Added to that was the sad reality that Rin only knew a grand total of one male Magus, that being Emiya-kun, and he certainly didn't tick all the boxes.
Well, except for the one about good character. Emiya-kun easily ticked that one.
Oh, and he was also rich, both in money and in resources, and he'd already shown he was more than willing to share it with her, so that was another box.
He was also exceedingly unlikely to protest against their hypothetical children following the Tohsaka-craft. He'd already indicated multiple times he had no interest in passing on his own legacy or Magecraft, and even if he did, he had Sakura and Ayako for that.
Similarly, he would never try to take the position of family-head from her. He was already more important in the Moonlit World and in the Magus Association than Rin would ever be, and considering how much he disliked that, Rin would say with certainty that he would never stab her in the back for power.
Or for any other reason for that matter. As she'd said before, he was a man of splendid character.
He was also very easy to get along with, to the point where he'd managed to capture even her heart, so that was the fifth box ticked as well.
And lastly, power. That was a tick if there ever was one. Emiya-kun was by far the most powerful Magus Rin had ever seen, and she had no doubt that their hypothetical children would be more powerful than she was too.
Well, it seemed she'd been wrong before. Emiya-kun did tick all boxes on her list, rather easily even.
Yes, he ticked all boxes…
All… boxes…
…
…!?
…Oh Root.
…Oh hell!
Oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell oh hell!
Rin promptly sat up in bed, flipped herself around, and smashed her face into her pillow, before she screamed as loudly and shrilly as she possibly could.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
The scream was barely muffled by the pillow, and if Sakura and Ayako had been inside her house, they would have undoubtedly come to check on her, spooked by the racket she was producing, reminiscent of a young woman finding a serial killer in her bathroom.
Those two weren't here though, and Rin was indescribably grateful for that, as she continued screaming in frustration and embarrassment, letting it all come out as she pounded her fists into the mattress over and over again.
How had she not seen this before?! Why hadn't she realised sooner he ticked all her boxes?! Has she been blind?! Had she deliberately ignored it?! Had she seen a man whom she was attracted to and just automatically assumed he couldn't live up to her professional wishes?!
Rin screamed, and she continued screaming until her throat started to ache. Only then did she stop, before sitting up again, lifting her face away from her pillow, panting hard as black spots danced in front of her eyes from the lack of breath.
Despite the lack of oxygen though, her mind was racing at full tilt.
Emiya-kun ticked all boxes on her list. Not only that, but he'd also managed to completely capture her heart, with his kindness, his willingness to let her do as she wanted, his generosity, basically his everything.
He was, by all means, the best husband imaginable, at least to her.
"…"
Well, fine then.
If that was how things were, then she would accept it.
Rin took a deep breath, calming herself down again. She liked to think she was a practical woman, so it was high time she stopped wasting time on denying the obvious, on twisting herself in circles to escape the inevitable.
She liked Emiya-kun, that was beyond doubt. He was a good match, according to both her heart and her brain, Sakura and Ayako also seemed fine with her joining the relationship, and she was fairly confident that she could persuade Emiya-kun to accept her as well without too much effort.
Alright, then it was hereby decided. Emiya-kun would be her husband. He was the one she was going to marry, and the one whose children she would bear.
Her decision made, Rin lied down on her bed again, her mind once more abuzz with thoughts, this time about the near future of her romantic life, though she strangely felt much calmer than before her realisation.
It seemed the matter of her marriage had been pressing harder on her than she'd thought, and having made a decision now had greatly eased her heart.
It wasn't what she had envisioned for herself, joining a harem, and it would probably take some getting used to, but Rin was sure she'd be able to fit right in eventually. In fact, with some effort, she may be able to change it into herharem.
It was a thought that appealed to her very much indeed.
Doing such a thing would require a serious change in attitude though. So far, she'd allowed herself to be knocked off-balance far too easily, by Emiya-kun, by Sakura, and by Ayako, and that would not be advantageous for her new goal.
Enough with the blushing and enough with the stuttering. From here on, she was going to recapture her image of a cool, controlled beauty, and through this image, she would establish her dominance over the other three.
No matter what it took, she was going to make sure it was Emiya-kun who would blush this time.
It was official, Shirou absolutely hated planes.
He had hoped that he might have gotten used to it, since it was his second flight at all, but no, it was even worse than the first time. Being cooped up in a metal tube in the sky still made his skin crawl and made him sick to the stomach, as his entire being insisted he immediately leave the plane to fly by himself, where he had perfect control over where he would be going and how fast he would be going.
It literally felt as if his insides were trying to escape his body, and since that wasn't actually possible, it resulted in a constant sensation as if he was about to throw up, even though he hadn't eaten anything.
In short, it was a nightmare. It was so bad that he would have to give some serious consideration in the future to never flying in a plane again. Better to just fly himself, even if it was from Japan to London.
It would be exhausting to fly that far by himself, not to mention difficult and quite a gamble, but at this point, everything was better than ever stepping onto a plane again.
What he said before, about this flight being worse than the one to Heathrow several weeks ago, was entirely true. At least during that flight, he'd had a distraction from the bad feelings and negative emotions in the form of a kind doctor, Donald Mallard, who had spent the entire trip talking to Shirou about an immense variety of subjects.
It seemed Shirou's Asgardian side considered some discomfort from sitting in a flying metal box worth it in order to listen to a wise elder with a great deal of knowledge, and thus, it hadn't protested very hard, stoically bearing the discomfort for a day.
Now however, on the flight back to Japan, Shirou didn't have a wise elder sitting next to him, who could regale him with countless tales and stories containing an immense amount of knowledge and wisdom.
The person who was seated beside him this time around wasn't old, didn't look very smart or wise, and, perhaps most importantly, did not seem at all like someone who made pleasant conversation unprompted. In fact, if Shirou was totally honest, he had to say that his current neighbour did not look like a pleasant person at all.
It was an unkept, slovenly man, with dirty clothes and a sickly pallor, whose bodily odour was astounding in its intensity and repulsiveness. It was a miracle he'd been let on board with that smell hanging over him, rather than being told to go home and take a shower first.
The man wasn't poor though. His clothes, though filthy, were of good quality, his wallet was well-filled, and his considerable gut showed he lacked no nourishment. It wasn't a lack of ability to clean himself that caused him to be so filthy, but a complete disregard for personal hygiene and the comfort of the people in his vicinity.
So instead of making the flight better, like Doctor Mallard had, this man only made it worse.
He was far from the only problem-factor in the plane though. He was the most noticeable, as he was seated right next to Shirou, but there were many others who also showed an astounding disregard for their fellow travellers.
The seats in front of Shirou for instance were occupied by an amorous couple, two women, who thought the plane was the perfect place for them to make out and grope each other, covered only by a thin blanket which hid them from view but didn't block out the sounds at all.
The seat behind him on the other hand held a child of perhaps nine years of age, who seemed to consider the back of Shirou's chair particularly offensive to him, as he hadn't stopped kicking it since the journey began.
And then there was the noise. Dispersed throughout the plane were three screaming toddlers, two arguing couples, one of which seemed to be making divorce plans on the spot, a gaggle of friends who loudly discussed the private matters of a friend who wasn't present, a snoring woman, and a man who ate so loudly and messily it was a miracle his food wasn't falling out of his mouth.
Shirou couldn't even blame the dozen people who were blasting music as loud as their phones could manage. Anything was better than snoring, sex-noises, screaming toddlers, and gossiping teenagers after all.
