Fate: Ideal Balance

Robin sulks through the halls of her home. The sound of celebration and music emanates from the walls in every direction. Her brother, Hawk, was going to join a war. Well, as their adoring parents put it, win a war. As if. He may have been born gifted, but he wasn’t a talented strategist. He thinks he can get by on his good looks and strong magic alone… So far it’s worked out in his favor. Robin audibly grumbles and turns a corner only to bump face first into someone's chest.

“Excuse m-”

“Watch where you’re going, you… oh. It's you, Robin.” Robin steps back, rubbing her nose. Hawk stands before her with two other women at his sides. “Where ya going, Robin? Party’s the other way. You haven't forgotten about the toast mom’s going to give, have you?”

Robin huffs in annoyance. “No, I haven’t. I have better things to do than drink alcohol and chat to suck-ups.”

Hawk laughs. “Like what? Homework? Practicing your lame magic? I haven’t seen you cast a good spell since I graduated.”

“Because you’re too busy fucking your side bitches and conning rich people for money.”

One of the two women straightens, offended, but the other one’s smile widens a little.

“Maybe if you weren’t born weak you wouldn’t have to worry about as much as you do.” He leans down so that they’re face to face. She hated when he did that and he knew it. “Hey, if you just hung around me more and did a little name dropping I think you’d get a little further in life. Do yourself a favor and stop being so stuck up.”

“I’m good. Thanks.”

He stands back up and pats her head. She cringes. “Whatever, sis.” He pulls at her hijab. “Hey why do you still wear this thing? We’re not in India anymore and dad isnt here to make you follow those boring traditions.”

She swats away his hand. “I feel more comfortable wearing it around strangers,” she says flatly.

Hawk looks at the two women at his sides. “Hey, don’t be rude. They-“

“I wasn't talking about them.” She doesn't break eye contact with him.

Hawk takes a moment as if he almost doesn’t understand. And then it clicks and he bursts out laughing. “I can always count on you for a good laugh, Robin!” He walks past her, still laughing. “Oh hey,” he shouts over his shoulder, “we’re gonna do the summoning after the toast! Why don’t you go get the catalyst. I forgot it in my room after we, uh… introduced ourselves to each other.”

Her stomach turns. “Sure.”

“Great. Put it at my table. Oh, and maybe don’t bother coming to the toast. I think you’d just spoil the mood.” His laugh is accompanied by two high pitched giggles that fade as they round the corner.

Robin continues stiffly down the hall. From this side of the building she’d have to go through the main room to reach Hawk’s bedroom. She steels herself at the door, knowing that just beyond is the rest of her family and a countless number of suck up supporters. She takes a deep breath and she is instantly bombarded with sounds of loud chatter as she opens the door. She squeezes through the crowd doing her best to avoid the people she recognized and the ones who came to her asking, “what’s it like being Hawk’s little sister?”

She finally makes it across the middle of the room where she’s met by Falcon and Kestrel. Falcon, her younger brother, seems distant, probably due to the mostly empty glass of wine in his hand. Kestrel, her older sister, approaches her. She doesn't seem happy, but then again, she never does. She always seems to think she was too good for the world.

Robin tries to slip back into the crowd but bumps into a caterer and Kestrel catches up.

“Hey, Robin, mom’s looking for you.”

“Why.”

“I don’t know. I didn’t ask. She probably wants you to get some advil for this idiot.” She smacks Falcon on the side of the head.

“Fuckin’ hell, what’s your problem?”

“You. You are my problem.” She turns back to Robin. “Look, just go find mom… and go change. Maybe put on some makeup for once in your life. You look like a rat that just crawled out of a sewer.”

Falcon snorts as Kestrel shoos him back the way they came.

Robin sighs and keeps going. She finally reaches the door to the rest of the house and steps through, closing the door behind her and finally ending the never ending voices.

Her relief is short-lived as another voice shouts, “Robin, thank goodness!”

She groans. There was just no peace in this house. Her mother, Egret, hurries from across the room in a gorgeous red dress with gold trim that she brought with her from India.

