Alright I'm back with the next chapter of the poll winner Shirou Reborn and it was by a lot. with the final results this story in first place with 39 votes, Naruto, Master of the Zanpakuto in second with 12 votes, and Ichigo Kurosaki-Sparda in last place with 9 votes so with that done with this story will be finished first with Naruto, Master of the Zanpakuto finished next, and Ichigo Kurosaki-Sparda finished last.
Okay, now for disclaimer:
I do not own Fate/stay night or any other work appearing in this work of fiction with it all belonging to its respective owners and I am in no way, shape, or form attempting to or making a profit or claim for this work of fiction.
Now, on with the story now!
Ten days later…
Blood, blood was everywhere and he could hardly move his body, blades piercing it and adding his blood to the ground. Even then he had to move, he had to…
One Shirou Emiya woke from a restless sleep with a start, a dagger appearing in one hand and even at the cold temperature of the room he was sweating.
'What the hell did I just see, was it me or Archer that time?' Shirou found his body shaking, it was even a struggle to keep his grip on the dagger and seconds later it shattered in a dim flash of light.' Why is this still happening?'
"Shirou, what's wrong?" A pair of arms wrapped around his waist and he sighed.
"It's the nightmares, I think they're actually getting worse now."
The arms tightened around his waist at that.
"That's not good."
"You're telling me."
Shirou didn't speak again for several minutes.
"Rin, what did Archer tell you before we fought?"
"Not much, he just said he had to do it and then he left."
"What about Saber, where was she when he broke in?"
"She was still resting after helping him free you from Sakura's control and then all the fights she got into after that, she couldn't have done anything even if she was awake. From the power he had then it felt like he could have killed Berserker with a look."
"It's a miracle I even stood a chance against him then."
"After what you did I'm surprised the city was still standing."
Shirou chuckled even as Rin's arms tightened further, going from holding him to trying to crush him.
"I did deploy Unlimited Blade Works a few minutes into the fight, we kept the fight in there for the most part."
"Except for when you decided to copy Excalibur, somehow doing so despite all facts pointing to it being impossible by the way, and then turn it into a bomb while unleashing its full power at the same time."
"To be fair Gilgamesh used some world destroying attack against Sakura, I thought it was alright and it was sort of just a bomb to begin with, it was really terrible too and would have been less than trash compared to the real one."
"Gilgamesh had very fine control over his attack, you would have destroyed most of the city if Saber hadn't handed over Avalon to Gilgamesh and he shielded the city with it and, most importantly, Excalibur isn't normally a bomb when Saber uses it, you're lucky it even worked in the end."
"See, it all worked out in the end."
"Luckily for you I was feeling merciful at the time and decided to help you in replenishing your energy."
"Then why did we keep going a few more times after that?"
"I felt you needed more power after helping in destroying the Grail and don't question my generosity again!"
"Sure thing, right after you tell me when you decided my health was such a concern for you, before or after the past few days?"
"During, since you could copy Excalibur and turn it into a Broken Phantasm I figured you were too important to lose because you exceeded your limits."
"Are you sure you didn't want to just do it again?"
"No, I felt you were more valuable to me alive then as I corpse for study."
Shirou merely chuckled as he stood up, pulling Rin up with him and flipping her around to hold her.
"And you're sure you did it just for that?"
"Yes!"
As fun playing with a flustered and blushing Rin was Shirou knew he needed to start breakfast soon or he wouldn't finish in time but when he reached the door he couldn't help himself.
"I guess I'll take your word for it then but are you up for another round later? I think I used more energy than I thought when we destroyed the Grail."
"I helped you fill it up last night."
"I said I used more energy than I thought and you seemed eager to help last night. We tried a lot of different positions."
"Out! Now!"
Shirou chuckled as he closed the door behind him and walked down the halls to get started on breakfast, his armor and red cloak appearing in a flash of red light as he walked.
'It's a good thing I can still push her buttons.' Shirou grinned as he walked into the kitchen and began a task he truly enjoyed, cooking.
It also helped that cooking helped distract him from the burning heat rising throughout his body the moment he stepped out of the room.
'Dammit, how did Sakura deal with these things and how the hell did that bastard come up with something like this in the first place?' Shirou asked himself before the heat was suddenly gone and the Sword Magus sighed in relief as Rin stepped into the kitchen.' This is going to take some time getting used to or at least until someone figures out how to remove them.'
He moved a few trays over to the small table in the kitchen and grinned at the drool coming from Rin's mouth.
"I didn't think my cooking was that good Rin, nice to know I can make you drool so much with just the smell." Shirou told the Tohsaka Magus with a small grin while Rin wiped away the drool, embarrassed for a moment before digging into the food with a quick thanks to Shirou.
