//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 - To Fight for the Grail // Story: Fate/Equestria Girls // by SamRose //------------------------------// “We're here now, it's safe to let go.” Saber tried to say comfortingly, but couldn't hide how ridiculous she found the whole situation. Twilight had refused to let go of Saber the moment she had jumped from the building's roof, clinging for dear life even after Saber had landed on the ground. It wasn't until they had arrived outside the front gates of the church that Twilight even opened her eyes. With shaky hesitation, Twilight gently unwrapped her arms from around Saber and slid down onto her own two feet. She wobbled a bit, still shaking off the last remnants of fear from the fall. She slowly steadied herself, taking in several deep breaths of air to calm herself down before finally being able to stand normally. “Feeling better yet?” Saber asked, placing a hand on her hip. “Just... Just warn me next time, okay!?” Twilight asked, turned away from Saber, crossing her arms. “It's easy to forget you're a servant when you're not in your battle attire! My mind couldn't process fast enough that we were going to be fine and... And...” “And you thought I was gonna let us fall to our death.” Saber sighed, shaking her head as she ran her fingers through her bangs. “No, it's okay Twilight, I get it. Just remember, I'm not going to let anything happen to you, okay?” Twilight wanted to sass Saber back, still a little upset with the girl, but it had never been her strong point. Deciding it was better to just let it go, she let out a sigh and turned from Saber, waiting for Spike and Rider to catch up. It didn't take long for the two though, as the sound of Rider and Spike landing behind them made Twilight turn to see their arrival. Spike quickly jumped down from his sitting spot on Rider's arm before walking over to Twilight with a smile. “Well that worked out, we made it here in record time.” Spike chuckled. “Rider may not look it, but she's pretty strong. She can carry me without breaking a sweat.” “That's standard for any Servant darling.” Rider smirked herself, quickly bobbing her long front hair curl with her hand. “But I appreciate the compliment all the same.” “So, the judge for the Holy Grail War resides in there, huh?” Saber asked, crossing her arms as she turned to look at the imposing church. During the day it most likely looked like a lovely place, but at night it had a sense of foreboding and gloom to it. A fence guarded the church's entrance, leading to a short pathway and front yard to the building. The building itself was fairly stereotypical of a modern Christian church. Symbols of crosses adorned in several places, especially on the windows and doors, stained glass windows, and large imposing doors. “Yup, though in all likelihood you'll never get to see inside of it. It's forbidden for Servants to step on church ground.” Spike explained as he walked up to the fence and unhinged it's latch. “The church is neutral ground for all Masters and Servants, so the two of you will just be keeping watch out here, understood?” “But of course.” Rider proclaimed with ease, before disappearing into the aether. Twilight turned to Saber, expecting her to disappear as well, but instead got a nod before she turned to face the road they had traveled to get here. “Come on Twilight, the sooner we talk to him the sooner we can figure out the plan from here.” Spike said with a smile. “And I'll be here for you the whole time, don't worry.” “Alright.” Twilight let out a sigh as she brought a hand up to her blouse and gently squeezed it. She hated going into the church, if she could put off going inside forever she absolutely would. Even stepping past the gate felt like she was making herself walk into her own torture chamber. Spike closing the gate behind her didn't help her feel any less trapped. Spike gently patted her shoulder comfortingly, Twilight giving him a quick nod in reply, before the two of them made their way to the Church's entrance. The walk always felt longer than it actually was to Twilight. Spike reached out and grabbed the large wooden double doors that made up the entrance and gave a heavy push, the two doors opening slowly and with a loud, droning creak. The dim light from within the church came into view, candles lit all along the side walls meeting at a large podium at the front center that held a shrine full of lit candles. The empty pews made the building feel hollow and lifeless, a dull red carpet on the ground leading towards the shrine. A podium stood near the front, the position where the priest would make his sermons. The entire church seemed to exude a feeling of emptiness, as if no human was meant to be there. And standing there, next to the podium with a bible in hand, was the priest of that church and the judge of the Holy Grail War. A man close to middle-age, with gray skin and jet black hair that was slicked back with a greasy hair gel. He wore the usual attire of the church, a buttoned up dark blue suit with matching long pants and a holy cross dangling from his neck. The priest turned his gaze up from his book to the new arrivals that had appeared, his blood red eyes meeting Twilight's. Twilight couldn't help but feel a cold shudder run down her spine as he looked at her. Even when she was younger the priest had always made her feel uncomfortable and unwelcome. She watched a somewhat twisted smile appear on the man's face before he closed his book and placed it on the pew. “Well, this is surprising.” He spoke, walking closer to his two guests. “It has been a while since we last saw each other, Twilight.” “Sombra.” Twilight spoke coldly, not wanting to be in the man's presence for longer than necessary. “And I see Spike is with you as well. Tell me, what brings you two to the church on this fine evening?” Sombra asked with that simple smile on his face. Twilight hated the way he always seemed so condescending, feeling as though the man merely put on a facade to appeal to those who came to see him. There were no words of genuine curiosity behind his question, he was a man who simply asked for clarification of the facts and nothing more. “There's only one reason I came here tonight Sombra.” Twilight spoke coldly, not even bothering to hide her dislike of the entire situation. She reached up to the left sleeve of her blouse and gently rolled it up, before tugging on the cloth just enough to reveal the three red marks in the shape of a star branded to her shoulder. “Well, this is a surprise.” Sombra said almost whimsically, his eyebrows raised at the sight. “The grail chose the current head of the Sparkle family to be a Master in the war. I suppose that is fitting. After all a Sparkle has represented the family in every grail war since it's inception.” Sombra raised a hand to his chin and stroked it in thought. “So you are here to officially register as a Master for the Grail war I presume?” “I haven't decided yet.” Twilight returned, pulling her sleeve back down to cover the marking. “You and I both know I'm not qualified in any way to be a master in this war.” “The only qualification to be a Master in the grail war is to be in possession of command seals, Twilight.” Sombra spoke simply, putting his arms behind his back as he continued that unemotional smile. “Anyone can be a Master so long as their desire for the grail is true. Even someone without magic circuits could compete, so long as the grail chooses them. The grail does not choose it's Masters lightly.” That wasn't exactly the answer Twilight was expecting, or wanted to hear. She had been hoping that it was somehow an error, that something somewhere was mistaken in giving her command seals. However, Sombra made it very clear that her being chosen wasn't an accident. She had been purposefully chosen to be a Master on purpose, but whatever twisted magic dictated the Grail War. “If, however, you would choose not to participate for any reason, that is an option as well.” Sombra explained, making Twilight focus her attention back to him. “It's simply a matter of having your command seals revoked and staying here at the