shinai as my mind races for a strategy. I begin opening my magic circuits and channelling mana into my family crest. Doing so causes zigzag lines to appear on my left forearm and wrist and also releases a small electrical current that speeds up my nervous system slightly. It tingles. Things begin to slow down a bit.

Don't know any shield magic. Blasting her leaves us at a double knockout or, worse, my loss anyway. Shinai is useless, no matter how much of a Fujimura-sensei fangirl I am...
Or is it? I carefully watch where Tohsaka-san's aiming her finger. That might work! I don't know if I can beat her, but I'm not here to win magic battles. I just need to keep her from killing me. Quickly, I review all I know about the structure of this shinai....

"Gandr!" Tohsaka yells, releasing the cursed magic shot.
"Reinforce!" I yell back, reinforcing the Tora-Shinai. If this doesn't work, I'm screwed anyway.....! I swing the shinai and connect with the 'bullet'! It's deflected back, and towards her legs. She'll dodge it, but how?
"Hah!" Tohsaka shouts, jumping into the air. Gotcha! She can't dodge in mid-air! I aim my left palm in her direction, focus my mana into my crest and.... OH GOD, NOTHING'S COMING OUT. THINKTHINKTHINKTHINK. My past flashes before my eyes, if I don't get her, I'm done for! She's already getting another shot ready!
"Th-THUNDER BEAM!" I scream. There's no such spell, but it serves as a triggerword in my mind. A huge arc of purple lightning shoots from my palm and hits my target! Alright!
Tohsaka grunts in pain, but even I know there's no way that could've come close to K.O.'ing her. She lands, unstably, her clothes singed. She's pretty pissed now, oh crap.
"Hehehe," she laughs softly, "I underestimated you, Tsukimiya-san. That won't happen again!" With that, she starts shooting Gandr shots like a human machine gun. I send more electrical power through my nervous system to speed up my reflexes. I'm at my limit, any more and I'll fry my brain! It's now or never! I alternate between dodging and deflecting the shots and put everything I have into one long jump.
"CHEST!" I shout a ki-ai, forcing my screaming arm muscles to swing the shinai horizontally. It connects with Tohsaka-san's midsection! I land and fall to the ground. I-If that didn't do it, I'm dead. Some of her Gandr shots grazed me during that jump. My body hurts and feels like it's on fire...
Tohsaka-san clutches her stomach and falls to one knee, gasping for air. I-I did it! I held her off enough to keep her from attacking more! I struggle to get up, using the Shinai as a prop. "T-Tohsaka-san....." I've stopped her for the moment, but where do I go from here?

[] Convince her that more fighting is pointless.
[] Attack her while she's down.
[] Take advantage of her while she's weakened.

>>15568
Take advantage. Total, obvious dead end, but it'll be fun.

After the dead end (assuming it is one), I'd vote for convince.

[x] Convince her that more fighting is pointless.

Also, I think your writing is pretty good.

>[] Take advantage of her while she's weakened.
I thought the rapist route was over already.

New writer, new delicious setting, plus it's probably a dead end.

Writefag here. I just tossed that last choice in on a whim. This route won't have many ero-scenes, so I thought I'd spice it up a bit. I always welcome C&C, so I appreciate anything that's said in addition to picking choices.

Convince her that fighting is pointless. Rin rape is delicious and all, but there's two whole Shirouko routes after this, so let's not dick around too long in this.

Agree with the anon above me. Just convince her that attacking is useless. (It's useless, it's all useless!)

I hate to be a flatterer, but I love your writing style! This is a great CYOA.
[x] take advantage of her
Hey, if you throw in a choice like that, it's mandatory to write it out for us. That's in the rules.

My body is burning up from using magic so much for the first time. A-and using so much electrical energy has left me... overly stimulated. I slowly hobble towards Tohsaka-san. She's coughing and still somewhat dazed. Seeing her in this condition, seeing the campus idol in such a vulnerable state...

I throw down the shinai, push her to the ground and straddle her stomach. I put just enough weight on her to keep her fully aware of her injury, but not so much that she can't breathe. I lean forward and pin her wrists to the ground with my hands. "Tohsaka... Rin... you're so beautiful when you're like this." I immediately begin licking and sucking at the nape of her neck.
"A-aaah! W-what are you doing?!" she cries and starts to resist.
"Don't blame me, you brought this on yourself," I say with heavy breaths. I leave a trail of saliva as I move towards her ear and begin nibbling on it. "I've gotta have you. Now." Rin starts to blush as I blow in her ear. "I bet no one's ever done this to a stuck-up girl like you, right~?"
"I-it's none of your business!" she yells, and looks away. She... she's so cute! I stop biting her earlobe and immediately kiss her, directly on the lips. I slip my tongue into and out of her mouth ever so briefly to keep her from biting it. It's actually kinda fun! I begin moaning as my body starts feeling even hotter. After what feels like an eternity, I release my liplock on Rin. "Y-you bitch! That was my first... my first kiss!"
"Don't feel so bad, Rin," I reply, "It was mine too." I kiss her again, even longer this time. "And that was our second!" She might be getting turned-on too, she's not resisting anymore! "That's a good girl," I coo. I release her wrists and lean backwards, stroking her leg through her long skirt. "This is going to feel so good, I promise~." I get off of Rin, kneel beside her, and start hiking up her skirt. "W-wow, you wear thigh-highs under this?! That's so hot~!"
"Sh-shut up!"
"Now now, I'm complimenting you!" I begin massaging her mound through her panties, and before long, a small wet spot starts forming. "You ARE getting turned-on! You must really want this~!"
"I don't! I don't!"
"Your body's more honest than your mouth," I reply with a lewd smirk. I slip two fingers beneath the cotton fabric and into her waiting cunt. "See? My fingers went in so easily~!"
"N-no..." Rin whimpers. In response, I push my fingers even deeper inside her and bend them upwards slightly. "A-Ah.... No...." Her voice is even sounding erotic now! I massage her insides with my fingers and stroke her exposed thighs with my other hand. She's starting to spasm a bit, I bet she's about to have an orgasm! I start lightly playing with her clit with my thumb. That did the trick!
"A-AAAAAAAH, I'm cumming!" she yells and arches her back. I made her cum!

"I bet that felt pretty good, didn't it?" I ask as I pull my fingers out of Rin's quivering pussy. She doesn't have much to say in response, still moaning and panting. I suck on my fingers and tell her, "Mmmm, you taste so good, Rin~! But don't think this is over!" I pour a little bit of mana into my crest and stick my fingers back inside her.
"W-w-what the hell are you doing?!" she shrieks, noticing what I'm doing. "A-are you trying to kill me?!"
"Of course not, Rin~! I'm just going to take you to heaven!" I release a very small amount of electricity. She starts arching her back again and breathing heavily. This is damn fun! "Are you cumming already? Isn't this the best~?" Rin squirms and shakes as I ever so slightly step up the current. I don't even try to count the number of times she cums. Her movements make that sorta tough.

I don't know how long I've been fucking Rin, but after a while, I start tiring out. Besides, I need some satisfaction, too! I yank my fingers out of her, tear off my drenched panties, and do the same thing to myself. It's not long before I announce my impending orgasm to the world and start trembling. The next thing I know, I'm laying on the ground, exhausted. Trying to catch my breath, I turn over... and see Rin pointing at my forehead.
"Don't blame me," she says, "You brought this on yourself." It's the last thing I see as a Gandr shot tears through my skull....

DEAD END

Our hint corner takes place in regal building, filled with books of all kinds. A little place called, "The Library of Alexandra."

Alexandra: Oh dear, we have guests. *adjusts glasses and lowers her book* Low-class guests at that, ones who think with their gonads and not their grey matter. My, my. To use the vernacular, this is a "moralfag" route. Please don't visit because of a decision like this again, or I might have to erase your save data! That's all the advice I have, I bid you farewell!

>>15599
I feel that Alexandra will be getting angrier and angrier through these dojos, because there's no way we won't take the sex option every time we get the chance. Anyway, convince was the only other choice with votes, so straight on to that?

Oh, and two questions:
A: has our character ever gone down on her Oneechan?
B: If True Assassin appears OH GOD GRANDMA ZOUKEN DO NOT WANT AT ALL will it be Woman Hassan or Loli Hassan?

>>15600
Yep, reloading with the Convince choice.

A: Nope, not in this route.
B: You'll see.

My body is burning up from using magic so much for the first time. I'm exhausted, and it's getting late, and I don't want to fight anymore! I slowly hobble towards Tohsaka-san. She's coughing and somewhat dazed. Seeing her in this condition... I feel bad for her, but I had no choice! "Tohsaka-san, please! I don't want any part of the Grail War! I swear I won't interfere, so stop fighting me. Please!" I plead with her.
She recovers pretty quickly... she used a healing spell? "What kind of magus are you? Any magus worth anything wants the Grail!" she exclaims.
"I don't have anything to wish for, I like my life how it is," I say, with my eyes downcast. Tohsaka-san's stare pierces me, I don't feel I can say anything more.
She sighs and starts to walk off. "I'll hold you to your promise. Get in my way, and I'll kill you myself," she says, and leaves the campus. THANK GOD.

I look at my clothes... they're so dirty. How am I going to explain this to Onee-chan?! Ugh, I hope every day isn't like this, I don't think I could handle it. I walk home and notice that temple again. I get a creepy sensation about it and keep going. Something about it doesn't set right with me. Some time later, I get back to Onee-chan's apartment.
"I'm home..." I say without much enthusiasm.
"Welcome back!" she says, with a smile. W-wait, she's not gonna scold me for being late? "Dinner's on the table, you can tell me all about your day!"
I drop my bag, quickly change out of these filthy clothes (I guess it doesn't matter much, I won't be wearing this old uniform again, anyway), and go back to the kitchen table. Onee-chan sits there patiently, sipping some red wine. Leaving out certain details, like, say, anything involving Tohsaka-san, I tell her about my classes and teachers and how I got to meet Fujimura-sensei. The warm food settles nicely in my stomach. (Wait, she didn't microwave this...?)
"I'm glad you were able to meet Fujimura-sensei... Is she going to give you lessons?"
"It looks that way," I reply. "She even gave me her shinai!" I nod my head towards the Tora-Shinai propped next to my door. "But it won't start until the day after tomorrow, she has things to do with the Archery Club, I guess."
"Archery Club? Huh. Why is a former Kendo champion teaching Archery? Swordplay and Arrow-shooting don't really mix."
I shrug my shoulders in response. "She's an English teacher, too! Life's weird that way." Thinking about that, I say, "Hey, you could be an English teacher!"
Onee-chan nearly spits out her wine. "I-I don't think so. Don't even joke like that." We share a few laughs over it. "By the way," she starts, "what'd you do, fall down some stairs? You were a mess when you got back."
"O-oh! I fell down just outside the campus building. Just sort of tripped over my own feet. Eh-heh...." I don't know what's worse, having to lie or being embarrassed by the lie.
After dinner, I head for the bath. I wash myself down and relax in the bathtub. Fortunately, Onee-chan isn't in here to see these marks. Those Gandr shot grazes still hurt kinda bad. A couple on my legs, one on my arm, one on my side. I hope I left a mark on you, Tohsaka-san! I get out of the tub, change into my pajamas, and fall into bed.

Fujimura-sensei~......

>Swordplay and Arrow-shooting don't really mix.
I see what you did there.

At the Tohsaka residence:
"Oh Father in heaven. What have I done?"
"Aaah, help me out here...!"

At Ryuudou Temple:
"Will you be my Master?"
"I don't get all this Grail War stuff, but I'll help because you asked."

At the Matou Residence:
"Onee-sama...!"
"Shut it, Sakura! I don't want you going back to Emiya's house! You belong to me!"
"Master...."

>>15608
So... we're going to be a supporter rather than a master of our own I guess? Then again, that's only three servants of seven.

>>15609
Speculate all you want. =D
Skipping the Archery Club would've put us on a different route, but no one saved there! What a pity!

My alarm clock rings, waking me from my slumber. I groggily reach over and bring my fist down on the snooze button. Fifteen seconds later, the alarm wakes me up again. I'm still tired. And sore. Stupid Tohsaka-san. I yawn widely and drag myself out of bed. After I put on my new uniform(!), I fix myself breakfast. Onee-chan's still mostly asleep. It was rare enough for her to wake me up yesterday, but to cook for me twice in one day? I smile, knowing she cares so much about me. After eating and freshening up, I rummage through my closet and find an empty bag for the shinai. Even if I don't get in another fight, I still want it with me. I hug it for a few seconds before I put it in the bag and zip it up.
"I'm heading out!"
"Mmmph." Onee-chan's really not a morning person.

I arrive at school without running into Tohsaka-san (WHEW), but as soon as I pass by the front gates, I start feeling a bit nauseous. A magic field of some kind...? A few seconds later, I recover... but who would put a field like this around a school? Surely not Tohsaka...! Anyway, I'd better not hang around.
"Tsu-ki-mi-ya....!" A familiar voice draws out my name, and an all-too-familiar feeling of rage eminates from behind me. I turn around and, surprise surprise, it's Tohsaka-san.
"I didn't do it, Tohsaka-san. You should know I'm not capable of this!"
"Hmph. I still don't trust you one bit. If I find out you're involved with this field..."
"I know, I know, I'm dead. Let's just get to class, okay?" She glared at me momentarily, then turned towards the door to her classroom. I silently thank whoever may be watching over me that I didn't get put in her class. I go into my own class and take my seat, waiting for the roll call. Just before the bell rings, I hear a yell and see a dust cloud following a green-and-yellow blur outside the classroom. T-that wasn't... No way, it couldn't be.
Class goes about the same as yesterday, with two exceptions. I got to see Fujimura-sensei teach~! I'm pretty lucky, though. Onee-chan and I practice English all the time, so I don't have to pay attention to the lecture so much as to Sensei herself! Oh, and Kuzuki-sensei seemed a bit distracted, compared to yesterday. She'd sort of stare off into the distance in the middle of the lecture.

After classes have ended for the day, I go out to the Archery Club building to meet up with Fujimura-sensei. As expected, Matou-san, Mitsuzuri-san, and the Vice-Captain are there as well as Sensei. I wave to Matou-san and greet her. "Good afternoon, Matou-san." Both Matou-san and the Vice-Captain turned to me. Huh?
The Vice-Captain gives me a snobby look and asked, "Weren't you here yesterday? If you're not going to join, just leave." She looks me up and down. "Though I hardly think you'd make a good archer anyway." I already don't like her.
"Onee-sama," Matou... er, Sakura-san cautiously says. "She's here to see Fujimura-sensei again..."
"Yuriko, cut her some slack, she's still new here," Mitsuzuri-san grins apologetically.
Vice-Captain Matou just shrugs her shoulders and shakes her head. "This isn't a show. Do what you're here to do and leave," she says dismissively. Fine.
"Aa-ah, thanks, Vice-Captain Matou." Bitch. Fujimura-sensei happens to be free, so I greet her with a bow.
"Good afternoon, Tsukimiya-san," she replies. "Are you still serious about what you asked about yesterday?"
"Of course I am! Oh, and thanks for lending me your Shinai yesterday!" Perhaps I said that TOO enthusiastically.
"You're welcome." Every time she smiles at me, my heart flutters. Aaa~h. Um, anyway. She tells me where the dojo's at and who my sparring partner's supposed to be. It's at Emiya-san's place, that one girl I saw yesterday when I ran into Tohsaka-san. Fujimura-sensei tells me how to get there. She knows the way by heart because she's invited to eat there every once in a while. With a huge smile, I thank her and bow again. Tomorrow can't come soon enough.

I leave the Archery Club building and see Vice-Captain Matou and Emiya-san talking. "Sure, Yuriko, I'll do it!" Emiya-san says with a huge grin.
"Thanks, Emiya, you're a lifesaver," Yuriko-san says. She turns away and starts to leave, when a screaming mob of girls mug her. What do they see in her?
"Hello there, Emiya-san, I'm..."
"Oh, you're the girl that ran into Tohsaka yesterday!"
"Y-yeah. I'm Tsukimiya Kiyomi. Fujimura-sensei said that we could practice at your dojo?"
"You're the one Fuji-nee, er, Fujimura-sensei was talking about this morning!" Emiya-san exclaims. This morning? Why would she be there in the morning? Oh wait, that's right, Fujimura-sensei is her homeroom teacher. "She wants me to practice with you." I nod in affirmation.
"Thanks, Emiya-san."
"Don't be so formal, you can call me Nadeshiko." She's pretty nice!
"Thanks, then, Nadeshiko-san. If you don't mind my asking, what did Vice-Captain Matou ask you to do?"
"Oh, nothing much. It's her turn to clean the Archery Club up, but she had something important to do, so she asked me to do it. I mean, of course I'd help her out, she's one of my friends!" Nice, but not so bright. She'll probably be here all night.
I scratch my head, figuring that I might as well go home. I happen to glance towards the roof of the school, and see Tohsaka-san and... someone else. I can't see that other person too well, Tohsaka-san's blocking my view. They seem to be talking and scouting around.

[] Tohsaka-san's up to something, and I'm going to find out what it is.
[] I guess I could help Nadeshiko-san clean up.
[] I'm going home.

>>15618
Rin is clearly having her Archer time, best not to interrupt. Best to act like a good supporting character and aid the ditzy protagonist.

A genuinely tough choice. It would be interesting to see how we will mess with the whole Emiya getting killed thing.
But, I'll vote for going to check out Tohsaka.

We should probably let Rin be. Let's go help Nadeshiko.

Help Nadeshiko out. Also, HOLY SHIT I FEEL SO MOE

Yeah Help her out.

[] Tohsaka-san's up to something, and I'm going to find out what it is.
Let's be annoying.

Let's help the ditzy one.

I might as well leave Tohsaka-san alone. The more I stay away from her, the greater chance I'll stay sane. I glance back inside the Club building to see Nadeshiko-san happily cleaning away. I'd rather go home, but knowing that she'll be here all night because of Vice-Captain Matou really ticks me off.
I walk into the building and see her working on the bows. She seems pretty knowledgeable... I guess she's the one club member Mitsuzuri-san mentioned; the one that quit. She's already got a bucket and washcloth next to her to use for cleaning the floor. Without saying anything, I pick up the bucket and take it to one corner of the floor.
"W-what are you doing? I'll do that!" she exclaims, dropping her bow in surprise.
"I'm helping you out," I reply with an only-somewhat-fake grin. "If I didn't, who knows how long you'd be here?" With that, I dip the cloth into the bucket and start cleaning the floor.
"Thank you, Kiyomi-chan," she beams. She must be ecstatic, calling me by my first name already. Hm. I don't say anything in response as I start going back and forth from one end of the building to the other with the washcloth. At least it's not that huge.

We finish cleaning, but even with our combined effort, we don't get done until after night has fallen. We leave the building, but what we see when we do... This is bad, we've got to get out of here. Now.
"S-she isn't human..." Nadeshiko said, mostly to herself. Yeah, anyone could tell you that.
A silver-haired girl in a red coat and miniskirt constantly deflects shadow-like projectiles being thrown at her from multiple directions. She's using a pair of swords to block and parry those things.
"An Archer, with swords? Is this a joke?" I hear someone else say.
"The only joke here," the 'Archer' retorts, "is you. Even with five of you, you still can't take me out!"
At that taunt, the projectiles stop being thrown and five shadowy figures appear. They're women and girls of varying sizes, all with light blue hair tied up in a ponytail. They're wearing... as far as I can tell, skintight black outfits with creepy skull masks. "Know this," one of them says, "we're only here to test you. Our Master is only interested in information."
"Attacking us by surprise and staying hidden in shadows, you're obviously Assassins," Archer replies with an angry smirk. "Cowards befitting your class."
An Assassin behind Archer starts to throw another projectile, but then I (and they) hear a loud snap besides me. I turn to look and see Nadeshiko's foot on top of a broken tree branch. We are so screwed, Servants would make short work of us. "Uh-oh," Nadeshiko mumbles.

Cursing under my breath, I grab Nadeshiko's hand and run for the school building. I use my mana to speed up my nervous system again and run as fast as I can with her in tow. We zip into the school building, dodging a few of those dagger-type things on the way, and run up the stairs. Normally, I would hope we'd lost our assailants, but those are Servants! They'll hunt us down until they kill us. Halfway down the hall, I put on the brakes. An Assassin! It throws something...
"THUNDER BEAM!" I shoot electricity at the dagger-thing and barely change its trajectory enough to miss us. Nadeshiko looks at me in shock and says, "You're a magus, too?" 'Too'?
"Run now, talk later!" I yell in a panic, running back the other way, until we're cut off by yet another Assassin. We're trapped! This new, shorter Assassin throws another dagger which I dodge... but suddenly, I hear a shriek. Nadeshiko!
I turn to see two Nadeshikos. They both have the same horrified look on their faces, but one has an arm through her chest. That version of Nadeshiko disappears, while the real version sinks to her knees and keels over...! That Assassin crushed her heart! And I'll probably be next....!
Or rather, I would have been, but thankfully Archer appears and drives away the two Assassins. And then, someone I really didn't want to see again shows her face: Tohsaka-san. She immedately runs over to the fallen Nadeshiko with a sorrowful face.
"Why did you have to be here? Why you?" she mumbles sadly, stroking Nadeshiko's face. "Oh Father in heaven, please forgive your selfish daughter," she prays, taking out a large jewel of some kind. She concentrates while chanting a spell, she's going to try to heal Nadeshiko! After a few moments, Tohsaka-san places a hand to Nadeshiko's now-beating chest. It worked!
"Thank you, Tohsaka-san," I start to say. "I tried my best to defend her, but..." My apology is quickly interrupted by a slap to the face.
"It's because you're like this that she almost died!" she screams at me. "Listen to me, Tsukimiya, and listen well. Whether you like it or not, you're a magus. You're not supposed to live a normal life, and now you're definitely involved in the Grail War! You'd better shape up, or you're going to die in worse ways than even I can imagine."
I hate to admit it, but she's right. If I knew more spells, if I was stronger, I might have been able to do something more! And besides that, running into the school building was a stupid idea to begin with. "I understand, Tohsaka-san," I tell her. I don't dare ask her how I could've defeated or even beaten back a Servant.
Suddenly, Archer reappears and clings to Tohsaka-san's neck. "Master, they ran off!"
"GET OFF ME!" yells Tohsaka-san. Archer sadly releases her.
"Eheh, I wouldn't want you using another Command S..."
"S-shut up! You're so annoying! How is someone like you a Servant, anyway?" The two walk off noisily and leave.
Nadeshiko's alive, but still unconscious. I'm not about to leave her here, so I pick her up in my arms. I notice that she's grasping the chain attached to the jewel Tohsaka-san used, but don't pay it any mind. It must have been completely drained, otherwise she wouldn't have left it here. On my way out, I pick up the bags I'd left in the Archery Club, and leave for Nadeshiko's place. At least it's downhill most of the way.

I arrive at Nadeshiko's place... it's huge! She must have rich relatives or something. I wander around with her until I find her living room. Gently setting her down, I look around. There's a kitchen attached to this room, I guess it's more of a dining room. At any rate, I'm out late again, I guess I'd better call Onee-chan. I pick up the phone and dial our number, but no one picks up. Huh. She's usually up by now, she must've gone out shopping or something.
"K-Kiyomi-chan?" Oh, she woke up, good.
"I brought you home," I explain.
"How am I still alive? My heart..." she stops suddenly. "Someone's here!"
Of course. The Assassins were going to find out she was still alive somehow. I unzip one of my bags and pull out the Tora-Shinai. "Do you think you can do anything?" I ask her.
"Yeah, give me a second." She reaches for a rolled-up poster that happened to by laying nearby. We both cast Reinforcing magic on our weapons (improvised or otherwise). Before I know it, I see a projectile being blocked by Nadeshiko. The force of impact knocks her through the door and out into her backyard.
"NADESHIKO!" I yell her name, but I can't help her now! Another Assassin just showed up! D-damn, things don't look so good for us.

