Caren had not been surprised in the least when she discovered him outside her door. Altera remained as silent and as intimidating as always, watching the overseer and her Servant like a hawk as the woman led him inside, bringing him to a table and heading to the back to prepare tea. The Servant of the Sword was tense, carefully taking in her surroundings while she stood guard. Though Haru had protested, she refused to enter Astral Form in fear he may endanger himself. She wasn't going to budge on this matter. She did agree to wait outside the room, however.
She wished she had joined her Master shortly after when Archer had attempted to make small talk with her.
"So… you're Master couldn't resist visiting the nun, am I correct?" She asked.
Altera remained silent. She refused to divulge any information to another servant, even if she did belong to the Overseer. Besides, when the war began, Archer would become her enemy. And when that time came, she would end her. That was all she was capable of, and it was what she was good at. Extremely so. Besides, she had no reason to even speak with the Servant whatsoever.
Archer pouted. "The silent type. It figures." she huffed as she kicked her legs, sitting atop one of the beams overhead. "I guess your Master used a catalyst to summon you, otherwise you'd be just as perverted as he is." Immediately, red eyes locked onto her with fingers twitching, tempted to summon her sword. "It's quite easy to see, really. Especially if you have eyes like mine. You know, he really needs to learn how to be subtle when staring at Master's posterior." Archer then sighed, shaking her head. "He has a cute face, but that personality of his needs some work."
Altera remained silent, as much as she wanted to bite back against the woman. Instead, she resigned herself to her position.
She would not give her the satisfaction of reacting to her words.
"So you remain silent still. Very well then." She sighed. "What a boring company."
In her mind, Altera sighed. I hope Master has better luck…
"Here you go." Caren placed two cups, each filled with tea: one for Haru and for herself before she took her seat. "So then, what brings you here, Namikaze-kun? Come to pray?" She gave a coy smile as she took a drink of her own tea. "Or perhaps confessing a lecherous sin?"
"Neither, actually..." He responded as he looked away. Why did she have to add that second part? "I couldn't sleep. So I thought I would visit Asia."
Caren hummed while she leaned back, tilting her head. "Let me guess... You couldn't sleep because either A: you wanted to thank her for fixing you up, or B: why a nun like her would be coming to a horrible church such as this?"
"A little of both, actually." Haru didn't really want to be suspicious of Asia. She looked quite kind and gentle, if he was being honest. Then again, he once thought the same of Raynare before she revealed her true nature. "And I was a bit curious. That light she used... Was that magecraft?"
"No, it was not." The woman shook her head. "It was due to a Sacred Gear, similar to the one in your arm." Haru glanced down to his left hand. So Asia had a Sacred Gear that could heal people? That was pretty amazing. "It is called Twilight Healing. It is a Sacred Gear designed to heal all living beings. However, it is unable to cure diseases or restore lost limbs."
"Of course, it can reconnect severed limbs. Restoring lost organs is also a lost cause." Caren stopped very briefly, taking a drink from her own tea and sighing in wonder, noting how amazingly she had done this time before continuing. "Argento was once revered as a Holy Maiden by the Vatican because of this amazing power. A literal gift from God. She was but an orphan when she was found, abandoned and lost to the elements and left to die by her own birth parents. When the Church took her in, she was raised by their religion. Twilight Healing, no sooner had it manifested, had brought the Church great prestige. In a sense, they used the poor girl to bolster themselves while she did so simply because it was her calling."
Haru frowned in distaste. He never considered himself religious. In fact, he was rather bored of it, especially with how much Shidou's parents rambled on and on about it. However, hearing how the Church had more or less used Asia for their own purposes and increased their reputation made him uncomfortable. For some House of God and believers of the Lord, they sure are greedy. he thought, not missing the dramatic irony in that statement as he drank from his cup. "So then... If the Vatican valued her, why'd she get sent here? I mean, the church here hasn't been used in years. Don't really see the point in fixing it when the Overseer hasn't."
"How rude." Caren huffed. "I've been fixing it. It's merely a slow job. As you said, it hasn't been used in forever. To answer your question, however, she wasn't sent here to maintain it. She was sent here by the Grigori to be used by Raynare and her cohorts."
