Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate franchise it belongs to Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon.

Different Fates

Chapter 9

Cold…

…so cold…

Homunculi were naturally more resilient than the Humans upon which their outer appearance was modelled upon, but that same appearance imposed limitations on them. Even more so for homunculi designed for specific purposes, and as is the nature of magecraft, enhancing certain attributes caused a reciprocal downgrading of other attributes.

She could channel and store enormous amounts of prana, and of course serve as the vessel for the Holy Grail. She had magical potential surpassing all but the greatest magi of the modern era. But she was never meant to go into direct combat, unlike her 'cousins'. And in this freezing cold, even she who was built to withstand enormous amounts of punishment as part of her role as the Lesser Grail was slowly finding herself wearing down to extinction.

The freezing wind blew at blizzard force, sleet and snow whipping harsh against cold-scarred skin, draining heat and energy from the body and bleeding it out in the elements of the German winter-scape. Dressed only in a thin smock utterly useless against the elements, she lay huddled in the snow, her eyes closed and her pale skin and platinum hair blending into the snow around her.

Prana pumped through her circuits, producing heat that helped keep her Human functions going. It wasn't enough. And her design was incapable of conducting elemental magecraft. And she had not been instructed to do so, so even if she were capable of elemental magecraft, she had no reason to do so.

Her instructions were to demonstrate her durability, nothing more and nothing less.

The demonstration had failed. Nervous system…failing…cardiovascular system…failing…respiratory system…failing…

The sound of snow being crushed beneath heavy boots reached her ears, and she moved to respond. Impossible…the nerves were deadened by cold, the muscles too locked-up to respond as they should to her brain's commands. So she just lay there, covered in snow as the footsteps came closer and a shadow loomed over her.

Warmth…heavy cloth was wrapped over her freezing form to her surprise, strong arms lifting her up and holding her close. Surprising even herself, she huddled closer to the figure which had lifted her up, drawn by his warmth and the surprising gentle firmness of his grip. Crimson eyes flickered open a fraction, catching a glimpse of a worn yet resolute face of a man with unruly black hair, the emptiness of his eyes illusively veiling sorrow, resolve, and kindness buried deep beneath.

"How do I know all this?" a voice that was not her own and yet was her own echoed. "This never happened…has it…I know it has…but…it hasn't…I don't…"

"Kiri…"

Crimson eyes slowly blinked open, Rin Matou shifting from where she was curled up under her sheets, her long platinum hair spilled over her face and shoulders. She shifted onto her back, raising an arm to pull her hair clear off her face and then laying it on her forehead. "What was that just now?" she murmured. "A dream…? It didn't feel like one…but it couldn't have been a memory. That's never happened to me."

Laughter…her (?) soft voice mingled with that of a man's deeper one, echoing among the shelves and books around them…she wore a sleeveless dress edged in gold, platinum locks flowing unhindered over her shoulders and down her back…she sat on the armrest of the chair he was sitting on…

Kiri…Kiri…Kiri…

"What is going on?" Rin said softly. "Who is Kiri? What the hell does this all mean?"

She shook her head and rose to a sitting position. "This is stupid." she thought to herself. "That woman is definitely me, in some kind of despair-fuelled dream of a rescue romance with a man named 'Kiri'. Seriously…could I come up with a more fictitious name? And more importantly…"

Rin sighed and shook her head as she pushed the covers off and slid her legs off of her bed onto the floor. "I should know better than to take comfort in fantasy and delusion." She said self-derisively.

Sighing, she rose from her bed…and her eyes fell on blackened patches of the floor near the door. The despair from the previous night rose up again from inside of her, and she shuddered and clutched at herself for a few moments before pushing it into the background, more than a little angry that she'd allowed herself to forget what she'd always known about how her grandfather saw her, and in so doing allowed him to get more than a passing reaction from her.

As she allowed her arms to fall, she noticed that she was still wearing her school uniform from the previous day, and remembered that she'd fallen unconscious last night on the floor after her loss of control. "Who...?" she muttered to herself, as she gathered fresh clothes from her closet, left her room, and then headed for the toilet.

