The Story of Illya Emiya

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Fate Stay franchise or the characters associated with them.

"talking"

Thoughts

Just for Tonight

The truth was just too horrible.

But against Gilgamesh, it was their best card to play.

Illya could try to use Archer herself. But unlike Shirou, she would not be able to draw out the full power and potential of the unlimited blade work.

If Archer's fragmented memories were anything to go by, it was the only option they had.

However, she couldn't stop worrying. From their previous battles, Shirou was able to learn a lot from the red servant which caused him to improve so drastically.

But in order to learn his final secret, it was only at the end of Archer's life he was able to conceive it. Yet she wanted to protect her brother from learning of this horrible future that was waiting ahead of him.

She was scared that his heart would break learning of the tragedy that would befall him.

Although she would have pushed this plan aside, she also understood that Archer and Shirou lived two completely different lives. As far as the future was concerned, her brother might not even walk the same path.

The key difference was her.

For the two of them shared the same idealism of wanting to walk the path of heroism. But here in this world she found her father and from there they lived as a family. With the years she lived with Shirou, she taught him to expand his vision and see more to the world then the narrow path he was walking on. She taught him to rely on others as you didn't have to bear hardship alone. Although this was a lesson that needed more time, he was beginning to learn to love himself more.

From the memories of Archer, her Shirou was different from him in many ways that mattered.

"You underestimate him" as Kuro sensed Illya's line of thought. "Oniichan is not so weak hearted. His spirit will not break from something like this".

"But it can . . . . Just like his did . . . ." as Illya looked solemnly. Archer broke under the weight of his choice as years of it chipped at him. But for Shirou it would be hitting him all at once.

Kuro pouted as she cupped Illya's face in her hands as stared directly into her eyes. "It will work" she said softly. "Believe in yourself. But more importantly believe in him".

Illya then casted her eyes down as she still wasn't sure if it was the right move to make. She needed more time to think. However, time was not on their side as it was pretty much based on the golden king's whimsy.

But that was the thing, right? They needed more time.

~ Fuyuki city (Emiya residence) ~

Illya got straight to work ordering her maids to retrieve some supplies while Rin and Luvia went to their own errands.

Once everyone was back at the estate, Illya requested Caster and Shirou assistance as they drew a magic circle around the entire residence.

After checking and rechecking that everything was right, the young homunculus casted her spell. "Time alter, hepta accel" as a bounded field surrounded the house. With everyone gathered in the count yard, she looked to her friends and family. "This is as much time as I can buy us. One week is all we will have to prepare. We don't have the resources or power to extend beyond this".

The Emiya residence was placed within a time dilation bubble. For the rest of the world, time flowed as it should. But while in the bubble, time moved seven times faster.

To make this happen Illya, Luvia, and Rin pooled their resources as this was all they could do on such short notice.

But regardless buying one week of time was a god send.

It may not seem like a lot. However, under the right circumstance it was all they needed to prepare for the battle ahead.

Yet more importantly it gave Illya more time to think about what her next move should be.

~ Fuyuki city (Emiya residence) ~

Rin and Luvia gathered their treasured gems charging them as Sakura assisted with whatever help they might have needed. But also in the room with them was Caster as he was just walking around watching everyone.

As far as work was concerned things were going rather smoothly. Due to the incident with the entity, Sakura's mana reserves were beyond any human or mortal limits. Frankly it wouldn't be an understatement that her power was near bottomless now. Just to give an estimate if she was still a master, she would be able to easily support a servant even without the assistance of the grail. It wouldn't even surprise them if she was even able to support multiple servants.

Within the first day Sakura was able to charge up all the jewels without even the slightest bit of fatigue. So, to help things along, the magus of flowers made a few more to use.

Once those were completed, they had Sakura charge the jewel Shirou gave them as Rin and Luvia regulated it. Seeing as they were items during the age of gods, they were able to store a ridiculous amount of power. With a power bank like this at their disposal, it would allow them to fight for longer against whatever they might face. Hence this would be their primary focus for this week.

Although things were supposed to be harmonious between these two long time rivals, old habits did die hard.

"Pathetic" Luvia smirked. "You are clearly an amateur if you can't even raise the efficiency".

"Who are you to talk?" Rin scowled. "I have more power stored up by comparison!"

"Please don't fight you two" as Sakura could only helplessly sigh.

As the bantering went on, Caster couldn't help but chuckle in the background. "Well I suppose that's what makes their friendship work so well". But then looking up in thought, "hmm, but I believe it's considered more like frenemies in this era".

