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Chapter Ten: Revelations

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"Tadaema," Shirou called, opening the door.

"Okaeri," Sakura called, hurrying over. "Is everyone all right then?"

"Yes."

Sakura sighed. "Good. Dinner is almost ready."

Next to Arturia, Illya shifted slightly. "Oh," she said brightly. "About that. Ummm—"

Sakura smiled. "Don't tell me you're not hungry Illya? That would be a first."

"Well, actually..." Illya begun, glancing about the walls for any new developments since she'd left. "We...kinda invited two more people over..."

Sakura stared. "What?"

"Ah, well, umm, you see, he kinda saved my life, so, ummm, it really couldn't be helped you know, because he really did save my life, and...and...right, and he got a curse when he did it and he can't remove it himself, so of course I couldn't leave it that way because it would be bad if it killed him, so we really do owe him, and then I thought Shirou would want to talk to his brother – look, I'm sorry, all right?"

"Illya, what am I supposed to feed them?" Sakura wailed.

"Um – food?" Illya suggested weakly. "I'm sorry, I really couldn't do anything else – he really does need to be treated, and besides, he knows some things that Shirou will want to hear. Especially about his brother – he's Issei's younger brother, see."

Sakura blinked, momentarily distracted from her panic. "Issei-kun? Brother – wait, are we talking about Kouji-kun?"

It was Illya's turn to look blank. "You know him already?"

"A little," Sakura said, clearly torn between processing this new information and dealing with the impending hospitality crisis. "I met him when I went to pick you up the other day. He seemed very concerned – so he's a magician then? I wish I'd known, I could have been more honest with him – so, the Ryuudous are magic users? Then that means Issei – and he'll have to come too of course – I wonder where they learned it, they weren't before - then, two more people, one high schooler and one adult – oh I wish you could have warned me a little earlier. Even half an hour would have been enough to do something."

"I'm sorry Sakura, it was mostly my suggestion," Arturia broke in, feeling Illya was taking more than her fair share of the heat. "After all he did, it seemed natural, and I didn't think about the inconvenience to you. I'm sorry."

"No, it couldn't be helped," Sakura said distractedly, digging the fingers of her left hand in her hair. "Of course, it would have been rude to let him go home injured after that, and we need to talk with them anyway if they have power now – I'm sure they must be on our side, Issei won't have changed like that, even in five years—"

"Kouji's pretty smart," Illya put in. "He'll probably realize it'll be trouble and bring something." Arturia saw no reason to point out that Illya had said as much. As it was, rather than relaxing, Sakura's stress seemed to be transmuting into pure mortification.

"Look, I'm sure—" Shirou began.

"I'll help," Rin said. "Magic can't make food, but I think I can hurry things up a little. We can add to the side dishes, and then share out whatever they bring. It should be enough. Besides," she added. "I am very curious as to how that fellow became a magician. I'd never have imagined it – though he was pretty perceptive."

"That's putting it mildly," Shirou said. "He was the only one in school who saw through your model student act. I don't count – I didn't see through it, I stumbled into it."

"True. You have to admit he exaggerated it ridiculously though."

Shirou shrugged. "He didn't trust you. He wasn't exactly wrong, was he?"

"I do not have fangs, I am not poisonous, and I wasn't leading you astray."

Shirou raised an eyebrow, mouth twitching. "Oh, really you weren't? I think that's pretty debatable."

"And the fangs?"

"That was his shrine background talking. I'm sure he's over it."

"Well, this is bound to be interesting one way or the other. And we don't have a lot of time. What's it going to be, Sakura?"

"Well, I suppose it'll have to be something rice based, but I can't just have plain rice, so –"

Sakura's voice faded as she headed for the kitchen with Rin. Shirou sighed.

"So – if you're quite finished turning us all upside down, imouto-chan, maybe you could give me a quick lowdown on what happened?"

Arturia smiled, knowing that imouto meant little sister – and that Shirou wasn't really angry.

"If I try to tell you now, it's going to get all complicated, and I'll have to tell it all again later anyway."

"Just give it fast. I promise not to ask questions. I thought I might have lost you there, you know?"

Illya sighed. "Can we at least sit down? I'm kind of shaky."

"Sure."

...

Whether out of consideration or necessity, the Ryuudous didn't arrive for nearly the half an hour Sakura had wished for. By then, she had managed to conjure enough extra food to assuage her pride, and even convince herself that as an old high school friend it was all right really if he brought food of his own when invited to dinner…except it seemed to work best if she didn't think about that at all.

Privately, Arturia wondered if magic could be used to make food after all. Nothing rice based and made in such a hurry had any business seeming so appetizing. Or maybe she was just hungry. After all, she'd had a long day and a hard fight at the end of it. And now she was going to meet an old friend of Shirou's. They said you could judge a person by the company they kept. After everything she'd seen of Shirou, she was very curious about what his former best friend was like.

The doorbell rang. Arturia, moving to the hall, saw that everyone had somehow silently agreed to let Shirou answer it. Shirou opened the door.

So that was Issei.

He was tall, but not as tall as Shirou – shorter by half a head. His face was slightly broader and more mature than his brother's, as was his body, but his basic build was still the same – a slim, sharp scholar to Shirou's lean but sturdy fighter's frame. Still...Arturia saw something similar in the gleam of their eyes. A spark of intelligence – and an ember of warmth.

Shirou paused. "Long time no see, Issei."

"Yes," Issei agreed. "Everything's been all right with you?"

"More or less. Somehow."

"There's been a lot going on your side," Issei commented

"Yes. That's true."

"Your barrier never went down though. That was good."

"Yes," Shirou agreed. "Issei...I'm sorry."

"No. If anyone is to blame it's me, since I knew both sides. You were just trying to keep me clear."

"That didn't mean I had to ignore you."

"You didn't. You just...drifted. It happens—"

"No! That's not it. That's not what happened, Issei. I…I let it happen. I was glad that it happened. Because – I was afraid of trying to explain. My life was changing, and I didn't think you could be a part of it. It was so much easier not to try…I was just a coward, Issei. It wasn't an accident. I was just a coward – who couldn't trust his best friend."

Issei smiled. "Same old idiot, Shirou. Don't you ever get tired of blaming yourself for everything? If you're a coward, I'm a bigger one. You've got no right to hog all the guilt for yourself. Just let me in, okay? We'll start over."

And Shirou nodded, took a deep breath, and backed up to clear the door.

As she'd expected, Shirou kept excellent company.

...

"Arturia, this is Ryuudou Issei. Issei, this is Arturia Whittington. We ran into each other on a night hunt: we were after the same thing, so she's been staying with us."

"Pleased to meet you. I'm glad to hear he has someone like you at his back."

