Saber's Wish Chapter 4

"Thanks for the bite as always, Shirou," Taiga said to Shirou as she put on her coat, both of them standing at the front door of the Emiya residence. "You never cease to impress."

Shirou shrugs before lightheartedly boasting:

"Well, it comes when you've lived with two adults who didn't know the difference between a saucepan and a wok. You should've been there when the old man tried cooking for both of us the first time..."

"Bet it wasn't as bad as the time I accidentally put a knife in the microwave," Taiga remarks while buttoning up her coat, and both her and Shirou laugh.

"You and Kiritsugu are the only two people I know who are absolute menaces in the kitchen," Shirou said before composing himself. "Anyone can learn to cook with enough time you know."

Taiga giggles.

"Some of us have full-time jobs you know. Six days a week in Japan," she says before adding, "Even Kiritsugu couldn't just sit around while he took care of you..."

Awkward silence followed as Shirou found himself reflecting on his late adoptive father; Saber's master in the Fourth Holy Grail War and the one who saved the boy when the Great Fuyuki Fire happened immediately afterwards.

"I really do miss him, Taiga," he eventually said, causing Taiga to pause as she slipped her purse over her shoulder. "I wish he could be here right now... see how well things are going."

Taiga's cheery demeanor fell, turning nostalgic as she puts a hand on Shirou's shoulder.

"I do too, Shirou," Taiga's tone was soft. "I imagine he would be proud of the fact that I raised you right. Even more at the boy he pulled out of the rubble."

"You think so?" Shirou found himself asking with uncertainty. Although he did not know Kiritsugu as a person before passing away when Shirou was twelve years old, the red-haired boy never doubted that the man raised him like he was his own child and cherished him as such. This was before Shirou got dragged into the Fifth Holy Grail War, when he learned about the real man Kiritsugu was from both Saber, Illya, and even Kotomine.

A broken man prepared to give anything for the sake of his ideals. The kind of man Shirou would have become if not for Arturia...

"Come on, Shirou," Taiga reassured him. "You're in your final few months in high school, you have friends, a steady income, and your special other. You have a plan for what you want to do with your life going forward. You know how many parents hope for their child to have everything figured out by adulthood? It doesn't happen as often as you'd think."

Shirou knew Taiga was saying all of this as his legal guardian as well. Taiga was old enough to adopt Shirou after Kiritsugu passed away; dying from as it would later turn out to be a curse inflicted on him from the Grail; The same curse that perpetuated Kirei Kotomine's existence until Shirou and Saber ultimately extinguished it. Taiga then adjusted the strap on her purse uncomfortably as she then confesses somberly to Shirou:

"After Kiri's death, I feared every single day that you would end up lost and aimless after your mandatory education was over. All you ever seemed to do was worry about other people's needs over your own, like yours didn't even matter."

Shirou found himself looking mildly astonished at Taiga. It seemed even she was aware of his disposition in the years following Kiritsugu's passing. Having sworn to carry on the broken man's ideals of justice the night before he died, Shirou lived by that philosophy as a way with coping with the fact that his only parent in his life was gone, leaving him alone in a home that was not even his own. Shirou closed himself off from everyone; Sakura, Issei, Ayako, even Taiga herself to an extent and wallowed in his seclusion.

As his older self, Archer, would preach and literally beat into him... it was a self-destructive path.

If Taiga knew all of this, then why has she not told him? Did she not know how to get through to him? Was she afraid that Shirou would only push her further away?

Taiga then smiled contently at him.

"My fears were alleviated once Arturia entered the picture. She brought out a part of you I hadn't seen since Kiritsugu was still alive. You were happy and you worked to keep it that way."

Shirou was surprised by that revelation, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Arturia Pendragon, or King Arthur as she would be revealed as, was much like Shirou was when they met. Saber was selfless and dutiful, willing to deprive herself of any luxury or necessity, even her place in history if it meant her people's happiness was assured. Seeing this glorified reflection of himself was eventually enough for Shirou to not continue going down such a path. Through Shirou's efforts to bring the walls down around the King's heart, Arturia would come to realize that too.

