Gilgamesh joined them in following the familiar overbearing aura only the King of Conqueror possessed. Such a mana signature could only belong to the red king after all. Saber was a serious martyr. Gilgamesh, an iron dictator. Iskandar ruled with a different voice and a different attitude, one that relied on his followers' admiration of him and his persistent drive to conquer all. Rather than or elicit fear, Iskandar inspired.

It was only fitting his energy felt the same. It was powerful, and it was welcoming, but most of all it was red. Blood crimson and beautiful, of course it would lead them to its heavily muscled owner. No one else could own such magic.

Assassin, the woman with the flowing hair that had come with them seemed to have the same line of thought. Saber couldn't see her face but the king knew she was smiling. Come to think of it, the black-clad assassins had been curiously close to the King of Conquerors in the Throne of Heroes, and even now.

"Saber."

The woman turned her gaze over to their blonde new arrival who was keeping their pace. Gilgamesh had once again chosen to tag along, though he did not at all look pleased to be trudging the same ground as his so called mongrels.

"After this, you are to come with me."

Her surprise was to be expected. Of course, Saber was a woman independent. Perhaps in this world she had planned to take residence on her own or take refuge in the house of that bloody ginger boy he didn't know why she was so fond of. Mongrel did not deserve her attention. Certainly not more than Gilgamesh did. Gilgamesh watched her eyes shift from shock to anger, and the fade away to confusion. The expression was new. The time he had known Saber, the answers to his questions was the blade of Excalibur.

"What is it you mean, King of Heroes? I can not continue speaking with you if you insist in puzzling me with your little word games."

Meanwhile, Diarmuid watched the exchange with bated breath. Since the King of Heroes had rejoined them, the man had monopolized all of the blonde woman's attention. He could feel it. It was in the way her eyes would steal over to his frame, and the way she would look away before Gilgamesh could return the gaze. It was in the faraway look the occupied her countenance when she feigned distraction, and in every nervous twitch she would try to hide whenever Gilgamesh would so much as look her way.

The Mesopotamian occupied her thoughts, that much was clear. The Throne of Heroes saw her differently; her attitude had only changed when they had woken up in Fuyuki again. Diarmuid knew Gilgamesh had been with her for god knows how long before he had joined her at the temple. Who knew what the two kings had conversed about?

There was an unidentifiable pain in his chest, that he knew had no place in this mission. Had Fionn felt this same pain the moment Diarmuid's curse took effect on his betrothed? He would never know, only that it was a pain he could now finally understand.

"Oh, but I am playing no game. It is only fitting for a queen to stand beside her husband after all. I have no intention to let you out of my sight," Gilgamesh clarified with that ever-present smirk.

Both knights scowled.

"I had my own queen and I have no intention to be yours, King of Heroes. If perhaps you could just accept that—"

Gilgamesh looked at her straight in the eyes, the arrogant curve of lip disappearing into a straight line. The mild amusement in his blood orbs faded into a serious gaze, one piercing as it was powerful. It was enough to kill the words before they left Saber's throat, leaving her speechless, captivated by the supernatural red hue.

"I get what I want," was his unfazed interruption, already used to her angry rejections of his advances. He took it in stride as he kept pace with his queen.

"I want you."

Her right foot snagged on her left, and she lurched forward. Three syllables and he'd pushed her over the edge. His voice sounded off the walls of her skull and repeated his emotional torment. Gods, she would never understand the King of Heroes, try as she might.

Gilgamesh withdrew the arm he would have used to catch her seeing as she had regained balance on her own as any person worth his salt would. Hopefully she didn't see the gesture as an insult. Her distracted eyes told him she hadn't even noticed. Had he so dazed her with his words, she was lost in thought?

Arturia's lip quivered as it cursed her loss of grace in front of the worst company no less. The woman could never understand how the King of Heroes could possibly act so...so...ugh!

"You cannot have me," were the words that finally came from a pair of very clearly infuriated lips. Their word, of course, did not seem to deter the centuries-old blonde.

