[Espy]

Clack-clack-clack-clack-clack-clack-

Frej frowned. Even the noise reduction on his earphones did little whenever the train hit a section of older tracks, but the already-disapproving scowl from the old lady next to him drew his finger away from the Volume Up button.

Who knew old ladies didn't enjoy Imagine Dragons?

Then again, his precariously-stacked tower of lenses had invaded her lap just minutes earlier, toppling at a rather nasty jolt from the train, sending Frej scrambling to retrieve the packages before his precious equipment hit the rattling ground.

Or maybe she found the colored streak in his hair revolting. Or maybe it was the scars on his hands. Whatever.

Frej frowned again. "-t you something from avignon. will get you a teddy bear if i see one, ok? dont worry and dont forget to do your hw, or mom's gonna get mad." Sigi's Bear Army was formidable, he recalled, stomach churning as the train tried to pull the seat out from under him.

"ok gtg text you later when i can. -frej"

He hit Send, pushed everything from his lap, clamped a hand over his mouth, and ran towards the cramped bathroom for the fifth time.

---

Frej, armed with phone and map, had gotten lost three minutes after stepping off the train. Of course I had, he thought bitterly, now unpacking bundle after bundle from his duffel.

"I can't believe It chose you!" his father had told him, then sent him packing his bags. Why hadn't the Grail chosen Carina? She was, after all, the most powerful magus in the family, after her father had all but disowned his only son. Then again, Frej was pretty sure the von Straußheim family would be loathe to lose their new prodigy.

Apparently, according to the Grail, sending the poor starving Photography major to fight in the Grail War without so much as a single catalyst was a reasonable choice. How ironic.

What if the Summoning fails? But it had to work. The glistening blood-like Command marks ran down the length of Frej's forearm, and he didn't want to think about the consequences of a botched Summoning.

But rituals without a catalyst were very rare, and one thought ran circles in his mind as he began to set everything up:

What kind of poor, pathetic Servant was so similar to himself?