Inverted Inheritance (F/SN AU)

[Spectral Waltz]

Even with the gaping hole in the floor, Fuyuki theatre seemed oddly peaceful in the light radiating from the grail. A warm and golden glow that sank into the dark wood and conjured warmth from the black cushioning. Complimented the crimson curtains with it's tones and brought the brass and bronze of the fixtures forth as highlights to the whole ensemble.

Even through the motes of dust floating in the air and the glowing portals marring the display with their ugly swirls of white gold energy... In any other place they would have been mesmerizingly beautiful all of their own accord, but here and now before the light of the holy grail they seemed out of place, blotches upon an otherwise unsullied cloth.

"Now, give me your response."

That voice too... Even the arrogant Archer could look striking in the glow of the chalice behind him, yet that tone – sureness of superiority dripping from each and every word – shattered whatever beauty he might have possessed even in that light.

"I refuse! I'd never-" She hadn't even seen it move but suddenly an axe was there, sinking through the steel of her fauld and biting into her thigh, cutting her denial off with a cry of pain.

"Are you too embarrassed to accept? That's fine."

Arturia glared down at the archer, her teeth gritted. So close, she was so close!

"You may give the wrong answer as many times as you like."

She just needed a chance, one chance.

"In order to learn the joy of serving me."

She was only half listening, her tactician's mind plotting moves, envisioning a thousand scenarios, searching for the one that would bring success. That would bring her to the grail, and end this once and for all.

"You must first learn pain..."

Green eyes widened, her attention coming back to her opponent before they narrowed. She grit her teeth. She couldn't dodge without a head start, and with a sword still in her leg she would never get that-.

Movement.

On the other side of the hall, a figure stepped from the shadows, raising one hand marked with an emblem of a crimson cross. Emiya's command seal. "Kiritsugu..."

This was it, her chance. He would order her to grasp the grail, and her failing physical form would cease to matter. She would have it at last. The chalice, the holy cup, her one wish.

The seals shone red and she pulled the blade out of her leg, ignoring the pain as she hauled herself to her feet. "So you've finally made your decision" Archer drawled, but she looked past him, looked into her Master's eyes.

"By the name of Emiya Kiritsugu, I order you with my command spell."

His voice was focused. Low, yet growing stronger as her heart leapt. Give me the Holy Grail! A single order, that was all it would take to bring her to the cup. To break through-!

"Saber, Use your Noble Phantasm to destroy the Grail."

What?!

She could barely put the shocked exclamation into words before Excalibur flared bright golden white in her hands, washing out the gentle warmth of the Grail's glow. "Impossible... What are you doing Saber!" She could hear Archer shouting yet it was as though from underwater or far away as the command gripped her, shunting everything else to the back of her mind, catching her off guard as she felt her mana rise and surge. Her arms moved automatically even as she threw her everything into denying the compulsion, mind racing. "Why Kiritsugu!? You of all people-!" Her arms trembled, muscles fighting their own motions every step of the way as she raised the blade high. He raised his hand again, third and final command seal glowing in preparation for use, but it was not necessary.

"NO!"

She screamed, railing in futility against the command, scrabbling to hold back, to turn the blow, to reject the order, yet the Seal's authority was absolute. The will behind it ironclad.

The sword came down, and the golden light surged. It was weaker than it could have been, and it wavered at the edges, destructive power crackling outwards, turning the single beam of focused annihilation into a wave. Yet it was enough for the task at hand.

Tears slid down her cheeks as Arturia watched in horror. How could I have understood him if three Command Seals were all that existed between us?

I couldn't even comprehend the hearts of those who served by my side...

The stage shook, Kiritsugu screamed in pain, but through it all, Arturia heard only the ringing chime of the Grail shattering under the blow.

Perhaps this is all a punishment for the king that could not understand others...

Then the shockwave picked her up like a windblown leaf and hurled her backwards as the sun rose early in downtown Fuyuki city...

========

Arturia opened her eyes...

She could feel it immediately. The contract was gone, yet she remained. The Dragon's heart inside her already beginning the slow task of replenishing her massively depleted mana reserves, but he never used the third seal... How-?

"Saber!"

The air was thick with smoke and dust and the stench of some form of decay as she looked up into the face of Kiritsugu Emiya. Harried and broken, with an emptiness she hadn't seen before in his eyes.

His right arm was a charred stump, caught by the edge of Excalibur's destructive force. The command seals obliterated by edge of the same blow that had shattered her hope for redemption.

"You... How are you..." His voice cracked, his eyes empty as he stared down at her, seeming to barely comprehend what he was seeing.

"You did this..." Her normally clear and bright voice came out as a low hiss as fury crept up. Excalibur was there by her hand and she ignored him as she scooped it up and pulled herself to her feet, menace clear in her eyes.

"I thought... The Seals... The Noble Phantasm..."

This man... This man had denied her everything. The chance to make everything right, to rewrite her legend, to give her bygone kingdom the ruler it had deserved.

The chance to right her every wrong and erase her misbegotten tale from history's pages once and for all.

And he had taken it from her.

"You BASTARD!"

The words tore themselves from her throat in a ragged scream as she lunged, barely even thinking. She looked at this man who'd taken her wish from her, who'd taken Irisviel from her, and in that instant, Arturia Pendragon knew the breadth and depth of rage. Even wounded and near death, she was still a servant, and he was still a man. Both had been exhausted by their respective battles.

Blood shimmered in mid-air as she drove the still-hidden sword through his stomach.

"S... Saber..."

She pulled back and stabbed again, higher, transfixing the heart on the blade, feeling the hilt twitch in her hands as the muscle tried to beat around the metal impaling it.

"Saber... I..." "RrraaaaAAAAHHHHH!"

Again.

"S-saber..."

Again.

"A-aahh..."

Green eyes shone with fury as she pulled the blade free. Could she not even have a moment of vengeance? How could he survive this? Wound after wound, the first enough to cripple any man, every one after enough to kill in a single blow, and yet he still stood... Swaying but alive, still trying to talk to her.

...She understood...

Kiritsugu was rallying now as she lunged again, but the sword held low was a feint, unimportant as her left hand reached for the centre of his chest. The scabbard, the stolen artefact with the power that could deny death itself, the Avalon that was forever separated from her by treachery at her kingdom's fall.

He held it within him, clinging to it's power, and yet, between the two, her original ownership was the greater call, and golden light began to gather around that outstretched palm.

As it began to materialize, Kiritsugu seemed to realize what was happening. He grabbed at her wrist, struggling to fight back, but while his speed had always been greater, he strength was nothing before her grip. The physical form of Avalon was already taking shape, and as it entered the real world she locked her fingers around it, tearing it away from him in a spray of blood-flecked gold as the sword came back around.

This time a single thrust was enough to end it.

Kiritsugu Emiya fell, his blood soaking the dust-stained carpet nearly black as it spread from his body.

Archer had vanished somewhere in the chaos. He had been near the epicentre of the explosion, and where he had stood was buried under the roiling mud that had burst forth from the Holy Grail's destruction.

A last bitter thought as she hoped he was dead.

Walking on shaky legs, Arturia, the King of Knights, stumbled out into the chaos of flame that now made up this night.

========

Destruction all around... Just like before.

Screams of the dying as flames engulfed the city. Cobble or concrete, what difference did it make? This was another land burning. Another land she should never have even been responsible for. Another failure.

She wished that she could be angry, and yet after killing Emiya. After feeling the life leave him through the blade she sank into his heart, she felt... Drained...

Hollow.

Just another failure... A pointless failure. A defeat snatched from the jaws of victory.

It made her sick to her stomach.

She moved without purpose or direction, wandering the broken streets. She could feel the dragon's heart beating in her chest to generate fresh mana, and with every passing second, she considered turning it off. Letting herself drain to nothingness and fall away.

