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A question about the boy's future was supposed to be bland and innocuous, Gilgamesh thought in annoyance.

But since there was nothing better to do, and he had nothing to lose, he decided to go along with it.

"Give details."

The brat did not seem to catch onto his bored tone, apparently only registering the question. His hands were balled into fists, and he had a childishly firm expression on his face.

"Mommy is always suffering, and I can't do anything for her. Auntie Ria always takes care of her, but she gets creases on her forehead when she is worried – she suffers. She hides it, but I see that she suffers." He slammed his small fists on the cold bench in frustration. "It's unfair! Mommy and Auntie Ria should not suffer. They should be happy. There are too many things that make them suffer. I want to save them."

He stopped to breathe but continued immediately, "All the people in hospital – they are so sad, so worried, so… full of suffering. When I grow up, I want to be able to save them from pain. I want to save everyone from pain. And I will."

At the end of the impromptu speech, Gilgamesh had to make a huge effort to hide his scorn, and he only managed to do so by remembering that the brat was Arturia's nephew.

The words he had uttered were still ridiculous though.

He recalled that Arturia had addressed her concerns about the development of the boy's way of thinking a few months before. She had been right: the thoughts he had been entertaining were decidedly worse than delusional. It appeared that she had not been worrying needlessly.

Gilgamesh sighed inwardly, making sure his expression remained inscrutable at the same time. He studied the boy, bringing back to mind everything he knew about him.

Shirou Emiya was very young, and he had lost his normal life and his family when he was younger still. Afterwards, he had seen his adoptive father die and spent more time than any child should at the hospital, witnessing his adoptive mother's terrible illnesses. Not only had he been often at the hospital, he had also been living there for the past five months.

Even though Arturia made sure he left often, to take walks outside and go to many other places in Tokyo, by living in such a place it was unavoidable for him to end up seeing the ugly side of countless sicknesses.

While it was very positive that being a witness to so many calamities had not made him depressed, the ideas he had developed to cope with his situation weren't much better. True, the sentiment was certainly noble and the intention behind it couldn't be more selfless, but it was not realistic, and it was better for everyone if he grew out of such delusions as soon as possible, even if he was still nothing but a young brat.

Gilgamesh allowed his mental sigh to transform into a real one. Not only was the child delusional, it was now falling on his own shoulders to snap him out of these delusions, for Arturia wasn't there at the moment, the boy's mother was ill and the boy's father was dead.

The only reason why he deigned to actually do something about his precocious foolishness was the fact that the boy was his nephew as well, and it would not do for a nephew of his to have such ridiculous ideas.

Very curtly, Gilgamesh began, "Saving everyone is impossible, boy."

Shirou actually surprised him and mildly impressed him when he stared at him without blinking and shot back, "It's impossible only if I don't try, Uncle Gilgamesh."

That kind of resolve was commendable, Gilgamesh acknowledged inwardly, but it was not enough to make him overlook the fact that the boy was being resolute about something foolish.

He turned on the bench, giving him his full attention. Shirou stared into his blood red eyes, both scared and fascinated.

"Think carefully about what you expressed as wish for the future. You said you want to 'save everybody', which is both guilelessly non-specific and nonsensically contradictory in itself. Grow up, boy." He waited a second to let the child absorb the meaning of his difficult words.

Now to the important part, which required more effort on his side, since he was not used to giving lectures that were more or less nicely phrased.

"It's one thing to have good intentions, and you certainly don't lack that. You want to help. To be of use. To protect people. And those are very pure goals. But it's another thing to make those very generic aspirations become reality in a non-foolish way."

Shirou's eyes flashed in frustrated anger, and he stubbornly looked up at him.

"You won't convince me to give up!"

Some coldness creeping into his voice, Gilgamesh went on, "That's not what I'm suggesting, boy. I'm telling you that you can have whatever dreams you want; just find a more realistic and less ignorant way of making them come true."

The brat's expression clearly told him that he was not sure he understood what he meant.