church for the duration of the war.” “So... I'd have to stay here.” Twilight took a quick look around the room, grimacing at the prospect. “And my only other option would be to participate in the war...” “Tell me, have you summoned a Servant already? If you have not, it would be a simple matter of making it as though you had never been chosen as a Master in the first place. The grail will happily choose another to take your place.” Sombra gestured the offer to Twilight, which only caused Twilight to let out a frustrated sigh as she rubbed her forehead. Sombra let out a short chuckle at the gesture, returning his hand behind his back. “Then I take it you've already summoned a Servant. That does complicate things a great deal.” “It's not like I had a choice in the matter...” Twilight muttered under her breath, before glaring at Sombra and speaking up again. “Then tell me, what are the winning conditions for the war? I've done enough research to know that it's generally a death battle, but is killing each other really the only way?” “Well, killing each other is simply the easiest way to win for certain.” Sombra explained coldly. “You could just kill every other Master's Servant, but not only is this not an easy task, it doesn't guarantee the Master's removal from the Grail war. Should there be a Servant who has lost their Master, they could team up with a Master who has lost their servant and rejoin the war. Or you could always try making a master rid themselves of their command seals, however even that does not guarantee their removal from the war. A Servant does not disappear if a Master has no command seals, you simply lose the ability to give them a direct command that they cannot disobey. After all, command seals are the only things stopping a Servant from killing their own Master if they felt like it.” “So... The easiest way to win really is to just kill all of the other Masters...” Twilight responded bitterly, turning away from Sombra. “Staining one's hands red with blood is not uncommon for a Magus. I'm sure this is nothing that comes as news to you though.” Sombra's smile curved up just a notch, enough for Twilight to notice. She gave the priest a death glare, her teeth clenching tight at the sight of his smug smirk. He really made her stomach churn. “There really is no other option then...” Twilight lowered her head as she slowly felt the reality sink in. “If I fight, I have to kill...” “It sounds to me like you've already reached a conclusion on your own.” Sombra turned around, heading for his podium. “All that's left is to say it out loud.” Reaching the stand, he turned to look at the two young adults standing near the entrance. “Twilight Sparkle, will you participate as a Master in the Holy Grail war?” Twilight took a deep breath and squeezed her hands into fists. Spike gently placed his hand on Twilight's shoulder for comfort. She steeled her nerves and lifted her head, glaring at Sombra as she spoke the words. “I will. I will become a Master in this Grail war.” “Very well.” Sombra nodded his head, before extending his arms. “Then all Masters and Servants are accounted for. The Holy Grail war has now officially begun.” “Come on Spike, let's go.” Twilight turned away from Sombra, wanting to leave as quickly as she could now that her business was finished. “If I may say one more thing Twilight.” Sombra spoke, stopping the two in their tracks. Twilight turned back to Sombra with a glare. “You seem to believe that due to your current magical abilities that you're the least qualified to be a Master in this war. However, having watched you grow up with my own eyes, I can attest that you may very well have the greatest potential out of any of the other Masters. Do not count yourself out so quickly, the others have more to fear from you than you do from them.” Twilight let her glare linger, her hands squeezing into tight fists as she heard his words. She whipped her head back around and quickly walked out, Spike following behind her. “Well, at least we got that taken care of.” Spike spoke up first after closing the church's front doors. “I have to admit, I'm a little surprise you didn't take up the offer to stay here and stay out of the fighting.” “Spike... Let me make this perfectly clear.” Twilight crossed her arms, turning away from him so he couldn't see how angry she was. “I would actually rather die than stay within fifty feet of that man.” “...He's your guardian isn't he?” Spike asked looking back at the church then back to Twilight. “You never talk about him though and he never comes over to your house. Did he do something to you?” “I've never liked him, even when I was a kid.” Twilight sighed, turning to face Spike. “He's never done anything to hurt me, but you saw how he was, the way he talks, the way he carries himself. It's like he's always hiding something, like he doesn't really care about what you have to say. He loves to hear himself talk and he loves to think he's right. He's so arrogantly smug about everything, he thinks he's above everyone. I can't stand him.” She shook her head, letting out a sigh and starting walking back towards the church's front gate. “It doesn't matter though. Let's just get out of here.” Spike glanced back at the church one more time before following after Twilight. The church's front gate noisily opened once more as Twilight stepped through, Saber turning to look at the returning masters. “That didn't take very long.” Saber commented, her surprise showing. “I asked my questions, he gave me answers, and then we left.” Twilight shook her head. “I'm ready to go home, get as far away from this place as I can.” Twilight's discomfort with being there was clear. Saber just shrugged her shoulders and started walking away, Twilight and Spike quickly following after. No one really spoke up for a while as they walked, Twilight not feeling like speaking up the most so long as they were still close to the church. The streets of Canterlot were quiet at that time of night, especially in the suburbs area that they were fairly close to. While they were somewhat off the main road, they were heading for it and it wouldn't be much different. Everyone generally went to bed pretty early around the area, be it for work or for school, no one had much to do late at night. It wasn't till about twenty minutes into their walk that someone spoke up. “So... What was the verdict then?” Saber asked once they'd made it a decent distance from the church, having waited long enough to ask what was on her mind. “Are you participating?” “Yeah... Yeah I am.” Twilight responded hesitantly. “ I'm still not comfortable with the idea, but he made it pretty clear that I really don't have the option to comfortably not participate. So, whether I like it or not, I am a Master in the grail war now.” She turned to Saber and smiled, “And I'm going to keep my promise to you about taking the war seriously. Since I'm fighting, we'll be fighting to win.” Saber smirked. “I do like the sound of that.” She said before turning to look at Spike. “Though that does mean that we'll be fighting against those two now. How are we dealing with that?” Twilight stopped walking, Saber stopping with her. Spike stopped as well, as Twilight turned to the boy. Spike blinked a little confused, unsure of what Twilight was doing. “Listen Spike, as it stands, the both of us are now Master's in the Holy Grail war. Since I doubt there can be more than one winner to this war, it stands to reason that the two of us will have to fight for it at some point.” Twilight spoke with natural ease on the topic, a smile on her face. She took a deep breath, and let it out slowly, giving her glasses a quick adjustment before continuing. “However, I see no reason that we have to be antagonistic towards each other to accomplish that goal. As such, I am proposing a partnership. “The two of us will work together with the purpose of eliminating the other Masters from the running. Then, when every other Master has been eliminated, we'll have Saber and Rider fight in an honorable, clean, and fair fight to determine the final winner. No matter which of us wins the Grail war, there will be no hard