“Mother.”

“Robin, have you seen Little Pidge? He’s supposed to be a part of the opening toast and I need to make sure he remembers his lines!”

She hated those names. Hawk and Pidge. It was all she ever heard from her parents and “family friends”. She also just hated that her mother named all her children after birds. If Egret has another child and names it after another stupid bird, she was going to flip. “No, Mother, I haven’t seen Pidge.”

Egret paces frantically, tugging at her sash. “Oh dear, if you see him, please send him to my chambers. I need to make sure that everything is perfect for my boy's big day!” She rushes down the hall before Robin can respond.

Why did Robin always end up being the errand girl. Everyone treats her almost the same as the rest of the household staff, with the exception of actually knowing her name.

Robin beelines for the kitchen. Her mother may adore the little brat, but she never even bothered to learn where her youngest child’s favorite place to be is. A shrill screech comes from the kitchen, soon followed by a grinning small boy with curly dark brown hair skipping down the hall with a cupcake in his hands. The dessert wasn’t supposed to be served until after the ceremony.

His eyes light up when he spots Robin and he skurries over to her. “Robin! Robin! I got a cupcake!”

“That’s nice. Mother wants you in her bedroom.”

Pidge’s eyebrows furrow in thought. “Carry me.”

“No.”

Pidge sticks out his lower lips and stomps. “Carry me!” He repeats.

“No.”

The cupcake is crushed into frosting and mush as Pidge clenches his tiny fists and sucks in as big of a breath as he can. He lets out a shrill deafening shriek. Robin winces but holds her ground. She reaches for Pidge and tugs on his ear, making his screaming falter just enough that she can hear herself over his tantrum.

“Mother has something for you.”

He instantly stops screaming and his eyes light up again. “She does?”

Robin nods and Pidge runs in the direction of Egret’s room, dropping cupcake crumbs on the expensive carpet.

Robin lets out an exasperated sigh. If she has to interact with another one of her family members tonight she's going to scream. She heads back the way she came and turns down a different hall towards Hawk’s bedroom. His room is generally clean except for the usual unmade bed and a few clothes around the base, if by clean she meant bare. He never spent much time in his room except for when he invited “guests”, and the only special belongings he had were awards that were scattered around the house.

Robin scans the room and sees an intricately carved box haphazardly placed onto the desk. She reaches for it and then cringes back at the sight of a condom sliding off the side. She represses the urge to gag; acid crawls up her throat and she swallows it back down. Using a pencil she nudges the condom off and refrains from touching that side of the box.

The box is made of a dark reddish-brown wood with a slight sheen to it. The carvings are intricately laced vines and flora that swirl together to form obscure faces. A simple silver slide lock keeps the lid closed.

Robin glances at the door. Hawk wouldn’t be returning anytime soon with the party going on. He wouldn’t miss any opportunity to receive praise and attention. She unlatches the lid and carefully raises it.

Inside is a torn piece of canvas with half the face of a beautiful young man. He is painted in the style of Caravaggio - deep shadows and pale yet stark lighting. Dark red blood drips from open wounds all over his face as if he was being skinned alive, yet his eye shows no sign of pain. It glows a vibrant red that makes the painting seem to come alive. It draws her in, calling to her.

She closes the box, a thought popping into her head.

She walks swiftly to her own room and packs a small bag of essential items: clothes, toiletries, her spell book, and of course, the catalyst. She makes her way for the front door, making sure to avoid as many people as possible. Something in the pit of her stomach drops when she steps into the foyer to see her father. An attendant takes his coat and bag as others scurry to inform the rest of the house of his arrival.

He approaches Robin. He holds himself as a mage of high esteem, standing several feet above Robin, and yet his toned muscles reveal another side to his training.

“Robin.” His deep voice rumbles in his throat.

“Paresh.”

Paresh’s stern gaze shifts to Robin’s bag. “And where are you going.” He didn’t ask; he demanded an answer.

“I’m moving out.”

Paresh grunts in what might have been approval.