"I've been keeping an eye on him too you know," Rin commented from the side, sounding nettled.

"Yes, it has been a source of great worry to me," Issei said, without changing expression. Rin made a strangled sound. Issei turned her way and bowed solemnly...and twitched the fingers of both hands into a ward against evil.

The world held its breath…and then Rin's lips morphed into an unsteady line of suppressed mirth.

"That's for evil spirits, Issei. It's not going to stop me."

"Oh dear. I suppose I'll have to depend on your sense of hospitality."

"I'm surprised you put any confidence in it."

"But it's so rude to eat guests."

Rin's voice quivered suspiciously. "You don't say. How about poison?"

"Even worse."

"You're sure?"

"Very."

"Well, it can't be helped then can it? So, are we ready to eat? I think that's all the introductions."

There was a short, very long silence, during which Kouji sent Illya a very expressive look.

I told you it was weird.

"Well then," Sakura said brightly. "Let's all sit down, shall we?"

...

Good as Issei's food was, Sakura's was inevitably better, but they distributed everything evenly. Only Illya would have considered complaining, and she felt too responsible for the whole thing to do it. And so, for a while, it was just a pleasant meal between long separated friends. Issei seemed to enjoy getting to know the ones he hadn't met just as much as he enjoyed catching up with ones he had, and by unspoken agreement, all issues of magic were left aside. However important your work, sometimes it's important to just live. It was a very pleasant, cheerful meal all round, even for Sakura – though Shirou couldn't seem to help throwing the occasional twitch-ish glance at Kouji. At some point, Issei asked why.

"He's probably reacting to that seed curse Illya mentioned," Rin said. "It's nothing to worry about really – it's so faint even I can't tell it's there. It'll be days before it's strong enough to hurt him, and we'll have it out before he leaves tonight. But Shirou is extraordinarily sensitive to magic, especially malevolent castings. Someday I'm going to lock him up in my workroom for a week and figure it out. I'm sure it could be useful."

"Hey, don't decide stuff like that all by yourself!" Shirou yelped.

"Relax, I'll feed you."

"That is not what I meant."

"Malevolent magic, is it?" Issei said, smiling. "So you can find evil a mile away. You really grew into the man you wanted to be, didn't you?"

Shirou smiled too. "I suppose I did."

Arturia was intrigued. "You talked about it?" she asked.

"Not exactly," Issei said. He raised an eyebrow. "Well, can I tell? Or is it too embarrassing?"

"He wrote an essay in first grade saying he wanted to be a hero of justice," Illya promptly announced. "And he won't take it back no matter how much you tease him about it."

"Illya..." Shirou growled.

Illya smiled sweetly and made exaggerated chewing motions to indicate that she had taken a large mouthful and couldn't possibly be expected to respond. Shirou's glare showed the convenience of the timing was not lost on him.

Arturia, who didn't understand why Shirou was embarrassed by the story but sensed clearly the ire brewing, commented, "I think I was about that old when I realized myself. It was my first day at school, and I faced down a bully. He was a coward really: most of them are. All I really did was refuse to back down. But I never forgot what it felt like."

Issei nodded thoughtfully. "Birds of a feather flock together," he murmured.

Then, more loudly, "But you know, I've been wondering about how you do it Shirou. Following from senses, I could tell you can fight on a very high level, but you hardly have any mana at all. Where is it coming from?"

"He has a very rare gift called a Reality Marble," Rin said, putting down her chopsticks. All around the table, everyone was either finished or nearly finished. The ban on magic discussion was over. "It means to have a link in your soul to some aspect of reality that gives you a form of control over it. Less than ten people in all of history have ever had one. Those who do, are invariably powerful. And to answer your question, a Reality Marble doesn't draw on mana, or at least not directly. It's an inherent ability, like some equally rare kinds of magic vision. It can be worn out, and sometimes it draws on mana somewhere along the way, but as a rule, it's independent."

Issei nodded, looking thoughtful. He'd always been by far the more intellectual of the two, though Shirou himself was smarter than his naiveté had once made him seem. Rin could see him absorbing the implications. Finally, he asked the logical follow-up question.

"And just what aspect does Shirou's touch on?"

"The construction of objects," Rin said. "He memorizes the composition of everything he sees, automatically, down to every detail – magic or mundane. And when he tries to make one, instead of having to create every aspect from his own mana, like ordinary Projection must, all of the components are simply – there. There is no limit to what he can apply it to, and he saw a very wide range of magical objects during the war, thanks largely to Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon. That is where he gets his power from. Of course, there's another level, but it's been hard for him to make progress in it."

Issei raised his eyebrows. "And that would be?"

"Origination. It's theoretically possible for him to invent entirely new objects based on the information on various substances and magics he's learned. Unfortunately that uses more mana, even though his Marble will still take a large part of the load. Which means its hard to experiment. It's a pity, but he can do some very impressive things even without that. As you said, he can fight on a very high level. If he had just twice what he's got now, he could at least use the Tracer's Art more freely...but he doesn't, and he's strong enough as is."

"There is no such thing as enough," Shirou said quietly. "No matter how much you have, there will always be lives you could have saved if you had a little more. I'm still looking for a way to use the Tracer's Arts."

"That's the kind of thinking that made this town a magical battleground five times over Shirou," Rin said tightly. She didn't show it, but she was almost angry. Power, power, power – she'd seen quite enough of what that quest led to, and so had he. She couldn't believe the idiot was still talking that way. "It's also what orphaned you and incinerated several square miles of Fuyuki City. More people die from the search for power than from those who actually get it, don't you understand yet? You can go toe to toe with Einzbern or me and could probably kill several of the last war's Servants on your own. You are strong enough, Shirou. Just leave it alone already!"

"I am not, and I never will be," Shirou said. "Because I try doesn't mean I have to make the same mistakes."

"There are different mistakes, Shirou. Other people aren't the only ones who can pay!"

"Ah, not to interrupt," Issei said, no doubt hoping to do just that. "But if we're going to talk about this, can we start from the beginning? We were planning to anyway."

Rin looked around – everyone was done. Issei was right, it was time to get started. She took a deep breath and let her frustration with Shirou pass for the moment. "If it's from the very beginning, even Shirou doesn't really know. Well, how about it Illya? It's as much your story as mine."

"No it's not," Illya said flatly, face mutinous.

Rin sighed. She wasn't as proud of it as she used to be herself, but she knew where Illya was coming from. "Fine then. I'll tell it." And even though she was not so proud, without meaning too, she straightened as she prepared to tell the words: her eyes took on a proud glow and her voice the hollow ring of ancient import, her words the cadence not of the Storyteller, but the Teller, the Keeper of Knowledge, preparing to share her pearls.

...

