Hello! This is my first time ever posting something on this website, so please forgive me if there are any weird formatting issues. I'll try to get them fixed as soon as I can.

This is a story that I am crossposting from QQ, so if you are impatient and want to catch up you can find the story there. As of this post, I have up to chapter 14 written on that site. I'll be trying to post two chapters a week until we've caught up.

Fair warning, this is a (reasonably light) BDSM/harem story. If neither of those two things are your kink, you probably won't enjoy this very much. I do try to take the Holy Grail War parts of the story at least somewhat seriously, but if you're not here for some H scenes this might not be for you.

In the original postings of this over on QQ I was able to link pictures of character images, which I have tried to preserve here. I'm new to this formatting however, so I apologize if those links vanish.


Chapter One

The Holy Grail War.

A conflict in which seven mages summon seven heroic spirits into their bodies, becoming Demi-Servants and wielding immense power.

Through bonding to a Master, these servants can increase their power to even greater heights.

However, mages are not known for trusting others. Only an extreme and unusual circumstance could lead to forming such a bond.

And so most Servants enter into this deadly struggle without a Master.

The object they are fighting over is of course the one and only Holy Grail. A holy artifact said to be able to grant any wish.

X X X

There was a dream that Shirou had been having with some regularity for five years now. In that dream, the world was ending within a never-ending storm. Most of the streets were long since flooded with water, and it had been an eternity since anyone had seen the sun. No matter how far Shirou looked, he never found any other sign of human life.

Precisely because of that, he thought it was preferable to his other dreams.

As he always did when he had this dream, he climbed upwards towards the centre of town. There was a strange structure there, a sort of tower that had no equivalent in real life. With his child's body it was difficult, but he perservered.

When he was there he met a pretty girl his own age. She had blond ringlet curls, and a laugh like a noblewoman. She was arrogant, and argumentative, but he thought they got along pretty well. In the dream they fought a monster together, to save the world.

It was only a dream of course, and one he had viewed so many times that it had lost all sense of tension. But he still always worried whenever the young girl was hurt.

As the dream came to a close, there was something she always said to him.

"Tch. This is all the natural result of a poor Master getting carried away. Shero, promise me that if you ever find yourself becoming a Master with a Servant of your own, you need to become the ideal Master. Kind, but firm. Quick to punish, but quicker to reward. A proper Master is selfish enough to demand that his Servants fulfill his needs, but selfless enough to ensure their needs are met in return."

In the dream, he had nodded.

It was silly, because he knew none of it had truly happened. Not back then during the first time he had experienced the dream, and not now that he was replaying it within his mind years later. A dream was nothing but a dream.

Still, Shirou Emiya had been changed ever since that day. Once his only dream had been to become a Hero of Justice. Ever since that day, there had been two ideals within himself. The ideals of his father. And the ideals of that young girl, pushing him to become the perfect Master.

...Slowly, he opened his eyes. It was early in the morning, as it always was. And he was in the shed, as he always was.

He puled himself together and got up to go make breakfast. If it had been just the dream, he would have had no reason to be worried. It was something he had seen many times. But today he couldn't help but wonder if he would see someone else.

It had been three days now, since Shirou had last seen Sakura.

X X X

"..."

"Well, it's only been three days. I talked to her teacher, and it seems that her family called her in sick. There's no reason to be worried." Fuji-Nee said. She was finished with her breakfast, and had begun getting ready to head to school.

Normally, there would have been another presence at the table with them. Instead of it just being the two of them, it would be typical for his junior, Sakura Matou, to join them in the mornings and the afternoons. However this was the third day she had not arrived for.

"...Yeah. I'm sure you're right." Shirou said. If it was her family's decision, he certainly couldn't complain. And it wasn't like he wanted Sakura to stress herself out cooking for them while she was feeling ill. However... something felt off to him.

If only he had any more talent as a mage... maybe he would have been able to cast some kind of divination spell. But, even creating a mana circuit every night was still incredibly difficult for him, there was no way that he could pull off such intense magic.

"Didn't you try asking her brother?" Fuji-Nee asked. She still had some toast in her mouth, even though she was far too old to be that kind of character.

An annoying memory passed through Shirou's mind. "All he was willing to say was 'Don't worry about it. You'll find out the whole story soon, from Sakura herself'." The look on Shinji's face had been rather smug.