feelings or anger towards the other. Do you, Saber, and Rider agree to these terms?” Twilight finished laying out her idea. “Heh, thorough as always Twilight.” Spike smirked, placing a hand on his hips. “You know that I have no objections to the proposal. However, how do you feel Rider?” Spiked turned his head to look over his right shoulder at the air. Rider materialized from the aether with a hand on her chin in thought. “Well, I certainly can't say that the proposal doesn't make sense. You two are genuinely friends that care about each other deeply, that much is obvious, and I doubt it's the kind of friendship that even an omnipotent wishing device could break apart.” Rider crossed her arms, turning to Saber and Twilight with a smile. “So long as you two continue to prove you're not the kind to stab us in the back, I'm willing to agree to these terms.” “You're awfully trusting, aren't you?” Saber raised an eyebrow curiously at Rider. “I would like to imagine I've always been a fairly good judge of character.” Rider smirked. “After all, it was that trait that allowed me to eventually become a Heroic Spirit in the first place.” “Be that as it may, I can't say I'm completely happy with the terms.” Saber crossed her own arms frowning. “If I had my way, I would be the one getting the guaranteed victory from this partnership. After all, I have a reason to seek the grail, and I don't intend to yield it to anyone else.” “Don't pretend like you're the only one who has an important wish for the grail darling.” Rider frowned back, “I have a wish that I would consider just as important. In fact, I do believe that every Servant participating feels the same way. And even you have a wish, don't you Spike?” “I do.” Spike nodded his head. “However, I think that Twilight's terms are the fairest shot everyone here has at getting their hands on the grail. While I can't speak for Saber, I don't think the rest of us could live with a guilt-free conscious if we betrayed an alliance like this or stabbed each other in the back in order to get our hands on that wish. So, a truly fair match between Servants as the final round of the Grail War seems to be the best option. Do you not agree Saber?” Saber let out a sigh of frustration. “You make a sound argument. I hate to admit this, but I'm just not the betrayal type. It frustrates me that I can't more soundly secure the Grail for myself, but this alliance is genuinely the best chance for any of us to win the grail.” She glanced at Twilight before looking up at Spike. “So if Twilight thinks this is for the best, I'm going to trust her judgment on this one.” “Then let's make it official.” Twilight smiled, extending her hand to her childhood friend. “Partners?” “Partners.” Spike smiled back as he took Twilight's hand and shook it. It was the first decision of the whole grail war that Twilight felt comfortable with making. She had the feeling that the war was actually going to be possible with Spike and Rider on her side. “Well, isn't that absolutely heartwarming?” A feminine voice broke the conversation. Twilight and Spike quickly turned to the source of the voice, looking up towards the top of the road they had been making their way down. Twilight recognized the girl instantly, the same pink skinned with light purple hair girl that had issued a menacing warning the other day. She was standing there, lit by a street lamp, with a smug smirk on her face. “It's too bad your little 'team up' won't last very long. Not with me around, that is.” The girl raised her right hand before snapping her fingers. From the aether behind her, a massive figure materialized that easily towered over her. Thick, white armor glinted from the street light as it appeared, completely encasing the Servant from head to toe. Golden armor shaped like flames were attached to the Servant's gauntlets, feet, and pauldrons, as well as a regal neck-piece that draped around it's neck and chest. A torn up dull-red cloth hung from it's waist, marked with a faded regal pattern and a dark red aura seeped like a smokey mist from every crevice, every feature of the servant concealed by the bulky armor. “This is where the two of you meet your end. At the hands of my servant, Berserker.” Without hesitation Saber jumped in front of Twilight, her own armor quickly materializing as she summoned her translucent blade. Rider stepped forward as well, a regal purple dress plated with patches of gold armor appearing over the clothes she had been wearing. The dress was regally elegant, three large pleated layers hanging down her sides from where it extended out from her waist, the borders trimmed with a golden color. Three blue diamonds were adorned to the front of the dress, and a regal golden ballroom mask covered her face. “The Grail War hasn't even officially been going on for a day and you want to jump right into the bloodshed huh?” Spike spoke up, glaring at Berserker's Master. “Aren't you even going to dignify us with your name?” “Tell you what, I'll make you a deal.” Beserker's Master mocked, her grin growing broader. “If you survive Berserker's assault, I'll tell you my name.” She raised her right hand and held it open towards the recently made alliance. “Berserker. Kill them.” The giant hulking mass of gold armor let out a terrifying roar, a garbled mess of a nearly human noises that had been mutilated by the raging insanity of the Berserker class. Then, in the blink of an eye it lunged forward, smashing deep craters into the road where it's feet dared to land. Saber let out a battle cry of her own, her body igniting with sparks of fire as her sword became enveloped with her magic, before lunging forward herself. Her sword swirled with a vortex of fire as she focused on her attack, swinging it with incredible force to stop Berserker in their tracks. Berserker's fist came crashing down against Saber's blade, the two colliding and releasing a powerful shock wave, blasting apart the road beneath where the attacks collided. Saber grit her teeth, pushing down on her feet to fortify her stance as she pulled her blade back and swung again for another strike. Berserker's fists moved with uncanny speed, able to match the speed of Saber's blade and slam into it to stop the oncoming assault. A flurry of blows were exchanged in rapid succession, the sound of metal glancing off metal reverberating through the air. Flashes of collision sparks danced through the air with each exaggerated blow, each servant keeping up pace with the other as each refused to let the other gain any ground. Realizing the frontal assault wasn't working, Saber stepped one leg back as the fire surrounding her body flared up, cascading flames quickly rising into the sky. A tornado of fire engulfed Saber, halting Berserker's attacks for just a moment as it hesitated to launch a punch into the hellfire before them. When the tornado broke, Saber was in the air above Berserker, magic pouring into her blade as she launched a downward strike towards Berserker's helm, intending to split it apart with one strike. With blinding speed, Berserker's arm shot up and grabbed hold of Saber's blade, stopping the attack immediately. Saber's eyes widened with shock, before Berserker swung Saber around like a ragdoll and slammed her down hard against the pavement. Saber felt the air escape her lungs as she impacted the ground hard. Berserker's heavy metal foot raised their foot above the ground, Saber only narrowly managing to roll out of the way as the foot came crashing down. Another huge crater opened in the road, spewing cement and rubble in every direction. Saber got up on one knee and quickly jumped away, swiveling to face Berserker with her sword raised. She was already starting to breath heavy, and she couldn't tell if she was making even a scratch on the behemoth's thick armor. Berserker pulled it's foot out of the hole it had made in the road with ease as it turned to face Saber, the undaunted foe seemingly glaring her down despite it's face being hidden. “Twilight, Spike, I think the best course of action right now is for me to aide Saber.” Rider spoke, turning to face the two Masters. “Berserker is tossing her