Shriou sat in front of the campfire and watched the flames flicker and dance in the starless night. His comrades were all fast asleep in their tents. It had been both a long and uneventful day. Their first mission was nothing more but a simple border patrol, which while extremely important, isn't the most exciting job on the planet and nine hours of it didn't help. For full nine hours they paced back and forth along the border and were on the lookout for any possible threats. It was clear to everyone that this was the job that no one really wanted to do.

After their shift ended, the recruits and Claudette walked about halfway to the estate before the sun started to set. Claudette said it wasn't wise to travel at night so they set up camp and an hour later the tents were set upped and the campfire was going.

Shirou's lips twitched into a smile "Today wasn't so bad. It was really nice spending time with Claudette since we rarely get to do anything together anymore."

Shirou sighed and looked up into the sky. "Just where have the years gone?"

1 Year Ago

Shriou whistled as he walked down a hallway while carrying a piping hot bowl with Elina walking by his side, well more like running circles around him as he walked. The youngest Vance was always so full of energy. She was like that all the time but when it was time for a nap or go to sleep, it seemed at that very moment she would run out of energy. It was obvious to him that she inherited that from Maria since her father was lethargic for the most part. She also seemed to have developed an instinctive tendency to cling to him during her sleep. Just when he is about to leave her, her little hands would shot out and wrap themselves around his arms or some other body part, into a strong grip. Seriously, for a small child, Elina has one hell of a grip. It's scary to imagine how strong it will be when she grows up.

"Onii-chan," She said still running circles around him. "Whatcha doing?"

Shirou smiled down at her while at the same trying not to trip over her. "Leina is sick so I'm bringing her some rice porridge to help her get better." His tone turned serious. "Elina please stop running around me so you don't trip and fall."

"Okay." The young blonde said, obediently stopping at his request. "Rice porridge? What is that?"

"It's a dish that is usually served to the sick. Rice is easy to digest so it should be easier on her stomach." Shirou explained to the little girl. "Luckily for me the kitchen has a lot of ingredients and the maids don't mind if I cook something in there."

Elina's eyes sparkled as she looked at Shirou with a very familiar look. It was the look that little kids had when they just discovered something amazing. Then again, no one could say it was difficult to impress a child, let alone an intensely hyperactive child like Elina.

"You can cook, Onii-chan?" She asked.

Shirou nodded. "I can cook a whole bunch of things actually."

"Onii-chan you're amazing!" Elina beamed with unbridled fascination.

Shirou laughed at the girl's comment as they turned a corner and arrived a large door with a golden doorknob. He pushed it open to reveal a lavish room that was obvious for a little girl. A rich little girl. The walls were light blue and the room itself was filled with needlessly expensive furniture that is not needed for a six year old.

After looking all the expensive stuff in the room, Shirou snorted."She doesn't need all of this stuff." He said before turning to Elina. "Stay out here Elina. I don't want you to get sick like Leina."

Elina pouted that she wasn't going to be able to see Leina but she nodded obediently. Shirou smiled and patted the pouting girl on the head before walking into the needlessly lavish room and closing the door behind him. He spotted a sickly figure laying on a big expensive bed and walked over to it. When he reached the bed and looked at Leina again, he was taken aback. She looked horrible. She was as pale as a ghost and her skin looked moist, her hair looked like it degenerated from a shiny blonde to a murky, dirty dish water looking blonde, and she was sneezing and coughing every ten seconds..

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Shirou asked with small smile. He was painfully aware of how obvious the answer to that question was.

"Sick." Leina said like it was the most obvious answer in the world. The answer that Shirou expected. "You pr-probably d-don't want to g-g-get near me un-unless you w-want to get s-s-si-sick." She spoke trying to hold in her sneezes and coughs.

"Well, I brought you some rice porridge to help you feel better. White rice is easy to digest so it should be easy on your stomach." Shirou said taking a spoonful. "Also, don't worry about me. I haven't been sick once, you can ask Claudette."

"Really?" Leina asked to which Shirou nodded. She seemed satisfied by the answer and shifted her gaze to the bowl that Shirou had brought with him. "Alright, c-can I h-have some of that, please?" She wheezed.

Shirou nodded and moved the spoon to her mouth. Leina was hesitant at first but when she saw her brother's reassuring smile she allowed the spoon into her mouth. After a moment she swallowed it and looked at Shirou with these big expressive eyes. He laughed. It seemed she liked his cooking and this was just a sample of what he could do.

"There, It's not so bad right? Tell you what, when you get better, I'm gonna make you a crepe." Shirou said with a smile.'

Leina's eyes lit up. Her interest was piqued. "A crepe?"

"Trust me, you'll like it." He said with a smile. "Would like a strawberry, chocolate, banana, or apple cinnamon crepe?"

