Sakura and Illya came back a bit sooner than they had expected... to find absolute devastation. Illya was the first to react.
"What in the name of Akasha happened here?!" she shrieked. It looked like someone had set a mundane bomb off! Even the shed had been almost completely destroyed.
"Illya! Sakura! Over here!"
They turned their heads to find... Taiga?
"What happened?"
"Where have you two been?" asked Taiga.
"We were setting things up in Kuoh. Now what happened here?"
"It's awful! The priest at the local church apparently put a bunch of small bombs around the house because of some grudge with Kiritsugu, and Shirou nearly got caught in the blast! If Morgan hadn't seen the explosives in time I'd hate to think of what could have happened!" said Taiga.
"Where is Shirou?" asked Sakura worriedly.
"He's at my house. Gramps let him and the others stay until the papers are finalized at his new school, since there's no way he could afford to fix the place up."
Left unspoken was the fact that the Fujimura group would cheerfully shoot anyone stupid enough to try and bomb their place, or anyone who threatened Shirou.
Despite not being part of the group, he was well liked because he never asked questions while fixing their bikes and cars, and he was good friends with the granddaughter of the clan.
Taiga didn't have many friends she could trust, and Shirou was high up on the list.
When Illya found Shirou, it took three seconds to get the actual story from him. She was rather pissed that she had missed everything and was unable to help him when he could have used it.
On the plus side, they no longer had to worry about Kotomine or Gilgamesh...if only because they had killed the priest and driven off Gilgamesh.
Well, perhaps 'driven off' wasn't the best way to put it. More like Shirou had stated flatly he didn't care what Gilgamesh did so long as he left them alone.
Though somehow he had the feeling once he got settled down the blond pain in the ass was going show up again.
Something about how Mordred "interested him more than Saber". He wasn't going to ask.
"I can't believe that man had the nerve to attack you directly!" fumed Illya.
"On the plus side, we just have to salvage what we can before we move. Apparently hearing about us being attacked by such a high level priest was enough to buy us some favor with the Gremorys. They might have mentioned giving us sanctuary, since the Devils more or less rule Kuoh."
"Good. I've found Fuyuki less than appealing since I know our father is still alive," said Illya with a sniff. "What about your workshop?"
"First thing I salvaged. Not like I had much in there, though it only got hit with a rebound blast so it didn't suffer nearly as much damage as the guest house did," said Shirou. That had been completely obliterated, as Kotomine thought that was his workshop, not the boring storehouse.
Shirou had never realized how effective using piles of old junk was at disguising a workshop. The man never even found his research notes, much less the few books he had on the subject of runes.
"So when do we leave?"
"At the end of the week. I still have to finish the transfer paperwork for my school, and you have to fill out the rest for Kuoh Academy. Sakura, I have your papers too," said Shirou.
"Right."
"So how did you enjoy your training trip?"
"It was fun while it lasted. Sorry we didn't get home sooner Shirou," said Sakura.
"I'm somewhat glad you missed out on the action. It was pretty hectic, and if it wasn't for me finally unlocking that stupid magic that damn vampire kept hinting at, we never would have killed him," said Shirou. He looked at his shield with a grimace. "He better not force me into another round of magical girl worlds just to fix this. That priest got vindictive when he realized Gilgamesh wasn't as interested in killing us as he was at first."
"Gilgamesh? As in the Epic of Gilgamesh?!" said Illya.
"He apparently had a thing for Arturia, and then he got interested in Mordred because she has a Sacred Gear she neglected to tell me about."
"Which one?" asked Illya.
"Albion."
"...When you say Albion, you don't mean..."
"The legends were being literal when they called Arturia the embodiment of the Red Dragon...so when Mordred was born, she ended up stuck with Albion for some reason."
"Ouch," said Illya.
Issei was more than slightly unhappy about Shirou leaving, but they did share contact information. Issei was one of Shirou's few friends, and one of the only people to pick on the fact Rin wasn't as 'perfect' as she pretended.
Then Shirou did something that would have Rin cursing his name even more, but gave Issei all the ammo he would ever need to blow Rin's fake persona wide open.
"Rin's a total Tsundere. Have fun," grinned Shirou.
Issei's glasses gleamed with potential pranks.