Why not? There was nothing left for her here after all was there?

She kept walking.

She debated casting away Avalon and falling upon Excalibur. It would be simple enough to dismiss her armor, to return to that hill in a more fittingly violent way to reflect her sin.

Why not? There was no reason to stay in this hell right?

She kept walking.

Here and there she saw bodies poking from the rubble. At first she reached out for them with her senses only to find them dead. Crushed or burned or impaled.

She stopped reaching out to sense the bodies.

She kept walking.

She didn't know why she stopped when she did.

It was just another body, a young boy with a shock of orange hair. Arturia had barely even noticed him despite that he lay clear of any rubble until she was almost on top of him, and then she had stopped. His eyes stared blankly up at the sky, his arms limp by his sides.

His chest shifted...

Arturia's knees gave out as realization struck her like a thunderbolt. Not a corpse, a living child. Barely breathing, lying there, so close to death, and yet... Not quite crossed over.

Not yet...

Another soul who'd lost everything then.

Another failure...

No.

Another sin...

Stop this.

Excalibur clattered to the ground, and Arturia raised it's scabbard.

You can save him...

She knew that, she knew she could, but did he really deserve a saviour such as her? A twice-failure of a king?

If not you then who else?

Avalon began to pulse with light, weak and wavering as it fell into time with the boy's heatbeat as the scabbard began resonate with him, slowly strengthening as it began to merge with him. So many deaths on Emiya's hands. On her hands, and no single life saved could possibly balance that scale.

Yet at the same time could she really turn her back on him?

The glow brightened and Avalon began to sink into the boys body but she could not simply give him the scabbard. He was too young to have been here alone. She could save his life, but then what would come next? What chance did he have with no family? With no one left? Arturia felt her eyes prick with tears again. I cannot simply leave him to his fate. His misfortune had been done by her hand, and being the only survivor she had found, he was the only one she could give back to.

Her only chance to redeem any part of this disaster she had wrought.

The breathing was coming stronger now, a little life coming back into those dull brown eyes before they closed, unconsciousness carrying him down into a healing slumber.

Arturia's armour misted off her, dissolving back into it's component mana as she brought her arms under his tiny form and lifted him up. Even brutalized and battered as she was he weighed almost nothing against Servant level strength. So small and fragile as she tucked him against her chest.

Then she turned and step-by-step began to walk once more. Her face set in a determined mask as she put one foot in front of the other, making for the edge of the destruction, the only token of atonement she could still give cradled in her arms.

=End Chapter One=

​

Thanks to @TheBleachDoctor for help proofreading this little slice of too many ideas and too little sleep. Watch this space for further chapters as the story goes forth!

 

[Spectral Waltz]

A sheaf of papers in neatly typed Japanese rested on the table one delicate finger tracing the printed image of the seal next to the signature decorating the bottom of the missive. Outside a light snow fell, slowly burying the grass and gardens in soft white.

After his betrayal, Arturia wouldn't have expected that she could feel any gratitude for Kiritsugu. However, his establishment of her identity in Japan so that she could serve as Irisviel's driver in the early days of the war had proven an unexpected boon when it came to beginning the odd task of establishing a long term identity in this world. She had first returned to the Emiya estate only out of a lack of alternatives. She had no money for an inn and, while she could have endured the elements by sustaining herself on mana alone, her small charge had no such protections. Shelter and food had been necessary acquisitions, and that was the only place she knew she could easily obtain them.

However, from there things had only begun to grow more complicated, and what Arturia had intended as only a temporary lodging – somewhere to stay long enough for the boy to recover – morphed into something more permanent as the days and then weeks began to slide by. She had thought at first to raise the young man herself, to tutor him as Merlin had tutored her, yet that plan was toppled almost immediately as it became apparent that while the Emiya estate had been well provisioned and – after some searching – had a startling amount of currency tucked away in a few places. Its resources were depressingly finite.

In short, she would need a job, meaning she would not have time to tutor Shirou fully and in turn that she needed to find him a school. She would have been more comfortable with a private tutor, but had to admit to herself that such a thing was beyond her means at the moment.

Registering Shirou for classes had been something of an adventure of its own as his original school had been destroyed in the fire, presenting her with the first problem. She could not very well register him without status as his legal guardian. Had she thought of this particular detail beforehand, she might have come up with a better solution but as it was she was forced to think quickly.

Taking Emiya's name after his betrayal – especially since it would not only be the young Shirou taking it but also herself – was out of the question, so her mind had leapt to the next she could think of, and thus Shirou Einzbern was enrolled in Fuyuki Elementary school, making her his stepmother Arturia Einzbern.

It was strange to think of, yet it felt like something of a tribute to the woman she had cared for, and so she pushed away her regrets.

While the process proved to hold less surprises finding work was difficult in its own way. However the visa Emiya had acquired to cover her service of Irisviel proved it's worth here. Once she managed to gain an interview it was surprisingly easy to convince the older man sitting across from her to grant her the job. It was hardly glorious. A simple routine of handling a 'customer service desk' at a clothing store. If anything it was oddly familiar to the former king, not unlike holding court with her nobles at all really. Dealing with dozens of people, all of whom thought they deserved her time and who asked that she make exception to the regulations just for them?

She had found herself chuckling at the irony more than once…

=======

A series of thumps in the entranceway broke her out of reminiscence and brought her back to the present, the suddenness causing her hands to clench reflexively, calling for sword and armor before she remembered where she was. "Arturiaaa I'm home!" "'Ria-senpai!" Shirou was the first through the door, still in a damp and snow-dusted coat as he pelted across the living room and all but hurdled the table to hug her side. He'd recovered quickly, Avalon's powers strengthened by her own presence healing him until it was impossible to guess that a mere seven months ago he'd been on the brink of death, and while he'd been quiet at first, their everyday life had seen him slowly opening up to her.

Of course, she hadn't done it alone, following behind Shirou with no less speed but crucially lacking the winter coat came Fujimura Taiga. They'd first met early on when Arturia had been walking Shirou home. Fuyuki's Middle and Elementary schools were fairly close together and she seemed to be heading in the same direction as them day after day. At first they simply walked within distance of each other until finally the teenager had actually walked right up to her and asked what sort of relationship they had.

It was the first time Arturia could remember laughing without restraint in months as she watched Taiga's expression go from wary accusation to utter confusion at the explanation. Apparently she had been expecting a step-sister rather than a step-mother, and a single one at that. You're taking care of him alone?!

...Is that a problem?

What? Of course it's a problem! A single mother taking care of such a cute son! I know that type, neglecting him to work? Or to go chase after men? You must be setting a terrible example!

Are you mad?

Seething!

Arturia might have gone right back to laughing if she hadn't been so irked by the young woman's nerve.

Believe what you will. I don't know you, and I don't appreciate unfounded criticism. Please stay away from us in the future.

That should be my line you suspicious foreign lady!

It probably would have ended their association then and there had a challenge not followed. Had Taiga been an adult at the time Arturia would have seriously considered challenging her for that insult. As it turned out however, Taiga had the same idea, only coupled with significantly less restraint.

A Kendo match! I challenge you to a duel!

While she had doubted that Taiga could really follow through on her proposed stakes of adopting Shirou in Arturia's place, the outcome was never in doubt from the start. She may have been a Kendo expert for her age but Taiga was still just a fourteen year old girl going up against a master swordswoman, and that was without taking into account servant-level speed or strength.

I guess a foreign lady like you wouldn't know but I'm an expert in Kendo. You stand no cha-!

Taiga had already bowed and the match was already technically begun, so Arturia simply stepped forwards, whipping the wooden training sword down and around in a rising slash. She wasn't about to go all out against a teenage girl, expert or otherwise, but after the verbal abuse she'd endured up to this point, she might have opened herself up just a little, activating her mana burst as she swung.

