☆ shoot down the stars ☆

          ❝   Why am I not surprised ?  If it’s not one, it’s the other.   ❞   IF   that Rider of Black were here, it only made sense their Master would be, too, sooner or later. Creases are forming between blonde brows, steep and persistent. Seeing him is… Vexing. Mordred can’t quite sort out how she feels — how his mere presence could possibly irk her and intrigue her at the same time. She doesn’t seem to even register that he’s spoken until a few moments pass, arms folding against her middle as she shifts weight to her opposite foot. 

          ❝   ‘Which one’ ?  What the hell kinda question is that ?!   ❞   Was he really trying to pick a fight within seconds of crossing paths ?  If so… That was mildly respectable. But realization flickers across sea-green eyes almost immediately, and for the time being, the storm reflected in them relents.   ❝   Tch— you’re talkin’ about that Chaldea crap, arencha ?  Seems like every Servant I run into never shuts up about that place. … Whatever kinda ‘me’ you met there isn’t me. Let’s get that straight.   ❞

       ‘The other’...? Ah, did she mean Rider? It was entirely possible that they were here, and it wouldn’t have greatly surprised him. So many others were brought here as well; why wouldn’t the paladin have been among their ranks?

       That said... Her response was a bit troubling. 

“I see.” He responds plainly, a thoughtful expression crossing his face as he processes the Saber’s response. It would have seemed that this Mordred wasn’t the one from Chaldea. It was surprising, especially since she seemed to even know of Chaldea--enough to actively disassociate with the group. Had she encountered one of their number? 

       Factoring all of that in, as well as her initially conflicted response to him, and that could only mean the Individual brought here was...

“That would mean you’re the Saber of Red from the Great Holy Grail War, then?” He looked at her questioningly, as though he innocently expected to get a direct answer from her. “If so... Then, there’s quite a bit you’ve missed.”

“I suppose, to begin with, I’ve been summoned as a Servant as well. Class: Caster. It’s nice to meet you again, Saber.”

       The homunculus had expected the first irregularity of this place to be something more... perilous. A monster that was rampaging across the land and needed to be stopped; a coming calamity that threatened to destroy the island; some cataclysmic or troublesome event that would require all of Chaldea (and perhaps even the other inhabitants of the island) to band together and face the threat.

       Instead, he awoke one day, and found something much more mundane had happened. 

       Sieg hadn’t lived a very long life. Well, actually that might’ve not been entirely truthful--his flight and still-continuing to the Reverse Side lasted quite a long while. A more correct statement would have been that he hadn’t lived a very long ‘human’ life. As a result, there were a great many matters that Sieg didn’t properly understand.

       One of them was in front of him. A couple, though he knew not their names. Only that they were showing their affection in a rather public space. Some people seemed to be bothered by them, others seemed relatively unbothered. 

       Sieg himself... didn’t really have any reaction. Only curiosity, albeit not toward the individual couple. 

    “ Hey, I am wide awake! I spent all night watching a drama and am not the least bit tired. “

       Servant Class: Rider. True Name: Martha. A Saint, and fellow ally under Chaldea. By all means, they were equal peers under their Master, and had worked together (even if not always directly) to resolve whatever conflicts they were faced with.

       Even still. He felt like he ought to be standing at attention whenever she was around. To be truthful, Sieg wasn’t sure why exactly. Perhaps it was her disposition. Or, maybe it was her legend; Sieg’s existence had become entwined with the concept of a certain dragon, after all.  

“Hm...”

       Summer was approaching. Sieg had never really put much thought into the season prior, having never had much time to devote to it. (He did recall the incident involving the Servant Summer Festival, but that was a little different...) In any case, he was probably going to be expected to spend time at the beach, knowing their Master. He would need to find the appropriate clothing for the job.

“... Hm, this isn’t good.”

       But, where was he supposed to really begin? There were lots of different swimsuits on display, but... What was appropriate? He’d never really done this before. Should he just pick one at random? No, that wouldn’t do... 

      “ People ask how much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood but never ask how a woodchuck could come to being able to chuck wood. “

       The nature of Servants was an odd thing--particularly how their memories worked. From one Spirit Origin to another, the different incarnations of a single Heroic Spirit could manifest in wildly different ways and have wildly different memories. He’d seen that quite a bit, over the course of his time in Chaldea. 

       In knowing that, he was able to guess at the nature of the individual staring right at him.

       Servant Class: Saber. True Name: Mordred. A rowdy, loud type who spoke her mind freely. While he wasn’t certain he could call her a friend, she certainly seemed to notice something familiar in him. Frankenstein, as well--the two seemed to check in on him every now and then. Though he worried he was taking up their time in doing so, it made him feel happy.

       But. This one, her gaze wasn’t nearly so friendly. It reminded him of his first encounter with the Knight of Rebellion. Or rather, with the ‘Saber of Red’.

       The Fibonacci Ward made him uncomfortable in a way he couldn’t easily explain. The upper levels thrived, with all who lived in it living clearly comfortable and content lives. The lower levels, on the other hand, were filled with people who seemed to struggle to simply make it through the day. 

“By sacrificing two people, eight people can bask in happiness.”

       Reika Rikudou’s words still echoed in his mind. It was none of his concern, yet he found himself idly wandering the place in spirit form. It was because of that, that he ended up seeing the sight he did. Someone being assaulted, with a few others assisting in the act.

       ... It was probably irresponsible of him to involve himself. Selfish, even. Even still, he didn’t really feel like he ought to ignore the situation.

       The exchange didn’t last terribly long, nor was it very difficult. That was one benefit of being a Servant; though he wasn’t particularly exceptional, he still stood above most humans. Within a few blows, the group was rendered incapacitated. After calming down their unfortunate victim, he’d intended on escorting them back to their home, but...