I don't own anything related to Fate/stay night, this is a work of parody

Act One: Rebirth

~"Huh!?"

I squint my eyes at the white light. There is a light ringing In my ear.

'So bright'

It was just light entering my eyes when I woke up, but I'm not used to it.

"Huh?

When my eyes focus, I'm surprised. I'm lying on an unfamiliar bed, in an unfamiliar room.

'…Where am I?' I look around.

The room is big and there are many beds. A person is in each bed, and everyone seems to be hurt.

But nothing feels ill in this room. Everyone who's hurt is someone who was saved.

"Ahhhhhh" my muscles are tense, I relax and let my eyes wander.

Outside the Window, the Blue sky was unbelievably beautiful.

When had I first seen it?

The world didn't make much sense. I felt like a baby again.

Smell, taste, touch, vision, hearing. Each sense felt new, the world felt overwhelming to me.

Later, the doctor approached me, an old man with receding grey hair.

"You're awake then, tell me, boy, what is your name?" He had a calming voice.

"my…..name?"...'What was it again?'

'Sa, shi, su, se, so' it starts with S, hmm. I was blanking out.

"It's fine if you can't find it right now, you've been through a traumatic event, It can take time for your mind to catch up."

He began to walk off.

I have to say something, I can't just be nameless!.

"My name is... S-Shirou!" I spoke much louder than I expected like I had to relearn the volume of my voice.

It's not that I remembered my name, it's more like it felt right to say.

"And your family name?"

"Uhhhh, I don't know." I had no idea about that at all.

He smiled and crossed his arms.

"That's alright for now, little Shirou, get some rest."

Sounds good to me.

"Oh, and Shirou, please try to be a little quieter in the future, there are others who are trying to sleep."

It was a light admonishment, he held no hatred for me.

"Sorry" now my voice was as quiet as a mouse.

'I really have to figure out my voice'

After that, I spent the remainder of the day relearning my voice.

It took a few days for me to understand. I could clearly recall what had happened the last couple of days.

But before that….

Nothing.

Apparently, there had been a terrible fire. That's what they said, and it sounded about right in my mind. I could faintly connect it in my mind, but I didn't feel good when I did.

When I thought about it too hard, my body felt weird, like it wasn't entirely connected to me. It didn't hurt but it felt like my body was covered in something.

'It must be the burns, I must be completely burned.'

Anyway, I had been saved from it.

There were bandages across my body, and my family was gone.

I didn't really understand the situation.

All I knew was that I was alone.

It was a room of hurt kids, but no one came to visit. It was an easy fact to absorb in this place.

The nurses were kind, they looked after us. But we were the survivors, the ones who were saved, so they didn't have much time for us.

It had been a full week when the world started to move again.

The doctor took off all my bandages and I was able to see the state of my body.

"Huh?"

To my surprise, there were barely any wounds at all, ones that would heal naturally over time.

It was phantom pain, as if there was a disparity between the damage done to my soul and my body.

I felt like I was being pulled in two directions: towards the hurt body that my mind expected and the undamaged one of reality.

It took a few seconds but when I accepted what was in front of me the pain left entirely.

I could eat unassisted too, the food was nothing to praise, not like my….

'Who?'

Who was I thinking of? a woman?

Mom? 'What was her name again?'

I couldn't remember. It's not that it was on the tip of my tongue either, I don't have a clue.

I knew I had a mother, a father, and a sister. I recognized their existence but it was an empty memory.

They had no face, voice, or even name. It was like trying to remember the details of a stranger's family.

All that remained were a small number of random facts: the Dad was always reading, the Mom loved to cook and the sister had a dopey smile.

Even if they still existed in this world, I would not be able to really call them family anymore, I knew nothing of them.

'I'm really alone now.' a feeling of uncertainty formed in my chest.

'Where would I go now? The orphanage?'

I was a little anxious, almost like someone was watching me.

Right as I began to worry about the future, that man entered the room.

