Mahoraga In Fate/Stay Night

I AM

Azrael didn't come to school today, and I wondered for quite some time why she wasn't here. She never gets sick, so I hoped it wasn't anything serious.

The school bell rang, signaling the end of the day. I started gathering my stuff from my locker, and when I closed the door, a voice called my name.

"Hey there, silly goose." It was Azrael. For a moment, I thought I was seeing a ghost.

"What the.. Azrael... you're not sick?" I asked, worried.

"Well, technically I am, but I came over to tell you some important stuff." She brushed off the fact that she was supposed to be home.

"Your dad told me to tell you not to come home today because... well, your mom is coming over," she spoke sympathetically as my mood dropped. Remembering that Bitch made my blood boil

"Soooo, I wanted you to come over to my place for the time being," she offered.

"...Fine. Let's buy something for your cold on the way back," I said as we walked toward my car together.

"Eh, let's buy some burgers somewhere instead," she said, making me question her priorities.Driving toward the nearest burger restaurant, we sat down and both ordered cheeseburgers with some fries and drinks. She chose Pepsi for some reason, and I got my usual Dr. Pepper.

"How are the finals treating you?" she asked while we waited for our food.

"Terrible," I answered right away, tapping my toes on the floor repeatedly.We got our drinks and food a few moments later and started eating. The feeling from earlier eased a bit as we focused on our meal.

As we dug into our food, I glanced at Azrael. Despite her saying she was sick, she looked surprisingly okay, just a bit tired around the eyes.

"So, what's the important stuff you needed to tell me?" I asked between bites of my cheeseburger.

Azrael took a sip of her Pepsi before responding. "It's about your mom. She's not just visiting; she's trying to get custody of you."

I nearly choked on my food. "What? But why now? She hasn't cared about me for years."

"I don't know all the details, but your dad is fighting it. He didn't want you to come home today because there's going to be a lot of arguing and paperwork. He thought it would be better if you stayed out of it," she explained.

My mind raced. My mom, who had been absent for so long, suddenly wanted to be a part of my life again? It didn't make sense. "What do you think I should do?" I asked, seeking Azrael's advice.

"I think you should stay at my place tonight and give your dad some space to handle things. You can talk to him tomorrow when things have calmed down a bit," she suggested gently.

I nodded, feeling a mix of anger, confusion, and sadness. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks, Azrael."

We finished our meal in relative silence, the weight of the conversation hanging over us. After we were done, we got back into my car and drove to her house. The drive was quiet, each of us lost in our thoughts.