"I'm sure going miss seeing that side of you more when the day comes."

Taiga's last statement made Shirou snap out of his thoughts.

"What day?" Shirou asks in confusion, to which Taiga replies:

"Aren't you aware? Next birthday is yours... you'll be turning eighteen. You know what that means..."

"I can drink?" Shirou mused, having a feeling that was not what Taiga meant.

"Not just that, silly. The house, Kiritsugu's fortune, it will all be yours exclusively..."

Shirou looks at Taiga in surprise again.

"Then that means..."

"You can either live here in Fuyuki for the rest of your life, or you can sell it and go wherever your aspirations take you. I will no longer have any say in the matter as your legal guardian. It ends once you turn eighteen."

Taiga then took a deep breath and added:

"And that will mean I won't be able to visit like I can now."

"Taiga..." Shirou said solemnly. The grown woman had been a part of his life nearly for as long as Shirou could remember. He could not imagine his life without the Fujimura-Tiger to brighten it up. They could be living separately from Shirou's birthday onward, and maybe not see each other for quite some time depending on whether Shirou decides to stay in Fuyuki or not. Taiga nods in acceptance.

"Yeah, it's going to be rough not having your tinkering skills, or even your- your..."

She trails off, and Shirou sees Taiga's head tilt down. He then hears her sniffle and Shirou starts becoming concerned.

"Fuji-nee?"

Taiga tilted her head back up and to Shirou's shock, started sobbing uncontrollably.

And loudly...

"I'm going to lose my personal chef!" wailed a hysterical Taiga, hugging Shirou painfully tight as rivers of tears escape her eyes. "I won't be able to have any of your mouth-watering signature ramen anymore!"

"Taiga, please calm down!" Shirou says in desperation, trying to diffuse her hysterics. "You know you'll still be welcome here anytime. I'm sure Kiritsugu will never mind you continuing to visit. Besides, we still got time before then. It won't be bad as you think..."

Taiga eventually calms down, releasing Shirou, whose shirt was now stained with tears. She pulled a tissue from her purse and blew loudly, eventually saying to him:

"Y- you're right. I don't know what came over me there..."

"Don't worry about it," Shirou consoles her, putting a hand on Taiga's back. "You know you'll be welcome here any time. I don't see myself moving for quite some time."

Taiga looks at Shirou in surprise before a nostalgic smile formed on her face, proud of the boy she raised in Kiritsugu's absence.

"Kids grow up so fast..." Taiga remarked before looking at her watch. "Oh shoot, I'm getting late for my date!"

Hearing that makes Shirou ask in surprised confusion:

"Date?"

"You think I have all my meals with you?" an amused Taiga asks him rhetorically. Hearing that the Fujimura-Tiger has a significant other was breaking news to Shirou. "It will be embarrassing on my end if I don't get hitched before you do."

Shirou shrugs in understanding. He supposed with Taiga not quite being middle-aged yet, that she would have a social life beyond work at Shirou's school and the Emiya Residence.

"When do I get to meet him?" he asked.

"This is only my third date with him. We'll see after..."

Taiga sounded genuinely excited. Shirou was cautiously optimistic that she would not be dating some low-life or pompous jerk.

"As long he's treating you right, I guess he seems like a keeper."

"Oh, he's great!" Taiga told him ecstatically. "He's tall, he's dashing, he knows all the exclusive social clubs in town... and you should hear how he talks to waitresses. He gets free pie!"

"Sounds like a real stud..." Shirou remarked, almost bewildered by that fun fact. Taiga does not pick up on that as she continued.

"He's a real history buff too, like you, Arturia and Rin. I imagine all of you would get along if I introduced you."

Shirou was skeptical of that, having no clue who this mystery bachelor was. Still, he was reassured that this man and Taiga were really "hitting it off" from the way she is talking about him.