Wrinkled coat, and uncombed hair. A bit younger than the doctor, he seems kind of like a big brother.

He walked right up to my bed.

"Hello. You must be Shirou-Kun." A smile that seems to melt into the white sunlight.

A very kind voice, but a little suspicious too.

"I'll ask you directly. Which would you prefer? To go to an orphanage, or to be adopted by this man you've never seen before?"

That man was saying he could adopt me.

"You are related to me?"

"No, I'm just a stranger."

He looked unreliable, like someone with no future.

But that didn't really matter to me.

I knew nothing of him nor the orphanage. So….I guess I'll go with him then.

"Ok, I'll come with you."

"I see, that's good. Get ready quickly, then. You should get used to your new place as fast as you can."

The guy quickly started packing my stuff. His packing was pretty bad, even to a kid like me.

All I had with me was the black-tinged clothes I came in with.

Then, after making a big mess…

"Oh, I forgot to mention something important. I have to tell you one thing before you come with me. Is that okay?"

He turns to me lightheartedly and says, "Yeah, to start off with, I'm a sorcerer." He says it is a serious, exaggerated tone.

I completely believed him. Someone who could smile like that could probably do anything.

"Wow, you're awesome," I said so with bright eyes. I felt I made the right choice.

/playlist?list=PLIdCwvFzngeOA_j_gdnWigXJ2_M92G_vS Madder Red Town (Music)

They let us go without much complaint, and before I knew it, I was outside waiting for him.

All the firemen and army men running around were proof enough that the fire really did happen.

Though it was only midday, the winter sun was setting leaving a world tinted in crimson. The sky was red again, but the fire was gone, yet the memory lingered, I could smell it in the air.

Finally, that man appeared, laughing he said

"Haha, I'm glad you agreed to my proposal, I filled out all the paperwork beforehand." He rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment but his face was still radiant.

'What would he have done if I had said no to him?'

Despite just meeting him, I have a feeling that he is irresponsible like this a lot.

Being so close, I could now smell the cigarette smoke and a faint trace of...ash? or… is it mud?

It wasn't a particularly good smell but it didn't bother me much.

Guiding me along, we got on the bus. We could be going anywhere, I wouldn't have noticed.

I just stared at his smile.

'What kind of man can smile like that?' I thought.

We didn't speak at all, he seemed too excited for some reason.

When we got off, we were on the other side of town. We had crossed the bridge; houses here were old and it was quiet.

All I could remember about this area was that it had more families, it was also closer to the big school.

I followed the man silently. He seemed giddy, like a kid on the playground about to show off his new toy. Just what is he going to show me?

When we reached a gate to a walled area he stopped. It was a large area enclosed by a wall, it must be some kind of garden or park, maybe a playground?

'Why are we here?' I thought.

"Shirou-Kun, this is where you will be living from now on." He answered as if to hear my thoughts.

"Huh?" I'm living in the park? We're homeless?

'Maybe I made a mistake here.'

There was that thought but...I also think that I'll follow him no matter what his circumstances are.

Perhaps sensing my hesitation he went and unlocked the gate, bringing me past the walls.

What was there was not a park or garden, but a house. A complex with multiple buildings.

"Huh?" The place was huge, at my small height, it was like a castle.

"Whose house is this?"

"This is...my house, that makes it yours too."

'Huh?'

"Wow" it was as big, no, even bigger than the playground.

I do have one question.

"Uhh, what is your name?"

"Oh, I forget to tell you didn't I? My name is Emiya Kiritsugu." He said it as if it were an afterthought.

"Does that make me Emiya Shirou then?"

He stopped at the door, the world seemed to freeze for a little while there.

"Yeah, I guess it does." I couldn't see his face, but I could imagine that he was smiling.

It is strange that he would be so fast to give me his name, but I guess I'm weird too to accept it so easily.

He never asked about my family before this, not that I could answer anyway.

"Do you want to rest?" He slid open the door.