Emiya Nadeshiko skids on the ground as she's thrown from her house. Knowing full well that hesitation will mean her death (again), she dashes back towards the small storage building. "I'd ask you to leave, but I don't think you'd do it, huh?" she asks rhetorically. The Assassin says nothing and backhands Emiya. She flies into the shed and lands on her butt, looking towards the door. It's closing in! "It can't end like this! If I die, I won't be a Hero of Justice! I won't be able to save anyone like this!"
Just when things seemed the most hopeless, a red mark appears on Emiya's right hand. One second later, a magic circle shines brightly, and in a flash of white light, a young lady appears. She's blonde, with her hair held up in a ponytail by a black bow. A patch of hair sticks up. Bangs that frame green eyes and a cute face. White and silver armor that covers everything except her shoulders and back. An armored knee-length skirt.
She looks down at Emiya. "I ask of you, are you my Master?"

Writefag note: I don't think I've ever written a fiction piece this long before, I'm only used to writing term papers, eheh.
>Message too long. Click here to view the full text.
You don't say.

>>15674
I've written 25+ page term papers before, surely writing this is much more fun. Keep it up though, this is awesome work.

>>15675
Heh, thanks. This is fun, I'm just noting that I've never written fiction like this.

Again, I find myself confronting Assassin indoors. Nadeshiko was just knocked out of the room, and I'm outmatched. My training partner doesn't seem to have much in the way of magical ability, but I seriously doubt my blocking one of those projectiles will have a different outcome. For the second time in as many days, I pour as much mana as I can stand into my family crest. I feel that familiar tingle go over my body.

Wait for it, wait for it, wait for it.... Assassin hasn't physically attacked, she'll probably throw another.. THERE. I jump to the side to avoid the dagger and hop out of the room with the opening Nadeshiko left. More room to dodge out here. Come out, I've got something for you....! Assassin leaps out of the doorway in pursuit.
"THUNDER BEAM!" She dodged my lightning! She's too quick for me to just blast. She dashes to the side and throws another dagger! I can't dodge this one! Putting up my reinforced Tora-Shinai, I parry it, but get sent flying just like Nadeshiko did. Ugh, definitely outmatched.
Just then, I see a bright light flash from a small building, followed by a retreating Assassin. She doesn't get very far before another girl shoots out with a golden sword and cuts the Assassin in two. That's gotta be another Servant! But where'd she come from? The Assassin I'm fighting immediately retreats upon seeing this new Servant. I'm saved! Or maybe not, this new Servant turns to me and looks at me appraisingly.

"Kiyomi-chan!" Nadeshiko shouts and runs over to me. "Are you okay?"
"Somehow, yeah..." I accept her help in getting to my feet. "Who is this Servant?"
"Servant? What do you mean?" W-wait, she doesn't know what a Servant is? Time for a lecture...
"She is referring to me, Master," the blonde says. "I am the Servant Saber. You have summoned me to fight for you in the Holy Grail War." She turns to me and inquires, "Might I ask your name?"
Nadeshiko pipes up, "She's Kiyomi-chan, one of my friends!" What? I-I guess that's a good enough introduction. "Now, um, what's this about a 'Grail War'?"
At Nadeshiko's clueless look, I pick up where Saber left off. "The Holy Grail War is a series of battles fought among Magi who've summoned Heroic Spirits called Servants. They fight to obtain the Holy Grail, which is supposed to have the power to grant any wish. You were somehow picked to fight in this War." I look to Saber, who nods.
"Hold on! Holy Grail? Heroic Spirits? I don't understand!"
Saber holds up a hand to stop Nadeshiko and looks towards one of the walls surrounding Nadeshiko's yard. "An enemy approaches!" she declares.
In the blink of an eye, she leaps towards the front entrance. We follow her and get to the gate just when she's about to bring her sword down onto someone. Isn't that Archer?!
"S-Saber! DON'T DO IT!" Nadeshiko screams. Red light flashes from her right hand, and Saber stops as if frozen.
"M-Master... Why...?" Saber grunts, unable to continue her attack.
"That's not an enemy!" Nadeshiko shouts. "She was fighting those skull-faced things, too!" The enemy of my enemy is my friend, huh?
"Oh my," a familiar voice speaks up. Tohsaka-san! "You're as cutely naive as ever, Emiya-san," she says with a smile.
That smile immediately turns into anger as Archer leaps back and cuddles Tohsaka-san. "Master, I was so scared~~!" I think Archer does this on purpose. At least it's amusing seeing Tohsaka-san mad at someone besides me!

We decide to go back inside Nadeshiko's house to explain things to her. The four of us take turns explaining things to her. We tell her about the now-incomplete Command Seal on her hand, the Seven Classes of Servants,Heroic Spirits, and the War itself.
"Waitwaitwait. You're saying that people fight and KILL each other over this? That's crazy!"
"I guess you could say that," Tohsaka-san says. "But Masters and Servants will do what they must to win. It's the greatest prize a Magus could hope to attain. Of course, now that you have a Servant, you're directly involved as well."
"So, where do we go from here?" I ask.
"I need to take Emiya-san to visit the Overseer about this. You don't have a Servant, so you don't have to go," she replies. "Though since you're involved this much, I wouldn't object, either."

[] Onee-chan never picked up when I called, I'd better go home and check on her.
[] I'll go with Nadeshiko and (ugh) Tohsaka-san to see the Overseer.

[x] Onee-chan never picked up when I called, I'd better go home and check on her.
It's probably a bad end, but I'm worried about my Onee-chan

[*]Go to the overseer

>>15684
>>>golden sword
Derp Invisible Air (yeah I'm going to actually nitpick that).

Other than that Archerko molests Rin, and is going uninjured? And you went with Zero's Assassin army instead of just the one from Fate Stay Night? Fuck YES!

[ ] Go meet the Overseer.
Missing Nun Kirei isn't acceptable.

>>15704
>Derp Invisible Air (yeah I'm going to actually nitpick that).
I'm taking a cue (read: Blatantly stealing) from the Lancelot Thread Author's take on Saber Lily. She doesn't have Excalibur, that was Caliburn. Which, now that I think about it, isn't all that golden. And I presume that Invisible Air is Excalibur-specific.

Regarding the whole genderflip itself, certain backstory/Zero characters, like Tokiomi or Kirei's wife (who I presume to now be a husband because, well, Caren) are exceptions right?

>>15724
The only Fate/Zero characters that are flipped in this continuity are Kirei, his wife, and Gilgamesh. Everyone else retains their original gender.
So no, no Grandma Zouken.

It is widely believed in fandom that Saber Lily = Pre-Excalibur Saber.
Anyway, I kinda feel we should check on onee-san.

>>15729
OH THANK GOD!

>>15729
I guess I can put this box of tissues away then

>>15732
Sorry to disappoint, no female Zouken worming Sakura in my routes. (Unless you were using the tissues in anticipation for a tragic outcome?)

Also, vote's tied at 2-2. Yipes.

>>15738
Nun Kotomine. That's not even a question, go see her with the others.

[*] Onee-chan never picked up when I called, I'd better go home and check on her.

>>15700 here. If it's remained tied I'm not adamant to keep my vote, so we can go home too, in case that no one else votes on the church.

[]Church

While I think about Tohsaka-san's invitation, I excuse myself from the table and make another phone call... but there's still no answer. I have this nagging feeling that something's wrong, but it conflicts with the responsibility I feel in my current situation concerning the Grail War. Visiting the Overseer might shed some light on a few things, and Nadeshiko needs to be as well-informed as possible since she's summoned someone into the (allegedly) most powerful Servant class.
In a way, I wish I had a Servant already, but finding out the summoning incantation isn't exactly easy. It's not like I can just walk up to someone like Tohsaka-san and ask. Obtaining a Servant would instantly make us enemies... well, more so than we already are.
In the end, my feelings of duty win out. Onee-chan's a big girl, I'm sure she can take care of herself. I hope. "I'm sorry, Onee-chan," I whisper quietly to myself.
"Hmmm?" Tohsaka-san turns and looks at me.
"O-oh, it's nothing. I'll go with you," I tell her, "but how long will this alliance of ours last?"
She glares at me, then back at Nadeshiko, then back at me. "After tonight, Emiya-san is my enemy. Until then, I'll give her all the help I can." For her part, Nadeshiko's appearance turned sullen. It must be tough to hear a schoolmate declare herself your enemy so casually. "Okay, you'll need to turn your Servant into her spirit form..."
"I am afraid that is not possible," Saber chimed in. "My Master is not skilled enough for me to shift." Ouch.
I move over to Nadeshiko and pat her shoulder. "That's okay, I'm sure there's something around here that'll fit Saber. C'mon." I motion towards the hallway. I'm sure her bedroom's in that general direction. "Let's get her some different clothes."
"Can I watch??" Archer pleads.
"NO!" everyone else simultaneously replies.

Fortunately, Saber's size isn't too different from Nadeshiko's, so we gave her a school uniform to wear. She looks about our age, and we're all still in our uniforms, so she shouldn't stand out much.
We leave Nadeshiko's place and head towards the bridge that connects Fuyuki and Shinto. Archer shifted to an astral form, so it just looks like four schoolgirls out late at night. Wait, that's not exactly a good thing, either....
While we're continuing our journey to the other side of Shinto, Nadeshiko asks, "Tohsaka, if we're going to be enemies tomorrow, why're you helping me now?"
"Look, I'm not doing it for you, so don't get the wrong idea. I just got careless at school, so I don't want to be owing you any favors. Got it?"
War is hell. I reach out and hold Nadeshiko's hand to comfort her. She looks pretty hurt by all this.

Finally, we arrive at our destination: Kotomine Church. I know of this place, but since I'm not a Christian, I have no reason to attend service here. As we approach the front door, Saber speaks up. "Master, I have an uneasy feeling about this place. I would prefer to stay outdoors if possible." Nadeshiko nods her consent.
"Archer, you stay out here, too." Tohsaka-san orders. "I don't want any Assassins attacking us while we're here."
Archer appears out of nowhere, puts an arm around Tohsaka-san, pulls her in close, and says softly in her ear, "Will I get a reward?" Blushing furiously, Archer's Master pushes her Servant away without a reply. I almost feel sorry for Tohsaka-san.
Almost.

Tohsaka-san pushes the front doors open as if she owns the place, and storms in. "Mirei!" she shouts. "Get out here, I've found the last Master!"
Nadeshiko and I walk inside and follow Tohsaka-san. A few moments later, a woman walks through a curtain nearby the pulpit. She's got dark hair down to the nape of her neck, and is dressed in a black nun's robe with a white collar. The lower part of the robe seems to have slits up the side, I think. She wears a crucifix around her neck, and she's carrying a Bible. The robe seems to fit her a little tightly across the chest. N-not that I'm staring there or anything! Honestly, though... she's really pretty.
She's followed by a pair of people. A burgundy-haired woman wearing a suit, and a white-haired girl wearing.... what the hell IS she wearing? A black hat and priestess top... with no pants or skirt? The bottom half of a bodysuit and pantyhose? Eeeeh?!
"Welcome to Kotomine Church, my dear children," the nun says with her hands spread wide and a huge smile to match. "It's so rare to have visitors this late at night!"
"Can the fake nun routine, Mirei," Tohsaka-san says bluntly. She jabs a thumb behind her towards Nadeshiko. "I've brought the seventh Master."
"Oh, I see! I bid you welcome, young lady," she greets Nadeshiko. "My name is Kotomine Mirei, and I'm the Overseer of this Grail War." She motions behind her with her left hand, "This is my daughter, Kotomine Caren. She's acting as a representative from the Church." With her right hand, she motions to the suit-wearing lady. "And this is Bazett Fraga McRemitz, representing the Magus Association." Caren smiles and Bazett nods as they're introduced. "Now, my child, might I have your name?"
"Um.. Emiya. Emiya Nadeshiko."
"Emiya Nadeshiko, hm?" Sister Kotomine put a slight emphasis on 'Emiya', but continues having that oddly peaceful smile. She then turns to me. "Might I have your name as well?"
"Ah, Tsukimiya Kiyomi!" I hastily introduce myself.
"She's not a Master," Tohsaka-san says, "But she's in the War almost as deep as we are. She deserves to hear what you have to say."
Sister Kotomine nods and turns back to Nadeshiko. "So, Emiya-chan, you're the last Master...."
"Wait a minute!" Nadeshiko interrupts. "I never agreed to this! If this is all about nothing but killing over some relic that grants a wish, leave me out of it!" That sounds more than a little familiar.
"Oh dear," Sister Kotomine replies, holding her free hand to her face. "You're a Magus, but afraid to kill?"
"I'm NOT afraid," Nadeshiko retorts. "I just don't WANT to kill anyone. And I don't have any wishes!" ..... You've gotta be kidding me.
"My lost little lamb, have you thought about what would happen if a Magus with evil intentions obtained the Grail?" At Nadeshiko's surprised look, she continues, "Magi tend to be rather ruthless when fighting for something they truly desire, and will use any means to achieve victory. The Holy Grail will grant any wish to the victor of the War." We hadn't told Nadeshiko much about this part, to be honest. She seemed too heartbroken to hear it. The Sister continues, "You might not know this, but this is the Fifth Grail War. The last one took place merely 10 years ago."
At that, Nadeshiko's face turned to one of disbelief. "Ten years ago..! You don't mean...!"
Sister Kotomine nods and tells her this with a somber expression. "The fire that nearly wiped out Fuyuki 10 years ago was caused by the Grail being touched by an inappropriate Master. You remember that inferno, don't you? It was such a tragedy, so many innocent lives were snuffed out."
"No!" In apparent shock, Nadeshiko collapses into a pew. She seems to be taking this pretty hard. Wait, could she be....?
"My child, if you still wish to abstain from this conflict, I would understand. You are still young and have a long life ahead of you."
"Y-you've got to be kidding me!" Nadeshiko exclaims. "I swore that I'd be like my Dad and become a Hero of Justice!" A what? A Hero of Justice? Like a superhero? Good Lord. "You expect me to sit around and let people be hurt by this stupid War? I'll never allow that fire to happen! Never again! I'll fight as a Master to stop it!"
The Sister's face reverts to her previous smile. "If that is your decision, Emiya-chan, then so be it. You have now been recognized as the final Master. The Fifth Holy Grail War has begun!"
"Okay, we've heard enough. Let's get out of here," Tohsaka-san says, and turns to leave. Nadeshiko and I turn to follow, but our shoulders are touched by Sister Kotomine.
"My children, you should be thankful. Your wishes are about to come true." What? "Emiya Nadeshiko-chan. Your wish to save people is the same as wishing for them to be in peril. And you, Tsukimiya Kiyomi-chan, your wish to become stronger will no doubt come true because of your involvement in the War! In a way, you both have had a strong desire for evil to rear its head and for others to suffer." What. The. Hell? How does she know that?! With that nugget of philosophy, she pats our backs and bids us farewell.

Outside Kotomine Church:
"Why DO you wear a garter underneath that skirt of yours anyway?"
"D-damnit, if only my Master hadn't used that Command Seal....!"

>>15758
This is both utterly awesome and a tad confusing.

What's confusing you, if you don't mind my asking?

>>15762
Mostly that Kotomine and Caren seem to be living together. My (I'll admit limited) knowledge of Hollow Ataraxia indicated they didn't really know one another. Then again, maybe it's just the result of the genderflip and you'll explain it when we get around to Kotomine's backstory.

>>15771
Since you bring up F/HA, you probably also know that Bazett was attacked by Kotomine in the actual story and her Lancer was taken. Not that that affects this story in any way, just saying.

>>15774
Yeah, and it seems said murder isn't taking place.

>>15775
I *am* taking quite a few liberties to begin with. Of course, the next part's going to really screw with things.

After that extremely weird sermon-of-sorts from Sister Kotomine, Nadeshiko and I leave the Church. She doesn't look too good, I think it sorta got to her.
"Master, are you okay?" Saber asks Nadeshiko.
After a moment, Nadeshiko turns to Saber. "Yeah... I've decided that I'm going to fight in the War. Not for my own sake, but to keep a disaster from happening. To keep innocent people from being killed."
"Master..."
"You don't have to call me that any more," Nadeshiko says. "I'm Emiya Nadeshiko. I look forward to working with you, Saber," she says happily.
"As do I, Nadeshiko." The two shake hands. I guess that wraps things up here.
Tohsaka-san giggles softly and says, "Let's get out of here." It's getting pretty late now... We still have to go to school, and I won't have gotten enough sleep. And I was supposed to get Kendo training from Fujimura-sensei too! And what about Onee-chan?! She's going to be worried sick about me! This completely sucks!

As we're walking up a hill, Nadeshiko suddenly says, "Y'know... I really have to thank you two. You both really helped me out."
"Huh?" Tohsaka-san and I say simultaneously.
"Kiyomi-chan, if you weren't there, I don't know what I would've done. Something happened to me... to my heart... but I know you were trying your best. You've been sticking by me ever since classes ended today, I really appreciate it." I guess she has a point. We were only supposed to be sparring partners, and we only really met today, but here she is already calling me one of her friends. "And Tohsaka... if you weren't here, I don't think I could've gone through with becoming a Master. If you hadn't taken me to the Church, I really would have forfeited my rights as Master." She pauses for a moment, then says, "You're both such good people. I really like you two!"
Tohsaka-san reacts by immedately freezing in place. "W-w-what are you saying? Look, as soon as we part ways, I'm your enemy!"
"You say that, but if you really were my enemy, you wouldn't have ever helped me out. I still have to thank you for it."
For a moment, Tohsaka-san is speechless. "Fine, whatever you say. Just don't run off and get killed or something."

Suddenly, a young-sounding voice breaks in. "It's funny you should say that, Rin, since you're all about to die right here!" We all turn around to see a little girl wearing a purple hat and matching overcoat. She's got red eyes and white hair.
"Who are you? You're so young, you shouldn't be out so late!" Nadeshiko says.
At that, this girl does a curtsy. "I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Illya. Illyasviel von Einzbern!"
Tohsaka-san turns pale when she hears Illya's full name. "What? Einzbern?!"
"Wait," I say, "THE Einzbern family of Magi?" One of the three families that started the Grail War... they're an old family with a long and rich magical heritage. So she's...!
"Does that mean you're a Master?" Nadeshiko asks the same thing I'm thinking.
"You got it, O.nee.chan!" Illyasviel says happily. Wait, 'Onee-chan'? "And I'm taking this opportunity to kill you!" she adds with a giggle. "Come on out, Berserker!"
Suddenly, another girl appears beside Illyasviel. This one's a little taller than me, has blood-red hair down to the small of her back, and is wearing a shortly-hemmed dress on top of a gauzy shirt. That's her Servant?! Berserker holds out her hand, and a long katana materializes out of thin air.
Saber leaps out front, her uniform changing into her familiar white and silver armor. She assumes a battle stance with her golden sword. "Get back, Nadeshiko! Kiyomi!"
We fall back behind Saber. All we can really do is trust Saber and Archer and hope for the best!
"Get them, Berserker!" Illyasviel orders, holding her arm out in our direction.
"Yes... Master..." Berserker creepily acknowledges her order. She leaps forward in a flash, and stops just outside of Saber's range. Suddenly, Saber spins to the side and blocks an attack. Two Berserkers?! Saber's immediately put on the defensive, fighting what appears to be two identical enemies at once. I see Archer and Tohsaka a bit further away. It doesn't look like Archer can really do anything to help Saber in this position! I think Saber realizes this too, so she leaps away from us and runs to find better terrain.

She only runs a short distance, then turns around to defend again. She's moved the fight to a graveyard. Being among the gravestones and trees should give her a bit of cover and might impede Berserker slightly. Though... That's probably not the only reason she did it. It gives Archer some space to launch attacks from! Hehe, as expected from a Saber!
The Berserkers continue their assault on Saber. If our lives weren't all in danger, I'd say this was a beautiful fight. Berserker's fighting style in particular. Saber blocks a pair of overhead slashes. Just then, a third Berserker appears besides her! Already dealing with the two in front of her, she just isn't able to do anything about it! The third Berserker quickly slashes Saber in the side, and the blonde Servant is sent flying into a tree. The three Berserkers begin flickering, and coalesce into one Berserker again. What the hell is this thing?!
Berserker takes one step towards Saber, but then immediately turns and launches a dark energy wave from her katana. It impacts some kind of spiralled arrow, which then turns golden and dissipates. I look in the direction the arrow came from and see Archer with a shocked expression.
Ignoring Archer, Berserker advances on the wounded Saber. Blood is dripping from her side and arms and runs down her sword. With a yell, Berserker pounces, but....!
"Gyaaaaaaaaa!" Nadeshiko screams. She jumped in Berserker's way, is she crazy?! Nadeshiko looks down at her side.... most of which is missing. She then falls on her face.
"This got boring pretty fast," Illyasviel says, seeing Nadeshiko on the ground. "I'll let you all off this time. See you around!" With that, she and Berserker leave the graveyard. She potentially has us beat, but sees Nadeshiko hurt and quits? What a weirdo.
Everyone runs over to the fallen Master. What the hell was she thinking, jumping in front of Saber like that? Did she have a death wish?
"S-she's still alive!" Tohsaka-san exclaims. She pulls up Nadeshiko's shirt... well, what's left of it. What we see is pretty gruesome.... but it's obvious that her wound is slowly starting to heal. Thank goodness. I don't even begin to question how she's doing it, with no spells having been cast on her.
Saber picks her Master up off the ground. "I'll take Nadeshiko home," she states. Berserker won't attack again, and Saber seems as if she's not hurt very badly now, so she starts carrying Nadeshiko away.
"Saber!" I shout, before she gets too far away. "Take care of her, okay?"
She smiles slightly and says, "You need not worry, but thanks for your concern."
Tohsaka and Archer follow suit. Likewise, I leave and start the long walk home.

Exhausted, I open the door to the apartment. When I get in, I immediately notice that something's not right. A spiritual presence of some kind! I run to Onee-chan's bedroom and throw open the door. The room is a mess, and in the middle of it is Onee-chan, being held up from behind by another woman! It's tough to see her face, most of it is concealed by a purple hood. In a corner is yet another woman, this one with long black hair, dressed in a kimono. She gracefully walks over and stands next to the hooded woman.
"You're too late, girl," the hooded woman says. "I'm taking this one with me!"
"What are you doing with Onee-chan?!? Let her go....!" I yell, raising my left hand and aiming... Suddenly, my vision turns white and I find myself on the floor. I-I can't get up...!
"Lancer, you were too rough on the poor girl," I hear.
"My apologies, Master. I held back as much as I could."
"At least you didn't kill her. She might come in handy at some point."
I can feel that they've left. With Onee-chan.... A few tears roll down my face as my consciousness fades.

>>15778
FFFF you changed Lancer and Berserker? And why would Caster care about us when we're not even a master?

>>15780
I said I was going to change Lancer to begin with. And I didn't want to write a Herculesko, that's going to be in the Shirouko route(s) I end up doing.

Why *would* Caster be interested in us? And why bother kidnapping Alexandra? All in due time. =d

>>15781
So the outright flipping will have to wait until the Shirouko routes? Fair enough, you seem to work better when you have room anyway.

>>15780
Hey cmon, you've played jrpgs before right? We're the main character, OF COURSE we have some latent ability or power that hasn't been revealed yet. Caster just wants to use this for another one of her diabolical schemes.

>>15782
woah, female lancer is hot!
she must be an assertive, ale-chugging, womanizing lesbian as well. nice.

>>15782
I think things would be a bit too predictable if I used the exact same Servants as in F/SN. We're less of an outsider than Shirouko/Nadeshiko, but we don't have the benefit of a relic sheath stuck down our throats. And as less entertaining/boring as it may be to not have a Servant yet, just look at F/SN. Things can change, after all. This is just the first day of the Grail War.

And, well, Beserker is the way she is for a reason.

Oh, and I guess one last note: We actually would have had a Servant by this point in other Lily Star routes. It's just that we're on the Taiga route now...

Anyway, I'm glad people are reading, even if things may not exactly be the way you'd hoped. Keep the comments coming!

>>15783
I disagree. We're a supporting character who happens to be the point of view character. Fate is (emphatically) Shirou/Nadeshiko's story.

Then again I'm not the writer and this is a fanfic, so that logic might as well be thrown out the window.

>>15785
>>15788
I'm fine with what's happened so far and I think your writing is pretty good. The only complaint I'd have is that I wanted us to rescue our Onee-chan

>>15795
Well, every time the choice came up to go home, it was outvoted by the other choices (Going to the Archery Club, Helping out Nadeshiko/Investigating Rin, Visiting the Church).

