Minutes passed as Irisviel and her servant sat nervously on either end of the hospital's waiting room. Just a half-hour before, the pair had shared an unexpected kiss that left all involved grasping at straws at any reason such a thing could happen. Irisviel had claimed that she was simply caught in the moment, though, she knew in her heart, that simply was not was far more behind that passion filled kiss than she would ever care to admit to anyone, even herself. And thus, unable to express the meaning behind the oral embrace, Irisivel sat in silence, a perpetual haze of crimson dotting her pale skin.

Saber, meanwhile, lingered more in confusion then embarrassment. The relationship she shared with the elder Einzbern was that of master and servant or knight and princess, relationships that harbored very little in the way of physical affections, and even when they did such acts were confined to a kiss on the hand or other such courtly rites A kiss, especially one placed every so carefully on the lips as Irisviel had done, were meant for lovers and were completely inappropriate for those in any other kind of relationship. Saber thought over and over silently in her head. If Irisviel desired such a relationship... Saber quickly shook her head of such thoughts as her face began to flow the same color as her master's. Such lines of thought could only lead to ruin, Saber rationalized, as she locked such ideas in the deepest depths of her mind.

The silence, heavy as the fog of a spring morning, was only broken when one of the nurses who had been looking over the small child Irisviel had rescued the Grail fire entered the room while clutching a clipboard closely to her chest. "You two are the ones who brought in the young boy, correct?" The nurse spoke while flipping through the endless pile of documents laying at hand.

"You've got it!" Irisviel nearly shouted in a vaguely awkward way. "We were trying to escape the fire ourselves, but I couldn't live with myself if I didn't do something to help him." Irisiviel did her best to smile through the mixture of loss, confusion, and embarrassment presently stalking her waking mind. "Is he doing all right?" She questioned as if trying to pass the focus of the conversation away from herself.

"Little Shirou is doing fine. Though, frankly, the doctors thought he wasn't going to make it for a small while there." The nurse said with a genuine smile. "He is a very lucky child to be as well off as he is." While the medical professionals of Fuyuki General Hospital had attributed Shirou's survival to the fact that Irisviel had found him so soon after the fire's out break, they could not possibly know that the true source of his near miraculous recovery was the scabbard of the King of Knights. "It's likely his parents die in that terrible blaze, I imagine he will be placed with the other orphans when all is said and done." The nurse then turned to leave, offering a last thanks to Irisviel and Saber as she walked from the room. Irisviel, however, was not done and spoke a last missive in a voice of the utmost seriousness.

"If you don't mind, I would like to begin the process of adopting Shirou. If that is possible, of course." Though the idea had come to Irisviel on the spur of the moment and formed of mixture of an intense desire to rebuild her shattered family and to give a better life to the poor child she had personally rescued from the grail-fueled conflagration. Saber, who was standing at Irisviel's side the entire time, was more than a bit shocked at her master's request, but not by her resolve. Much like that of her husband, Irisviel's will was nearly unbreakable and if she put her mind to something she would do anything it took to make her goal a reality.

"Of course, I will send the necessary paper work as soon as possible. For now would you like to see the child? I imagine he would like to meet the women who saved his life." The nurse finally left the waiting room, motioning for master and servant to follow as well. After walking through the florescent-lit halls of the hospital for a moment, Irisviel and Saber found the child in question laying in a typical hospital bed with green sheet. His cuts cleaned and bandaged and his torn clothes replaced with a simple hospital gown. In all, he looked far better than he had mere hours before, a fact owed all most completely to the mystical artifact residing in his small body. The sight of Shirou alive and well filled Irisviel's heart with a mixture of hope and joy, a feeling very much like what she had felt the during the winter days she spent with her precious daughter Illya.

"Hello, Shirou." Irisviel spoke in a melodic tone. "My name is Irisviel, but you can just call me Iiri if you can't pronounce it." The Homunculus giggled for the first time since the chaos of the previous night. "I know this is sudden, and you don't have to answer me now, but I would like to be your mother if you would have me." Shirou, the small, red-haired, child who had clung to death not so long ago and still silent from the chaos of the horrors he had saw, simply nodded, knowing all to well what had happened to his parents. Irisviel couldn't help herself but cry at Shirou's admission, if anything good could come of this terrible incident, she thought, her husband's sacrifice would not have been in vain. "May I talk to Shirou for a while longer?" Irisviel spoke while doing little hold back the happy tears flowing forth from her eyes. The attending nurse nodded in response, leaving the room to give a child and his prospective mother a few moments alone.

Irisviel then ran her hand through the child's hair while she conveyed her intentions in a loving gaze. Shirou, in turn, offered no complaint to her offer. He could tell from Irisviel's words and actions that she meant every word that she said. If anyone were to be his new mother, he would be more than happy be with with the slightly strange, snowy-haired, woman sitting beside him. "All right then!" Irisviel spoke while placing her hands together in a joyful pose. "It will be a bit before I can sort out all the paperwork, but we'll be together soon, all right? Stay strong till then, little Shirou!" The energetic happiness that usually formed the basis of Irisviel's personality had finally returned, unleashed from the shackles of grief by her hope for a better future for herself and the small child she hoped to soon call her own. Hugging Shirou for good measure, Irisviel and her dutiful Saber made their way to the hospital entrance,bidding the attending staff goodbye along the way. Outside, Saber, having stood silent as Irisviel spoke heartfelt words to Shirou, finally voiced her opinion on the subject at hand.

"How do you intend to care for that child, my lady?" Saber spoke in serious tone. "We don't even know where we will be living at the moment, I don't think you dwell on such matters until we have a permanent place to live." Saber was held no malice against her master, but rather this was a matter of pragmatism. If her master could not provide for herself, how could she do the same for a young child.

"Don't worry, Saber~" Irisviel said while taking a pose that one could easily imagine being accompanied with a magical sparkle. "That manor in the old part of town is ours to do with as we wish, we'll just live there for the time being! Its big and roomy, perfect for raising a boy. And money won't an issue either, a family as old as mine doesn't get where it is today without making their fair share of money." Irisviel was supremely confident that everything would work out for the best and her smile spoke volumes on the subject that would take hours for her lips to communicate.

"All right, but how do I fit into all of this?" Saber questioned, her arms firmly crossed upon her chest.

"Simple, you're going to help me raise him! You were a king, right? You ruled an entire nation! So I think a small boy will be no problem." Irisviel spoke in a confident manner. "Besides, I don't think it would hurt a child to have two mothers..." After a moment, Irisviel's joyous enthusiasm was soon stained with several shades of red as she suddenly realized the implications of her words.

"As you wish, my lady." Saber was not going to argue with her master, she lived for her word and command. Even if it meant raising a child, she would not stray from Irisviel's side. That she accepted, was simply how things would be from now on. "It seems the matter is settled, shall we take a cab home?" Saber said while offering a gloved hand to her master.

"Lets." Irisviel said simply as she gently took her servant's hand.