Her grandfather…she snorted at the thought of the old man taking the effort to check in on her and then carry her to her bed and tuck her in. She had more chances of facing the Dog and winning than that happening.

In fact the only times he showed 'affection' to her were the rare times when she allowed herself to be carried away by the out-of-control sensations her training subjected her body to, and even then those pats on her soiled hair and the commending words he gave were more mocking in context than affectionate.

If that was the case though…then…there was only one person who could have done so, given he was the only other person in the house apart from her and their grandfather.

"Shinji…?" she murmured as she slipped her clothes off in the toilet and entering the shower before turning the hot water on. As always she scrubbed hard, a psychologically-driven tendency caused by a subconscious urge to scrub herself clean after her experiences.

Useless of course…her platinum hair, her blood-red irises, and the worms in her were all proof of that. The best it could do was to remove any and all traces of their leavings on her skin and hair, which while comforting in its own way, did little to satisfy the urge.

She didn't fight the urge though. It was too much effort to do so, and would do nothing either way. So she might as well go with the flow.

Today's shower was different though. As she freshened herself for the day, her thoughts kept coming back to the fact that he'd checked in on her, found her unconscious on the floor, and had tucked her in. There was also the surprising glance of sympathy he'd shot her during the previous night after her 'talk' with their grandfather.

"Why is he so nice all of a sudden?" she thought as she turned the shower off. A worrying thought presented itself, but a quick check of her own body quickly proved that no one had taken advantage of her – at least not in any way that wasn't unusual for her life as a Matou – while she'd been unconscious.

The question kept nagging at her, and it was a brooding Rin that swept down towards the kitchens to confront her stepbrother. Surprisingly he wasn't there. What was there was a covered plate of food, along with a note.

"Rin…" it read. "…I've gone on ahead to school. I've left some breakfast for you. If you want to talk, meet me on the school roof at lunch."

The note crumpled in the girl's hand, Rin only managing to hold back the urge to burn it to ash with a great deal of effort. "What is he after?" she growled. "Why is he doing this? What's in this for him? He can't possibly be genuine, he just can't! There's no way he can!"

There was a thud as the arrow slammed into the bull's eye, and Shinji Matou lowered his bow. Soft applause drew his attention, and he turned his head to see the kyuudo club's advisor Taiga Fujimura watching from the doorway. "Impressive aim as always…" she said.

Shinji just smiled faintly before taking another arrow and fitting it to his bow. "You know…" Taiga said dryly. "…you'd be more popular if you weren't so standoffish. You'd be in the running for the captaincy like Shirou and Ayako for starters."

"Not interested…" Shinji remarked laconically. He raised his bow, pulled back, then aimed and released the arrow. There was a thud, and another arrow planted itself on the bull's eye.

Taiga raised an eyebrow and then sighed. Same old, same old…to her knowledge Shinji Matou had always been a good archer and student, but much like his sister he was cold and had a tendency to keep people at arm's length. To her knowledge apart from Shirou he had no close friends of his own.

But while in his sister's case it was most likely the result of being picked-on for her unusual appearance – which wasn't really fair but people could be so cruel for the most trivial reasons – Shinji's behaviour wasn't so easily attributable to any cause. Well apart from the rumours of troubles in the family, but it wasn't really her place to pry.

Even if that was the reason though, even if she couldn't look too much into the matter, she wouldn't try to help as much as she could. And an opportunity had presented itself.

"Anyway…" she began. "…it's good that you're here so early. I wanted to talk to you for a bit."

"How can I help?" Shinji asked as he released another arrow.

"As the captain is busy with other duties…" Taiga said. "…I've decided to put our top three archers on assistance duty for our newest members. Shirou and Ayako will assist the less inexperienced ones, and you will assist the more inexperienced ones."

"That arrangement seems rather unusual, especially since I don't particularly believe myself to be best suited for dealing with newbies."