"Well, a little." My muscles ache from the lack of movement.

Inside the house, it was cold, empty of anything but the most necessary items. It was a house but not a home.

"We are alone here, there is no one else?" 'We have like 10 rooms, for only us?'

With a neutral face, he answered, "Yeah, just us two now."

I won't ask if it makes him sad.

He brought me to one of the many bedrooms and placed me down on a futon, leaving me alone to lay in the dark.

(Music Stop)

I have been resting my body for a week now but a new environment can be tiring.

My new room is normal for a Japanese home but there are enough of them in this house to be classified as a mansion.

A new house, a new father, even a new name. All in one day, I'm starting a new life

Kiritsugu gave this to me, it's only right that I should follow him from now on.

I really am tired though, my eyes are heavy and my thoughts begin to dissipate.

My breathing slows and I fall into a red world.

In the Kitchen, I'm just staring at the wall.

'I went and did it, I took the boy in.'

I spent the whole week frantically writing up the paperwork to adopt a kid that I'd never even spoken to.

And now he's sleeping, in his new room.

The war has left me weak, but I pushed myself to find him. It was worth it, I'd saved him. Being with him now is my greatest success.

'I have a son…'

He was happy to take on my name, I can't help but smile at that.

It's a great feeling, it's the only thing easing this burden.

I have provided him with a house and a name….but that's it. I don't know how to be a proper father.

I'm really only good at killing….

I can provide for him monetarily and keep him safe but I've never been a caretaker, the maids didn't let me anywhere near the cleaning supplies.

As to the matter of food:

I went and bought some convenience store food for dinner and tomorrow's breakfast. That seems good for now. He may not wake up until tomorrow morning anyway.

I can cook fine but for some reason every time I tried, Irisviel would push me out of the kitchen.

"Ahh Irisviel…" just the thought of her makes me sigh.

She was in this house not a fortnight ago.

She was a homunculus, technically only seven years old.

If I could just forget about her, I would, but I really do love her.

'I was always going to lose her…' is what I would like to tell myself.

I could have saved her If I had tried harder. If I had found out the truth sooner…

...There's no point in thinking about it but a part of me revels in the self-destruction, it pulls at my regrets, forbidding escape. It's a part of me that wants to see me suffer.

"Irisviel, Meiya, Natalie, Shirley…" all the women I have loved have died, and I was involved in all of their deaths.

I gave them up for the dream but… it's a dream that can never come true.

But all I know how to do is run after it.

Shirou's hurt, I can tell because I am too.

many of my circuits are destroyed, when I removed Avalon, my body was only healed to the point where I could survive.

If I stay still for too long, this regret will eat me alive. It will get me one day but I still have work to do.

Shirou and Ilya need me. I can't just leave it like this. Maybe if I can have someone look after him for me, but who?

One day, I will go to save Illya, I can keep my promise to her and she can meet her younger brother.

Acht didn't send assassins but he would know what happened, He probably sees preventing me from reaching Illya as a worse punishment.

He's right about that.

'I'm so sorry Ilya… I will come for you.' Until then, Shirou needs me, and I need rest as much as him.

Even if I can't save her myself, I already arranged for the Greater Grail to collapse in thirty years, that way they'll just have to accept that she can't be used for their ritual.

If I could save this one family, maybe that would be enough for me.

/playlist?list=PLIdCwvFzngeMPd5ekmVq2ZhyGRmv-Kn57 Into the Sunlight (music)

~ My eyes open to the peace and quiet of my room, I'm sweaty all over, and my head burns from the heat.

This is how I've been waking up since I got here, but I manage. It's been two months since Dad came and adopted me.

I'm hurt, not physically but something deeper. Something that will take a long time to heal.

Thus, Dad told me that I needed time to heal.

Of course, to him, that means we play in the yard like school children. Of course, I am a kid and it's tons of fun but…Dad's supposed to be an adult, yet he does the same thing too.