In all honesty, Shirou could not be happier for his legal guardian. Taiga too deserves to have someone special in her life.

"Yeah, we'll see about that... looking forward to it."

Taiga smiles at him again.

"Well, I'm going to go meet him. I should be back by six. Arturia and Rin would be returning before then, right?"

Shirou fell speechless for but a moment, remembering that they all had to go see Caster at Ryuudou Temple in hopes that she can hide Arturia's newly matured body from Taiga. The red-haired boy did not know how long it would it even take them, provided Caster was in a cooperative mood. If they cannot keep Arturia's form hidden, they would have A LOT of explaining to do for Taiga, and the Mage's Association will be on to them for revealing magecraft to a non-mage.

Were Arturia and Rin even done shopping for Saber's new clothes? Gathering his wits quickly, Shirou leaves Taiga off with:

"I'm sure they will be..."

To his relief, Taiga did not sense the uncertainty in his voice.

"Great! See you later..." Taiga said to Shirou before opening the front door and stepping out.

"Have fun on your date, Fuji-nee," Shirou called out to Taiga's retreating form, who was practically skipping towards the taxi waiting for her beyond the gateway of the Emiya Residence. She made one last cheery wave to Shirou, who watched as she entered the car and drove off.

Taiga sure is excited to see this guy again, Shirou thought. Who could get on her good side THIS much?

Shirou could not reflect on that for very long, for he needed to contact Arturia and Rin about when they should meet at the Temple, for there was no way they could still be shopping. Stepping back inside the house, Shirou pulled out his phone as he was walking into the living room, stressed about how this whole situation with Arturia's wish.

(sigh) "I seem to be a magnet for trouble, aren't I?" Shirou said to himself as he was dialing Arturia, only for-

"That's E rank-luck for ya..."

Shirou jumps in surprise, having not noticed Archer sitting on the couch beside him, seemingly having appeared out of thin air or while the boy was distracted with Taiga. Before Shirou could address him, Archer then says to him with seriousness:

"Our problems might have only just begun, kid..."

[Meanwhile...]

"I can't believe we found something close to what you usually wear, Arturia."

Rin could not help but remark on their luck after taking Sakura's advice in visiting the store she and Rider went to. As they were walking through the narrow streets of Miyama's marketplace with shopping bags in hand, Arturia looked over the attire she was wearing, feeling comfortable with the familiarity; she was wearing a white top with a blue skirt, stockings and shoes, even having an identical blue ribbon around the collar of her shirt.

"Yes, quite a coincidence. But I see no reason to complain..." Arturia replied contently as walked beside Rin. She took note of the fact that one of the buttons on her shirt looked to be "struggling" a little bit against her massive breasts. The Saber dismisses it as the biggest takeaway from their shopping trip was the fact that Arturia finally got comfortable support for them; something she did not necessarily need before her wish. "I feel so much better now that we've found bras that actually fit me."

"Glad to hear it," Rin said, her underlying tone grateful of the fact that they do not have to go through that bra shopping ordeal again for some time. Just then, Arturia turned to Rin curiously.

"You said that store we went to; the one Sakura recommended, was a "western" store. Just how big do women get in America?"

Glancing at her, Rin saw that Arturia genuinely wanted to know, but the Tohsaka mage was not sure how to put this crude knowledge across lightly to her friend, thinking it might be better if she did not satiate Arturia's morbid curiosity.

Rin did not want to feel any less "adequate" than she already was standing next to a mature King of Knights.

"Uhhh... not important," Rin deflects awkwardly before changing the subject. "What is was that your new wardrobe nearly emptied my purse. I may live in a mansion, but Emyia-kun should know that I'm not made of money."