Watching was one of the things Caster was best at. With his eyes, there were no such thing as keeping secrets from him. So long as he just watched, events will proceed on as they should. Time, fate, destiny, variables, constants, he could see it all as plainly as reading a book.

Though some had asked him for his wisdom and guidance, he could only offer a few cryptic words as ultimately people needed to bravely step into the unknown and take destiny into their own hands.

However only under rare moments would he personally intervene in anyone's future. As was the case with Saber when he offered her a choice to take up the mantle of king or walk away from it. He kept no secret from her as he knew where either of those choices would lead her. Though he did feel guilt for where that choice led her, in the end it was for the greater good.

Once more he was going to intervene. Like that time, it all came down to choice.

"Such a wonderful sight" Caster smiled as he caught the attention of the girls. "Nothing more alluring then a garden of flowers competing to be more brilliant then the rest". This only caused them to give him a curious and awkward look. "My master is truly blessed to have won your affections".

In that instant Rin, Luvia, and Sakura were flustered as they looked away from Caster's smiling expression.

"But I must ask, are you fine with the way things are now?"

Recovering from her embarrassment, "what do you mean?" asked Sakura.

Caster then gave them a solemn look. "A storm is coming that can't be stopped now. The holy grail war is going to end one way or another. For the challenges you will face will require all your skill and will power to overcome. Although one could prepare for their futures. Sometimes being in the present is just as important".

"What are you trying to tell us?" then asked Rin as she wasn't sure what topic he was dancing around.

Returning back to his smile. "To live a life without regret. My master is a special kind of fool who is unable to see the most obvious answer even when it's staring him in the face".

Seeing the uneasy looks of the three, Caster couldn't help but chuckle.

"Do you really wish to leave things unsaid? Do not misunderstand what I say as a threat or warning. But simply as a pearl of wisdom."

Looking to Rin, "set aside your pride".

Then to Luvia, "your worries".

Then to Sakura, "your doubts".

"Don't wait till everything becomes too late". Then getting up as he prepared to wander off, "but I will say this. For whatever choice you will make, both will come with hardship. The paths ahead are not necessarily good or bad. Just different for their own reasons. But for whatever choice you do make, be certain you are truly willing to bet all your heart on it".

Watching as Caster left, the three girls stopped what they were doing as they were deep in thought.

~ Emiya residence ~

Illya, Kuro, and Miyu were practicing with their servants.

However, most of the time is was a spar between Archer Kuro and Rider Miyu as they got more adept at using these new forms.

Though Illya's powers dramatically increased with Berserker, she had no way to counter the effects of mad enhancement. The power boost it gave easily made her stronger than everyone else. But the cost of losing her sanity was too high of a price to pay. Especially if she were to become a danger to her friends and family. Thus, she was only able to hold it for a few minutes before she had to uninstall it.

Putting that aside, Illya sat alone aimlessly watching Kuro and Miyu spar as her mind was occupied with other things. She still wasn't sure what to do about Gilgamesh. Plus, they had to worry about the last two servants who were still in play.

Berserker and Rider were immediately out as they were powerless against Enkidu.

That left Caster, Saber, and Archer who had to be their primary battle line.

And putting that aside, that left two more things on her mind.

The unlimited blade work and breaking the news to Saber about her intentions.

Sighing to herself, "What am I going to do?" Illya questioned.

"You can try talking about it".

"Ehh!" as the young homunculus was startled out of her thoughts as Caster had just appeared beside her. "How long were you sitting there?"

"For a while" Caster smiled.

Sighing somewhat, Illya stared at the man before scoffing. "Is there really any point to me talking to you? You already know everything I'm going to say. So, what's the point? Why don't you just tell me what I need to hear".

"But then what's the fun in that?" Caster answered jokingly. "Though sometimes" as he became solemn, "words aren't enough. Although I may know what you are going to say, I can at least promise you that you'll feel better once you get everything you want to say off your chest".

Giving him a strained look, Illya could only sigh as she might as well humor him. Slowly opening up, she revealed the weight of all her doubts and worries as she wasn't sure what to do.

Nodding his head as he listened, "I think I understand the gist of it". Caster then rubbed his chin before looking back to Illya. "Concerning the matter with Saber I do share responsibility for what happened. I don't mind explaining to her the situation. So, you don't need to trouble yourself over it". Yet seeing Illya's troubled face, "you truly are kind to care so much for her. But like your brother, you underestimate them".

"Huh?"