Which was why the clatter of wood on wood rather than the expected slap of bokken meeting flesh was so surprising.

You think you're the first person to try and catch me boast-ack!

Arturia twisted the blade in her grip, catching just enough leverage to flick Taiga's sword away. Without a proper crossguard the move was not nearly as sure a disarmament as it could have been but with how unorthodox such a move would be in Kendo combined with her greater strength Taiga was caught off guard, and the sword went flying.

I think you should have stopped trying to boast the first time I attacked.

Three more disarms and one broken training sword later Arturia had claimed victory in all five rounds. Taiga left in a huff and Shirou begged for swordsmanship lessons over dinner. She gently rebuffed the request, and thought that would be the end of it, right up until the very next day when Taiga challenged her again, apparently having skipped her club to follow them home.

And again the next day...

And the day after that...

By the end of the second week with only the weekend providing respite Taiga was visibly feeling the strain of trying to duel a heroic spirit every day. Not only that but Shirou was only growing more and more eager than ever to learn to fight the way she did. Finally Arturia was forced to relent against two fronts of pressure. Evening lessons in swordsmanship for Shirou a few days a week, and Taiga would be permitted to walk Shirou to and from school each day as well as care for him in the evenings when she wasn't available. She had half expected Taiga to be mollified by how rarely her presence was needed in the latter capacity of their agreement, but the girl just kept coming over, apparently no less enthused to be spending time with both of them.

That she lived just down the street helped as well.

Shirou released Arturia, giving her just enough time to stand and brace herself for the flying tackle that Taiga called a hug. Even taking servant strength into account physics was still a harsh mistress, and a hundred-odd pounds of muscular teenager applied to her chest and shoulders could still send her sprawling without appropriate preparation. She did not so much reciprocate the hug as snatch the girl out of the air, spinning her around once to bleed off momentum before setting her down and giving her a proper embrace.

"Shirou, Taiga, Welcome home."

=======

"At least this is great winter food…"

While some aspects of her life had been easier to manage, others had been more difficult, and cooking had been one hurdle she was still struggling to clear. While kingship had afforded her little to no knowledge of the sort, reaching deeper into her past as a questing knight had taught her some simple dishes. Unfortunately, what passed for good food by old Britain's standards was far removed from modern Japanese sensibilities and while the hearty meals were by no means bad-tasting, they were simply too strange to pass unmentioned in such an old and tradition-steeped city like Fuyuki.

"But really Ria-senpai, you should learn some proper Japanese dishes already~ Especially if you're raising a Japanese kid! Food is an important part of culture don'tcha know?"

During the warm summer and early fall months shirou had been quiet and rarely complained, least of all about the odd food but amongst the other headaches Taiga's introduction into their lives had brought, her complaints about Arturia's cooking were one of the least easily resolved. This was notwithstanding her grudging admission that the heavier English dishes were at least fairly appropriate for the snowy day outside.

"I know Taiga, I simply haven't had the time." She shifted a little on the mats as she smiled politely back. "Perhaps once the weather begins to warm and the rushes at work die down I will be able to make an effort to learn."

"Haah… Fine. But I'll hold you to that!" Taiga's finger shot out declaratively, but Arturia knew enough of the girl by now that she had a trump card in stock. "If it displeases you so, why do you keep coming over for dinner? It isn't as though you don't eat it all…"

At first she had considered speaking to Taiga as an experience not dissimilar to the subtle verbal posturing of dealing with courtiers in the course of the day to day duties of kingship. As it was, she was coming to realize that each conversation with Taiga had more in common with sparring against a soldier. Her opponent was cunning and capable enough to hold her own for a little while, but was simply out of her league when it came down to it.

"Neh… So Ria-Senpai what were those papers you had when we came in? Looked important~." Predictably Taiga was changing the subject, fearlessly meeting Arturia's hard emerald gaze with her own as she worked out a new plan of attack.

"Actually I was meaning to mention them, my permanent residency has been approved!"

"EHHH?!"

"That's fantastic Arturia!"

It was only a single step on the path towards establishing herself properly in this time and place but it was the first piece of real permanency to her presence here. Emiya's paperwork for her had all been temporary, a nod to the transient nature of her role as a heroic spirit, but this was something that wouldn't simply be scrapped in a few weeks or months.

It was strange to think of, that even after she might eventually pass on once again, that some archive somewhere would hold and recognize that once upon a time Arturia Einzbern had lived in Fuyuki city, Japan. The happy smile that had decorated her face at the pronouncement – pride in showing off her small achievement before this small audience – shifted slightly, taking on a note of melancholy before she shook herself, banishing that introspective mood that seemed determined to try and wrap itself around her.

"I mean ah… Congratulations Arturia-Senpai?" Suitably chastised for her combative attitude Taiga settled back into her own seat, though true to her usual energy she didn't remain still for very long, shifting back and forth on the cushion.

"So next is um… Ci-ti-zen-ship right?" Shirou stumbled a little on the longer word.

"Right" – Arturia nodded – "It is as though… Hm… These papers are more permission than anything, letting me stay here even though it's not my home. But citizenship is like being told that Japan is my home now."

"Um!" Arturia was pretty sure that the smiling nod she got from Shirou indicated only a partial understanding of what she'd just explained but she didn't mind. In truth he was already far advanced in his education compared to where she had been at the same age. That he understood enough of that to affirm it at all was impressive.

Smile restored, Arturia reached across to ruffle Shirou's hair, then looked across the table. The stewpot was still half full but the bowls had been thoroughly emptied. She closed her eyes with a happy sigh and rose to her feet. "Come on you two, let's clean up."

It was a small step, but it was a start.

=End Chapter Two=​

---

Thanks to @Swordomatic and @reborn214 for helping me to proofread this as well as @BlackHadou for helping me make sure all my setting and character details were mostly accurate and straightforward.

Truly they do the work of gods.

 

[RBomber]

So, for mix of something infuriating and D'Awwww (which probably non-canon)

****

In the end, her goal was clear. Even if it's against almost all of her sensibilities. Even if her every cell in her body screaming 'Don't do it'. Even if there's nothing more in the world she wished than shoved Excalibur through his mouth and simply erase this... this... Thing from existence.

"So, Arturia Pen- I'm sorry, Arturia Einzbern. What will you give? What will you do for the life of this Matou girl? What will you sacrifice to save her?"

Swallowing the bile, the hatred, the repulse, she spoke.

"Name your price, Priest."

****

Kotomine Kirei blinked. He certainly didn't see that coming.

Every soul he collected, all broken bodies he keep to sustain The Golden Archer.

All gone by a single slash.

"...Well, that's-"

"You never said anything about them, Priest. I can't save them, and obviously you wouldn't for whatever reason. But I can end their pain."

Felt much more calm, Arturia sheathed Excalibur.

"I didn't change the agreement. I kept my word. Let's keep it that way."

...That's one way to say it.

...Gilgamesh won't like this.

...Ah well.

****

"Promise me, Sakura-chan. Promise me you'll be there for Shirou-chan. Promise me you'll be there when I can't. I swore by my life and my honour I'll take care of you, but I don't know what will happen in the future. Promise me you'll be there for him."

Sakura wants to say something, but she can't say anything. How could she?

She who was abandoned by her family.

She who gave up all hope long ago.

And her saviour, asking her such a thing, like it was the most important thing in the world.

How could she gave any other answer than-

"Yes, Arturia-sama. I promise."

****

 

[RBomber]

So, for totally crack idea about Illya. See, since this Illya had no reason to hate her father, and that supposed the most chivalric King of Knight actually betrayed her father, so my idea is that Illya embraced the idea of Magus Killer and bring it to logical conclusion.

