(no subject)

[scorchedchivalry]

Characters: Saber (Alter) and You!
Setting: Dorms (Room 1-09), Graveyard (floor 48) and Forest (Floor 32)
Format: Starting Action, but I'll match.
Summary: A 'gift' from home makes Saber think on the past maybe a bit too much.
Warnings: none expected, but remember no superpowers on 32nd floor

[Dorm]

[When Saber had seen the basket of food, she was quite happy. After having been ill and with the limited food, she'd barely eaten anything all month. Of course, being a Servant, she didn't require food, but she so did love to eat. And then she saw what kind of food it was in the basket - things she hadn't had since she walked the hills of her homeland.

It made her go to hide it in her trunk and that's when she saw it. Wrought of the finest gold, sparkling sapphires inlaid into the band... it was her crown. The royal crown of King Arthur. She picked it up and held it before her, pale eyes drinking in the treasure. She could tell it was hers and not a reproduction; a king knows his crown.

Walking away from the trunk, she hesitantly put it on her head. It fit as she remembered, the weight as it should be and it rest perfectly. And then her eyes widened and she snatched the crown off her head. No, no, no, she didn't want to be king anymore. She wanted to reset things, change her destiny... redo the selection. Save Britain from herself.

So it was laying on her back holding the crown above her, turning it slowly in her hands with a distant look in her eyes, Saber would be found in Room 1-09. The door was half-open, unnoticed by Saber, as she thought about the past.]


[Graveyard]

[Saber walked through the graveyard, past stones, until she came to one that was broken. In rubble at her feet - the letters S BE visible in a few pieces - she stared down at the stone. She now knew who this grave belonged to. It was her own, but not her own. And so, thinking she was alone, she spoke to it in a quiet voice.]

A battle has been fought and is now over. Place your sword upon the ground and rest in the temporal peace. After dozing in the warmth of a dream, a new day will begin. The days keep passing by...

And we still chase the same star we once saw.

[Saber folded her hands into her greatcloak and bowed her head.]


Forest Floor 32]

[To clear her mind, Saber chose the forest where she felt the most human. Here her prana was quiet and she had to rely on skills and knowledge learned from her childhood, her time as a squire, and not the might of a Heroic Spirit. It was calming.

Quietly, she moved through the forest, downwind, as she tried to sneak up on a grazing deer. She was close, waiting patiently behind cover, when something made the deer raise his head, antlers brushing the branches above. And then it took off, having noticed whoever came upon Saber in her game of skill.

Sighing, she stood up, revealing her concealed presence.]

...great.

Comments

[puppy_lancer]

Angra...Mainyu? You mean some God of evil? How the fuck did that get into Rin?

[He's so caught up in this news about Angra Mainyu that he offers no comment on the axe and sword comparison.]

[scorchedchivalry]

For that I do not have a clear answer. I do know that Angra Mainyu was summoned by the Einzbern Master in the Third War as the Servant Avenger. Most likely, Avenger remained in the heart of the Holy Grail until whatever the Matou were up to came to fruition.

Here, Rin is of the Matou.

[puppy_lancer]

So he's the reason the Grail spews black shit. But if he's a Servant, shouldn't his form have been consumed?

[Defeated Servants became fuel for the Grail's activation. Even Angra Mainyu should not have been able to avoid such a fate.]

Yeah, I know she's a Matou. Would she be anything else?

[scorchedchivalry]

His form was consumed, yes, but as a Servant, I am under the impression he was weak. But once his form is gone and the essence of what he contained - all the evils of the world - were released into the Grail itself.

It corrupted the Holy Grail. This was discovered in the Forth War.

[And Saber's eyebrow twitches as she says that.]

Also, Rin was not born of the Matou, but another magi family.

[puppy_lancer]

Shit, that sounds like a real pain. At least it didn't get filled back in my place.

[He knew the Grail was corrupted, but he never knew that it was that corrupted. No wonder Saber and Misaya had changed.]

So she's adopted. So what?

you didn't see that

[scorchedchivalry]

That means the magecraft of the Matou was forced upon her. She has the tremendous talent and origin of a different magi family. As did her sister. But their magecraft took different paths as they were talented in different elements.

Had she remained of the Tohsaka, she would not be as she is now. [a pause] You would probably like her then.

Nope, nobody but Saber in this thread

[puppy_lancer]

Tohsaka...

[He could remember hearing that name thrown around somewhere.]

I like her just fine now.

[The Corruption would always make him uneasy, but Rin wasn't pure evil. She cared enough for her Lancer to grant him a grave, even if the rabid dog didn't deserve it.]

But she could do without the foreign magic, huh? Would she have been happier and cuter as a Tohsaka? If so, maybe I would like her more...

[scorchedchivalry]

She would indeed be like that.

[There may have been a hint of a smile there for a second. And then she hardened her eyes.]

So you have given up your vendetta against her? I need to stop you from killing her?

[puppy_lancer]

[He catches the smile right before it disappears. Seems she cares a bit for Rin then. Good. He didn't want to see them ever getting into a fight with each other.]

I think we've worked something out with each other.

[He's not going to attack her on sight now, at least.]

And what about you and that uncle of hers? He's not a bad guy either, and last I checked, he didn't have any connection to the Grail.

[scorchedchivalry]

[Oh the sudden hatred flaring in Saber's eyes.]

That Matou magus is the Master of Berseker from the Forth War, during which he did something to earn my wrath. He lives only because he is under Ruler's protection.

[puppy_lancer]

[He almost jumps back at that.]

He...really doesn't seem the type. You sure you have the right guy? Given all the parallel worlds going on and all.

[scorchedchivalry]

He claims ignorance, but he is the same master and he knows me.

[puppy_lancer]

Is there some point where he met you, but didn't do whatever it was that pissed you off? Because I know me and my Master have some differences with our memories?

[scorchedchivalry]

I do not care. Even if he has not done it yet, I still know he will. Desperate Masters do desperate things.

[puppy_lancer]

What if he doesn't have a reason to be desperate here?

[He knows he's become more relaxed in the Tower because there was no Grail, as have other Servants.]

[scorchedchivalry]

The one he harmed is here. I will not take the chance.

He has Ruler's protection. As long as he does, I will not kill him.

[puppy_lancer]

...I understand.

[He can't approve, since he thinks Kariya is a good person, but he can understand. He just wonders how she would tell Rin if it ever happened.]

They must mean a lot to you, that person.

[scorchedchivalry]

She does.

[puppy_lancer]

Well, here's hoping you can protect her into the New Year.

[scorchedchivalry]

[Saber's eyes move to the stone and she nods.]

Yes...

[puppy_lancer]

[He also looks toward the stone, but says nothing as he reads the letters. By the looks of it, the letters might spell out the word "Saber". He has to wonder if the Servant who left could have showed similar determination.]

[scorchedchivalry]

I will not fail her again.

[And Saber turns, the greatcloak swishing across the ground as she walks away, past Lancer toward the stairs.]