At the mention of Raynare, Haru felt his body run cold. Had he been holding his cup and bringing it to his lips, it would have shattered to the floor. Instead, it nearly tipped over from its saucer as he stared at Caren, slaw-jawed. "W-What...?"
"One day, Argento was found healing a Devil in Vatican Territory. When it became clear that Twilight Healing could heal not only humans, but also Devils and possibly other supernatural creatures, the bishops in charge accused her of being a witch and Twilight Healing a heretical Sacred Gear. Not long after, she was excommunicated. She was only recently taken in by the Grigori."
"But… that's fucking bullshit!" Haru stood up from his chair in a rage. "All because she healed a Devil, those bastards kicked her out?!"
"Unfortunately, that is simply how corrupt the Vatican has become today. Fortunately though… an Executor of the Church's Black Sect is thoroughly investigating the matter." Caren responded coolly. "Although, it appears highly unlikely for Argento's sentence to be receded given the finality of her judgment. If it's any consolation, when the Executor finds sufficient evidence, the bishops responsible will face retribution."
Haru gritted his teeth, hands curled into fists. Caren's answer did little to satisfy him. He didn't know why, but hearing how Asia had been excommunicated after being put on a pedestal and used for personal gain sickened him. The idea just set him off. He felt his hand run hot, though it was not from a Command Seal. Rather, it came from instead the soft green glow in his hand. His anger must have showed on his face, as when he managed to calm down somewhat, he found Caren looking at him in wry amusement.
"My my. I half-expected you to take a bit after Tohsaka, but you take more after Emiya, don't you?" Haru felt his jaw become unhinged as he stared at Caren with large eyes. The woman smirked. "Ah, Einzbern didn't tell you? Due to a certain series of events after the Fifth Grail War, I happened to come under the care of Shirou Emiya. Had I told him Asia Argento's circumstances, he would have had the same reaction as you do right now."
"Do you… do you know where my grandpa is right now?" He asked her.
Sadly, to his disappointment, Caren shook her head. "I'm sure Einzbern's told you, but Emiya-kun disappeared when Matou Sakura vanished without a trace. The last anyone's heard of him was in Kyoto, however that was only a few months after Matou-chan's disappearance."
"And he's never turned up since then?" Haru questioned.
She shook her head.
"No. Tohsaka has been looking for him ever since he disappeared. As one of the three victors of the Grail War, there are few in both the Magus Association and in the Church who don't know the name Emiya Shirou. I've also been using some of my own connections to try and find him, but there's still nothing. It's almost as if he doesn't want to be found."
The redhead frowned heavily. "Doesn't… want to be found?"
"He is a strange individual in that aspect." She answered. "In the past, he would go off to far corners around the world to help people, no matter who they were. He strove to be a Hero of Justice. Quite a ridiculous endeavor, but it was a belief he lived by. And most likely, he is remaining under the radar in order to save Matou-chan."
"But..."
Caren sighed. "It's quite troublesome, trying to understand what goes on inside Emiya-kun's head." she told him. "In the meantime, why don't you go check up on Argento? I'm sure she'd appreciate a familiar face."
"Okay..." He wanted to know more about his grandfather, but it looks like Caren wouldn't be saying anymore. He still felt sour. The more he learned about his grandfather, the more confused he felt. Just what happened to Matou Sakura, his other Aunt, that made him leave to go find her? Why hadn't he done anything to contact his family? The more he thought about it, the more his head hurt. Eventually, he sighed and followed Caren's suggestion. Drinking the last of his tea, he stood up and left the room. As he did, Altera had a mental sigh of relief, realizing she was finally free from Archer's insistent conversations and followed him out. Archer rolled her shoulders, having found the Saber's company a bit boring before she leaped off the rafters and returned to Caren's side.
"So, how did your talk go?" Archer asked. "I assume it was mostly about either this Shirou person you mention a few times or the nun."
"A bit of both." Caren answered. "He does know the circumstances behind Argento's stay here, though." The woman took another drink from her cup, though as she brought it back down to the saucer, her eyes narrowed. "By the way, Archer..."
The Servant smirked. "Yeah... Looks like that lousy priest decided to start the war early."