****

"ARE YOU IDIOT?!? THAT CITY IS LOST, AND THE CURSE SPREADING QUICKLY, DAMMIT!!"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN LADY BARTHOLOMEI POSTPONED HALF OF OUR ENFORCERS?!?!"

"WELL, SHE CAN SHOVE HER PRIDE THROUGH MY *^/^HOLE FOR ALL I CARE!!!"

"...Uh, Sir Proctor-"

"Wait a moment. Hello, Lord El Melloi? Yes. This is me, Sir August Proctor. Yes. Situation is that bad. Yes, I want your- Say it again? WHAT!?!?"

That's when his HQ windows, 15 km from explosion epicenter, shattered.

Along with entire Infected city.

****

"...-Tor. Sir Proctor, please wake up."

"-NO! JUST A LITTLE-Uh, whoh? What?"

"Um, Sir, it was Einzben envoy. She-"

"-already did her job, yes, I know."

Sir Proctor begin to massage his temple, fighting a forming migraine. He knows it needed to be done. He knows that with lack of personnel, she was the only one who can reliably taking care of the problem. And she's very thorough.

It's just... well....

"At least tell me there's survivor fron our-"

"Um, Sir, that's what I wanted to tell you before. The Einzbern already combed the whole area for survivors and remaining Enforcers. Now we-"

BANG!

"-Check them for possible infection. So far, 3 survivors, 1-wait, make it 2- of our Enforcers had been identified as infected."

There's strong argument among most Enforcers, including Sir Proctor, that you can't be too cautious, too destructive, too unscrupulous in dealing with Sealing Designation.

Lady Illyasviel Von Einzborn, daughter of Magus Killer, seems to make it her life goal to test that argument to the limit. And beyond.

"Also, she had already filed her report. Cleaning team and her own homunculus auxilia already doing Secrecy Protocol."

Numbly, he took the report, and read it.

"...Volcanic eruption...?"

****

"Hmmm, Mort?"

"Yes, Illya?"

"I am wondering... is inducing volcanic activity by turning bauxite and iron ore deposit into thermite is too much for this job?"

"...Not really. Hey, another ghoul!"

BANG!

"Thank you Mort, you're too kind."

"Whatever. Hey, can we stock the chocolate ice cream? It's tastes quite good!"

"...Well, there's slight problem with that...."

"...We blew up the factory?"

"Yeah."

"...Maybe you're right. That's too destructive."

"...You're no fun."

****

 

[RBomber]

Soooo, random idea. Because, AFAIK, servants don't age, 10 years down the line will be FUN.

Today:

*pat* *pat* "That's good, Shirou-chan."

"Ehehe, Arturia-mama patted me."

"Mou~ This is unfair~ I wanna pat Shirou-chan too~"

10 years down the line:

*pat* *pat*

"...."

"...Thank you, Arturia-mama"

"... Tis' embarassing...."

"It's okay, Arturia-mama. I like it."

[HUEG ENSUES]

[BLUSHING SABERFACE IS EMBARASSED]

"Mou~ This is unfair~ How could Ria-senpai can be still youthful? Please tell your unworthy kohai~"

{CRITICAL HIT BLUSH]

 

[Spectral Waltz]

"Now remember Shirou. You must maintain a proper stance and proper distance at all times."

Even as February slid into January's place and the shrouds of snow covering Fuyuki turned to slowly-melting heaps of slush the sunset remained persistently early. It shone through the rear windows of the Dojo, silhouetting two figures in the orange glow as they faced each other. Shirou's grip on the wooden shinai was sure enough but his legs couldn't seem to decide how to arrange themselves as he shifted. He remained light - too light - practically bouncing on the balls of his feet, adjusting his stance by degrees every second.

"Too close, and you cannot defend yourself. Too far and you cannot attack. Ready Shirou?"

He nodded, youthful face taut with concentration as she barked the starting order. "Begin!"

The instant the words had left her lips she stepped forwards and immediately her charge skipped back, retreating too quickly in his eagerness. "Too far! How will you approach me now?" Immediately Arturia halted, settling back into stance and stepping back once more. "Again, once you get it right three movements in a row then we can get dinner."

For the last three weeks the goal had been more and more repetitions of two movements in a row, and before that it had been single successful motions. Once Shirou mastered three she would move to five, and so on it would go. She had almost expected him to give up in frustration after she hadn't even let him touch a practice weapon for the first two months of training but once again she had underestimated his persistence. Even now, three months after letting him hold a sword they still hadn't done more than practice forms and footwork, the slow slog of learning the barest basics of the craft and honing them to precision.

Shirou trotted back over and set his own stance again, weapon at the ready, but that nervous energy hadn't left him and as Arturia stepped forwards again, he was too eager to get out of the way, far more steps back than even his slightly shorter legs should have needed to stay properly distanced. Sighing, she lowered the sword and stepped back again.

"Is this really it?"

To say Shirou had never complained at the slow grind of her instruction would be a lie but as he had improved and she had become able to truly praise those little steps of progress those complaints had become less frequent.

"I mean come on! Even Kendo club let me spar after a few weeks, but you've still got Shirou-chan doing footwork after five months?"

No, the bored tones were from the onlooker in the room, Taiga lounged on the sidelines atop a pair of pilfered pillows.

"The Kendo club had opponents of a similar skill level. Shirou is not nearly far enough along in his instru-"

"Yeah yeah, 'I'm too strong to spar against him', 'you're too strong to spar against him', rushing into advanced instruction without mastering the basics is blah bla-!"

"U-um… Fuji-nee…"

"Gah!"

Taiga shrank back as she looked up to see the swordswoman had fully turned to face her, emerald eyes narrowed in a withering glare. "Jeeze sorry! I'm just saying that maybe you should find someone he can spar with! Take on another student! That or just send him to Kendo Club already…"

Arturia took a breath, then turned back to Shirou. "The sooner you stop disrupting the lesson, the sooner we can all have dinner Tora-chan." She ignored the strangled protest that came in response to the nickname as set herself into stance again. "Ready Shirou?"

"Begin!"

Perhaps the momentary interlude had been enough to let him calm himself or perhaps the thought of food was motivation for him as well, but either way Shirou seemed to have found his place again, and he matched her first quick step, quickly skipping backwards to just inside the acceptable distance.

"One!"

The acknowledgement was still leaving her lips as she slid into the next step, a longer stride simulating a lunge, albeit a slightly abbreviated one to account for his shorter legs. Two quick steps this time, backing away at an angle both to keep safe distance and evade the thrust she could have delivered with such a motion. "Two!"

For a split second he relaxed, and then she saw panic enter his eyes as he remembered that the exercise was no longer finished at the second count. Arturia rose as she took the third and final step and in his haste this time Shirou slipped on the hardwood, landing with a thump on the floor as she stood over him.

Silently she set the training sword's tip against the floor next to him, both palms on the pommel before she reached one hand down to help him up. "Again?"

She nodded as she hauled him up. "Again Shirou, remember, outside of training you do not relax your guard until the fight is over." For a long moment silence reigned following that statement, prompting a puzzled look until Arturia cleared her throat. "And the other rule you have forgotten."

She stepped quickly and Shirou jumped back again, raising empty hands before he realized his mistake. She slid her toes under the fallen shinai and flicked it upwards into her free hand. "Never let go of your weapon."

She flipped it over and handed it back, handle first before nodding with satisfaction. "Back to the lines. Let's do it again."

=======

"I was thinking on what you said earlier."

"Hm?" Taiga looked up from her bowl, chopsticks still stuck in her mouth before she set them down to cock her head at Arturia, "what do you mean?"

