Chapter 9: Well Rested?
(Shinji POV)
As the sun shines through my window a soft seductive whisper in my ear stirs me from my slumber.
"Aniki loves Jack~"
"Jack is the best little sister ever~"
"Aniki will allow Jack to kill that cat~"
"Jack is-" She begins again,
"What are you doing?" I question, opening my eyes I find Assassin laying nose to nose with me in my futon,
"What do you mean Aniki?" Jack asks innocently,
"You're trying to hypnotize me."
"Hypo-tize? I'm sorry Aniki, I just don't understand." Her mock sad tone only earns a deadpan expression from me as I rise out of bed.
As I move through the Emiya estate towards the kitchen where I know Shirou probably is, a soft murmur behind the door where Nori was put to bed the night previously makes me stop for a moment to look inside.
'I'd honestly have expected her to sleep more after last night.'
Oddly as I'm about to open the door Jack stops me placing a finger on her lips and opens it herself carefully so as not to alert the room's current occupant.
"Does she just carry around a bag of coins just to make that joke?" She mumbles to herself as she stands in the middle of the room while holding a gold coin between her fingers. Slowly she brings the coin up to her mouth and bites down only to find it hard.
"It's real too!" I can almost see her mouth watering while she says that, I don't know how she ever became as vain as she is, but I can only assume it's going to get worse along with all her other 'personality problems,' now that she isn't going to be taking any of her medicine anymore.
"I don't like pity handouts though…" She says reluctantly, slowly she dances the coin between her fingers for a moment until her eyes widen as if she'd just come up with a stellar idea.
"Aniki, you should stop her now." Assassin's cautious voice brings me to throwing open the door completely as Minori flips the coin into the air and takes a really impractical pose.
"Nori." The sudden sound of me coming into the room causes Nori to jump slightly while dropping the now slightly sparkling coin.
"O-Oh big brother. What is up...dog?"
While I do want to make some kind of comment on that horribly awkward greeting, something I notice from looking at her face stops me. Her normally bright almost feline like purple eyes hold a certain heaviness to them from fatigue.
"Are you feeling okay Nori?" I ask tentatively,
"Of course not, my first real fight was a major loss! Completely one sided! Horrible! Terrible! Disgust-"
"Is that really it?"
"What do you mean by, 'is that really it?'"
"I mean that you shouldn't lose sleep over losing to a servant Nori."
"Shinji, Shinji, Shinji, this is exactly why you're not a protagonist! What if people start to think that I'm a pushover? My image will be ruined!" Her small fang pokes out of her mouth as she yells hysterically, I can't help but think she may be in some kind of manic state from not taking any medicine this morning, but it could also just be her being… an idiot.
"Right…" I say with a roll of my eyes which she doesn't take well,
"You seem like you're doubting me, but a person's image is the most important thing!" I stay quiet for a few moments before looking at Assassin who looks back and points at her hair.
"Big brother, how am I supposed to keep my hair from becoming a rat's nest without my stuff from home?" She asks while putting a hand through her hair in dismay,
'Oh I think I get it now, but why did it seem like she was talking about something else at first?'
"I already told you keeping it that long was ridiculous."
"Muuu, stupid Shinji if I still had my twin tails I'd definitely pump you full of holes!" She claims with a cute little angry pout,
"Whatever Nori, just get dressed so we can-"
"Instead I'll show you exactly how much a person's image matters." She continues now with a sly grin on her face as she slowly puts her hand into her shirt and pulls out a picture of… my junk?
"Wha?" In my dumbfounded state Minori bolts past me waving the photo in the air like a degenerate,
"Nyahahahaha!." She laughs while I begin to chase after her leaving Assassin behind,
"Family…?" Assassin murmurs so slightly I wouldn't at all have been able to register it if not for the deep sadness etched into her voice.
"Dammit, Minori!" I exclaim as I finally catch up to Minori I tackle her to the ground just as she's about to go into Shirou's dining room causing both of us to crash in front of a surprised Emiya and Tohsaka who witness the two of us in an awkward position that one could only get away with if they were a child.
Quickly I get off of Minori's back and snatch the photo from her hand.
"This had better be your only one," I say coldly,
"Well obviously, why would I keep more than one picture of my brother's junk?" She asks with a snort,
"Why would you even have one of those in the first place?!?!"
"To compare it to Shirou's obviously." Her statement comes out as if it were some obvious fact everyone should be privy to like it's some crap you learn in primary school with your colors and 'A, B, C's.'
"Uhh, Minori, does that mean you have pictures of me too?" Shirou asks with concern, to this Minori stays silent as everyone in the room stares at her with ever changing expressions.