around too easily for her to handle on her own, but this will leave you open to anything Berserker's Master might do.” “Against a Servant we don't stand a chance.” Spike explained before turning to glare at the pink girl who continued to stare with a cocky grin. “But against a Master, the two of us together can hold our own.” “Are you sure Spike?” Twilight asked hesitantly. Her fight against Lancer hadn't been a fight at all, it had been a one-sided struggle for survival. It didn't fill her with confidence that she'd be able to handle a Master. “I'm sure Twilight.” Spike said with a reassuring smile. “You let me lead the assault and you support me from behind. We should be able to take her down easily that way.” “Alright Spike.” Twilight agreed, though she couldn't help but notice that her knees were shaking. The thought of another one-sided fight terrified her, but if Spike was confident she was going to put her trust in him. “Very well. Just remember, if the worst should happen, use a command seal to summon one of us. Don't let yourself get caught unaware.” Rider quickly explained before putting her fingers up to her lips. A high-pitched whistle quickly filled the air, causing a bolt of lightning to suddenly descend from the cloudless sky. The bolt crashed down next to Rarity, illuminating the street for just a moment. When the light faded, a white horse dressed in matching regal armor stood there. Without skipping a beat, Rider quickly mounted the beast, gripping it's reigns in her hands. With a quick snap of the reigns, the horse let out a loud cry and ran towards the fight against Berserker. “Having both of your Servants fight Berserker really is the smart choice.” Berserker's Master chuckled as she watched Rider race towards the fight taking place just off the side of the road now. “However, even with both of your Servants combined, you don't have the stopping power it takes to beat Berserker.” She turned her attention back to Twilight and Spike, extending her right hand out as mana flowed through her magic circuits. “Just like the two of you don't have what it takes to stop me.” In the girl's open hand, a blue orb of magic appeared before quickly shooting out vertically into a long pole. She gripped it firmly, the magic dissipating and revealing a long red twin-pronged lance that was the length of her body. She slammed one end of it down into the ground as a show of intimidation. “Well,” Spike spoke as he stepped forward, his own magic circuits starting to flare, “We survived Berserker's first assault. Will you at least tell us your name?” “I suppose that's fair.” The girl mocked as she swung the lance, holding it out to the side of her body. “Let this information be what you take to the grave. That my name is Starlight Glimmer.” *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Saber slammed her sword down, the ground erupting with a show of force as Berserker jumped to the side, dodging the blow. Her plan was slowly working, Berserker was being pushed away from her Master. She had pushed the behemoth into an empty field that was near the road they had been on that was the perfect place for her to fight Berserker with her full strength. She wasn't happy with the beating she had taken to get the brute to this point, but she was going to take what she could get. Berserker rushed towards her, arm raised to strike at Saber. Saber adjusted her footing and dodged to her right as Berserker swung their arm down, Saber feeling the pressure of the wind coming from the force of Berserker's punch as it missed her by inches. Using the opening, Saber swung her sword up at Berserker's midsection, slashing against the golden metal. Sparks flew off the armor as Saber's sword ran along the surface, though if it had any effect on Berserker the behemoth didn't show it. Without a delay, Berserker's other arm raised and came slamming down, Saber just managing to dodge out of the way as it came crashing down right where she had been standing. Back stepping to gain some distance she looked at the area she had attacked. A barely legible scratch had formed on the surface, causing her to curse at herself. If she was going to do serious damage to Berserker, or even just to the armor, she couldn't go throwing around half-assed attacks. She was going to have to put everything into each and every blow if she was going to start making headway. If worst came to worst, she'd have to unleash her Noble Phantasm. “Over here your massive brute!” Rider's voice called out. Berserker turned it's head just in time to be met with a pair of hooves slamming down onto it's body, pushing the bulking behemoth back. The white horse landed it's back hooves against Berserker's body next before powerfully kicking off and landing a short distance away. Rider turned to look at Berserker, the brute letting out another roar as it's armor seemed to have been dented. “Are you sure it's okay to leave them undefended?” Saber asked, sparing only a moment to glance at Rider. “I told them that if they get into any trouble to use a command seal.” Rider explained, the horse walking at a slow pace around Berserker from a safe distance. “Berserker is a powerful servant, right now it's in our best interest to team up to take him down.” “Don't trust my ability to fight him alone then huh?” Saber chuckled as she tightened the grip on her sword. “On the contrary, I think you'll do fine, but that it might take your trump cards to do so. It's no insult to your strength Saber, but a testament to how terrifying I feel Berserker is.” Rarity's horse came to a stop as Berserker seemed to take several deep breaths, it's dark aura growing more intense as it seemed to consider it's options. “For the most part I agree with you, so I won't take that as an insult.” Saber said, her magic surging and the flames on her sword growing in intensity. “However, don't blame me if you start falling behind.” “Perish the thought darling.” Rider spoke before snapping at her reigns. The white horse stood up on it's hind legs as it let out a whinny, before running off at full speed. Saber readied herself and then rushed towards Berserker, a trail of fire blazing behind her. Berker's entire body began to shake, as they curled their arms around their body. Just when Saber and Rider were about to collide with them again, a roar erupted from the giant, causing their body to shine with magic. Saber and Rider's eyes both widened at the sight, stopping as quickly as they could to jump away as a torrent of magic unleashed straight up into the air. The ground around Beserker's feet disintegrated as a funnel of bright magic erupted from their body. With another shout, the attack ended as abruptly as it started and Berserker launched straight at Saber from a near standing position. Just as Saber landed comfortably on her feet Berserker was right on top of her, the gargantuan Servant bringing its fist down and up, slamming straight into Saber's stomach. Saber's eyes widened as the air escaped from her body once more, pain assaulting her torso as she was launched up by the more powerful Servant's attack. Without giving Saber a chance to recover, Berserker's foot rose into the air and struck Saber in succession, Saber's body crashing and tumbling through the field. “SABER!” Rider cried out, forcing her horse to make a sharp turn without slowing down her momentum. Berserker's attention immediately snapped to rider, one of their fists suddenly glowing with their energy. Rider glared and reached into her dress, pulling out three gems held between her fingers. Berserker rushed forward, arm pulling back to strike Rider. Rider pulled her own arm back and lobbed the gems straight at Berserker. Bright light filled the air, right before each gem exploded with tremendous force. Seemingly unphased by the attack, Berserker burst through the left-behind smoke cloud of Rider's attack and came down on her. The force of Berserker's magic infused fist collided with Rider's mount, the magic exploding upon impact and launching Rider and her mount back. Rider let out a cry of pain herself as she fell from her horse, hitting the ground hard and rolling to a stop. Her ride barreled just next to her, before returning to the aether that it had been summoned from. Berserker let out a steamed breath through the mask hiding its face, before letting out another roar across the field. For the hulking servant, the fight had only just begun. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* The red lance flashed through the air as it swung at it's target, being met with a blaze of green fire that knocked it off it's course each time. Starlight let out a maniacal chuckle as she swung again, only for the same fire to knock her attack away. The flurry of blows were exchanged several times before Starlight jumped back, swishing her lance through the air as she grinned at her opponent. Spike let out a slow breath as he raised his hands up into his fighting stance, the green flames that had been surrounding them quickly vanishing. His entire demeanor had changed the moment he activated his magic circuits, transforming the boy from a kindhearted and somewhat nerdy teen, into a ruthless magi ready for battle. Spike's usually messy green hair had been slicked back, the crests of his circuits had appeared along his arms and legs, sharpened canines had appeared in his mouth, his gentle eyes had narrowed into an aggressive glare, and even his pupils had transformed from their usual dots to snake-like slits. No matter how many times Twilight saw Spike this way, it always left her feeling unsettled. In Twilight's time studying magic, the Draken Family's style of magic was so different from everything she had read. For generations the family had focused on one thing; obtaining the power to match a dragon in combat. They had originally intended to use magic to transform their bodies into dragons, but even for the grandest of mages such a task was impossible. So instead, they focused on making themselves as similar to dragons as they could. The result was a very physical style of combat, where their bodies were augmented and their magic focused on specialized fire spells. At that very moment, Spike was as close to being a dragon as a human could get. In a matter of hand to hand combat, there wasn't anyone Twilight could think of that could match him. That's why in their fight he was leading the vanguard, and she was supporting him from the back. Though, she would use the term 'support' loosely. She was watching Starlight's battle with Spike, looking for any possible opening she could use to assist him. Her assistance at the moment didn't mean much more than using a 'Force' spell on Starlight if her back was open, but she never let her guard down. The few times she thought she had seen an opening in Starlight's attack, Spike had accidentally ended up moving in her line of site, so she couldn't attack. As a result, she ended up feeling more like a helpless bystander than a mage engaged in combat, but she couldn't risk her body collapsing on her and making Spike's fight harder. For now she'd have to endure those feelings and not be a burden on Spike. “Not bad kid, I really wouldn't expect less from the Draken family.” Starlight complimented, giving her lance a quick twirl. “However, I don't think that alone is going to be enough to stop me.” “Starlight Glimmer... Your name rings a bell.” Spike growled, deepening his stance. “The Glimmer family is a famous magi-family back at the Clocktower, aren't they?” “Flattered you've heard of us, though begging for mercy really won't help you now.” Starlight said, lifting her lance and pointing it past Spike and at Twilight. “You won't stand in the way of me killing Twilight Sparkle.” “Me!?” Twilight cried in shock, “Why me!? Spike's a Master too!” “I have my reasons.” Starlight lowered her lance. “Spike will have to die as well of course, he's a Master in the grail war, it's only natural that I kill him to get my wish. However, Twilight is my main objective. Even if I lose the war, I'll be satisfied with her gone.” “Over my dead body.” Spike snarled. “If I must.” Starlight cockily grinned. Starlight quickly lifted her lance, pulling it back and arching her back and shoulders. Spike tightened his stance and grit his teeth, as Starlight poured mana into her arm and carefully took aim. Twisting her whole body and putting every ounce of momentum she could into it, she hurled the lance forward, cutting through the air and sailing not for Spike, but straight at Twilight. Spike's hands ignited in green flames as he launched his arm upwards, striking the lance as it sailed near his head. The red lance was struck perfectly, causing it to fly off into the night sky and away from Twilight. Spike's eyes widened as he realized that Starlight's attack had been meant to distract him, quickly noticing she had closed the gap between them. He tried to back away, but Starlight's arm was already launching an attack. With no time to dodge or block, Starlight's open palm sailed through the air before slamming to a stop inches from his face, a wave of air blasting through him. Confused but still angry, he swiped at the outreached arm, only to find it slipping through his grasp. He blinked in confusion for a moment as he was certain he had judged the right distance to grab her, his heightened senses would've made sure of that. All too quickly Starlight's hand extended again, blasting another wave of air towards his chest this time. In angry retaliation, Spike gathered a large quantity of fire in his hands and slammed them down at where Starlight was standing. A burst of fire exploded around his feet, but his target had disappeared by the time they collided. “What's wrong Mr. Draken? You don't seem to be fighting as well all of a sudden.” Starlight's mocking voice spoke up, and Spike glared up at her. It was then that he realized something was wrong, Starlight wasn't standing still. Or rather, the world was shaking with her. He tried to focus on her, but his vision refused to stabilize, his legs felt shaky and his breathing was growing heavy. “The hell did you do to me!?” Spike yelled, his anger flaring at his own body for refusing to listen to him. “With your senses so heightened by your own magic, it's pretty easy to use a simple disorientation spell on you. A little weakness I picked up about your family while I was researching the war.” Starlight smirked, lifting her hand up as another orb formed before quickly shaping itself into the twin-pronged lance once more. “If you don't adapt quickly, you'll die.” Spike let out a roar of frustration, the animalistic nature of his transformation taking over. The green fire on his hands spread up his arms and flaring around his shoulders. Fire spread around his shoes and up to the knees of his legs. His breath was tinted with the green fire as he glared at Starlight, his rage growing. “I won't let you lay a single finger on TWILIGHT!” Spike roared, rushing forward at Starlight. The girl merely laughed as she brought her lance forward, it clashing with Spike's fists. “Your anger makes you reckless!” Starlight laughed, kicking her leg up high and striking Spike in the jaw. The blow knocked Spike's already disorientated senses around even more, breaking his guard. Starlight quickly spun around, launching a second kick right into Spike's gut. The boy toppled over, letting out a grunt of pain as a third kick sent him flying backwards, landing on the cement ground with a hard thud. Spike let out a groan and a growl as he tried to lift himself up front the ground, only to find searing pain suddenly shooting through his body. Starlight stomped down hard on his chest as she dug her lance deeper into his shoulder, pinning Spike to the ground and immobilizing his arm. “Stay right there for a minute, okay?” Starlight chuckled, turning her attention up to Twilight. Twilight was frozen in terror as she watched the strongest mage she'd ever known and her childhood friend get so easily pinned to the ground by Berserker's master. Starlight gently stepped off of Spike as the boy howled in pain, walking towards her with that awful smirk on her face. Twilight stood in shock and fear, unsure of what to say or do. She needed to launch an attack, she needed to summon Saber, she needed to do something. But she couldn't. Her legs were shaking and her body was struck with terror. Starlight was giving her the same look that Lancer had been giving her. A look of bloodlust and death. Starlight had every intention of killing her. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Saber stabbed her sword into the ground as she got to her knees, spitting out a small pool of blood that had formed in her mouth. Gentle yellow flames had ignited around her body, burning primarily at the spots her body had been injured the most by Berserker's attacks. She made her way on to her feet as she stared at the hulking Servant a good distance from her now. Berserker's kick had knocked her quite some ways, and it seemed that Rider wasn't fairing any better either. Berserker was not the kind of opponent they could go easy on. “I guess I have no choice.” Saber whispered to herself, pulling her sword out of the ground and gripping it with both hands. “The fire hasn't been doing it's job. I don't need an inferno, I need the heat of a sun!” Saber closed her eyes as her magic flared up and flowed into her blade, causing the crystalline blade to shine. Her fire began to circle around her once more, a torrent of wind and fire being churned by her channeling. Her blade began to glow with a white light, heat emanating from it's very essence as it glowed brighter. Sparks of electricity and plasma began to emit from the blade, striking the ground around Saber and igniting the grass it struck. The wind howled stronger and stronger, the fires growing more intense as her blade flared with power. The turbulent winds and the arcing electricity came to a sudden stop as the blade finished charging, a white glowing sword now replacing the formerly clear and crystalline blade. The very air around the blade seemed to evaporate from the immense heat that was being contained in such a small space. None of Saber's actions had gone unnoticed, Berserker having watched this all play out. Saber lowered her blade and channeled some magic into her feet. This time she wasn't going to be taken by surprise, she was going to take Berserker down. With her mind steeled, she rushed forward, rapidly closing the distance between her and Berserker. Berserker widened it's stance, it's foot sinking into the ground as it reared an arm back. Saber was ready for it, using the momentum of her run to ready her blade. Berserker let out a roar as their arm came crashing down, striking down at Saber to take her out. Saber's blade came flying forward, matching Berserker's attack and returning with her own. The blade of light crashed into Berserker's golden fist, the two attacks erupting with a burst of air and sound around them from the sheer magnitude of their power. Berserker roared as their fist pushed against the heated blade, still pouring as much strength as they could into the attack. Saber grit her teeth and pushed back, not relenting on her attack. Berserker's armor cracked first, a severe fissure forming in the glove where Saber's blade collided, before shattering into pieces. Saber's blade flew past Berserker's fist and slashed across the chest plate and upper arm of Berserker's armor, a serious scratch being left behind by the singular attack. Berserker let out a roar as it's other gloved arm came swinging at Saber, only to whiff against the air as Saber jumped out of the way. “So, your armor can be broken.” Saber re-gripped her blade, a smirk forming on her face. “Good. That means I can win this fight.” She knew better than to let her ego get to her head, Berserker wasn't about to be pushed over that easily, but she had a way to break the gargantuan servant's defenses. The fight would be hers once she could start doing serious damage. Saber glanced at the hand that had been freed from the armor, to try and gauge how strong the person in the armor had to be to wield such a bulky attire. To her surprise, the hand in the armor was much smaller than she had been anticipating. The glove she had broken had to easily have been double the size of the hand it had been fitting. In the place of the glove was a small, almost dainty white-skinned hand, with long slender fingers and graceful skin. It was not the kind of hand Saber had been expecting in the slightest within the giant golden armor. Berserker let out a furious roar, a roar angrier than any of their previous ones, causing Saber to jump out of her thoughts and back to the battle. Berserker was charging magic into the fist that still had it's glove, preparing to launch another assault on Saber. However, before the assault could be carried out, several small explosions struck against Berserker's back, knocking it's concentration away. Saber saw a glint of red light flicker in the air before another explosion erupted, causing Berserker to roar out in frustration. Taking advantage of the sneak attack, Saber rushed forward and struck at Berserker, slashing her heated blade up along the length of Berserker's entire body. If not for the armor, the Servant would have been severed in half as a long, damaging gash formed along the armor from the left knee to the right shoulder of Berserker's armor. Berserker's cry rang out as the arm coated in their magic came crashing down towards Saber, but in their haste made it easy for Saber to dodge. The ground exploded from the force of Berserker's impact as Saber landed away from it. Not missing such an oportunity, Saber rushed forward and slammed her sword down onto Berserker's helmet. Saber grit her teeth and poured her strength into finishing it with this attack, aiming to decapitate the Servant. With a final push, Saber's blade sliced through the helmet, opening a gash across the helmet. Saber stared into the open hole of Berserker's helmet, a gash diagonally through the golden armor to see if she had achieved her goal. Through the hole she could only make out one clear detail, the cold emotionless purple eye of Berserker. Realizing the servant wasn't down for the count quite yet, Saber jumped back, feeling the bloodlust coming from Berserker. Berserker stood up, a steaming breath escaping through the holes in their helmet. Saber readied herself for the next assault of attacks, waiting for Berserker to make the first move. However, instead of an attack, Berserker disappeared in a warp of magic, as if they had never been standing there in the first place. Saber's eyes grew wide with realization. That hadn't been a normal teleport spell, it was the kind of distance warping only achievable by command seal. “SABER!” Rider's voice cried out, Saber quickly turning to see Rider racing towards her on her white horse with her hand extended. Realizing that Rider could get them back faster without a command seal, she nodded her head and grabbed hold of Rider's arm as she passed. With the aid of the other servant she quickly jumped onto the back of the moving animal without losing momentum. “That's quite the sword you have there Saber, I can't say I've seen anything like it.” Rider commented, taking just a moment to look back at the other Servant. “Save the comments for when our Masters aren't in danger.” Saber growled, gripping Rider's shoulder harder as the horse raced towards Twilight and Spike. 