Worry not, though. It's not like readers don't know where Caster's at anyway.

>>15796
yea I agree with
>>15795
in that I have no real complaints. This is quite enjoyable, whatever scenario comes about. If you're going for us not having a servant, than I'm curious to watch how you are going to tie us into the story and keep us involved.

I'm wandering through the burnt streets of Fuyuki. The fire was put out a while ago, but the buildings are mostly gone. The city's being rebuilt. I've lost my Uncle... and I've lost my parents... With no one to turn to, I aimlessly explore the ruined city.
At some point, I see an adult's shadow overlap my own. I turn around to see a beautiful lady in tears. She sobs and kneels down in front of me, saying something. I reach up to her and hold her face in my hands...

When I regain consciousness, it's daytime. The sun shines brightly through the broken windows, revealing just how much damage was done in Onee-chan's bedroom. I choke back tears as I recall the two Servants who took her. I swear, I'll rescue you, Onee-chan! If I only knew where to look!
I drag myself from the bedroom and look at the time: I'm up a little early. Even if I combed the city, I don't know that I'd find Onee-chan and those Servants. And even if I did, I wouldn't have a chance in hell by myself. I'd better go to school, maybe Tohsaka-san might know something. And I need to check up on Nadeshiko, too. Even though her wound was healing, she probably won't be in any shape to train tonight. To be honest, as much as I'd love one-on-one time with Fujimura-sensei, I'm not even in the mood for it now... With a deep sigh, I psych myself up enough to get ready for class. I look around for my Tora-Shinai, but don't see it around... "T-that's right... I left it at Nadeshiko's place," I hazily remember. Guess I have no choice but to visit her house tonight anyway.

I lock up the apartment and leave. Once again, I get that feeling of nausea as I enter the campus. That magic field is still in place! What does this mean?
I don't run into Tohsaka-san, but I see Nadeshiko inside the building. "Good morning, Kiyomi-chan!" she greets me with a huge smile.
"A-ah, good morning, Nadeshiko," I return her greeting with no small amount of surprise. What's she doing here? She was nearly bisected last night! I pull her aside, outside of earshot of the other students. "Are you okay? You got hurt pretty bad last night."
"It's amazing... my body just healed itself! Tohsaka thinks it's because of Saber, maybe her regenerative powers rubbed off on me somehow," she replies. "Oh! Did you watch the news this morning? There was some sort of gas leak accident!" I shake my head, I didn't exactly have time to watch TV this morning. "A family was found unconscious. Tohsaka said that Servants can feed on the souls of normal people, so I was thinking... Maybe a Servant did it?"
"It's possible... but we couldn't be for sure unless we actually went to the accident scene," I reply, thinking about it.
Nadeshiko starts looking at me strangely. "Is something wrong? You don't look so good." C-crap. I don't want to involve her in my problems! But it's not like I have any choice in the matter, I need her and Saber's help. Before I can tell her about Onee-chan, Tohsaka-san walks by. Nadeshiko raises a hand to wave at her, but is cut off by Tohsaka-san's familiar gaze of death. Was she serious about that 'Friends Tonight, Enemies Tomorrow' garbage? "What's with Tohsaka, anyway?" she asks. I shrug my shoulders and tell her that I'll see her after class.

What can I say about classes? They're peacefully uneventful. Usually, they go by fairly quickly (especially English class!). But I'm so worried about Onee-chan, the day just drags on and on. Finally, the school day is over!

[] I need to find Tohsaka-san. She might have information about the Servants who kidnapped Onee-chan!
[] I need to find Nadeshiko. I don't want to ask, but I'll need her help to rescue Onee-chan.

>>15799
[]Nadeshiko
From an in-character perspective, we need Saber's help to rescue Alexandra, and we know that Nadeshiko wants to be a super hero. Obviously the best place to go.

But for us as readers, this is the Taiga route, so Nadeshiko makes more sense to interact with than Rin.

Yeah try to persuade Nadeshiko to help. She should be helping us out, after we saved her ass.

[X] I need to find Nadeshiko. I don't want to ask, but I'll need her help to rescue Onee-chan.

>>15804
I was going to say Rin would be an obviously better choice as a go-to concerning this matter, but you raise a good point. If we're after Taiga points we'd better go hang out at Emiya's.

Saber > Caster.

Let's help out the Shirou girl who's name I can't be assed to copy/paste.

>>15814
You could just call her "Emiya". =)

I often listen to F/SN or F/UC BGM while writing this stuff. I was listening to this song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjTixX43liw) while writing part of this and it made me tear up a bit. Christ, I'm such a faggot.
________________________________
Tohsaka-san might have more information on Onee-chan's abductors, but we're not exactly on good terms. And, considering that look she gave Nadeshiko earlier, she probably wouldn't help me if I asked. I kinda feel like I'm taking advantage of her, but I don't have any choice than to turn to Nadeshiko for help. Does this put me on the same level as Vice-Captain Matou? Argh...!

Once class is dismissed, I hurry out of the room and wait by Nadeshiko's classroom. While the other students are filing out, I let my mind wander a bit. The graceful Lancer and that hooded Servant... Now that I think about it, she could only be a Caster or a Rider, I've seen all the other Servant classes. And that Lancer called her "Master," so they're not just teaming up. But only Magi can be Masters... So was that Caster, and she summoned Lancer? Or maybe Lancer's Master died and Caster and formed a contract with her? I don't know. Either way, it'd help if I knew who Caster's Master is.

Anyway, Nadeshiko's chatting with a friend of her's as she's leaving. What was her name again? Hajime? As they pass by, I give them a friendly wave.
"Hi, Kiyomi-chan!" Nadeshiko says cheerfully. She's something else, still being so happy in the middle of a Grail War. She introduces me to her friend, the student council president Ryuudou Hajime.
"I'm sorry you had the unpleasant fortune of running into that Tohsaka," Ryuudou-san says, "I can only hope that her devilish ways didn't rub off on you in some way." I guess she sees through Tohsaka-san's idol façade somehow.
"Oh, she's not that bad, you're just exaggerating!" Nadeshiko says. If you only knew...
"E-Emiya! Have you been bewitched by that demon?! I'll have to pray for your soul when I get home." She adjusts her glasses and turns to me. "I'll pray for yours as well, Tsukimiya." With that, she cites some student council business and takes her leave.
Once Ryuudou-san is far enough away, I peek into the classroom and see no one there. I guess it's as good a place as any. "Um, Nadeshiko, can I talk with you for a bit?" I ask her, and nod in the direction of the classroom. "It's important."
"Of course you can!" she says, grabs my hand and pulls me into the classroom.

I explain my situation to her. I talk about Onee-chan; who she is, what my relationship is with her, and how she got kidnapped by Caster and Lancer. I leave out the part about my parents' death, but still, I think I told her more than I should have... Somehow, I get the feeling I can trust Nadeshiko, even if she is kind of ditzy. "S-so," I conclude, "I know it's asking a lot, but I need your help. You and Saber are the only ones I can really turn to."
Nadeshiko's eyes shine with determination, and she puts her hand to her chest and exclaims, "I'll definitely help! After all you did for me yesterday, it's the least I could do!" For some reason, my face feels a little hot. A-am I blushing?!
"Th-thanks, Nadeshiko... It really means a lot to me," I honestly tell her. I want to cry. I really do, but I've got to stay strong. If... no, WHEN we rescue Onee-chan, then I can bawl my eyes out.
"I'm sort of in the same situation as you," she tells me. "My Dad, Emiya Kiritsugu... He died about seven years ago, and Fuji-nee's been taking care of me ever since. He was a Magus, and... well, he didn't want to teach me any magic, but he finally gave in after I kept begging him." She gets this distant look in her eyes. Emiya Kiritsugu, huh? That's pretty strange, not wanting to teach your child your family's magic. "I really looked up to him, and to his ideals."
'I swore that I'd be like my Dad and become a Hero of Justice!' echoes through my mind, as I remember what she said at Kotomine Church last night. It's a silly thing, at our age, to want to be a Hero like that, but... I can't help thinking that maybe Nadeshiko COULD pull it off. That she has such a pure heart. And that she's so cute... Without even thinking about it, I gently place my hand to her cheek and... Wait, what the hell am I DOING?! I-I like Fujimura-sensei! I immediately pull my hand back. "Eh-hehehe," I nervously laugh. "If you do your best, I'm sure you'll succeed," I tell her, while trying to calm my rapidly beating heart.
I think I startled her, she's holding her hand to her cheek where I touched her. "Kiyomi-chan..."
"Um.... We're supposed to meet Fujimura-sensei at your place tonight, right? We'd better get going," I say hurriedly and turn to leave. Before I get anywhere, I feel my hand being held.
"Let's go home together, okay?" Nadeshiko asks with a smile.
It was at this moment, I feel, that our destinies were somehow linked.

Nadeshiko and I walk down the hallway to leave campus. We get to the staircase and hear a series of footsteps. T-Tohsaka-san?! She's glaring at Nadeshiko....
"Tohsaka! I'm surprised you're still here!" Nadeshiko says with a wave.
"You've got to be pretty stupid, showing your face here without your Servant," Tohsaka-san growls.
"What's your problem? You know I can't put Saber into Astral form!"
"What do you expect her to do, bring Saber here in a school uniform?" I ask, quasi-facetiously.
"Emiya should've just skipped school," Tohsaka-san says in the same menacing tone. "Coming here as a Master without a Servant is the same as begging someone to kill you."
"Don't be ridiculous, I can't skip class like that! Besides which, no one would attack me in broad daylight at a crowded school!" Nadeshiko yells.
"Oh? Where's the crowd now?" We both look around... she's right, everyone's gone home for the day! Tohsaka-san slowly walks down the stairs, rolling up her sleeve. Her family crest is glowing... She wouldn't...! Again, I'm in a situation where I'm confronting Tohsaka-san. I...

[] Fight Tohsaka-san.
[] Run with Nadeshiko.
[] Try to talk Tohsaka-san out of fighting.

>>15841
[]Reveal Nadeshiko's breasts. While Tohsaka is momentarily thrown off guard, take her down.

[x] Try to talk
She probably won't listen but then we would have a good reason to attack her.

>>15841
I love Ever-Present Feeling. Try the crow'sclaw version if you haven't yet.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEkyeDlwo0I

[x] Run with Nadeshiko.
This worked out pretty well in UBW. Tohsaka can front like she's a badass, but she can't keep up the act for very long.

>>15843
-10 Nadeshiko points, +1 Rin point.
>>15845
I like the Crow's Claw version of EMIYA, but that's the only remix of (their's?) I'd heard. Thanks =D

Look up his (it's a one man band) remix of In the Moonlight. It's even better than the EMIYA one.

>>15841
Try to talk

Try to talk

>>15849
I listened to the that and it sounds great. I've never heard of this Crow's Claw stuff. What's it from? Also, is their an album or something I can dl for their shit?

>>15899
Ah, found it:
http://downloads.khinsider.com/game-soundtracks/album/crows-claw-broken-phantasm-type-moon-hr-hm-arrange

>>15900
Thanks. I won't dload form that site - looks sketchy. But I got the name of the album to search and get off torrent. Bless.

>>15907
Well fuck me, I can't find a torrent. Anyone got one?

>>15910
Nevermind, found a ddl

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=FAJN96XC

>>15911
make sure you get 17 Division as well

>>15911
If you happen to like Touhou, Crow's Claw has also done remixes of songs from those games too. (I don't like danmaku shmups, so I don't really care, but...) /rs/ has a couple of albums listed.

>>15925

Sorry to sound very secondary-fan and getting so far off-topic from Lily Star, but Touhou is quite a bit more than the games.
Doesn't mean I don't like the games though.

...
[X] Fight Tohsaka-san!
FUCK YOUR GANDR I SHOOT LIGHTING

>>15926
It's my thread, and I can derail it if I want to...!

Er, anyway. I like some of the characters (Sakuya, Orin, Hong Meiling), and I like MegaMari. I just don't like the original games.

Talk things out, we're moralfags.

We've kicked her ass once before, we can do it again.

To be honest, I really don't want to fight Tohsaka-san again, mostly because this is a meaningless fight.
"Okay, Tohsaka-san, you've made your point. Nadeshiko needs to be more careful in public. Is that any reason to take her out?!" I move in front of Nadeshiko.
"Oh? What happened to your promise, Tsukimiya? The day before yesterday, you said you wouldn't interfere with me... was that a lie?" she asks tauntingly.
"We both know things are different now!" I shout at her.
"W-wait, something happened between you two?" Nadeshiko pokes her head out from behind me and stares at Tohsaka-san in shock.
"You could say that," she replies with a smirk. Looking directly at me, she says, "I see you don't have your weapon with you this time... You're just like Emiya! You're both so careless, it makes me sick!"
Damn, she's right! I left the Tora-Shinai at Nadeshiko's last night! If she starts her gatling gun routine on us, I won't be able to defend very well. On the up side, though, I'm getting used to using my magic, so I can still fight if it comes down to it. It doesn't look like I'm going to be able to talk Tohsaka-san out of this, she's hell-bent on making us learn the consequences of our mistakes. Fine, if that's how she wants it...! I take one step up the stairs and start rolling up my left sleeve, showing my own family crest.
"Why?" Tohsaka-san asks. "Why are you so insistent on protecting her? Could it be.... you like her already?" she puts a hand over her mouth in a poor attempt to hide her amusement. "Are you in love with her, even though you haven't even known her a full day?"
"Y-you've got it wrong!" I deny it outright... at least vocally. Sometimes, I'm not even sure WHAT I'm thinking any more. "We're friends! And I'm not going to let you hurt her!"
"Please, stop!" Nadeshiko screams. "I don't want you to fight each other! Tohsaka, you helped me yesterday... were you serious about becoming my enemy today?!"
At that outburst, she looks away as if fighting an internal struggle. "L-look, this is for your own good. You should be thankful that I'm the one who's going to take you down. Any other Master wouldn't hesitate to kill you outright! Don't you remember what Illyasviel said to you?! Don't you remember what happened?!?" Tohsaka-san slams her fist against a wall in frustration. Somehow, I think I'm starting to understand her a little better now. She cares about Nadeshiko too, in her own way...

I shut down my magic circuits, it looks like the situation's been defused. There's an uncomfortable silence hanging in the air, we really don't know what to say to each other. It doesn't last too long, a scream rings out from downstairs. Nadeshiko immedately starts running in the direction it came from; Tohsaka and I follow her down. We find a student laying still on the ground near an open door.
"I-is she...?" Nadeshiko starts to ask.
"No, she's still alive!" Tohsaka immediately kneels next to the downed girl and starts casting a healing spell.
"Who could've done this? A Servant?" I muse aloud. Nadeshiko did mention that gas leak accident this morning... Suddenly, Nadeshiko moves in between the door and Tohsaka.
"G-GYAAAAAH!" Nadeshiko screams, a huge spiked nail impaled in her hand. It disappears a few seconds later, but leaves a hole where it once was. She looks outside angrily. "W-who would do that to a girl? That was aimed right at Tohsaka's face!" Bearing the pain, she runs outside to look for the assailant.
"N-Nadeshiko, wait! Don't go by yourself!" I yell, and chase after her. I glance back at Tohsaka, but she just looks on in stunned disbelief.

We dash out of the building and into the nearby forest. We can both feel that a Servant is nearby. We don't get too far into the woods when we finally find our attacker... and it looks like she was waiting for us. She has purple hair that cascades to the ground and a blindfold of some kind wrapped around her eyes. She's wearing a black strapless dress with purple trim across the bustline, matching thigh-high boots, and arm-length gloves. This's the only Servant I haven't seen before, so she's probably Rider.
"You two did well to find me so quickly," she says in a sultry voice. "For your reward, I'll give you both a beautiful death." Why do things always have to go from bad to worse?! Another fight against a Servant, and Nadeshiko's already hurt! We don't have much choice, I....

[] Try to hold Rider off long enough for Nadeshiko to escape.
[] Fight Rider with Nadeshiko.
[] Flee with Nadeshiko.

[X] Fight Rider with Nadeshiko.

Let's get better with lightning-play.

[X] Fight
Even though I think it might be a bad end.

>>16003
Fight. We shoot lightning and our partner is made of swords. Our opponent is a mere sexy rendition of a legendary monster, that's nothing by comparison.

eh, let's fight. Nadeshiko isn't one to run away, and Rider, though I love her, is basically about as threatening as an angry kitten.

The last time we ran from a Servant, Nadeshiko got her heart crushed. I'm not about to let something like that happen again. We'll have to make our stand against Rider, here in the forest. If we can hold out, hopefully either Saber will show up or Tohsaka will bring Archer....
While my mind's racing for a strategy, Nadeshiko asks Rider, "Are you the one responsible for the field surrounding the school?" That's not Caster, I don't see how...
"Since neither of you are going to escape alive, I'll tell you," she replies with a smirk. "The spell field is a specialty of mine, Blood Fort Andromeda."
"Wait, that's not possible! You're not Servant Caster, you're Servant Rider, aren't you?" I ask. Maybe we can luck out and stall for time by talking....!
"It's not something I can do because of my Class, it's merely a personal ability." At that, Rider materializes her weapon... a large, spiked nail with a long chain. It looks like she's through chatting.

"Kiyomi-chan," Nadeshiko says with a determined look on her face. "Do you think you can hold her off for just a minute? There's something I want to try." I've only seen her use Reinforcing magic... maybe she knows more than she lets on?
"Sure, I'll see what I can do," I assure her. Immediately, I open all of my magic circuits and start channeling mana into my crest. All right, Rider, let's see what you've got.
I run towards her and aim my left palm at her. Rider reacts by jumping back and throwing the spiked nail at me. I dodge to the right, adjust my aim, and yell, "THUNDER BEAM!" A huge bolt of purple lightning shoots from my hand and hits its target! Or rather, it would have, had it not dissipated just before impact. She's got some kind of resistance to magic!
"I hope you weren't trying to injure me with such a paltry spell!" Rider taunts. She starts running at me, reeling in her chain. I've got to keep her attention away from Nadeshiko for just a little longer... Okay, let's try this one!
"That which pierces the Heavens." I backstep away from a spinning stab attempt aimed at my neck. Rider continues her spin and uses the momentum to hurl the nail at me again!
"That which pierces the Earth." I barely dodge the spiked weapon and continue my chant. Concentrating on the spell is making it hard to do much else!
"That which pierces all living things." Almost finished! Rider aims a kick to my stomach that I barely block. Even defending her attacks hurts... she's a lot stronger than I thought she'd be! With a shout, she jumps into the air and comes down with a kick. This is my opening! I swing my left arm upwards and complete my chant.
"I unleash upon thee the rage of a hundred storms.... THUNDER BREAK!" With the completion of the incantation, twenty bolts of blue lightning stream forth. They each break into five lesser bolts and converge onto Rider. The Servant is knocked out of the air, but she recovers and lands on all fours. Even THAT spell didn't hurt her that much!

I glance back at Nadeshiko, she's chanting a spell of her own...
"Trace On.
Creation ideology, determined.
Base core, envisioned.
All cut, Clear zero."
Nadeshiko holds out her hands, and a pair of swords appear out of nowhere. Of all the types of magic to use, she's using Projection? Wait a sec, aren't those Archer's swords? "Okay, I think I'm ready now!" she says with a smile.
Together, we attack Rider. The way Nadeshiko uses those swords, it looks like she's trying to copy Archer's fighting style, too. Rider parries a few slashes with her nail and dodges the thrusts. Of course, Nadeshiko isn't very skilled in fighting using a copied style, especially one that she hasn't seen much of, and she makes a few mistakes that Rider takes advantage of. With her spiked nail, Rider stabs one of the swords, which shatters and disappears. Just as this happens, I complete another Thunder Break chant and blast Rider. Nadeshiko re-Projects the missing sword and swings them both at the Servant simultaneously. Rider parries one with her nail, and leans backwards to avoid the other... but not completely. A few strands of hair flutter away, and a cut appears on her face.

"You two aren't so bad when you work together," Rider backhandedly compliments us, wiping off a trickle of blood. "Too bad I'll have to put a stop to that!" She jumps up to a tree branch, and pulls in her chain... with Nadeshiko in tow. She screams in pain as it appears she's being hung by the wrist, and soon enough, the nail that was stuck in her hand materializes.
"W-what kind of Heroic Spirit are you?!" Nadeshiko yells, desperately trying to pull the spike out of her hand. "Blood Forts and sneak attacks, using this kind of weapon... you're just like Assassin! No, you're worse!"
Rider pulls Nadeshiko upwards a little farther, then wraps the chain around her victim's throat. "Such tawdry insults... Not that it matters what you say now, when I'm about to give you the death I promised you earlier."
"RIDER! Let her go!" I shout in rage.
"You don't expect me to do a stupid thing like that, do you?"
As I see Nadeshiko struggling to breathe, I snap. My vision starts throbbing, my heart starts racing, my body starts shaking, my brain starts frying, my consciousness starts shutting off. What's happening to me?!?
Instantaneously, I find myself on the same tree branch as Rider, grasping her by the face. "thunder beam! Thunder beam! Thunder Beam! THUNDER BEAM! THUNDERBEAMTHUNDERBEAMTHUNDERBEAM!" I'm repeatedly blasting this Servant at point-blank range. Against all logic, even the single-line spell seems to be having some effect.
Less out of pain than out of surprise, Rider stumbles backwards and releases the chain. Nadeshiko falls, but lands safely on the ground. With a yell, she successfully pulls the spiked nail out of her hand.
Rider knocks me away, and I fly into the trunk of the tree. She retrieves her nails and jumps to the ground, only to be met by a white-and-silver-armored Servant.
Nadeshiko coughs and looks up at the exposed back of her Servant. "S-Saber!"
"Prepare yourself!" Saber yells as she attacks Rider. The blindfolded Servant leaps away to another tree.
"You Magi surprised me... if only my Master was half as brave as you two! But with another Servant here, I'm afraid I'll have to take my leave." Rider says as she flees the battlefield.

Once Rider has gone, Saber leaps up to pull me from the tree. She lands on the ground, and gently lays me down. The last thing I see before everything fades to black is Nadeshiko leaning over my body, crying.

So are we on the Emiya route or what?

(Because I really want to be.)

>>16174
Well, technically it's the Taiga route, but there haven't been enough cooking scenes with her in it yet. That'll change, since there's going to be some downtime from all the fighting.

>"Trace On.
Creation ideology, determined.
Base core, envisioned.
All cut, Clear zero."

Am I the only one that read that in engrish?

>>16181
I thought it in Engrish while I was writing the story. It's actually the translation of that spell from the Fuyuki wiki.
I purposefully tried to make the Thunder Break incantation sound Engrishy as I could without it being overly retarded. I don't think I succeeded, but eh.

When I regain consciousness, I find myself at Nadeshiko's house. More specifically (it's a big house, after all), I'm in her room. Archer, Saber, and Nadeshiko are sitting together, while Tohsaka has a hand raised over me. I guess she just got done casting a healing spell. I sit up quickly, but immediately regret doing so... My body hasn't completely recovered yet.
"Tsukimiya, you'd almost be better off staying away from Emiya. I think her bad habits are rubbing off on you," Tohsaka says with a smirk. "At this rate, it won't be too much longer before you're running off to fight Berserker by yourself. Right, Emiya?"
Nadeshiko doesn't respond.
"I have to agree," Saber concurs. "This is the third time you've been in a battle with other Servants since you've summoned me, Nadeshiko, and every time, you've voluntarily placed yourself in harm's way. Why won't you let me fight for you?"
"You got hurt in that fight with Berserker! I couldn't stand by and let her kill you!"
"I was still capable of fighting. More importantly, I am merely your sword. Even if I was defeated, you'd still have a chance to live. If you died, I would cease to exist. It's an irrational way of thinking!"
"Tohsaka... Saber... Cut her some slack, okay? I'm getting a headache," I lie to get them to stop berating Nadeshiko. I look over to her and ask, "How's your hand?"
"O-oh, it's already healed up. See?" She shows where her hand had been impaled; there's only a small amount of discoloration remaining.
"That's good," I say, and lay back down. I turn to Tohsaka and thank her for healing me. This should be an interesting reaction...
"Emiya would probably be bawling her eyes out if you died on us. Don't go thinking I'll always be acting as your magical first-aid kit," she says and looks away. I think I see why Archer teases the hell out of her.