"D-Don't look at me like that! I was young! I was curious so what? Blame Shirou for having such strong dependable hands!."
"Can you just get rid of them, Minori?" Emiya asks with a sigh, in response Minori's eyes flash red before she puts both of her hands into her shirt and pulls out two photos which she fans out immediately to reveal it's actually over a dozen pictures of things like Shirou in the bath, or Shirou practicing magecraft in his shed, and even a photo of him as a child.
'When did she learn to use her mystic eyes like that?' I wonder,
"T-That's disgusting!" Exclaims Rin as she covers her eyes, though it's clear to everyone that she's peeking through her fingers,
"Wrong! When girls do something perverted in anime it's funny." Handing the photos off to Shirou what little shame she might have had previously is completely gone and instead replaced by a forcefully straight face as she hands Shirou the many photos of him.
"How did you even get these?" Shirou asks in disbelief as he stares at a picture of him in the bath,
"Mmm, honestly I don't really know."
"What do you mean you don't know?" Minori stays silent at this question seemingly to think for a moment only to come up with the most unexplanatory and implausible answer possible.
"Maybe I'm just lucky?" Not a single person in the room bought that answer though no one continued questioning her as it was pretty clear it was the best we were going to get.
Slowly we all sit around the table Assassin and Minori both sit on either side of me and as one notices the other they both glare like animals fighting over territory.
"I just came here to tell you guys not to expect me to join your little team." Rin states, Assassin scoots a bit closer to me.
"But Rin-" Shirou starts,
"Shirou just leave her for now, if she doesn't die then she'll come running back to us eventually." In response to Assassin's scooting Minori scoots as well,
"Tsk, you shouldn't be so sure. I'm in this to win." Rin stands with this declaration and looks down on us seemingly to emphasize her point, both Minori and Assassin glare at each other even harder before scooting so close that both of them are hugging my arms.
"Can you two take this seriously?" I growl through clenched teeth,
""I am taking this seriously, big brother/Aniki!"" They both yell at the same time,
"I mean the grail war you dumbasses!" I yell back while slipping my arms out of their grips,
"What do you mean take the game seriously?"
I don't understand it, why does Minori seem so calm? It's not as though I'd expect her to freak out or anything like that, but by the way she's acting you might not even realize that most of us are probably not going to make it past this grail war.
"You guys do realize that the grail doesn't REALLY grant wishes right?" The previously leaving Rin stops with the door open as all of the rest of us go entirely silent,
"What do you mean by that Minori?" Rin asks in a slow voice, her disbelief and skepticism are evident in the way she looks back at Minori.
"Well, it's true you know? This whole competition is a hoax. A waste of time. A dumb game." Rin's eyes widen at my sisters nonchalant yet entirely certain tone,
"Do you have proof?"
"This is the fifth one. Surely you have to find it a bit suspicious that no wishes have ever been granted, no?" Unfortunately, both Rin and I recognize the truth in her words, the grail was made initially in order to enable magus to get to the root however not a single record anywhere dictates the grail succeeded. In fact, not a single record even exists of someone properly surviving a grail war besides Zouken who can't even technically be considered living, and Kiritsugu who died a few years after due to 'health failure.'
"How long have you known about this?" Rin asks her fists clenched in rage,
"For a while I guess." Minori twirls a piece of her hair on her finger so uncaringly that even I find myself surprised by my sisters lack of care,
"Did you know about this when Kariya went to participate Nori?" I hesitantly ask her,
"Mmm, well yeah, but saying that wouldn't have changed anything really. Also, I forgot about it anyway." Hearing this Tohsaka clenches her fist further nearly to the point of drawing blood although she seems as like she wants to yell she just turns on her heel and walks away while slamming the door behind her.
I honestly understand what she may be feeling right now, how does Minori forget such an important fact like that? The whole point of the grail war is basically nothing. Everyone that dies is for nothing. It's just like she said it's just a game that gives absolutely NOTHING. It's frustrating, but backing out now isn't even really an option. If we give the 'nun' our class cards she'll probably kill us on the spot.
"Aniki…" Assassin says her voice filled with concern,
"You shouldn't worry so much Shinji, as long as Shirou is here we'll get a good ending." Strangely her words sound slightly hollow as if she were merely trying to comfort us rather than actually believing the words she was saying.
Without giving me or Shirou any time to respond Minori simply gets up casually and heads back out of the room leaving me, Shirou, and Assassin to sit there awkwardly.