Gilgamesh smiled. Of course she would say that.

Unknown to the two blondes, there was another who mirrored the red-eyed one's expression, except his was a countenance less expecting and more pleased. Kojiro Sasaki had no idea why the little exchange had brought about such a strange feeling in him. It was akin to relief, and it was an emotion he welcomed.

Kojiro had noticed that he and this King of Heroes shared nickname for their favorite blonde. The lioness seemed to be more popular with the other servants than the Japanese man had predicted. It seemed he would have to take better measures to siphon off even just a fraction of her time. There were too many Servants to compete with, including the raven-haired foreigner who wore his envy so clearly on his face. Were warriors of the Lancer's race untrained to mask expressions, unlike the samurai Sasaki resembled?

The woman assassin who led them decelerated to a slow walk as soon as Iskandar's mana became so obvious they couldn't have been fifty meters from him. A clearing slowly appeared before the servants, the dim light of the dawn filtering through the trees assisted by a controlled bonfire by the feet of the more bestial Lancer.

The spot in the woods behind the temple was filled with most of the Servants that had been summoned, with a few just coming in.

"HA! You may be the strongest demigod known to man, HOWEVER, I am the King of Conquerors! And being that, I shall conquer you and recruit you into my army!" Iskandar howled.

"True, true. HOWEVER, can you match strength feared by the gods themselves?!" Hercules countered.

One very loud corner was occupied by the crimson dressed warrior who had summoned them all. He currently locked arms with Heracles over a fresh stump that the two no doubt had created for the sole purpose of this arm-wrestling bout. Assassin walked over to the former, tucking a few strands of stray purple hair behind her mask as she approached the man. She whispered something in his ear and finally the King of Conquerors took notice of the new arrivals and gestured them over.

Only Saber approached. Gilgamesh thought the invitation disdainful, the native didn't feel like talking to a stranger and would rather wait for his pseudo-master, and Diarmuid was too distracted to notice.

"My King, I had been searching for you." That was Lancelot, who joined Saber as she made her way to the ginger Grecian despite the glares he was getting. "I appeared in the middle of some sort of barren building that looked like it had been visited by the wrath of a dragon."

Of course, that was where their battle ended. Saber tried to ignore the pang of guilt in her heart as she remembered their tragic confrontation, and distracted herself with other thoughts. Was that parking building still standing until now?

"I appeared at the nearby temple. The second time I joined the war, that was where I ended it," Saber replied as her former knight made the familiar gesture of kissing her hand.

"Ended that blonde king too I presume?" Lancelot whispered on her knuckles.

"The King of Heroes? Yes," she said as he straightened up and took his place to her right. Lancelot looked troubled, more troubled than usual. The wrinkle in his brow was deeper and his stare ahead was far away, much past the Iskandar and his muscled Grecian rival. The slight squint told her he was trying to reach out to something he couldn't quite grasp.

"There are gaps in my memory when I think back on our Grail War, my liege. I…remember you most of all, but when it comes to the others I draw blanks," said Lancelot's deep, solemn bass. God had she missed this voice of his. She hadn't heard this tone since their days as allies against Camelot's enemies.

He was answered by a curious eyebrow and his king's full attention.

"With this King of Heroes I know at least we had a fight that was…airborne?" Lancelot said unsurely, his statement answered by Arturia's subtle nod at his words.

"And prior to that…the Lancer who is so fond of you. I remember being on opposing sides, and then on the same one and I remember you," Lancelot said with his hand on his forehead. His eyebrows were tightly scrunched together. Perhaps the mad enhancement of the Berserker Class had more of an effect on him than Arturia had thought.

"Yes, most of us met that day. Diarmuid's Master ordered him to eliminate me by assisting you against Lancer's wishes. Both yours and his Masters' plots were thwarted by the King of Conquerors though."

She said it with indifference, and he reacted in horror. How could he voluntarily agree to a fight that was clearly unfair?