Unbeknownst to Rin as she spoke, Arturia was only paying mild attention. The Saber was catching glimpses of people passing by; mostly men, and some women, staring at her as they passed, like they could not help it. She was not used to this attention as most men who looked at her stared in amazement, and the women mostly in awe; some even in envy. Arturia felt a mixture of discomfort and (strangely...) pride in the fact people around her were silently judging her by her appearance. Pushing this odd feeling down, Arturia tries to concentrate on conversing with her friend.

"I'm grateful for this, Rin. I truly am. Besides, you know Shirou will reimburse you with his stellar cooking."

"I technically have Shirou back home for that..." Rin merely scoffs. Glancing at her coyly, Arturia then said to Rin:

"Shirou boasts that he is a better cook than Archer."

"That so?" replied Rin, raising an eyebrow. "Now that you mention it, I'd love to see those two square-off in a cooking contest. Whoever comes out on top, we would win regardless, don't you think?"

"Mmmm... yes," Arturia said, indulging in the fantasy Rin proposed to her. "Absolutely. However, I have utmost faith in Shirou's abilities to say he would win."

"Against my trusty servant and house sitter?" Rin challenged. "Nobody is more reliable than Archer. He will win any cooking challenge half-asleep- Oh no..."

Snapping out of her daydream, Arturia stops when she sees Rin standing still, and staring dead ahead with a look of dread on her face.

"What is it?" Arturia asks with worry. In response, Rin points ahead of them.

"It's Mitsuzuri... and she's here with Maki, Yukika, and Kane! They're heading right for us!"

Arturia follows Rin's gaze, and sure enough, sees Ayako Mitsuzuri stepping out of a nearby shop with three other girls the Saber recognized from Homurahara Academy. Ayako looked to be in a heated conversation with Kaede Makidera while the other two girls looked on, having not spotted Arturia or Rin yet.

"Blast..." the Saber muttered at this unlucky occurrence, knowing that none of them can see herself with her mature body. "What do we do, Rin?"

Looking around frantically, Rin settles on a cafe across the street from where she and Arturia were standing.

"Here!" she says, grabbing Arturia's arm and pulling her toward safe haven. "Into the restaurant... hurry!"

With no time to argue, Arturia and Rin ran inside as the group of girls were walking towards them. Once in the relatively busy cafe, Rin peeked out the front window, pushing back a curtain and watching the oblivious girls as they stopped briefly in front of the restaurant. Arturia eventually peeks out the window the same as Rin, being tall enough to peer over her head. To the mage's discomfort though, the servant was resting her heavy bosom on top of Rin's head. Trying (and failing...) not to blush, Rin thought distressfully:

By the Root... Saber has no clue how to wield these things! Could she be anymore careless with her new body?

Ignoring the fact that Arturia's breasts were weighing on her, Rin continues watching Ayako and the girls outside, who kept talking in front of the cafe before eventually moving on, having not noticed her nor Arturia. Rin breathes a sigh of relief.

"Crisis averted..." she states before turning her attention to Arturia, who was still peeking out the window watching the girls leave. "Have the terrific trio seen you before?"

"Once, during the culture festival at the school," Arturia replied, still obliviously resting her breasts on Rin's head. "Naturally, Shirou invited me."

"While you were still small," Rin added for her before forcing herself out from underneath the stacked servant. Rin tidies her hair and twin-ponytails as she continues. "If they'd seen you, that would have been disastrous as well. Apparently, there's nowhere in this city where we don't have to watch our backs."

"What do you mean?" Arturia asks Rin who then peeks out the window again. The mage keeps her voice low as she replied:

"Since the Holy Grail War ended, the Association has Enforcers undercover in Fuyuki, watching out for any disturbances."

Appalled, Arturia then asks Rin while keeping her voice hushed also:

"You're telling me this now?"

"I forgot," Rin said while glancing at her apologetically, and the Saber just gave her an unamused look. Rin continues peeking through the window explaining, "If any had seen us with Ayako and the girls and "trying" to explain how you sprouted, they could've been on us in an instant."

"No way they would risk a confrontation knowing I'm a servant," Arturia said with great skepticism. "And in public no less..."