Night falls over the Emiya household, and it's not long before I smell someone cooking. With the exception of Saber, everyone else has left the room.
"Saber, I should thank you too. I guess you must've sensed that Nadeshiko was in danger, right?"
"Yes, but I was almost too late for the both of you. I could have been there in an instant if Nadeshiko had used a Command Seal. Honestly, I should be the one thanking you. If you hadn't been there, my Master might not have survived." After a pause, she continues, "I don't understand what possesses her to take such risks..."
"She doesn't like seeing anyone else getting hurt," I tell her, getting out of the futon. "It's like she doesn't care about herself as long as other people are safe." After stretching a bit, I ask her, "I guess she hides you in here when she has visitors?" Saber nods in response. "Okay, then... I'll see you later," I tell her, and leave to follow the smell. I'm so hungry...

I wander into the living/dining room and see Fujimura-sensei and Tohsaka watching TV, waiting for Nadeshiko and Matou-san (what's she doing here?) to finish cooking. "Hi, everyone."
"How's my one-and-only fangirl?" Fujimura-sensei asks as she hops up with her cat-like expression and gives me another monster hug. Ow-ow-ow-ow, my back's still sore! I look around Sensei and see Tohsaka giving me a devilish grin. I shoot her as much of a glare as I can muster. "Are you ready for training tonight?"
"Of course, I wouldn't miss it!" I say happily. It's almost funny; if I used magic, Sensei couldn't beat me in a fight... But that's not the point. From a practical perspective, being proficient with a weapon could only be a good thing, especially in situations where my magic isn't as useful. And there's the fringe benefit of spending time with Sensei. She smells so nice! I start blushing as I feel her body heat. The only other person that hugs me like this is Onee-chan....
I wrap my arms around Sensei's back and fight back tears. It's been almost a full day since she was taken by Caster and Lancer, I hope she's okay.

It's not long before dinner's ready, and the five of us sit at the table. Before we can start eating, Nadeshiko hops up and leaves the room, saying that she'll be right back. A couple of minutes later, she's dragging Saber (now dressed in a tank top and skirt) into the room. Is she crazy?! Tohsaka facepalms, the same idea's probably running through her head.
"Everyone, this is Saber," she introduces her Servant. Sensei and Matou-san look shocked.
"Why do you have a foreign girl staying with you?" Fujimura-sensei asks curiously.
"Oh. Ah... She's, er... the daughter of one of Dad's old overseas friends. She was curious about Japan and I offered to let her stay here."
Playing along, Saber says, "I have to thank you for your hospitality."
"One of Kiritsugu-san's friends?" Sensei mulls this over. "It makes enough sense, he was gone an awful lot. Hmm. Well, it's nice to meet you, Saber-chan!"
With that introduction out of the way, we finally begin eating. The food is great; Nadeshiko's cooking is on a completely different level than my own! During the course of the meal, a few things become apparent. For one thing, Fujimura-sensei eats a lot, but she's still got a good figure. I guess she burns off the calories by running at Mach speed when she's late for her own homeroom? Another thing is, Saber also eats a lot. I guess even Servants know good food when they taste it.

After that huge dinner, Tohsaka offers to walk Matou-san home. On the way out, Tohsaka gives us looks as if to say that we'll need to talk later. After they leave, Sensei has the two of us change into more traditional clothes; hakama, helmets, and the like. On the way to the dojo, I pick up the Tora-Shinai I'd left here yesterday. When we get there, I'm amazed... it's pretty big! Saber sits off to the side and watches us. I'm almost kind of embarrassed. This level of swordplay is nothing compared to what she's capable of, after all.
"Let's see... Nadeshiko's probably going to be rusty, and I haven't actually seen what you can do yet, Tsukimiya-san, so you two are probably going to be a pretty good match for each other," says Sensei. To be honest, I've only ever really imitated things I'd seen her do in her matches; I don't have any formal training.
We have a pretty good match, though I have a hard time fending off Nadeshiko's attacks once she gets her bearings. Eventually, she lands a good blow to my stomach. We take our helmets off, and I congratulate her on her win.
"That wasn't half-bad, you two," Sensei says. "Nadeshiko isn't nearly as far-gone as I thought she'd be, and you've got some talent!" With that, she shows us a few forms to practice. While she's supervising, she stands next to Saber and asks her, "You're named for a type of Western sword, aren't you, Saber-chan? Do you fence or anything?"
"I have some modicum of skill with a sword, yes," Saber modestly replies.
"I could tell," Sensei nods. "You have this swordswoman spirit about you... Say, what would you say to having a little exhibition match with me?" Say what?
"I'm afraid I'll have to pass," declines Saber.
"Oh, come on, it'll be fun!" Sensei pulls Saber to her feet with a huge grin.
"Sensei, that might not be such a good idea... what about your injury?" I pipe up. A match between Sensei and Saber would not end well at all, even if Saber held back.
"I'll be alright, my shoulder hasn't acted up in a while." Sensei stretches a bit to loosen up, then takes a pair of shinai off of the wall. "Here you go," she says, tossing one to Saber.

The two take their positions and assume stances. Saber stays perfectly still, while Fujimura-sensei slowly advances. After a few steps, she runs in and attacks with an overhead strike. Saber calmly parries the attack, holding her own shinai with but a single hand. A thrust is deflected just as casually. Sensei slashes at Saber's shoulder, only to find her weapon taken from her.
"This match is over, yes?" Saber asks, holding both shinai. A second later, the sword she took from Sensei explodes in a shower of confetti. With a smirk and a laugh, Sensei pulls another shinai from inside the back of her top and attacks. Quickly, Saber tosses away the trick shinai and once again disarms her opponent while sidestepping. "That was an unexpectedly underhanded ploy, Taiga... but I can tell that you really are quite well-trained."
Shocked that the match has ended like it has, Fujimura-sensei tears up a bit. "My Nadeshiko and my fangirl are gonna be taken away by some weirdo foreigner!"
"Fuji-nee..."
"Fujimura-sensei...!" We both try to console Sensei, but it doesn't seem to do much good until Saber comes over.
"Taiga, both Kiyomi and Nadeshiko think the world of you. I'm only visiting, so there's no way I could take them from you," she says logically. "And I meant what I said, you really are quite skilled." At that, she gives Sensei a small smile.
"You're such a nice girl, Saber-chan!" Fujimura-sensei beams, patting her on the head. "If I'd kept up my own training, it might not have gone this way, after all!" I'd beg to differ, but I'm happy that she's not taking it hard or personally.

After we practice a few more forms, we stop for the night. It's getting pretty late, and we still have class tomorrow. Not only that, but I still need to rest up from both the training and that fight with Rider.
While I'm changing, Nadeshiko asks, "Um... so you're about to go home?"
"Well, yeah..." I desperately need to bathe and put on something clean.
"By yourself?" Dammit, she has to remind me of this?
"Yes?"
"Well, you see... if you want, you could stay here until we rescue Alexandra-san..." I actually briefly consider this. I didn't bring anything clean, so that means I'll either have to wash what I'm wearing or borrow clothes from Nadeshiko. On the flip-side, it's a bit of a walk to get back home and there's always the possibility of an ambush by one of the numerous Servants that probably don't like me. Of course, I'd have the Tora-Shinai with me, so things might not be so bad...
Fujimura-sensei pops her head in and tells us that she's about to go home. I could walk with Sensei until she gets to her place! A chance for time alone with her, that'd be so nice...!

[] I'll walk with Fujimura-sensei, then go home.
[] I'll stay the night with Nadeshiko.

Go with Fuji-nee
We should gather some Fujimura points if we are indeed on her route, and staying with Nadeshiko wouldn't really accomplish much I think.

Taiga points choice

[x]Walk home with Taiga.
You're great with creating tough choices, OP. I really want to see a cute sleepover scene with Emiya-chan and ourself, but I'm sure she would just give us the room in the outbuilding, which would be oh-so-anticlimactic.

All this boring lifestyle stuff...IT'S LIKE I'M REALLY PLAYING F/SN!

This is Taiga route, so...
[X] I'll walk with Fujimura-sensei, then go home.

>>16251
>All this boring lifestyle stuff...IT'S LIKE I'M REALLY PLAYING F/SN!
You're welcome. =d
I suppose it was too obvious an option (not that the other one was a DEAD END), but I don't like posting more than one story section without giving people a choice.

Writing this has gotten me playing F/UC again. It's hard to tear myself away from some of these missions (Archer Technique 6: Deal 60,000 damage to Berserker while in perma-UBW mode) and get back to writing. <.<;

>>16252
>It's hard to tear myself away and get back to writing.

The only times I get to see Fujimura-sensei are when I'm at class or here at Nadeshiko's place... If I'm ever going to get some time to be with her, I'd better take this chance.
"Ah... Sorry, Nadeshiko, I can't stay tonight. I didn't bring anything clean with me, y'know?"
"Maybe tomorrow, then?" she asks hopefully.
Without even thinking about it, I tell her, "I'll make sure to pack, okay?" Her expression lightens and she gives me a happy nod. She really is cute...
I pick up my bags and head to the front door to meet up with Sensei. Nadeshiko follows me and sees me out. "Be careful out there!" she yells as Sensei and I walk down the street.

What can I talk about? Hm... "So, ah... I guess you and Nadeshiko have known each other for a long time?" Might as well talk about something or someone we both know about.
"Yep, I've been taking care of her quite a while now, even before her Dad passed away." She says that last bit with a hint of sadness.
"She calls you 'Fuji-nee', so I figured it might be something like that. I have someone like that too... but I don't really have a nickname for her like Nadeshiko has for you."
"You're adopted, too?"
I nod. "Onee-chan's been taking care of me for ten years now, but she's gone miss... Um, I mean..." Stupid, don't say it that way! "She's gone overseas. I miss her a lot," I say, with a downcast look.
"So you're by yourself right now?" Sensei asks with some concern.
"Yeah... but just for tonight. Nadeshiko invited me to stay with her until we get... um, until Onee-chan gets back."
"Leave it to her to do something like that... ever the heroine, I guess."
"Hehe, I guess you'd know about that, huh?"
"Listen, she's always been that way. Always going on about helping people and being a Hero of Justice, things like that. I just worry that someday, someone's going to take advantage of her and ruin her life." ...Not if I can help it. "I'm just glad that someone like you showed up..." I blush a little at that. "I was getting worried that Yuriko's behavior might influence her."
"Vice-Captain Matou? Ehh...."
Sensei grins, "I think she leaves that impression on anyone who's not in her little clique. They were really good friends once, but I guess something happened with Yuriko and..." she shrugs her shoulders. "She's terrible to new members of the Archery Club, so Ayako and I have to end up undoing her damage. It's frustrating, and it drives people away from the club." After a bit of a pause, she continues, "In a way.... It's a little weird. I try to teach Nadeshiko kendo, and she doesn't really take to it. I'm in charge of the Archery Club, but she quit last year. Eventually, she's going to graduate. I do sorta freeload off of her, but I do it so I have a reason to visit! After losing Kiritsugu-san... if I grew apart from Nadeshiko, or I lost her, I don't know what I'd do." It's strange to see her so somber, she's usually so incredibly cheerful...
I take hold of Sensei's hand. "It'll be okay, that'll never happen," I say in all seriousness. "I don't know if she ever complains, but you're all she has. And I promise, I'll never let anything happen to her. So stay cheerful, okay?" I give her a hopeful smile.
She smiles back and hugs me. It's not one of her crushing hugs, this one's a lot more gentle. "Thank you, Kiyomi-chan." She strokes my hair and tells me, "You really are a sweet girl."
Once we get to Sensei's place, I say, "I'll see you tomorrow, Fujimura-sensei."
"We're not at school, you don't have to be that formal... Until your Nee-san gets back, I'll take her place, okay? She'll be back before too long, right?"
I nod. "Thanks, um... F-Fuji-nee?" I half-thank and half-ask.
"I'll see you in class tomorrow, then!" We wave to each other, and I start heading home by myself.

It's a little weird, going back home with no one there waiting for you. It feels weird to me, but... For Nadeshiko, it's been like that for years. Even with Sensei... Um, with F-Fuji-nee (I don't know if I'll ever get used to referring to her like that), it still doesn't change the fact that she's usually alone... While I'm thinking about this, I see a familiar suit-wearing woman walking down the other side of the road. She notices me and walks over.
"Good evening, Tsukimiya Kiyomi."
"Good evening... ah... Miss McRemitz?"
She nods and tells me, "It's good to see that you're still alive."
"Ah-aha, yeah, somehow...."
"It's a little dangerous to walk around alone at night, when you've made enemies of so many Servants, isn't it?"
"Yeah, but I'm almost home. Besides, if a Master was really serious about taking me out, they probably could have done it already." Something's not right here....
"Guess I can't argue with that," she says with a shrug.
"If you don't mind my asking, how do you know about that? My helping in fighting Servants, I mean."
"The Grail War Overseer has to keep track of these things, in case things get out of hand." Like they did ten years ago...
"I see... Well, it was nice meeting you again, Miss McRemitz. Give Sister Kotomine and her daughter my regards, okay?" We go our separate ways, and I continue to walk home.

I arrive back in the apartment... It feels so different without Onee-chan here. Once we find out where Caster's hiding out, Nadeshiko, Saber, and I will have to fight her, Lancer, and Caster's Master. Casters are powerful Magi, and the Lancer class is supposed to be one of the knight classes. It's going to be a hard combination to overcome, I hate to admit.
While I'm thinking about this, I toss my clothes in a basket and wash myself off. The Gandr shot grazes are almost gone... I guess I'm lucky that Nadeshiko didn't see them, she would've asked where they came from. After soaking in the bathtub for a long while, I hop out and get ready for bed. As weird as it feels being alone here, it'll feel even weirder staying at Nadeshiko's house. At least it won't be on a permanent basis, I don't want to be a burden on her. Once I get in bed, it's not long before sleep takes me. The last things on my mind before I pass out are Fujimura... Fuji-nee's warmth and Nadeshiko's tears.

Night has long since fallen on Ryuudou Temple. Inside one of the larger rooms, four women can be found. One wears jeans and a T-shirt, one wears a light purple kimono, and the other wears a dark purple robe. The three of them are observing the fourth woman.
"This doesn't feel right, Caster," says Kuzuki Makoto. "Are you sure kidnapping this young lady is going to help you get that Grail?"
"You shouldn't have any cause for concern, Makoto-sama," Caster replies. "We only need to... persuade her to help us."
"I can't say I like your style of persuasion."
"Have faith in my Master," Lancer says. "Once we obtain the Holy Grail, our wishes will come true!" she continues with glee.
"It's as Lancer says. A small amount of torture and shame go a long way in our attaining the ultimate prize."
The fourth woman, Alexandra Richards, is breathing heavily. She's resisting some form of magic, which takes the form of red chains that bind her hands over her head. She's also dressed in a black and white French maid's uniform, missing its skirt. "I-if you think that dressing me in this kind of outfit is going to shame me, you've got another thing coming."
"Oh? If you still have the strength and presence of mind to talk like that, I guess it'll take some time before I make you mine," Caster says, holding up Alexandra's chin. "And if that rookie Magus friend of yours shows up to rescue you, so much the better."
The trio leaves Alexandra to hang, literally. The blonde lowers her head and whispers softly, "Kiyomi, please be safe...."

>>16272
Wow Lancer's kind of a bitch. She's also not very bound in one place considering her master should be a shrine gate.

>>16286
For what it's worth, she's not Sasaki Kojirou or any other kind of fictional Heroic Spirit. Please allow me to indulge my fantasy of Caster having a small posse of women around her. =d

IS IT JUST ME OR ARE WE FEMALE-ROA

I mean, affinity for lightning magic, and when in a pinch, we boosted the power of a lesser spell to considerable ranks.

Is this Lancer a female Cu Chulaiin? I can't remember since you changed a few of them regretfully. Cu Chulainn wouldn't dolike stuff like this unless he was commanded too. He's actually an honourable guy who just loves fighting.

>>16286
Caster bends the rules as much as a six-year old playing Risk. Is it such a stretch to think she could find a way to get "her servant" off of the temple grounds for a short period?
>>16295
OP has stated it is not Cu Chulainn.

>>16295
What >>16296 says is correct, she's not Cu Chulainn. Since I'm cramming as many yuri cliches in this as I think I can get away with, Caster and (this) Lancer are the requisite Evil Lesbian Duo, although Kuzuki's an accomplice.

>>16299
Well I'm glad it's no CC. I hate what you've done to Archer, and to see something done to CC would make me weep.

>>16309
lol, I guess this thread just isn't for you. to each their own though. you probably don't like things like Marimite and Lucky Star, am I right?

>>16309
You... hate that Archer is an unashamed Lesbian that teases Rin constantly. I don't understand your point of view.

>>16313
No, don't mind me. Just my own opinion. I've already said I don't like this whole genderbend thing, but I like the writing and I'm interested in any twist on F/SN.

>>16312
I love Lucky Star

>>16309
Yeah, I wouldn't have made 5th-Lancer act this way.

I have my reasons for changing the Servants up, though... Partly for plot reasons, and partly for variety's sake; I didn't want the Shirouko routes to be a retread of this story, minus the self-insert character. Those Servants will be direct swaps of their original forms.

I'm glad you still read this, though, even if you object to certain things. I look forward to further objections in the future. =D

>>16323
I'm all up for new servants. I have no idea who Lancer and Berserker are and look forward to their identities and NPs.

Only thing I don't like is your Archer. It's just NOT Archer in any way even if he turned into a girl. He's not the cynical bastard I love anymore. But as stated before - Yeah, well, that's just, like, my opinion, man.

>>16341
Archer isn't a cynical bitch in this route, but then... well, again, I have my reasons. If I do more F/LS routes, she won't always be so easygoing.

>non-vote update

*twiddles thumbs*

>>16415
I'm working on it, they can't all be vote-updates, y'know. =d Been a bit busy the last couple of days, it's my last week of the summer semester.

Though it doesn't help that I'm re-addicted to F/UC and I got BlazBlue telephone cards that I'm ogling.

As if it was a normal day, the alarm clock rings. I resist the urge to Thunder Beam the damn thing and get up, I've got things to do. At least it's Friday...! Once I eat breakfast, I pack a few changes of clothes. I almost feel like I'm taking advantage of Nadeshiko, but if I'm going to get Onee-chan back, I'll need to stay in one piece. Though, spending more time with her and Fujimura... uh, Fuji-nee... can only be a good thing. I leave early so I can drop my things off at Nadeshiko's. There's no sense in lugging around an extra bag at school if I can help it, after all.

Once I get to her place, I find Matou-san there again, apparently waiting for Nadeshiko. Fuji-nee has already started running for school, I guess. "Good morning, Matou-san."
"Oh, good morning, Tsukimiya-senpai!" she greets me with a bow. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm, er... leaving a few things with Nadeshiko. She offered to take me in because my guardian is out of the country." Some kind of emotion flashes ever-so-briefly across her face, but she smiles anyway and nods. "Do you mind if I ask you the same question?"
"Ah, I come over every day to help Senpai with her cooking a few other things," she replies. "She got injured about a year ago, and...." she trails off.
Just at that moment, Nadeshiko walks around the corner. "Sorry for making you wait, Sakura.... Oh, Kiyomi-chan! Good morning!" she says cheerfully. She takes my bag from me and puts it away someplace. Not that I asked her to, she just did it on her own. So typical of her...
Once again, when we get to campus and cross that gate, we go through that spell field. 'Blood Fort Andromeda', wasn't it? Rider's still maintaining it, no doubt for some reason that only benefits her and her Master. When we get inside the main building, Matou-san waves goodbye, and the two of us go upstairs. Just when we get upstairs, we run into Tohsaka.
"Good morning, Tohsaka!" Nadeshiko smiles and waves. I repeat the same greeting, minus all the enthusiasm.
"Meet me on the roof during lunch break." Well, that was short and to the point... I bet she'll make us regret it if we don't show, so we both nod to her and head to our respective classrooms.

Normally, during lunch breaks, I just go to the cafeteria. Lunch on the rooftop with Tohsaka and Nadeshiko will be a nice change of pace. I run down to get some food, and by the time I make it to the roof, they're already waiting for me. We find a nice spot that blocks the wind and get comfortable.
"Listen, you two. I think I've found something that might reveal where a Servant is hiding." We listen attentively. "Tsukimiya might know this, but I'm sure you don't, Emiya, so I'll explain it quickly. Fuyuki has strong spiritual paths called 'leylines'. I've sensed fluctuations and amplifications in many of these leylines, as if more energy was flowing through them... and they converge at one place: Ryuudou Temple." Could that be what I felt when I passed by, before?
"That's Hajime's house! Are you sure, Tohsaka?" Nadeshiko asks. Tohsaka nods in response.
"I had a strange feeling about that place, but I wasn't sure what it was. Could it be Rider hiding there? She might need the extra mana for this Blood Fort..."
"We can't jump to conclusions here," Tohsaka says, thinking about this. "It could be Rider, or it could be Caster.... or even Assassin or one of their Masters. We need more information, at any rate." Caster and Lancer could be there...? Tohsaka and I turn to Nadeshiko.
"I know what you're thinking, but Hajime hasn't been acting any different lately. But," Nadeshiko adds, "I think I know a way to see if she's a Master or not." She knows some magic that'll tell her? If so, that'd be pretty convenient.
"I'll take your word for it," Tohsaka says skeptically. Our little war council meeting ends when the chime announcing the end of the lunch break rings.

Once classes end for the day, I start thinking about what I should do. If Vice-Captain Matou's at the Archery Club, then there's not much point in trying to visit Fuji-nee... Still, I'm pretty curious about Nadeshiko's methods of Master detection, but the fact that the field for Blood Fort Andromeda is still active (and seems to be getting stronger) is starting to worry me. Rider's not actually here, so something on campus might be keeping the field active. I'll...

[] Search the campus and try to stop Blood Fort Andromeda.
[] Meet up with Nadeshiko.

>>16445
[]Meet with Nadeshiko.

That's not even an option. In FSN it was just played for laughs, but you're the Lesboss, so we can't afford to miss this.

If we go with Nadeshiko then we get to see him strip Issei. But I doubt anything really sexual will happen.
Something bad could happen if we don't hinder Bloodfort. I'll go with that option.

[X] Search the campus and try to stop Blood Fort Andromeda

doesn't get much hotter than this. But remember how Issei's magical trigger went off when Emiya mentioned Caster during the interrogation in-game? What if that happens here?
I vote [x] try to stop bloodfort

[x]Meet Nadeshiko.
If it goes south, there's always reloading.

[X] Meet up with Nadeshiko.

Blood Fort Andromeda doesn't seem to be easy to collapse, from what we see in Fate. They destroyed dozens of nexuses and the foundation still stayed up, and Rider apparently didn't really need them to activate it.

Besides, can we even tell where the air is "sweetest" like Emiya-chan?

[X] Let's help Nadeshiko.
Hopefully Rin isn't just lazing around in the meantime, and she investigates how is it possible to deactivate Blood Fort.

heh, good luck on your finals lesboss!

Organic Chemistry sucks. ; ;
__________________________________________
Rider is the one keeping Blood Fort Andromeda around, but there's a very good chance that her Master is a student here. Either a student or someone with a grudge against the school, anyway. Be that as it may, if I WERE able to find a way to tamper with the Blood Fort, the Master would immediately know... and I've had enough ticked-off-Magus-ambushes for one lifetime, thank you. Tohsaka might be able to do something about it, and she has Archer with her, so she'd be okay... Wait, when did I start worrying about HER?
Anyway, I'm not sure how Nadeshiko intends on determining whether or not Ryuudou-san is a Master. I mean, it wouldn't really be a good idea to use magic on her... if she wasn't a Master, then, according to tradition, we'd have to erase her memory or kill her. And if she IS a Master, a fight's going to break out. Nadeshiko is pretty sure about her friend, but then again, she could be just as good an actress as Tohsaka.