"My liege—"

Saber smiled at him, so sickeningly sweet he could taste honey on his tongue. She left him gaping as she strode ahead. Again, it dawned on the troubled frenchman his king was a saint. It was too much to bear, didn't she know? Lancelot resisted the urge to act, resisted the need to catch her her hand again, to bloody force her to understand she should be angry she should befurioussheshouldbeathisthroatforhissinssheshouldbe-

His fingers curled around empty space as her wrist just swung out of his reach.

"Have you not located Caster? The one from our war?" Saber asked the man currently in the middle of an arm wrestling match, after realizing the mage who had caused them too much trouble.

She was answered not by him, but by her former escort who sat amusedly at his right side. Saber thought it odd the nameless Assassin would do so. She didn't recall Iskandar being friendly with the sneaky servants. In fact, Rider was the one who eliminated them. All of them. This woman too, she recognized. This Assassin was the one who stood and accepted Iskandar's blade. Why of all things would she even be lending her services to the King of Conquerors instead of just slipping away as Gilles de Rais had apparently done.

"We have, of course; otherwise we would be unworthy of being called Assassins. The man you speak of does not wish to join us," the Assassin said, her chin resting on her palm as she leaned on Iskandar's side of the large stump.

Heracles tipped the balance a bit towards Iskandar's side, but the ginger man only smiled in response.

"Seems you really are a force of nature, demigod," the burly man said, pushing back Heracles' hand with a new kind of force.

"I don't believe we will finish before the sun goes down, son of Zeus. Perhaps we can settle this some other glorious time.

"Saber," Iskandar addressed as he and his match ended their match in a draw, "I think as the one servant those Masters have any association with, you owe the rest of us an explanation."

All the servants minus both Casters huddled around the CuChulainn's bonfire as the sun's rays began to signal its entrance in the east.

"So," began the smooth tone of the mask-wearing beauty, Medusa, "What now?"

All eyes were on Saber. A sigh quietly escaped her small lips before she echoed the words Kiritsugu had spoken to her in her dream, leaving out what the mage-killer had mentioned about her role. She doubted that was something the honorable heroes in front of her would care to hear, especially not with such difficult personalities in her crowd. The irritated glare she sent her fellow king's way went unnoticed.

"Normal lives, eh?" Cu echoed, poking his fire as if only to feel the heat on his skin. "So far this Emiya has kept his word with our bodies. Think he'll really let us go when this is all over?"

Saber nodded. Kiritsugu at least deserved that much credit. She knew, too, that Irisviel wouldn't trick her so. As if on cue, his words were marked by the arrival of Medea and her human escort. The servants present picked up fast. Obviously the stoic man wasn't one they had seen in the Throne of Heroes. He had no visible magic power, no obvious physical training. He was so blatantly a normal human being, and one from this era, no less.

"What the hell?"

Cu's expression contorted when he finally realized exactly what he was seeing. Within the crowd, even Medusa expressed a tinge of surprise. That...couldn't have been right. Standing next to the tearful woman mage was a face that should have been six feet under, ten years decayed by now.

Realizing the amount of confused attention she was receiving, Medea put a protective arm around her resurrected human lover.

"Saber. It seems that homunculus woman has kept her end of the deal. I assume I must now keep mine," she uttered, beautiful purple lip tint in a grim line.

Kuzuki Souchirou received the puzzled expressions silently, allowing his former Servant to act as she saw fit. He recognized some of them, especially the two blondes. How could he forget them. Gilgamesh, he looked at with mild anger, but otherwise he would not dare act. He could infer from all this that the people gathered were about as powerful or even more powerful than Caster.

Suddenly, the magus strode towards the short king, but not before warning all the others of what horrors she could inflict if they touched her man. A dainty hand was firmly around Saber's wrist.

The king's first instinct was to throw her off, but the magus moved quick enough that Medea was back at Souchirou's side when Saber could see what the woman had written on her skin. A red alive like fire stared back from small bold strokes on her wrist. The hot scar was shaped like a horseshoe inside of a ring, but before she could discern its meaning it disappeared as soon as it had appeared.