Shirou laughed at the memory. The really funny part about it was that after that, Leina made a fast recovery and got over her sickness in three days. He kept his word and after those three days he made her an apple cinnamon crepe. To be blunt, the little girl didn't eat the crepe, she inhaled it in three bites. Ever since that day whenever Shirou would make a crepe, Leina would come running. It was like her taste buds developed a GPS or whatever that doohickey was that gave directions. He was glad that she liked his cooking though.

"You would think that girl was starving." Shirou thought with a smirk on his face. "Its nice spending time my sisters. It's just a shame that I don't see much of them anymore."

The redhead frowned. In recent years it seemed that everyone started to drift apart. Claudette was often too busy with her duties as a knight to even give the time of day. Leina was often taken aside by tutors with the sole purpose grooming her to be a proper next heir, much to the child's distaste. Elina, was a different case. The energetic girl would often appear when she wasn't expected and then disappear without a trace. It seemed that Shirou had all the free time in the world compared to his siblings. Although, this 'free time' was actually spent retraining his Tracing and Reinforcement.

Shirou's brows furrowed. "Ten years of practice and I still can't trace any of the Noble Phantasms. It doesn't make any sense." The redhead sighed. "It appears that this world isn't gonna let me do as I please."

The redhead yawned. "I'd better get some sleep so Claudette doesn't yell at me to get up tomorrow in the morning."

In the barrack's dining room, all of the recruits, except Shirou, were seated around a wooden table and awaited for their breakfast. Fortunately, Shirou had been so kind as to volunteer for cooking it, but that was about an hour ago and he still showed no signs of being done. Why he volunteered to do it was beyond them. He didn't look like the type that would be good at cooking. But, at this point, the recruits didn't care if a monkey was cooking their food.

Claudette drummed her fingers on the table impatiently. She had her head propped up with the other hand. "What the hell is he doing in there?"

"Cooking obviously." Pathfinder said from his seat. He spared a glace at his captain and arched an eyebrow when he noticed the glare on her face. "You know for a fourteen year old, you have one hell of a glare."

The guard captain snorted, "So I've been told." She said, rolling her eyes.

At that moment an apron wearing Shirou came into the room with both a large pot and a triumphant look on his face. He placed it in the center of the table and few moments later several maids carrying dishes placed their respective plates onto the table. When they placed the plates down they walked over to the wall and stood in a line, awaiting for further orders.

"Thank you ladies." Shirou said with a smile. "You're a big help."

The maids bowed respectively and said in unison. "Happy to help master Shirou."

Shirou nodded, "Oh, and I'm still on to help you cook when Count Vance's guest arrive correct?"

The maids nodded and bowed once more before leaving the room. When they were gone Shirou sighed and turned to see that everyone was already eating. The kitchen didn't really have that much ingredients that just made room for culinary experimentation. The pot was filled with steamed rice and the plates held omelettes stuffed with vegetables, lightly seasoned grilled tuna, and a fresh fruit salad. There was enough to feed about twelve people, there were ten people in total and there weren't going to be leftovers.

"This is delicious!" One recruit cheered with a pump of her fist.

"Yeah, it really is!"

Shirou laughed and scratched the back of his head. He was glad that they were enjoying his food so much. One of his favorite things to do was cooking, it was the fact that one was taking ingredients and mixing them together to make something so delicious. It was like science without the fancy technical terms or the threat of releasing something terrible upon the world. Regardless, it was always a joy to watch people enjoy his creations. However, he noticed one thing, Claudette wasn't eating and instead was opting to give the food stacked plates in front of her a good long stare.

"Aren't you going to eat?" Shirou asked.

Claudette glanced at him before looking back at the food on the plates. She hadn't tasted food like this before, she had seen servants carrying dishes like these into Count Vance's office when he had guests. Needless to say, she was never allowed in there unless she was called for. She spared another glance at Shirou, who was now seated and enjoying his own food, before taking a piece of the grilled tuna. After a moment of studying it she took a bite.

Her eyes widened and her cheeks flushed red. It was one of the most delicious things she had ever tasted. Maybe it was because of how the fish was prepared, or the way the spices blended into the taste, or maybe it was simplicity of the dish. Whatever the reason was, Claudette's taste buds were in heaven.

"It's so good." She mewled lowly.

"Captain, I know how you feel."

Claudette turned and was pleasantly surprised to see Pathfinder, who apparently was going through same emotions she was if the blush was anything to go by. It was sort of weird seeing a grown man blush while maintaining a completely placid and even look. Of course, that placid and even look was one that he always had and to expect anything different from him would be a waste of time.

Pathfinder placed a hand on her shoulder and gently squeezed. "We're the same captain. We're...the same."

"No, no we're not." Claudette replied trying to pry the hand off of her shoulder.

Shirou chuckled at their shenanigans earning a glare from a flustered Claudette in the process. He just laughed harder and Claudette flushed in an even darker shade of red. Her embarrassment was soon replaced with anger and she did what she normally did when Shirou teased her: she tried to hit him. But, before she could, Pathfinder grabbed her wrist gently yet firmly.

