The rest of the night was a blur of consciousness.
One moment, I would be in my senses to some bare degree, and then I would blank out to find my surroundings completely different from before. Someone was carrying me, that much I knew. They were propping me up with their own body as they walked slowly and carefully, but I could not make out the face. No, it was outright impossible to pay enough attention to know. My body, however, felt every single sensation.
The pain. Oh, the pain.
Someone had set me on fire or something.
There remained only one thing on my mind.
That was... the refusal to give in.
I grit my teeth, bit my lip, choked on my own tongue, anything to stop me from fading away into complete unconsciousness.
It was the easy way out.
Both my mind and body begged for the release.
The opportunity to pass out and wake up all healed in some weeks, to a world where my problems sorted themselves out. Shirou was still alive, and training with Rin. He could defeat Gilgamesh, it was his destiny. He could become the victor after killing Kirei, save everyone and become what he always wanted to be.
From the depths of my heart... I hated myself for the very idea.
My mentor expected better of me than to bitch out.
Yet, he had given his life in exchange for mine-
I heard a thud, and the sound of an argument. Somewhere, somehow, I'd been brought out of the ruined forest, to some suburban home. I saw a man put his hand in front of some elderly women before both their bodies went limp. Like stringless puppets, the two tumbled to the ground. Their faces were obscured by shadows.
Someone moved past me, and sat the two bodies up. That was Bazett, at least I knew that much. I could tell from the overly serious business-suit.
She was up... that was good?
-I needed to call out the Round Deer.
Though I willed them as hard as I could, my hands did not even move. My own body refused to obey that simple command.
It wanted to relax, to give up for at least a bit.
I refused to let it do that.
"He's mo-"
I felt my fingers twitch.
"Th... Ups... Be-"
I blinked, and the world became much softer. Bed. That was what she said. They'd moved me to some bed. The soft mattress against my injured back felt like a piece of heaven. From the corner of my eye, I saw the two conversing with each other. Struggle though I did, I failed to understand a single word they were saying, like someone was speaking outside a sealed window.
If one was Bazett... then the other had to be Cu.
One of them stepped outside, closing the door shut behind them. Then, the figure of Bazett moved closer... and closer. By my bedside, she hesitated for a moment, then climbed atop. I felt a slight weight settle on my waist, and then her warm, thin fingers were running across my collarbone, down to my chest.
I didn't understand just what she'd done, but the pain receded. I regained the slightest bit of clarity.
"It's my fault-" Something warm dripped on my cheek, and the shadow clouding my vision receded to reveal her face over mine. Her lips were trembling, and there were tears in her eyes. I had never seen the strong woman like that. "-I should've listened... You knew... You knew he'd do it. You kept saying it... I didn't listen-"
Her warm tears rolled down my face.
"And you put yourself in-... Why would you-... Are you that good a person?"
No.
...
My whole body ached when I tried to tell her.
"For-" My breath hitched, "-you."
"I'm sorry I'm so stupid and clumsy." I felt her fingers twitch, but she dared not exert any force, like I was the most fragile thing in the world, "I'm sorry that you had to..."
That was wrong, through the pain and the loss, I knew that much now, I could never have abandoned this idiot to her fate. Maybe I was too fast, or too desperate for something like that, but I would fight to protect her again, and again, and again, no matter how much it hurt. I wanted to spend time with her.
I just didn't have it in me to think solely for myself... no matter how hard I tried, or wanted that to be true.
"I'm sorry for being happy that you would do something like this for a cold person like me."
Somehow, my hand found her cheek. It took all the strength I had to wipe a tear with my thumb.
"It's... fine."
The only person to blame was Gilgamesh.
We would've all walked away, despite the attack, if he wasn't as hateful as he was. There had been a million ways to approach, yes... yet, all it would take to ruin everything was him deciding he would be entertained by something.
"I can't heal you."
I wasn't so sure I could make the journey to a hospital.