"During practice, in the dojo," Taiga paled a little, "E-eh? You're not still hung up on that are you Ria-sa-..." Her protest fell quiet as Arturia raised a placating hand.

"No, not that. You spoke of bringing on other students. Do you really believe there would be interest in such teachings? Your nation has its own masters and its own styles with their own pride. Would people really consent to being taught by a foreigner?"

"Of course! Even if its not Kendo the way you fought me was so cool! I'd sign up in a heartbeat!"

"Would you have done so before I defeated you?

Taiga's mouth opened, one finger raised declaratively as she prepared a rebuttal only for her words to die in her throat. "Well… No…"

"I don't get it."

Both of them looked at Shirou, who was nibbling the end of one of his chopsticks in thought. "If Fuji-nee only wanted to learn after you beat her, why can't you just challenge someone to the same sort of fight and then do the same thing?"

There was a pregnant pause around the dinner table as they looked at him, then at each other, long enough that Shirou began to shrink back a little. "U-um did I say something bad?"

"...I could totally ask Fukushima-sensei if she would accept a challenge…"

"You are not telling me that you're seriously considering his idea."

"Why not? Shirou-chan has good ideas!"

"But… I mean…" Arturia's eyes darted back and forth between her son's eager gaze and Taiga's slightly-too-innocent smile and realized she'd been outmaneuvered. She sighed. "I presume you have some sort of plan at least?"

=======

As it turned out, Taiga did in fact have a plan, one that would have been excellent if it hadn't been built on a foundation of lies. Between being disqualified from tournaments thanks to the Tiger strap she refused to remove from her Shinai and her fascination with Arturia's lessons for Shirou - even if she hadn't possessed the patience to participate herself while they were still learning basics - Taiga had been neglecting her school's Kendo club, attending only when it wouldn't get in the way of time spent with the Einzbern household.

Worse still, during the time she had been attending her perpetual inability to keep her mouth shut had kept her talking about her duels with Arturia. Distracting the other club members during lessons and causing their sensei no end of headaches as she had to deal with the fact that her star pupil had clearly become smitten with the skills of another.

Taiga's plan as she'd presented it to Arturia was simple. An exhibition match, Western Swordsmanship versus Kendo. If Arturia won, she could probably gather enough interest to start teaching her own style to a few students. What she had failed to mention were the one-sided rivalry she had inadvertently instilled in her Sensei and the rumors floating about her club that Arturia would take over if Fukushima was defeated. Such rumors were patently ridiculous of course, but it didn't help that some of the more impressionable students had believed them anyways, and that many of them were genuinely interested in seeing this mysterious swordswoman fight.

"So you're the one who's been trying to steal away my students?"

Which was how Arturia ended up standing opposite a fuming Kendo teacher with nearly two dozen high-schoolers plus Shirou and Taiga watching from the sidelines.

The Homurahara Kendo clubroom was eerily quiet, the air filled with tension. The students were too well trained in respect to cheer or shout as the two duelists squared off but they watched with eager eyes.

"Begin!"

For a long minute they stood there, letting the cry echo in the silence, the air growing thick as they stared each other down. Arturia hadn't planned to move first, but as the seconds stretched on, she could see that her opponent clearly wasn't planning to attack any time soon.

So she chose to make the first move herself and lunged.

Two steps forwards, then a rapid jab, testing Fukushima's speed. She expected to see the strike turned and the Sensei did not disappoint, swatting the training sword to one side and counterattacking with a vertical slash, forcing Arturia to take a step back as she brought her blade back to deflect the blow. The woman was no Servant but while she lacked raw strength her speed was impressive for an aging mortal and her technique was excellent, trading Taiga's overeager youthful enthusiasm for carefully honed caution and precision.

Arturia's eyes narrowed.

For a moment she considered opening her dragon's heart to let just a trickle of mana infuse her. To gain that additional edge against her opponent and finish this quickly. It had been apparent from the moment she'd stepped into the building that this entire venture had been incredibly ill-conceived and the only reason she hadn't simply left was because it would be an insult to her host to back down from the challenge now that it had been issued, not to mention a stain on her own honor as a knight.

Even if she was a failure of a King, she still had that honor…

Fukishima sensei took the initiative this time, attacking with simple straight slashes, the blade a blur as she hounded Arturia with a steady assault, stepping forwards with each motion. Horizontal at head height causing Arturia to duck to evade, then looping around into a diagonal downwards slash. She's herding me Arturia realized quickly, trying to force her to either break contact or allow herself to be pushed into a position where she could no longer dodge. The third strike came, another Horizontal at shoulder height, but Arturia's sword was there again, catching it and deflecting it upwards. That won't work.

Fukushima turned the deflection, looping around again into another lightning-fast vertical strike but this time Arturia was going on the offensive, forcing her opponent to abort the attack to halt a vicious two-handed blow. Their shinai locked for a moment before she tried to step back but Arturia would have none of it, holding the two of them together. In speed they were close enough for Fukushima to be dangerous but in strength the King of Knights was the superior fighter and it showed.

She bore down on the blade, then twisted, similar to the trick she'd used to disarm Taiga in their very first duel. However against the more attentive master of the craft the twist and pull only loosened her grip, tugging the sword only half out of her hands and making it awkward to hold. Immediately she tried to choke up on the hilt again while Arturia was recovering from the follow through of her move but now Arturia let her power trickle forth, just for an instant.

Mana Burst.

She had the other woman's measure and knew she could have won in a prolonged bout even if through nothing more than attrition but that would only end with anger. She needed to shock the woman, make her listen, if only for a moment.

A moment would be all she would need.

Faster than a human could move, Arturia's swing came back, catching the guard of Fukushima's weapon in the moment she tried to regain her grip, in the instants between release and grasp, where the sword hung in mid-air with no hold on it to speak of.

The shinai took flight from it's wielder, blurring through the air to smack against the far wall and clatter to the ground.

Arturia stood straighter, pointing her weapon at Fukushima as she ignored the shocked murmurs of the students. "Please listen to me."

And the teacher listened.

=======

In the end it came down to profuse and somewhat embarrassed apologies on both sides with some glaring at Taiga from both parties.

"In truth, I never had any intention of 'stealing' your students, and I was not aware that Taiga had been neglecting your tutelage. I have been training my son Shirou in Western swordplay but it is slow going, and it is difficult for us to spar with the differences in both age and skill." While she could teach the basics easily enough, the experience of actual combat was a place where she found it difficult to hold back enough for a near-complete novice to really learn from her. "Taiga suggested I open a dojo of my own, but to do so would be… Difficult given my financial situation."

They lived comfortably enough on a clerk's wage but it was a narrow margin, and the extra time she would need to take to operate her own school on top of her current responsibilities was simply nowhere to be found. As it turned out, Homurahara's budget did provide for clubs to pay an 'assistant' so that outside instructors could be brought in should no professional exist amongst the staff or students but Arturia was forced to decline. While she had no doubt she could learn the forms of Kendo in short order, so much time spent in battle had left her with finely honed instincts. To keep to those forms would be to limit herself.

"I appreciate the thought, but I must decline the offer."

"Hmm…"

By now the majority of the students had begun to disperse again, some disappointed that the duel had ended after only a single bout before the adults got to talking. The sun was beginning to dip lower and lower on the horizon and Shirou was yawning widely, his head lolling onto Taiga's shoulder every few minutes before he would jerk back to wakefulness.

Arturia cocked her head at the teacher with a curious expression. "You have an idea."

"Tell me Miss Einzbern, by your name you are European yes? Your Japanese is excellent but what is your native tongue?"

The grail had instilled her with modern understanding of language, but after nearly a year of speaking nothing but Japanese and the changes between what she had once spoken and what was now Britain's first language it took a moment for her to form the words. "English."