Unfortunately for the redhead however, the music did nothing for him except add to the ruckus. His greatly enhanced hearing ensured he picked up on all the sounds in the plane despite the loud singing voices and bombastic music, and he had to fight the urge to press his hands over his ears in desperation.
It was so bad he seriously contemplated creating a massive storm around the plane, which would hopefully scare most of the people around him into silence. In the end though, he didn't do it. It would only make the journey take longer, and it wouldn't do anything about either the odious man next to him or the child behind him anyway.
So, left without any other option, Shirou tried to meditate, to sink into a peaceful trance. Neko, the daughter of the owner of the place where Shirou worked, swore by it, and although Shirou had never really listened to her rants about inner peace before, he now decided to try his hand at meditating a bit.
It was advertised as a way to let go of earthly discomforts, and right now, that sounded incredibly appealing to Shirou. He had no idea if it would work, but it was worth a try at least, if only to have something else to focus on than his suffering.
A master of meditation would have been able to turn his mind off in an instant, to clear away all distractions and useless thoughts, leaving only focus and discipline.
Amateurs though were better off trying to think of something that would completely occupy their minds, if Neko was to be believed. Instead of letting your thoughts run in all directions, you had to channel and focus them into one stream. If you could manage that, you could bring yourself into a trance-like state.
And Shirou knew precisely what to think about.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then imagined he was sitting on a couch with Sakura and Ayako on either side of him. They were seated in his living room, back home in Fuyuki. It was evening, they had just finished a long day of work, and they were now relaxing a bit before they'd go to bed. Of course, Shirou had his arms around his girls, hugging them into his sides. Their bodies were incomprehensibly soft to the touch, they both smelled wonderful, and their hair felt like the finest of silk whenever they pressed their heads against him.
Within seconds, his frustration with the plane and its occupants ebbed away, leaving only a content feeling and a deep warmth.
For several minutes, Shirou enjoyed the sensation, and then, prompted by teenage hormones, his mind automatically altered the image to something much more... stimulating.
Where before they'd worn their pyjamas, Sakura and Ayako were now very scantily clad, and they pressed their almost nude bodies against him as they gave him sultry smiles. Faced with a sight like that, and imagining the softness of their bodies, made even his Asgardian side cease its complaining about the plane in an instant.
That his imagination also included Rin, just as scantily clad as the other two, sitting on his lap, facing him with a smile every bit as sultry as Sakura's and Ayako's, was something no one else ever needed to know about, as that was the providence of private fantasies.
Of course, he'd never actually had Rin sit on his lap before, let alone when she was dressed in nothing but lingerie, so he didn't know how that would feel. However, Sakura had sat on his lap several times, often clad in nothing but underwear, allowing him to feel her butt and thighs, and he imagined Rin's butt and thighs would feel much the same. Soft and pliable when she relaxed, but taut and strong when she tensed.
The fantasy was running away from him, developing beyond his control, but rather than putting an end to it, Shirou relaxed even more, deciding to let his mind take him wherever it wanted to go.
Sakura and Ayako both leaned in to kiss his bare shoulders –apparently he was topless as well– making sure to press their breasts into his arms as they did so. It felt, of course, wonderful, and Shirou noticed once more that Sakura was significantly more endowed than Ayako, though Ayako's pair was amazing nonetheless.
In the meantime, Rin leaned in towards him and playfully kissed first his left cheek and then his right cheek, before moving on to his forehead and then his nose. She gave him a sultry smirk again, and then teasingly kissed the corners of his mouth, before moving back to his cheeks.
She showered his whole face in kisses, though she carefully avoided kissing him directly on the lips, trying to drive him mad.
She was succeeding. Feeling her soft lips on his face time and again, while also feeling Ayako's and Sakura's ministrations to his shoulders, made him itch for more.
So when Sakura kissed his neck, quickly copied by Ayako, Shirou instantly lost all patience, and his hands shot upwards and grabbed the sides of Rin's head, effectively locking it in place, before he kissed her directly on the lips.
He could feel her smile in satisfaction, before she reciprocated, eagerly pressing back against his lips.
They continued for a while, before she pulled back, her cheeks red and her eyes dazed, and smirked at him yet again.
Then she reached behind her back for the clasp of her bra.
Shirou involuntarily froze at the action, and he could feel Sakura and Ayako do the same. If Rin was really going to do what he thought she'd do…
He had seen bare breasts before of course. While Sakura, Ayako, and he had agreed that they would wait with actual sex until they were at least sixteen, the girls had never been particularly shy about being topless while in his sight. He'd gotten several eyefuls from them already, as they proudly presented their bosoms to him.
The current situation was different however. With the sensuality that had already been created, the prospect of seeing Rin's breasts was extremely tantalising, and Shirou found he couldn't turn away even if he'd wanted to.
Rin slowly undid the clasp, and before the eyes of Shirou and the girls, lowered her bra until-
"ACHOO!"
The overly loud, overly wet sneeze of the odious man sitting next to him brutally shocked Shirou out of his daydream. In an instant, the mood was ruined, and the images of the girls disappeared into nothingness.
Cruelly torn away from his fantasies, Shirou had to tightly clench the armrests of his chair to prevent himself from physically throwing his neighbour to the other side of the plane, struggling to keep his calm.
That became significantly harder though when the child behind him gave a particularly nasty kick to the back of Shirou's chair, and again even harder when the couple in front of him began panting loudly as they almost broke their chairs from the force of their tryst.
It was with titanic effort that Shirou prevented himself from engaging in a spot of people-throwing right this instant, but with his mood having worsened so much, there was no chance of him slipping back into his daydreams.
He tried. He tried so very hard to recapture the amazing sight he'd just lost, but he failed every time. He was too agitated, and unable to calm down again.
With the option of closing himself off from the outside world gone, the temptation to use mass-Hypnosis on all the troublemakers rose significantly, but there was no way Shirou could justify such a blatant abuse of power to his conscience. Taking over people's minds was something only to be done when it would save other people in some way, not to spare himself discomfort.
As such, there was nothing he could do but wait until the troublemakers had exhausted themselves. They always did, sooner or later, though Shirou furiously hoped it would be sooner rather than later this time around.
In the end however, it took six long, long, long hours for the racket to die down. The chair-kicking child finally seemed to tire of kicking and instead pulled his legs up on his own chair to take a nap. The crying toddlers had settled down some time ago, exhausted from making all that noise, and both of the arguing couples had made up, with the pair that had been talking about divorce tearfully kissing each other to celebrate their reconciliation.
The music that had been blaring all across the passenger area had been turned off, and the man who had been eating so messily had run out of food. Someone had probably given the snoring woman a prod too, for she made no more noise now. The couple in front of Shirou had tired themselves out as well, and had fallen asleep.
In other words, the only thing left to annoy him was the stench of the man next to him and the general discomfort of flying, but compared to the nightmare from before, that was almost bearable.
Shirou then took his puzzle book from his bag. With the ruckus gone, he could try his hand at solving a few of them. It might even provide him the distraction he craved so he could forget about the fact he was sitting in a plane.
He wasn't even halfway into the first puzzle however when he felt an annoyed glare being aimed at him from beside. It was like two pins pricking into the left side of his face, and Shirou did not have to turn his head to know it was the odious man who was glaring at him with barely hidden frustration.
Shirou had noticed that the man had been frustrated for a while now, but he'd chalked it up to the screaming toddlers or the arguing couples. That it was him who was apparently annoying the man was a surprise, and frankly, also irritated Shirou in turn. He wasn't the one smelling like a public toilet after all. In fact, he was pretty sure he'd been a model-neighbour so far.