"I disagree." Taiga said with a shake of her head. "You're a no-nonsense type of person when it comes to your archery, and that makes you perfect for drilling our newbies as you call them when it comes to the responsibilities that come with learning how to properly use a bow. These are deadly weapons still when you think about it, especially when it comes to idiots fooling around."

Shinji chuckled at that, and he lowered his bow before glancing wryly at her. "That doesn't sound like you, Fujimura-sensei." He pointed out, and Taiga gave a small laugh.

"I guess not." She admitted.

"Is it just coincidence though that this pushes me into a 'mentor' role of sorts, and just so happens has me interact more with people?"

"I admit and deny nothing."

"I see." Shinji said with a small smile. He raised his bow, pulled back, and aimed. "Then let's go with that."

He released his arrow, and with another thud another arrow hit the bull's eye.

"What's your game?" Rin demanded without preamble.

Shinji who was leaning against the railing on the roof simply raised an eyebrow. "I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about." He responded.

"Don't lie to me!" Rin roared, a bounded field falling into place around the roof. "What are you after?"

"Can't I simply be sympathetic for once?" Shinji asked, and Rin sneered.

"Says the one who so badly coveted the Matou magecraft…" she spat. "…and then sulked and brooded for years after I threw it into his face."

"And as much as I hate to admit it, I have to thank you for that." Shinji said, and bringing Rin to a shuddering halt. This was not what she had expected. On the contrary she had expected Shinji to try and bargain for favours from her in exchange for…'good behaviour' on his part.

More fool him if that was the case.

"You what…?"

"You heard me." Shinji said. "I'll admit it: I don't like you. And I never will. That superior attitude of yours, your gift of magic – setting aside the abominable nature of our family's magic it's still something I can't help covet – and the fact that we just seem to rub each other the wrong way, we'll never get along. With that said, and even with the fact that I still want to be a magus despite lacking any form of magical ability whatsoever, I can sympathize with you. And at least one of our goals coincides with each other."

"Oh really…?" Rin sneered. "What do you know? Grandfather scorns you, which is a blessing in disguise no matter how you look at it."

"I saw my mother die in that pit before you ever came to the Matou mansion."

Rin was silent. "You might hate your parents or even your little sister for sending you to your current fate…" Shinji continued, pausing ever so slightly at Rin wincing and looking away guiltily at the mention of hating her little sister…but not her parents.

Interesting…so she hates her parents but not her little sister. She probably sees what's happened to her as a sacrifice for her little sister's sake. She has a heart after all.

But then again: I never expected to be sympathetic to her. Not until last night, and the old worm's removing any and all illusions as to how he sees her.

Mother…

"I'll get straight to the point then." Shinji said, and pushing himself off of the rail. "I won't stand with you, but I won't stand against you either."

In other words, just like you I have plans about going against that bastard grandfather of ours.

Rin snorted at the thought as Shinji passed her by. "Do you really think you stand a chance?" she asked.

"Do you?"

Rin couldn't answer. "As I said, at least one of our respective goals coincides with each other." Shinji said. "And one question applies to us both: can we escape the monstrous heritage that flows in our blood?"

"Big words…" Rin replied after a moment. "…but I can't disagree. Alright…I'll play your game little brother, and I'll throw your words back at you. I won't stand with you, but I won't stand against you either."

Shinji chuckled at that. "That's about as much as I expected." He said, and went for the door. "See you later, little sister."

"Alright this is what I think." Rin began. Once again she was seated at a table in the Emiya residence. Seated opposite her was Shirou Emiya. "There isn't really anything I could teach you, given the limitations of magi – or in your case spell-casters – with aligned origins and affinities. On the other hand, you've already found a form of magecraft suited for you. In other words…"

Shirou smiled weakly at her as she trailed off. "Just like what my dad said, eh?" he said. "Just focus on what I can do, and push it as far as it can go."

