[open] (jenna marbles voice) no one can stop me

[fujimaru]

[[ I don't have a musebox because I only play one or two characters at a time and also thinking up usernames is hard. So let's call this an open post to function as a CMO for Ritsuka, such as people may want it. (•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑ ]]

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[fujimaru]

[ ALL DREAMS END EVENTUALLY. No matter how nice or how satisfying they might've been, they end. Ritsuka's always known that.

So one day, she wakes up in her bed in Chaldea with apparently only a couple of days having passed (funny that), and the knowledge that there is a minute Singularity in Heian-era Kyoto for them to deal with--but hey, she gets a couple of new Servants out of it! Including a weird clown!

And then from there, let's assume that Yu Mei-ren, on a whim (and perhaps some bad influence encouragement from aforementioned weird clown) and a randomly-found Holy Grail, decides she wants to have a little honeymoon joyride with her beloved Xiang Yu in the era they lived in. Through circumstances that do not need to be explored at this juncture, this apparently involves a dragon's lost pearl and increasingly ridiculous demands from Yu Mei-ren about the ultimate honeymoon experience! Only the best for Lord Xiang Yu!!

Anyway. Sometimes you go off on your own because you need to escape while people are arguing about what really counts as "properly lovelove honeymoon style" before someone inevitably tries to loop you in. That way only lies madness.

But also that means you are completely on your own when the inevitable enemy mob ambushes you. Sucks to be Fujimaru Ritsuka, but this probably means this is a great time for a random out-of-nowhere rescue, huh? ]

[lifeban]

[it SURE IS.

dan heng is in his subtler form, with clothes less anachronistic for the Singularity-- he's been genuinely trying to blend in. but he's still clearly himself, even in swift motion as he dispatches the enemies.]

[fujimaru]

[ GOOD JOB RITSUKA, YOU MANAGED TO NOT DIE YET AGAIN,

she'd been about to say something when he first appeared, and then she'd seen him, and then freezes up. ???????????? it's a good thing he's handling things because she's useless even after the fight is over. ]

Dan Heng...?

[lifeban]

[there are a few lingering, likely harrowing moments where dan heng is silent, as he scans their surroundings for any signs of lingering danger

then he's whirling on his heel to take her face in both hands.]

Ritsuka?

[fujimaru]

[ please she's a tiny vibrating supernova right now

there's a second where she just stares, then lifts her hands to cover his. ]

Wait--wait, are you real? Seriously?

[lifeban]

You do remember... thank goodness.

[stroking her cheeks with his thumbs. warm and real.]

[fujimaru]

I always remem...

[ she can't even finish the sentence. she slides her hands down to cling to his wrists instead, her voice wobbling dangerously. ]

But--wait, how--when did--you're not--??

[lifeban]

[tipping his head just slightly in question, but he's loathe to interrupt or press her, far more focused on getting a sense for her health.]

[fujimaru]

[ she's about as healthy as can be expected, in a situation like this: still hovering just short of uncomfortably thin, her mana reserves simultaneously stretched too far and being bolstered by something larger than herself. the FATE system is in full effect here to take most of that burden.

but all she manages is a watery laugh, blinking hard against tears. ]

I kind of wondered if I'd just imagined you.

[lifeban]

...I'm real. And I promised.

[leaning in to brush a light kiss to her forehead.]

[fujimaru]

[ THAT'S COOL SHE'S COOL SHE'S A CALM AND COLLECTED INDIVIDUAL--

no that's a lie. she takes one very shaky breath, then bursts into tears, going up onto her toes to throw her arms around his neck, clinging. ]

I really--!! I missed you...

[lifeban]

[he scoops her up so she doesn't have to stretch so hard, a strong forearm supporting her ass without rudeness as his other hand threads into her hair, and he holds her close.]

I missed you too.

[fujimaru]

[ cool cool cool she is just clinging to him with all her strength, and pressed up this close it's obvious she's struggling not to just dissolve into pure hysterics. ]

When did you--where did--you're not even from here.

[ she's very eloquent. ]

[lifeban]

I was looking for you. This... felt closest.

[fujimaru]

Looking for me?

[ that is not the answer she was expecting. there's a pause, and then she leans back just enough to peer at his face, bemused. ]

This isn't even technically the right timeline... how long were you looking?

[lifeban]

A while.

[lightly. tone even. nothing sus here.]

[fujimaru]

[ that is the MOST SUS of all. ]

...how long is "a while," Dan Heng.

[lifeban]

I've found you, so it doesn't matter.

[squeezing her tighter.]

[fujimaru]

[ avoiding answering is only more sus!!

but also, she cannot actually help herself from leaning in for the hug. ]

...is this one of those things where if I find out, I'm going to be upset?

[lifeban]

...Yes.

[fujimaru]

...

[ she takes a DEEP BREATH, then reaches up to take his face in her hands, a mirror to what he did earlier. ]

How long, Dan Heng?

[lifeban]

[fuck.

keeps his tone very even.]

...Eighty six years.

[fujimaru]

[ what ]

What?

[ what ]

[lifeban]

Timelines aren't consistent. Especially with your world...

To call getting even this close to you a one in a million gamble would be an understatement. So I stayed.

[fujimaru]

But that's--

[ for a moment she's gripping his face too hard, and then she forces herself to loosen the grip, though she doesn't let go. the horror of that is both immediately obvious and slow-blooming. ]

I'm barely twenty! That's so long--and this place isn't--why?