"You are still very young. You have time to understand how the world works, to understand how people are, and to find ways to change it all. But do that with your brain instead of just your dreams – or in them."

Since it was obvious that the boy was beginning to follow his reasoning, Gilgamesh decided it was time to complete it – even though it was going to be difficult to hold back from insulting him too much.

"You are declaring, with a great deal of naïve overconfidence, that you will help everyone. Very boastful of you. And yet, you are not even supporting your own mother and your aunt right now, even if it's a moment in which they would need you to do so. How can you be believable in speaking about large, impossible dreams of generically saving people in the future, when right now you don't even help your family, the ones closest to you?"

Shirou winced at the harsh tone of his uncle's words.

"You say you want to help. Then start from where the help is actually needed, boy. Things are difficult for your family in this period, so start by helping your mother. Start by helping your little sister. Start by helping your aunt, who has done more for you than you will ever realize."

There was a short pause. "Arturia always says that you are responsible and smart. You are about to turn six years old. Prove that you are growing up not just in age, but in maturity as well, boy."

A long silence followed. Shirou blinked away several tears, and stared at the leafless trees around them, in the cold winter park, where a very light mantle of snow was covering the grass.

After some long minutes of quietness that Gilgamesh did not intend to break as he settled himself more comfortably in his position on the bench, eyes away from the boy, Shirou finally looked up at him again, his voice more timid than before.

"Uncle Gilgamesh… does that mean… that my dream is impossible?"

The blond man allowed himself to give a gracious shrug.

"Only the way you work on it will tell, boy. But if you go around sputtering absurdities instead of acting with sense, then yes, it's impossible."

Another silence followed, longer than the previous one. Gilgamesh was beginning to think that it was uncommonly long, until a glance to the side revealed the fact that the boy had actually fallen asleep.

While a sleeping brat was a definite improvement when compared to a snivelling one, that didn't mean Gilgamesh was happy about the new predicament. They were out in the cold garden, and that meant that he would have to take him back inside to not make him freeze. It hadn't been long enough since the beginning of the surgery for it to be over, but they had indeed spent more than enough time outside.

And it would be good for his nephew to have the time to reflect upon his words.

Sighing, the most powerful man in the world stood up from the bench and, making sure Shirou sleepily walked next to him by keeping him steady by the arm, guided them inside the building.

The little boy blinked a few times when he found himself in his brightly lit room, where Rin and Illya were sleeping and Sakura was silently keeping an eye on them. The purple-haired girl nodded in their direction, shrinking back a bit at the sight of her employer.

Shirou looked up at his uncle, his golden eyes becoming somewhat confused even as he looked shy.

"Uncle Gilgamesh, I… well, I wanted to know, why do you never call me by my name?" he asked in a low voice, so to not wake up his little sister and his black-haired friend.

Gilgamesh raised an eyebrow. He did not particularly like the idea of the brat starting to ask questions like this one, but it was indeed an interesting thing to ask, and it was certainly better than continuing with the 'saving everyone' idiocy.

To amuse himself, he decided to give quite a blunt reply.

"There has never been the necessity for it."

As expected, the boy was confused, but then he looked up with very innocent eyes.

"Then would you please use my name now?"

Gilgamesh could not deny that he was oddly entertained by such a request, but his entertainment was cut short when the doors to the room opened again and Arturia came in.

She appeared to be a little tired, but she smiled a very small and weak smile at them, since everyone was staring at her in worry.

"The surgery was successful. Iri is resting now."

The boy – Shirou – squealed in happiness, but not loud enough to wake the two sleeping girls, while Sakura directed a large smile at the blonde woman. Gilgamesh, instead, simply nodded, his eyes remaining on his wife, not missing the signs of stress that were still prominent in her features.

He narrowed his eyes. There was a tight, stern edge about her, which told him that not everything was completely right. She was hiding something.

However, she did not give him the time to say anything and addressed her nephew. Gilgamesh got the distinct impression that she had felt his stare and, afraid that he might notice that something was amiss, was now trying to divert the attention.

"How are you feeling, Shirou? Your nose is all red."