He wasn't making any noise, he wasn't taking more space than he should, he wasn't shaking the chair, he didn't stink or eat any stinking food. Basically, he was doing nothing wrong.
Yet that didn't stop his neighbour from glaring at him anyway.
"Is there something wrong?" Shirou ultimately asked after close to ten minutes, during which the man had kept glaring the entire time.
His question took the man by surprise, as he gaped in shock for a moment, before the angry expression quickly disappeared and a fake smile took its place.
It was a rather smarmy thing, that smile.
"No, no, nothing's wrong." The man said in a conciliatory tone, and Shirou went from mildly annoyed to outright suspicious at the blatant lie. "I was merely curious. You are not going to sleep?"
"I don't sleep in planes." Shirou replied firmly, trying to make it clear that was not up for debate. He hadn't been planning on doing so earlier, and he especially wasn't going to do it now.
"A-Ah, I understand of course." The man shrunk on himself as if Shirou had shouted him down, and the redhead felt a bit of guilt for his hard tone for the shortest of moments, before that guilt made place for further annoyance when the man continued. "But wouldn't staying awake for the entire flight be boring for you? I mean, there's only so many puzzles you can do."
"You are awake too." Shirou pointed out, making his tone even harder, really hoping the man would take the hint already. Not to be mean, but the man's breath smelled even worse than his body, so Shirou wanted him to stop talking as soon as possible.
"I-I will go to sleep soon." Now the man became outright evasive, and Shirou's suspicion grew strongly. "I-I just need to finish some… work."
Shirou wouldn't have believed a word of it even if he hadn't been able to sense the lie. The man hadn't done any work whatsoever since he'd gotten onto the plane, preferring to play on his game-thingie, and now even that game-thingie was lying unused in the man's bag.
So the redhead took a long look at the man, trying to perceive his motives, and he received his answer when the man's eyes flitted for the shortest of moments towards the chairs in front of them.
The chairs where the amorous lesbian couple was lying, asleep and half-naked under the blanket they used to cover themselves.
It seemed the man was not only a slob, but also a garden-variety pervert.
Shirou wasted no more words on him. With a quick application of Hypnosis, he shut off the man's conscious mind, immediately rendering him unconscious.
Using Hypnosis to spare himself discomfort was an abuse of power, yes, but using it to prevent a creep from peeping on a naked couple was entirely justified.
It might, just might, also be wonderfully cathartic, but that was hardly relevant.
Unfortunately though, being unconscious didn't stop the man from smelling like a public toilet, and Shirou resigned himself to the smell for at least twelve more hours, knowing there was nothing he could do.
Except…
After looking around to verify everyone around them was either asleep or engrossed in whatever they were doing, Shirou quickly threw a bit of the Cleansing Power at the man, and he breathed a sigh in relief when the smell was promptly eliminated.
Magecraft was such a convenient tool sometimes.
With silence restored and his nose no longer bothered, Shirou shifted around a bit to find the most comfortable position possible, and then got back to his puzzle book.
Only around twelve more hours to go, and then he'd be back home.
Mental note, he should either become much more proficient at flying, or get the Bifrost to teleport him to places other than his Vault.
He was never entering another plane again in his life.
"Can you see him yet?" Fujimura-Sensei asked eagerly, and Sakura had to suppress a fond sigh of exasperation as the woman began standing on her toes to try and look over the crowd that surrounded them.
Not just because looking over the crowd was a lost effort –this crowd consisted mainly of Europeans, and no matter how much effort Fujimura-Sensei put in, she would never be able to look over their tall forms– but also because the one who she was looking for could simply not be present yet.
"Why is he taking so long?" Fujimura-Sensei continued, now outright jumping in an effort to get above the happy family standing in front of her.
"His plane only landed five minutes ago, Sensei." Ayako replied, placing her hands on the exuberant woman's shoulders to keep her still. "There's no way he could have gotten out of the plane and all the way here yet. We'll simply have to be patient."
"Any idea how long Emiya-kun will take to get here?" Rin asked, a bit absentmindedly, as she was still looking with wide eyes at the billboard displaying the departure- and arrival times of the planes. "And would he have to go through security again? He had to when he left, right?"
"I think you only have to go through security when you board the plane, except if you behave criminally or really suspiciously during the flight." Ayako explained, still holding on to the English-teacher to prevent her from running off. "But I'm not an expert on those things, so I could be wrong."
"If you already went through security to board the plane, it seems superfluous to do it again when you depart from it." Issei said, adjusting his glasses calmly. "There shouldn't be any opportunities to obtain illegal wares while flying through the sky at a height of at least ten kilometres. Then again, international flights do have to display passports when arriving and departing."
"That makes sense." Rin nodded cordially. "Thank you, Ryuudou-kun."
"No problem, vix-, that is, Tohsaka-san." Issei replied, also making an effort to remain perfectly cordial and pleasant. They weren't at the airport to squabble after all, and neither wanted to inconvenience the people around them with an argument.
They all fell silent again, focusing on the terminal from which would emerge the passengers of the plane from Heathrow. Not that they could see much, with all the people in the way, but with some luck, the crowd would thin soon.
Sakura tightly clasped her hands together under her chin, barely blinking as she stared forward, and with every second that ticked by, she became more impatient.
On the outside, she might seem calm and collected while waiting for her man, the epitome of a controlled woman who had a firm grip on her feelings, but on the inside, she could barely wait for him to arrive. She wanted to jump into his arms, kiss him silly, hug him to near-death, to have him squeeze her butt, and generally do everything they hadn't been able to do for the past two months.
Ayako fully understood, feeling exactly the same way, and Sakura liked to think Rin was beginning to feel like that too. Fujimura-Sensei was of course eager to see her little brother again, and Issei had missed his best friend very much over the past two months.
In other words, they were all keen to see him, and Sakura didn't doubt he was just as keen to see them again. His regular phone calls had made that crystal clear.
So when Shirou appeared in the main hall a few minutes later, emerging from the terminal, the five of them wasted not a second in making their way towards him. At the same time, Shirou made his way to them, having spotted them as well, a massive grin on his face that made Sakura's heart flutter.
Closer and closer they came, until only a few metres separated Sakura from her Senpai, and she could almost hear romantic music playing in the background as she held her arms out for a hug and-
"Shirou!"
Was promptly pushed aside by Fujimura-Sensei, who overtook her in an instant and jumped at Shirou with the ferocity of a large cat.
Shirou managed to safely catch her, but it forced him to a halt, and with his arms full of over-excited big sister, he couldn't hug anyone else, forcing his girlfriends to stand back and wait.
"Shirouuuuuu!" The brunette teacher shouted at the top of her lungs, actually drawing some looks from the crowd. "Waaaaaaah! You were gone for so looooooooong! Don't ever leave me agaiiiiiiin!"
"Fuji-nee." With a patience that frankly bordered on saintly, Shirou smiled kindly at her, shifting her weight to one arm so he could pat her head with the other. "I'm back."
"Waaaaaaaaah!" Fujimura-Sensei cried again, though this time out of happiness.
"Oh dear." Shirou sighed, before setting her down on the ground. "What am I going to do with you?"
Then, in a brave attempt to recapture the romantic atmosphere, he turned towards Ayako and Sakura, before holding out his arms again for a big hug.
"Sakura! Ayako!" He phased through the crowd like he was a ghost, and before Sakura could blink twice, he'd swept her and their brunette girlfriend up in a tight hug, embracing them with such strength that the air was almost crushed out of her.
Almost, but not quite.
