Shirou had just sat down to a wonderful Japanese-style breakfast of chicken salad, cooked salmon, miso soup and fresh yam soup with Sakura and Taiga when the bell at the front door rang.

Sakura put down her chopsticks and hopped to her feet. "Please keep eating, Senpai. I'll see who it is."

"No, it's my house, and you made the breakfast." Years of track made it a given that Shirou was faster than Sakura, so he got out of the room first. Opening the door, he saw a woman with wavy brown hair, dressed in a pretty white and blue dress. She looked to be around the age his father would have been, wore a sweet smile, and held a casserole dish in mitted hands.

"Hello!" she said cheerily, her purple eyes shining. "I hope I'm not interrupting your breakfast! I'm new in the neighborhood and I wanted to introduce myself!" She inspected Shirou and her smile softened. "Is your mama or papa home?"

Inwardly, Shirou grimaced. An awkward question, but that was the reason Taiga claimed she ate her breakfast and dinner here every day. He glanced at the casserole dish, which contained some Western bread-based dish. The sweet smell crept into his nose. The scent of baked goods always made him think of Sakura, who specialized in Western foods. He knew instantly that she would love it, and took a step backward invitingly.

"Welcome to Miyama! I don't have parents, but my guardian's here." He realized as the words came out of his mouth that it was a uncomfortable topic, and before her smile could turn into a frown, he followed up quickly. "Would you like to come in for a few moments?"

"Thank you!" said the woman with another sweet smile. Hoping his 'guardian' wouldn't freak out, Shirou led her to the dining room. Taiga lowered her newspaper and regarded the woman with suspicion while Sakura concentrated shyly on her food.

"Hey, everybody. This is… uh…" He glanced at the woman inquiringly. How had he managed to invite her in without even learning her name? His father would have scolded him. But there was just something so friendly and comfortable about the woman.

"Mamako Oosuki!" chirped the woman, and stepped forward to set the casserole dish down on the table before looking over the other dishes arrayed. "And I am interrupting your breakfast. I'm so sorry!"

"Oosuki-san is new to the neighborhood and came over to introduce herself. Um, that's Taiga, and that's Sakura, and I'm Shirou Emiya."

The gift of food did everything required to erase Taiga's suspicion. It really did smell delicious, and Taiga didn't hesitate to extract a sweet roll and stuff it in her cheeks.

"As you see, what you brought can only improve the meal," Shirou said, and too late noticed Sakura's blush. Ooops. Too late to fix things now. He'd have to make it up to Sakura later.

Surprisingly, Mamako must have noticed the blush too, and scooped the casserole back up again. "No, what you have looks splendid. The kind of breakfast my own mama used to make me. I always loved miso soup in the morning! I'll just put this in the kitchen and you can reheat it another day!"

Without waiting for approval, Mamako whisked herself and her casserole dish off to the kitchen, where she busied herself poking around. The fridge door opened, and the pantry door clicked. A quiet little ooh could be heard as she inspected Shirou's staples.

Caught between embarrassment and an odd sense of pride, Shirou sat back down again to quickly eat his own breakfast, making sure Sakura couldn't miss how much he enjoyed it.

Taiga quickly finished chewing her mouthful and called, "So why have you moved to Miyami, Oosuki-san?"

Mamako appeared in the dining room again, holding her mitts in one hand. She still smiled but it had a sad feeling. "Oh… I'm an empty-nester so I decided to shake things up by moving someplace new." Her smile brightened. "I've found adventures can be such a good way to solve your problems."

Without looking up, Sakura spoke softly. "Where are you living? Is your new home to your liking?"

Mamako wrinkled her nose cutely. "I'm on the other side of your back alley. And that little house will be very nice… once I get it clean!" She flexed her arm, showing off her bicep. "It's a big task but it's a good way to stay busy!"

Shirou's fingers twitched, and before he could think about it, he blurted, "If you'd like, I could come over to help you tomorrow."

The older woman gave Shirou such a warm look he felt like melting. "You're such a kind boy. I'd appreciate that!"

Sakura's fingers tightened on her chopsticks before she set them down carefully. "I'm going to get dishes started. It was nice to meet you, Oosuki-san."

Mamako tilted her head to one side before nodding firmly. "I'm very happy I met you as well, Sakura-chan. And now I'll stop interrupting your precious family time! Goodbye!"

With that, the strange older woman showed herself out, leaving Shirou shaking his head at the odd morning encounter and wondering what he'd gotten himself into.