Author's Notes: Okay before you guys read my story, I just want to make a few things clear. This is my first ever fanfic in the fate universe as well as the RWBY universe. I am a fan of both and have done some research on them so that I could Write this fanfic. I'm not familiar with a lot of the Nasuverse, but I will do my best to get it accurate. If I make a mistake, I apologize in advance. Please don't be afraid to correct me or criticize my work, but please keep it constructive.
This version of Shirou goes about accomplishing his goals similar to Archer and Kiritsugu. It's obvious that this universe is a different one from Fate Stay Night, but it still has similarities to it. I still would like to keep some of the fate themes and elements to the story if I can. Also, think of this as more of a 'what if' concept.
I forgot to add, but I am entering this fanfic into a contest created by Alex-Kellar. If it wasn't for this contest or my brothers, I probably would have never written a FatexRWBY fanfic at all. So I'm pretty excited. Hope I can finish in time for the deadline. Anyways, Alex-Kellar, thanks for doing this. :) He's a really cool artist on Deviantart so be sure to check his stuff out.
Update: I would like to thank Tree45 for his review. He had excellent input. He made me realize that I made a mistake. I honestly didn't see it until later. So I had help from my amazing editor. Unfortunately, there is now a slight alteration to the story, but I think it'll work better this way anyhow.
Prologue
Flames poured down from the sky. The curses that came with it originated from that "Holy Grail." The fire spread everywhere. It was destroying everything it touched. Hundreds, thousands of lives would be lost that day. All except a dying boy who would be saved by a hero, or at least, what was left of that boy.
Though he would live, he could never forget what he saw there that day. The destruction of his city and his family. The fire consuming everything within it's reach. The screams of helpless thousands. People trying to save someone. Anyone. And that fire burning up his world to ash.
He would never ever forget the feeling of wanting to save everyone from this hell. But how could a boy who couldn't even survive save anyone?
A young Emiya Shirou gasped for air as he awoke from that nightmare. He sat up and felt his forehead. He was slightly drenched in sweat. He looked down at his arms and found that he was trembling.
Shirou sighed deeply. He dwelt back on the nightmare. The amount of people dying always got to him. He was the only survivor and he always felt some sort of guilt for it.
He got out of his bed and walked out of his room to find Kiritsugu, he, too, was not in bed. Shirou walked into the living room and up to a door. He slid it open and saw a man sitting on the wooden porch outside of the house. Kiritsugu. He was sitting outside in the cold night, looking up at the beautiful shining moon and stars in the sky.
Shirou went to sit down by him.
"Couldn't sleep either?" Kiritsugu asked, his eyes still set to the sky.
Shirou nodded. "I had that nightmare again. I was back there in that... Hell."
Kiritsugu turned his head and looked at Shirou. Kiritsugu was saddened at the sight of the boy. Almost every night, Shirou was tormented by the events that took place a couple years ago. Kiritsugu did everything he could to keep Shirou comfortable and forget the tragedies of the past... But there was still part of it left inside of him. It was as if that boy was born through that fire.
As Kiritsugu was trying to think of something to comfort him, suddenly Shirou had said "Thank you, old man."
Kiritsugu looked at him. "For..?"
"That night," Shirou replied. No matter how many nightmares he would wake up from. No matter how dark or cruel it was to be in that fire. There was always an upside to that story that always made Shirou smile.
When everything looked like it was going to hell. Like there was no hope, he could never forget the feeling he got when he saw that smile on Kiritsugu's face when he had saved him from that hell. Shirou always admired that smile of a man who was happy that he managed to save someone. He wanted to be like him.
"Thank you for saving me," Shirou said as he looked in Kiritsugu's eyes.
A slight tear made it's way down Kiritsugu's face. He remembered that day all too well. He had been searching for hours through piles and piles of rubble for someone. The "Holy Grail" had destroyed the entire city, leaving it with no survivors. He was desperate to save someone. Anyone. When he found Shirou alive, he was crying with joy. Because he managed to save someone.
An hour and a half would pass and it was filled with father and adopted-son talking about many things in life. From sports, to training, to school, to a violet-haired girl whom he usually walked to school with. Kiritsugu gave him a look of gratitude. And teased him a little about having a girlfriend. Shirou blushed and quickly told him that they were just good friends.
It was so late in the night, but they didn't mind. Neither one could get any sleep anyways.
Kiritsugu looked up at the sky. "Beautiful isn't it? Really makes you think of how many times we take that sight for granted."
Shirou nodded and reached his hand out to the sky.
Kiritsugu saw him and slightly chuckled. "What are you doing, Shirou?"
"If I can reach out far enough, then maybe, just maybe, I can grab my wish."
"And what wish would that be?"
"For everyone to be happy."
Kiritsugu smiled at 10 year old Shirou. Unlike others, his wish was so unselfish, yet impossible.
Ever since the event, Shirou had a different mindset than the world. He'd always wanted to put others before himself and he always wanted everyone to be happy.