"Shirou!" Ayako cried happily, though as she was being hugged strongly right now, it was more of a happy wheeze, but the brunette didn't let that stop her from pressing her cheek against his. "I'm so happy you are back!"
"I am happy too." Shirou laughed, and the hug got even tighter. "I missed you so much."
Not able to speak anymore from the lack of air, Sakura settled for smiling happily, and nodded to show she had missed him very much as well.
Just when the lack of air began to get problematic, he let them down again, only to first pull Ayako and then Sakura into searing kisses, the kind that made a girl's head spin and made butterflies take flight in her stomach.
Sakura liked it. She liked it very much. He still tasted like iron and smoke, and his kiss held a power and ferocity to it that Ayako, as much as Sakura loved kissing her too, just couldn't match.
"I love you." He whispered, to both of them, and Sakura felt a very pleasant heat rise in her cheeks.
"I love you too, Senpai." She muttered in return.
"I love with all my heart and then some." Ayako sounded vaguely boastful of how much she loved him, and Shirou repaid her by pressing a kiss to her forehead.
"There he goes again." Sakura vaguely heard Rin grumble behind her, followed by an understanding hum from Issei. She didn't pay much attention to it though, as Senpai had drawn her and Ayako into a hug again, though this one was much gentler, much more loving.
"Rin, Issei!" The fact that he was hugging them did not stop the redhead from addressing the last two of their little group though. "It's great to see you again."
"Indeed, Emiya-kun." Issei agreed with his typical bombastic tone, and even though Sakura's face was currently pressed into Shirou's chest, she could easily picture him adjusting his glasses again. "I too am happy that you have returned. Fuyuki wasn't the same without you."
"I hope you had a safe journey, Emiya-kun." Rin said in as pleasant a tone as she could manage, though no one missed the slight shaking in her voice that indicated she actually wanted to do some shouting herself. "How long are you going to continue hugging them?"
"Just give me a few more moments." He replied, and it indeed remained quiet for a few moments, before he let them go again. Sakura felt a bit disappointed, or rather very disappointed, but Rin was right, they shouldn't spend all their time hugging. They had more to do today.
"Say, Shirou." Ayako said after taking a small step back, looking him over with a critical eye. "Did you become taller?"
"It had occurred to me as well." Issei agreed, coming to stand right in front of Shirou. "Not by very much, but you have definitely added a centimetre or two to your height."
"Have I?" Shirou blinked, apparently not having noticed any difference himself.
"Also, your cheek is a bit prickly." Ayako remarked, rubbing her own cheek with a hand.
"A beard!?" That was Fujimura-Sensei again, who immediately brought her face very close to Shirou's to study his chin. "Shirou, are you growing a beard?!"
"I'd rather not." Shirou said immediately, rubbing his own cheek with a frown, before pulling his hand back with a huff. "But I see what you mean, Ayako, I feel the stubble too. I'll have to shave before it becomes too noticeable."
"Shave?" Sakura muttered, as an idea suddenly popped up in her head, one she'd have to discuss with Ayako as soon as possible. "I suppose so."
"Might it be an idea to continue the discussion elsewhere?" Issei then proposed, noticing they were not only standing in the way, but also distracting other people in their vicinity from their own heartfelt goodbyes and greetings. "Say, at one of our houses?"
"We can do it at my house." Ayako proposed after a moment. "I need to pick some stuff up from there anyway, and my parents will be happy to see you too, Shirou."
"Excellent idea!" Fujimura-Sensei immediately agreed, and she promptly began pulling Shirou along. "Come on, gramps arranged a car and a driver for us."
"Did he? That is nice of him." Shirou smiled. "I'll have to greet him as well. Maybe we can stop by your house on the way so I can visit him, Fuji-nee?"
"Visiting gramps can come later." Fujimura-Sensei said sternly. "For now, we go to Ayako's place first."
"As you say, Fuji-nee." Shirou nodded, letting himself be pulled along.
Sakura quickly followed, unable to even slightly suppress her huge smile, as wave after wave of delight poured forth from her heart and made her feel like she was walking on air.
Her Senpai truly was home at last.
Once the small group reached the Mitsuzuri-estate, Ayako made sure to enter the house before Shirou did, followed quickly behind by Sakura, Rin, and Issei, while Fujimura-Sensei did her best to keep the redhead distracted.
Inside the house, it was dark, as the lights were off and the curtains closed. Ayako didn't doubt though that Shirou could see perfectly well in the dark, so she closed the door as much as she could without seeming suspicious.
Then, she and the others took up their positions.
"Say, Fuji-nee, is something going on here?" She then heard Shirou's voice coming from just outside, indicating that he was standing in front of the door.
"Hm? Well, perhaps you should go inside and find out?" Fujimura-Sensei proposed.
Following her advice, Shirou pushed open the door, and-
""SURPRISE!""
Ayako hit the light switch while Rin pulled open the curtains, bathing the house in light and revealing what had been hidden inside the home of the Mitsuzuri-family.
Multi-coloured garlands and other decorations were hanging from the ceiling, beverages and snacks were standing on every flat surface available, ribbons in all colours of the rainbow had been draped over doors, walls, tables, and chairs, and many tasteful decorations had been placed at strategic locations.
At the front of the living room, numerous people had assembled to surprise Shirou, including but not limited to Issei, Rin, Ayako and her family, old man Raiga and a few of his most trusted underlings, Neko and her father, and of course Sakura, all having beaming smiles on their faces.
The adults had wine glasses raised in a toast to his return, while the children had popped confetti cannons, sending the multi-coloured flecks in all directions, though mainly at Shirou, who became covered in them.
At the centre of it all though, was a massive banner, coloured red and gold, proudly displaying the words 'Welcome Home, Shirou!'
It was a welcoming party, a surprise welcoming party.
"Wow!" Shirou's eyes flew open wide, staring at them all with unhidden shock, and Ayako mentally fist-pumped at having been able to surprise him despite his inhuman senses. "W-What is this?"
"What do you think it is, boy?" Old man Raiga laughed, stepping forward to pat him on the back. "This is a party of course, to welcome you back."
"Welcome me back?" Shirou still looked astounded, his eyes roaming over the entire house, taking in everything there was to see. "B-But who organised it?"
"That should be obvious. Your girls of course."
Shirou's gaze snapped towards Ayako and Sakura, and the brunette nodded, giving him her most loving and audacious grin.
She was repaid by one of the happiest smiles she had ever seen on Shirou's face, and she knew that if they'd been alone, he would have swept them off their feet to kiss them silly.
Alas, they weren't alone, so being kissed silly by their boyfriend was something to look forward to tonight, when they were back at the Emiya-estate. For the duration of the party, verbal expressions of gratitude would have to do.
Before he came to talk to them though, Shirou first made the rounds through the party, to thank everyone attending for their presence, from Ayako's family to old man Raiga and his stooges. While he was doing that, Ayako and Sakura decided to stand near the kitchen, where they were quickly joined by Rin.
In the end, they didn't have to wait long for Shirou to join them as well.
"You did all this for me?!" Was the first thing he asked once he was within hearing distance.
"Of course." Sakura nodded happily. "We weren't the only ones who missed you after all, so we thought we'd bring everyone together to welcome you back."
"That is- This is awesome." Shirou laughed, his cheeks flushed from happiness and the brightest of grins on his face. "You are awesome."
"Yes, we know." Ayako nodded proudly. "Did you only figure that out just now, you silly man?"
