"Slow down, Rin. As the older sister, you need to look after your younger sister, you know."
"I know, Mother."
Watching her two lively and adorable daughters, a gentle, motherly smile graced Aoi Tohsaka's face. But after a while, one naturally looks to the surrounding scenery to break the monotony.
After confirming that Rin and Sakura were playing safely and weren't in any danger, Aoi's gaze drifted across the park. She soon noticed a boy sitting on a nearby bench.
He had black hair and black eyes, appearing to be around the same age as her daughters, Rin and Sakura. Though small, he was exceptionally handsome, like a perfect doll carved from jade. He was the kind of impossibly cute young boy that little girls would flock to and married women couldn't tear their eyes away from.
What an adorable boy, Aoi thought. As any woman would, she found herself captivated, a thought blooming in her mind: 'If only he were my child.'
Observing him for a moment longer, Aoi noticed something was wrong. The little boy seemed to be separated from his parents. He sat there quietly, his black, jewel-like eyes staring blankly at the treetops in the distance. His quiet, lonely figure tugged at Aoi's heartstrings.
Just then, the boy seemed to sense her gaze and turned his head to look at her.
"Hello there, little one."
Drawn in by the boy, Aoi completely forgot she hadn't checked on her daughters for several minutes. Following his gaze, the same gentle smile she reserved for her children appeared on her face as she walked over to him.
"Where are your parents? Are you lost?"
The boy shook his head.
"Don't be afraid, Auntie isn't a bad person. Look," Aoi said, her gaze shifting back to Rin and Sakura, who were playing together in the park's sandbox. "Those are my daughters."
"If you're separated from your parents, Auntie can help you find them..."
"I don't have parents."
His voice was as pleasant as his appearance. That was Aoi's first thought, but she quickly registered the content hidden beneath that heavenly sound.
"What do you mean?"
"I don't have parents," the handsome boy repeated, looking at her. His jewel-like eyes held a maturity that a boy his age shouldn't possess. "Auntie, you can think of me as an orphan who ran away from an orphanage."
A tragic, hundred-thousand-word backstory instantly flooded Aoi's mind. His parents died young, he was callously thrown into an orphanage by unscrupulous relatives, but the staff there were irresponsible and cruel, tormenting him daily until he was forced to escape. That must be why, despite looking the same age as her daughters, he seemed so mature.
What a poor, pitiful child. Aoi's heart ached terribly.
Then, an indescribable wave of ecstasy washed over her. Aoi realized that if this poor, cute boy had no parents, couldn't she just adopt him?
"Well then, little one, would you like to come home with Auntie?"
Aoi forced herself to suppress her delight as she extended the invitation, but her voice still trembled with unavoidable excitement. She then realized her tone might sound suspicious, easily misunderstood by this remarkably mature boy as a strange woman trying to kidnap him. She prepared to call her daughters over. He might misunderstand her intentions, but after letting her daughters interact with him for a bit, she believed the boy would recognize her goodwill and agree to come home with her.
"Rin, Sakura—"
Just as Aoi called out, the boy's voice sounded from beside her.
"Okay."
"Eh?"
Aoi stared at the boy in surprise, her beautiful eyes filled with disbelief and an unimaginable joy.
"Are you saying... you're willing to come home with me?"
The boy tilted his head. To be honest, if he hadn't read the original work and known that she was Rin and Sakura's mother—a standard Yamato Nadeshiko type with an extremely gentle, family-oriented, and considerate personality—he would have mistaken this beautiful woman for a weird lady that needed a visit from the police.
"Is that not okay?" he asked.
"No, it's okay! Of course, it's okay!" Aoi took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in her heart and forcing the gentlest smile she had ever mustered. "My name is Aoi Tohsaka. May I ask what your name is?"
"Lin Jiuan."
The Tohsaka Residence.
Tokiomi Tohsaka's Study.
"You want to adopt this child?" Tokiomi asked, looking at his wife with confusion. His gaze then fell upon the unfamiliar, exceptionally handsome young boy his wife was holding by the hand.
What Tokiomi found absurd was that the instant he saw the boy's unparalleled beauty, the thought, 'Rin and Sakura probably aren't good enough for him, are they?' flashed through his mind. He immediately felt ridiculous for having such a thought. Honestly, he chided himself. How can I, a magus, have such a mundane thought, judging others by their appearance?
"That event is about to begin. This is not the time to add complications."
Pushing aside the unnecessary thoughts, Tokiomi's tone was flat. Although he was loath to admit it, he disliked—or rather, detested—this boy. He was simply too beautiful.
Having been with him for years, Aoi naturally understood what he meant. This was Tokiomi's refusal. Normally, Aoi, who always prioritized her husband's wishes, would have agreed to send the boy away, no matter how reluctant she felt.
But looking down at Lin Jiuan, at his mature expression, and thinking of the helplessness, sadness, and loneliness hidden beneath it, Aoi found a courage she never knew she had. For the first time in their years of marriage, she didn't respond to Tokiomi's words. She simply pressed her lips together, looking at him in silence.
"I'm sure someone will be willing to adopt him." Seeing his wife's silence, Tokiomi raised an eyebrow. His dislike for the boy named Lin Jiuan grew, but he maintained the composed facade of a dignified head of the family. "As compensation, we can offer some money to whoever adopts him."
"He's just a poor, abandoned child! He won't cause any trouble!"
Tokiomi stared at his wife, stunned. This was the first time his normally submissive wife had ever defied his command.
"Aoi?"
Aoi's lips trembled. She desperately wanted to give in. Both the upbringing from her family and her years of living with Tokiomi had conditioned her never to oppose any of his orders.
But, thinking of Lin Jiuan standing right behind her, knowing that if she backed down now, he might be cast back into the hellish orphanage she had imagined, Aoi's heart filled with courage.
"Tokiomi!" she exclaimed. "He's just a child!"
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