"I will not be far. At least...not from you."

In a blink, she was gone. So was Kuzuki.

The silence that followed was one bathed in confusion.

It was the one with hair of carnations that spoke first. "I repeat my query. What now?"

Rider's question was more difficult to answer than it had seemed initially. Arturia avoided the glowing sets of eyes that tried to catch her gaze. What answer had she? Kiritsugu had instructed them to live normal lives in the meantime. He hadn't told her how.

A drop of sunlight fell beneath her eyelids and she had to blink away the shine. It was...warm, inviting her out of the forest and into the world she had long been stolen from. The early morning breeze that nicked her skin gave her goosebumps, another reminder she was no longer a listless ghost among the living. Arturia breathed, shoulders heaving as the mountain air filled her lungs for one brief refreshing moment as she actualized the gift she had once again been given. The azure sky that had begun to brighten up above gave her the answer she had been looking for.

"We live."

"Why must you follow me?"

It surprised Diarmuid a bit that she had not questioned his place by her side. He was thankful of course, that when everyone had left the clearing and Saber began to walk her own way she hadn't complained when he'd taken stride beside her. He had been silent about it too, ready to leave if she had told him to find his own way, but otherwise enjoying the luxury of her company like it was a gift from heaven.

What didn't surprise him was the company of the King of Heroes. That was something he expected. Diarmuid didn't particularly appreciate it, but honestly he hadn't a clue what to make of the Mesopotamian. Not at all.

"I believe I have adequately offered an explanation, my queen."

Gilgamesh's obsession with Saber was as certain as the sun waking up in the east every passing day. What was also certain was that Saber tolerated him, no matter what had happened between them.

What had happened?

Knowledge that eluded him as long as Diarmuid wouldn't ask.

The Irishman watched the King of Knights elude the other's fingers as they reached for her face, hearing his own teeth clench as his jaw tightened. Curse his own hand for having been eliminated so early on! Anything could have happened between the two blondes following his death. From what he could gather, he could infer Arturia must have been one of the last to expire during the Fourth War and Gilgamesh too, if Iskandar had been defeated by him. Berserker...Lancelot, he must have been defeated by either king. Following that theory, Saber and Archer would have been the last two.

Diarmuid cringed at the thought, but resumed his theory. Neither could have won, otherwise their present situation couldn't have come to light. But if neither won, what happened?

Why, try as he might, couldn't he find her for the eternity he was searching, only to find out she had been summoned again? How could there have been two Archers in the second Grail war that she fought? How could she have been summoned twice in a row? How could Gilgamesh meet her both times?

The golden-haired demigod tried to touch Arturia's face again, but she slapped his hand away before Gilgamesh could.

And then there was that little sequence of him and her, the King so casually caressing her face like he'd done it before. It stopped Diarmuid in his tracks when he'd seen them like that. The Irishman only made his way across the temple courtyard when he'd seen she'd pushed Gilgamesh away. Diarmuid wouldn't lie and say it didn't affect him.

He shook his head. He hadn't thoughts like that since he was but a young lad.

Diarmuid sighed as he continued to follow the one light he had been granted in his years as a knight down the hill towards a town he knew next to nothing about.

The three descended the last steps from Ryuudou Temple. Lancer was completely unfamiliar with the location. During his time as a Servant, he had mostly stayed with is dreadful Master. Kayneth never took the time to help him study the geography of Fuyuki. The only way he could ever view the full city was through the window of the hotel Saber's Master decided to destroy.

Saber walked with a certainty of a resident of the area. Her feet did not hesitate when they turned corners or met intersections, but for some odd reason she couldn't keep herself from staring at the ground.

Their other companion, having finished his verbal bout with the woman, shoved his hands in his pockets and scowled, as if he too knew where they were headed and didn't like it. Wherever it was, Gilgamesh was unhappy about it, dragging his feet as he walked.

It was a dark chocolate brown gate of a Japanese-style mansion that greeted them when Saber's footsteps had finally come to a stop. Without hesitation, Arturia rang the doorbell at the gate, and stepped back. The girl seemed like she suddenly found her shoes interesting, as she stared down at them as she waited for someone to answer.