The Sword Magus went back to cooking and the long table in the next room was covered in trays not a moment too soon as the door was thrown open seconds after he had placed the last tray down.
"Where is the meal Faker?"
"Gilgamesh, it would help if you didn't make so much noise, Shirou didn't have to make a meal."
The King of Heroes was silent as he walked in with Saber, after the chaos of the Fifth Holy Grail War both had watched over Shirou and Rin as they helped each other recover their energy last night.
"King Gilgamesh." Shirou gave a bow to the King of Heroes before doing the same with the King of Knights." King Arthuria."
"You've gotten better Faker." Gilgamesh told him after a moment as he sat down at the table.
"Thank you King." Shirou was calling Gilgamesh by his title because he didn't feel like having to match Unlimited Blade Works against the Gates of Babylon this early in the morning and for a pointless reason as not addressing Gilgamesh as he preferred so settled on calling him King.
"Excuse him Shirou, he was annoyed that nothing happened last night." Arthuria told him as she sat down." We have not found the spirit that escaped from the Grail but hopefully you have a plan."
"Not at all." Shirou answered with a grin to Arthuria's annoyed look as he walked back into the kitchen to grab Rin.
The Magus was gone from the kitchen when he walked in and after a thought he walked down a hall and into an already open door into a guest room, Sakura Matou sleeping inside it and still not awake from a few days ago. Shirou decided to stand in the doorway for a moment, letting Rin have a moment to look over the sister, in her eyes, she had failed and had nearly caused her death if events had gone differently.
"Could we have changed it?"
"That's a stupid question."
Shirou stepped in and grabbed Rin's fist as she swung them and pulled them down while pulling the Tohsaka Magus forward and her head nearly hit his armor if she hadn't stopped herself.
"Let me finish. Okay?" Shirou waited for Rin to nod before he continued." If we get stuck thinking about the past and our regrets from it then we'll be trapped there and not focused on the present or the future. I know that in the future Sakura will wake up and you two will be able to start a relationship, even if I have to get involved to stop either of you two from doing something stupid."
"What's to stop her from hating me and the entire Tohsaka family, she was left with those…"
"Don't get angry at two corpses."
"Zouken could still be alive, he didn't even have a real human body when he made his move. We don't know if we got all of the worms and we never found Shinji either."
Shirou chuckled at that.
"I'm pretty sure the explosion destroyed any of them left, you were terrifyingly mad when you attacked that place, it's a miracle the block was even standing afterwards. Whenever you're in a calm rage remind me to stay behind you. And as for Shinji, he'll be a corpse the next time I see him anyways and that's if he's even alive. The shock of losing that power after getting so much of it should have likely killed him, either instantly or he suffered."
"Mongrels, get out here, Arthuria will not allow me to eat until you two arrive!" Gilgamesh's shout brought both out and Shirou collapsed to the floor in laughter at the scene in front of him.
Arthuria had decided to wait for Rin and Shirou to arrive before beginning to eat and when the King of Heroes didn't agree she had pinned him to the floor and kept him there despite his struggles.
"Mongrel!" Gilgamesh snapped at Shirou as he was tempted to use the Gates of Babylon against the Sword Magus but with Saber suddenly pressing a knee onto his back he decided against it, at least for now." Mongrel, when I am free from this woman I will…" he was cut off with Saber covering his mouth with one hand.
Shirou slowly picked himself off the floor, still chuckling despite the half completed threat and enraged look on Gilgamesh's face.
After the meal Gilgamesh turned to Shirou and his red eyes unnerved the white haired teen.
"Faker, what is your plan?"
"What?"
"You've just helped in destroying the Holy Grail in what was the most chaotic Holy Grail War in recorded history. You and Tohsaka are two of the four surviving Masters and only three of you will come out unharmed once the Magus Association hears of this, you are not one of them."
"I'm not afraid of them."
Gilgamesh drank from a cup of wine appearing in his hands with a smirk at Shirou's words and after a few moments he spoke again.
"You would do well to treat those old fools with respect as they have power that they can crush you with."
"How do you know this Gilgamesh?"
The King of Heroes dismissed Rin's question with a wave of his hand.
"I know many things for what is, shall, and ever will be has already been recorded in the history books of my treasury."
"So you knew all of this was going to happen even before it happened?" Rin and Shirou demanded of him in unison and the King of Uruk chuckled at the faces of the two teens quickly turning red in embarrassment.
"Many things could have happened, some parts were blank but the expected outcome arrived. I doubted it little as my treasury has never been wrong, when I bothered to look through the books at least."
"Why don't you?" Saber's unexpected questions had Gilgamesh smirk as he leaned back in his chair." You could have ended all of this before it even began."