Fukushima smiled broadly. "Miss Einzbern, have you ever considered teaching?"

=End Chapter Three=
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Thanks to @TheBleachDoctor once again for briefly aiding me in proofreading this chapter. I have been assured that - if nothing else - he found it delightfully fluffy.

If any of you can spot any errors or inconsistencies then I will do my best to correct them.​

 

[Spectral Waltz]

"Illyasviel."

"Grandfather."

The young homunculus tried not to let the tension show in her voice. It had been months, seven months, three weeks, and two days since the fourth holy grail war had ended.

Seven months, three weeks, and two days since papa had vanished.

She knew. She'd counted each and every one.

Mama was gone, Illya understood that on. She'd dreamed that night when the fire had raged of becoming a cup and when she'd awoken she knew somehow that her mother had passed while she slept.

It hurt… And it didn't…

Grandfather Acht assured her that Mama had done what she meant to do, even if they didn't have the grail. Illya didn't quite understand that, but if Grandfather said so then she took that as a comfort, knowing that Mama had died. What more could a homunculus hope for than to achieve the purpose they had been crafted to fulfill?

But of Papa, Grandfather had remained silent…

There had been a fire in Fuyuki city, centered upon the grail's destruction. Hundreds died, but Papa was no mere mortal but a mage. He would have survived a fire, she was sure of it!

Still he had not appeared.

The flames died down, the search for survivors began, and still he had not appeared.

She asked and asked, but Grandfather remained silent and stern, he would shake his head. No, we have not found him yet, and she would carry on with her studies until the next day, when she would ask again, and receive the same answer.

Every day became every other day as summer faded away into fall and the cold mountains grew only colder.

Every other day became twice a week as fall became winter, and the snow began to fall once more, the wind howling outside during the long nights.

Then came today, a month away from the cusp of spring. The wind was still, and the snow fell lightly, muffling all sound until nothing remained but that soft white noise of its descent. Only manners kept Illya from eager questions. Grandfather had asked to see her outside of her schedule, for the first time in so very long! Surely he must have news of Papa right? Surely there must be some occasion for the interruption of her training!

"Illyasviel, you have been waiting long to hear this. I wish that it were better news."

A sudden sickening lurch in the pit of her stomach at the words, those damning words. It could not be so bad right? Papa was sick, or injured, or perhaps he had been pursued after the fire. He might be in trouble!

"Kiritsugu Emiya is dead."

For an instant Illya felt as though her heart would stop. "Papa?"

Grandfather did not tell jokes or lies.

"It took us some time to find him, his body was near the site of the destroyed grail but he was not caught by the fire."

She felt… Numb. Mama was gone but she'd done well so that was alright, but now Papa was gone too, and he hadn't brought the grail, so did that mean he'd failed?

"H-how…"

"His Servant." A tension filtered through Grandfather's face and Illya realized that for the first time since she could remember he looked angry. "We suspected Saber would oppose us, and it seemed at the very end our suspicions were correct. It was she who destroyed the grail and put her blade through Emiya's heart."

Memories of that woman, short and blonde and eyes of piercing green, cold and aloof.

The ice in Illya's veins turned to molten rock, anger as the words sank in, fingers tensing as she clenched her fists. "Illyasviel."

She let go, forcing her body to obey her, relaxing even as the fury pounded at the inside of her skull.

"We will not let this delay halt our plans."

Illya met Grandfather's eyes again as he spoke, saying nothing.

"Your training will be altered starting today. We will not fail again. You will serve as a Master in the fifth Holy Grail War."

"Yes Grandfather. Will that be all?" The words felt bitter in her mouth, but if he noticed, he gave no sign of it.

"Avalon is still at large."

She blinked, uncomprehending.

"That will be all Illyasviel. You may leave."

She did.

For a long minute she stood outside Grandfather's study, staring into the empty air between her and the opposite wall. Outside she could hear the wind beginning to stir up again, whistling through the trees as it wound across the mountainside. Leysritt and Sella moved from where they had been standing next to the door, positioning themselves by her shoulders yet just far enough back to be out of sight, ready to serve at her behest.

Of course Grandfather would not make it easy on her. No matter what happened.

Without a word, Illyasviel turned left and marched towards the library, her maids trailing in her wake.

Time to get started.

=End Interlude One=
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Thanks to @TheBleachDoctor for proofreading this on short notice.​

 

[Spectral Waltz]

"And so, I ask that we take two minutes of silence for the victims of the fire two years ago. To remember those hundreds of lives lost to tragedy."

There were closer services they could have attended. Practically every shrine in the city was performing a memorial ceremony of some sort for the fire, but just like last year, Arturia-mama had insisted they walk downtown and attend the biggest ceremony, held on the still-scorched earth where once the downtown core of the city had resided. Crews had finished clearing away the rubble years ago but even as the land had reopened to development no one had seemed terribly interested in rebuilding.

Shirou toed the dusty earth softly in the silence. He didn't like this place and he knew Mama didn't either, but she had insisted that it was important they come here. Even though the real place no longer bore any hint of the landscape he could see in his dreams of that night, he could still feel the voices of the dead slithering into his ears, and see the flames whenever he closed his eyes. As though the fire had imprinted itself upon this place and his memory, never the three to be separated.

He was glad when the moment of silence ended and the priest began to talk again, drowning out the illusions of memory once more.

Feeling a nameless weight begin to lift as Arturia led him away from the epicenter of the disaster and back towards their home, Shirou held tightly to her hand, squeezing gently as he sought the comfort of contact and feeling her squeeze back.

Sympathy.

The walk home passed in companionable silence.

=======

Arturia had to admit to a certain amount of trepidation going into Shirou's birthday this year.

The first had been something of a minor disaster. Figuring out the date in the first place had been a mess. Like many other memories from before the fire, Shirou's day of birth was gone from his mind, and Fuyuki's city records had been almost exclusively paper, nearly all of which had been consumed by the fire. For a long time she'd hoped that he might simply recall on one day or another, but as the spring had turned to summer again and the passage of a full year drew ever closer she made a choice.

On paper, Arturia had written Shirou's date of birth as the day of the fire, that morning that marked the ending of the fourth war. Even if that was not when his body had come into the world, that event had marked a new beginning for him for all that it was built upon the bitter ashes of what had come before it. Whoever Shirou had been before the fire he had emerged from it changed, with a new name and a new life, however strange those may have been.

In practice it seemed cruel to celebrate on such a dark day both to her adopted son and to the city that still mourned the tragedy of a year ago, and in the end she was forced to simply acknowledge that the particular day was not as important as the celebration of time's passage itself.

If the issue of timing hadn't been enough, then came the issue of Shirou, something she hadn't even realized would be a problem until it was too late. In honor of the occasion, Arturia had finally applied herself (in addition to enlisting help from Taiga) to cook a proper Japanese meal in celebration. Furthermore, while she hadn't been able to go so far as to learn to bake one herself, she purchased a cake and a few candles.

In hindsight - Arturia reflected quietly - the candles were the real mistake.

To say Shirou had not reacted well to being presented with open flames against a darkened backdrop (the lights having been dimmed for the sake of presentation) would be an understatement. He did not scream or panic but instead ended up going very still and quiet, the candlelight reflecting tears as they began to flow freely down his face, his lips moving as though in silent prayer or wordless plea.

Arturia had been stabbed before, and could well describe a very similar sensation when she bent close to try and comfort him, only to hear his words. "I don't want to go on… I don't want to be alone. I want to die. I want to die."

"Sh-shirou!"

"I…" He stiffened suddenly, as though realizing her presence for the first time, then sniffled. "'Turia-mama?"

She couldn't have been more relieved when he returned her hug but those words remained lodged in her head. That mantra from the memory of a boy dying a slow death amidst the flames circling her mind over and over again in the weeks to come.