"You'd be surprised how bold Enforcers can be," Rin said seriously while still looking out. "Especially when magical existence is on the line."

"Are you two ladies here for the omelet special?"

Arturia and Rin start to turn to a waiter who came up behind them, who was obviously curious of the two women's peculiar behavior.

"No, we were just-" Rin says just before she Arturia laid eyes on this person and cuts herself off when they see him. Both she and Arturia exclaim:

"Lancer?!"

They stared dumbfounded at Cu Chulainn, who was standing before them in a long-sleeved cuff-linked shirt, a black vest and tie. He had a white cloth draped over his arm and had a menu in his hand. Both Arturia and Rin had to admit that Cu looked rather dapper in that outfit.

"If you two are not going to sit down at a table to order something," he told them with a hint of impatience. "Then I'm going to have to ask you to leave. You're disturbing the customers."

Rin looked around and saw some of the people dining stealing glances at them. She grew nervous as Arturia on the other hand, snapped out of her surprise to confront the Hound of Ulster.

"What are you doing here, Lancer?!"

Cu blinked after being addressed like that by the Saber. His eyes widened when he recognized her.

"Saber?" he said in amazement. "Wow, I'd be Fergus' nephew! When did you get upgrades?"

Arturia stared at him, briefly stunned upon realizing that Cu Chulainn had not yet seen her in this form. She blushes in embarrassment before dismissing the thought of explaining herself to the Lancer.

"Never mind that!" she stammers determinately, returning to the more pressing matter. "Explain yourself, and what is with your attire?!"

Cu tilts his head as if the girls could have figured this out on their own.

"Isn't it obvious?" he asked bluntly. "I work here..."

Arturia falls silent in realization, while Rin tries to dispel her disbelief at what the Lancer just said.

"Work?" she repeated. "As in... "For money," work?"

Cu just huffed at the mage's skepticism like she did not think it even possible.

"I believe that's the purpose of a job, Tohsaka girl."

"I really wish you stop talking to me like I'm stupid," Rin deadpanned, as it was evident to her and Arturia that Cu was not joking. "We're just surprised you would even have a job, let alone one as a waiter."

With the matter seemingly cleared up, Cu said pridefully:

"Well, I gotta fill my time with something productive. Plus, it funds my fishing hobby..."

"But what about your form?" Rin asked. "How do you sustain yourself?"

"I'm wondering about that too," Arturia interjected, lowering her voice so as not to get overheard by the other people in the cafe. "Even the Grail shard isn't enough to sustain you this long without-"

Cu casually raises his hand, interrupting her.

"Didn't you hear me talking about it with Archer last night?" Cu asked rhetorically. "I got myself a new master..."

"You did?" Arturia said, surprised. "I never heard that..."

"It was while you were opening gifts; you didn't seem very attentive..."

Cu's statement caused Arturia's gaze to fall somberly.

"Oh, that was..."

"Unimportant," Rin stepped in for Arturia, seeing that her friend's mood drop at remembering what led to her wish. The Tohsaka mage then pressed the Lancer with, "Tell us about your master. Who is he?"

"Her," Cu was quick to correct. "She took up residence in the church after its last tenant, who shall remain unnamed, went on a "permanent vacation"."

"You're telling us someone took over after Kotomine-?" Arturia started to ask, only to be cut off by an annoyed Lancer.

"What did I say about him remaining unnamed? Anyways... yes, someone from the Church took over the place, and she came to me proposing that we form a contract; said it would be for everyone's own good."

"Does this whatsherface have a name?" asked Rin.

"She does but said she'd only tell her name to those "deserving" to know," Cu said before turning from Rin to Arturia, adding, "Namely you and the red-haired lad."

The Saber narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"She knows about me and Shirou? What does this woman want with us?"

"You can ask her yourself. She says you two are invited to the church at any time. That is, if you muster up the courage to stop by."

"What about me?" Rin interjected.