"Really now? Imagine that," said Issei smirking.
"Oh yes, I've been poking fun at that bear for days now."
"I get it now. You're not moving away, you're making a strategic retreat before Tohsaka comes after you," said Issei with approval.
"I'm not an idiot. Her temper is about ready to explode and I'm not stupid enough to stick around for when it does. Once I get settled in, you're welcome to come visit anytime."
"I'll have to take you up on that once I graduate."
"Enjoy the fireworks Issei," said Shirou grinning.
"Oh I will. I'll be sure to share the video of her going off once it happens," agreed Issei smirking.
Shirou snickered.
"So this is Kuoh. Hey, looks like they have a decent harbor for you to fish on Lancer."
Lancer looked pretty pleased with that.
"And this one won't be contaminated by the remains of Caster's foul experiments from the last war~!" said Illya far too chipperly.
"Wait, what do you mean by that?" said Lancer.
"The Caster from the last war liked to kidnap and experiment on children. Horrible, disfiguring experiments that almost none survived. Naturally when the mediator found out he offered one free command seal to any Masters that helped get rid of him. Between him and the fire, the casualty list for the Fourth Grail War was unacceptably high," said Shirou.
"Speaking of Caster, where is she?"
"She and my history teacher will be coming once the term is up. There wasn't much point in them following us considering he teaches history, and if we need her then we can phone ahead," shrugged Shirou.
"Makes sense," said Sakura.
"That and they were planning to get their own house. There's really no point in having everyone under the same roof, especially since they're clearly a newlywed couple and none of us would enjoy walking in on them," added Shirou. Most of the others sweatdropped at the implications.
"What about Assassin?" asked Mordred.
"He's either getting a sound proofed room, or he'll move in with us," said Shirou. He was betting on the moving in part, unless Caster forced him to stick around. If they got houses close by, then it wouldn't be that much of an issue.
"So when do we start school?"
"In two days. Better to get acclimated first," said Shirou.
They were close to the house, and the moment the door opened Illya took a running start before she literally tackled Kiritsugu to the floor.
"Daddy~!" she squealed.
Kiritsugu patted Illyasviel on the head. It was good to see his daughter again.
"What happened with the priest?"
"He's dead. I made sure to follow the standards for zombies to make damn sure of that much," said Shirou flatly.
"Standards for..."
"He made a point to cut off the head and burn the body," clarified Lancer. Considering the hell Kotomine had put him through, Lancer had made sure to spit on the ashes as well.
"Good riddance."
Rias looked at the new Devils to enter her territory. She had to admit, she was curious what sort of person would turn the infamous Magus Killer into their pawn.
What she found was nothing like she expected, and to top it off he was damn familiar and she had no idea why.
Shirou Emiya, Sakura (she refused to put a last name on the grounds she would just be losing it once she was with Shirou), Illyasviel Emiya (older sister, though she didn't look it), and Mordred Pendragon were all transferring in from Fuyuki.
Shirou and Mordred would be going into the class of her newest (and only) pawn Issei. Sakura would be one year below them, and because of her perceived age Illya would be joining Koneko.
And all of them would be joining her Occult Research Club. That one was one of the conditions set by her father, because he didn't trust an unknown who had someone named after the one who killed King Arthur in his Peerage that close to his daughter without having someone keep an eye on them all. Never mind the fact he also had the Magus Killer as a Pawn of all things.
Having Kiritsugu Emiya as a 'Ranked' piece like a Knight or a Rook was bad enough. Having him as the most versatile piece on the board, was even worse.
The thing that confused her the most was the fact that almost immediately Emiya started speaking to Sona, the head of the student council. She didn't know what was said but she could see her friend's open relief.
"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Emiya Shirou and Morgan," said the teacher. He avoided saying the poor girl's last name. It would only open her up to teasing.
He looked around and finally found two open spots.
"Shirou, sit next to Hyoudou-san. Morgan, you take the other spot."
No way in hell was he putting a girl next to one of the school perverts.
The guy beside him waited until the teacher was distracted before holding out his hand.
"Issei Hyoudou."
"Shirou Emiya. You're one of the trio that they warned me about earlier aren't you?" asked Shirou flatly.