“I see you decided to come home for Hawk’s integration into a war-”

Her father nods absently.

“-but not my graduation from the Mages Association.”

Paresh sighs and doesn’t do anything to conceal his eye roll. “Robin, tell me how many mages graduate from colleges.”

Robin hesitates. “About 78% of them…”

“And tell me how many mages join the Holy Grail war under normal circumstances.”

“Seven every sixty years…”

Paresh faces Robin and speaks down to her, “So, Robin, when you do something even slightly extraordinary, maybe I will come to revel in that momentous occasion. Until then,” he strides toward the main room, “perhaps you can try to see past your small world and try to learn from your brother.”

Robin storms out of the house. She will do something extraordinary. She’ll surpass her brother along with the rest of her family. She makes her way towards the airport to buy a ticket to Santa Anahita. With any luck, she would even make it there before the party ended. She wonders how easy it would be to find someone to kill for the ritual.

~~~

“And so, with that being said, to Hawk Thorne. May you be fruitful in this war and win your wish.” Egret finishes her toast and everyone claps and cheers as they drink their champagne. “Now, without further ado, I believe it is time for the summoning!” She turns to Hawk.

Hawk stands and tips his head a little as a bow. His smile wavers as he scans his table for the catalyst. He clears his throat and smiles widely. “It seems my sister has misplaced the essentials. She can be a tad forgetful at times.” A laugh rises from the crowd. “I will go retrieve the catalyst. Enjoy yourself as the summoning ritual is prepared.”

Let silver and steel be the essence.

Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation.

Let Spade be the sigil I pay tribute to.

Let rise a wall against the wind that shall fall.

Let the four cardinal gates close.

Let the three-forked road from the crown reaching unto the Kingdom rotate.

He leaves the room as the attendants gather at the center of the room to remove the velvet rope surrounding a summoning circle painted in a deep red liquid.

Egret jokes about the occasion, earning respectful chuckles. Even Paresh seems to smile, if only for a moment. Pidge runs back and forth from the food table dropping scraps along the way that the staff have to quickly clean up, and Kestrel tries to nudge Falcon awake from his alcohol coma.

I hereby declare:

Your body shall serve under me.

My fate shall be your sword.

Submit to the beckoning of the Holy Grail.

If you will submit to this will and this reason…Then answer!

“That little bitch stole my catalyst!” Hawk screams, running into the room. A collective gasp rises from the party.

“Who? Robin?” Egret blurts, her eyes widening in shock. Paresh’s brows crease and his frown deepens.

“Yeah! I told her to get it and she ran off with it! I’m going to fucking kill her when I find her!”

An oath shall be sworn here!

I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven.

I shall have dominion over all evils of all of Hell!

“I don’t think there’s any need for that!” Egret exclaims in panic. “She can’t have gone far!”

Hawk slams his fists on the table. “She could already be at the island for all we fucking know!”

Egret retreats into herself slightly. “Please, Hawk. I’m sure there’s an explanation for-”

“Shut up! This was going to be my big day to show the fucking world what I can do! And that bitch is making a fool out of me! So stop being a cunt and find my catalyst!”

While in life, the opposite in death.

Develop thine form of wordly intent.

Let there be no boundaries of physicality,

And I, the one who shapes thy glory.

Egret nods and rushes out of the room, pulling a phone from her purse.

“Hawk,” Paresh says sternly.

“What,” Hawk barks through clenched teeth.

“Calm yourself. Your guests are still present.”

Hawk glances back at the crowd. Many of them are awkwardly looking down at their food, and a few are even packing up their belongings.

Yet, thou serves with thine eyes clouded in chaos.

Thou, bound in the cage of madness;

I am she who commands those chains.

Hawk straightens and runs a hand through his curly brown hair.

“I apologise for that unseemly display, everyone. It seems the summoning has been delayed until further notice. Please help yourselves to dessert as the party comes to a close. I hope you enjoyed yourselves despite the setbacks.”

From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three greet words of power,

Come forth from the ring of restraints,

Protector of the Holy Balance!