MMMS 97

At the Einzbern castle's dining hall...

"What did Master tell you?" Morgan glanced at her sister, who'd just finished whatever mental conversation she was having with their Master.

"He said Irisviel wasn't feeling well yesterday, so he stayed out with her for the night." Artoria popped open her takeout breakfast box, looking perfectly content with the explanation. "They'll be back tonight, which means we're stuck here at the castle today."

"Hmph." Morgan's fingers traced lazy circles around her teacup's rim, her voice dropping to something dangerously sweet. "So Master spent the night playing nursemaid to the Einzbern homunculus."

Her eyes had that particular glint that usually meant someone was about to have a very bad day.

...

That same morning, Tohsaka Aoi pushed open her daughter's bedroom door, expecting to find Rin still buried under her covers. Instead, she found an empty bed and a hastily scrawled note propped against the pillow.

[I went to look for Kotone. Please don't worry about me. —Rin]

Aoi's heart sank as she read the childish handwriting. She should have seen this coming.

Kotone was Rin's closest friend at school—the quiet girl who somehow always ended up as everyone's target. When the older boys picked on her during recess, Rin was there throwing punches. When the librarian dumped extra work on Kotone's desk, Rin was there splitting the load in half. Being the one her classmates looked up to wasn't just something Rin enjoyed; it was who she was. And helping Kotone was exactly the kind of thing that let her live up to the family motto she recited every morning: always act with grace.

Aoi crumpled the note in her fist, guilt twisting in her stomach. At dinner last night, when Rin had brought up Kotone's absence and started asking questions about what was happening in the city, Aoi had made a choice. No more lies, no more dancing around the truth. She'd looked her daughter straight in the eye and said, "Forget about that friend of yours."

But Rin wasn't stupid. Even at her age, she understood what it meant when seven magi—including her own father—gathered in one city to fight. So when Kotone stopped showing up to school, Rin had already connected the dots. Her mother's blunt command to give up had only made her more stubborn.

Now Kotone was out there somewhere, probably scared and alone. And in Rin's mind, she was the only one who could save her friend.

After finding the note, Aoi's first instinct wasn't to call her famous magus husband. Instead, her thoughts went straight to the boy she'd been thinking about far too often lately. Ryuuto was in Fuyuki right now. Maybe he could help. Her fingers moved without hesitation as she dialed his number.

"Ryuuto?"

"Aoi?" His voice came through immediately, almost like he'd been waiting. "I was actually about to call you."

"You were going to call me?"

"Yeah. Your daughter showed up at my door this morning looking like she was planning some kind of heist." There was a pause, and she could practically hear him thinking. "She's not saying much, but I'm guessing she ran away from home?"

"Rin's with you?" The relief hit her so hard she nearly dropped the phone. "She's safe?"

"She's fine. Currently demolishing my breakfast and interrogating me about local missing person cases."

"Oh thank god... thank god..." Aoi pressed her free hand to her chest, feeling like she could finally breathe again.

"Listen, if you're free this afternoon, I can bring her home. Save you the trip."

"No!" The word came out sharper than she intended. "I mean... I can't keep troubling you like this. Let me come get her instead."

…

That morning, it had been Maiya who spotted Rin wandering the streets of Fuyuki. While Ryuuto and Irisviel were still wrapped up in their own little world back at the mansion, Maiya was doing what she did best—staying alert. She'd recognized the girl immediately. The young heiress of the Tohsaka family, one of the three founding houses of the Holy Grail War, walking around completely unguarded like she owned the place.

Maiya had moved like a shadow, creeping up behind the little magus and pressing a cloth laced with sleeping agent over her nose and mouth. The girl had struggled for maybe three seconds before going limp.

"Mmm... where am I?" Rin's voice was groggy when she finally woke around noon.

The second her eyes focused, she bolted upright from the tatami mat, head whipping around to take in the unfamiliar room. Her posture screamed fight-or-flight.

"We meet again, Rin-chan." Ryuuto was sitting cross-legged beside her, wearing his most harmless smile.

He'd sent Irisviel and Maiya out earlier so he could handle this alone. The last thing he needed was for Rin to meet Irisviel under these circumstances. Of course, getting Irisviel to leave had been like trying to pry a koala off a tree. She'd clung to him with enough desperation to power a small city, only agreeing to go shopping with Maiya after he'd promised her about six different things and let her kiss him senseless for ten minutes straight.

"You're..." Rin's brows pinched together as she tried to place him. "Wait, I know you."

"I'm Ryuuto. A friend of your mom's."

"Oh!" Her eyes went wide, then immediately narrowed with suspicion. "You're the guy from our house! You're the one who kidnapped me!"

"Kidnapped?" he put on his best wounded expression. "I saved you, actually."

"Saved me?" She scooted backward, clearly not buying it for a second.

"Seriously. I saw some creep trying to grab you on the street, so I took him down and brought you somewhere safe." The lie rolled off his tongue like he'd been practicing it.

Rin went quiet, chewing on her lower lip. Then something seemed to click. Her mother had told her a story once—about how Ryuuto had rescued her from some thugs late one night. The way her mom's face had gone all soft and dreamy while telling it had stuck with Rin ever since.

"Look, Rin." Ryuuto's voice turned serious. "This city is ground zero for the Holy Grail War right now. Miyama Town is crawling with familiars, and here you are—the Tohsaka heiress—just taking a casual stroll like you're going to the corner store." He leaned forward slightly. "The war's supposed to stay secret, sure, but not everyone plays nice. There are plenty of scumbags out there who'd love to snatch up a rival Master's daughter for leverage."

"You..." Her eyes went wide. "You know about the Holy Grail War?"

"I know enough." he stood up and brushed off his pants. "Come on, let's get you back to your mom."

"No way! I have to find Kotone first!"

"I'll help you look for her later, I promise. But right now, you need to go home and deal with your very worried mother." He gave her a look that was part sympathy, part warning. "Fair warning though—your mom's pretty upset right now."

"Ugh!" Her face went pale, like he'd just told her she had to fight a dragon barehanded.

Apparently Aoi wasn't always the gentle, refined lady she appeared to be. When her daughter stepped out of line, she could turn into a full-blown demon mom.

He held out his hand, and after a moment's hesitation, she took it. They walked out of the tatami room together, her smaller steps trying to keep up with his longer ones.

"Hey," she piped up suddenly, that spark of excitement back in her voice. "If you know about the Holy Grail War, then you definitely know who I am, right?"

"You're Aoi's daughter."

"No, no, no!" She shook her head so hard her twin ponytails whipped around like tiny propellers. "That's not what I mean!"

“How’s that wrong? You’re not your mom’s kid?”

"It's not about Mom!" she huffed, puffing out her cheeks. "If you really know about the Holy Grail War, then you should know who my father is!"

"Ah." His expression shifted slightly. "Tokiomi."