"It began," she said. "Because a mage's goal is, ever and always, to learn more magic. When he is a child, he learns what his parents know; when he grows older, what his teachers know; when he grows older yet, whatever he can find to know, by means fair or foul. New magics, magics whose knowledge belonged to other families, always we strive to outdo each other, quarrel over who has surpassed whom, and jealously guard whatever we might have that the others do not, even as we scheme to take theirs. A never ending quest to climb the pyramid, and at the top of that pyramid, the goal of every mage and family, is the infinite knowledge of Akasha, the Root: a place that is both an intrinsic part of creation and yet removed beyond touch, in a plane of its own. It exists outside of time, and all the knowledge of what is, has been, and will be is there. One able to reach that place, could learn anything. Many magicians have spent their lives trying to find a way to rediscover the path. The Grail was one such attempt, and perhaps the greatest, for it alone contained the combined efforts of several families, a kind of cooperation nearly unheard of among us, even within the Mage's Association."

"It first began with the Einzberns. For several generations their family sought to find the path through genetic manipulation, trying to create someone who had that lost link to the Root. Over time, they perfected the art of the Homunculus: the creation of a human like being, from a human base. The peak of this came in the form of Lizleihi Justica von Einzbern, who partially fulfilled their hopes: she was able to tap the third of the True Magics, Heaven's Feel. Nearly all of today's magicians use Magecraft, which is the art of achieving the theoretically possible, however practically impossible or improbable. But the True Magics, which nearly all magicians lost the use of long, long ago, could achieve the theoretically impossible, and the ambition of gaining it goes hand in hand with the ambition to reach the Root. Justica von Einzbern could use the Third Magic, which had the power to materialize souls. It was a great accomplishment, but ironically, that very achievement proved the fruitlessness of their true task. It was clear at this point that their true goal – to reach The Root, by a path they and their heirs could use, would not be accomplished this way. And so, at last, they consented to the aid of two other families."

"Japanese families were chosen, because the Mage's Association and the Church were in bitter conflict at the time, and Japan was outside of the Church's sight. They were the Matous, who created the system of Master and Servant, and my family, the Tohsakans, though at the time we had just begun – that mage was our founder, Tohsaka Nagato. Our family's contribution was the use of this land, which is very powerful."

"Though they had called on the aid of the other two, the means still hinged on Justica Einzbern. Within the Root is a place called The Throne of Heroes. When a person – any person – gains such widespread fame and recognition that his or her name and image become a permanent part of Man's memory – which is to say, he or she becomes Epic, legend – that eternal remembrance creates a mold of sorts within the Root, which is also where souls return to after death, and are released from to be reborn. This metaphysical embedded shape of the hero, or anti-hero, allows them to hold their form, memory, and power, preserved eternally outside of the life cycle, if they should so wish to. Few die feeling that they have nothing left to do, and even fewer do not fear the oblivion of rebirth. Nearly all of those who achieved this fame, have chosen the Throne. And these figures have always been able to be summoned. The core of the Grail was formed from Justica herself, willingly transformed, whose enormous power channels made the process possible, as well as giving it the semi-sentience necessary to set the wars in motion, over and over. This core would gather mana over time, choose the next masters, and was a part of the summoning of every Servant, binding them to the rules of the war. But most importantly, what the Grail did was this – when each Servant was defeated, the pure energy it returned to was trapped temporarily, until all but one were contained. Their energy was then released through the Grail, and their passage to the Root made it possible to create the long sought portal."

"Except that, somehow, it never happened. It was supposed to be accomplished in one war, but every time, something went wrong, and it finished without the grail being properly completed. At the end of the Third War, things went wrong permanently. The incompletely formed portal regurgitated a different aspect of the Root: Angra Mainyu, the spirit of man's dark side, and the Grail was darkened, twisted, forever. And still the families would not admit their failure, and the wars continued. The Fourth War happened only fifteen years ago – but that, I think, is not my story. If its telling belongs to anyone here, it belongs to Shirou."

She put down her hands, which she'd held steepled in front of her as she spoke, and turned to Shirou. "Well? For everyone here, your father is the hero of that war. I know you're proud of it. Do you want to tell this part?"

Shirou paused – but Rin could see she had been right.

"I don't know many details myself," he admitted. "My father died while I was still young, too young to tell. But I know the basics. Father was originally a mage of the Einzbern family, and he was their representative in that war. I don't think either his family or his Servant understood what he was really fighting for – actually, I know his Servant didn't, because I summoned the same one. But I do know that there's only one reason he would have fought – because he was like me. Someone who wanted to save as many people as he could."

"He fought, and he fought hard. His Servant told me he used ruthless methods, was willing to do anything to succeed. Looking back, I think he must have hoped the Grail could achieve what he couldn't – that it's wishing could truly save the world, and redeem his own actions in turn. The details of the fight itself I don't know, and I don't think they matter. What matters is that my father won – he was the last Master left standing."

"And then he destroyed it. He used his last command spell to force his Servant to use her Noble Phantasm and erase it. He threw it away, without a seconds hesitation. I know it must have partly been because of it's corruption...but I like to think that he realized what I did too, in the end. That the world was better off without its power of wishing. He chose to thrown off his ties to the Einzbern family, and live here. With me."

"I was – am – a product of that war. The final battle for the grail caused a great fire – you know the place, Issei, just not the cause, just like the rest of the town, which is how it should be. I am its only survivor. Kiritsugu found me dying in the rubble, and merged Avalon with my flesh to save me. Its power healed me, and I became his son. I grew up knowing his one time ambitions to be a hero, and knowing of magic. Though reinforcement seemed the only sorcery I could manage, I never doubted what I wanted to do. To follow in his footsteps, and be the hero he wanted to be so badly. And then, five years ago, the Fifth War began, and like my father, I became a contender for the Grail."

"And now it's everyone's story."

...

It took a long time. The war was neither simple nor short, and there was a lot to explain. It was especially difficult for Illya, for whom some parts of the war described things she would have preferred no one bring up. She made an effort not to look at Kouji, which was a pity, because if she had, she would have seen he understood. But eventually Issei was satisfied. He shook his head.

"I can't believe all that could happen right next door without my knowing."

"We magicians have been keeping non-magicians out of things for a long time," Rin said. "We're very good at it. Something like the war had plenty of safeguards built in. I should go over them with Sakura some time, since she's so good at barriers."

"I guess it's partly because I'm used to always knowing now," Issei admitted. "My bond has developed much further than my brother's. There's nothing within the lands boundaries I can't sense anymore."

"Really? Well, that reminds me – it's your turn now," Rin said.

Issei nodded. "Before my own part, I only know what records I could find," he said. "But I can explain most of it."