"Trust in them. They are much stronger than you think"

The young homunculus could only give a complicated look. But giving a deep sigh, "thank you" as she ambivalently smiled to him. Though her feelings were conflicted there was no point in staying angry with him. As he promised she did feel better after talking about it as she decided what to do.

"And by the way, I think you can do something a little more interesting with the servants you have right now".

"Pardon?"

"You're already breaking all the rules. Why not push the envelope a little further?"

Illya didn't understand what Caster meant as he was back to his cryptic answers.

"The life of those heroes is rather interesting don't you think? Especially why they were assigned certain classes within the Holy Grail war. Makes you kind of wonder what if they walked a different path in life".

"What do you mean?" Illya asked.

Caster just stood up as he shrugged. "Who knows. Probably just talking to myself" as he then wandered away.

Watching him leave, "a different path . . . ." she muttered to herself.

"Hey Illya!" called Kuro. "Going to get any practice in or what?"

"I can practice with you if you want" then said Miyu.

Deep in thought about what Caster said, Illya knew it had to have meant something. Looking back, "I think there is something I want to try".

~ Emiyra residence ~

"I see . . . ." as Saber looked down. Although subtle, her heart was broken as her last grasp of hope had slipped from her fingers.

"I'm sorry old friend" as Caster patted her shoulder. "But it is the truth. That is why the grail must be destroyed".

It was easier for Saber to understand the grail was corrupted and could not grant her wish. However, Caster knew better. The grail was not really as omnipotent as people thought it to be as it was limited in it's overall function to grant any wish.

Perhaps desires on a smaller scale were feasible.

But in the end, it was just a lump of concentrated power. That power was sensitive to the thoughts of those who would grant their wish on it. If they themselves truly did not understand how to achieve the fruition of their wish then it could only result into something disastrous.

An example would be Kiritsugu Emiya and his desire for peace on Earth. Due his ideal of sacrificing the few to save the many whether or not the grail was corrupted his wish would have had a catastrophic outcome.

Just with a snap of your fingers the entire human population would have been decimated. Probably cut in half or more as he himself didn't know how to achieve it and thus that would've been how his wish was granted.

Seeing the results if he had made that wish, he chose to destroy the grail.

However if this was before the grail was corrupted, then perhaps Saber's wish to never be king was feasible. But with the way it was now it wasn't hard to imagine what new horrible outcome the grail would have created.

But Caster knew his student quite well.

She just needed a pep talk to push her in the right direction and then with a little time she would be fine.

Maybe it was sad. Her soul would return back to the holy isle as she would breath her last breath and die. Afterall she was just existing on borrowed time right now. However, he knew that in her last moments she would find peace not regretting her decision of being king. Then that would be the end of her story . . . . or was it?

That was the kind of man Caster was. Always having one more card up his sleeve to play. As to what it was well . . . . That was a secret for another time.

~ Emiya residence ~

Shirou had pretty much lost track of time since day and night could not be dictated by the light outside.

Being so absorbed into his work he would have completely forgotten about eating or sleeping if no one came to tell him.

But hammering away, he still couldn't find the right answer.

What kind of hero did he want to be?

A warrior?

A healer?

A leader?

Someone who would face his enemy head on or one who chose stealth and distance to fight?

Did he want to craft a weapon that destroys or one that could save?

Each noble phantasm he made reflected an ideal. But not one he could proudly call his own.

Wiping off the sweat from his face he sat at the far corner taking a drink of cold water as he looked to the many noble phantasms that lined the walls.

Just sitting there deep in thought, "who was Shirou Emiya?"

"A question that would take a life time to answer" Caster answered.

"Ehh!" as Shirou jumped out of his chair in surprise to his servant apparently appearing out of nowhere. "How long have you been there?"

"Quite a while" the magus of flowers smiled. "Master was just too busy to notice me being here". Chuckling to himself, "ohh master. Quite the fool you are".

Giving a strained laugh, "a bit harsh don't you think?"

"I don't really think so" he smirked. "In fact, I think it's rather accurate. Shirou the fool" which caused the mage smith to seem more downcast. But reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a stack of cards. "What do you think of this master?"

". . . . Tarot cards?"

"Quite the fascinating item. It's even been used to tell people's fortune or the future. Though I'd say they were just being lucky". Shuffling the cards in his hand, "but among these cards I think this one is the most interesting" as he flicked the card out.

Catching it, "the fool?"

"There can be a lot of things that can be said about the fool. Most which are not too flattering. But truthfully among all the cards the fool is truly special. Do you understand why master?" only for Shirou to shake his head. "The reason is because the potential the fool holds. To put it simply, the fool can be whoever he needs to be. That's why I think the fool best describes master". Then shrugging his shoulders, "they are just my thoughts anyways" as he got up and left.