When I arrive at their classroom, the two of them are chatting on the way out. "Ah, Kiyomi-chan! Um... Would you mind coming with Hajime and me to the Student Council room?"
"Sure," I reply with a nod. When we get there, Nadeshiko follows us in. She closes the door behind her, and I hear a faint clicking noise. She locked the door? Makes sense, We can't be too safe and we don't need any witnesses.
"Okay, so what did you need to see me about, Emiya?" Ryuudou-san asks.
"I have a favor to ask. I know this is going to sound weird, but, um... I need you to take your clothes off." .... What?
"You're joking, right?" both Ryuudou-san and I ask at the same time. She's going to strip-search her friend for a Command Seal?! That's either the most brilliant or most idiotic thing I've ever heard.
"I'm serious!" Nadeshiko says emphatically.
"Do you mind if I ask WHY I need to take off my uniform?" I'd be pretty skeptical, too.
"Well... see, in a few months, we'll be having a festival, right? I thought I'd take our sizes for some costumes we could wear!"
"U-um... But... Can't we do this later?" Ryuudou-san blushes and looks away. Okay, this is a problem.
"That's okay," Nadeshiko says and turns to me. "Let's take your sizes instead, Kiyomi-chan!" ....No. NONONONO. I start to protest, but she gives me this look that's both pleading and insisting. Ugh, I guess maybe if I'm willing to go along with this charade, Ryuudou-san might be more willing to let Nadeshiko examine her. I-It should be okay, she's seen me change before...
"O-okay, fine," I say with more than a little hesitation. I turn my back to them, and start unbuttoning my vest. "After you're done with me, you've got to measure her, too."
"Of course!" Nadeshiko comes up from behind me, reaches around, and starts unbuttoning my shirt. 'You're taking too long!' she whispers in my ear.
'I don't like doing this in front of too many people!' I whisper back while undoing the tie. She pulls off the vest and shirt at the same time. I unfasten the skirt and let it drop, leaving me in just my underwear.
"That's so cute, they match your hair!" I'm going to pay her back for this, I swear I will. She gets a tape-measure from a supply drawer, then wraps it around my waist. "Okay, this's in the way!" she says almost teasingly and unfastens my bra. Sighing, I pull it up so she can measure my bust. Lastly, she measures my hips, but at least she lets me keep the rest of my underwear on. "84-55-83, wow. I think you're bigger than Mitsuzuri!"
"S-shut up!" I stammer. "Announce it to the world, why don't you?!" In a huff, I pull up my skirt and start getting dressed. Suddenly, I feel hands that aren't mine on my chest.
"They're a good size, what've you been eating to get like this?"
"S-stop!" We're not here for you to feel me up, dammit...! I feel blood rushing to my head... It's sorta starting to feel... "Hands off!" I yank her hands off of me. "Go measure Ryuudou-san now!" She starts laughing and traipses off to harass/measure her other friend, who's been exceptionally quietly standing in the other side of the room. While she's doing that, I finish putting my uniform on.
"E-Emiya, I can do this myself!"
"Oh, fine." Nadeshiko says with a bit of a pout. She gave up on that pretty fast. I try to look at Ryuudou-san without letting it look like I'm looking at her. Hm, her figure's about like Tohsaka's. I certainly don't see a Command Seal on her, so I guess she's off the hook. "Okay, all done!" Nadeshiko exclaims, putting away the tape-measure.
"What kind of costumes did you have in mind?" Ryuudou asks while buttoning her vest.
"Hm. Well, it really depends on what theme our class decides to do!" she says, mock-thinkingly.

Suddenly, we hear a knock at the door. Ryuudou walks to the door and tries to open it. Once she figures out that it's locked, she shoots Nadeshiko a look, then opens the door. "Good afternoon, Kuzuki-sensei!"
"What were you ladies doing in here that required you to lock the door?" she asks with a grin.
"We were talking about a new festival theme and wanted to keep it secret," Nadeshiko says.
"I see. Hajime, let your brother know that I'll be late getting home today, okay? I've got papers I need to finish grading before I leave."
"Yes, Sensei!" Nadeshiko and I look at each other in surprise. Kuzuki-sensei lives at Ryuudou Temple, too? Once Sensei leaves, Nadeshiko asks about that. "I thought I told you... Yeah, she's been living with us for a while now. At times, it almost feels like we're running a hostel, though. She's got a couple of friends visiting her... I hope they leave soon, they make too much noise at night."
The sun's starting to set, so we bid Ryuudou farewell. When Nadeshiko and I leave the room, we discuss what we just learned. "So Kuzuki-sensei could be Caster's Master?" Nadeshiko asks.
"Maybe, I don't know. She doesn't seem like a Magus, so summoning Caster would probably be hard to do." Then again, Nadeshiko was able to summon Saber without having a whole lot of magical skill, so... At any rate, it'd probably be unwise to repeat Nadeshiko's Measurement Plan with Kuzuki-sensei. Not only that, but we face the same problems as we did with Ryuudou. I guess we'll...

[] Go ahead and investigate Kuzuki-sensei.
[] Go back to Nadeshiko's place before Fuji-nee starts worrying.

Conflict between awesome Master battle (aka getting heads punched off by Kuzuki) or getting more Fuji-nee points...

[X] Go back to Nadeshiko's place before Fuji-nee starts worrying.

We haven't been with her enough.

When in doubt, add more Taiga. [x]Go home

I can only see dead end going after Kuzuki. Going home also equals more Taiga points. So obvious choice is obvious.
>Go back to Nadeshiko's place before Fuji-nee starts worrying.

>>16516
>Organic Chemistry sucks
Yeah it does. One of two classes I've only gotten a C in (other was histology). Pretty tough shit man.

I feel we do need to get our poor Onee-san back, but jumping right in and confronting Kazuki will only end in disappointment.
[x]Go back to Nadeshiko's

Right now, confronting Kuzuki-sensei is too risky. Assuming she's a Master, I don't know if the two of us and Saber could handle her, Caster, and Lancer at the same time. Dammit, we'll have to leave her alone... for now. Besides, Saber might have to use her Noble Phantasm, and she won't want to reveal who she is to an enemy that she might not be able to outright kill. She's some kind of knight, and knights who used holy swords like she had that first night are pretty rare. Hm. Now that I think about 'enemies', I never really told Tohsaka about my situation... but I don't think I'd want to, either. If I had to ask for her help, she'd lord it over me until the day I died.

Anyway, it's Friday, so at least we won't have classes tomorrow. I mull over all of this while Nadeshiko and I walk back to her house. At least I'll have this weekend to train, practice, and get revenge. Because of what Nadeshiko did, I'm going to have to change when I get there. By the time we arrive at her house, Saber, Fuji-nee, and Matou-san are already waiting and (in the latter's case, cooking).
"Ah, welcome home, Senpai!" Matou-san greets us from the kitchen.
"I was wondering when you two were getting home!" Fuji-nee adds with a grin.
"We had to talk with Ryuudou for a little bit," I tell her. "Nothing too serious. Besides, I wanted to get back quickly so we could get more practice in." Nadeshiko nods in agreement.
"I won't be able to teach you much tonight, I have to get started on grading tests," Fuji-nee says with a half-frown. "Not that you really need me, Saber-chan could probably show you more than I could...."
"No, it would be better if you were the one to instruct them, Taiga. I'm not in any way, shape, or form an instructor."
"And there's no one else I'd rather learn from than you anyway, Fuji-nee!" I beam.
"'Fuji-nee'?" Both Matou-san and Nadeshiko turn to look at me.
"A-ahahah, er, she's like my temporary Onee-chan!" I say embarrassedly. Nadeshiko nods understandingly. Just then, someone knocks on the door.
Nadeshiko goes to open it, and I hear a name I didn't particularly want to hear. "Tohsaka! What are you doing here?" I walk to the front door to see what she wants.
"We need to pick up where we left off from lunchtime," Tohsaka says. "And I want to know what you found out after class... Though, since you're all here and not fighting, I probably already know what you're going to tell me."
"Let's talk about it once Fuji-nee and Sakura leave," Nadeshiko says quietly. "I assume you haven't eaten dinner yet?"
"Of course not!" she replies with her well-rehearsed fake smile.
"I guess you have Archer as a lookout someplace?" I ask.
"Did you even need to ask?"

Once we eat, Nadeshiko and I change into our training uniforms and head to the dojo with Fuji-nee. Fortunately, Nadeshiko kept to herself this time.
"Why'd you do that, anyway?" I whisper at her.
"Do what?" she whispers back. Don't you play innocent with me!
"Do what you did in the Council room..."
"O-oh... I needed to get Hajime to drop her guard. You didn't like it?" To be honest, I kinda did, but that's not the point here.
"Don't do that again in front of people I don't know so well, okay?" Nadeshiko just nods.
Saber and Fuji-nee sit next to each other against the far wall while the two of us review our forms. Now that I've gone a full day without fighting since transferring, I can actually reflect on things. It seems that about all Nadeshiko can do, magic-wise, is Reinforcement and Projection. The spell she used to cast Projection wasn't that long, so why did I need to hold Rider off for as long as I did? I don't really think about why she would try to copy Archer's fighting style. Before we were spotted by those Assassins, she seemed pretty enchanted by both Archer's style and her swords. I guess there are worse things she could've Projected. Even then, those swords were flawed; Rider broke one of them fairly easily. Berserker... It's tough to tell with her. She seemed to split into three, but I seriously doubt those were three distinct Servants like the Assassins. The way they coalesced into one Berserker... I'd think she was speed-based, but even if someone was fast enough to leave afterimages, those images wouldn't actually have distinct attacks. And there was something odd about that wave she launched at Archer.
After finishing our forms, Fuji-nee has us spar again. I think I'm starting to get the hang of things, I make Nadeshiko work harder before she eventually wins.
"Wow, you've really improved," Fuji-nee compliments me. "Have you been practicing during lunch or something? I didn't think you knew some of those attack forms!" I shake my head and wipe my forehead with a towel. Looking outside, she sees that it's well past nightfall. "Okay, I'm afraid I'll have to cut this session short..."

Fuji-nee and Matou-san are about to leave, and Tohsaka's waiting for Nadeshiko and I to debrief her. Tohsaka can wait for a bit.
"Fuji-nee, can I talk with you for a minute?" I ask, once the three of us are outside. She nods, and I pull her away from Matou-san and around a corner. "Um... I really appreciate you taking the time to give me lessons. I don't think I ever thanked you properly for it, so..."
She smiles at me and tells me, "Don't worry about it, Kiyomi-chan! Your enthusiasm is thanks enough."
"E-Even so..." I look up at her with a flushed face.
"It's been a while since anyonmmmmmph?!" Her response is muffled by something... or rather, someone. It stays that way for a while, until I pull back and take a breath.
A few moments later, when I see her shocked expression, I tell her, "I'll see you tomorrow," and run inside.

Tohsaka, Saber, Nadeshiko, and I meet up in the dining room. We tell her that Ryuudou isn't a Master, but Kuzuki-sensei very well might be.
"Kuzuki-sensei? She's definitely not a Magus, so she shouldn't be a Master."
"You didn't know I was a Magus, though, and I became a Master," Nadeshiko points out.
"Your skills as a Magus were too weak for me to pick up on," Tohsaka replies with a smirk. "I would've thought Tsukimiya had a better shot at being a Master."
At that, I shrug. "Putting that aside for the moment, I think it's safe to conclude that Kuzuki-sensei, Caster, and Lancer are up at Ryuudou Temple."
"How do you know Caster and Lancer are there together?" Hm. How much should I tell her?
"Ryuudou said two people were staying with Kuzuki-sensei..."
"Wait," Saber interrupts me, "If we know where two enemy Servants are hiding, we should attack them while we have the element of surprise."
"I don't think that's a very good idea," Nadeshiko says. "We don't know enough about them, it's like walking into a trap!"
"Rin? What say you?"
"I think I'll have to side with Emiya this time. It's too big of a risk, even if you and Archer teamed up. We'll have to try to get more information about them before we just go barging in." Saber looks pretty frustrated, being voted down by both Masters. Tohsaka looks back at Nadeshiko and asks her, "So, what CAN you do?"
"Um... I can Reinforce things, but it takes a while, and I usually fail at it." What? "I have to, you know, make a magic circuit, and..."
"Hold it. 'Make a magic circuit'? Are you out of your mind? Don't you just use the ones you were born with?"
"I don't really know anything about that. But I practice making my circuit every night..."
"I don't believe this. A Master that's drawn the most powerful card, and she tries to fry her own body to make a circuit!" Tohsaka digs around in a bag she brought, and pulls out a red... thing. "Here, swallow this," she says, and tosses it to Nadeshiko.
"What is it?"
"Don't ask questions, just do it!" Once she gulps down whatever it was, Tohsaka tells her, "That was a magic jewel. It'll force open your magic circuits so you won't have to kill yourself whenever you use a spell. It might hurt for a while."
Tohsaka wasn't joking. Already, Nadeshiko's breathing heavily and clutching her chest. "H-how long is this going to last...?"
"A few hours, give or take. But trust me, this is better for you in the long run."
"I'm so glad you don't have anything to give me," I tell her.
"There's nothing I can do for you. Actually...." she places a hand to my forehead and concentrates. "Huh, that's weird. You've got some kind of limiter spell cast on you!"
"Limiter spell?" I think about that, magic that keeps me from using my abilities to their full potential. "As far as I know, no one's cast anything like that on me... I'd think I would know, wouldn't I?"
"That depends," Tohsaka says. "If you've never noticed, then it would've been at a time you weren't using your magic enough for it to really affect you." Meaning, most of my life. That really narrows it down.
"Do you think you can dispel it?"
"No, this kind of thing isn't within my realm of expertise. If you could find the person who cast it, they could undo the effect, but..." ...Since I don't know who did it, that possibility's out the window. Well, still, I'm in better shape than Nadeshiko, and I'm getting a lot better at utilizing magic. Once Nadeshiko recovers, then maybe.....

Tohsaka and Archer leave not long afterwards, and the three of us remaining get ready for bed. Even Saber sleeps, huh? That's weird, the mana supply a Master provides a Servant usually negates the need for sleep.
As I lay in the futon, I close my eyes and let my mind wander, mostly about Fuji-nee. I sleep for a couple of hours, but then wake up to find no one laying next to me. Both Saber and Nadeshiko aren't here... Maybe they just got up to eat or train or something. I'll go look for...

[] Saber.
[] Nadeshiko.

>>16564
[x]Nadeshiko
Since we're looking at Fujinee with dirty eyes (which is weird, because she's like a pet) we should keep to things and people related to her.

>>16565
But if we want a harem end we need points with everyone.

Saber.

I have to say, you have a great knack for making this feel just like F/SN, because that was boring as hell.

Emiya is in the shed I bet. As for Saber, perhaps in the dojo. We could form a better bond with Emiya, but with Saber, she can perhaps teach us some moves in the dojo. I'll go with Saber.
[X]Saber

[x] Nadeshiko
>>16565
>which is weird, because she's like a pet
I know, that's why slowly corrupting her into having lesbian relations with a high school girl is so delicious.

>>16565
I had the feeling someone was going to make an Ururun Pleasure Trip reference at some point.

>>16568
Again, I'll take that as a compliment =) Should I put a warning up so you can mentally psych yourself up for this boring stuff?

>>16565
She can still be a pet, she'll just be our pet. Which brings me to:
[x] Go leash shopping.
But seriously, go look for Nadeshiko, we don't want a harem end. Yet. That'll be in one of the Shirouko routes. Let's enjoy our Taiga for now.

My mind's still sort of hazy from waking up suddenly... It was a good dream, too...! Mostly about giving Fuji-nee my first kiss. Repeatedly. Um. Anyway, Saber's out in the front yard, and Nadeshiko's in the back yard someplace. I guess I'll go see what Nadeshiko's up to.

I find her in that shed she got knocked through by Assassin a few nights ago. She's concentrating pretty hard, I guess practicing her magic. It's pretty hard to believe, someone becoming a Master like she did. I glance around the shed, but I don't see much of anything that could've been used as a catalyst.
"Oh, Kiyomi-chan! What are you doing here?" she asks me.
"I just woke up and felt you were out here. How's your practice going?"
"Better than normal. That jem Tohsaka fed me really helps, but it's sorta tricky opening these magic circuits on my own. Making my own is a hard habit to break."
"I'm sure you'll get used to it. To be honest, I've never used magic this much in my entire life, and I'm still getting adjusted to what I can do."
At that, she nods and looks away for a moment. "You're pretty amazing, though. Your lightning magic seems strong and... Hey, speaking of which. How'd you do that thing against Rider?"
"What thing?"
"Um... When she was choking me, and you grabbed her..."
"Honestly, I don't know. I just saw you starting to pass out, and something....." My response is cut off when we feel a major magical presence leave the premisis.
"Saber!" we both yell, and start running to the front yard. She's gone!
"Where do you think she could've gone?" Nadeshiko asks in a panic.
"I-I'm not sure!" I can't think straight. She's never acted this rashly before. "You can follow her, right?" She nods, and we take off running. In our pajamas, at that. At least no one should be up to see us, this is kind of embarrassing. I recognize the path we're travelling after a little while.
"She's going to Ryuudou Temple!" I should've guessed, she looked so frustrated when Nadeshiko and Tohsaka shot down her idea of rushing those three. "Hurry! Use a Command Seal and force her back!"
"SABER! COME BACK HERE!" Nadeshiko yells.... but it's too late. The Seals have disappeared from her hand. W-wait a minute... Saber was killed?!

We arrive at the Temple and run up the stairs to see Saber laying on the ground battered, and Caster and Lancer.... er, making out. Dammit! Once they release their celebratory liplock, they look at us.
"Oh my, once again you're too late," Caster says while pointing a zigzag-shaped dagger at us. "Saber is no longer yours, Amateur," she taunts Nadeshiko.
Lancer, her body next to Caster's, narrows her eyes and smiles wickedly. "With that Rookie's guardian and Saber, no one can stand in our way. The rest of those Servants: Berserker, Archer, Rider, and Assassin... Their Masters will never team up, and so, individually, they're nothing."
"At first, I found you pretty interesting," Caster says and looks at me like a toy. "I wanted to break that ridiculous Limit you've got on... and break your soul as well. But now that we have Saber, neither of you are necessary in the slightest. And with you out of the way, your erstwhile guardian will belong to me as well. Lancer?"
"Yes, my Master?" she coos.
"Dispose of this trash."
Oh goddamnit! Even if, by some miracle, we could get by Lancer to attack Caster, there's no way we could kill her before Lancer kills us. I grab Nadeshiko's hand and start running down the stairs, when we're intercepted by Lancer. She jumped over us and down the stairs?! She's brandishing a naginata.
"Do you Magi want it gentle or rough?" Lancer mockingly asks. "Either way, you're not leaving this place alive!"
We desperately try to fight back. Nadeshiko calls up Archer's swords again, and I channel everything I can into my family crest. We try to keep Lancer in a pincer formation so she can only focus on one of us at a time. Lancer goes for Nadeshiko first, stabbing at her with her weapon. While she's distracted, I shoot her with a Thunder Beam... which dissipates. Another Servant with magic resistance, ARGH!
"You'll have to try harder than that, Rookie!" Lancer yells at me while pursuing Nadeshiko. Fine, have it your way! I back off and begin my chant for Thunder Break. Please keep her busy, Nadeshiko...! She's doing what she can, but just barely. She's already been wounded in the legs and arms.
"---I unleash upon thee the..... G.....Ghhh," my spell incantation is interrupted. I look down to see Lancer's naginata going through my chest.
"Do be quiet," she says, her back still to me. She stabbed me without turning around...! W-what a blunder this was..... I stagger and go down to one knee. With a sickening wet splash, she pulls the weapon out of me and immediately goes after Nadeshiko again. She's overwhelmed, Lancer's fighting seriously now...! With one horizontal swipe, both of her swords are destroyed. She spins and swipes again... and Nadeshiko's head flies off. Her corpse rolls down the stairs....
"N-no....!" I cry softly, the pain taking over my mind and my eyesight beginning to fade.
Lancer slowly walks over to me and kneels down. She holds my face up by the chin and tells me, "Thank you for the gifts. We'll enjoy them immensely." My vision shuts down, and I feel my body fall to the cold, hard ground.

DEAD END

Hint corner: Library of Alexandra

Alexandra: Welcome back, dear guests! It's been some time since you've visited, but... it was inevitable that you'd return. Yes, obviously you'll be reloading with the other choice, but as a word of advice: Not all decisions yield affection points. Anyway, run along and have a nice little chat with Saber. Until the next time!

My mind's still sort of hazy from waking up suddenly... It was a good dream, too...! Mostly about giving Fuji-nee my first kiss. Repeatedly. Um. Anyway, Saber's out in the front yard, and Nadeshiko's in the back yard someplace. I'd assume Nadeshiko's busy with something, so I don't think she's going anywhere. Better to see why Saber's outside at all.

I walk out to the front yard to see her staring off into the distance. I call out to her, "Saber!"
She turns around and regards me coldly. "What are you doing out here, Kiyomi?"
"I could ask you the same thing. I came out here to see what you were up to."
Saber sighs and turns to me. "What do you think of Rin and Nadeshiko's decision to not attack Ryuudou Temple? They don't want to fight, but it's my duty to achieve victory for my Master!" She's pretty frustrated, she wants to charge up those stairs and take out Caster and Lancer to reduce our total enemy count.
"Saber... Please listen to me. I understand both of your points of view. I want nothing more than to see you defeat Caster and Lancer for kidnapping Onee-chan. But we don't know who they are and what they're capable of. And not to mention Caster's Master... Kuzuki-sensei..."
"So... you too?"
"I'm not finished yet... Look. Give Nadeshiko and I until tomorrow. That jem that Tohsaka fed her should help her tremendously, and hopefully she'll be used to her own magic circuits in a day's time. It's a bit hasty, but I figure that if you can hold Lancer off of us, the two of us can get in and take down Kuzuki-sensei. Without her around, those two should disappear. I don't know if that's the plan we'll go with, but..."
Saber places a hand on my shoulder and gives me a small smile. "Very well, then. Tomorrow, under the cover of darkness, we'll launch our strike."

Saber and I walk to the shed; Nadeshiko's practicing her magic. "Nadeshiko, how are you feeling?" the Servant asks.
"I'm feeling a lot better now. It's hard to break the habit of making my own circuit, but... it's faster and less painful when I use the ones already in my body."
I nod silently. Saber and I should be able to convince her that this is the wisest course of action. Now, if I could only convince myself as easily......

When I awaken, it's about mid-morning. Looks like I slept in a little. I almost want to lay back down, I was having a really nice dream... Though, I doubt I'd be able to pick up where I left off. Honestly, I'm kinda worried about tonight. If things don't go well, this could be.... No. No, let's try to stay optimistic here. We'll figure out a plan, beat Lancer and Caster, and rescue Onee-chan. Saber and Nadeshiko are already up, and they're out at the dojo. She's pretty diligent, I'm glad I can rely on her...

I change out of my pajamas into some casual clothes (a spaghetti-strap top and skirt, with a light jacket on top) and go to see what they're up to. Saber and Nadeshiko are training... though, to most people, I guess it would look more like Saber beating up her Master. I quietly slip in and lean against the wall. As usual, Saber's got her hair up in that ponytail, and she's wearing the same clothes from when she was introduced to Fuji-nee and Matou-san. Nadeshiko's wearing a blue-and-white long-sleeved shirt and pants. W-wow, it kinda looks good on her, too. I shake the idea from my head, and stand there waiting until they call it quits. Nadeshiko's able to block an attack every once in a while, but it's mostly Saber knocking her down, and Nadeshiko stubbornly refusing to give up. Not that it needs to be said, but she never comes close to landing a hit on her Servant. An hour and a half later, they finally stop... And even then, it's only because Saber's starting to get hungry.
"I never knew Servants got hungry, too," I pipe up. Saber just half-pouts and looks away.
"We're out of a few things, so I'll need to go grocery shopping before I can fix us anything," Nadeshiko says. "I can take care of it myself, so neither of you have to come."
"Hey, before you go, we need to talk about something," I tell her, and walk over to them. "Um, Saber and I were talking late last night, and...."
"I've already informed Nadeshiko about our plans for tonight," Saber interrupts.
"Oh.. I see. Are you okay with this, Nadeshiko? I know you didn't want to rush in with Tohsaka, but..."
"I promised that I'd help you rescue your Nee-san. We don't know what Caster's doing with her, and it's been a couple of days now. I know you're worried, so...."
"Thank you so much... Saber wants to go, even without my circumstances factoring in, but you're risking your own life to help me. I don't think that I could ever repay you." I give her a hug... but I quickly let go when I hear Saber's stomach growling. Oh yeah, lunch.
"Okay, I'll head out now. I'll be back in a little while..."