"This land is powerfully magical, as Rin said. Such a place, traditionally, is guarded. My family was its guardians. It chose us, long ago, and from then on, all of our descendants were born with a bond to it. A magician is a magician because he can control his magic circuit – for us, Fuyuki was the circuit, and through it we could use its strength as a magician would use his own. The land's power made us great, the least of us a match for any two magicians within the borders. I believe it was possible to draw power outside the land as well, though you couldn't call the golems."

"Most likely," Rin agreed. "Though it would diminish with distance."

Issei nodded. "Thank you. The biggest problems with reviving our skills has been having to start from scratch, with no knowledge of magic at all. That's why we haven't been able to go much farther beyond the golems and other magics related directly to Fuyuki. There's a certain amount of instinct involved there – the magic has a way of teaching itself. Unlike magecraft."

"Very," Rin said dryly. "Perhaps I'll help after all this is over. I'm sure I'll learn enough interesting new magics to make it worth my time."

"That would be very welcome. Though you already seem to be trying some interesting magics of late."

"You noticed? Oh, of course, because of the way it feels out the land. I'm working on a way to track the blood beasts. We can talk about that later."

Issei nodded. "Well, about two hundred years ago, something happened. No one seemed to know what. All they knew was that suddenly, the bond with the land was gone, and they couldn't restore it. There were some mentioning of troubles and battles going on that needed their attention, but no real details – it was all about their struggles to regain our connection to Fuyuki. After that generation, there are no records at all. To this day, the only clue I've ever had was what you've told me now – that two hundred years ago the wars began."

For a moment, everyone was quiet. Illya looked at Kouji. Kouji looked at Rin. Rin was looking at Issei – who was looking back. After a moment, she bowed her head.

Issei nodded, and went on.

"About five years ago – from the sound of it, just a few months after you destroyed the grail Shirou – I began to change. It was very subtle, very gradual, but I began to feel things. There was a sense of something living under my feet, a presence that existed everywhere I went, looking at me. Trying to talk to me. By the time we started our last year of school, I was beginning to see magic. Certain parts of town began to feel different from others. I was uncomfortable in places where there had been some sort of disaster – I could feel the land's memory in the ground. That place where the fire was? I can barely walk through it, it's like having a nightmare playing in the back of my head. At the time, I was still at a complete loss as to what was happening. I know my grades suffered – you were very worried, Shirou. See, I told you it was more my fault."

"Was not," Shirou said promptly.

"Anyway," Issei said, wisely choosing not to answer. "One of the strongest places was right on the Ryuudou grounds, and I started frequenting it, hoping to figure out what had happened. Since it was so strong, and so close, I thought it might be related. And then one day I realized that one of the magics I was sensing came from something that was still there. And that's how I found Avalon."

"Now that you've told me, I can see how she had started as a scabbard, but when I found her, she didn't have a true shape anymore. She still had roughly the right proportions, but her colors were loose and shifting. She was half translucent, and her edges were somehow blurred, like she was only half solid. And she felt – to my magic sense – like an egg. There was a life inside, growing, emerging. It was evolving, preparing to become more than it began. It was the first clue I'd found, so I took it back to the temple, and put it near the shrine, like a relic. And that's when I started to check the library. I just assumed it must have had something to do with the shrine. I was wrong, of course – I never found a single reference to her – but I found out about myself instead. I only knew what to call her because, when she hatched, she told me."

"That happened in the summer after we graduated. I'd finally begun to understand what was happening to me, from reading our archives. I was missing a lot that would have helped of course, but at least I didn't feel like I was turning into something I didn't understand. And then one day, I heard her voice, for the first time."

"She said: 'Am I? … I am. I am...Avalon."

"She'd finished changing, but not growing. At first her presence only filled the shrine room, but in a few months it didn't matter where on the grounds you were. We talked, a great deal, trying to understand, but she couldn't answer much. She knew who she was, but not what – or maybe I should call it the other way round. She knew her name, her essence – that she encompassed the ideals of peace and utopia – had a sense of self, and an instinctive knowledge of what her powers were, or should be, but she had only vague memories of any past at all – she only knew there had been one. In the end, the only real thing we had to talk about was what her purpose would be now. When I explained what a shrine was, and about my family, she decided to adopt our temple as her place. 'I do not know if I truly qualify as a Kami,' she said. 'But what I have become, is very close. This place is my birthplace, and it pleases me. To guard a place of peace and protection pleases me. It is my purpose.' And that was that."

Rin frowned thoughtfully. "Excalibur and Avalon were formed from the dreams of King Arthur's reign. Two ideals were embodied in his time – purest justice, and golden peace. Those dreams, crystallized, made Excalibur and Avalon – man's most powerful sword, which turns mana into cleansing light, and its sheath, which encloses its user in a separate plane of its own making, removed from all harm. So I suppose it always had a spark of life in it. England's myths defined it as a scabbard, but once it came here, where people believed in millions of spirits, for everything under the sun – I guess it just found room to grow here, to become more. It's like you said, Issei. It – or she I guess – evolved."

There was a thoughtful silence. Shirou shook his head. "I just can't believe I never thought of it. All that time, and I never wondered where it went. I just assumed it was gone – Excalibur certainly seemed to have left with her."

"That's because that wasn't the real Excalibur," Rin replied. "It was a kind of 'true echo' that she could use because Excalibur was an intrinsic part of her story. But the legends said she lost Avalon, so she only had the sword. Until you gave her the real Avalon."

Arturia leaned forward. "Does that mean Excalibur really is at the bottom of a lake in England somewhere?"

Rin nodded. "Yes, but don't count on finding it. From the description in the legends, my guess is that the Lady of the Lake is a spirit, and the lake itself part of her personal realm. It probably doesn't even exist in a form people can find, unless she decides otherwise."

Arturia nodded. She looked only a little disappointed. "I didn't think it would be practical to try in any case. Still, to know there really was a King Arthur, and an Excalibur, and an Avalon…I suppose it's rather remote to you, since it's not a story of your country, but it's very personal for me." Her mouth curved upward. "And I am very sorry that I will not be able to tell anyone else that King Arthur was actually a woman."

"I thought you'd like that," Rin said, smiling – and hoping Arturia wouldn't notice two-thirds of the table eying her like a stick of dynamite. They all already knew, so they couldn't understand why she wouldn't make the connection, even though they didn't espouse reincarnation in England – or at least not as a fact. Plus it's much harder to think of things like that in connection to yourself. There was every reason to expect her not to realize for some time yet…if everyone else could stop looking like a deer in headlights and act natural, damn it!

"Actually, I'm a little curious about your own name, now we're on the subject," Rin added, hoping to drive home the point. "It's a feminine form of Arthur, of course, and probably King Arthur's real name – she never actually told us while she was here – but your parents wouldn't have known that."

