fate/hentai

Chapter 0 - Irisviel's Hot Spring

Irisviel von Einzbern was no longer in the Einzbern castle, and, thus, it made her wonder whether or not she should retain the name she currently bore. After all, it was a means of signifying where she was from… And, yet, she was now somewhere else.

Having moved, Irisviel was living somewhere distant from her home, as well as from all those who would have shared the name she bore. All, except her daughter, Illyasviel. Though, the more she thought about it, the more unwilling to part with that name she was. It was not purely a means of identifying where she was from, but who she was. She was one of the Einzbern hummuncili, and, thus, she was Irisviel von Einzbern.

It was as simple as that – her people were the Einzbern, and she would bear the name von Einzbern. And yet it seemed more complex, as well. She no longer lived among the Einzbern. Her people were no longer around her, and she was no longer among them. In a sense, she did not belong to them, anymore, and they did not belong to her.

These thoughts plagued Irisviel’s mind as she wandered through the rooms of her new home – which was a castle in its own right, even if lacking towers and walls of stone. She was making sure to inspect every little thing, just to be certain that nothing was missing and everything was in its place. That was not a mentally taxing endeavour, and, as a result of it, she would occasionally glance around, taking pleasure in the knowledge that this was her home now.

And then, through the window, in the yard opposite of hers, she saw someone doing something. He seemed to be mowing the lawn, but that was not important – what was important was that it was a person – another individual, who had lived here longer than her. In a sense, he was part of the community that she had joined, and yet she had yet to truly become part of it.

Much like she had been, and still was, in a sense, von Einzbern, that man was of this neighbourhood. He was probably decently well known around, had friends, and the neighbours knew him for a set of reasons. Her… Well, they probably had a general idea of her due to the fact that she had just moved in.

An idea brewed up within her head – why not make it so she was known for other reasons as well? Make herself part of this community, too. After all, she would be living here, together with her daughter. There was no reason not to become a part of this neighbourhood.

Irisviel von Einzbern, suddenly completely satisfied with what the moving crew had done, walked through the rooms until she reached the entrance, put her shoes on and waltzed outside. Along the quaint little path she went, until she reached the sidewalk, and then, following said sidewalk, she approached the house next to hers – the one wherein lived that young man who had been mowing the lawn.

She stood in front of the door and, momentarily, found herself feeling very coquettish. Was her appearance in order, she pondered, as she ran a hand through her long, silver locks, making sure there were no stray hairs sticking out. She pulled at her burgundy blouse, smoothed up her white skirt, and found the doorbell. Ringing it, she made a step back and placed her hands together.

A moment later, she heard a voice calling from somewhere beyond the door, though it was quite distant and muffled, as a result of which she did not manage to make out what, exactly, was said. But, reasonably assuming that it was a statement informing her to hold on for a moment, made her feel comfortable enough with doing just that – waiting for a few seconds.

The door opened and that same individual, who had been mowing the lawn, appeared. His pants had a bit of green on them, because of the streaks of grass that had splattered over them at high velocity, but, other than that, there was nothing truly remarkable about him. He seemed to be young – about as old as Illyasviel, judging by his appearance.

“Can I help you?” He inquired. And, as with his looks, his voice was not something totally unique. She nodded.

“Hello, my name is Irisviel von Einzbern, a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I just moved in in the mansion to the right of here, and I was wondering if you would want to come over this afternoon to get to know one another, seeing as we will be neighbours henceforth?” She offered her hand, though he did not take it.

“Ah, apologies, I’m dirty from yard work.—” He said as he showed her the palm of his hand – covered in dirt and grass streaks, a smile on his face. “—That’s a really kind offer, but—”

Interpreting that ‘but’ as a potential declination of her offer, she quickly thought up a solution.

“I happen to have a hot spring on my property – I would not mind it if you took a dip.” She interrupted him, cocking her head to the side. Irisviel really did want to have this go through well, and, by the looks of it, her addition to the initial offer had sweetened the deal.

“Oh! Really?—” He asked, and she nodded. “—That’s just great! Well, of course, then, I’d love to come over. How does half past five sound?”

“Half past five is just perfect.” Informed the silver-haired woman, a smile appearing on her face as he turned out to be in agreement.

She returned to her home and got to work, making sure everything was as presentable as it needed to be. Fortunately for her, it had already been more than just presentable, but pristine, and so there was not much housekeeping for her to do.

Irisviel spent most of the day getting ready for this little event, and, when the time came, she was pleasantly surprised to find him arriving exactly at half past five. He had put on a semi-formal attire, which was more than agreeable, and they exchanged some pleasantries. She allowed him to call her Iri, as, apparently, calling her Irisviel was a bit too difficult for him – which was understandable, he was not from her country of origin.