"We actually wanted to do it at your house, but the Bounded Fields would have told you there were many people inside, which would have spoiled the surprise." Sakura confessed quietly, rubbing the back of the head. "So we had to do it here."
"Fortunately, no one asked too many questions about why it had to be here." Ayako continued, looking around at the people present. "I think they all have their own theories about it, one even more sad than the other, but I don't think Magic is at the top of anyone's list, except maybe Fujimura-Sensei's."
"Let them think what they want." Rin spoke up for the first time, before turning her nose up at Shirou. "Well then, here's a party. I hope you enjoy it."
"I am enjoying it very much." Shirou gave her a bright, sincere grin, which visibly impacted her, as she hastily looked away.
"Nee-san helped us a lot with preparing it." Sakura revealed, pouring even more oil onto the fire that was Rin's embarrassment. "She missed you a lot as well."
"For other reasons than these two!" Rin was prompt to say, snapping her gaze back at Shirou, forgetting that she was trying to hide a blush. "Very different reasons."
"Most of the people at the party have other reasons to be here than Sakura and Ayako, so it isn't strange if you have one too." Shirou said kindly, resisting the urge to tease her himself. "Though I would like to think we are friends."
"…Maybe, sort of." Rin muttered after a moment, looking away from him again.
"What other motives do the people here have?" Sakura decided to take pity on her sister and changed the subject.
"Neko and her father want me to get back to work as soon as I can." Shirou's eyes sparkled in mirth, and Ayako herself couldn't suppress an amused huff either. "Apparently, the café has been having some troubled times without me."
"Indeed." Sakura nodded seriously. "I have been working as hard as I could there over the summer, but it isn't the same without you."
"Minori-kun is here because Sakura is." Shirou went on, and the plum-haired girl frowned a bit, before sighing.
"I was afraid he'd say that." She muttered.
"Old man Raiga wants to know when I'll be available for car-repairs, and he wants me to reign Fuji-nee in again."
"We just couldn't manage her." Ayako confessed, rubbing the back of her head as well. "She's like a force of nature. I don't know how you keep her under control."
"Experience." Shirou responded in a tone that was so ambiguous Ayako couldn't tell if he was sheepish, happy, or depressed.
"It sounds like there are indeed as many motives as people here. Still, they all came when we asked, and that is what counts in the end." Sakura said, before placing a hand on Shirou's shoulder. "On that note, you shouldn't spend all your time here with us, Senpai. These people came for you, so you should pay some attention to them as well."
"Yes, of course." Shirou nodded, looking back at the party. "I'm being quite rude, am I not?"
"A little." Sakura nodded.
"Then I better change my ways. I'll speak to you later, girls."
"We have a dinner planned just for us tonight!" Ayako called after him, just before he left. "So don't eat too much here!"
"I won't." Shirou called back, and then he mingled with the other partygoers.
As for the three girls, they decided to party as well, celebrating the return of their boyfriend.
"You are no doubt wondering why I have called you here." Waver said, folding his hands together as he leaned back into his chair, looking at Reines and Melvin, who were seated in front of his desk. Grey was there too, but she was standing in a dark corner, trying to remain as unobtrusive as possible.
"Is it because Reines and I have been having secret meetings together?" Melvin suggested innocently, throwing one leg over the other, looking entirely relaxed and much healthier than ever before. "Because we weren't discussing anything nebulous or shady, I assure you."
"I was merely making sure Melvin wouldn't use your debt to him to blackmail or influence you now that you have become such an important figure." Reines told him, throwing a glare at the white-haired man. "I happen to know that there were some people who were quite eager for mister Weins here to use his leverage over you on their behalf."
"I would never do that, Waver, I swear it." Melvin immediately vowed, holding up a hand. "I already promised you that you could pay that debt back whenever you want. I'm not going back on my word."
"That's not what you told me." Reines' glare became more intense at the frail man's words. "You said you weren't sure, and that you would have to spend some serious thought about what you would do with Waver's debt."
"Because it was delightful to see you squirm." Melvin admitted frankly, grinning without an ounce of shame. "I had never seen you do that before, so I couldn't resist."
"Don't strangle him, Reines." Waver said sharply when his little sister clenched her fists. "Those secret meetings of yours were one thing I wanted to talk about, but there's another."
"Oh, what would that be?" Melvin asked curiously, while Reines suppressed her anger with what was clearly considerable effort.
"Something rather momentous, at least for me." Waver replied, before waving to Grey, who quickly poured two cups of tea and brought them to the guests. "Have a drink first."
"Oh my, this must be something indeed." Melvin seemed very interested now, accepting the cup of tea, just like Reines. "Did you manage to gather enough to pay your debts or something, Waver?"
Waver only just suppressed a smile when Melvin handed him the perfect opening, and when both he and Reines took a sip of their tea at the same time, he sprung the surprise.
"Yes, I have enough money to pay off all my debts."
Their reactions didn't disappoint.
Melvin spat out his tea, almost doubling over in shock, and Waver glad he'd had the foresight to put a fluid-repelling Bounded Fields over his desk, bouncing the tea right back at Melvin, who spluttered even more when it hit him in the face.
Reines on the other hand didn't do anything as boorish as spitting out her tea. No, she swallowed it, though through the wrong pipe, and spent the next ten seconds choking as she clawed at her throat. It might have been more if Grey hadn't given her a strong pat on the back, dislodging the fluid again.
""YOU WHAT?!""
They gave voice to their shock at exactly the same time, their eyes so wide it seemed as if Waver could pluck them right out of their sockets, flying from their chairs to throw themselves across his desk.
"I have enough money to pay off all my debts." Waver replied, before looking at the clock. "Right about now, the correct sums will have been paid to the bank, to mother, to you, Melvin, and to the Archibald, Reines."
"B-But, how?" Melvin asked, utterly confused by the sudden turn of events. "How did you suddenly get the money together?"
"A fortunate business deal." Waver replied with a great amount of satisfaction. "I didn't expect to get much out of it, but it worked out extremely well in the end. My partner was willing to part with more than I had expected."
"…That sounds really suspicious. Does that mean your partner is now at the bottom of the Thames?" Reines asked slowly, giving him a wary look.
"No." Waver replied, giving her a deadpan look in return. "What kind of opinion do you have of me? I did not kill them. Frankly, I couldn't have even if I tried."
"Was it Shirou?" Melvin guessed, showing some surprising insight.
"Yes." Waver nodded, not surprised his friend had connected the dots. He had always been smarter than most gave him credit for.
"Did you earn the money with the items that you sold?" Melvin continued.
"Correct again."
"I see." Melvin crossed his arms with a thoughtful look, apparently thinking it over, before he shrugged, putting the smile back on his face, and Waver was only half-surprised that it was a sincere one. "That's great, Waver! Not being in debt is an excellent thing."
"And there you go being strangely kind again." Waver huffed, though without any heat. He'd already seen Melvin spit out his tea in shock, so even if the white-haired man was going to be composed about it from now on, Waver had gotten his satisfaction.
"Uhm, Waver?" Reines also seemed to have processed it by now, and she gave him a vaguely concerned look. "You paid off all your debts?"
"I did." Waver nodded. "And I have plenty of funds left over."
"Oh." Reines did not look nearly as happy at the news as Melvin, in fact, she looked rather concerned.
Waver knew why of course. Back when she'd 'recruited' him as the lord of the Archibald, she'd asked four things of him. One, to pay off all their debts. Two, to regain the Department of Mineralogy. Three, to restore their Crest somehow. Four, to lead the family until Reines came of age.