"As I thought, it's a private family matter." Fuji-Nee said. Her eyes lit up. "Oh? Oh? Don't tell me Shirou... are you taking an interest in Sakura? Is spending even a few days apart from her a trial for you?"

"H-hey!" A blush rose up to his face. It wasn't like that! Honestly, couldn't he be worried about his friend?

"Maybe you should visit her!" Fuji-Nee said. "In this sort of situation, wouldn't it be fun to pay her a late-night visit with the excuse of bringing her homework?"

"One of her classmates will be doing that!" Shirou called back. Not that he had ever had such an experience.

He sighed, as Fuji-Nee gathered her things and left him alone. He still had a bit of time before he had to leave, so he might as well get everything cleaned up from breakfast. There were more leftovers than usual, so he could even save some for lunch tomorrow.

He moved slowly as he worked, thinking about Sakura.

He knew that he should have been staying out of it. No matter how much he cared for her, her family had the right to keep her home if she was ill. But...

The memories of that girl flashed through his mind. A proper Master is selfish enough to demand that his Servants fulfill his needs, but selfless enough to ensure their needs are met in return.

He wanted to check in on her. He wanted to see her. He wanted to tell her that he would look out for her, and he wanted to insist that it was his right to know how she was doing.

Sighing, he shook his head. That was just him being silly. He was not Sakura's Master. No, it would be strange for someone in the modern world to have a Master in the first place. Still, sometimes he couldn't help but find himself thinking...

He pushed those thoughts aside.

In the corner of the kitchen, the television that Fuji-Nee had left on continued to play. It was another slow news day in Fuyuki. A few nights ago there had been some signs of fighting downtown, but reportedly nobody had gotten hurt. The media were continuing to warn people about the potential gas leaks that experts were worried the city would be experiencing soon, but so far none had materialized. That was good. It would be troubling for him, if serious problems were to occur while he was still too weak to do anything about them.

It was a rather normal morning. However... no matter what, he couldn't shake the feeling that something strange was happening.

X X X

Rin Tohsaka had come to an important conclusion... the Archer class wasn't made up of archers.

"Geez, why do I have nothing but swords!" She shouted. If she had not lived alone, she likely would have woken up everyone else in the house. Even deep within the basement, her frustrating shouting was no doubt audible for a long ways off.

Her mind spun with a dizzying amount of possibilities. Hrunting, Caladbolg, Rule Breaker, the list of Noble Phantasms that she could spawn was worryingly vast. Whatever heroic spirit she had fused with must have been some kind of swiss-army knife, because she had become a true Jack of All Trades. It would be safe to say that she had a weapon for every situation, if she could survive long enough to figure out which one worked best. Sadly, that diversity brought with it a lack of strength in any one particular field. She could summon any of a thousand Noble Phantasms, but any that she brought into the world would always be a mere copy, weaker than the original.

And she couldn't shoot arrows at all!

At least, she thought she couldn't.

Rin sighed, aware of how silly she must have looked and glad that nobody was there to be looking down on her. "...As I thought, without a Master there's no way that I can figure this all out."

In order to compete in the Holy Grail War, Rin Tohsaka had gone through a ritual to turn herself into a Demi-Servant. The strength of a Heroic Spirit now rested within her body, giving her access to it's Noble Phantasm, skills, and attributes.

Of course, it was only natural for a Servant to have a Master. There was such a gap between the skills of a Heroic Spirit and a human that even with one in their body, there was no way a Demi-Servant could equal that Servant on their own. Only through the support of a Master could they truly grasp the abilities of the Servant within them.

To use a metaphor, right now Rin was trying to figure out how to navigate through the streets of a foreign country with only some phrases she had picked up from guidebooks. Getting a Master would be the same thing as hiring an interpreter to speak to the locals for her. Technically she could reach her destination with either method. But only a fool wouldn't see that the second option would get her there quicker while eliminating the chance of getting lost.

"...But that's not an option, so there's no point in worrying about it." She said to herself.

It was a waste, but there was no helping it. Her father had told her, that no one of the Tohsaka family should ever degrade themselves by accepting a Master to rule them. It was her duty to compete and win all on her own.

There was no helping it. She got her things together and headed out to school.