Is this the residence of an ally of yours, Saber? He thought. His eyes roamed the wall until they landed on a nameplate by the gate. He blinked several times as if willing the kanji to change. Perhaps it was just that he was bad at Japanese. He thought Saber hated that man, and yet

Emiya?

Diarmuid reached out to Saber's shoulder to question her actions, but right then, the gate flew open, revealing a beautiful woman with glowing blue eyes and long black hair that reached past her lower back.

Time slowed when she lowered her gaze to Saber's. Simultaneously, two pairs of eyes widened, both recognizing the other in their vibrant orbs. The dark-haired woman was first to move. Shaking, she brought a quivering hand towards Arturia's face. Just before her fingers touched, the woman turned sharply and called out the name of the one Saber came back for.

"What is it, Rin?"

The smaller gate opened wider, revealing an older, taller man, with gray streaking his ginger hair. He stood much higher than he had ten years ago, even higher than both Saber's company. His build was muscular, completely replacing the skinny youth he was before. Hard, piercing eyes retained that odd yellowish colored iris, but otherwise they were different, the naivete Saber was so used to seeing replaced by maturity and a bit of hope. They zoned in on the petite King.

As if his gaze was a current, Arturia felt the electricity run through her veins. Her knees quivered just a little as she lifted her chin to meet his eyes. Oh, it had been only hours but my, had she missed him, his face, his smile, his overprotectiveness, his boyish perfume-everything, everything.

The surroundings blurred as her heart beat faster than the wings of a bird, climbing and climbing higher til it finally reached the skyline. With a look he had disarmed her, he'd left her breathless, helpless to her feelings.

Too late, she could sense the heat in her cheeks, the smile on her lips. Too late, she couldn't stop the excitement building up in her chest. Too late, there was the desire to hold him, to kiss him, to tell him she loved him over and over and over.

"Saber?"

In his voice, all those feelings were unexpectedly absent.

"Saber?" the man repeated, a knit set of eyebrows disclosing how he truly felt.

Shirou looked at her with uncomprehending eyes. Why was she here? He thought she disappeared. No, he watched her disappear. So, why was she here now, alive and unchanged, standing right in front of him?

Rin moved before he did, grasping Saber's wrist and raising a hand pistol on a familiar sinister face. Shirou's swords were out in milliseconds, both out in the ready against the bastard that should have stayed dead those ten years ago.

"STAY BACK!" he barked, raising his right blade in the direction of the man who had given him the scars he could never erase; the man who gave Saber scars, who blinded the servant in trying to claim her love for himself. That sick sadist! What the hell was he even doing here?

Anger boiled behind Shirou's eyelids, making him see red in the vision that was Gilgamesh. The Servant had to be crazy if he thought Shirou was the same naive little dream-chaser he was ten years ago. That battle by the water was more than enough a wake-up call for the talentless magus. Shirou had faced adversary after adversary the ten years that followed the Grail War, he hadn't been idle.

But even Shirou knew a demigod was no easy target, and bloody hell, he knew what the Servant could do given the chance to open his cursed Noble Phantasm. They'd be dead and gone if he allowed that to happen. Rin-he had to get her out of here in case Gilgamesh would try to attack. Shirou couldn't afford another casualty in his household.

Shit.

Shirou bit on his lip so hard he could taste the iron in his mouth amongst the feel of his teeth chattering. Shit! All those ten years toiling and training. All those years, and still here he was, shaking like a leaf in front of an enemy he had seen defeated, one he had already fought before. He knew he could fight! He could fight! He could fight!

But Shirou still knew he would never stand a chance.

It seemed Gilgamesh shared his antagonism, fueled by the fact this idiot mongrel had the gall to try and keep his wife away from him a second time. Several weapons materialized behind Gilgamesh, all pointing towards Shirou.

"You dare point that thing at your king, mongrel?" the King shouted, masking the ferocity his rapidly depleting prana took away from his eyes.