Kiritsugu admired the ambition and optimism in the wish of that boy. Shirou was so young and full of hope. He had this innocence and Kiritsugu didn't want it to ever go away. "I had a wish once...," he said recalling on a memory.
Shirou looked at him with curiosity. "I had a wish once..." Those words sounded like it was full of regret and sadness. Shirou saw the exact same thing in Kiritsugu's face.
Kiritsugu reminisced on his life. Most of which was full of regret, especially his inability to save his daughter. He'd wished that he could of done more. Wished he could of been something more.
"What was your wish?" Shirou asked him.
Kiritsugu looked at him. He saw that Shirou was looking at him with wide and curious eyes. "My wish was to save everyone," he said. "Ever since I was a child, It was always my dream to become a Hero of Justice... But I failed. Being a hero means that you have to save everyone, but I could never save everyone, Shirou. I killed and killed so many people with the reasoning in my mind that it was for the greater good. For those that I killed, I surely saved lives. And so, I always chose the majority over the minority. Discarding the few and saving as much people as I could. That... Became my ideal."
Kiritsugu sighed deeply. "I failed at being a Hero of Justice because I was weak. I lost a lot of good people. I tried again and again, but it was impossible to save everyone. I couldn't do it. I suppose that dream of mine was impossible to accomplish as I became an adult."
Silence flew by for a good minute or two.
Shirou looked at Kiritsugu. He was looking at a man in pain. A man full of regret and sorrow. A man who had lost a lot. A man who had a dream of becoming something greater but in the end came up short. Kiritsugu looked so tired.
Shirou patted his hand on top of Kiritsugu's shoulder. Kiritsugu looked at him all the sudden. "Leave your dream to me," Shirou said with a big smile. "I'm still a child. So I'll become a Hero of Justice for you! So you have nothing to worry about because I'll carry on your dream!"
The passion in Shirou's words made Kiritsugu smile. He was happy to hear that. He could rest in peace as Shirou would continue his ideal.
"Don't you worry, Kiritsugu. I promise you that I will become a Hero of Justice."
And so as time would move forward, Kiritsugu would train Shirou how to fight. How to plan tactics and strategy's. And he would train him about a little something called magecraft. Kiritsugu was, of course, against Shirou learning it at first, but in time gave in and decided to teach him a little. As his years were limited, all he could do was give him little training on magecraft, but even so, the boy had excelled rapidly in the arts. Kiritsugu was impressed and was starting to believe that he would continue on that dream of becoming a Hero of Justice.
One day, Kiritsugu went out for a walk while Shirou would continue his training. He was getting good enough where he didn't need to be watched like a hawk all the time. (Though he was still nowhere near a professional level.)
Shirou looked up at the sky. It had an orange/reddish color. The sun was slowly setting.
It was getting late and Shirou figured that he'd trained enough for today. So he decided to go and find Kiritsugu. Though he was a man in his thirties, his body acted like that of a seventy year old man. This was the curse of the holy grail. Soon his body would no longer function and Shirou didn't want him to ever reach that point.
As Shirou kept walking down the road, a sudden shake began. It was large, like an earthquake. He lost his balance and fell to the ground. Cracks in the ground were forming. He looked at some of the buildings. They were collapsing into piles of rubble.
Suddenly Shirou began to get very worried for Kiritsugu. He was getting a very bad feeling about all of this.
He quickly got up and ran down the road. He went all across the town looking for Kiritsugu.
Finally he stopped at the sight of a hill. His eyes widened in shock. He saw Kiritsugu on top, but that wasn't what surprised him. A moon- no, an entire planet was entering the earth's orbit. It was drawing closer and closer. Was this actually happening right now? Shirou was in awe. He looked at the planet, and didn't recognize it from any of the solar systems. What planet was it? More importantly, what would happen if it reached it's destination? Shirou was afraid to find out.
Little did he know that this would be the day that his world, collided with theirs.
As Shirou finally got his attention off of the planet, he looked back at the hill and saw Kiritsugu looking at him. Shirou waved, but Kiritsugu just stood there.
He's alright. He's safe. Nothing to worry about. Shirou thought.
Suddenly, a sword made it's way through Kiritsugu's heart. He was gasping for air as he was choking on his own blood.
"Kiritsugu!" Shirou called out to him.
As the sword was retrieved from his body, he fell to the ground. Shirou saw a dark figure standing over his body. He couldn't quite make out who it was, but it looked like a man. The figure's gaze went over to Shirou for a moment. It seemed like it was interested in him. It then waved at Shirou. Was it taunting him? Suddenly in that moment, it was gone just like that. It had disappeared out of thin air.
Shirou quickly ran up the steep hill and made his way to Kiritsugu. He dropped to his knees and held him in his arms. "Kiritsugu! Kiritsugu! Kiritsugu!" He called out his name at least three times.
Kiritsugu coughed up blood and his eyes were getting distant. "Shirou?" He held his bloody hand on Shirou's cheek. "I'm sorry," he said. "I guess I'm leaving you a lot sooner than I expected."
"Don't say that, you're gonna be fine. You're gonna live!"