"She didn't say anything about you," Cu stated to the mage bluntly, making Rin huff in annoyance. Arturia was not in the mood for playing around, as that the fact that someone took over for the evil priest that tried using the Grail for destruction was not one that she could ignore. She puts her hands on her hips and asks the Lancer with all seriousness:

"I assume she knows of what nefarious purpose the church was used for during the Grail War?"

"She knows," Cu reveals. "She even cleaned up the place last month. It's barely recognizable."

Arturia raised an eyebrow with skepticism. It sounds like to her that Lancer's new master was at least a more decent person than Kotomine ever was, yet she could not let her suspicions be resolved yet without seeing this person herself. If a priest can become evil, why not another?

"Now Saber," Cu then said. "Mind telling me how THIS happened?"

Arturia stiffens as once again the conversation had fallen back on her now having an adult form. The Saber chooses her words carefully as she knew as honorable Cu was as a warrior, he could also be a scoundrel.

Shirou and Arturia's first visit to the indoor waterpark came to mind; they bumped into Lancer, who made a rather bold comment about the Saber's bikini being wasted on her then flat body.

And she abruptly sent Cu flying into next week...

"It was purely by accident," Arturia replied evenly. "We're going to see Caster in hopes that she can reverse this, or at the very least hide it."

"That's a shame..." Cu then remarks, and the Saber takes note of the way he was looking at her. She would have backhanded him again if not for the fact that the Lancer was not looking over her with vulgarity. "I bet the red-haired lad would now love to see you in that swimsuit. He's a guy too you know..."

Rin, overhearing this, becomes appalled on behalf of her friend.

"Emiya-kun doesn't care how Saber looks! Tell him, Arty!" the mage stated, but then looked at the Saber with worry when no response came. "Arturia?"

To Rin's surprise, Arturia did not appear offended. The Saber was looking down at herself with a noticeable blush on her face, along with a subtle smile. The mage's face turns to silent shock when she sees that Arturia was actually taking Lancer's words to heart. Rin had never seen Arturia take such consideration of her appearance before. Not that Rin never thought Arturia was beautiful, but it just came out naturally despite the Saber not caring about it before. Rin was sure Shirou found her beautiful too regardless of whether Arturia cared about her appearance or not. Arturia never had to "try" to impress anyone... she just did it. Now though, she was getting excited thinking about it.

Rin started to wonder if Arturia's wish did even more than change her body and servant class.

"Seems that I got her pondering," Cu eventually remarks, grabbing both the girls' attention. "Well ladies, I'd love to chat, but right now I'm on the clock. Would you mind?"

Both Arturia and Rin looked at each other, acknowledging that they had been indulging in Lancer's time for too long and disrupting his job, on top of wasting valuable time on their end dealing with Arturia's body. Out of courtesy, they humbly take their leave.

"We understand," Arturia said as she bowed politely to Cu Chulainn. "Forgive us for the intrusion, Lancer."

"See you around I guess," said Rin as she begins turning to the exit. "Maybe we'll come back for omelets."

"Have fun, Saber," Cu said to Arturia, winking at her before she turned to leave. Arturia found it odd he would say that to her but did not think much else of it. As she and Rin went out of the cafe, they briefly turned to look back inside, seeing the Lancer courteously leading a group of people to a vacant table and taking their orders. The girls stared mildly perplexed until the door closed on them.

The image of the mighty Cu Chulainn working as a waiter will never not seem odd to them. Now back outside in the marketplace, Arturia turned to remark to Rin:

"Well, that was... peculiar."

"Tell me about it," Rin replied sarcastically before looking around the street for signs of Ayako and the other Homurahara girls. "I don't see Mitsuzuri or the other girls around. They must have moved on. I think we're clear, Arty."

With that, they continue walking with shopping bags in hand. Eventually Arturia expresses her concern to Rin about what Cu revealed to them at the restaurant.

"Rin, do you think Lancer is telling the truth? About his new master, taking over Kotomine's church?"