He had been told to avoid the "perverted trio" unless he wanted to be beaten within an inch of his life. He had even been given names and photos of the three in question.
"Guilty," admitted Issei. He was a pervert and proud of it!
"Word of warning... if my girls catch you peeping on them you'll be lucky to get out alive."
"Your...girls?"
"Sakura, Morgan and Illya. Rias didn't tell you?"
Issei's confusion lasted until after classes, when he was properly introduced to Shirou.
"You're a Devil?"
"Have been for as long as I could remember. By the way Kiba, Mordred said she'd help you with your sword techniques later. It's one thing to rely on a Knight's speed, it's another to actually have the skill to go with it," said Shirou.
"I'll keep that in mind. Is she really..."
"Yes, she's the actual Mordred Pendragon. Or larger fragment of her that has nothing to do with the Hero faction at least. It's somewhat hard to explain."
Kiba turned to Mordred and said with a formal bow "I look forward to working with you, ma'am."
"I'll be sure to pound some real skill into you, so that you can help us destroy those fakes," said Mordred, bowing back. She liked Kiba...as a friend of course.
"I know I'm going to regret this...but how many like her do you have?"
"I have Medea, Medusa, Herakles, Cuchulain, Mordred and one that was lost to history. So about six. I also have a pair of magical girls in Sakura and Illya, and the phone number of someone I'm hoping to use as leverage so that the current Leviathan will sponsor me in the Rating Games," said Shirou honestly.
"Sponsor?" blinked Rias.
"It's a common idea for sports and other activities. Newcomers gain the attention of people with connections, better finances, or simply to use their name to make a better impression. In exchange they act as show ponies for their sponsor or if need be, dates," clarified Shirou. He was completely unashamed of the fact he might be turned into eye candy just to rise through the ranks.
"I know that, I just wasn't aware of it being used in that context. Sounds like an interesting idea though," admitted Rias.
It was the perfect way for the older pure bloods to spread their money around to the younger devils. And for the young bloods to be exposed to more formal situations.
Still the fact remained, Shirou was a bit too young to legally enter the Ranking Games just yet. The minimum cut off was twenty.
"So how did you become a Devil?" asked Issei, changing the subject.
"I was born one, though I didn't know it for a long time. I have no memory of what my life was like before I was seven," admitted Shirou.
"Which makes you a natural born Devil, since you can't exactly turn a human into one using the King piece," said Rias. "That reminds me, what exactly did you say to Sona earlier?"
"I offered my services as a repairman, since I know repairing or replacing equipment can be expensive, especially for things like heaters. I also gave her the number of a member of the student council and a teacher at my old school to verify that I could do the job. Of course she believed me a lot quicker when she found out I generally cheat using structural analysis to find the problem," admitted Shirou.
"You do realize that this is a privately funded school, right?"
"Yeah, and when have rich parents been 'more than happy' to shell out cash to pay for repairs to things like the A/C unit or heaters to small clubs like this one?" countered Shirou.
"Good point. How good are you at technology?"
"I can operate a basic cell phone and write a paper or check my e-mail. Illya is better at technology because she's a game addict and anime otaku. Though I am fairly decent at installing TV's and stereo systems...it's operating the buttons I have trouble with."
He usually short listed a few buttons...and how to reverse whatever one he accidentally hit...and left it at that.
Rias grinned.
"I might have to put those skills to use if I ever get a new flat screen."
She liked this Shirou guy. She liked him a lot. He could be a good influence on her only Pawn.
"Well since you're still relatively naive to the ways of Devils, how about you assist my new Pawn in making pacts? You can send whoever you want, but any pact you make will go straight back to me," said Rias.
"And those I make without your help?"
"Those can be yours," said Rias. She felt the offer was quite generous.
Shirou had a brilliant idea.
"Issei, I'm going to send Illya, Sakura and Mordred with you while you're out filling pacts. They can double as your protection because I seriously doubt there's anything here that can take even one of them on. Besides, I already have another one of my Pawns working to start on making pacts under my name in Fuyuki. They should be moving to Kuoh when the school year lets out for summer," said Shirou.
Caster was making several personal pacts under his name using her crafting skills. She was also making a decent amount of cash for her and her new husband by selling her costumes at a local shop.