"I'm afraid I have no idea," Arturia said. "I was left for the matron of my orphanage to find, with a note giving my name and nothing else. King Arthur was left with his guardians in a similar fashion after the fall of Pendragon – the matron always supposed my mother had been trying to lend a shred of dignity to my situation. It never mattered much to me though. By the time I was old enough to care, I already knew what I was going to do. My birth had little bearing on my future."

Rin nodded. "Oh well. It could have been interesting. So, lets see…we've gotten all caught up on the past, so now we're ready to explain what's going on now, right?"

"What? More?" Illya yelped. "It's late, and I'm tired. Can't we finish tomorrow?"

Rin's reflexive reaction to whining kids at important meetings was cut short by Sakura's gentle cough. "I'm afraid she's right, Rin. It is late, and she has good reason to be tired. And she's probably not the only one: I imagine Kouji-kun could do without a late night as well, and possibly even Arturia. We were going to end up inviting them to our morning meetings sooner or later, we may as well start now."

"I'm not so easily exhausted as that," Arturia said. "But I agree in any case. We would do better to continue this in the morning. Besides," she added, suddenly smiling. "I'm sure it will make Sakura very happy to have two more people to cook for."

Sakura laughed, startled but pleased. "Well yes, so it would."

Rin realized from the way everyone was stirring and smiling that they were relieved – it really was late, and she had been the only one who hadn't felt it. This kind of gathering, giving, and using of information invigorated her: she hadn't realized the others didn't feel the same.

"Well all right then," she said with a sigh. "If that's how everyone feels. But me and Sakura are going to need to take care of Kouji-san here before he goes."

"Will it take long?" Shirou asked.

"Not too long. Anywhere from ten to fifteen minutes, depending on how familiar I am with the magic Einzbern was using. Maybe you and Issei would like to go out back and talk a bit? I'm sure you've got a lot of private catching up to do."

Issei and Shirou glanced at each other: Shirou nodded. "All right then," he said, getting up. "Let us know when you're done."

"Please take good care of my brother," Issei said formally, getting up as well.

"I will," Rin promised. "I won't even nibble."

"Thank you," said Issei.

...

As his brother left, Kouji cast a severely disturbed glance at Illya, who had plopped her head on the table the moment Rin confirmed they were done. She waved a hand in a vaguely reassuring manner, as if to say 'it's okay, she really won't eat you or hurt you or anything.'

Kouji looked only slightly reassured.

...

It was a bit cold outside, so they stayed under the eaves in the back, against the house, sheltered from the breeze. As far as facts went, they'd more or less caught up already. It was their own personal bond that needed reaffirming, and they did it in companionable silence, gazing out absently over the lawn.

"There's a magic square, here," Issei said after a moment.

"Leftover from my dad," Shirou said. "Rin's using it to teach Arturia."

"She couldn't use magic already?"

"Not as spells. She forms raw mana into blades: Rin's been training her to do the same thing more complicated. Illya says she used some pretty impressive attacks during the battle today, so it must be working."

"I see. She's very strong, then."

"Yes. Very."

"Like before?" Issei asked quietly.

There was a silence. "Yes." Shirou whispered. "Like before."

"I see."

The air was slow and quiet, filled with a deep silence into which each phrase fell, as if through water.

"You loved her before, didn't you?"

"Love," Shirou whispered, eyes turned to the sky. "Present tense."
"I thought so. She fits you. Like a glove."

"Yes. I know."

"Shirou – are you all right?"

Shirou closed his eyes; for a moment, his hands clenched. "I…can't talk to the others, about it. They knew her too – it's painful, for them. For all of us. But to tell you the truth, Issei," Shirou said, turning his face to him. "To tell you the truth – I'm scared, Issei. I'm scared straight to my soul. I don't want to lose her twice."

Issei put a hand on his shoulder. "I don't pretend to understand the pain, Shirou," he said softly. "I, who haven't yet loved – I just don't know. But you're my friend, and Avalon's domain is peace and solace. If you ever need to, don't hold back Shirou. Don't hesitate to come. Even if Avalon can't help – even if I don't understand a single thing you say or do – I'll listen. I won't question, even if you cry. All right?"

Shirou nodded. "Sure. Thanks Issei."

"Anytime, friend."

...

About ten minutes later, Rin came out to tell them they were done.

"Very nasty magic, but simple enough to remove," Rin told them with a kind of satisfaction, like a surgeon who had just successfully removed something unpleasant from her patient. "There's nothing left of it now. Just make sure he sleeps well tonight and he should be fine."

"Thank you very much."

"Ri-in, invite them," Sakura called from further in the house.

Rin rolled her eyes, looking amused. "Right. And you're invited to come to breakfast over here at eight. It's when we plan, but we'll use it to bring you up to date on what's been happening first. You can bring Kouji-san too."

"I don't really know if he should be missing school for this," Issei admitted. "I hate to keep him shut out of something this important, but…"

"I'm not sure either, about him or Illya," Rin admitted. "We'll need them to stay long enough to tell what happened today at any rate. If we send them back right after with a note, we could call them up and tell them what we decided later, I guess? I don't think it's entirely fair either, but to be honest, neither of them can participate in whatever we come up with anyway. Kouji-san would be over his head, and even as powerful as Illya is now that she's over her mental block, she doesn't have much control over it – if she really tried to fight she'd probably level a couple of blocks. And she is one of his main targets. It's just too risky."

"That sounds reasonable," Issei agreed. "Though I still don't understand how a girl like her got to be a target of a man like him. Not that you've explained who he is yet," he admitted. "But that aura of his is beyond corrupt – it's half insane. The man's emotionally and mentally unstable, and I think it's still progressing."

Shirou and Rin looked at each other. "That certainly sounds right," Rin said grimly. "But no more long stories tonight. We'll explain everything you want tomorrow morning, before we talk about anything else, I promise. After all," she added, her face acquiring the slant eyed sarcasm that marked a bout of her hallmark semi-sadistic humor. "It's not like you'll be much use until we do. An ignorant ally is just a fat liability, don't you agree?"

"On the contrary," Issei told her. "A fat ally is an excellent source of emergency protein."

Rin's throat convulsed spasmodically. "Ah – yes. Of course. But you aren't fat, and we haven't got time to fix that, so we'll just have to inform you instead."

"Very efficient of you. Eight o'clock?"

"Right. Get him home and put him to bed, he really strained himself magically today."

"I know. That was his first time successfully calling a golem. Hopefully I'll find some time to be properly proud between now and eight o'clock tomorrow."

"It's amazing what we find we can do under pressure, isn't it? If it's any comfort, Sakura will probably cook a breakfast that could easily pass for a celebration meal tomorrow. She feels like she needs to make up for tonight, and having guests puts her into blissful overdrive."