"Gradation air is usually useless apart from a means of practicing fine-tuned prana control and for manufacturing sacrificial items…" Rin said. "…although in the latter case it's usually more useful to prepare and use something more substantial…but then again you've got a knack for this it seems, so…yeah…"

Rin stroked her chin thoughtfully. "For now you should hold off on what you've been doing." She said. "I'll prepare some mystic codes for you so you can clean up after yourself…"

"Couldn't you have come up with something less insulting?" Shirou asked dryly, and Rin shrugged.

"If the shoe fits…" she said, and Shirou grimaced. She smiled at him before continuing. "…anyway do we have an agreement on that score?"

"Alright, alright…" Shirou said after a moment's thought and a sigh. "…I don't like it, but I'd also rather not go against magi rules if I don't have to either. That's more trouble than it's worth."

You have absolutely no idea.

Though an Association intervention – while no doubt brutal – would probably be more preferable to what my grandfather would do to you if he had to personally intervene.

"Well then…" Rin said, rising from the table. "…that's all I really have to say to you right now. I'll be leaving then."

Shirou nodded, rising in his turn and escorting her to the front door. "Well, take care I suppose…" Shirou said as his guest passed out of his home's threshold. "…oh and by the way, I call it tracing."

"Tracing…?" Rin echoed, and then tilted her head as she thought about it. Well it fit, considering that gradation air was basically using prana to create a tangible copy of a real object, which was basically what tracing was in drawing terminology. And considering Shirou's circumstances, it set his method apart from regular gradation air.

…on the other hand though…

Rin sighed. "You're not supposed to reveal details about your mysteries to others you know." She told him. "Didn't your father teach you that?"

Shirou laughed this time round. "He did." He replied. "But it's just a name."

"Names are more important than you know." Rin shot back. "Looks like I'll have to give you more basic references…at this rate you're going to embarrass my grandfather if you're still ignorant when Tohsaka comes back."

She sighed again, and began to walk away. "Bye Emiya-kun…" she said as she raised a hand in farewell but not looking back. "…I'll be in touch."

"Yes, yes…" Shirou said, closing the front gate and heading back into his house afterwards. Rin went on her way, only partly focused on the road home, most of her thoughts focused on new projects she was planning to work on starting tonight.

Mystic codes for Shirou: firstly something to encourage mundane Humans to ignore or forget him. Then something to alter memories with on its own, something that he only needed to put prana into to use, seeing as he would be unable to do it by any other means.

And a new doll, something…

Rin sighed, mock-punching herself on the head. "Idiocy…" she thought. "…what's the point of doing that?"

The thoughts persisted though, distracting her such that she literally ran into one of a pair at an intersection a couple of blocks away from the Emiya property, both of them falling to the ground as a result. "Oh sorry about that!" she began apologetically, and offering a hand to help as she got back to her feet. "I wasn't looking where I was going…"

She trailed off as she saw who it was. "No, no, it's fine…" Ayako Mitsuzuri said. "…I wasn't looking either, I was talking to Fujimura-sensei…Matou…?"

"Mitsuzuri…" Rin said. "…you live around here?"

"Not really…" Ayako said, patting her skirt clean. "…my boyfriend does though, and Fujimura-sensei invited me to have dinner with them so…"

Oh that's right…Fujimura-sensei is Emiya's guardian, and Mitsuzuri…oh crap…this has all the makings of a second-rate drama…

…

…

…

Easy there Rin…you're not in a 'love triangle' yet, and you're not so stupid as to get involved in one.

"…what are you doing here?" Taiga finished asking as Rin pulled her mind back to the present. "You live a bit far from here don't you?"

Rin blushed slightly under their scrutinizing gaze, her mind going a mile per second to find a way to avoid getting involved in a cliché of a scene. "I…I…I got lost." She said. "I was thinking of something new to work on for the art club, and before I knew it I ended up…well…around here."

"I see…"

Rin shook her head and smiled. "No worries, I've gotten my bearings back, and I can get home from here." She said. "Bye…"

Taiga nodded and smiled back, waving as Rin continued on her way. "Bye Matou-san." She said. "Get home safe."

"I will."