In the corner of her vision, Rin finally noticed the dark-haired stranger standing aside, who had much more mana than her father's stupid Servant and aimed her Gandr at the unsuspecting man. The rational side of her told her to shoot and kill before he could do anything to harm them but it was hard to do that when their shorter former ally had stopped her in her tracks.

"Archer."

The green eyes he so adored, pierced him so deeply he couldn't resist their hold. If only they'd cease to dart towards that unworthy mongrel. If only they'd just hold his gaze, just like they have in the past so daringly, so fearlessly.

Babylon's Gate's shut so suddenly, as if rejecting the man their Master had become.

How is Saber taming that monster? Rin asked herself as she looked to the small woman next to her. Saber hadn't aged, but she did. She was twenty-seven now, and so was Shirou. And what in the world is she doing here? Saber didn't feel like a spirit anymore. She seemed…human.

"You're explaining yourselves when we get inside," Shirou went in the gate, Rin close behind him. Lancer and Archer gave Saber a look. Who knows what's going to happen now? They were led inside the Japanese house, everything all too familiar to Saber. The mansion looked just like it did ten years ago. Everything was more or less the same: the polished floors, the glass windows…everything. Nostalgia…nostalgia.

To the side, the hallway to her room. Right there, she remembered was where Shirou had kissed her. The thought made her blush.

The three Servants were led to the dining room, where they were given cushions to sit on. Saber and the two magi sat with ease. Diarmuid struggled to maintain the position, while Gilgamesh didn't even bother. The latter slumped to the floor and spread his legs under the low table. Rin served tea to all of them setting a cup in front of everyone, yet shaking a bit in front of Gilgamesh, before taking a seat next to Shirou. The blonde King proceeded to bring out a glass of wine, and sipped it, pleased with the taste. Saber wondered how he could never get drunk.

"So," Rin started awkwardly, cold sweat forming on her forehead as she faced Gilgamesh. The now older woman scooted a bit closer to Shirou. "Are you going to explain why you're here?"

Saber blew at her tea. She doubted they would believe their story, even if it was Shirou. The now-grown man brought the cup to his lips. Saber decided to just go on with it. They had to tell them sometime, and now that they were here, she might as well tell them.

"Kiritsugu sent us."

Shirou's cup dropped with a thud, the tea spreading slowly across the table. What? Rin choked on her tea, and ran to get a rag to wipe the spilled drink.

"Did I hear that right? Kiritsugu? My father?"

His father?! Lancer was surprised. He didn't even look a bit like him.

Saber nodded, ignoring Gilgamesh's snickering and watched Rin wipe off the tea, her being assisted by an apologetic Shirou. It was definitely unbelievable. According to Shirou, his adoptive father had died five, no, fifteen years ago now. There was no way Kiritsugu could come back to life, except by some miracle, but the Servants knew what they saw. That was undoubtedly the authentic mage killer.

Rin and Shirou nodded to each other, coming to a silent agreement. "Look, actually, you're not the first surprise that came here."

This got Saber's and Lancer's interest. Not the first? Does this mean that in the ten years we were gone, the Grail had been active?

Shirou continued.

"Beginning at the end of the 5th Holy Grail War, many…people had started appearing."

Rin continued for him, "No one knows where they came from, but almost instantly, they began living normal lives, as if they'd always been living here. We've managed to track and monitor some of them, but others appeared elsewhere in the world and were lost. We've tried to find them, but… Anyway, do you have any clue as to what is happening? And…are you part of it? What is Kiritsugu planning?"

Saber's face remained unchanged. "Others? We were not informed of such an occurrence. And Kiritsugu…He sent us here to destroy the Greater Grail, and end the cycle for good."

Shirou's eyes widened. She couldn't possibly be serious. Didn't they just destroy the Grail ten years ago?

"Cycle? You mean the Holy Grail Wars?"

Saber nodded.

"And how will you do that?"

"Destroy seals that appear around the world to allow the Greater Grail to take form and then demolish it as it materializes."