The Department of Mineralogy had been regained, the debts had all been paid, and Reines was getting very close to being of age –it could even be argued she already was– so the only thing binding him to the Archibald was the fact he'd not yet restored their Crest. Should he manage to restore or replace it, then he had fulfilled all his promises to the family, and he would be a free man again.
Undoubtedly, she feared he'd immediately walk out on them, that he'd break with the Archibald and cast them down into the bottom rungs once more, from where he'd picked them up eight years before.
Unfortunately for him though, things weren't that easy anymore.
"I will of course remain the lord of the Archibald." He informed her curtly, and she perked up, her eyes shining in hope. "The Department of Modern Magical Theories is now fully connected to the family, meaning I cannot leave if I want to keep it. Also, Mineralogy is somehow mine alone though it should be yours, not to mention that the Archibald-Crest has not been restored yet, and that I owe it to Kayneth to guide his family in his stead. No need to worry, Reines, I'm not going anywhere."
At times, Waver wished he could have been a little less dutiful, that he could cast off his responsibilities without feeling guilty and ashamed, but both his inner conscience and the memory of his king drove him forth.
"Waver, you're the best!"
That did not mean though he had to accept a hug from Reines, and he promptly did his best to hold her off, while Melvin laughed in the background.
It seemed the white-haired man had gotten the last laugh after all.
Caren Ortensia was of course a loyal servant of God, that was beyond any doubt. She was devout, dedicated, ever faithful, and always strived to live her life in His name.
In His service, she had braved countless dangers without batting an eye, she had worked together with the scariest monsters imaginable, she had boldly gone where no faithful had ever gone before on several occasions, and she had done so with nothing but prayer on her lips.
No danger was too great, no sacrifice too much. That was how she strived to be.
However, on this occasion, Caren feared the Lord might be asking a bit too much of her.
"You want to infiltrate the Clocktower… looking like that?" She asked, struggling to keep her smile on her face even as a bead of sweat made its way down her temple. "And you want my help?"
"Yes." Jonah, a Church Executor whom she had met several times in the past, nodded without hesitation. "It is of utmost importance that you help us meet with Lord El-Melloi soon. Our mission depends on it."
Jonah and his team, whom Caren recognised as Kayla, Lily, Mira, and Sidonus, were standing before her at Heathrow Airport, having sent her a message earlier to meet them there.
Caren had already been surprised that a team of Executors would come to London, the seat of the Magus Association, without first asking for the Clocktower's permission, but now, she had moved past surprise and gone straight into baffled.
Because these Executors looked nothing like they were supposed to. Instead of suits or robes or other kinds of practical clothing, they were wearing what looked like holiday-clothes.
Kayla was wearing short trousers and a polo shirt, while Lily wore a yellow sundress, and Sidonus had on a Hawaiian shirt of all things, coupled with long trousers that seemed fit to climb mountains. Meanwhile, Mira was wearing a blue overall, and Jonah was wearing a set of trousers and a shirt that were obviously meant for women.
It was as if they'd tried to look into holiday-clothes for a bit, and had then selected whatever they liked best, without any regard for what the different combinations would look like together. If a random passer-by were to look at them, they would at best conclude that this was a gathering of friends who were about to head off to completely different destinations, and at worst assume that they were a group of crazy people.
Yes, Caren knew that she dressed in Church robes, which was decidedly not normal either, but at least she was consistent. They, as said before, looked like they had just thrown some stuff together.
Fortunately, this was London, so there was no shortage of badly dressed people around, but this would not go over well in the Clocktower, no more than it would have in the Vatican.
"We shall visit a clothing store first." Caren dictated to them, fully aware the Clocktower's guards would evict them the second they tried to enter if they went in looking like that. "Then we shall go to Lord El-Melloi's favourite café, and I will fetch him for you."
"You mean we don't have to enter the Witches' nest ourselves?" Jonah seemed to like that idea very much. "What a splendid idea, sister."
"Won't that cause undue trouble for you though, sister?" Lily asked with some worry, her pretty features marked by the concern she was feeling. "If you try and summon a lord?"
"Not at all." Caren's smile became a little wider at the topic, already imagining the lord's immensely put-upon expression. "I think he'll be quite eager to stay on top of a situation as delicate as this one."
"Heh, I guess." Jonah huffed with a smile of his own. "If he wasn't a Witch, I'd feel bad for him. This sure is a difficult matter."
"You seem awfully confident he will help you?" Caren worded it as a question. "Why is that, if you already know you will cause so much trouble for him?"
"We don't intend to cause trouble." Kayla hissed, glaring at Jonah. "Bishop Dilo said that Lord El-Melloi would be likely to help us if we were to explain our motives for coming to London."
"What motives would that be?"
"Identifying and eliminating the Magi who are supporting the Dead Apostle Ancestors from inside the Clocktower." Sidonus answered gruffly, before huffing when Caren gave him a shocked look. "Don't look so surprised. You must have known that this recent chaos didn't come about by chance."
"Shirou did hint at a nebulous culprit hiding in the shadows." Caren admitted, referring to what little she'd picked up from the conversations between the redhead and Lord El-Melloi that she'd managed to overhear. "But I had no idea the Ancestors were involved."
"Truth be told, we are not entirely certain that they are." Mira admitted, rubbing her neck. "That is why we have initiated this mission. We must gather evidence, and should any of the Magi be in league with the Ancestors, we must eliminate them, or at the very least, have the other Magi eliminate them."
"You are aware I hope of the recent Purge that already took place at the Clocktower?" Caren asked with some urgency.
"We are." Kayla nodded, her mouth twisting in distaste. "And yes, we did account for the possibility that all evidence to support our theory might have gone up in flames. Nevertheless, we decided to brave the odds anyway."
"That is not what I meant." Caren shook her head slowly. "What I mean is, even if you discover evidence that a few Magi are in league with the Ancestors, the other Magi might not be so eager to kill them and cause even more destabilisation. From what I have seen, most of them are rather tired at the moment and just want to recover."
After such a hectic month, even the most cutthroat and ambitious of Magi had lost some of their motivation. They would be back of course, but it would be a while before they'd recovered fully. For the foreseeable future, most would want to strengthen their own positions again before taking further action.
"Then we must kill the Witches in league with the Bloodsucker Lords ourselves." Jonah said, bringing a fist down on an open hand.
"…" Caren wondered for a moment whether she should say something, to tell them what a stupid idea that was, before she decided to let Lord El-Melloi handle it. He would probably make more of an impression on these Executors than she would, and he could explain it all much better than she too.
It totally wasn't that she was trying to dodge responsibility for her fellow Church-servants, no sir.
"Before you start speaking of killing Magi, do keep in mind we must not make things too hard for Lord El-Melloi." Sidonus suddenly rumbled. "We are counting on him to keep us hidden in the Clocktower after all."
"You're actually going to infiltrate the Clocktower yourselves?!" Caren had only just decided to wash her hands of the matter when Sidonus said something so shocking she couldn't possibly overlook it.
"Well, yes, what did you think we were going to do?" Sidonus asked, looking puzzled by Caren's outburst.
"Set up a post in London and try to recruit spies from among the Magi." Caren responded, a voice that was perhaps a bit louder than usual. "That is the normal procedure."
"The normal procedure won't do anymore." Sidonus stated with certainty. "We did plan at first to pretend to be tourists and work from there, but after some consideration, we changed the plan. It is imperative that we enter the Clocktower ourselves to perform our investigation. We will disguise ourselves as Magi and mingle among our enemies to obtain intel."