My first impression of him was right, he's like a child. Sometimes, I think he's having more fun than I am.

Of course, he's much bigger than me, he can catch me every time in tag but I'm left just running after him.

I don't think I can ever catch up to him at this rate.

It was about a week into my new life when I began to ask if he could teach me about magic.

But he was against it. He tells me it's not something to take on so 'frivolously' whatever that even means.

I've asked once per day, and receive a brief "no" every time. But I know he'll have to accept me at some point.

If I learn then I can be like him.

Anyway, it seems like things are about to change. At dinner yesterday, Dad told me he's taking on a job.

He's going to be an English tutor starting today, to someone he trusts enough to bring into our household almost every day.

I didn't even know he knew English, and now we have a mysterious new guest coming to the house.

I finally open my eyes and get out of bed.

Looking back and recollecting my thoughts every morning helps me recover my memories. That's what I was told at least.

It hasn't done much of anything, but it does serve as an excuse to stay in bed a little longer.

I'm sweaty all over, and my eyes are full of tears.

I had the dream again. The same one that I've had every day since I came here, sometimes it's long but usually, it goes fast.

I walk through that red world, that is the only constant. Sometimes there is a pale lady in a black dress watching me from far away.

Sometimes someone walks with me but they look like they are just a black void.

Sometimes I don't see anyone, I just feel like someone is watching me. Sometimes I feel that when I'm awake too.

It will be a long time until these dreams recede, even a year of playing with the Old Man won't make them go away.

But without Dad, who knows what would have happened to me.

After I brush my teeth and wash up, I start walking to the kitchen, thinking up what breakfast I'll make.

I'm eight years old, and yet I hold the responsibility for breakfast. The only reason I'm not making dinner every night is that Dad won't let me use the stove without supervision.

'I totally can do it!'

It not like he could do better, in fact, it's surprising he hasn't started a fire yet. He is abysmal at cooking, bad enough, that I, through a single day of learning, was able to surpass him.

I go to the kitchen, pass the weird girl at the table and enter the pantry.

I wrap my little apron around my back and start collecting the miso for a simple breakfast soup. Wait a second...

'that's strange…'

(Music stop)

...Dad always sleeps in, but there is someone in the kitchen.

A girl with light brown hair in a ponytail. Wearing a yellow shirt with black stripes, it's kind of like she wants to look like a tiger.

And she's eating the mandarins I put there last night for Dad.

Well… now we're staring at each other, this intruder in my home.

Surprisingly, she's the first to speak,

"Who are you? What are you doing in Kiritsugu's house? You are a thief...a boy urchin thief like in the movies!?!" She is quick to draw strange conclusions.

/watch?v=9kApyNf3nr4 Strange friend(Music)

"Uhhhh…" Her mania leaves me voiceless.

"Why have you come here boy urchin thief? To steal from the man here, I'll have you know that I am his pupil from now on! I will not allow it!"

She starts throwing the mandarins at me, she has unusual strength.

As I try to dodge her volley of violent citrus, I try to find a peaceful solution,

"Uhhhh, I live here." I said so dumbly, but she did stop her attack.

only two hit me but they actually hurt and now all the mandarins are rolling across the floor.

"Hahh-" I sigh from relief, she's a scary person…

But I don't hold it against her, If I can disarm her so easily she must be a rational and noble person.

She stood up and pointed her finger at me like in a manga and declared,

"Hah, little thief, not only are you an urchin who begs for scraps from a great man like Emiya Kiritsugu, but you are also living here as a freeloader. If there's anything I can't tolerate, it's a freeloader!"

Maybe not so rational...

She was done with the mandarins, she opened her bag and drew out a shinai in an exaggerated manner.

It was a shinai, but it was different from the ones that we had in the dojo.

Just by seeing it, I knew that it was no normal shinai, it exudes an aura of bloodlust, seeming to glow a dark red now that it was uncovered.