Silence.

Shirou's head hit the table.

"It seems there's a hell of a lot of things we don't yet understand. But if you really are going to destroy the Grail, you can count on my help." Shirou smiled goofily, the smile Saber had loved. She was grateful for his help.

"What will you do while waiting for the seals to appear, then?"

Saber did not reply. What were they going to do? They were Servants. They were trained fighting machines meant to follow orders and function for the Grail War. It seemed like such a sweet idea to live again while they were in the Throne of Heroes, but now that they're on Earth, well…

"You have to live as normal humans, I'm guessing?" Rin asked.

"Well…" Saber tried to reply.

Shirou let his chin rest on his hand and sighed. Really, what was the world coming to? He was happy to see Saber, as it seems she didn't really disappear forever, but what does this mean for the world? Is the Grail War starting up again? Not only that, she brought that demon of a King along with her…and some other…strange man. Ah. Well.

But this would mean she and the other two would have to stay over at…

Rin gave him a look.

…his house.

He nodded back to the woman.

Shirou showed the three Servants a 'peace sign'.

"Two weeks. We can house you for two weeks." He took back his hand. "But, after that, you should be able to find your own accommodation. Perhaps you could rent an apartment or maybe a house. Sorry, but two weeks is all we can give you. We'll help you move in, help you pay your rent, but that's all we can do." Shirou scratched the back of his head. "Sorry,"

Saber smiled at him, "No need for that, it should give us enough time to find a job."

"A...job." Gilgamesh articulated with obvious disgust.

Rin got up and said, "I hope you'll be comfortable." The woman smiled at Saber and left the room.

Gilgamesh watched the woman leave with a smidgen of interest. She reminded him a little too much of the tool of a master he had back in the First war. He wasn't sure if it was the predominance of red in her garment, or perhaps the sharp blue of her eyes, but in any case the king didn't want to bother himself with speculation.

Lancer, on the other hand, watched the blonde woman as she talked with this 'Shirou'. She seemed different. Her green eyes were lit and she was smiling. Her cheeks were tinged with pink, almost red. She was blushing. She moved differently. She almost seemed…shy. He looked from Saber to the redheaded man and back to Saber. Did she perhaps…? No. The King of Knights couldn't have possibly…could she?

The red-haired man scratched the back of his head again. It seemed to be a habit of his. There was a glint from his fingers. Nevermind that. Who is this man? He is the son of Emiya Kiritsugu, though they bear no resemblance, yes, but what is his relation to Saber?

Both Saber and Shirou left the room in response to Rin's voice, leaving Lancer with the question on his tongue.

"He was her Master."

Lancer froze, fingers hovering over the polished wood, at the King of Heroes' words.

"What's that expression for, mongrel?" Gilgamesh asked, amused, already knowing what his answer would be.

Diarmuid did not reply, but slid the door open and went after the female knight. Now alone, the King took a sip of his wine and swirled the red liquid in his glass.

"Fool."

Gilgamesh took another sip of his fine wine.

Hm?

The King chuckled at his own actions and set the glass down on the low table. He rose. It seemed he was going to follow the two Servants anyway.

A fool...I am one as well, after all.

The King left the room and shut the door behind him.

A white-haired woman entered the kitchen the King had just left. She called out names, but with no reply. The table had cups of tea left on it. She huffed and decided to clean the place up. Her hands stopped next to an empty flute. It was an expensive crystal red wine glass…with a beautiful web of cracks that marred its once clear surface.


Hello!

Sorry it took so long again. It took me a while to resume writing this fic and I do apologize for it, nevertheless here is the next chapter. To be honest, this was suppose to come a lot sooner, if any of you have noticed the titles. I messed up hahaha sorry :(. Regarding the story, I have actually outlined this one from start to finish and the next chapter will be ready soon. Also, I'm almost ready to publish a new fic called Earth, Wind, and Fire. Thank you for supporting me, and til next time! If you leave me a review I will try to answer them as much as possible. Til next time!

-akampana