Kiritsugu coughed up more blood. "I'm sorry, Shirou."
"Stop saying that!"
Kiritsugu knew from the very beggining that his time was short. Yet he didn't picture this would be the way he'd go. "Listen, you're gonna be fine. Don't worry, you still have Taiga. She will watch over you in my place."
Shirou's eyes went big. "In my place." Kiritsugu was talking like he was never gonna see him again and Shirou didn't like that. He wasn't ready to lose him. "I'm gonna get you down from this hill, and I'm gonna bring you to the hospital. Everything is gonna be alright. Kiritsugu, I will save you!"
Shirou tried lifting Kiritsugu off the ground, but when he attempted to do so, it just put him in more agonizing pain. It would just accelerate his death.
Shirou gently placed him back to the ground. He looked at his chest wound. It was deep and blood was pouring out. He was slightly amazed that Kiritsugu was still alive at this point.
Shirou was getting very frustrated. Kiritsugu was dying, and there was nothing he could do about it. "No, no, no, Noooo! I have to save you!" Shirou was looking around his surroundings for someone. He was calling out for someone to help him. No one ever came. Both Shirou and Kiritsugu was alone in this.
Shirou embraced Kiritsugu. There wasn't really anything he could do. This feeling... he knew it all too well. He was experiencing the same feelings that day. The day he- when everyone lost everything. The day when hope was dead. In this moment, he felt so helpless and weak. He felt completely useless.
"Look at me, Shirou," Kiritsugu said.
"Kiritsugu- I- I'm sorry."
"Shirou, look at me." Kiritsugu repeated.
Shirou sat up and looked at him.
"You're a good boy with a good heart. Thank God I was able to save such a wonderful person like you... Now, I don't want you to shed tears for this old man. He's lived a good life. And I want you to live yours."
"Who did this to you?!" Shirou demanded.
"It doesn't matter."
"It matters to me." He stubbornly pushed forward.
"Listen up, boy. I want you to do something for me. I know you must be feeling a lot of things right now. The most powerful one right now is sadness. From experience, I know it'll later form into anger. And that anger will form into a drive for revenge. I don't want that obsession to destroy you. I don't want you to go down that path. The same path I took."
"Then what do I do?"
"Remember that night? What you said to me... Do you remember your promise...? I want you to become a Hero of Justice."
Shirou's eyes went big and he slowly nodded. He remembered that night clearly. He did make him a promise that he would become a Hero of Justice... A hero who could save everyone. But right here and now, he couldn't even save Kiritsugu. He was feeling something different in his heart, something that he had never felt before. He wasn't able to identify what it was.
Who would dare do such a thing? This made Shirou think. Just how many enemies does Kiritsugu has?
"I want you to be better than me, Shirou," Kiritsugu said as he coughed up even more blood. "I want you to be a real hero. Promise me you'll keep your promise. Promise me that you will be a Hero of Justice."
Shirou was silent for a moment. He wanted to say yes and that he would keep his promise, but all he could think about was Kiritsugu dying on the cold hard ground and the man who put him there.
"Shirou promise me."
After contemplating for a short while, he gave in to Kiritsugu's wish. "I prom-" Before he was able to finish that sentence, Kiritsugu had breathed his last breath of air. In that very moment, as the sun had set, Kiritsugu had died in the arms of his son.
"Kiritsugu?" Shirou was trembling. He couldn't believe what he was seeing before his eyes. All that remained of Kiritsugu was his lifeless body. "Dad?!" Perhaps the only time Shirou had ever called Kiritsugu "dad" was in this very moment. "Dad?!" Shirou was shaking Kiritsugu's body.
You're not gone. You're not gone. You're just sleeping. He kept telling himself, unable to accept the truth. "Wake up, please!" He cried out.
This moment didn't feel real to him. It was a dream, right? How could this have happened? Because of his huge health problems, Shirou knew that one day Kiritsugu would die, but he never expected it would be by murder.
He kept shaking the dead body, trying to at least convince himself that Kiritsugu was still alive. He couldn't go back to reality. He didn't want to. How could he face a world without... Him.
Then, he fell on top of his body. His ears pressed against his chest. He heard nothing. No sound. Nothing. It was empty. The only heartbeat that he heard was of his own.
And in that moment it had hit him. He was dead and there was nothing he could do to bring him back.
Shirou held Kiritsugu's lifeless body in his arms. "I couldn't save you..."
He was helpless. He was weak. He was useless. But what could he do? He was only 12 years old. Just a child. Still, he had promised Kiritsugu that he would become a Hero of Justice and save everyone, but yet, he wasn't able to save him.
In this very moment, Shirou all the sudden didn't feel anything anymore. Just for a few seconds, there was nothing. No sadness, lost or despair. No, those feelings had altered their course and formed into something completely different. A desire took root. Something that didn't belong. Something completely foreign to the young Emiya Shirou.
His mind kept replaying the dark figure who had killed Kiritsugu. His face formed into a dark scowl. His breathing was unsteady. There was a change going on inside him. Something he could not stop.