The minimal inflection in her voice told Gilgamesh that she was slightly worried about the harsh way in which she had sent the boy out of the room less than an hour before.

The boy smiled widely, showing that all was forgotten.

"I was out in the garden with Uncle Gilgamesh!"

Only a little surprised, but surprised nonetheless, she looked at him.

He intended to only give a nod in confirmation to the boy's words, but then decided differently.

"Indeed, I had a talk with Shirou outside."

The sincere pleasure that appeared in the child's expression at hearing him use his name was a bit unexpected for Gilgamesh, but he decided that it was useless to be startled and it was much simpler to just accept it.

Arturia's ill-concealed shock at his words was after all much more amusing to witness.

Turning briefly towards Sakura, the blond man indicated the boy with a slight tilt of his head, and both immediately understood his unspoken request of staying in the room. Not giving anyone the time to say anything, Gilgamesh took his wife's arm – firmly but without forcing her – and guided her out, closing the door behind them.

Arturia raised both eyebrows at his behaviour.

He studied her keenly for a few seconds, before saying, "There is something bothering you."

Emerald eyes widened at his perceptiveness, but he did not give her the time to school her features nor change the subject nor stall him in any possible way.

He could guess that it had something to do with her sister, because he knew that the surgery had not been easy and had in fact put her life in danger; but without any other information, he could not guess what was making his wife's eyes have such a shadow of worry in them.

He took a step closer to her, even though they were already standing quite close to each other.

"Arturia, tell me."

She was perfectly aware of the fact that trying to dissuade him would have taken too much time and effort and was not guaranteed to have success; therefore, she looked up into his eyes. His skin was slightly more flushed than usual because of the cold outside, even though it did not have Shirou's bright red shade – and Arturia mentally shook herself, wondering why she was picking up on such a meaningless detail.

"Iri is not out of danger. The surgery was indeed successful, but they can't be certain they removed the entire placenta until they do an MRI scan. However, the local anaesthesia caused the skin to get swollen, therefore there is nothing to do but wait – and hope for the best." She did not look very optimistic as she added, "Another surgery might be required, and this one would pose an even greater danger to Iri's life."

He did not say a word as he observed her biting her lips with worry, and accepted her words silently.

Her distress about her sister's situation was something he was used to knowing about, but not so used to seeing. Especially because of her nephew's presence, Arturia always kept her emotions tightly in check, not wanting to make the boy worry. But right now, there was no one else, and her worry for Irisviel was truly visible.

Gilgamesh thought, for the second time on the same day, that perhaps he could finally understand the true reason that had prompted her to toss her pride aside and go ask him for his help, all those months before.

She snapped out of her worry, however, to frown at him.

"What did you mean when you said that you 'had a talk' with Shirou, Gilgamesh?"

The ghost of a smirk appeared on his lips.

"The boy professed his beliefs in a way too foolish even for his age, therefore I took the trouble to clarify the matter." Giving her a nod, he added, "You had rightly foreseen that living in a hospital was going to influence his way of thinking."

Arturia's expression turned disbelieving.

"Are you actually complimenting me?"

He tsked, shaking his head fractionally.

"No, Arturia. I'm stating facts."

Her eyes narrowed but, before she could give him a retort, nurse Kariya approached them.

"Irisviel is awake now."

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Arturia and Gilgamesh followed him to a room not far from there, where there was the necessary equipment for Iri to rest comfortably after the surgery. If the blonde woman was surprised about the fact that her husband came with her, she didn't let it show.

Lying in her bed, Iri did not appear able to move without exhausting herself, but she smiled widely at seeing her sister again, while Kariya discreetly exited the room. Gilgamesh observed the two sisters as Arturia reassured her about the children before asking her how she was feeling.

A few minutes later, Kariya was at the entrance again, requesting Arturia's signature on several forms about the results of the surgery and the medicines. With an apologetic smile, the blonde woman followed him out of the room.

That left Irisviel alone with Gilgamesh.

Deathly pale in her bed, she allowed her dark red eyes to land on the blond man who was married to her sister – the man who was Ria's husband.