So similar to her, too similar to her for a boy of a mere half dozen years…

It was strangely both comforting and horrifying to contemplate that one so young could hold a pain so similar to her own hidden inside.

I won't leave you Shirou…

Now, a year beyond that, the time approached once more. This time, she would plan more carefully.

=======

Mama was up to something. Shirou was sure of it.

Ever since the service they'd attended together she'd been acting funny. She'd been late two nights ago, and was late again tonight, and Fuji-nee hadn't even yelled at her for it! Mind you, what Fujimura did and didn't yell about was still something of a mystery to Shirou's second (going on third come the fall) grade intellect, but he was fairly certain that arriving home late was a consistent yell trigger.

So really both of them had to be up to something! It was the only possibly explanation!

His eyes narrowed as he stared at Fuji-nee, half concealed from her by the sliding door as she lounged on the floor of the room watching the television quietly.

"Hm?"

Immediately his mind shifted gears as Taiga's head tilted back, her eyes meeting his. "Shirou-chan? Is-."

Abort! Abort! Shirou bolted. Caught spying! He had to escape!

"Something wrong..?" Taiga's question trailed off behind him as he fled the scene.


He hid in the closet, tucking himself under the lowest shelf as his mind raced. He knew that he probably wasn't supposed to be in here like this but he needed somewhere to hide! He needed to figure out what was going on!

"...-irou-chan!"

His eyes widened as he heard footsteps down the hall outside, stepping slowly as the Taiga stalked her prey. "C'mon Shirou-chan, where'd you go?" The footsteps passed trailing their way down towards the far end of the corridor as he let out a sigh of relief.

He realized his mistake the moment the footsteps halted in an instant, the voice returning with a teasing lilt to it. "Oh Shirou-chan~ You wouldn't be hiding from your big sis Taiga would you?" He covered his mouth with one hand, trying to stay as still as possible as the footsteps made their way closer, and closer…

And stopped…

The door shot open with a bang and Shirou jumped as the tension unwound itself in an instant, prompting an equally loud reverberation as he smacked his head into the bottom shelf. "Oh gods! Shirou!" Taiga cried out appalled as he curled back up, whimpering as he tried and failed to suppress the pain. "Owowowow… Huuurrtss… Taiga whyyy…"

"Don't 'Taiga' me what do you mean 'why' you're the one that decided to hide in a closet!"

"Oww… Not so loud Tai-uh-... Fuji-nee…"

"Come on, get out of there. You're going to have a headache soon if you don't do something about it."

"O… Okay…"

While it had taken time for Arturia to understand the world of modern medicine, she'd taken to keeping a well-stocked cabinet in short order. Not that much of it got used. Even after a year and a half Shirou had not yet reached the point of regularly risking anything resembling serious injury during training and Arturia wasn't sure whether she could fall ill in her current form, though given two years without so much as a sniffle or headache she had a fair suspicion that she could not.

"Honestly, first you're acting weird, now you've hurt yourself. Aspirin, Aspirin, where is the aspirin…"

Taiga was rummaging through container after container, hunting for the simple painkillers that Arturia simply didn't use often enough for them to be on display. She gave a heavy sigh…

"Some birthday this is turning out to be…"

Shirou blinked.

"Birthday?"

"Uhhh…" Now it was Taiga's turn to look frightened at what she'd let slip. "Whoops?"

=======

"I'm home!"

"Eheh… Welcome home Einzbern-Sensei!"

"Welcome home Arturia-Mama!"

The blonde woman gave a look at Taiga's sheepish expression. "Ah… Did I miss something?"

"I may have let slip that it was his birthday…"

Arturia raised an eyebrow at that and Taiga flinched at the expression she saw in those hard green eyes, only for them to soften a moment later. "Well I suppose it's alright. I had managed to find what I wanted anyways." She reached out, ruffling her surrogate son's hair with a smile. "Happy Birthday Shirou~"

"Now, the real question is. Since you know the secret. Do you want dinner first? Or…" Arturia reached behind her and held out a narrow box, over a meter in length. "...Your present?" While Arturia's Japanese cooking had improved, the error of last year's attempt had weighed heavily on her, and rather than try at home again this year, Arturia had elected to book a table at a nice restaurant a short ways from the house. While the salary she earned as a teacher since Fukushima-san had helped her get a position teaching english at Homurahara high school after their duel was by no means impressive, it was a step up from what she'd been making as a clerk beforehand and it had expanded her means nicely. Not to mention she would hopefully be able to start up her 'Western Swordsmanship Club' in the fall.

None of the members would be Shirou's age of course, being that it was a high school, but in terms of skill level she expected she would be able to find a few that might be able to match his year and a half of regular training.

In fact, she was becoming strangely proud of his development as a swordsman. Now that they had begun to move into basic strikes and blocks - crossing their Shinai properly for attack and defense - Arturia was beginning to realize that for all that he had no innate understanding of footwork, Shirou seemed to hold a natural talent for wielding blades themselves.

Which of course brought everything back to the current moment, where - with all the impulsive enthusiasm a just-turned-nine-year-old could muster - Shirou shot to his feet, reaching out for it-. "Careful!"

Arturia pulled back just a bit. "It's very heavy, use both hands okay?" She herself was holding the package one-handed but as Shirou took it from her he nearly stumbled at the unexpected weight as well as the unexpected revelation.

He knew what he held in his hands.

The sword was a simple one, a plain round pommel and undecorated crossguard. A simple leather sheath and a gleaming steel blade, albeit blunted for safety. "It is only a training weapon, like your shinai, but this will give you a true sense of the weight you would carry into battle." She hoped her son would never need the training she was giving him in truth, but having done so much already she saw no reason to leave it incomplete.

It would be the height of negligence, and more importantly, she knew that Shirou would be devastated to be so suddenly cut off.

"Starting september, one night a week, we will train with steel instead of wood. And I will teach you to properly care for your weapon."

He would need to learn many of his movements all over again as he adjusted to the new weight, but she had faith that he would do it soon.

Shirou was still staring at the sword, his sword. It wasn't quite right. It was not quite a sword yet, blunted and curbed as it was, and yet, it still spoke to him so much more than the wooden shinai did.

"Did you hear me Shirou?"

Finally he pulled his eyes away from the weapon (for if nothing else it was truly a weapon) and set it down on the table before lunging into his mother's stomach to give her a powerful hug.

"Thank you Arturia-mama! Thank you so much!"

Taiga and Arturia smiled. It hadn't been easy to find a swordsmith who could make western weapons, much less one who was willing to make training blades rather than the real thing, but this made it all worth it.

Never mind that they would need such blades for the club eventually anyways.

Taiga's stomach growled and her smile faded slightly. "Ah… I'm sorry Sensei but you mentioned dinner?"

Arturia just smiled. "Of course. Just as soon as we can convince him not to take the sword with him."

"O-of course…"

=End Chapter 4=
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EDIT: Whoops! Almost forgot! Thanks you @reborn214 and @TheBleachDoctor for proofreading this for me!

So sorry for the really odd hour of update by the way. I promised it would be today and I made it so, but my god has it not been conducive to writing where I live.​

 

[Spectral Waltz]

Schedule Update for all those following this story, starting next week, I will be working night shifts on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

In light of that, I will aim to update this story Twice Weekly. Once on Wednesday, and once during the weekend on Saturday or Sunday.

Thank you all for your support, and I look forward to continuing this tale!

-Spectral Waltz

 

[Spectral Waltz]

Rin had never liked Shinji.

They'd known each other for a long time, ever since Sakura had been traded away to the Matou family. The reasons she didn't like him had changed over the years mind. At first she had thought him useless, a weak link in his family thanks to his lack of magic circuits. As she grew however, Tohsaka Rin came to understand better and better that Shinji Matou was not merely a non-mage or a dead end in his family line. He was unpleasant on the most basic of levels, a stain of a human being.