Having food for thoughts, Shirou looked at all the tools he used to create noble phantasms. Going over the table lifting up the hammer, "whoever I need to be . . . ." as he stared into the fire of the forge.

~ Emiya residence ~

It was about late afternoon for the outside world. But for the rest, at least four days had passed as it was technically night for them as everyone was off to bed.

However, Caster was sitting alone on the open walkway overlooking the courtyard.

"Hoot hoot".

"Ahh Archimedes" smiled Caster. "No, I don't mind the company".

"Hoot hoot".

"I've done all I could for them. Ultimately, they need to make their own decisions".

"Hoot hoot".

"Yes, I could" as he shrugged. "But then people will always be depending on me to give them the answers robbing them of their ability to think for themselves. That's not how life is supposed to be. Life is supposed to be about learning. We strive as we succeed. We grow from our failures. If you're just going to hand your life over to fate, what's the point of free will? Or even living if you're too afraid of what's in front of you?"

"Hoot hoot".

"I just gave them a push that's all".

"Hoot hoot".

"Well it's not like it's set in stone. But we'll see what they will decide to do".

~ Emiya residence ~

It was the seventh day as it was now night in relation to outside.

All that could be done has been done as the time dilation was soon going to end.

Gathering everyone together, Illya had made her decision.

That was to trust her brother as everyone else was present for morale support.

Explaining what was about to happen, everyone else was surprised to learn the identity of Archer. But more so Rin who was formerly his master.

"Are you ready oniichan?" Illya asked.

Taking a calming breath, the mage smith nodded as he resolved himself for what he might face.

Nodding to Kuro, the dark homunuculus installed the red servant as she stood before Shirou. Although her eyes reflected her worry, she had faith he would not break. Now taking his hand, their magic circuits connected as memories and experiences were flooding into Shirou.

Taking in the volume of Archer's life, it was like a tidal wave. Crashing and flooding through as it was suffocating.

Seeing the path he walked, it was heartbreaking as it was indeed a fate worse then death.

But he was not that man.

He still had the power to choose what kind of person he wanted to be as Archer forgot why they chose this path to begin with.

With the connection finished Shirou appeared stoic lost in thought over the experience.

"Oniichan?" Illya said worriedly.

Closing his eyes as he took a relaxing breath, Shirou looked around to his friends and family before looking back to Illya. "I'm alright".

Seeing his calm carefree smile, "oniichan!" Illya cried out as the group converged to see if he was really fine.

With some banter and laughter, everything appeared to be in order.

"I'll cook dinner tonight" said Shirou as everyone now was ecstatic to eat his food. With everyone at the table enjoying a good meal and each other's company, it was like another simple day for them.

Shirou and Sella in the kitchen cooking together.

Illya, Kuro, and Miyu chatting away.

Luvia and Rin fighting with Sakura trying to maintain the peace.

Caster, Saber, and Leysritt just happily eating.

As everyone cleaned up and went to bed, Shirou was lying down awake staring at the ceiling in the dark. "The future . . . ." he muttered. Though he felt alright, he still wasn't sure how to entirely feel about it. Archer's life wasn't necessarily his future. But it was something to think about. He did worry he would make the same mistakes he did.

Before his thoughts could delve further, a loud racket seemed to have been occurring outside his room. Curious, he looked outside to find Rin and Luvia fighting along with Sakura jumping in. "What are you doing?"

Staring at the mage smith at the door, the three girls blushed as they couldn't answer immediately.

"What's going on out there?" called out Sella as she was joined by Leysritt as she was lazily rubbing her eyes.

Before Shirou could respond, the three girls quickly entered pushing him in closing the door behind them.

"Sella" Leysritt whined, "I'm going back to sleep now" which only caused the other maid to complain to her about not doing her job as they walked off.

Still confused about what was going on, "why are you all here?" Shirou asked.

Once again, the three of them blushed as they avoided each other's gazes.

There was a lot of things they could have said. But after Caster's advice, it was for one simple reason. They didn't want to leave behind any regrets.

They all shared affections for Shirou and likewise they knew he cared for them too. With the eve of the final battle upon them and the high possibility of death . . . . They just didn't want anything to go unsaid or undone.

With this brief moment of safety, it was there only chance.

After they bathed, they each returned to their rooms as they carefully chose what they wanted to wear in terms of undergarments and sleep ware. From there they just needed to bravely take the next step.

The only problem was, they all happened to have the same idea.