Under normal circumstances, Iri would have felt apprehension. The man was imposing and his persona, without him needing to say a word, fully permeated the room. She had however just gone through a very taxing surgery that could have cost her her life, and it had reminded her of the fact that it was entirely possible that she would never find herself in such a situation again – that is, alone with him.

The occasion was perfect to address him on something that had been on her mind for quite a while. After all, when she had woken up to find herself pregnant, in a different country, and with her sister married to a stranger just in order to get the money to look after her, it had been a huge shock, and she had some questions on which she wanted answers.

Cautiously, ignoring her fatigue, she said, "Mr. Uruk…?"

"You may call me Gilgamesh," he said curtly but not arrogantly, his blood red eyes falling on her. He did not think she was worthy of his consideration, but she was – whether he liked it or not – his wife's sister, and there was no point in keeping things overly formal under the circumstances.

She nodded weakly, her expression still guarded and her tone tentative.

"I meant to ask you – why did you want to marry my sister?"

He knew that she was the only person, aside from Enkidu, who had been told about the contract. She was certainly aware of the reasons that had made the agreement exist in the first place, yet it was unlikely that she was asking about those.

He seemed amused as he studied her briefly.

"Strange question, coming from you."

In spite of the tiredness in them, her eyes were firm.

"I am very much aware of my sister's merits – my objective is finding out whether or not you are."

He seemed even more amused by her explanation, noting that something in her firmness was prominent enough to remind him of Arturia, and decided to give her a truthful answer.

An answer that, if Enkidu had been present to hear it, would have revealed far more than Irisviel was able to understand.

"Unusually enough, she fascinates me."

Irisviel raised an eyebrow.

"Is that all?"

Gilgamesh's expression betrayed nothing, therefore the woman sighed. "From what I've seen and heard about you, it's very rare for anything to catch your attention, let alone hold it for a prolonged period of time. I don't know if I should be happy about the fact that Ria has apparently managed to do just that. However…"

She held herself up a little straighter, and suddenly her tiredness seemed to disappear as her eyes flashed at him.

And for one fraction of a second, Gilgamesh was actually able to glimpse all the willpower that was hidden inside of Irisviel von Einzbern's fragile body.

"I don't care how rich, powerful or influential you are. I don't care that I am a sick, weak, frail woman whose life is on the line, with two small children and almost no means to support them. If you do anything, anything that hurts Ria, I will find a way to make you pay for it. No person alive has the right to make my sister suffer, not after all she has done for us, and if you do so, I will make sure you regret it."

Gilgamesh was both amused and impressed by the infirm woman in front of him. He had always thought of Irisviel von Einzbern as a weak, submissive kind of woman, who depended on Arturia for everything and who didn't have an ounce of true strength in her. Nevertheless, he decided that there was the tiny possibility that he might have been hasty in judging her; she did seem to have some of Arturia's spirit in her after all.

If he had to be perfectly frank, he had not expected her to be so fiercely protective of her sister. It was obvious that she cared very deeply about her, and there was a glint of true steel in her eyes, which told him that she meant every word and that she would actually be capable of making her threats a reality.

She had proven to be stronger than he had given her credit for. She was deserving of hearing his next words – words he did not fully want to admit he actually meant as well.

He inclined his head towards her.

"You can trust my word, Irisviel. If anyone dares attempt to harm Arturia, I will make them regret it as well."

At hearing that declaration and seeing how he did not appear to be lying, all the exhaustion seemed to come back to Iri, and she let herself fall back on the pillows.

Gilgamesh weighed her with his eyes for another few seconds and then, hearing footsteps approach and recognizing them as his wife's, he did not stop a lazy smirk from gracing his lips.

"I suppose I should thank you. After all, it's because of you that Arturia agreed to marry me."

Iri stared at him, her eyes red like his, but a dark, stormy red, quite different from his vivid blood red colour.

Mere seconds before Arturia stepped into the room, she murmured, her tone strangely undefinable, "No, I don't think you should thank me, for you still have to prove that you deserve to be married to a woman like her… Gilgamesh Uruk."