If anything, she might say she had gone from pity in her early life, to hatred as the time wound onwards. The only reason she gave him the time of day was because her little sister lived with him. Even if she and Sakura had barely seen each other for years and seemed to grow only more distant with time's passage Rin could not help but worry.

A child shouldn't have to worry about these things, but she was no longer really a child was she? Worrying after the Tohsaka estate, after that Kirei slowly whittling away at the family holdings bit by bit, after a household that had come to her far too early. Even with Kirei's guardianship attending to many matters there had still been so much to do on top of the learning of her magecraft and her preparations for the war she knew would eventually descend upon this city one day and take up the task her father had left to her.

She held on to determination, unaware of the true full consequences of her eventual ambition.

=======

Shinji had never understood Rin.

He didn't understand a lot of things in truth. Why even though he was firstborn son he was to be passed over in the family inheritance in favor of a sister not even of the same blood, a sister who was barely even a true person. More just a puppet of Zouken and his father than anything else. Why he hadn't been born with any magic circuits whatsoever. Why no one appreciated him as he believed they should.

Rin though… Rin was a particular enigma. Another old house crucial to Fuyuki's magical history. A girl, and a cute one at that. He'd thought of her as an equal once, but she'd always treated him as a nothing, just like father and Zouken did, and he couldn't help but resent that. It was only fair right? To wish to be better than someone who considered you beneath them? Sure he didn't have an inheritance, or magic circuits, but he had other things right? He was of the same class as her, a Matou to her Tohsaka, they were both by name alone well above the rest of the rabble, why couldn't she see that and at least acknowledge him? Why couldn't she look his way?

She even gave Sakura more leeway than him, and in that reflection everything slowly turned in his mind. Sakura Sakura Sakura… Everyone cared about Sakura it seemed, everyone loved the perfect little doll who let herself be soiled by insects.

In the end, Shinji hated Sakura the most, but while he had come to expect Father and Zouken would always care for her a little more. He had never understood what Rin saw in the girl. Why she would rather speak to that pretender to the Matou name.

Maybe though… Maybe if he could just work a little harder. He couldn't do anything to match Rin as a mage, but he could show her in other ways right? He could be cool and popular, magic didn't decide everything right? It couldn't!

...Right?

He held on to hope, unable to recognize his fundamental flaw that would forever keep him from the heights he wished to attain.

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They had known each other before, but as Junior High began Shinji and Rin found themselves assigned the same class for the first time since fourth grade. Many of the students were unfamiliar, a side effect of the recommended schooling zones having changed following the destruction of one Junior high school in the fire five years ago. However as the entrance ceremony opened and Rin found herself examining the class lists, she found that the presence of Matou amongst her classmates was not her first and foremost concern.

Rather, it was the presence of one name that had come up most often in her studies of magic.

There near the top of the list for classroom 1-C, lay the name of one 'Einzbern Shirou'.

Next to her, Kirei frowned as well. As a guardian he was rarely so hands on in his care for her as to show up for such an event but school entrance ceremonies were important enough that today he had chosen to make an appearance. "Einzbern..." He murmured, reaching out to trace one finger along the printed letters. The Kanji were even the same, and yet the 'von' interfix so often included was missing.

Rin looked up at her guardian, questions on her lips, but with the press of people all around them she was reluctant to give her curiosity too much voice. Kirei appeared thoughtful for a moment, then gave a slow and measured exhale. "We will discuss this later. The speeches will begin shortly." He looked away, deep in thought, and Rin felt the first frisson of uncertainty down her spine. Einzbern. One of the three mage families who had devised the system that governed the Holy Grail Wars.

Rin resolved to keep a careful eye out. Some day this 'Shirou' could be her opponent after all.

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Stepping across the threshold into the gym, Kirei Kotomine froze and stared, shocked into immobility as his brown eyes met with a set of all-too-familiar green ones.

"Sa…ber…"

Emiya's servant, even without her armor and weapon that presence of hers - the quiet aura of command she wielded - was unmistakeable to one who'd experienced it before. But this should be impossible, the war ended six years ago, and she was at it's centre! She shouldn't be here…

"Kirei? Is something the matter?"

"Something wrong mama?"

As if the scene could not be any more insane there was a child tugging at her sleeve, a young boy - tall and obviously muscular even beneath the brand new uniform he wore - with a shock of red hair. Human, Kirei could tell that much at a glance, not even a mage that I can sense, though he could have circuits, he called her mother? His mind raced, searching for answers, an excuse, a reason. Something that explained what he was seeing in front of him.

He came up blank on the explanations, but at least he could try to recover. "Apologies, I was merely caught off guard by the presence of a beautiful foreign lady such as yourself. Forgive my rudeness Ms…"

"Einzbern", her voice was clipped, "and this is my son, Shirou."

"Eh?! Einzbern?" Rin blurted that out before she could think and Kirei cursed in the back of his mind, putting a hand on her shoulder before she could say anything more. The small handful of explanations he'd been able to come up with had just been blown apart by that name and he needed to regroup. Was she still working for the family? Kiritsugu had been in the war as their proxy but he had seen his body, and while the man had been skilled at disappearing Kirei was fairly certain that he was truly dead this time. Irisviel had become the grail however, and she'd been the main connecting point. Had Saber pledged her services to the einzbern family as a whole? Had there been some sort of elaborate triple-gambit of proxies that he hadn't known about? And more importantly how was a Servant still active even after the Grail had vanished? Not consumed but rather outright destroyed in the final struggle?

"Ah… Sorry… I've just-uh… I've heard that name before." Rin backpedaled now, and Kirei didn't miss the momentary narrowing of the servant's eyes as they turned from his down to those of his charge. "Oh? And who might you be?"

"Mama you're being scary…" Behind her the young boy had an awkward look on his face as he murmured.

Rin for her part had even half shrunk back despite her pride. "I'm Rin Tohsaka, and this is my guardian Kirei Kotomine."

Kirei winced internally at that, but it couldn't be helped. Not without arousing suspicions all over the place. He resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. Not only was there a servant here but there was also the boy by her side. Who was he? Where had he come from? He couldn't be of the Einzbern family could he? No… Surely not, he had none of their looks. Was he her new Master? No… Kirei couldn't sensed the presence of command seals, and the next war was not due to begin for years yet, at least a decade! So then what role did he play in all of this?

"Tohsaka?" Saber had a faint reaction of her own there before she nodded slowly. "Ah, you're in Shirou's class are you not? Please take good care of him." She bowed traditionally, and Rin nodded slowly, too much wariness showing in her eyes for Kirei's liking.

Then, giving him and his charge one last look, the disguised servant turned back and carried on into the Gym, her and her charge quickly being swallowed by the crowds, though he could still see her blonde hair easily enough against the sea of darker colours as she led her charge towards their seats.

"Kotomine-san… What was that just now?"

Kirei looked down at his charge, then sighed. "We should discuss this later. At home."

"Eh? But wasn't she… Weren't they?"

"Later." Kirei's voice was firm, and Rin pouted. "The Ceremony is about to start."

Besides, he needed time to figure out how to explain all this in the first place. One misstep could place light on far too many things that should remain hidden in the dark.

Assuming he could even figure out what was going on in the first place…

=End Chapter Five=
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Thanks to @TheBleachDoctor , @Crow , and @BlackHadou for helping me out with this chapter and the story so far~ Hopefully as long as I can stick to my schedule I'll see you all on Wednesday with the next one!

As always, if you spot any issues or typos that the helpful Betas or I have missed, please do let me know and I'll do my best to correct them!