[] Go help Nadeshiko with her grocery shopping.
[] Stay and talk with Saber.

[X] Go help Nadeshiko with her grocery shopping.

Maybe the little von Einsbern will know what's with the limiter on our Thundagas.

We'd better go with Nadeshiko just in case grail-chan shows up. You never know when she's going to go all yandere on us.

I can only see Illya being there when we shop. Let's say hi to his adorable imouto
[X] Go help Nadeshiko with her grocery shopping.

[x] Grocery shopping

I don't know how much Nadeshiko's gotta buy, but it couldn't hurt to go with her. I AM staying with her, after all. Besides, there's not much I could talk with Saber about besides tonight's plans, and that can wait for a bit.
"Hey, wait up, I'll come with you!" I say as I go after her.
"You don't really have to," she starts to protest, but I won't take 'no' for an answer.
"I don't know how much you have to buy, but it wouldn't hurt to spend some time together, right?" I say with a wink. She smiles and nods, and so we head off to the shopping district.

It doesn't take too long to get there, and she really didn't have to buy a whole lot. Some sweets, bread, and a few other ingredients. We're not here to buy a lot, we just needed things for a couple of meals, so we don't stay long. We hold hands on our way back, but we're stopped by someone tugging on Nadeshiko's sleeve. We both look down to see that white-haired Master of Berserker...! What the hell is she doing out here, in the middle of the day?!
"You're here with your friend, Onee-chan?" she beams with a huge smile.
"I-I-Ilyasviel?!" I stutter. I don't see Berserker here, but that doesn't mean she's not around someplace.
"Ilyasviel... that name's too long... Ilya, what'cha doing here?" Nadeshiko asks. Never mind that her Servant nearly killed you the other day!
"I snuck out! I was so bored, and I really wanted to meet you, Onee-chan!"
"Where's Berserker? Aren't you here to kill Nadeshiko?" I ask. I don't disguise the fact that I'm not very happy to see her.
"I came to Japan to kill Onee-chan, but that's not why I'm here right now~!" she says in a sing-song voice. "I just want to talk with someone who aren't my maids. Besides, Berserker's taking a nap, and you didn't bring Saber, so that makes us even!"
"Oh... so you've got a place you're living at while you're here?" Wait, she's not really going along with this, is she?
"It's waaaaay over that way!" Ilyasviel says, pointing somewhere to the north. "It's a castle, and I'm always stuck there. Like I said, it's really boring. Oh! What's your name, Onee-chan?"
"Emiya Nadeshiko."
"Emiyana...Deshi..Ko?" she stumbles over the name. "And you said MY name was long!" she pouts. I hate to admit it, but when she's not talking about killing, she's almost just like a normal kid.
"Haha, no, you can just call me Nadeshiko!" she says with a giggle.
"What about you, Onee-chan's friend?"
"Tsukimiya is my family name, and Kiyomi is my first name... 'Kiyomi' is fine with me." She has a hard enough time with names, I guess. Might as well make it easy on her.
"You know, there's this park I saw a few minutes ago, let's go visit for a while!" Ilyasviel says excitedly. "C'mon, it'll be fun!" I can't believe this, I CANNOT stay mad at this cute little girl! It's driving me crazy!
"Let's go, Kiyomi-chan!" Nadeshiko smiles at me and pulls me along.
"Okay, okay, but let's not take too long," I say, quickly matching their pace.

The park has a few benches and a playground. It's still chilly, so no one's here playing. The three of us sit on a bench, Ilyasviel between Nadeshiko and I.
"So, um... how did you become a Mmmmm...?" I clamp my hand over Nadeshiko's mouth. No, let's not give her a reason to talk about killing us right now.
"Do you like sweets, Ilyasviel?" I ask.
"Of course I do! And you can call me 'Ilya'. You're Onee-chan's friend, right? If she calls me 'Ilya', you can too!" That's nice. I can see it now, I'm in her good graces, so she'll let me live two seconds longer. Anyway, I take my hand off of Nadeshiko, hopefully she gets the idea.
"We picked up some melon bread, do you want to try it?" Nadeshiko asks, pulling a package from one of the bags.
"It's actually pretty good," I add.
"Really? For me? All right!" she cheerfully exclaims, as she unwraps the bread and takes a small bite. "Wow, this is really good!" She gives both of us smiles. Awww...
"Are you here with just your maids?" Nadeshiko asks.
Ilya takes a minute to answer, she's still enjoying her bread. "Mm-hmm... Sella and Leysritt and Berserker. Grandfather's at home, and I don't really have any other relatives. Nadeshiko's my Onee-chan, but..." I look at Nadeshiko. I thought she was an only child? They don't look alike at all, so they're probably not really related. She's just using 'Onee-chan' like I do with mine, I guess. But, now that I think about it, that might imply that Ilya knows her. Hm. "Nadeshiko, did you get anything from your parents? And don't say anything boring like 'magical family crests'."
"I didn't get one of those," she says. "Honestly, I didn't get a huge number of things from my Dad, but they're all important to me. His house and the ideals he had are really all he left me. But... he also gave me life, and for that, I can never thank him enough." Emiya Kiritsugu didn't pass his magic to Nadeshiko at all? Maybe... if he was involved in the last Grail War, he might have suffered enough trauma to not want to force the responsibility of being a Magus onto his daughter. It's completely un-Magus-like, but from a normal human's perspective, I can understand.
"Ohhh? I wasn't really expecting to hear that," Ilya comments. "What about you, Kiyomi?"
"Ehehe... I'm almost the opposite. I only got the boring things like my Dad's eyes and my Mom's face and crest. What about you, Ilya?"
"My Dad said that my hair and eyes are just like my Mom's..." she replies while fiddling with her hair. "It reminded him of snow."
Nadeshiko laughs a little, "Mine always said that my hair reminded him of autumn leaves."
"Hey, what do you do in your castle all day? It's a huge place, right? Do you play hide-and-seek with your maids?" I ask.
"I----" Ilya stops short and looks towards where she pointed before, her castle. "Uh-oh. I've gotta go, Berserker just woke up. She wouldn't be too happy if she knew I was talking with you two...." She hops up and starts to run off.
"Hey, wait!" Nadeshiko yells and tosses another couple of packages of Melon bread to her. "You can have them," she says with a smile.
"Thanks! See you later, Nadeshiko and Kiyomi!" Ilya waves and runs off.

Yeah, I'm breaking my self-imposed "No more than two story posts without a vote" thing, but it felt appropriate to split that last part from this one.
_______________________________________
Once Ilya's gone, I say, "She seems like such a nice girl, what'd you do to make her want to kill you so badly?"
"I wish I knew," Nadeshiko replies. "I mean, the way she talks about it so casually, it's like she was raised without being taught what it really means to murder another human being."
Somehow, I think fighting Ilya just became a lot more complicated. That'll have to wait for now, though. We'd better get home! Saber's been waiting for us all this time, I hope she's not too mad at us... Obviously, we're not about to tell her that we met Ilya, nor that we gave away food.

We set foot in Nadeshiko's house, and I can already tell that we have visitors. In the living room, Saber has her head down on the table... possibly passed out from hunger. Tohsaka and Archer are sitting across from her.
"Fancy meeting you here, Tsukimiya," Tohsaka greets me.
"I didn't expect to see you here, either," I reply.
"When'd you get here, Tohsaka?" Nadeshiko asks, blatantly ignoring (or perhaps not noticing) the tension between Tohsaka and me. "And I guess you want something to eat?"
"Oh, I haven't been here too long. Saber was sitting here all alone, so I see you haven't changed your careless ways in the slightest," she says with a smirk. "And, yes, I'll take some food."

It's really too late to call this meal lunch, so... Over dinner, we tell Tohsaka of our plans to assault Ryuudou Temple tonight. She looks really surprised, but Archer doesn't share her Master's emotional outburst. Really, Archer's been acting a bit more subdued lately, I think. I wonder why? Hehe, maybe Tohsaka used a Command Seal on Archer to make her stop with the teasing.
"I'm not going to stop you from going, but I'm not going there with you, either. Technically, we're still enemies, and Saber's got her identity to protect. Archer's in the same situation, so it may be for the best." She continues, "But we're not actually fighting each other, so I'll give you some information. I've found out that Caster's true name is Medea. She was a deceitful witch from ancient Greece who betrayed her father's kingdom for a hero named Jason... and then was herself betrayed by that same hero. She was a powerful magician who could even resurrect the dead."
"Caster is one I won't need to worry over," Saber says confidently, inbetween mouthfuls of food.
"I don't know her Noble Phantasm, so it's not as if you have nothing to worry about," Tohsaka replies. "Also, I wasn't able to find out exactly who Lancer is... but her polearm seems to be a naginata." Hm. I can only think of a couple of historical figures who used that kind of weapon who'd be well-known enough to be Heroic Spirits. Either way, Lancer's arguably more dangerous than Caster, being the more physical of the two. "That being said, I didn't really come here to tell you this stuff." She jabs a thumb in Archer's direction. "It was her idea."
Archer nods. "Before you rush in... Emiya Nadeshiko, there's something you need to hear."
"O-okay," she says. Archer seems pretty nice, so I think I know what she's going to do.
"Tsukimiya Kiyomi. It wouldn't be a bad idea for you to come along as well. It may help you at some point."

When we finish eating, Archer, Nadeshiko, and I gather in the back yard. "Now, watch what I do," Archer says, and holds out her hands. Those twin swords appear out of nowhere. That's what I thought. Archer knows that Nadeshiko idolizes her or something... so she's going to offer up the swords so they can be analyzed further. In a way, it's kinda like Fuji-nee and me... "Never forget what I'm about to tell you, Emiya Nadeshiko. You are not suited for a regular fight, your true talent lies in creation. Therefore, what you should always keep in mind isn't 'overpowering your opponent with brute force', but rather, 'imagining what CAN defeat your opponent.'"
"So... if these swords aren't enough, I have to imagine something greater," Nadeshiko muses aloud. "I'm not sure I can do that, I'm really just a third-rate Magus, after all..."
Archer grins slightly, "That is your only true obstacle. The image of yourself in your head is your own worst enemy."
While Nadeshiko puzzles over this, Archer turns to me. "My advice to you is this, Tsukimiya Kiyomi: Reinforcing a wooden sword will not win you many battles. And as you are aware, neither will your magic alone. Your task is to effectively meld everything you know into one unique style."
"Integrate my lightning magic into my swordfighting?" I ask. That's a lot easier said than done. I can speed myself up with my magic and fight, but that's about it....
Archer knowingly smiles. "Among other things. My last piece of advice to you is this: You are capable of great feats, but one thing must always be present for you to fight at your maximum potential."
I scratch my head. "An artifact of some kind?"
Archer shakes her head. "You already know what it is, you just haven't realized it yet." At that, she turns her back to us and starts walking back towards the house. "You both have hardships ahead of you, but I have faith that you'll overcome them."

>>16707
Oh my god I just realized: we're Lightning Warrior Raidy.

Hahah, I've only ever seen the CGs for that. Likewise, I've never actually read Tsukihime (yeah, start laughing/facepalming now), so I only know what the various wikis say about Roa. I have it installed, I just never got around to reading it (lack of voice doesn't help much, I'm afraid).

>>16709
Holy crap you're right.

Archer and Tohsaka wish us luck as they leave Nadeshiko's house. The three of us are left to devise our strategy. Kuzuki-sensei, while most likely the least powerful of our enemies, is also the one we know the least about. She's a Master, but would probably be supporting Caster, if that's even possible. There's one thing that I need to confirm with Saber, though...
"Don't take this badly if I'm wrong, but... You're the knight-princess Arturia Pendragon, aren't you?"
Saber nods. "You saw Caliburn, so of course you'd eventually draw that conclusion."
"Caliburn? That's your Noble Phantasm?" Nadeshiko asks.
"Yes, Nadeshiko. To unleash its full power, though, I have to expend mana."
"That... shouldn't be a problem, right? You get mana from your Master, don't you, Saber?"
The Servant shakes her head. "No... Because of Nadeshiko's inexperience, I have been forced to conserve what I can." Another handicap against us.
"Hmmm." I think about this. Nadeshiko and I are no match for Lancer, one of the most physically powerful Servants, so we have no choice but to have Saber fight her. This leaves Caster and Kuzuki-sensei. Caster, while a Servant, should primarily be a Magus. Thinking back on the battle with Rider, I had to be backup for Nadeshiko because I didn't have a weapon. Having to rely strictly on my magic made me pretty vulnerable... and I imagine Caster might just have that same vulnerability, should I get her to lower her guard. She seemed to be fairly conceited when she kidnapped Onee-chan, so I just might be able to pull this off. Again, Kuzuki-sensei's a huge unknown. I guess it's too optimistic to hope to talk her out of this fight... and she'd have to know what her own Servant's up to anyway. Nadeshiko will likely use her Archer-imitation in this fight, but as she's not an expert in using those swords, it may be better for her to face off against Sensei.
"You thought of a plan?" Nadeshiko asks. I nod and tell her what I figure may be our best plan.
"It seems fairly sound, but taking Caster on by yourself is exceedingly risky," Saber cautions. "With her magic, she could kill you with one spell."
"That's assuming she takes us seriously, and I'm pretty sure she won't. We're mere insects to her, after all. Besides which, I owe Lancer for that knockout blow she gave me, and I'm taking it out on Caster."

Night has fallen, and the three of us head off to Ryuudou Temple. We're all still in casual clothes... no sense in Saber running around town in her armor, after all. Of course, I made sure to bring the Tora-Shinai. I'll need it to administer the beating Caster so richly deserves.
"All we can do is our best," I say, as we arrive at the base of the stairs. "You two are Master and Servant, so if you've got to run, I'll try to hold them off."
"Don't even talk like that," Nadeshiko says. "We'll win. We have to."
"Nadeshiko is correct, let's stay optimistic," Saber adds. I nod, and we ascend the stairs.

Once we approach the top, we're met by Caster and Lancer. "Welcome," Lancer greets us. "My Master and I have been expecting you." I bet.
"Where's Onee-chan?! What have you done with her?" I yell at them.
"She's just inside these gates, Tsukimiya Kiyomi," Caster says with a smirk. "Not that there's much you can do now, she's almost mine."
".... What?"
"It's really quite sad. You tried to hide everything from her, but she already knew it all, and then some. She obviously never told you who she is."
"I know all I need to know. Move, or I'll go through you."
"K-Kiyomi-chan, calm down..." Nadeshiko says, holding my arm. I don't care about staying calm right now, dammit!
"Stick with the plan," Saber says in a hushed voice. Right... I tighten my grip on the Tora-Shinai to try to relieve this stress.
"You're pretty scary when you're angry," Caster taunts me, "We'll see how that changes once you're inside."
Lancer turns and coos, "Master, I head off to battle. Wish me luck?" Caster embraces her Servant and gives her a deep kiss, then teleports away... probably inside the gates. "My exquisite lily," Lancer addresses Saber with a crazed smile, "I've been wanting to fight you for some time now, and so, I cannot allow you to enter. The useless Magi may proceed." The three of us nod to each other, and the enemy Servant allows Nadeshiko and I to walk through the gates unhindered.

Once we're inside, the gates close behind us. Immediately, my eyes are drawn to the far side of the courtyard. "O-Onee-chan?!" I whisper to myself. She's hung up by some kind of spell, and whatever she had on has been shredded. Even her lower half is left exposed, her underwear hanging off of one ankle. Her face is flushed, and her breathing is ragged.
"Emiya and Tsukimiya?!" Kuzuki-sensei says in surprise. "You're the enemy Magi?!" I don't even look in her direction... I am so pissed off!
"S-sensei," Nadeshiko pleads, "You're not really going to fight us, are you? Caster's just manipulating you, isn't she?"
"I have a wish that I MUST have granted," Sensei says. "Caster hasn't killed anyone, and I'm doing this because I want to. If you're going to stand against me, I'll have no choice but to fight. If you leave now, I'll make sure you go unharmed."
Caster appears next to Kuzuki-sensei and says, "Makoto-sama, they're wicked Magi. They'll stop at nothing until they foil our plans."
"SHUT IT, CASTER!" I turn to her and yell. "I don't care about you three and what you want with the Grail. You took someone important to me, and I'm not leaving without her!"
"You see?" Caster replies. "They won't leave us alone."
"In that case, I'll do what I must," Kuzuki says, and approaches us while taking a martial arts stance. "Caster, I'll need a power-up." The Servant holds out a hand and whispers a single word, after which Kuzuki's fists begin glowing.
"Trace on!" Nadeshiko projects Kanshou and Bakuya, Archer's swords. She circles around Kuzuki to draw her attention away from me. Okay, now that I've got a clear shot at Caster, I....

[] Blast her with Thunder Beam.
[] Reinforce the Tora-Shinai and charge her at full force.
[] Wait for Caster to make the first move.

>>16714
I thought Saber had Excalibur?

>>16722
Not this Saber.

>>16714
[x]Use Thunder Slash
It's the only way to win a boss fight.

I think the first two are bad ends, so it'd be better to wait what Caster plans to do.

Kind of a tough choice.
Thunder Beam is useless. Using low-level magic against a mage? Yeah, like that'll work..
Caster is weak agaisnt physical attacks, but that's only if we manage to get in to hit her.
Caster can kill us with one spell. It might not be wise to have her make the first move.
I'll have to go with
[X] Reinforce the Tora-Shinai and charge her at full force.

This is probably a goofy question, but I'll toss it out there anyway: Status Menu Mini-Homepage. Good idea? Bad idea?

>>16744
YES
YES

>>16747
forgot to add my vote
[x] charge at Caster

[X] Reinforce the Tora-Shinai and charge her at full force.

Caster is the calculating type. We let her size us up and we'll be worse off for it.

I'm still writing; doing three separate fights is taking longer than I thought it would (and god, do I suck at writing fight scenes). That, and I can only listen to Breach and Clashing Souls so much before I need to shut them off.... Also, I'm working on the Status page thinger. I have very little image-editing skill, so it's just going to be a quickie, basic, written-in-Notepad webpage. Oh well.

For what it's worth, only the "Wait and See" option would've led to a dead-end.

>>16800
no worries, we don't mind waiting for good quality

>>16806
Haha, I don't know I can call it "Good quality" but.. well, it may or may not cause a shitstorm. We'll see.

Okay, Nadeshiko's gotten Kuzuki's attention. I speed myself up as fast as I can and run at her in a zig-zag pattern. Hopefully it'll be enough to throw off her aim...
"Aero!" Caster yells, and a huge burst of wind is called forth, which I barely dodge. H-holy crap, she's got single-line magic that powerful? No... no, that's not it at all. She's Medea, so being a Magus from ancient Greece means that she's using ancient magic. That's okay, though, most magic can be interrupted by a good ass-beating.
Quickly, I close in on her, reinforce my Tora-Shinai, and slam it into her throat. I bring my weapon down onto the back of her head, and with a loud snap, it connects! She's knocked to the ground, and I leap on her while she's down. I hold the shinai against her injured throat and push down on it with both hands. "This is my final warning. Let Onee-chan go, or you're dead." Wait, she's smiling? Instantly, she teleports away... above and behind me! Good, now I can kill you with no regrets, Caster.
"H-how dare you threaten ME?!" she yells with a rasp. She holds out a hand, and a ball of glowing purple light appears. "Die!" She shoots a beam of purple magical energy at me, which I dodge by doing a handspring to the side. Once I recover from that, I dash towards her.
"THUNDER BEAM!" I cast my own spell. Purple lightning arcs towards her from my left hand.
"Heavenly Light!" Bolts of lightning fall from the sky and clash with my own. A deafening crack of thunder rings throughout the Temple. I leap upwards and swing at her, but she merely levitates further away. There's got to be some way to reach her.... Ah-hah! She's not too far away from a wall. Hm.
We exchange lightning spells, as I try to drive her towards the wall she's closest to. Just a little further now! While I'm doing this, I think... I need to take her out, fast. If she takes much more damage, she'll probably starting using her more heavy-duty spells, and I can't have that. Archer was right. I can't bludgeon Caster into oblivion, and I can't reliably blast her, either. So, combine what I know, huh? The Tora-Shinai is about the only object that I really know the structure of, it's why I can Reinforce it so easily. But wood doesn't conduct electricity... Nadeshiko can Project those swords, but it's not like I can't use that magic either. Using the shinai as a base, I use it to Project it into a long katana. I hope you're ready for this, Caster. You've got it coming.
"You know you can't match me spell-for-spell, you fledgling Magus," Caster taunts. "Stay still so I can end this quickly!"
I don't even dignify that with a response, as I run to the side, towards the wall. She's in range now! I leap on top of the wall, and with a yell, put as much strength in my legs as I can. I sail through the air towards the surprised Caster and stab her in the shoulder with my sword. Sending electric energy from my hand into the sword, I scream, "RAIRYUU SHOUGEKI HA! [Thunder Dragon Impact Wave]" Lightning courses from me, through the katana, and directly into my enemy's body. With any luck, I'll fry her from the inside out!
We both fall from the sky; I recover in mid-air and land in a three-point stance. Caster levitates at the last second and avoids slamming into the ground. A Magus Servant is still a Servant, after all....
"I underestimated you, Tsukimiya Kiyomi. I won't make that mistake again." Like I haven't heard that line before.
________________________________________
INTERLUDE #1

Saber magically dons her armor and materializes Caliburn as Lancer slowly approches her while brandishing her naginata. Lancer has a terrain advantage at the moment, being higher up than Saber is. So long as Lancer stays above her adversary, she has a wider arc of motion she can use when swinging her weapon.
"Such a magnificent sword you carry," Lancer says with a smirk. At that, she begins thrusting her weapon at the blonde Servant. "Of course, any sword is useless if you can't get in close enough to use it!"
Saber parries the naginata thrusts with relative ease. It's not as if she has no experience in fighting polearm users. Naginata differ from regular spears, though, in that the sharp end is more of a blade than just a pointed head. This enables the user to slash as well as to stab.
The battle continues without words being spoken. Lancer moves side-to-side to
maintain her advantage, while Saber tries to get within range. For a while, it's a stalemate, as neither is able to inflict any damage on the other. Thrusts are parried and slashes are dodged or knocked away. Lancer derives enjoyment from this fight; partly for her own sake, but mostly to prove her worthiness to her Master in defeating the so-called strongest Servant. Saber, on the other hand, is fighting out of necessity, to keep Lancer occupied while her Master and her ally fight inside the temple gates.
"This has been fun, Saber, but I'm afraid I'll have to end this!" Lancer yells, twirling the naginata above her head. She puts power behind her next attack and calls, "Zanshuu Kougeki! [Decapitation Assault]" She swiftly brings her weapon down across Saber's neck. Saber steps backwards at the last possible moment, and Lancer moves in closer with another swing. Lancer has a look of disbelief and realizes that Saber has great battle instincts in addition to great skill with a sword... with luck to spare. Seven vorpal slashes have been attempted from many angles, but Saber is able to avoid them all.
Finally, Saber sees an opening in Lancer's attack. She pours her mana into her sword, making it shine bright gold. "CALIBURN!" she yells, and slashes at Lancer. The long-haired Servant is put on the defensive, as she blocks the powerful holy sword. Her naginata cannot withstand the energy put behind Saber's attack, and shatters.
"Well done, Saber. Indeed, you DO live up to your legend of being a knight-princess," Lancer compliments her opponent. "The holiness of your sword outmatched that of my Onikiri Naginata..." With that, she materializes a Katana. "... However, I'd like to see if it can overcome Kamikirimaru as easily."
"A devil-slaying polearm and a god-slaying sword?" Saber muses aloud. "One who devils and gods feared to fight, she who is worth a thousand ordinary warriors. The famed female general of Minamoto no Yoshinaka's army: Tomoe-gozen. That's your identity, is it not?"
"Your mind is as sharp as your sword, Miss Arturia," Tomoe says with a smirk, and takes a stance with her sword. "En guarde!"
________________________________________
INTERLUDE #2

Emiya Nadeshiko circles around Kuzuki Makoto, keeping the teacher's attention away from Tsukimiya Kiyomi. In an instant, the latter Magus dashes off towards her own opponent.
"You're one of my students, but I'll have no problems taking you down if you continue this pointless interference," Kuzuki says. "And before you ask, yes, my wish is THAT important to me."
"S-sensei..." Emiya keeps her projected Kanshou and Bakuya in a guard stance. "If that's how it's going to be, then so be it." She backs away from where Caster and Tsukimiya have engaged in battle. Obviously, if Kuzuki knows some form of martial arts well enough to fight a sword-wielding opponent, it would not be wise to rush in blindly.
"Here I go!" Kuzuki rushes in and punches at Emiya. The amateur Magus dodges the punch, but is somehow hit in the side of the head. She's knocked down, but immedately rolls away to avoid the teacher's ground stomp. Already, blood's trickling down her forehead. Merely acting defensive won't work, Kuzuki's using a odd style of fighting. The pair clash again; this time, Emiya blocks a punch with one sword, and swings at Kuzuki's side with the other. Kuzuki reacts by dropping an elbow onto the sword to deflect it.
The fighting style Kuzuki uses is known as "Snake," and utilizes attacks that hit from odd directions. It's highly effective for killing targets... but only those who have never seen it in action. The weird angles of attack are still limited to the range of motion of the practitioner, after all. Someone who has seen Snake in action has a higher chance of predicting where the attacks will come from.
Of course, Emiya has no such advantage, and continues to stay mainly on the defensive against Kuzuki's onslaught. Because she was able to better analyze Archer's swords, they can absorb much more damage than they could when she Projected them against Rider. Still, Kuzuki's body has been enhanced by Caster, so they shatter after taking a sufficent amount of damage.
Once they shatter, Kuzuki tries to directly punch Emiya's chest, only for it to be blocked by newly Projected swords. "That's a nice trick you've got there, Emiya," Kuzuki says, "but you can't keep this up forever!" Eventually, Emiya will run out of mana, or Kuzuki will land enough blows to kill her... and it won't take many for that to happen.
Suddenly, however, the two are distracted by something shining in the night sky....