"What?" Claudette hissed with a glare.

"If you hit him then he probably won't cook for us again." Pathfinder said with an out-of-character slightly concerned tone. "If you do that I'll never forgive you!"

Claudette's face drained of color and she slumped back down into her chair. Shirou had to hold back the explosive laughter that was welling up inside of him. This was one of the funniest things he had ever seen. The mighty and feared knight commander Claudette, flustered and shirking into a chair and probably whimpering mentally at the mere thought of not being able to eat her older brother's food.

Shirou took the last bite of food and sighed before observing his comrades starting on their second plates. "The people of this world really like my cooking. It must be the style I use."

The doors of the barracks suddenly opened to reveal the two youngest of the Vance children: Leina and Elina. Their mother was Maria and they took a lot after her. They had the lush blonde hair, the same blue eyes, and even her creamy skin color. It was hard to believe that Count Vance was their father since they looked so much like their mother. Leina was wearing a blue dress that her hand maiden had sown for her and Elina was wearing a white dress.

"You're back!" Elina shouted, going in for her signature tackle-hug, once again nearly knocking Shirou to the ground. When she failed Elina puffed out her cheeks. "You're suppose to fall down!"

Shirou smirked. "Oh really?"

"Yes!" Elina shouted with stars in her eyes. "Isn't that right Leina?"

Leina? Oh right, she did come in with Elina didn't she? Leina was just so quiet that it was easy to forget about her. It may have not been the fact that she was quiet, it was more likely that she just simply lacked presence so it was easy to overlook her. Shirou looked at Leina who just sighed and shook her head slowly.

"If you knocked him down he would have hit his head on the table." Leina said, not making eye contact with Shirou or Elina. "That would have been bad."

Shirou nodded while Elina just huffed in disapproval. "So what are you two doing here?"

"We came here to congratulate you on your first accomplished mission." Leina said.

Shirou blinked. He didn't even know that Leina knew the word 'accomplished' let alone know what it meant, he was somewhat impressed. Leina's tutor was much more advanced than the one he had when he was still being tutored. His modern education left this world's education in the dust and let him graduate at age ten with high honors: a thumbs up and good job.

"Mission? Do you consider patrol a mission?" Shirou asked, not really sure.

"Yep!" Elina admitted shamelessly. "We've never been out of the estate!"

Shirou sighed but nodded. It was true that Leina and Elina were the least traveled of the four Vance children. This was because they were the only legal children of the four so of course they would be protected more than the others. It was sad and could be considered even cruel if anything ever happened to the illegitimate children but this kind of thing wasn't uncommon in this period of time.

"We can't stay long." Leina said, speaking up. "Mama will be worried if we don't get back soon."

"Well, bye then. I'll see you two at the estate." Shirou said

The blonde duo nodded as two of the recruits got up to escort them back to the main building. Shirou rolled his eyes they were just kissing up to the boss. They were probably gonna say something like 'I found these two wondering around and brought it upon myself to take them back to their father' or something similar. It would have been fine to do that normally without having to get in good with the boss.

"Praise the sun" Pathfinder shouted suddenly. "The kiss-ups have revealed themselves."

Shirou nodded. "Yep."

A single candle illuminated the dark shed and shined light on a few scattered tomes, scrolls, and a pile of empty ink wells laying in the corner. This was Shirou's workshop and if there was a table, a bookcase, or even a box in here it would be a lot more organized. Shirou didn't really have much to complain about other than that. The servants and everyone else left him to his own devices and as long as he wasn't burning the house down no one was really concerned with what he did.

Shirou sat next to the candle with a quill in hand and a scroll rolled out in front of him, writing in Japanese. The language was like code to the people of this country and writing in it ensured that no one would be able to read Shirou's notes. These notes just an assessment of the the inconclusive search of magical presence.

Shirou sighed and put the quill down. He had been combing over the thought of leaving Vance Estate to take a journey around the continent. He was curious as to how similar this world was to his previous one.

"Besides, I can find the threats that are out there and find ways to neutralize them if the time comes." Shirou's time hear had been pretty peaceful but that didn't mean where weren't threats. "I'd rather risk walking into something dangerous than waiting for something dangerous to find me unprepared."

He tapped his chin. "I guess I'll leave two years from now. That will give me enough time to save up some funds and to see if I can trace any of the Noble Phantasms by that time. Leina and Elina should be out of the clingy phase by then as well….. or at least I hope so."

Shirou yawned. "It's settled then. Two years from now, I'm going to see this world for myself."

Wow, has it been a month already? I completely lost track of time and I have no idea what to say than C'est la vie. Trust me when I say, this chapter caused me much suffering, much pain, and many headaches. I swear, if it wasn't for my beta reader this probably would have taken a hell of a lot longer.

Well, I'm out. A month and I've got nothing to say, go figure.

Questions, comments, concerns, story ideas?