"I'll look forward to it," Issei said sincerely. "And it is a bit of a comfort, in a way. Well, I'll be going then. Take care of yourselves. Good night."

"Good night," Shirou and Rin echoed as he headed past for where Kouji was waiting.

"Issei," Rin suddenly called. He stopped.

"We really are very grateful to Kouji-san. Very."

He nodded. "Thank you. I'm very proud of him."

"Naturally. Good night."

"Good night."

...

Shirou walked into the eating room, leaned against the wall and breathed a huge sigh. "Whew. Well, that was a lot to take in for one night."

"It certainly was. That's why I said it would be better to finish tomorrow." Arturia seconded from the table. She'd stayed to watch Rin and Sakura at work, fascinated the opportunity to observe a delicate magic working. "It's not good to take in too much at once. We'll do better for having been able to sleep on it."

"Sleep," Illya said longingly. "G-d, someone remind me what that's like, I've forgotten. Man, you guys talked forever."

"Well, no one's stopping you now," Rin said, feeling nettled. She could do that sort of thing all night, though doubtless she'd have no morning to speak of after. She was an owl, not an early bird.

"Yeah, yeah," Illya said tiredly, getting up. It was no act – the fight had been intensely draining for her, emotionally and physically. It had been a long time since she'd channeled mana at all: she didn't think she'd ever channeled that much in her whole life. Some sleep fogged part of her suspected that if she could help it, she wouldn't again. Too dangerous, too uncontrollable. The power the Einzberns had given her had not really been designed to be used. She was so dazed she stumbled and half fell over her own feet in the middle of the floor. Shirou caught her elbow and smiled.

"Need me to put you to bed, imouto-chan?"

She half leaned, half fell against his arm. "...Yeah. I think so."

"Well, come on then, this way. Not that way. Just let me point. Good lord, do you want me to carry you?"

"Uhhhh…" Illya was seriously considering it. Walking had never seemed so difficult, and she secretly enjoyed being carried by Shirou – it embodied a kind of familial warmth she couldn't help but crave. "Well..."

The pause proved fatal – her eyelids fluttered and she almost slid right to the floor. Shirou caught her and, without pausing, swept her up. "Never mind," he said, eyes twinkling. "Just keep thinking about it."

Except she was already asleep, head pillowed contentedly on his chest, and only snored in reply.

...

Watching him carry her down the hall, Rin shook her head. "You know, I could hardly believe it at first when he took in that kid, but really, he was wasted without a sibling. Born to be a brother, I swear."

"He is a natural," Arturia agreed. "I imagine he'll be as good a father someday. But were you really that surprised?"

Rin's mouth crept upward. "Alright, exasperated," she admitted. "It was par for the course for that guy. He's lucky he didn't die. He's better now – much better, thank g-d – but he was so naïve back in the war he should've had flowers sprouting in his hair."

Arturia chuckled, the image of tall, strapping Shirou with a bouquet on his head crinkling her eyes with mirth. After a moment, Rin laughed too. "It wouldn't have looked quite so ridiculous then," she added. "But still pretty silly. Maybe I should arrange it."

"Rin, you wouldn't!"

"Well, maybe not," Rin said, winking broadly. "But it's still fun to think about, yes?"

"I suppose it is," Arturia said, getting up.

"Going to bed?" Rin asked.

"To the dojo, actually. Shirou and I have been sparring every night, and I'm sure he won't forget tonight."

Rin blinked. "Oh. I suppose this an opportunity for both of you. I can't spar with him, and you wouldn't even have anyone you could show magic to back at home."

Arturia frowned. "I meant to ask about that. I understand you can't spar, but I would think you'd still welcome what practice you could get. But Shirou says you never have matches with him anymore. Why? Is it too dangerous?"

Suddenly Rin was very glad Illya had been so tired. "Oh, it just didn't work very well," she said casually. "We did try a few times."

Arturia shrugged. "Well, I suppose it is a very disconcerting effect."

Rin's head snapped up. "What effect?"

Arturia looked a little startled. Rin reminded herself that she had to tread more carefully. "There is no automatic effect of two people having regular magical duels," she said more calmly. "So if you are experiencing one, I would like to know what it is."

Arturia frowned. "Illya said that must be the cause."

"And she may be right," Rin said. "That doesn't mean it happens every time. I'm still curious."

"Well, I always know where he is, more or less. That's been for the last day or so. And I know whether or not he's fighting, even though my ring doesn't receive."

"The rings signals are purely mechanical in nature," Rin said, doing her best to control herself. "It has no affect on your magic senses, even our fully enabled ones."

At this, Arturia's brow furrowed slightly. Now she also looked perturbed. "When we last fought, we had a sense of the others intentions during the match. That was what I meant by disconcerting. At some point we managed to mostly shut it out. It did not interfere with our practice for the most part."

"Anything else?" Rin asked, very quietly. "Anything else at all?"

Arturia's gaze, which had become very sharp, softened slightly as she turned inward. "There is a mana flow," she said slowly. "From me to him. But it does not seem to be coming from my own stores. The amount of mana I have at my disposal is not being affected. Rin," she asked slowly, eyes narrowed. "What is this?"

"Well, it's probably like Illya said, from fighting and thinking together. You have said your wills are very closely aligned. It wouldn't happen to me, but I suppose it's not so surprising it happened to you."

Arturia, Rin was disturbed to see, was still staring hard. "When I told Illya that I knew where Shirou was, she reacted very strangely. And that is the least of the things I mentioned, am I wrong?"

"It is the least, yes."

"And that would make knowing his emotions as well, and being able to exchange power so easily, signs of a progressively stronger bond, am I wrong?"

Damn. She hadn't been so quick at this before. It must be her SS training. "No, you aren't wrong."

"But you tell me that this can occur merely from a few shared fights and mock duels?"

"It is not common, but it can happen," Rin said quietly. It was not a lie. "Normally it takes longer, but magical soul bonds do form. You and Shirou match each other closely enough for it."

"Then this is not something you did, to encourage me to stay."

Rin's eyes flared with rage. "That," she said, very tightly. "Would be highly intrusive sorcery, violating every right of privacy magekind recognizes and involving manipulation of the state of no less than two souls without consent. You may as well accuse me of black magic."

Arturia's stance – which had become almost aggressive – changed instantly. She bowed deeply. "Forgive me. I should not have had to ask."

Rin sighed. "I suppose it's only natural for you to be disturbed, forming a bond like that against your will. And I won't lie to you Arturia – I would love to see you stay, and I am not the only one. We all would. But I would not stoop to such means."

"And I should not have accused you. Again, please forgive my insult."