"Please. S-Stay with me." She wiped her eyes with both hands, "I don't have anything else to give... I'm sorry. If it's you-"
Under my gaze, she removed her coat and tossed it aside, then began unbuttoning the top of her shirt. I tried to move my hand to stop her. She noticed.
"Y-You can heal with this, right? P... Please then, let me at least do this."
In that moment, she was the most beautiful thing in the world. The way she blushed and hesitated, fidgeting nervously with her belt. Gently, like I was again the most fragile thing in the world, she held my face in her hands.
Then, her soft lips were pressing against mine. I leaned in.
Was she trying to give me mana...?
I felt her soft breasts press against my chest, and my hands found their way to her hips.
She pulled away.
"I'm sorry... for wanting this-"
I leaned in again.
-
My eyes opened to an unfamiliar ceiling, with clear signs of aging, not like the sleek and elegant ceiling of my apartment. There was a dresser to my right, and closed door right beside my feet, the likes of which you'd only find in a suburban family home. There was even a TV lying on top of a smaller dresser right across.
"Mm~"
...
A pale arm lay on my chest, and there was a soft warmth sandwiching my side, both pressed and enveloping my shoulder. For a long while, I did not even dare to look over, only covering my manhood with a hand.
Why was it... sore?
The movement made my shoulder ache. I stifled the groan before it escaped my lips.
What had happened last... night...
Kirei attacked Bazett while we were distracted with Berserker. I almost abandoned Cu and Shuwen to their fates, then came back to fight again. We even won but... Gilgamesh killed my mentor for nothing but laughs.
God, he was such a fucking bastard.
But, that meant, the only person that could possibly be by my side was...
"Bazett."
I looked over to see the older woman peacefully sleeping beside me. The beauty spot under her eye was far more charming somehow... but, the question remained what was she-
My eyes widened.
"That... wasn't a dream?"
I recalled a particularly pleasurable dream- No, it wasn't a dream. We'd done it then? While I was barely conscious for it? It was difficult to be as happy as I should have been, with the memory of my teacher getting slaughtered right before my very eyes for nothing.
My ruckus seemed to disturb her sleep.
Bazett's eyes slowly fluttered open, and she gave a confused, cute tilt of the head when she noticed me looking at her. Then, suddenly, she was backing away with a red face, pulling the sheet to cover herself. It did a poor job at hiding her curves, far poorer than her suits did.
I'd never even considered her breasts would be that big underneath.
"I-I..."
Somehow, even that failed to stir me like before... No, I would've sputtered and stammered and blushed before but now... I took a deep breath.
"Thank you, Bazett."
It wasn't that hard to figure out what she'd done.
I was familiar enough with Fate to know that she'd shared her mana with me via... well, that part wasn't that hard to figure out. Mana my crest had put to use to fix up my body to a usable extent, mana that summoning Mahoraga had exhausted. The ritual had drained my mana like a punctured pipe once it completed.
"I-It's fine."
"I only wish we'd been under better circumstances," I scratched my cheek. "After a date and a nice dinner. I'm sorry."
"No." She shook her head adorably, "I didn't listen-"
"And, you're not listening now either."
"...What?" She grew confused.
"I'm saying I like you-" I smiled wryly, "-like a lot lot. I won't say anything more."
Beating around the bush and being a pussy ass bitch was what cost me the life of my mentor. There was so much more I wanted to ask him, so much more I could have learned, and so much more fun we could have had in a world like this... and yet, my inability to be decisive took the chance away.
Yes, Gilgamesh was to blame but, this was true as well.
Bazett's blush crept up her neck, until even her ears were twitching.
"I-I want to be with you more... too."
With a grunt, I tried to push myself up to sit. Bazett immediately dropped her sheet to come and help me. Her pale thigh pressed right against the raging boner I'd been trying to hard. She glanced over, and then turned to stare into my eyes with a gulp.
"Do... Do you need more... mana?"
My eyes widened.
"How naughty."
The older woman trembled furiously, then yelped when I suddenly pulled her in.
-
Sooooo, what did we think?
You can find 7 chapters ahead at patre0n.com/Bleap