Fate / Sacred Fire

Chapter Thirty One

Deep within Jun's subconsciousness, he unexpectedly met a woman who he holds dear to him: His mother. She had shoulder length hair and looks similar to Jun. At first, Jun was hesitating to say anything but his mom simply continues smiling at him. After a moment, he finally muster the courage to finally speak.

Jun: M-Mom...? Is that really you?
Woman: Why? Don't you recognize your own mother?
Jun: No, i-it's not that. It's just....just....
Woman: Just what?

Jun thinks for awhile and realize that he has forgotten what he was thinking about.

Jun: Huh? What was I going to say again? I...can't remember.
Woman: You don't need to remember anything dear. All you have to know is that I'm here now. Mommy will take care of everything. You don't need to fight anymore.
Jun: I...can stop fighting?
Woman: That's right. Just stop fighting. Easy, right? (smiles)
Jun: Yeah. You're right. I just need to stop. Frankly, I'm kinda tired.

The woman opens her arms that tells Jun to give her hug. He slowly walks toward her waiting arms while showing a blank look on his face.

Woman: Oh, my poor little Jun. It must have been really hard on you. But you don't have to worry about anything anymore. Now, give your mother a warm embrace.
Jun: Y-Yes, mom....(murmurs)

Jun was only inches away from making contact with the woman's arms. At the last second, a glowing but transparent hand grabs Jun by the shoulder, preventing him from moving. This snaps him back to his senses as he turns around. To his surprise, standing behind him was another woman who looked just like her mother. Like her hand, her entire body was transparent yet glowing.

Jun: Mom...? Th-There's two of you?

She smiles and shakes her head at Jun before turning her attention to the other woman in front of her son, who had an annoyed expression on her face.

Woman: How did you get in here?

The woman by Jun's side turns into a cloud of blue mana particles. They then violently swirl around the other lookalike. Moments later, her disguise wears off and it reveal that it was actually Valerie. With her trick gone, she resumes her emotionless expression.

Jun: V-Valerie...!

With a wave of her hand, the mana particles disperse in all directions. It was just then that Jun realized that it was actually her real mother who saved him.

Jun: What did you do to my mother?!
Valerie: Judging from your reaction, you have no idea that your mother is from a family who uses magic.
Jun: What?
Valerie: I'm inside your head, Jun. Its easy for me to go through your memories. But since she has appeared, it won't be long before she strikes again. My plan was to brainwash you from the inside but it failed.

Starting from Valerie's feet and going upwards, her body was slowly disappearing.

Valerie: We'll finish this back in the real world. Don't be late or your Servant will have to fight me and Victor.
Jun: Wait a minute! What about my mother?!

Valerie doesn't answer as she completely disappears. Jun hangs his head and was confused. While he was lost in thoughts, he notice something glowing in front of him. He looks up to see a blue, glowing butterfly. Before he could say anything, a voice coming from the butterfly calls out to him. The voice of his mother.

Woman's Voice: Jun. Can you hear me?
Jun: M-Mom? Please tell me that it's really you.
Woman's Voice: Oh don't worry. It's really me, Jun. (chuckles)
Jun: What just happened? I saw you and then you turned into mana and then Valerie did something and...and---!
Woman's Voice: Hush. It's alright. First of all, you need to calm down. I'm not going anywhere until you're satisfied, okay?