"If I had done that then life would be incredibly dull, I find no reason to waste it on reading on events that will happen and not find any excitement when it does." Gilgamesh clearly didn't care about knowing the future from the way he spoke in such a dismissive tone.
"And if you are to one day die?" Saber pressed the King of Heroes who merely shrugged.
"Even gods may one day fall."
That seemed to be the end of the conversation and Shirou decided to begin cleaning up the food and from a glance at the two other occupants at the table Saber decided to join him.
"Shirou, where is Illyasveil?" Saber didn't even bother pretending to help Shirou with the dishes and he merely pointed down the hall.
"She told me last night she wanted to look through the old man's journals and to bring her a plate later." Shirou handed Saber a tray at that and began washing the dishes." You could go and do it if you want, I'm a bit busy here."
Saber gave a brief nod and left to go see the girl who had little more than a year at best to live if nothing was done soon enough.
"So Tohsaka, enjoying the Faker's company?" Gilgamesh held up a napkin to stop the shower of water from Rin, he had asked the question when she was taking a drink for a reason." He's that good in bed?"
Gilgamesh chuckled as Rin was falling over herself trying to say something while blushing madly just from a few words.
"What are you talking about?" Rin finally managed to get the words out and Gilgamesh simply took another drink of his wine.
"I mean is it enjoyable for you? You've done it ever night since he's been retrieved so it must be at least decent for someone like you to continue it."
"I did it to help him, we needed him at full power to survive."
"No, you've been wanting to jump him ever since you saw him that night. I can even look it up if you want." Gilgamesh held up his hand and a book dropped into it." It can even be a picture book and to comment on it you seem to have odd taste when it comes to the bedroom so please make sure to lock your doors, that type of things can traumatize children if you're not careful."
Rin was finding it impossible to answer and Gilgamesh broke down into laughter at the sight of it, the books sent back to his treasury seconds later.
"You are too easy girl."
Saber slowly opened the door to Kiritsuga's study and found the girl she was looking for sitting at the desk.
"Ilya."
The seemingly young girl looked up from the journal she was reading and Saber handed her the cup of coffee Shirou had put on the tray.
"I don't think I need to ask why you're here, you're sad knowing I'm going to die soon." Ilya still didn't waste time as after greetings she had jumped straight to the point." I know it's sad but don't worry about it, my dad had a plan for this, I just need to find it."
"That's why I'm here." Saber pulled up a chair and pulled a journal from a pile.
"Thank you I suppose."
"You may thank me when we succeed."
Shirou finished the dishes and cursed Zouken Matou and his mind to the deepest pits of wherever he ended up at the burning heat spreading through his body the moment he entered the kitchen and away from Rin, some plot of Zouken's if it was only Rin that could help him with it.
'I'm going to kill that bastard, then I'm going to revive him, rip him in half, put him together, tear him to shred, weld him back together, and then burn him to ashes just to start off.' Shirou was mentally going through what weapon in Unlimited Blade Works would help him do all of that as he wasn't in that best of a mood, really not at all if he decided to brutally kill Zouken Matou.
When the growing heat in his body was suddenly gone it helped alert him to Rin's presence in the kitchen and he turned around to spot her walking up to him.
"What do you ne…"
The Sword Magus was cut off when Rin grabbed him by the parts of his cloak at his shoulders and forcing her lips on his. The fact she was even doing this was a shocker to Shirou, Rin had explained their nightly activities were only to build up their energy for the next day so for her to kiss him like this was a big enough shock to freeze him in place.
Clapping from nearby had Rin pull away from him and glare at a smirking Gilgamesh who leaned in the doorframe and took a sip of wine.
"And I thought you wouldn't follow through, it was highly amusing talking you into doing that but we have more pressing matters to discuss now." Gilgamesh took a long drink of wine from the golden goblet in his hands and his tone seemed uncaring despite what everyone in the house knew needed to be discussed.
"I guess you're right, any ideas my King?" Shirou stepped back from Rin and Gilgamesh waved towards the small table inside the kitchen and the two Magus took a seat at it, Shirou bringing two cups of coffee over with him." I have no doubt that the Mage's Association will send someone here and I and the boy are bound to be placed under a Sealing Designation. I don't care for them as anyone sent after me will be killed for even such a thought of imprisoning a King but the Faker will face problems."
"I'm a walking armory, I think I can handle anyone they throw at me." Shirou's words earned him a bop over the head almost before the words left his mouth.
While the Sword Magus was rolling on the ground clutching at his head Rin turned to the King of Heroes.
"I thought up a plan for this last night, there's no need to concern yourself with it." Rin ignored Shirou as he rolled back and forth on the ground in pain and Gilgamesh nodded." Shirou and I will leave Fuyuki for the moment and take care of some of the problems this Grail War caused."