INTERLUDE OUT
________________________________________
I knocked Caster out of the air, she just barely avoided crashing into the ground. Immedately, I launch myself at her again and swing my sword at her, but it's stopped by some kind of shield.
"Your barbaric attacks won't do you any more good," Caster tells me. "You put up a good fight, but now it's coming to an end." She flies up high into the air... much further than I could possibly hope to reach, even if I could jump from the roof of the temple. Huge multicolored bat-like wings appear behind her, and several beams of light are charging up. "Hecatic Graea!"
I-it covers such a huge area, there's no way I can completely dodge this. I run as far away as I can, turn, and yell, "THUNDER BARRIER!" An attack of this scale would hopefully drain enough of Caster's mana for me to be able to do something. The only problem is, can I actually survive this...?
The light blasts converge on top of me. It's almost a direct hit, but the barrier deflects the energy around me... for two seconds. While it's still up, I run to the edge of the beam, but when my barrier fails, I'm tossed away like a leaf in a tornado. I roll away from the impact and finally end up against another wall. My eyesight is tinting red... I'd reach up to wipe the blood flowing into my eyes, but I can't even move. Is it over for me?
Caster lands in front of me and uses her magic to lift me from the ground. Unable to maintain the grip on my sword, I release it... it falls to the ground and changes back to its original form. "Tsukimiya Kiyomi, you're quite the interesting girl." She approaches me and lifts my chin up. "Being able to do this much while being under a Limiter spell." With a wicked smile, she starts molesting me... B-bitch! She whispers into my ear, "I know all about you. Someone like you shouldn't exist, so that Limit spell was placed on you to keep you hidden."
"Shut up.... Just kill me and get it over with," I say, tears mixing with the blood flowing into my eyes.
"Hahah, you'd like me to, wouldn't you?" Caster gloats. "No, I'll enjoy breaking you. Be grateful, you'll still be here with your guardian... Though when it's all said and done, you'll belong only to me."

"M-mongrel witch, you said something that you shouldn't have said..." I hear a weak voice coming from the front of the temple. I see Kuzuki-sensei throw herself next to Caster... but they're both pierced by a dozen red streaks. Blood pours from the both of them as they fall to the ground.
I can barely make out Kuzuki mouthing, "Souichirou-onii-sama..." as she dies. I fall on my butt as Caster's magic dissipates from me, and I look around for the source of that voice. It... it sounded like Onee-chan's!
I muster all the strength I can, and limp over to Onee-chan, who's laying on the ground. She's starting to glow golden and turn transparent. "O-Onee-chan?!" I yell, and run as fast as I can manage over to her. "W-what's happening to you?"
"Something that should have happened ten years ago," she says with a sad smile. She reaches up to me and strokes my hair. "I'm sorry, I kept so much from you... even after you helped me back then..."
"D-don't say anything! You've got to stay with me!" Tears uncontrollably start rolling down my face. She's dying right in front of me, and there's nothing I can do about it!
"L-listen to me," she tells me. "You have to destroy the Grail. I-It's become tainted... and you can't use it to grant wishes." I nod, and try to hold her slowly disappearing form next to me. "You've got wonderful friends now... you can rely on Saber... and even Tohsaka's little girl," she says with a small smile. Her breathing starts becoming more labored. "I-I've always loved you as a little sister... I just wish... I could've been here a little longer."
I put my head against her chest and sob. "I love you too, Onee-chan..." Just after I say that, my arms collapse around me.... and I collapse on the ground in tears. She's no longer a part of this world.

>>16809
>Alexandra is Gilgamesh
>the real Kuzuki existed at some point in this timeline

>>16816
>Alexandra is Gilgamesh
so our onee-chan was living in this world off of the sad and tortured souls of 50 captive amputee children? I feel less bad about leaving her captive with Caster for so long.

>>16816
Is that.... sarcasm...?

>>16827
Did she? Well.. I suppose I should put it this way: Would she have been captured so easily if she *had* sustained herself with the life force of orphans?

♪Quiet Voice♪
________________________________________
It's this dream again. After what's happened, I really don't want to see it... but... things are different this time. Maybe seeing Onee-chan die in front of me was a shock to my subconsciousness? I don't know.

Magic training isn't very fun. My body hurts when I open my magic-circuit-things, because I'm not used to using them yet. Anyway, you can do neat things with magic, but what good is it when you can't use it whenever you want?
I walk outside, and see Mom talking with a dark-haired guy in a brown suit. That twintailed girl is with him.
"Tohsaka Tokiomi, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" Mom asks.
"The pleasure is all yours, believe me. I'm here to inform you of your daughter's consecration results." They're talking about me, I think... I'll just sit around a corner and wait for them to finish.
"She's aligned with lightning, right? If that's all, then why come all this way...?"
"There's something else. Somehow, she's inherited the spiritual powers from her father's lineage as well. I've never seen anything like it."
"W-wait... that's not possible! No one can use both of those magic types at the same time, they're..."
"Incompatible, yes. To put it bluntly, she's an abberation... a dangerous one at that."
"...I won't have you talk about her like that. It has never manifested..."
"But that doesn't mean it never will. The Association will most likely want to take her away for... further testing."
"I won't let them take her!"
"What, are you going to defy them? And me? Remember who's in control of this region. You'll cooperate... because you know the consequences if you don't."
I poke my head out from around the corner. "Kiyo-chan, there you are! Did you win your game?" Mom asks.
"Yeah!"
"I don't understand what your Papa sees in those contraptions, I worry that your brain will rot..."

And so it continues. They die at the hands of a serial murderer.... Uryuu-something-or-other. My uncle adopts me, and hides me fairly easily because Tohsaka Tokiomi is busy fighting the Grail War. Then Uncle dies in the fire that happens afterward.

I find myself wandering through the burnt streets of Fuyuki. The fire was put out a while ago, but the buildings are mostly gone. The city's being rebuilt... but I have no one to turn to. My family's all dead. I aimlessly explore the ruined city.
At some point, I see an adult's shadow overlap my own. I turn to see a beautiful lady in tears.
"Have I been reduced to this? Feeding off the life force of mongrels? The almighty Queen of Heroes is forced to sustain herself with the essence of low-class commoners? Emiya Kiritsugu, Saber, Kotomine Mirei... Damn you all...!" She sobs and kneels down in front of me. I feel so sorry for her. Somehow, I know that tears don't suit her. I reach up to her and hold her face in my hands. They start glowing white... I don't know what I'm doing, I just want her suffering to end. I can feel something leave this lady... I hope it's what was making her cry.
"Are you okay now?" I ask.
"Y-you!? What did you do?" she says in shock.
"I dunno... I just wanted you to not be sad any more," I tell her.
"I-I didn't think it was possible... you dispelled that curse..." She looks at me. "Girl, what is your name?"
"U-um... I'm not supposed to tell strangers, but... Tsukimiya Kiyomi!"
"Tsukimiya... Kiyomi?" I nod. "Why is a young girl like you walking around alone? Have you no family?" I shake my head and look at the ground.

The dream fades, and I see a vision of Onee-chan wearing weird golden armor. Maybe that fight with Caster damaged my brain somehow...
"If you're seeing this in your dreams, it means that I'm no longer with you, and I can only hope that our time together was long and pleasant. I placed a Limiter spell on you to hide you from the world of Magi. If they knew of what you were capable, I feared that they would take you away and abuse the gifts you were given. You had become too important to me, being the one true reason I remained in this world.
"I do owe you an apology. To sustain myself, I had to regularly siphon off of a portion of your Od, which triggered the dreams from which you always had trouble waking. I only took the minimum amount required to live, but I did use you for that purpose... And for that, I'm sorry.
"All I have left to say is... Use your magic to help others the way you helped me all those years ago. I love you, Tsukimiya Kiyomi... Farewell."

The vision fades to black, and I sit up in my futon, fresh tears flowing from my eyes.

>>16809>>16841
Oh NOW I get it: LesBoss is Xanatos.

>>16841
LMFAO at this picture.
"I-it's not like I like mongrels or anything!"

>>16843
Who?

Ok, so let me get this straight...
Kiyomi's father had some spirit powers, and mixing with the lightning element, she has possible god-level lightning powers. Awesome.
And, she was also able to get rid of the tainted Holy Grail water from Gil. And somehow Gil stops being an asshole. lolwut, like that could ever happen.

Ok, now in present time. This Kuzuki isn't a genderbent Kuzki, but Souchirou's sister. WHAT A TWEEST.
Did Gil just off her AND Caster? Not sure if Caster's dead or not.

Like I said, 'shitstorm'. =)
>>16856
>Ok, so let me get this straight...
>Kiyomi's father had some spirit powers, and mixing with the lightning element, she has possible god-level lightning powers. Awesome.

Well, the spiritual powers can enhance her lightning, and....

>And, she was also able to get rid of the tainted Holy Grail water from Gil.

...Dispel curses. That ability is the primary use for Shinto/Buddhist spiritual powers. As Tokiomi says in that interlude, the powers are normally incompatible... which I take to mean that a normal (Western-styled) Magus couldn't just take up Buddhism and learn this stuff.

>And somehow Gil stops being an asshole. lolwut, like that could ever happen.

I look at it this way: Gil is usually, like you say, a total asshole, and was that way during this storyline's Fate/Zero. However, instead of happily feasting away on orphans, she took it as an affront to her status as Queen of Heroes. When Kiyomi cures her curse, at first she's like, "Girl with Rare Power = Treasure," but then mellowed out over time.

>Ok, now in present time. This Kuzuki isn't a genderbent Kuzki, but Souchirou's sister. WHAT A TWEEST.

Yeah, though Souichirou died young and, as can likely be guessed, Makoto wanted to wish him back to life with the Grail. For all intents and purposes, the sister mostly lived the life that Souichirou would have.

>Did Gil just off her AND Caster? Not sure if Caster's dead or not.
Yep, both of 'em are dead, as well as Lancer. (What's a non-Caster-route Fate story without Caster getting the wrong end of infinite weapons?)

Anyway, had we not gotten onto the Taiga Route, the other routes would have been either a Gil or Caster Route.

>>16858
>>What's a non-Caster-route Fate story without Caster getting the wrong end of infinite weapons?
Uh... Heaven's Feel?

As an addendum:
A pink-haired girl with a blonde Nee-san, in MY VN-styled-CYOA-fanfiction? It's more likely than you think.

>>16859
True, but still dies a pitiful death, even in Heaven's Feel.

>>16860
Kiyomi has pink hair? Must not have been paying attention.
So, Illya is winter with snow hair, Shirou is autumn with red leaf-hair, and Kiyomi is spring with cherry-blossom hair. Dohoho, we need a summer hair. What would represent summer best? Green?

>>16864
The only time I ever brought it up was in the New/Altered Characters section, so.... yeah, it was easy to not notice. ^^;

Green sounds good, though I don't have any plans on introducing a green-haired character. Fuji-nee's regular outfit could almost count, though, right?

>>16864
wouldn't Saber qualify? blond = sun = summer

The exceptionally rudimentary F/LS Status Page: http://home.comcast.net/~lily.star/Index.html
Made in Notepad, whee.
________________________________________
When I wake up again, it's sometime in the morning. I look over to see Saber laying in the futon next to me. She... she doesn't look too good. I can sense that she's running dangerously low on mana, that fight with Lancer must have taken a lot out of her. I feel really guilty. Nadeshiko is on the verge of losing her Servant, and because I wasn't strong enough, I lost Onee-chan... I fight back tears, only partially successfully.
I look upwards, and see Fuji-nee sitting next to our futons, leaned up against a wall, asleep. Did... did she stay awake all night looking after us? I smile and blush a little. At least kissing her the night before last didn't drive her away...
Slowly, I sit up and look myself over. I'm in my pajamas, but I can feel that I'm bandaged up. Nadeshiko must have done it... she did a good job. I look around, but I don't see her here. She must have gotten up already; she's the only one of us three who could have healed up so quickly. She's not cooking anything right now, I wonder what she's up to?
Quietly, I get up and walk to the living room with a slight limp. My body feels a little strange, but that's probably from the combination of barely surviving that fight and the release of the Limiter spell. To be honest, I don't even want to think about magic right now. I walk in, and find a note on the table.
'I'm going shopping. I'll cook something good when I get back. -Nadeshiko'
Hm. I run a finger over some of the writing, and the ink smears. She must have just left. There's no way I can run after her in my condition, but I remember seeing a couple of bikes in the storage shed. I'm sure she won't mind if I borrow one. I go back to bedroom and grab a change of clothes. I don't really want to leave, with Fuji-nee here and Saber looking like death warmed over, but I need to talk to Nadeshiko in private. Once I put my last clean outfit on, I jot down a little addition to the note she left, go out to the shed, and coast off with the one bike that's there.

Riding a bicycle while injured isn't exactly the brightest idea I've ever had, but I don't think I could've made the walk. I arrive in the shopping district, and see Nadeshiko walk her own bike into the park. I guess she ran into Ilya again... Our little chat can wait until after Ilya goes back home. She's a nice kid, but I still don't trust her.
I slowly coast into the park and see them sit down on the same bench we were on yesterday. "Kiyomi-chan?!" Nadeshiko asks, completely surprised. "You shouldn't be out right now, what are you doing here?"
"I needed some fresh air," I lie.
Ilya stares at me as I set the bike aside and walk towards the bench. "Kiyomi, you seem different today." I just shrug and sit down next to her.
"You snuck out again?"
The girl shakes her head. "My maids are out shopping." She pauses a bit, and starts to swing her legs slightly. "I'm really surprised the both of you are outside today. Saber's going to disappear, and that Archer from the Fourth War is gone. If someone wanted to kill you, it'd be pretty easy to do right about now."
"Can we not talk about that right now?" I ask.
"There's no point in glossing over it. Two of the seven Servants from this War are dead, and one more is about to be."
"Um... If Saber disappears, does that mean you won't come after me any more?" Nadeshiko asks hopefully.
"Nope! I didn't say I came to Japan to kill Saber. I came here to kill YOU, Onee-chan."
Now that I think about it... Sister Kotomine said that the Grail was touched by someone inappropriate, and that caused the fire ten years ago. Onee-chan was a Servant in that War and got cursed by the Grail, and in turn was cursing Nadeshiko's dad, Emiya Kiritsugu. And Saber. And Sister Kotomine. Emiya Kiritsugu had a Servant Saber? That's one hell of a coincidence. Setting that aside, though, Onee-chan's last request was for me to help destroy the Grail. If it's tainted now, and it was tainted back then, I'd presume someone destroyed it then, too. Could it be that Emiya Kiritsugu (being some kind of superhero that Nadeshiko idolizes) and his Saber destroyed the Grail in the Fourth War? The Einzbern family helped found the Wars in the first place, so of course they'd always have an interest in winning it. Ilya's family sent her here to get revenge on Kiritsugu for destroying the previous Grail? And since Kiritsugu's already dead....
"That's ridiculous," I mutter. I think I'm starting to get a headache.
"Is that why you became a Master?" Nadeshiko asks.
"That's right, it's what my Grandfather said I should do. Besides, out of all the Einzberns left, I make the best Master!"
"Wait... you're doing this because your Grandfather said to do it? Not because you want to do it yourself?"
Ilya looks a little confused, "You know, I kinda can't remember. All I know is, I've always been a Master, so my family told me I should fight."
"Ilya... you seem like a really nice girl," I tell her. "You don't act like a cold-blooded killer."
"Kiyomi-chan's right. If you're only here to fight because your family told you to, you shouldn't do it. It's like she said... you really don't behave like a murderer, it just doesn't seem like you to do this."
At this, Ilya looks back and forth at the two of us with slightly narrowed eyes. "Are you two actually worried about me?"
Nadeshiko nods, and I answer, "Yeah. If you had asked me that after we first saw you, I never would have thought that way. But now that I actually know you a little better... Yeah, I do worry about you."
"So, if you can give up on being a Master....."
Ilya giggles and replies, "Did you know, if you became my Servant, I wouldn't have to kill you? If you did that, I'd quit being a Master. Nadeshiko can be my Servant, and Kiyomi can be a maid along with Sella and Leysritt! It'd be so fun!"
Nadeshiko laughs a little bit. "E-eheheh, wait, you want me to replace Berserker? Can't you just get rid of her?"
"And you'd make Nadeshiko into a familiar or something?" I ask.
"Not a familiar. A Servant. All Onee-chan has to do is stay by me all the time. And as long as Kiyomi didn't act like the maids I have now, she could do the same thing!" Nadeshiko and I exchange only slightly-nervous glances.
"Is that what your grandfather told you?" she asks Ilya.
"That's right! He said Servants stay next to me and protect me. That's all I really want from the both of you..."
"I'm not a Master, but... I couldn't..."
"I'm sorry, but I really can't do that. Is there any other way?" We try to decline Ilya's proposal as gently as we can.
"I'm not good enough... is that it?" she looks up at us with a hurt expression.
"No, it's not that! It's just... Saber's not gone yet. And I swore that I'd stop other Masters from repeating what happened in the last Grail War. Once Saber recovers enough...."
"Are you joking? I was trying to be nice to you, because Nadeshiko's my Onee-chan, and Kiyomi's her friend! Fine, be that way!" Ilya jumps off the bench and starts running away.
"W-wait, Ilya!" I shout. She doesn't stop and leaves the park. I look over at Nadeshiko and ask her, "Did we do the right thing?"
"I really do feel bad for her..."

The two of us slowly ride home. "So, um... are you doing okay?" I ask Nadeshiko. "I guess you've already healed up?"
"My body's healed up, but... but we failed," she says with a downcast look. "I'm trying my best to be a Hero of Justice, but when we tried to rescue your Nee-san, she ended up sacrificing herself for us." All I can do is nod slightly. "We've got to work harder, so there won't be any more victims."
"Yeah... There're three other enemy Servants out there. Well, four if you count Archer. Rider still has that Blood Fort around the school, and those Assassins are still out there somewhere. Then there's Berserker."
"Tomorrow before class, we should ask Tohsaka if there's something we can do for Saber. Maybe one of those jewels she has would work?"
"Hm. Maybe..."

When we get back to Nadeshiko's place, Fuji-nee's woken up. "I was wondering when you two were going to get back," she admonishes us with her hands on her hips and a slight pout. "I hope you're planning on fixing something really really good to make up for taking so long!" she says with a grin
"Sure thing, Fuji-nee," Nadeshiko tells her. I nod, and follow her to the kitchen. I owe it to her to help with things like this, after all. I've been here for a couple of days already, and I hadn't even helped out this much yet.
Tomorrow's Monday, and I'm out of clean clothes. I... I guess I should go back to Onee-chan's apartment. I've been freeloading off of Nadeshiko for the last couple of days and I really shouldn't overstay my welcome.

Once we've finished eating, we save some leftovers for Saber to eat if she feels up to it later. I'm sure it'd help her a little, even as a morale boost. After waiting for a while for our lunch to settle, I tell them, "Um... We have class tomorrow... so I guess I'd better head home. I've got laundry to do and...."
"W-wait a minute..." Fuji-nee says. "Are you planning on staying there alone?" Nadeshiko doesn't add anything.
"It won't hurt for me to be independent for a while," I reply, trying to put up a brave front. "I should be okay." I don't mention that it'll be more than just 'for a while.'
"Y-you know," Nadeshiko says, and looks away. "If you really wanted to, you could just stay here, until... you know, whenever."
I blush slightly. It's really a nice place to live. Nadeshiko and Fuji-nee are wonderful people... I adore both of them for different reasons. Still, though... "Let me think about it, okay? Either way, I really do need to go back."
"At least let one of us go with you," Fuji-nee says. "You might need help."
Nadeshiko nods. "You really shouldn't be alone right now, anyway..."
I guess I'll head home with...

[] Nadeshiko.
[] Fuji-nee.

>>16911
[x]Fuji-nee
There's got to be some detours we can take.

Also Ilya shouldn't know who and what Gilgamesh is. She's the Fifth Grail, so she can only sense and identify servants of the Fifth War.

>>16913
Whoops, error on my part. I presumed any Servant that got killed went to the Grail regardless of when they were summoned.

[X] Fuji-nee, cue awkward conversation

This IS Taiga route, right? Or can it branch out into Nadeshiko? Well, we've already made Taiga choices before, so it's best to just stick with her.
[x] Fuji-nee

>>16914
No, you're right. The servants go into Illya, so she knows about them. I think >>16913 was just thinking she wouldn't know if she was a regular master.

> http://home.comcast.net/~lily.star/Index.html
Impressive! How'd you do this? I'm probably too lazy to do all this for mine, but I've thought about at least doing it for Merlin at some point.

>>16934
Ilya states in Fate that she doesn't know Gilgamesh.

Then again, an instance where Ilya actually has the chance to absorb him never DOES rear its head in the game.

>>16936
Yeah, that's my point. BUT, she doesn't learn their identities and such when she absorbs them. So, from that LesBoss might have made the error. But Illya will definitely know she absorbed a servant, especially Gil who counts way more than an average servant (Sakura said that when she ate him in HF). And form that she could've done an investigation.

>>16937
>Sakura said that when she ate him in HF
Maybe, but I believe Illya also said that to Sakura while she was lying in bed. I just played through HF a few days ago. Hence, at some point or another, Illya had at least a passing knowledge of Gilgamesh's existence.

>>16939
From my memory Sakura said it, but I could very well be wrong and someone else did. I just definitely remember that because Gil practically counts as two it made up for him almost killing her.

>>16939
Actually what Ilya sensed was the amount of power Sakura contained. She wondered what sort of soul Sakura must have eaten and where she could have possibly gotten it from.

>>16934
>Webpage
>How'd you do this?

I just took what HTML I know and threw it into Notepad along with stats and cropped pictures that I found. I should make the picture sizes a bit more uniform for consistency's sake, at least. (They're all 200 pixels wide, but the height varies.)

Anyway, like in the VN, I'll stick in a [Status Updated] thing when it's been updated in-story.