Rin ponders considerately.

"Sounds like she might be an Executor, like damn Kirei... I don't trust her any more than I ever did with that bastard."

Arturia sensed resentment in Rin's voice, which she found understandable given that Kirei Kotomine was responsible for the death of Rin's father, Tokiomi Tohsaka. Acting as her pseudo caretaker up until the Fifth Holy Grail War, Kotomine lied to Rin for most of her life about her father's death.

Arturia could tell that since the treacherous priest revealed this to them, Rin had been silently cursing herself for not seeing that her caretaker was her father's murderer; and had she even suspected the truth, she thought that she might have stopped him before enacting his masterplan of taking the Grail for himself.

"You might be right about her," Arturia said cautiously, expressing her own suspicions. "While I'm not entirely sure of her intentions, but if she was asking Lancer about me and Shirou, it can't be good."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Rin then stated out of the blue. "The Catholic Church may be opposed to the Mage's Association, but they too have a vested interest in keeping magecraft a secret. Say what you want about Kotomine, but even he knew better than to carelessly reveal magecraft to the World. Without an Overseer, all activities pertaining to the Holy Grail War would not have been kept hidden. If Lancer's master had problems with us, she would have revealed herself to confront us directly."

Arturia's gaze narrows. The King of Knights knew that not revealing yourself to your opponents is a deceptive tactic, meant for the enemy to get inside their adversary's head so they make them more likely to act in that the enemy can easily exploit. It was one Arturia knew that had been used by some of her most dangerous foes; particularly Morgan le Fay.

"That's what unsettles me," the Saber confessed. "She wants us to come to her. I believe that at some point we should investigate the church... as much as I would like not to."

(ring)

The girls stopped when they heard a noise from one of the bags Rin carried. Rin reached inside and pulled out a cellphone belonging to Arturia, who remembered that she left it in her raincoat and stuffed it in one of the shopping bags when they left Verde.

"Your phone's going off, Arty," Rin told her as she inspected the device. "And it's from Emiya-kun..."

Arturia waits for Rin to answer it, but the Saber sees that the mage was seemingly having trouble figuring out how the phone worked. Judging from the way Rin was looking peculiarly at it and holding it at odd angles, it becomes apparent to Arturia that she was really struggling to answer the phone.

"Sheesh," Rin blurts out in frustration as the phone kept ringing in her hands. "HOW do you answer this thing? There's no buttons anywhere!"

Arturia sighs and casually swipes her phone away from the technologically inept Tohsaka mage.

"It's a touchscreen, Rin," the Saber said as the phone fell silent and the call is lost. "Honestly, I'm from sixth-century Britain and even I can figure out how this works..."

"Hey!" Rin exclaims. "It's not my fault the only phone I own is from the turn of the century!"

Arturia ignores her as she calls Shirou back. Rin watches, baffled at how the servant was using the infernal device so easily, sweeping her fingers across the phone's touchscreen. Arturia then speaks into it.

"Yes, Shirou? Me and Rin are done shopping... you want us to meet you at the Temple? Okay, see you there... I love you too..."

As Arturia hung up, Rin found herself staring at her as if regretfully. When Arturia turned back to her and sees the sad look on Rin's face, she asks with worry.

"What's the matter?"

Rin blinked off-guard, like she had not been paying attention. Unbeknownst to the Saber, something she said over the line to Shirou struck a nerve with the Tohsaka Mage and caused her mood to drop. Rin composed herself and said warmly to Arturia, a smile slowly forming on her face:

"Nothing... I'm just very happy for you two..."

Arturia stared at Rin, eventually returning the smile in full. Rin had always been supportive of the Saber's relationship with Shirou Emiya, and she was the one person Arturia could confide in as a woman. She had no reason to think of Rin as anything less than her best friend.

"Thank you, Rin." Arturia said sincerely to the mage before beckoning her to follow. "Let's go. It's time to meet Caster..."