"Executors posing as Magi?" It frankly sounded ludicrous to Caren's ears, and not in a good way. She might enjoy seeing people squirm a bit, but this sounded like they were about to cause the biggest diplomatic incident of the century.
"With the recent chaos, caused by that Purge you mentioned, and with Lord El-Melloi's help, it should be possible to pass ourselves off as Magi from Southern-Europe." Sidonus replied, thoughtfully rubbing his chin. "We are all capable of at least some Mysteries. Besides, new Magi arrive at the Clocktower all the time. We'll just mingle with them."
"…Maybe." Caren admitted, as it indeed wasn't unusual for new, unknown Magi to appear in the Clocktower every month. "But it is still a massive risk to take."
"Wars are not won by the cautious." Kayla responded curtly, before placing her hands on her hips. "Now, I don't mean to be rude, but were we not going to visit a clothing store?"
"Ah, yes." Caren nodded, grateful for the reminder, as the group really needed better clothes, especially if they were going to try and infiltrate the Clocktower themselves. "Please follow me."
"You have lived among the Magi for some time now, haven't you?" Lily asked as they walked over the street, and Caren found herself both surprised and immensely grateful that not a single passer-by bothered to give them a second look. Truly, Londoners had a high resistance to strange things. "Do you know what they usually wear?"
"I do." Caren nodded.
"Ah, that's good." Lily nodded with a relieved expression. "I mean, we have fought a lot of Magi over the course of our careers, but we didn't pay much attention to what they were wearing. We know our current outfits leave much to be desired, but we didn't know what would be better."
"Hm." Caren made a noise of understanding, though privately, she thought that they were making things far more complicated than they needed to be. Magi didn't really have a special way of dressing. They had to be formal of course, but other than that, there weren't many requirements.
If they'd just worn suits, or regal dresses, or neat shirts tucked into long pants, no one would have looked twice at them, even at the Clocktower.
However, just as Caren was about to tell them this, a spark of inspiration snapped to life in her brain, and her mouth snapped shut again.
She realised, right at that moment, that she had just been presented with the opportunity of a lifetime, and that she would be an absolute fool to let it go!
Caren had known both Kayla and Lily for quite some time now, and for almost all that time, she'd always wanted to dress them up.
Lily possessed an ethereal beauty, with incredibly soft features, curves to die for, and legs that seemed to go on forever. Her hair was like spun glass, her eyes like bottomless pools, and her skin was so fair she would easily disappear into a white background.
She always wore practical clothes however, of the incredibly unflattering kind, which was an absolute waste of her potential. The summer dress she was currently wearing was much better, but even that dress was obviously something she'd randomly selected and thrown on.
Kayla on the other hand was much less beautiful than Lily. It was a mean thing to say, but it was true. Her features were rough, her body was heavy-set, and her skin was scarred and patched.
Furthermore, her outfits seemed almost made to hide every pretty feature while worsening the bad. Kayla probably didn't do it on purpose, but to Caren, it was a thorn in her eye.
If the white-haired nun could have her way, she would make Lily wear dresses that actually fit her, shirts that coloured well with her hair and skin, skirts that showed off her legs, pantyhose that teased any onlookers, or even stockings that would accentuate her thighs.
Kayla on the other hand needed more colourful clothes. She could keep her neat shirts, jackets, and trousers, as long as they weren't that eternal grey the woman seemed to prefer. Also, Caren would add ribbons wherever she could, in an attempt to capture the small bit of cuteness that the rough woman possessed.
So far though, there had never been a chance to make them wear the clothes Caren preferred. They had no reason to listen to her after all, and could easily refuse any possible request she made of them.
But now, things were different. Now, Caren had a very valid excuse to make them wear what she wanted them to wear. This was the ideal moment to express all of her fantasies, and to create memories she'd keep for a lifetime.
"I am not sure whether mundane clothing shops sell the clothes that you will need." Caren said, putting on her best ponderous look. "It might take a while before we find what we are looking for."
"We don't have anything else to do today." Lily shrugged elegantly.
That was exactly what Caren wanted to hear.
"In that case, follow me." She beamed at the small group, before turning around and leading them straight into her web.
In the Emiya-estate, Shirou was sitting at his own dining table for the first time in months. Naturally, it was an experience he was savouring, leaning back in his seat to look around the dining room, smiling at how familiar everything looked. It was clear not much had changed in the time he'd been away, and that was comforting to know.
The fact that he was sitting on a chair instead of on a mat on the ground though did mean something unusual was going to happen, and Shirou had a pretty decent idea what that was. He only ever sat on a chair at the 'high' table when it was time to break out the maid outfits after all, and his girls had hinted multiple times over the course of the party that they had a surprise in store for him.
He, as well as Sakura, Ayako, and Rin, had just come back from the Mitsuzuri-estate. The surprise-party had ended a while ago, and everyone had gone back home.
Shirou had had a great time at the party, greeting everyone again after not seeing them for quite a while. Frankly, he wouldn't have minded it if it had continued for a bit longer, but the Mitsuzuri-family needed their house back in time for dinner, so they had wrapped it up before the sun started setting.
The redhead had heartedly thanked all the guests for coming, and after he'd assured Neko that he would be returning to work that same week and promised Issei to visit the temple again the next day, everyone had parted ways again.
That Ayako and Sakura had come with him to the Emiya-estate was not a surprise, but Shirou had been a little taken aback when Rin had accompanied them too. Asking her why she was coming along yielded him nothing though, as she steadfastly ignored him until he changed the subject.
It almost made him suspect that she was involved with the surprise he was about to get, but surely, that couldn't be so? Try as he might, he couldn't for the life of him imagine a scenario in which Rin would wear a maid outfit.
There had to be another reason why she was at his house this evening, and while he would love to know what that reason was, he had already promised the girls not to peek into the kitchen while waiting for them, so he had no way to find out.
As such, he just waited, pretty sure that everything would become clear in due time.
He did not have to wait long. Barely fifteen minutes after he'd sat down, he heard footsteps approaching the dining room, and squabbling voices became audible not long after. Unsurprisingly, they belonged to Rin and Ayako, with Sakura sometimes making a remark in between.
It was good to know the girls hadn't changed much either while he'd been away.
"Apologies for our tardiness, master." Sakura said just before the girls rounded the corner and entered his sight. "There were many preparations to make, and it took longer than we expected."
"No problem at all." Shirou assured them, leaning forward, as he was quite eager to see his girls in their maid outfits again. He did spare a thought though on wondering what Rin would be doing. "I'm just happy you are doing this for meeeEEEH?!"
Shirou would like to think he wasn't easily surprised anymore, but the double whammy of seeing Sakura and Ayako in maid outfits that were certainly much, muchlewder than he remembered and seeing Rin of all people standing next to them while wearing exactly the same outfit still shocked him sufficiently to have sent him flat on his back if he'd been standing.
As he was sitting though, he ended up falling against the backrest of his chair, gaping at the incredibly sexy trio as his cheeks started burning.
"And?" Ayako grinned widely, flaunting the loose bodice and the ridiculously short skirt, which didn't even reach the top of her stockings. "Do you like it?"
"Judging from Senpai's face, he does." Sakura giggled demurely, locking her hands behind her back and leaning forward in a move that was normally meant to enhance a girl's cuteness and innocence, but only really achieved the former, as the ridiculous level of cleavage and the collars around her wrists and neck quickly killed any semblance of innocence she might have had.
