⚔ 022; [action]

[croibhristeoir]

[So she was gone. Or at least, Diarmuid couldn't find her. If she was dead...shouldn't she have come back by now? How long had it been? He honestly didn't know, but he knew it hurt terribly.]

[He was lonely. No, maybe he'd always been lonely to some extent, since his summoning or even well before that. And the only one who could ever relieve that pain was one who understood him, one who believed in the same ideals he did and fought with him as though they were but one individual. Though he had put aside his emotional attachment to Arturia, 'Lancer' could not deny his connection with 'Saber' and would never try. Without her now...there was a distinct empty sensation within him now, like his heart had suddenly disappeared from his chest.]

[Diarmuid could be found lingering around various places in Prospero that day--the bookstore, the park, the hotel and everywhere in between--and though he did his best to conceal it the lingering sense of unhappiness was clear in every inch of his demeanor.]

Comments

[unknownrival]

...Niisan. Nice to see you.

[Issei looked fairly glum himself when he found him at the bookstore.]

[croibhristeoir]

Hm? Oh, hello, Issei. You don't look well.

[unknownrival]

Vriska went home.

[croibhristeoir]

Oh...I'm sorry. Are you alright?

[unknownrival]

I'm fine. She has better things to do there.

[croibhristeoir]

If you're certain of that.

[unknownrival]

It would be selfish to wish her to stay.

[croibhristeoir]

...if there's one thing I've learned, it's that being selfish now and again is no terrible thing.

[unknownrival]

It isn't... but I still can't bring myself to do it now.

[croibhristeoir]

I understand.

[action]

[emptysword]

[He was just standing around at the park, looking at the children playing with each other, smiles on their little faces.

Ever since she left, he'd been trying to get himself together, as well as trying to piece together on what really happened to her.

So far, the only thing he and Lancer came up with were only:
-She's either kidnapped, or
-She's dead.

The only problem would be to find the motif, as well as the person who has said motif.

He was about to head back to their apartment when he spotted a certain someone.]

...Yo.

[unknownrival]

...Saber's not back, is she.

[action]

[croibhristeoir]

[Diarmuid would have been lying if he said he didn't suspect Kiritsugu, and of course he never lied. It wasn't likely, no, but who else was there? Who else did she disagree with so strongly that such a thing could be the conclusion? Sola would not have dared to lay a hand on her again, and Kayneth wouldn't have gotten his hands dirty if he even had a reason to.]

[None of it made sense.]

...Good afternoon.

[croibhristeoir]

...not yet. Something's wrong.

[unknownrival]

What could it be... How long has it been?

[action]

[emptysword]

You doing alright?

[It was a rhetorical question. Of course both of them aren't, he's just stating it because its polite and what he usually says to people he meets.

Diarmuid notwithstanding, of course.]

[croibhristeoir]

[Flatly:] Too long.

And her phone still works.

[action]

[croibhristeoir]

I'm still alive, so for now I can count that as a victory.

[Cold? Maybe a little. If something had happened to Saber, then they were both to blame for this. So of course he was irritated.]

[unknownrival]

So she hasn't gone home. The week missing isn't a constant, as I remember that it's been two weeks before.

[croibhristeoir]

But it's far more common for it to be just a week than the alternative.

[unknownrival]

That doesn't mean it's not a fluke. It would still mean that she was killed, and that is the problem we should focus on, but she will be back.

[action]

[emptysword]

...hm.

[Ever since the call, Shirou unsurprisingly found that their relationship is yet again on a rocky straits. Diarmuid was Saber's left hand, and Shirou was her lover.

Naturally, letting someone does away with her under their noses are a huge blow to their prides as men.

...and their respect to each other probably.]

Have you found any leads yet?

[action]

[croibhristeoir]

Only my own suspicions. I can't say I've uncovered anything of note or substance.

[croibhristeoir]

And what if this persists with no sign of her?

[unknownrival]

We are going to find the cause. Don't fear that.