'Twilight,' Saber cursed in her mind, 'Why haven't you use a command seal to summon me to you!?' *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Twilight couldn't move. She couldn't breathe. Her legs shook as she watched Starlight walk towards her. That cold, callous smile was all she could see as Starlight drew closer. Twilight could feel her heart in her throat, every beat, every pulse of her body. The world felt like it was falling away, the only two things in it anymore being her and Starlight. The world was warping around her, and the only thing she could understand was that she was afraid. Starlight stopped just in front of her, Twilight's breath caught in her throat. Starlight reached out, her hand finding Twilight's throat, and began to squeeze. Twilight let out a strangled cry as her hands reached up and grabbed hold of Starlight's arm, desperately squeezing and pulling at it to let go, but Starlight's hand didn't budge. “You know, I thought I was going to have to kill you with magic.” Starlight coldly laughed, “But you're willing to just stand here and let me strangle the life out of you with my bare hands. I really couldn't ask for a better way to kill you.” Starlight's malicious smile grew wide, that awful menacing grin etching itself into her mind. Twilight struggled to breath, but nothing could enter her windpipe. She really was going to be choked to death, and she wasn't even going to put up a proper fight. Any will to fight that rose within her was immediately stomped out by the reality of the situation before her. She was no match for Starlight, anything she'd do would just be deflected easily. Perhaps it was better to just stop struggling and let herself be taken out. She was already losing consciousness after all, it wouldn't be long before she was gone completely. And when she was gone Spike could take Saber, and with two Servants he'd easily win the war. Then she could stop suffering. She'd be at peace finally. No more days of constant, agonizing and debilitating pain. No more long, tedious doctor visits that just told her everything was wrong with her. No more worrying about trying to be a proper magus or having to kill anyone. She could finally stop worrying about everything. She could finally just be with her mom and dad. She could just be herself. Dying really didn't sound so bad. “LET GO OF HER!” Spike's voice yelled as he tackled Starlight from behind, locking his arms up around hers and pulling her away from Twilight. “WHAT THE?!” Starlight cried in surprise, letting go of Twilight throat as she was pulled back. Twilight collapsed to the ground and coughed violently, her hands quickly moving to her neck where Starlight had been choking her. The world around her spun as her senses violently came back to her, having just been moments away from blacking out. “LET GO OF ME!” Starlight cried out. In response, Spike opened his mouth and bit down hard with his sharpened teeth onto Starlight's shoulder. “AAAAAAAAAAAARGH!” Starlight screamed in pain as she struggled to fight her captor's hold. “GET OFF GET OFF!” Twilight managed to lift her head to look up at the flailing Starlight, still gasping for air as she watched Spike struggle to hold her. It felt unreal, but Spike had just saved her life. It was the second time in two days that someone had come to her rescue in just the nick of time. However, unlike before, the threat wasn't being fought off by her savior, only held back. Despite her mind still feeling fuzzy, Twilight realized that there was something she could do. Quickly raising her hand up, Twilight aimed her hand at Starlight and forced magic into her circuits. She charged up as much as she could, focusing it all into one powerful attack. Starlight's struggle against Spike meant that she didn't realize what was happening until it was too late. “FORCE!” Twilight yelled as loudly as she could, a dark orb shooting out of her hand and colliding hard against Starlight's chest. The powerful Master let out a cry of pain as all the air escaped her body, knocking her backwards with tremendous force. Spike wasn't able to maintain his hold as they flew back. A piece of large debris hit his foot causing him to trip from the upwards force and hitting the ground hard against his back, while Starlight was sent tumbling further back. A sharp jolt of pain shot through Twilight's back, forcing her to lean forward as pain assaulted her body once more. Spike struggled back to his own feet, turning to face Starlight with blood dripping from his mouth. Starlight hissed out a growl, as she quickly staggered to her feet, holding a hand up to her shoulder from the wound Spike had inflicted. “This isn't... How it was supposed to go.” Starlight hissed, clearly having trouble breathing from the force of Twilight's attack. “I should... Unleash everything. Right now. Kill you all.” Starlight growled intensley. “BERSERKER!” She cried out, as a small flash of red appeared from her body. In that next instant, the hulking Servant reappeared behind her, though now far more dented and scratched than when they had first appear. Spike stood up to his knee, ready to use his own command seal to bring Rider back over. “However,” Starlight spoke up, making Spike stop mid-use of his seal, “I've had enough for tonight. What's the point of revenge if I just wipe you out instantly, no bodies left behind?” Starlight spat. She leaned back as Berserker dropped a hand down, before stepping on to it and being lifted up to sit on Berserker's shoulder. “Consider yourselves lucky I chose to spare you today. The next time we meet, you won't be so lucky.” Then, as quickly as she had arrived, Starlight left, Berserker rushing off with their master in tow. Spike stared in disbelief as Starlight fled from the battle. He stared just long enough to be certain she was gone. “Twilight, you alright?” Spike quickly turned to Twilight, staring at his best friend on the ground. “I... I think...” Twilight spoke with hesitation, her hand moving up to her neck and gently rubbing where Starlight's fingers had been. “I'm... Alive at least...” “Twilight! Spike!” Saber's voice suddenly called out, the two of them turning to see Rider and Saber approaching them quickly. Saber jumped from Rider's mount and rushed over, kneeling down next to Twilight. “Twilight, thank goodness you're alright! Berserker just vanished and I feared the worst. What happened?” “The fight didn't exactly go as planned, but Starlight ended up escaping.” Spike said, wiping his mouth of her blood as his magic circuits finally began to calm down, his appearance returning to normal. “It looked like she summoned Berserker using a command seal, but used Berserker to make a tactical retreat instead of attacking.” “We should be thankful then.” Rider spoke up, jumping down from her horse as it disappeared into the aether. “We were thoroughly unprepared to fight Berserker, and a prolonged fight might have gone either way.” “I could have beaten them...” Saber scowled at Rider. “On your own, I have my doubts. If I hadn't been there, the tides of the battle would have been much worse.” Rider crossed her arms as she looked at Saber. “Understand Saber that I'm not saying this because you aren't a powerful Servant, but that Berserker truly is just that powerful of a monster.” Saber could only scoff at the statement before turning to look at Twilight again. She lifted a hand up to Twilight's chin, before noticing the marks around her neck. She reached over and gently touched them, causing Twilight to wince and suck on her teeth in pain. “Twilight, what happened?” Saber asked with a deadly seriously tone, pulling her hand back to not hurt her Master further. “Starlight pinned Spike to the ground and... I just... I just stood there and she... She started choking me...” Twilight looked away from Saber's gaze as she tried to explain. She couldn't look Saber in the eyes as she admitted her weakness. Saber wasn't happy with the answer either. “SPIKE! Oh my goodness Darling, what happened!” Rider suddenly gasped, rushing to Spike and leaning down to inspect his wounds. “Oh, right. Starlight managed to stab me with this weird lance she was wielding.” Spike said bringing a hand up to his shoulder where two holes had been punctured. “However, I don't think she realized just how sturdy I can be when using my magic, so it actually doesn't hurt all that much.” “It doesn't matter if it doesn't hurt! We need to get it taken care of.” Rider fussed, reaching into her dress before pulling out a lengthy handkerchief and pressing it against Spike's puncture wounds. “We need to get back to a safe location so I can properly wrap this for you.” Spike simply let out a sigh of compliance. “My house is closer.” Twilight spoke up, “Let's bunker down there for the night, before anyone else shows up.” “Right.” Saber nodded, quickly grabbing hold of Twilight and picking her up in her arms once more. Twilight let out a squeak as she was picked up. “I-I can walk you know.” Twilight responded, feeling her face flushing from being lifted bridal style once more. “It'll be faster carrying you, come on Rider.” Saber didn't feel like mincing words anymore, and jumped away, Twilight clinging to her Servant tightly as they moved through the air. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* With the Servants carrying them it wasn't a long trip back to Twilight's house, within just a few minutes they had arrived. By the time they had walked in it was already approaching midnight, and a night of rest would do them well. “Me and Rider will take my usual guest room, that alright?” Spike asked as Rider had already gone to Twilight's storage cabinet and was preparing some medical supplies to treat Spike's wounds. “Yeah, that's fine. You two get some rest.” Twilight spoke up, before heading for her own room. Saber simply followed Twilight to her room, entering after Twilight and closing the door behind her. “So uh... Tonight... Could have gone better...” Twilight tried to lighten the conversation a little with a bit of an awkward smile, though Saber merely returned the statement with a glare, folding her arms across her chest. Twilight's smile quickly faded and she grabbed her arm, looking away from Saber, feeling awash with shame and not wanting to look the Servant in the face. “Twilight, why didn't you use a command seal to summon me?” Saber demanded, glaring down at her master. Twilight felt herself shrink under Saber's question. She knew fully why she hadn't, but to admit that to Saber... “I... I was scared...” Twilight reluctantly answer. “Starlight seemed to plow through Spike so easily, there wasn't anything I could do to stop her. You and Rider were busy dealing with Berserker and I... I just... I froze!” “What you mean to say is that you were willing to let yourself die without fighting back because you felt powerless.” Saber scolded her, Twilight flinching at the sharp edge to Saber's voice. Twilight backed up a few steps, feeling her legs growing weak before sitting on her bed. She cupped her face in her hands, unable to deal with Saber being angry at her. Saber saw Twilight falling apart under her anger and let out a frustrated sigh. She walked over to the bed, before sitting down on it next to Twilight. “Look, Twilight, I'm not going to say I'm not mad because I absolutely am. You promised me that when you joined this war that you were going to take it seriously. Not even putting up a fight while Berserker's Master choked you isn't doing that.” Saber's voice had calmed considerably, letting Twilight have a moment to breath. “I know... I'm sorry...” Twilight muttered, pulling her hands down from her face and lacing her fingers together into her lap. “I... I wasn't prepared at all to actually join the grail war. I thought it was something I'd be aware of, but stay out of because I couldn't ever compete. I've just been thrown in head first, being forced to stand up as a Magus for the first time... And I just... When it came time to prove that I really am a Magus, I caved from the pressure.” Twilight lowered her head, closing her eyes. “I'm sure you wish you had any other Master but me...” “Twilight, my only complaints with you being my Master so far is that you just let yourself get hurt. And I can tell by that look in your eye that you think on some degree that you deserve it, or that you think it's better that you got hurt than Spike, or Rider, or Me.” Saber explained, moving a hand over to Twilight's and gently grabbing it. Twilight looked up at Saber in surprise, the fiery red head smiling at her Master. “We need to have a serious talk about the Grail War tomorrow, but right now we need to rest from the battle today.” “Alright.” Twilight nodded with a smile. Satisfied with that for now, Saber returned the smile before standing up and walking over to Twilight's wardrobe, opening the doors. “So,” The fiery redhead asked looking through the various hanging clothes, “You got any spare pajamas that'll fit me?” “Huh?” Twilight blinked in confusion. “Pajamas? But... Aren't you just going to enter your aetherial form for the night?” “Not a chance. After two nights in a row of Servants attacking you, I'm staying right here to make sure nothing else happens to you.” Saber explained, pulling out a combination t-shirt and pajama pants that had hearts decorating the entire thing. Saber couldn't help but suppress a laugh at the sight of them. “Wow Twilight... These sure are some childish pajamas you've got here.” A fierce blush covered Twilight's face as she stood up and rushed over to the wardrobe and yanked the pajamas from Saber's hands. “L-Look, it doesn't matter what my pajamas look like okay!? The important part is they're comfy to sleep in!” “Calm down Twilight, I think they're rather cute.” Saber chuckled, though it didn't calm the raging blush on Twilight's face. “Look, I'll just wear this, alright?” Saber pulled out a loose fitting light purple shirt from the wardrobe. “It's simple, comfy, and uh, no offense to you or anything, but it'll better fit my chest than most of your other clothes.” “Ugh! Fine! If you must!” Twilight said in frustration, storming across her room and into her personal bathroom where she slammed the door shut. She took a deep breath to try and calm herself down, slapping her cheeks as the burning blush refused to fade out. Letting out a frustrated sigh of her own, she tried to move on from the teasing and get dressed for bed. She didn't really have much choice but to change into the heart pajamas she had taken from Saber, but she hadn't lied when she said they were comfy. Once she had finished changing she re-entered her bedroom and walked over to her bed, pulling the covers back. It was then that she noticed that the bed already had an occupant, Saber was sitting up just under the covers on one side of her bed with a book in her hands, casually reading. “W-What-!?” Twilight tried to start a sentence, but only confused jibberish escaped her lips. Saber spared a glance over at Twilight, before looking back down at her book. “The best place for me to be at night is right next to you, so sharing a bed just makes sense.” Saber explained casually as she flipped to the next page in her book. “You'll be the safest with me here, so you'd better get used to it.” Twilight struggled to find words, but nothing came to mind. Saber was sitting so casually in her bed, just saying they were going to share it like it wasn't a big deal that she was going to be sharing her personal bed with someone she had only met the other night! Unable to formulate the words for a proper counterargument and knowing she couldn't just move to a different guest room without Saber following her, Twilight hesitantly pulled the cover back and slid in herself. But not before noticing that Saber was wearing her purple t-shirt, and seemingly nothing else under the cover. “Um... Uh... Um...” Twilight's mouth started again, unable to form sentences as her face turned a deep shade of crimson at the realization that she was laying in bed next to a half-naked beautiful woman who was obliged to obey her every command. “What is it? You seem like you have something you want to say.” Saber spoke up casually, still not looking directly at Twilight as she turned another page. “Is... Is that...” Twilight gulped as she gripped her bedsheets tight, “Is that... What you normally sleep in?” “If you mean do I normally sleep in a shirt and panties, then no.” Saber gently shook her head. “I'm simply wearing this for the sake of your comfort. I would prefer to sleep in the nude if given the option to.” That was Twilight's breaking point. “Oh well that's perfectly normal, haha! I'll be sure to keep that in mind, boy howdy it sure is late and I'm really tired! Good night Saber I hope you have a wonderful rest and be sure to turn the lights off when you're done reading!” Twilight babbled out quickly before slamming her head down onto her pillow and burying herself in a nest of bundled up blankets as she tried not to scream from the embarrassment of everything. Saber merely looked at Twilight and blinked in confusion at the girls reaction. She stared for a minute to make sure her Master was okay, then gently shrugged and went back to reading her book.