Rin was still uncertain up till the last moment as she just wore her regular pajamas. But once she made up her mind, everything else would fall into place. She was already imaging her battle plan. Knocking at Shirou's door asking for his company tonight. Of course, being the sweet nature guy that he was he'd accept without thinking anything else of it. Once inside she'd start slow building up the mood before confessing. From there, whatever happened would happen. Although she was afraid of being rejected, she knew Shirou did have feelings for her as she was banking on it. Leaving her room hugging a pillow, she had arrived to Shirou's room only to find her sister and rival both dressed in very sexy night gowns.

Aside from coming at an initial disadvantage, the brunette magus could only groan at her rotten luck in how her plans seem to always fall short.

Once they realized they all had the same idea, Luvia tried to shoo them away which got on her nerves with both her direct and indirect insults. It certainly didn't help much when Sakura who usually mediated only added more fuel to the fire.

After that brief debacle, here they were now.

"So why are you all here?" Shirou asked again as they still kept silent.

Sakura fidgeted nervously while Luvia seemed uncharacteristically meek.

Rin got her wits upon her and she needed to salvage the situation. Everything already went to hell as she couldn't build up the right atmosphere. "Emiya-kun . . . I . . . I . . . ." as her confession kept getting stuck in her throat. However, it was just too sudden for her to jump in head first either.

"I?"

Quickly to re-divert, "I . . . . I was wondering . . . ." as she looked to Luvia and Sakura as they seemed to snap back into attention. Taking a calming breath, "I was wondering . . . . Would you feel sad if we were gone?"

"Huh?"

"Would you miss us if we weren't here?"

Shirou still wasn't sure what was going on. But being given a general hypothetical question, all he could do was be straight forward and answer it. "Of course I would miss you Tohsaka-san" which caused the brunette magus to lighten up. "The same goes for Sakura-san and Luvia-san. Things wouldn't be the same if you weren't here anymore".

After saying that, Sakura then pulled Rin and Luvia aside as they began to talk among themselves. The mage smith couldn't quite make out what they were saying. But it seemed to have been pretty serious at how flustered the three of them were getting as the conversation went. Briefly looking at Shirou, the three approached him.

"Is something the matter?" Shirou asked cautiously. Right before his eyes Rin was unbuttoning her pajamas as Sakura and Luvia nightgown slid dangerously to their arms. "Ehh?!" as all his sense of logic and reasoning had completely stalled as he didn't know how to react or where to look.

"Just for tonight . . . ." Rin whispered.

"Just for tonight" Luvia repeated.

"Just for tonight" Sakura finished.

Though Shirou had a lot of questions, they were swept aside as they shared this night together.

To be continued . . . .

Author's notes: Here's another chapter and now for some commentary.

It's never been stated whatever happened to artifacts or creatures that used to live during the age of gods. They are clearly revered at how powerful they are as it was the time of legends and heroes. But some of it managed to survive to modern day like Excalibur's sheath Avalon. As noted by Shirou a few chapters back, magic isn't what it used to be since the passing of that time. As such, a combination of magic, knowledge, and/or techniques were now now lost to them for one reason or another. So, I figured if Shirou were to use his first magic to perfectly replicate a jewel from during that age it would be something else entirely in terms of quality.

From what I can understand of jewel sorcery, it's essentially a power bank for mages to keep casting more magic without further strain on themselves. Kind of the case with the Tohsaka heirloom being that one of a kind jewel.

The talk with Illya is in reflection of her battle with Beatrice in the Prisma series. She was able to turn Rider into Berserker which changed her into the form of Medusa when she was becoming a monster. They didn't really give a reason why Berserker was a unique card to be able to do that. But I decided to take it a step further in playing shuffle with servants and their original classes. As noted in FGO, the servants we knew in Fate were capable of different classes like Lancer being a Caster for example.

After being properly explained, Saber takes the news rather well (sort of). Thanks to Shirou, she makes peace with her decision and is finally able to rest in peace.

I've played way too much Persona. But that's how Shirou best expressed himself as the fool. That's how his noble phantasm will express itself as his reflection. Whatever he needs to be.

Like the UBW route, Shirou was able to handle the truth of who Archer was. Certainly, within this timeline, he won't make the same mistakes his counterpart did.

For the last part, I just kind of shrugged. He had a route with Rin and Sakura. Not sure about Luvia though. Now whether this was just a moment or something more I don't know yet. What they did that night I leave to everyone else to imagine.

If there are any questions or concerns feel free to ask as I'll try to answer them.

So thank you for reading as I further extend my gratitude for reviewing as well.