"With that fool out of the way, what of Arthuria and Ilya? Saber shouldn't exist at this point but she does and Ilya is at risk for the same fate as the boy, perhaps worse." Gilgamesh kicked Shirou away from his chair and Rin nodded as she thought for a moment.
"Arthuria may still be able to hold her form because the three of us, myself, Shirou, and Illyasveil, formed a special contract with her in order to ensure she could fight at her full potential and her contact with the Corrupted Grail, she was also covered in the blood of the Grail's creations yesterday so it may have done the same thing it did with you when you were covered in it." Rin was obviously guessing and Gilgamesh nodded.
"If that's the case then I have a plan, you may take the Faker with you and have him act as your apprentice or servant and I will take Arthuria and Ilya with me on my travels and if we encounter the Mage's Association they die." Gilgamesh seemed to have easily solved the problem but Rin smirked.
"The King of Heroes wants a family then?"
She was already ducking when Gilgamesh fired a dozen of weapons at her moments later and Gilgamesh was about to throw the table aside and launch another barrage when Shirou shot to his feet and was on the table with Kanshou and Bakuya in his hands and both leveled at his throat.
"Okay, let's all calm down and not start destroying my house again." Shirou went pale at Gilgamesh's grin seconds later.
"I will remember that." The King of Heroes sat down moments later and Shirou flipped off the table and landed in his seat, keeping an eye on the King of Heroes for any signs of…well anything really.
"So, from what I heard on the floor we've reached some type of decision, right?" Shirou looked to Rin who sighed.
"Why were you down there in the first place?" The Tohsaka Magus didn't allow her question to be answered as she gestured to Gilgamesh with a wave of her hand." Gilgamesh has agreed to travel with Arthuria and Illyasveil while we depart for the Mage's Association and hopefully keep the Grail Wars from ever happening again after the last two fiascos they turned into. If things get bad I'll just have you kill everyone there."
"Why me?" Shirou knew he could and would do so if asked but felt the need to ask.
"I'll tell you after it happens." Rin of course didn't answer and the Magus sighed but he was sad to say he was used to it after a few days, Rin liked to keep information to herself but would make the right call when it came down to it, well most of the times she would but he knew better than to trust her to make the right choice for everyone because it was usually either for herself or the Tohsaka family as a whole.
"I'll hold you to that." Shirou turned to the King of Heroes to find him quietly chuckling.
"You two are so stupidly prefect for each other, it's too funny to watch sometimes." Gilgamesh stood from the table and left the kitchen, still chuckling." I will inform Ilya and Arthuria of the decision, they should agree and if not it's your problem."
Once Rin was sure he was gone she turned to Shirou who calmly took a sip of his coffee before speaking.
"I hope you have a plan you're going to tell me about, I don't want to walk into a situation unprepared or find myself the victim of a Sealing Designation, I'll be sure to kill a few people before I'm taken down just to let you know." Rin knew a threat when it was issued but Shirou's was more like a promise of death is she ever betrayed him again.
Being turned into her Servant, no matter how short the time was, lead to a host of other problems that he wouldn't forget about for a long time and with it all because of her need for control over people made it a sore subject for him and it would be one for a long time. It didn't help that his status as a pseudo-Servant ended up with Sakura having full control of him later on when she was psychotic, something that wasn't enjoyable to say the least.
"I can prom…" Rin began only to be interrupted by Shirou.
"Promises mean nothing to me when they come from you Tohsaka, you turning me into your Servant was more than enough to prove that so I suggest your next words are chosen carefully or else I'll save myself the trouble and kill you now." Shirou's personality shift when they were alone like this was still a shocker to Rin but she had a hypothesize on why, it just couldn't be proven if the Sword Magus wouldn't answer her questions.
"If you want the truth then the fact is I need you as protection against the Association and it also helps that no one would bother to take you seriously with no real prestige to your name along with your lack of a Magic Crest."
"So you admit most Magus are idiots for that, right?" Shirou asked as he set down his cup and stood up, brushing something off of his cloak at his shoulder." I don't like killing but considering who they are I'll make an exception, just tell me where to swing and they'll be dead."
He didn't let her speak again as he walked out of the kitchen with Rin not as annoyed as she normally would be since during Sakura's brief stay as his Master she had left dozens of scars that were still healing, she had seen them for herself and noticed they seemed to be responsible for Shirou's spasms of pain during the day.
AN: Okay, this probably wasn't the best chapter I've ever made so sorry for anything in advance and with the Grail War over with it'll be more of an AU from here then at any other time and I'm open to suggestions for another arc because if not I'll try to wrap it up now.
Read and review.
Peace.