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A few hours later, after spending some time in talking with her sister but not giving away anything of what she had briefly discussed with Gilgamesh, Iri finally fell asleep.

She was going to be able to rest peacefully until the next day, when they were going to perform full check-ups to see if another surgery was needed. Illya had been nursed twice and Sakura had lulled her to sleep before going home with Rin; little Shirou had been very attentive and very caring towards both his mother and sister for the rest of the day, and Arturia knew that it must have been the result of what her husband had discussed with him.

Speaking of her husband, he had spent the rest of the day with the phone glued to his ear, managing his office work with one call after the other. But he had not left the hospital the entire time, and Arturia could not find a reasonable explanation for it – yet she had not had the time to ponder over it either.

As for herself, she was tired. It had been a long day – between the surgery and going through form after form to sign – and when Gilgamesh materialized at her side, he seemed to be thinking the same.

He indicated the exit with a tilt of his head, his intention clear.

However, Arturia hesitated.

"I… would rather stay."

His sharp eyes examined her attentively. Her reasons for wanting to stay were obvious and he did not need to ask, but that would not stop him from trying to make her change her mind.

"Your exhaustion and stress are plain to see. Remaining here would not bring positive outcomes."

She met his eyes though, her expression resolute, and that was enough to confirm to him that she was not going to change her mind on the subject, no matter what he said. Therefore, he sighed but then nodded briefly, letting her know that he was going to accept her decision.

Satisfied, she turned away from him to go sit on the comfortable soft chairs in front of her sister's room.

She could not help being confused, however, when he followed her and sat down next to her.

He gave her a strange smirk.

"It wouldn't be becoming for you to remain here alone. I will stay as well."

In truth, he couldn't explain why he had made such a decision; or at least, he couldn't find a reasonable explanation for it. All he knew was that he had not liked the thought of leaving without her, and had therefore made his decision accordingly.

He brushed the demanding and potentially dangerous thought aside and allowed his smirk to widen when he witnessed his wife's puzzlement.

In a silky voice, he added, "You should not be afraid, Arturia. I won't do anything to you."

She stared at him directly, her eyes holding a very odd look, one he was not able to decipher.

Her words took him by surprise, but they seemed to take her by surprise, too.

"I know that you would never do anything that could bring me harm, Gilgamesh."

Arturia was actually astonished by her own words when she realized that what she had just uttered was the utmost truth. She knew it was – she could almost feel it.

But Gilgamesh was even more taken aback than her. Telling him that she knew that he would not harm her meant that there was a deeper degree of intimacy between them than he had thought. It seemed that the past months had made them both change their way of valuing each other: she had actually some form of trust towards him.

Before either of them could say anything else, even just break the gaze they were exchanging, Doctor Diarmuid approached them.

If Gilgamesh had not been inclined to think well of him before, he certainly didn't think well of him now. How dare the man interrupt them right now.

However, since he had information for Arturia that she wished to hear, he could not say anything, and settled for only keeping his scowl.

Diarmuid was explaining to Arturia that, in a few hours, as soon as the swelling reduced, they were going to be able to perform all the necessary check-ups on Iri and find out the truth about her conditions. Then, perhaps sensing the hostility coming from the blond man's direction, he excused himself.

That meant that they were going to have to wait in order to know more, and they settled back on the chairs to do just that.

As the hours went by, Arturia felt her eyelids beginning to droop slowly. She knew that she was tired, and she knew, from many other occasions spent waiting in a similar fashion, that time was not going to pass quickly. She unconsciously tried to find something to support her head, and when she found it, she leaned into it with a content and barely audible sigh.

She was too tired to fully realize that this 'something' was uncommonly warm for an inanimate object, and she was also stressed enough to not be able to fully fall asleep.

That was how Arturia Uruk found herself spending Christmas night at the hospital, waiting for news about her sister, plagued by tormented thoughts, completely unaware of the fact that she was falling in and out of sleep against her husband's chest.

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