Halfway through, if you listen to F/SN music while reading this, use ♪Embrace instead of ♪Pursuing Minds.
Also, I say "Mansion" here, which is basically like a condominium.
________________________________________
Honestly, I don't really want either of them around me when I go back, mostly because I don't know if I'll be able to stay composed while I'm there... But Fuji-nee watched over us last night, and I really do owe her an explanation for that. I just wish I knew what Nadeshiko told her.
"Um, I'd like it if you could go with me, Fuji-nee," I tell her, with my eyes downcast towards the table. "I'll go get my bag, okay?" I'm so torn up about this... I don't want to reject Nadeshiko's hospitality, but I also don't want to be a parasite.

Etiquette aside, though... the Grail War isn't over yet. Ilya was still talking nonsense about killing Nadeshiko, possibly in revenge for Kiritsugu's actions in the 4th War. Rider still has that Blood Fort over the school. Those Assassins are still around, too, unless someone killed them all off. Saber probably has enough mana to survive a few days if she just lays there, but she's going to die too, if Tohsaka can't do anything for her. Logistically, if I'm going to help destroy the Grail, I should stay here. After the war is over, we can talk about this again.
Making up my mind, I go back to the bedroom to grab my now-empty clothes bag. Saber's awake, but laying very still... as if she's a hospice patient resigned to her fate. Of course she'd know better than anyone what condition she's in.
"S-Saber..." I kneel down next to her. "I'm sorry things turned out like they did."
The Servant shakes her head feebly. "Do not apologize, Kiyomi. If anything, it should be me rendering an apology for forcing you to agree to that fight so suddenly. Lancer was a formidable opponent, though, so this outcome would likely have occurred, regardless of everyone else's situation."
"We're going to ask Tohsaka tomorrow to see if there's anything she can do for you. We're not formally allies, but..."
"It is not a bad idea."
After an awkward pause, I say, "I'm going back to my place to get more clothes. We just had lunch... we saved you some, if you want it."
Saber smiles faintly. "I'd appreciate it." I nod to her and tell her that I'll tell Nadeshiko.

I pop my head back into the living room. I look at Nadeshiko and tell her, "I'll stay for a while longer. Thanks for taking me in for so long."
Nadeshiko brightens up and gives me that huge smile that I adore so much. "It's no problem at all!" It's almost funny. If I wasn't head-over-heels for Fuji-nee, I'd probably... Oh, who am I kidding? I love them both. I'd been infatuated with Fuji-nee for years now, but... it's different with Nadeshiko. It's going to take a while for me to sort out, my emotions are pretty jumbled up right now.
I feel my cheeks warm a little, and tell Fuji-nee, "Okay, I'm ready to go." I turn back to Nadeshiko, "Saber's ready for lunch." She nods, and goes to heat up the leftovers... which really hadn't cooled that much.

The two of us leave the Emiya compound (it's so big, you almost could call it that) and head towards Onee... no, my.... apartment. My ankle's feeling better, so I can almost walk normally now.
"Fuji-nee... thanks for watching over us this morning."
"You don't have to thank me for something like that," she tells me with a smile. "But... Nadeshiko didn't tell me what happened. It bet it was something important, she always keeps those kinds of things from me for some reason..."
Hmm, I guess that's a blessing in disguise. I really, really don't want to lie to her, but I can't tell her the entire truth, so I compromise. "Saber and I were sparring a bit... when we got a phone call." I look away. Steeling myself and taking in a deep breath, I tell her, "Onee-chan passed away last night."
"Wh-what??" Fuji-nee looks shocked. Immediately, she looks at me with sympathetic eyes.
"Saber and I collided badly when I heard that, so that's why..."
"I-I see..." She holds my hand and gives me a reassuring look. "For what it's worth... I meant what I said the last time we walked like this. I'll always be your 'Nee-san'."
"F-Fuji-nee..." I hug her and bury my head into her shoulder. I don't want to cry any more, but I still get her shirt a little wet with my tears. Bringing up the subjects of Onee-chan's death and my love and admiration of Fuji-nee overwhelms my resolve. "I-It's not much further. C-Can we talk more when we get there?"
"Sure."

I open the door to the apartment... unsurprisingly, it's just how I left it, albeit with a small amount of dust here and there. Once we both enter, Fuji-nee looks around in wonder. "You called this an aparment, but... it's more like a mansion! Wow..." I guess it technically IS a mansion, but I didn't want to come off as snobby, so I always just called it an apartment.
"My room's over here," I say, and lead her to my bedroom. "It shouldn't take too long to pack up."
We go in, and Fuji-nee's eyes are immediately drawn to the poster I have on the back of my door. It depicts the Kendo champion Fujimura Taiga in an awe-inspiring pose with the words, 'The Tiger of Fuyuki: Fujimura Taiga' in a bold font. "W-wow... you actually kept one of these?"
"Like you said when we first met, I'm really a fangirl," I say with a sad smile. I start pulling a few outfits from my closet, as well as another uniform. While I'm doing that, Fuji-nee sits on my bed. "I really idolize you... and it tore me up when you were forced to retire so soon."
"W-well... I was upset for quite a while afterwards. These kinds of things happen to athletes all the time, but I never thought it would happen to me. Life's funny that way."
Once I figure out what I want to wear for the next few days, I take the outfits and drape them over a chair. I sit down on the bed next to her. I'll have to bring this up sometime, I might as well do it now. "D-did I startle you, last Friday night?"
After a small pause, "Yeah."
"That was...." I look away from her, and towards my door. "... my first."
Fuji-nee immediately understands what I'm saying. "You... you really should've saved that for someone..."
I face her directly and tell her, "Someone else?" I shake my head. "I... I've looked up to you for so long. And when I finally got to meet you... when I found out what kind of person you are..."
"Kiyomi-chan..."
As straightfowardly as I can say it, I confess. "I love you, Fuji-nee." An uncomfortable silence hangs over the room for what seems like forever. I can't stand this pressure, I'd better finish packing. "W-well, I'd better..."
Fuji-nee stops me from getting up. "You're serious?"
"I... I gave you my first kiss, and I just confessed to you. I know you're my teacher now, but... but it's how I feel about you!"
She looks at me with tears forming in her eyes. "You're being unfair about this, Kiyomi-chan! I..." she looks down, then back at me. "I thought about it yesterday. About how something like this would happen. About how... if we were found out, the scandal it would cause." Immediately, I feel guilty. I really shouldn't have said anything in the first place. I'm jeopardizing Fuji-nee's future with my confession. "But..." she adds, "If it's for you, I'll face any kind of punishment."

"F-Fu.... Mmmmmm..." She wraps her arm around my shoulder, pulls me in close, and kisses me. I... I can't describe how this is... It's as if I was using my magic on myself. My lips tingle, and paralysis overtakes me. It's truly an electric feeling and almost feels like a dream. I close my eyes and force my arms to embrace the back of her neck. She gently pushes on me, and I comply, falling onto my back, our lips still connected. Our breathing intensifies, and our body heat soars. I feel the sensation of her lips on mine, I feel her small yet powerful tongue playing with mine, I feel her saliva mixing with my own, I feel the breath coming from her nose tickling my cheek, I feel her arms around me, and I feel her body on top of mine. It's said that the Grail War is also known as "Heaven's Feel," but... I can't help but think that this feels more like heaven than obtaining the Holy Grail ever could.
I don't know how long we were kissing, but finally, we separate. "Kiyomi-chan, I love you too," Fuji-nee whispers in my ear. She lightly nibbles on my ear, and my face heats up even more than it had before.
"F-Fuji-nee....!" I can't think straight, and a small moan escapes my throat. "H-harder. Do it harder...." I urge her. She complies and increases the pressure of her teeth on my earlobe. It feels so good that my head might just explode. I moan louder and hold Fuji-nee even tighter as she bites down even more. A-are my ears my weak point? I don't know that for sure, but... I think something weird's happening to me... my mind stops working like it should, and can think of nothing else but this beautiful woman on top of me. "D-don't stop..." I tell her, breathing heavily. Am... Am I going to orgasm just from having my ears bitten?! I can't believe this...!
She continues to devour my right ear, and moves a free hand down to my chest. I slightly jump at the sensation and tighten my arms around Fuji-nee even more. She finally stops biting my ear, and plants kisses down my neck. I slowly move my arms from around her, and begin pulling down the straps of her green dress. Likewise, she runs her arms down my stomach and inserts them under my shirt, pulling it up. I happily oblige, lifting myself up so she can free me of my top.
"I'm kinda jealous, you're bigger than me," she says, and gently massages my breasts. I moan even louder... I don't even bother to consider if we have neighbors that might hear us, I don't care about anything else right now.
"A-ahn... Fuji-nee...!" I pull her dress-straps down to her elbows, and she wriggles out of it, leaving herself only in her green-and-yellow striped shirt and underwear. I start to pull her shirt up, but she stops me and takes it off herself. She's right... My chest is bigger than hers, but she's nowhere near being flat... they're almost perfect for her body-type. I reach up to her, and push her bra up over her breasts, and start licking them.
Fuji-nee starts moaning now, and strokes my hair while I'm sucking on one of her nipples. I start feeing slightly more aggressive, so I lean in on her to get her to lie down. She yields, and we both fall back onto the bed. Teasing her chest with my tongue, I reach down and stroke her mound over her panties. She starting to breathe heavier as I lick downwards from her chest. Down her ribs, her stomach, her belly button... Once I get down there, I start taking long strokes with my tongue. The cotton fabric is already damp, and I can taste her ever-so-slightly. It's a different taste. I can't put it into words, but it's far from unpleasant. I can feel my head being held in place, so obviously I'm doing something right. My assault on Fuji-nee continues, as her underwear starts getting wetter and wetter. I pull my head back, and start jerking them off of her. I succeed in stripping Fuji-nee, and resume going down on her.
She wraps her legs around my head, and keeps my face pressed against her vulva. It's only a little hard to breathe, but such minor things don't concern me. I draw circles around her hole with my tongue, teasing her before I give her a single lick, directly between her lower lips.
"I-I-I can't believe you haven't done this before....!" she moans in ecstacy. I have done this before... to you, in my dreams, I tell her in my mind. I flick my tongue over her slightly swollen clitoris, which causes Fuji-nee's back to arch upwards. With a lewd smile that she couldn't possibly see, I slowly insert my tongue into her.
While I'm orally pleasuring her, I move a hand underneath my skirt... My panties are completely drenched and fluids are on the verge of running down my legs. Regardless, I slip my fingers past my underwear and start furiously masturbating. With my free hand, I reach up and grope one of Fuji-nee's breasts.
We both moan loud enough that, unless no one's passing by outside, it'd be impossible for us not to be heard. "K-Kiyomi-chan...! I-I'm..." I can't reply properly, outside of muffled moans. I pull my tongue out of her, and start lightly sucking on her clit. That seems to drive her over the edge, and she arches her back heavily and nearly yells out that she's cumming. I lap up her love juice, trying to keep any of it from escaping and reaching the bedsheets.
Just after Fuji-nee orgasms, I reach my own, moaning heavily into her crotch... which yields even more fluids for me to swallow.

We relax in each other's arms, my half-clothed body next to her mostly naked one. "Fuji-nee... I love you so much. I'll never let anything happen to you. Ever."
"Kiyomi-chan..." Fuji-nee smiles and strokes my hair. I purr like a kitten and nuzzle her chest. "I'll always be here for you. You'll never have to be alone again."

FINALLY FUJI-NEE SEX

THE UNIVERSE HAS BEEN GIVEN JUSTICE AND ITS NAME IS LILY STAR

Once we've recovered enough, Fuji-nee and I bathe. We need to get back to Nadeshiko's house before too long, so we don't do much of anything besides a bit of cuddling. After getting dressed, I pack up the clothes that I'd picked out earlier, and we leave the apartment.
"I guess we won't be able to do this very often," I tell her with my arm entwined in hers and my head on her shoulder. "At least, not for a while."
She nods slightly. "We should be fine, as long as we're careful about it. Oh... speaking of which," she says, removing her arm from mine. "We can't look TOO close out in public." At that, she reaches down and holds my hand.
I smile at her. "Just wait until I graduate, then we won't have to worry it."

Our walk home (I might as well call it that now) is quiet and peaceful. We don't talk at all... nothing really needs to be said at this point. I'm so happy right now! We separate in front of the gate and, after looking around, give each other a quick peck on the lips.
"We're home!" we say at the same time, as we get into the front door.
"Wow, that kinda took a while, it's almost dinner time!" Nadeshiko yells from the kitchen. We follow the voice (and smell) to the living room, to see her working away. "I guess that's fine, it's almost done anyway." I look back into the living room to see Saber patiently waiting for dinner.
"Never underestimate the power of a good lunch?" I teasingly ask Saber, with a bit of a sad smile.
She nods with her usual slight smile. "I'm feeling somewhat better now." She may be feeling better, but that doesn't change her dire situation one bit.

After we finish dinner, Fuji-nee tells us that she's going to go home. It's evening now, and as I'd said before, the weekend's over with now. I hop up and follow her to the door... perhaps with a little too much enthusiasm. Ugh, I'm going to have to control that. "Fuji-nee... can I walk you home?"
She smiles gently at me. "I'll be fine, you should stay here. Besides which," she gives me one of those monster hugs. "I need my fangirl to get back in tip-top shape for more Kendo training!" I turn my head to see Nadeshiko giggling. "Nadeshiko, you make sure she takes it easy, okay?"
"Aye-aye, Fuji-nee!" she says with a phony salute.
I wave goodbye to Fuji-nee. I don't want to see her leave, but I'll probably be seeing her tomorrow morning for breakfast anyway. And again during class. And again during dinner. I smile to myself... I think I may just be happy living here after all.

It's the three of us now. Gathering in the living room, we discuss what happened last night....
________________________________________
INTERLUDE - Day 4

"En Guarde!" Lancer beckons to Saber. Her Naginata was destroyed by Caliburn, but it's since been replaced by a weapon specifically tailored to battle those with divinity: the katana named Kamikirimaru.
The fierce battle resumes. Saber figures that, with a different weapon, Lancer will fight completely differently. Her presumption is completely accurate; as opposed to maintaining a terrain advantage and a safe distance from Saber, Tomoe indeed fights completely opposite of how she did before. She tries to keep Saber on the same level, and attacks with all the ferocity of a tsunami.
Tomoe's body should not be able to handle a sword as well as a polearm, but her superior skill with the weapon in her previous life balances out that handicap. "Your's is an excellent skill, my dear lily," Lancer compliments her opponent, "but the longer this fight lasts, the more it turns to my favor!"
This is not lost on Saber in the slightest. Caliburn's called attack does not drain an exceptional amount of mana, but against a god-killing sword, she'll likely have to constantly use it. Because she's not receiving perpetuation mana from Nadeshiko, eventually her own supply will run out.
Of course, Tomoe's Master is Caster. She will almost never have this handicap. The battle must be ended quickly....
"HECATIC GRAEA!" A loud explosion and huge flash can be heard and seen from the other side of the gate.
"Looks like Master's finally gotten serious with that Rookie," Lancer smirks. "It appears that our time together is almost at an end, Princess Arturia."
Once again, the two Servants clash. Saber's sword shines brightly as they continue their fight. Without warning, however, Lancer drops to one knee.
"L-Lancer...?" Saber halts her attack. The long-haired Servant starts glowing with a golden light.
"I-I can't believe it... Master lost...?!" With an angry frown, Tomoe thrusts her sword into the ground, and uses it to prop herself up. "It was a good fight, Saber. I just wish that it had ended properly." She smirks and adds, "You may look like a delicate lily, but you fight with the ferocity of a lion. You've earned my respect, Queen of Knights." Lancer fades from sight with a deep bow.

Saber rushes through the temple gates to see Nadeshiko carrying Kiyomi with one arm draped over her neck. Kuzuki Makoto is dead, and Caster is absent, dead as well. The woman that Kiyomi calls 'Onee-chan' is also nowhere to be seen. Just before Lancer's death, she could feel another Servant's Noble Phantasm being used... Judging from how wet Kiyomi's face is, that woman, Alexandra Richards, must also be dead. There's no corpse, so... she was a Servant? Saber rushes to help her Master carry her ally, and gives silent thanks to the one who had ultimately saved them all.

INTERLUDE OUT
________________________________________

"When we got back, I called Tohsaka and told her that Kuzuki-sensei was dead. She said she'd call Sister Kotomine," Nadeshiko tells me, "and that the Overseer would take care of it. Then I called Fuji-nee... and I guess that's about it."
I had been worried about that. All the priests and priestesses living at the temple would wonder what happened, as would many, many students. I guess the Association has a bit of work ahead of them; Kuzuki's absence will have to be explained somehow.

"Kiyomi, there's something I've been meaning to ask you. Why is it that you seem somewhat different now?"
"Do you remember what Tohsaka told me, about that Limiter spell? It was removed." I'm not about to go into details. "I'm not sure exactly how that affects me yet, but it wouldn't hurt to check."
"So you're more powerful now, right, Kiyomi-chan?" Nadeshiko asks. "Maybe we can just get you to zap all the other Servants and finish the War without Saber risking herself any more!" I know she's only joking, but... If we're not able to do something with Saber, that's will have to happen. If she dies, we'll need to ally with Tohsaka. There's no way I'm going to give up on destroying the Grail, and I bet Archer's no pushover. I look at Saber and start thinking about what it is she might be wishing for... But, if I have my way, she wouldn't have that chance. Does she know about the Grail's corruption?
"Saber... can I ask you something private?"
"You may ask," she replies out of curiosity.
"What do you want the Grail for?"
"... That is a question I do not wish to answer."
"I guessed you'd say that. I'm asking you this because... there's something that we have to do, and you'll be opposed to it when I tell you." I take a deep breath. "We have destroy the Holy Grail."
"WHAT?!" they both reply simultaneously.
"It was something Onee-chan told me... before she died. Somehow, in the Fourth War it had been tainted. It was destroyed, but not before someone else touched it and set off that horrific fire. If anyone in this Fifth War does the same thing..."
"I... I see," Nadeshiko stares into the table.
Saber sighs with no small amount of frustration. "A wish made upon a cursed object would no doubt have unforeseen consequences." With other Servants still running around, though, it's not something we can do anything about right now.

Now that that's out of the way... there's a several hours left until bedtime. I'd like more information about the Grail and how it got tainted, and the only person that might be able to answer that is Sister Kotomine, but judging from that last dream I had, I probably shouldn't trust her. Hell, judging from what she told Nadeshiko and me on our way of the church that night, we probably shouldn't trust her. I could practice magic or Kendo or something, I guess.

[] I'll visit Sister Kotomine.
[] I'll practice Kendo with Nadeshiko.
[] I'll practice my magic.

it just gets better and better
[x]practice magic
because that's what i would do if i were a magus who just received a level up

>>17010
[x]Visit Kotomine
There is not NEARLY enough Mirei. Nor could there ever be.

Also I played THIS during the sex scene:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVnRzEjpUmE&feature=channel_page

Interesting choices.

From how I know Kotomine, he wouldn't just attack you right then and there, thus bringing up suspicions for Emiya and Tohsaka of you suddenly disappearing. And Kotomine doesn't lie, only avoids answering the truth. The least we'll get from his encounter is confirming our suspicions of him or limited information.

Training on the other hand will always yield results. We just got out limiter removed, so it's wise to practice magic and see what it is we can do.

Knowledge VS Power....I'm going with power on this one.
[X] Practice magic

[X] I'll practice my magic.

Must learn Thundaga

>>17018
I lol'd

The picture is of Maburaho's Miyama Yuuna, but she's a fairly close approximation of what I imagine Kiyomi to look like. I'm a writefag, not a drawfag, so I'm not about to attempt to sketch her out myself....
________________________________________
I don't trust Sister Kotomine one bit, even if she's the Overseer of this Grail War. Tohsaka doesn't seem to like her much, either... but there's probably a lot of people she doesn't like. If it comes down to "zapping the other Servants," as Nadeshiko put it earlier, it'd be nice to know exactly how well I can do that.

I step outside and sit on the edge of the wooden floor looking out onto the backyard. Closing my eyes, I try to calm my breathing and concentrate. I can feel the magic that I've always been using, the lightning magic that I inherited from my mother. There's something else here now... it's the source of that strange power that I used on Onee-chan, ten years ago. A phrase pops into my mind, "The Way of Onmyou." I think my father had mentioned it maybe once or twice. It was a power that had been fading from his bloodline over generations.
It makes me wonder... had this power been what I'd tapped in to somehow when we fought Rider? I'm not sure, but I don't think it is. My body seemed to react mostly on its own when I saw Nadeshiko on the verge of death, and I don't think spiritual powers would cause something like that. It's an answer that's not forthcoming.
Putting that aside for the moment, I go back to focusing on this spiritual magic. It feels completely different from the lightning magic. It's a soothing feeling. It's strange, though. Both types have their own set of magic circuits. Not only has the total number of magic circuits I'm aware of increased... my total mana capacity has skyrocketed. Am I really so dangerous an existence that I had to be hidden by such a powerful Limiting spell?
The lightning and spiritual types of magic utilize separate sets of circuits, though, which means that, if I concentrate sufficiently, I can use both simultaneously.

Suddenly, Archer's advice springs to mind. "My advice to you is this, Tsukimiya Kiyomi: Reinforcing a wooden sword will not win you many battles. And as you are aware, neither will your magic alone. Your task is to effectively meld everything you know into one unique style."
Is this what she meant by that? She seemed to know an awful lot about Nadeshiko's magical strengths and weaknesses, too. I remember the last part of our conversation:

"Integrate my lightning magic into my swordfighting?" I ask.
Archer knowingly smiles. "Among other things."

There's no way I can deny it... Archer knew I was under a Limiter spell already, but that alone wouldn't cause her to say what she did. She knew I could do more than lightning magic? Who the hell is she?! Tohsaka would know, but she probably wouldn't tell me if I asked...

Putting all these thoughts aside, I return to what I was about to do: combine these two disparate types of magic. I send some of my mana into my family crest... the familiar tingle flows over my body. Slowly, I trickle mana into the spiritual magic circuits. The tingling and soothing sensations merge, and I feel oddly peaceful. I open my eyes and walk out into the backyard. "Let's do something simple," I whisper to myself. I augment my nervous system.
When I do this... again, my surroundings seem to slow to a crawl... but it's much more dramatic this time. I slowly move around, maintaining my augmentation. It takes a lot of focus, but I think I could get used to this with enough practice. I shut down the augmentation, and everything resumes its normal speed. Hm... I could tell that it had an effect, I don't know exactly what that effect is. Fortunately, there're two observers on the premises.
"Hey, Nadeshiko, Saber, could you two come out here for a bit?" I ask, looking into the storage shed. Nadeshiko was hard at work practicing her projections, with Saber sitting still and looking on. They nod, and come outside.
"Did you figure out something cool?" Nadeshiko asks.
"That's what I need you two for. Could you Project those swords for me?"
Nadeshiko nods. "Trace On!" she chants, and Archer's swords appear in her hands.
"Okay now, hold them with a loose grip, okay? I'm going to see if I can take them out of your hands."
I walk back a good distance, and repeat what I did before. Once again, everything slows to a crawl as I augment my nerves. As fast as I can, I run up to Nadeshiko, snatch the swords from her hands, and run back to my original spot. I deactivate the magic circuits, and hold up the two swords.
"W-w-what was that?! I could see you coming, but just barely..." I give Nadeshiko her swords back.
"Kiyomi, is this the result? An increase in speed?"
"I can do more than this, I imagine. For example..." I reopen both sets of magic circuits, aim my left palm into the sky, and yell, "THUNDER BEAM!" An impressive lightshow erupts from my hand, multiple arcs of violet lightning are released into the night sky. "I don't mean to brag, but... I think that approaches Caster's lightning spell."
"That's awesome...!" Nadeshiko says, her eyes wide.
"Indeed, for a single-action spell, its destructive power is several orders of magnitude greater than it should be."
I look into my left palm, which still tingles with a small amount of electricity dancing around it. If this is only a partial result with a bare minimum of training...

I'm scared and excited at the same time... something that I didn't know was possible.

Our Sue powers grow stronger! MUAHAHAHAHA

>>17031
See, yeah, that's why I had her stuck in a supporting role for so long. But, well, it's not as if she can beat Servants or anything yet.