--
(Manaka POV)
Minori definitely came to school today. However I never saw her come through the front gate, I also didn't see her in class nor at the kendo club. How such a loud and puzzling girl could slip past me will likely remain a mystery forever, but after asking around I somehow found myself in the school's library.
'Why would she be here? Minori hates reading.' I think as I look around and oddly enough it doesn't take me long to spot a familiar purplette staring tiredly at a row of books. Her current appearance is in extreme contrast to the normally well kept and easily excitable Minori I'm used to, but I can't say I don't like it, Minori showing me new things is nothing unfamiliar.
"Minori!" I call out causing her to stop what she's doing and look over to me from the corner of her eye,
"Manaka? You were the last person I wanted to see me like this though…" She looks back towards the books as she says that and takes one out of the shelf seemingly at random before walking towards a set of tables near the back of the library.
"Why's that Minori?"
"My hair is a mess."
"It's still super cute though, like a cat that just got out of the bath." She pauses for just a moment at my teasing, but unlike what I was expecting her face doesn't go red even a little,
"Right." Her curt and almost uncaring answer causes my eyes to unconsciously widen in surprise,
"Is something wrong Minori?" I ask curiously,
Rather than respond she continues on walking until we finally reach the table and take a seat,
"Minori?"
"My hair is bugging me." She says quietly as she opens her book...upside down?
"Then let me fix it for you." Looking at me her previously tired eyes now sparkle with gratitude making me giggle slightly,
'Minori is still Minori it seems'
"Thank you, I have to keep my good image up so I can be a great protagonist you know?" She says as I stand up once again to move behind her and hold her long deep purple hair gently in my hands. Even when it's messy like this it's still softer than any silk. Honestly, I might be jealous if Minori herself had not admitted I was a beauty as well.
"I thought Shirou was the protagonist Minori." The purplette flinches ever so slightly at my statement making me tilt my head slightly in confusion,
"W-Well yeah!" She says hesitantly, as my fingers begin to deftly twirl two pieces of her hair into one long braid.
"Hmmm?" I hum not wanting to comment on her suspicious response,
"Speaking of protagonists, Manaka, you should really team up with me."
"I already told you I'd team up with you if you can become a master." This is clearly not the response she wanted to hear however if her pouting is anything to go by.
"Why does it feel like you're trying to seduce me over to the dark side?"
"We have cookies!" I exclaim pulling her hair slightly,
"Nya! Are you serious?"
"Of course, all you have to do is kill another master and I'll make you as many cookies as you want." She seems to think about it for a moment before shaking her head slightly,
"I'm not so worried about you that I'd ruin the plot and get on Shirou's bad side."
"Oh~ so you were worried about me?" I tease
"Of course! If you become an antagonist you'll surely be killed! Somehow, the thought of that happening makes me kinda sad?" She exclaims a slight blush forming on her features,
"Could it be perhaps that you've finally fallen for me, Minori?" I tease some more, however this time I don't get the reaction I'm looking for.
"No. I don't feel that way about you at all." Unlike the more tsundere response I was expecting, she denies the possibility without even the slightest bit of hesitation, it was slightly expected but still…
'That hurts...' Is the single thought that goes through my head as a slight pang of pain shoots its way through my chest,
"You are still my friend though Manaka so of course I wouldn't want you to die." Yet another sudden pan flows through my chest as she utilizes the ever terrible technique of the 'friend zone.'
"You wound me Minori," I say quietly as I start reaching the bottom of the braid,
"Mmm, Manaka you're pretty silly." Her sleepy voice is strange in how much energy it almost seems to be hiding just beneath the surface. If you didn't know any better you might simply mistake her for being drunk or something.
"It's rude to call a girl's feelings silly."
"How about we make a deal then? I'll give you one chance, if you can confess to me and have me believe it I'll give you anything you want."
'Anything I want?'
"You know Minori, a girl with your looks shouldn't go around making offers like that~" As I finish the last braid Minori doesn't respond, and instead her breathing steadies as her eyes gently close.
Just when I think I'm beginning to understand Minori she changes yet again, truthfully I have to wonder what her goal might be for all of this. Everyone fights in the grail for a wish, even me, but as proven by the grail itself Minori has no wishes and has no underlying desire for something. Even if the grail doesn't truly work in any normal circumstances it's still very accurate in who it does and doesn't pick to fight.
'Thinking of the grail now, I wonder where it is?'
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
AvaDumont
AvaDumont I messed up my sleeping schedule so now this is coming out super early in the morning lol. I any case I actually don't have much to comment about concerning this chapter so I'll just say that true Lancer appears next chapter.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
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