Rin waved her hand. "You should go and wait. It will give you a minute to get it off your mind before he gets there. It's not his fault either, you know."

Despite herself, Arturia smiled. "Shirou trying to convince me to abandon my duties is the least of my worries," she said, and turned the corner.

Rin waited until she heard the door of the dojo open and shut. Then she slumped over the table, head buried in her arms, hearing and seeing a scene from five years gone.

I'm going to remove some of your magic circuits, Shirou, and fuse them into Saber. That will complete the Master Servant bond, and allow Saber to restore her own mana.

Fuse…is that even possible?

I'll make it possible!

"Oh g-d," Rin whispered. "Oh dear g-d – it wasn't supposed to be permanent. Even through reincarnation…what did I do that night?"

"I may be a black magician after all…"

.

.


Authors Notes:

.

One: I'm sorry, Issei) Never saw that one coming. Honest to g-d. I was writing the scene, all in innocence, when out of nowhere the story ambushed me. Shirou started talking with him and just – just started crying, and saying things like, it's my fault, I didn't trust you. I was floored. But of course he was right. While his reaction became less intense in the re-writes – for better or for worse – the essence of it was not only right, but important. There I had been, wondering how Issei would react with Rin, and I'd never asked what should have been a more obvious question – how would he react with Shirou? His best friend from his normal life, who he hasn't talked to all this time, suddenly walks in a fully fledged member of his world. I had never even considered the significance of it. That scene near the end, when Issei says to come to the shrine anytime? I never would have thought of it, if this scene hadn't pointed out the new angle to me. A male, perceptive, understanding best friend during such a time, of course there should be scenes like this. But I never thought of it till the story told me. I lovewriting.

Two: Reality Marble ) Sigh. When I was researching for the story, the wiki was missing a lot of stuff I wanted to know. Then while I was writing this and wanted to look up the Japanese name for The Root, I went back and found it has expanded tremendously, and of course this included explanations for all sorts of things I'd gone ahead and explained my own way, and also of course, it largely contradicted me. In the case of Shirou, however, I feel very justified with sticking with my way for the simple reason that I think the canon explanation leaves a lot to be desired and is full of logic holes. And now I am going to explain this in detail, so either brace yourself or vamoose. Your choice.

We'll start with the game version. According to it, Shirou's power is a combination of very acute senses, a very highly developed mental approach to Tracing, and a personality complex. Apparently, Shirou lost all sense of self in the fire, before Kiritsugu rescued him. He therefore can only feel happiness through others, hence his willingness to do any favor, any time, for anyone, the way we are shown in the beginning of the anime. The other, magical consequence of this is that he can use his own essence to make things. When he traces, he isn't generating the structure through mana, he's only guiding the process through mana – the material comes from his own body. I am the bone of my sword – the line is apparently a literal truth of Shirou's power. As for the Reality Marble, according to the game it is a sorcery, though a very high level one approaching True Magic, involving a boundary. It requires great skill, and even then, you may not be compatible.

Now, my problems, one by one. We'll start with Shirou's tracing. To me, Shirou's ability to memorize construction absolutely simply surpasses any explanation involving senses or approach. To highlight this, let me list some of the mental steps Shirou goes through when he traces (complement of wiki): 4. Imitate production technique 5. Share growing experiences 6. Reenact accumulated years. And he picks up the knowledge to do this through physical senses and a very fine magical nose? And even in a dream? Caliburn was unique even among Noble Phantasms, but Shirou was able to make a near perfect copy from glimpsing it in Saber's dream? You can convince me there's a way – I believe in mine – but no simple gift can cover that. That's one angle. Now, for the bit about his body, and the self part. First of all, this does not explain, at all, why Shirou should be able to use a Reality Marble, a magic that clearly aught to require a lot of mana, which he doesn't have, not the mention the magical skill, since it clearly falls into a very different category of magic from Projection, and it is clearly stated many times that this is Shirou's onlyarea of expertise in magecraft. And finally, there's the psychological angle. When compared to the level of the problem – no sense of self at all, to the point that he cannot enjoy life from his own perspective – Shirou's supposed symptoms are much too simple, near naive. He seems largely normal – this should not be possible. A complex like that should have much more profound, far reaching consequences on his day to day life than simply being willing to do any favor. Yes, once the war begins, we are shown that it makes him reckless of his safety, but frankly, nothing he did cannot be explained by simple compassion and naivete, both of which he had (and both of which, unless I am mistaken, have been used as the reason for near identical behavior in other anime in other characters). And, the crowning point, someone with no sense of selfshould not be able to fall in love.You might be thinking that it's the opposite, the truest love is selfless, but bear with me while I go through the steps of that. When someone loves another so much they will cause themselves any amount of pain for the others happiness, the actual thought process is this: This one, special persons happiness has come to mean so much to me(self!), that I would rather that he/she be happy instead of me. Or, put another way, seeing them happy makes me happy regardless of my own circumstance. BUT – according to what the game says, Shirou is like this with everyone, by default. He doesn't value his own feelings or circumstance, so he lives through what he gives to others – any others. So you see? He can't fall in love. To single out one person to have especially strong feelings for cannot be done without a sense of self – your sense of self is what defines the entire process. So, someone with no sense of self – someone absolutely selfless – cannot fall in love, though he could after fashion be said to be in love with the world. But even now I'm not finished. Lets say that he does manage to at least come close. Someone like, say, Sakura, falls in love with who she sees (she would, she's the type), and Shirou responds with something close enough to love that one might argue the rest technicalities. All right, lets say the technicalities don't matter, I could see my way to saying that. But love is a cycle – you give, and are given in turn, and so it goes round. Shirou would be giving feelings of love (or like love), and the girl would be trying to give love back in return…except that all her attempts would be falling into a void, because Shirou can only gain satisfaction through what he does for her. She cannot give back to him.And this would destroy it all in the end. Now, you could say, well, it's not exactly a good thing that Shirou is that way is it? So falling in love is how he's cured. Which sounds like a really great take, actually, until you consider that that would mean Shirou would lose his tracing ability. Or rather, he would lose his ability to use his body to replace the mana he should need, but it comes to the same thing, because Shirou does not have enough mana to conventionally Trace an iron poker, let alone a Noble Phantasm. So he can't fall in love, and yet romance plays a big part in both the anime and all three versions of the VN. So – game theory no good. So I'm sticking with mine.