Ayako stared after her though, and remained distracted all the way to the Emiya property. It wasn't until she was cooking dinner with Shirou that she finally shook it off. "He's not the type to two-time." She thought as she watched him cutting vegetables, feeling a bit of shame for having suspected him. Feeling her gaze, Shirou paused and looked at her.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"No…" she said. "…everything's fine."

"I see."

Back in the Matou mansion, Rin was perusing the shelves of the Matou family library for notes and references on mystic code crafting. She'd collected several books that might prove useful, and left for her room only to run into her grandfather outside the library.

"What are you planning, granddaughter?" he asked, taking note of the books in her arms.

"Emiya is not capable of using magecraft beyond his unique variation of gradation air." She replied, getting straight to the point. "But since he still wants to continue his activities so far, I've agreed to provide him with supplements to keep the letter of the rules in place. And in any case, it's good practice for when the Holy Grail War begins."

"Mystic codes, hmm…?" Zouken mused. "Yes I suppose it works on both counts. Very well, do as you please for now."

Zouken nodded and stalked off, and Rin went to her room. For a few minutes she just sat at her desk, mulling over her thoughts before absent-mindedly putting her books to one side and pulling out several sheets of paper, some measuring tools, and a set of pencils from a drawer. A flick of a switch had her desk lamp turned on, and she got down to her work in earnest.

The hours passed by without notice, until a series of knocks sounded out through her door nearly four hours later. "Is that you Shinji?" she asked redundantly, her hand not letting go of its pencil and her eyes not leaving the sketch on the paper.

"Yeah, it's me."

"Come in."

Shinji opened the door but didn't step in. "What is it?" she asked as he stood there silently.

"There's some food for you on the table." He said. "I'm going to bed."

Rin paused, and looked at him over a shoulder. Shinji's eyes widened and his face took on an expression of shock at the faint glow of her irises. "Thanks for the food…" she said with a small smile. "I appreciate it."

Shinji swallowed and nodded. "You're welcome." He said. "Goodnight then."

Rin nodded back, and Shinji left closing the door behind him. Rin stared after him for a few moments, and then wearily rubbed her eyes. When her hand left them, the irises had stopped glowing, not that she even noticed to begin with. She turned back to her sketches, and blinked.

The man from her dream was on the paper, along with detailed notes on his measurements. There was also a sketch of another person, a long-haired girl maybe between eight and ten years of age. As with Kiri, she also had detailed, scaled-down measurements of her height and other proportions.

Rin picked up the man – Kiri's – sketches, and regarded it closely. "Foolishness…" she said softly, tilting her head and resting it on an elbow. "…but he's not unattractive."

She put the sketches down, and picked up the little girl's. As with Kiri, she regarded it closely. After a few moments, she smiled and nodded. She put it back down and picked up her pencil and rulers, and began drawing lines and calculating the numbers. Thirty minutes later, she put her pencil and rulers down. Again, she picked up the now heavily-detailed primary draft of her newest doll and regarded it closely. Irises glowing and her lips softly smiling, she nodded in satisfaction.

"I can work with this."

A/N

Guest: Rin's somewhat OP, eh? Can't be helped, considering how buffed-up Sakura's magic will be. While it won't be anywhere as traumatic this iteration of the Fifth Holy Grail will be closer in scale to the Fourth Holy Grail War than it was in canon, in terms of both Servants and Masters.

On to notes then…I had originally planned to go back to Europe in this chapter, but the previous chapter called for follow-up. The following chapters though will be set in Europe.

Finally we have Shinji. I have…mixed feeling about him. On one hand, my instinct is to burn him alive…on the other hand, that would be a waste of his character, as much of his canon characterization was basically the result of his being allowed to get away with his shenanigans, especially his constant bullying and rape of his sister. That's not present here, as Rin quickly asserted herself before he could get any steam going.

He's not going to be a 'good' character though, and he'll be a Token Evil Teammate or something in whichever team he ends up in. I personally see him as a closet psychopath like Kariya was (personally I think that while he undoubtedly sympathized and cared for Sakura in canon, he seemed more obsessed on taking Tokiomi down than actually winning the war), so there we go.