"He better." Rin huffed, not bothering to make any sexy or cute poses, yet appearing no less sensual because of it. Her maid outfit was clearly excellently made, and fit snugly onto her form, accentuating her curves in the most marvellous of ways, with the red collars being the tantalising and suggestive icing on the cake. She was also the only one not wearing stockings, leaving her legs bare, which was rather unusual for her. "Are you going to say something, Emiya-kun? Or are you going to sit there looking stupid all evening?"
"Wha…? Those… outfits…?" Shirou spluttered, lifting a shaking hand to point at them.
"Nee-san designed them." Sakura told him proudly, taking Rin by her elbow and pulling her along until the three of them were standing right in front of him, with Rin in the middle. "Isn't she an absolute genius?"
"Yes!" Shirou said empathically, taking even himself aback by how quickly and clearly he answered. "Even more so than I thought!"
"What a shameless answer." Rin huffed, planting her hands into her sides and spreading her legs slightly, striking a pose that might have been meant to look confident but instead came off as immensely sexy. "But then again, I probably shouldn't have expected anything else from you, you greedy man."
"You probably shouldn't have." Shirou agreed, giving her a lop-sided smile, slowly letting his eyes roam over her form.
Until she suddenly lifted a leg and set her foot down on his chair, right between his legs, practically shoving her knee into his face. Shirou was a bit taken aback by it, but since it provided him a first-rate view of Rin's thigh and panties –very sexy ones– he couldn't complain much.
"Kiss my knee." Rin ordered him, and Shirou, who was still rather confused but understood that Rin was trying to set the tone for the upcoming conversation, slowly obeyed, leaning forward to brush his lips against her knee, before reaching up to trace the tip of his index-finger over the inside of her thigh.
Rin had looked satisfied when he followed her order, but his ministrations of her leg had clearly not been anticipated, for she tensed for a second, before relaxing again, letting out a soft sigh, though Shirou couldn't tell if it was of pleasure, annoyance, or both.
For a while, she remained in that position, silently accepting his tender stroking, before Ayako suddenly cleared her throat and Rin, as if spooked by the noise, hastily retracted her leg.
"Not to interrupt your fun or anything, but I thought you had a plan, Rin?" Ayako said, trying to hide an amused smirk without much success. "Weren't you going to join our relationship before you started doing lewd things with Shirou?"
"Work first, and then pleasure." Sakura agreed, smiling impishly at them. "And Senpai, please kiss my knees as well later. It looked like Nee-san enjoyed that very much."
So Rin wanted to join their relationship. Shirou had already expected as much. There weren't really any other explanations for why his girlfriends would suddenly present him with a third girl who immediately demanded he did lewd things to her.
"Yes." Rin nodded stiffly, before turning around to give Shirou a disapproving look. "Emiya-kun, you truly are shameless and greedy. Having three beautiful girls all to yourself."
"Well, I-"
"To think you would even try to seduce me." Rin interrupted him, sitting down on his lap without as much as a by your leave, facing him directly. "Well, fine, you succeeded. Aren't you happy now?"
So she was skipping straight past the asking and right into the relationship itself? That was… rather like her, now that he thought about it. No way that Rin was going to give him a loving confession, that was not her style at all.
Still, she clearly did leave some room for him to refuse, should he be opposed to her joining the relationship.
The proposal had now been made. Rin had essentially offered herself to him, and it was up to him to reply.
Shirou promptly used his Reinforced and enhanced brain to quickly make an overview of the situation in the split second he had available.
The most important question here was of course whether he loved Rin, a question to which he couldn't give a straight reply. He certainly liked her, he was physically attracted to her, and she had been an amazing friend so far, but he couldn't say for sure whether he romantically loved her.
He was, however, more than willing to give it a try. He hadn't been sure about his love for Ayako and Sakura either when he became their boyfriend, but that had worked out wonderfully. There was no reason it couldn't be the same for Rin.
Shirou's eyes then flitted lightning fast to Ayako and Sakura, studying their faces and body-language to see what they thought about Rin joining the relationship, and when he found nothing but happy acceptance, with Ayako even giving him a quick thumbs-up, he made up his mind.
"I am indeed greedy." He replied to Rin's earlier remark, placing his hands on her hips to pull her closer to him, which she replied to by putting her hands on his shoulders, a glint of anticipation entering her eyes. "So yes, Rin, I am indeed very happy to have succeeded at seducing you."
"As you should be." She huffed, before throwing her arms around his neck and pulling him into a searing kiss.
Shirou was hardly surprised anymore by her forwardness, and eagerly responded. He noted that she tasted just like she smelled, like an autumn storm and bittersweet tea, and he could even taste some similarities with Sakura, which was an interesting way to once more confirm that they were related.
Despite this being what he assumed to be Rin's first kiss, the black-haired girl lasted for a surprising amount of time, only pulling back after a solid twenty seconds, lightly panting as she did so.
Then she gave him a teasing smile.
"Is that all you have, Emiya-kun?" She tittered, acting wholly unimpressed despite the fact Shirou could hear her heart beating a mile a minute. "I'll give that kiss a six out of ten."
"As if you have anything to compare it with." Ayako scoffed, having looked on with great interest during the kiss. "And don't think I didn't see your toes curling in pleasure, Rin."
"Now now, Ayako." Shirou quickly held up a hand to calm the brunette down, giving her an easy smile. "If that is Rin's opinion, we must accept it."
"Oh?" Rin seemed slightly surprised by his words, and then she squeaked when he rose from the chair, still holding on to her, so that she ended up being carried by him, with her legs around his waist and her arms still around his neck. "What are you doing?!"
"If that kiss was a six out of ten, I'll just have to apply myself a bit more." Shirou kept his smile as peaceful as he could, before shifting one of his hands under Rin's butt to keep her steady and taking hold of the back of the collar around her neck with the other. "Let's improve that score!"
Then he kissed her again, and this time, he didn't hold anything back, doing his very best to suck her soul of her mouth, applying sufficient pressure to the back of her head to prevent it from moving an inch.
"Ohohohoho!" Sakura made a very interested noise, clapping her hands in enthusiasm, while Ayako let out an impressed whistle. "That's it, Senpai! Show Nee-san no quarter!"
He didn't. He showed her neither quarter nor mercy, and by the end, Rin was hanging limp in his arms, with a blush finally gracing her cheeks, looking utterly blissful and content.
"Judging by the look in your eyes, I'd say this one was better than a six out of ten." He teased her, and she responded by burying her face into his chest, letting out a string of inaudible grumblings. "That doesn't mean I'm going to stop practicing though."
"Now, don't forget that this is a polyamorous relationship." Sakura then piped up again, stepping closer to the duo, holding out her arms for a hug. "Ayako and I want some attention as well."
"I'll take Rin, and you can take Shirou." Ayako quickly proposed, before grabbing Rin out of Shirou's arms without waiting for a reply. "I hope you still got some energy left in you, Rin, because now that you have given your first kiss to Shirou, it's my turn."
"How shameless." Rin muttered again, before she was cut off when Ayako claimed her lips.
In the meantime, Sakura had practically thrown herself onto Shirou, and was eagerly making out with him, something the redhead happily responded to.
In the end, nothing came of the fancy dinner that the girls had planned for the evening, and Shirou ended up quickly throwing together some rice with vegetables before they all went to bed. That was not to say the evening had been a failure though. To the contrary, it had been a complete success for everyone involved.
It took some puzzling to get them together on the futon, but in the end, Ayako happily lied down on top of Shirou while Rin and Sakura took the sides.
Rin did have a point though when she muttered that futons were not nearly as fit for sleeping together as a bed.
Shirou would have to see about arranging a large bed sometime soon. It would be much more comfortable for the four of them.