Since Shirou will not gain the use of the Unlimited Blade Works in this story, I will now explain here how I link that to my way of explaining what Shirou does. First, a short (for real) bit of related Nasuverse data (Nasuverse is the name of the world in which all the works of Fate Stay Night's author occur. Yes, Shingetsutan Tsukihime is in the same magic universe). Demons, spirits, and elemental beings are naturally able to project their own realms within – or perhaps over – reality. Essentially, they can play with certain laws of probability to create miniature realms about them. These work by manipulating natural law rather than by defying them, and so is not rejected by Gaia (and therefore does not require constant mana to renew, as Servants and normal Tracings do). So, what the UBW is is a crude, enforced version of this idea, made possible by their link to the laws of reality. What Archer – and, someday, Shirou – is doing is taking that link to the ultimate form by putting pressure on it, temporarily expanding it's effects to create an area that is defined by that link. That area of distorted reality is the Reality Marble, Unlimited Blade Works. It is a product of will, not mana, so he could do it, but it is also a difficult act of will. The effect is far beyond what the gift is mean to support, and it's duration is limited. But it covers the parameters, so as a theory it's good.

Oh yes, one last thing. According to the game, Shirou's incredible ability only applies to bladed weapons – anything else is much harder for him. Well, I could not think of a single way to justify this, and have therefore abandoned it altogether. I refuse to tie myself and potentially the story in knots trying to accommodate someone elses idea.

Three: The History) As a whole, this part is accurate but occasionally skims over a few things that are more trouble than they're worth to explain, up there or down here. But you are welcome to look it up for yourself. The bits about the Einzberns, right in the beginning, is part conjecture. I knew they had been trying a long time before the wars, that they led the creation of it, that they had developed their Homunculus's as a part of that, that Justica had the Heaven's Feel, and that some believed man lost his connection to the Root as a result of becoming too genetically diverse. So I sort of filled in the gaps a bit. It's not background that will play a direct role, so I felt it sufficient. Besides, the chapter was already delayed enough without starting all kinds of research again.

Four: The Throne of Heroes) I've adapted this bit slightly. The way the original put it, it sounded like the manifestation of human consciousness – I forget the name of it, but it's kind of like Gaia for humans in the Nasuverse – would sort through souls, pick out its favorites and shelve them like a prize doll collection. According to it, the Throne was that manifestation's way of preserving a being mankind had come to think of as perfect. Any arguments about the presence of beings like Rider aside (her identity is the Gorgon), I just could not accept a universe that gave souls such cavalier treatment. How could they not have a choice in the matter? So long as it was my story, such a thing was intolerable. Frankly, I think mine makes more sense from other angles as well, but that's the real reason I did it. It is also how I explain the presence of the mentioned second Servant, which I will explain in more detail – along with Arturia's own presence despite having clearly been about sixteen during the war – when 'it's' identity is revealed (yes, I know many of you have guessed, but it's a matter of principle).

Five: The portal regurgitated Angra Mainyu) Actually, no one seems to know exactly what caused the Grail to be darkened, only when and what by (although apparently it is known to be the Einzbern candidates fault. Figures). In any case, I thought my explanation made as much sense as any.

Six: Avalon) Well, how do you like it? Right from the beginning, I knew that an important question to be answered was, What happened to Avalon? As I explained here, She – or it at the time – was real as both Saber and Excalibur were not. So it made sense that when Saber left, it would be left behind. The question was, how to explain that, in a way that accounted for the fact that we are shown her exit quite clearly, and there is no sign of a remaining gold and blue scabbard. That, at least, proved relatively simple. In its activated form, Avalon is invisible. During her fight with Gilgamesh, we cannot see any sign of it, even though its effects are very clear indeed. And Avalon was still in that state when she left. So, it was left behind, hovering in an invisible outline of Arturia, with no wielder to pull it back into its deactivated form. Over time, I reasoned, Avalon would pull back together, but without a wielders will it would take a very long time – several months at least. And so it was left, half buried in the spot where Saber left, forgotten. And that's where things got more complicated, because while that part has not changed since first conceived, everything that happened after – the ways in which it would enter and affect the story – changed radically multiple times. At first, I still hadn't even put Issei in the story yet. I thought that somewhere in the last third of the story Shirou, deep in thought about the painful dilemma Arturia's presence was, would return to the place where he said goodbye to Saber and find it. I thought the sudden, unexpected emergence of a link to that time would make a good touch (it probably would have, if almost everything involved hadn't changed). I pictured him finding it, having his confidence boosted a bit, and returning to give it to Arturia, saying 'it's yours really.' And yes, giving it back to Arturia was a big part of my motivation to involve it. Excalibur was too far away, and too much an unknown, to practically try to get it for her, I thought at the time. But Avalon was right there: who could resist? But of course as the story evolved, this inevitably had to undergo some heavy alterations. Once I knew Issei was in there, I figured he would have found it first. Then, the scene was that Shirou, with or without Arturia, would come to the Shrine and discover Avalon there. Remember that the Ryuudou's weren't guardians yet, just a family of priest-mages who had gone dormant until the large magical events of the Grail woke their gift again. Even at this stage though, the idea that Avalon had changed was already creeping into my mind. As I saw the scene, Issei revealed Avalon with pride, and showed that when he activated it, it would cover the entire Shrine, making the entire grounds a place where no one, under any circumstance, could be harmed. At this point, Shirou and Arturia only got the psychological benefits – instead of claiming it, Shirou tells him to keep it, acknowledging Avalon's enormous increase in power as a sign that this is where it should stay. And that – more or less – was how things stayed for a while. And then, when I was researching Shinto beliefs to help figure out what sort of things a family of Japanese mage-priests would do (and I recommend that you also look into it – it gave whole new levels to my understanding and enjoyment of Japanese entertainment), the final brainstorm occurred. Reading about the ways in which Japanese culture gave life, spirit, and sentience to so many things, I saw the final twist: that Avalon, under the influence of those Japanese beliefs, changed, and became a Kami herself. Like many other ideas that make this story, it was one I couldn't give up once I'd thought of it, and so, indeed, I haven't. So I just hope you all think this is as cool as I do.

Seven: The bond explained) The big revelation of the chapter – Arturia still has Shirou's magic circuits! I'll put a more detailed explanation in later, but for those of you who are bothered by it, I'll say it now too: As a human, Arturia had no need for the extra mana, so until now, his circuits had gone dormant. Being close to him has brought them back into activity, creating a close bond between them, but Arturia is still producing plenty of her own mana, so instead of going to her, the mana they produce is being drawn down the connection to the original soul – Shirou's. They've also become somewhat more effective after so many years attached to Arturia's intensely magical soul, so long term, Shirou's reserves will increase by six times. Mind you, that's still not much by mage standards, but for Shirou, that is enough to do incredible things. I don't believe he'll pass four times by the end of the story, but even now, his supply has doubled, so look forward to the true awesome power of the Tracer's Art, coming up next chapter! And just for the record, Rin's concern is purely moral in nature – there are no physical or spiritual consequences other than those we already know. But it's not easy to find out you may have altered a soul for all time. That's all.