Irhaboggle Pride (2022) Gaylor Swift's Version

Everything Has Changed, Begin Again

CW: References to sexual assault in the 3rd section. Nothing graphic, just mentions, but feel free to skip it (or the whole fic) if you want.

Sakura took a deep breath and slowly willed herself to look in the mirror. She didn't always like what she saw there, but today, she seemed...passable. Her purple hair hung down, a red bow on the left side. Instead of a school uniform, she wore a plain, simple, white dress with a thin black ribbon tied around the waist. It wasn't much, but then again, nor was she. The most "exciting" thing she felt brave enough to wear was an old pair of high heels. She knew he wouldn't approve...but...she liked them...

She arrived to one of the quieter parts of town, a local teashop. Rider was supposed to meet her there, but she was sure the other woman would be late. Nobody ever arrived on time for anything Sakura wanted to do. But she was used to it by now. She certainly wasn't worth rushing for, so she couldn't hold it against Rider. Really, it was incredible enough to think that the other woman didn't mind eating out with her. But, to her surprise, the moment Sakura stepped into the shop, she saw that Rider was already there. Even though Rider wore a blindfold, she could still sense where Sakura was and waved to her.

She led Sakura to an empty table right by a window where they could admire the lovely day. She pulled out a chair and helped Sakura in.

"Oh! R-Rider, you di-didn't have to..." Sakura immediately started blushing as she felt Rider's strong, but gentle, hands guide her.

"I'm sorry, it is an old habit, I suppose," Rider withdrew her hands.

"N-no wait! I didn't mean it like that!" Without thinking, Sakura reached out and grabbed Rider's hands. Rider made a noise of surprise and Sakura felt herself turning redder. Oh, gosh, this was so embarrassing! Couldn't she do anything without being so...humiliating?

"S-sorry..." She dropped Rider's hands again.

"Don't apologize, Sakura," Rider's low, calming voice instantly wiped away some of Sakura's fears. "I did not mean to imply that you were unable to seat yourself. As I said, although I know you and I are not master and servant anymore, I still feel a strong desire to...take care of you."

"Take care of me?" Sakura echoed, breathing the words as if she barely dared speak them. When she'd reacted with such a shock to Rider's touch, it wasn't because she was insisting she didn't need help sitting down. It was just because...Sakura looked up at Rider, eyes still wide with wonder. You don't know how nice that is...But I do...

They enjoyed a pleasant teatime together, just chatting about everything and nothing. Rider told Sakura some of her stories from before she became a Heroic Spirit, and Sakura tried to come up with interesting things to tell Rider about school. She felt woefully inadequate beside a literal, actual Heroic Spirit when all she was was just a girl in high school, but Rider encouraged her over and over again. She said that she found the stories very interesting. After all, as a Heroic Spirit, that meant Rider never got to experience things like high school, so what Sakura considered painfully boring about herself, Rider listened to with great intrigue and surprise.

There even came a time when Sakura told a funny story, hoping that at least Rider wasn't secretly bored to death. When Rider actually threw her head back laughing, Sakura was so stunned that she forgot how to speak for a moment. And even when her words returned to her, she'd entirely lost her previous train of thought. All she could think was, It's strange that you think I'm funny 'cause no one never did before. Especially not...Him. She'd spent the last eight months since the Grail War ended thinking that all love ever did was die, but on that Wednesday, in the café with Rider, she watched it begin again.