Her face and eyes were emotionless, like a tiger ready to mercilessly end its prey.

That prey being me…

'...how did I end up in this mess again?'

Slowly stalking towards me she seemed to be taking this a little too seriously, even if I was a thief, I'm still a kid compared to her...

"Uhh, Tiger-san, What are you going to do with that?" I don't know her name so I just called her by what she looked like, she must like it if she wears that, right?

'Uh oh' my back up to the wall, I had nowhere to run.

Forget what I said before about this being a noble girl, she was more like a demon, a black striped demon.

Now she had a rabid smile on her face, she right in front of me now,

"Hahahaha, you've done it now thief, first you insult this honorable household, and now you dare insult me!"

She gripped the weapon in a high stance, preparing her entire body for a devastating strike.

"Prepare yourself, fiend, I call on your full powers, Tora-Shinai!", My eyes were shut tight as my body prepares for the downward slash...

…but it never comes.

After opening my eyes, I can see why.

Dad is behind her, holding the bamboo sword by its end, stopping the attack before it could start.

With a hint of exasperation at what he is seeing he says,

"Tell me Taiga-chan, what is it you are doing?"

"Ohh, Emiya-sensei, I found this thief in your kitchen, I am protecting your honour of course." She said it like we were the crazy ones.

Shaking his head he replies, "Thief? No, this is my son, Shirou."

"Wuh, Emiya-sensei you have a son?"

"Indeed I do, in fact, I told you this myself just yesterday didn't I, don't you remember?"

"Ahh, well it's just that uhh..., yeah, you don't really look alike is all." she looked to me, her victim, for support.

"As for why we don't really look alike...well I'm adopted." It's not such a big deal to admit.

"Then you are not a thief?" if anyone's a thief, that would be you for taking my mandarins.

"Nope, my name is Emiya Shirou, seven years old." I bowed, she was still my elder, even if she didn't act like it. I may even be eight now but I have no birthday, so I don't know.

"well, I'm Fujimura Taiga, fourteen years old, it's good to meet you." she bowed, still holding her shinai.

The situation seemed to have been resolved.

but when Dad took the sword from her hands and looked over it, he seemed not so satisfied.

"Hmmm, from what I know Taiga-Chan, you only just started your kendo lessons. Yet this is a weapon for master's of the art, and you were going to use it on Shirou?"

In a rare moment of seriousness, he gave her an evil eye. Now that the sword was in his hands, it almost seemed like he was going to use it himself.

She melted under his gaze, "no! of course not! Kiritsugu-san, no- Emiya-san, no-Emiya-sama! I just wanted to show off for once! Wahhhh!" she was…weeping.

Where had the tiger-striped demon gone? Replaced with a crying blob. I had barely cried since coming here, yet she could come to tears so easily.

She seemed like a person who would be normally invincible then break from the strangest things.

What a troublesome girl...

...a troublesome girl that was now holding on to me for dear life, using me as a shield from Dad's ire.

"it's alright Old Man, she must be a good person, she thought she was protecting the house, so I can't blame her." I somehow summon the spirit to defend her, despite the pressure that the sword gives off.

For a second his eyes seemed to glow red, but then his body deflated.

"If you forgive her, then there's no harm done, well except for the mandarins all around the room now. I will be holding this shinai in the dojo from now on, it's not a toy for kids."

He walked off, to deposit that shinai in a safe place for the future, I can't help but feel that had that weapon been used even once, it wouldn't have accepted anything less than murder.

Scary...

After that fiasco, I was the one that ended up having to console Taiga as she wrote about all sorts of things.

First, it was her apologizing to me.

Then she went on about looking bad in front of Dad, but why did she care about that?

Finally, she ended it off by explaining her entire life situation, from the fact that she was the granddaughter of a yakuza boss to her worries about finding love

It's kind of my role now, to be the responsible child for these irresponsible adults. fourteen was twice my age, yet she was holding me looking for support.

"I'm a good person, right Shirou-kun?"

"I like you, you're a good person." dad wouldn't bring anyone bad in, I think so at least.

hugging my small body like a stuffed animal she established our relationship,

"Oh, Shirou, I'm going to coming here basically every day, therefore, I am officially declaring you my younger brother, you shall now address me as Fuji-nee!"

"Uhh, you'll have to ask dad to adopt you, but... I'll support you."

her hug intensifies to the point that my head started to feel light.

"aww, you're sweet Shirou but you don't need to have the same name to be family you know, my father was adopted into grandfather's family, you know?" how would I know that?

I hadn't accepted her yet, but looking at her, her eyes were red from crying and they seemed to say 'I will not stop crying until you accept'.

"Okay, I can accept that... Fuji-nee.

"hahaha, So cute!" thankfully her hug loosened but she was now pulling my cheeks, she really was looking at me like a stuffed animal, wasn't she?

"it's a secret but your father told me that I'd be looking after you from now on."

"If it's a secret why tell me?"

She pouts, "Shirou, siblings don't hold secrets from each other, I hope you wouldn't hold any from me in the future."

"hah, okay Fuji-nee." she had some wisdom I guess.

(Music Stop)

She finally detached from me and sat back at the table.

After that, Dad returned from the dojo, he had taken a long time.

They started their English lesson, so I decided to take a walk. Dad said it was fine, so I started to explore the local area.

/watch?v=EQC0DcXFxvE Witching hour (Music)

There was a smell, a muddy and ashy smell. I hadn't noticed it before, why today?

It was a poor smell, not one any normal person would ever like but for me it was different. I realized that Dad smelled like this, and I think I did too.

I didn't know what it meant, but I'm happy to be similar to him in any way.

like a moth to a flame, I walked blindly to where this smell was coming from.

I walked and walked, time didn't seem to matter, every second was an eternity but every time I blinked the scenery changed and the world shifted from white to orange.

It took a long time, but I made it.

When I came to, I was in a park, but it was not just any park. It was that park.

I realized that I had walked all the way across the bridge, to the remains of what the fire left.

A half-finished park, no one wanted to build there, so they were going to make a big park from it.

here is the source of that smell. There's a harsh aura in the air, as if the fire burned the would of this place away.

The fire is far away now, not in distance, but in time. Yet it feels like it won't let any who come here forget what had happened.

I hadn't come here before but I unconsciously walked all the way here, but why?

Why did my body desire to come here?

But there it was, in the middle of the park. Somehow my mind is comfortable here, no one comes here, people avoid it in general.

It was my house, not the one with dad but the one before. Where the old me lived. I walked up the steps.

I opened the door and told everyone I'm home, I roamed the hallway and looked through dad's study.

People were smiling, gifts were shared. Mom and dad kissed, making us all cringe.

I layed in bed and closed my eyes, it was early spring, in bed it should be warm but the cold wind was undeniable.

It seems so real but I knew it was not, kind of like watching a movie.

What my eyes saw were a bench and some grass, but my mind understood it to be my old bed and my house.

It's like my old life was trying to come back through the efforts of my own mind. 

But... it fades away, I can't help but cry. Maybe it's from being here remembering what I have lost, or it could be that Taiga's crying eared me for it. I haven't cried at all since I woke up, to be honest, I haven't felt much of anything until today.

I don't want to look weak to dad, if I did, I feel like I would be admitting that I could never make it to where he is one day.

"Ohhhha" I yawn, I really am sleepy.

The debacle earlier left me tired, and I just walked for easily seven kilometers. I guess I can just lay here for a little...

...When I fall into sleep, I see an unfamiliar dream, the story of a good-natured boy marked as evil.

Author's notes:

Just wanted to release it, will probably edit parts of this chapter later. fixed grammar in older chapters too.

links on this site don't really work but you can still find the music through the half links that I provide, I find the music helps set the scene mood so I think it actually helps me write.

reviews are always welcome of course!