X X X

Shirou's feeling of unease was not improved when he walked through the school gates and felt a strange sensation. He could only feel it when he focused on it, but he was sure there was something there. If he had not already been worried about Sakura, perhaps he would have ignored it. But there was no way that he could do so now.

Again, he heard that girl's words. A proper Master is selfish enough to demand that his Servants fulfill his needs.

...Was it really so wrong to want to look in on her?

Unfortunately, just because he wanted to do something about it did not mean that there was anything he could actually do. His training and skills in magecraft were not advanced enough to solve this kind of problem. The only thing he could do...

Was try again to gather some more information.

"Shinji." He called out.

His one-time friend paused in the hallway, twitching as he heard the sound of his own name. For once Shinji wasn't surrounded by any of the young women that hung around him. He was completely alone, and seemed more than content with that. In fact, he even smiled when he saw Shirou. Smugly.

"How is Sakura's condition?" Shirou asked.

There was absolutely something arrogant and knowing about Shinji's smile, like he knew a joke that he wasn't letting Shirou in on. "Tsk, tsk. You know, it's bothersome when someone tries to but into family affairs."

Shirou's back tensed. "Even so... I don't think asking about her is wrong."

Shinji put a hand on his forehead, in that annoying way of his. "Well... she's almost ready. How about this? Why don't I let you see her, in a couple of days?"

"Really?" Shirou asked. Hearing that it was going to be a couple of days before she was feeling better got him even more worried. Just how bad was her illness? "Is she in the hospital, or something?"

"Not at all. Just wait for me to call you. In a couple of days, okay? Then she should be fine to see visitors." Despite his perfectly innocent words, Shinji's body language suggested that he was up to something. Shirou would have pressed... but playing along was likely the only way he could get to see Sakura. "In return, why don't you clean up the archery dojo for me? As a former club member, it's the least you could do in exchange for my generosity."

"Yeah. Okay." Shirou said. Shinji had not waited for him to respond, he simply hurried on as if Shirou's agreement was a given.

It seemed like an innocent arrangement.

X X X

Rin screamed as she was beaten backwards. All the power of a heroic spirit at her fingertips, and she could do nothing at all.

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At the last possible second, she summoned another short curved sword into her hand. It blocked the attack, but it was destroyed in the process. All that mana sacrificed to buy her a single second.

"I'm sorry." Her opponent said. "I have to keep going until I see everything that you can do."

Rin screamed even louder. "DON'T MOCK ME!"

Weapons of tremendous power appeared in her hands again and again, but no matter how many times she swung them they never lasted more than a blow or two. And she never so much as dented her opponent's composure. So far, her enemy had not even needed to summon her own noble phantasm. Yes, every single one of Rin's weapons had been destroyed with nothing but her enemy's fists.

Unbelievable. It was unbelievable how soon she was going to lose!

Rin jumped backwards, her enhanced strength carrying her the distance of the entire school courtyard in one jump. It meant giving up ground, but she needed a chance to analyze her opponent!

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Everything about her opponent registered her as someone accustomed to combat. Her stance, her casual way of delivering super-human blows, and her fearsome aura. It was difficult to try and detect any sign of a weakness. Her best bet would be to maintain distance and take advantage of her superior reach... but her opponent had not even drawn her Noble Phantasm yet. It was foolish to make a strategy without knowing something so crucial.

And another thing... it pissed her off how much skin her opponent's outfit covered! Why was she the only one who had to fight in a bikini! If she ever met the heroic spirit that had given her her powers she was going to thrash him within an inch of his life.

If only she was a proper archer, able to fire projectiles from a distance. With only close range combat to rely upon, she had no idea how she could overtake someone so much more advanced than her.

Just when she thought it was all over, her opponent did not follow her. She summoned another pair of matching blades and stared the older woman down. "Well? What are you waiting for?"

"...I think that my job is completed, for the time. My Master ordered me only to work out what the other Servants could do. And to eliminate any unrelated witnesses. I have no real reason to fight you." The woman said. She didn't even look proud, despite how easily she had defeated Rin. So this was the power of a Servant with a Master. "Thus-"

A twig snapped in half. It was the kind of sound no normal human would have ever noticed in the midst of the chaos. But for the two Servants it was as easy to hear as an oncoming truck.

Rin turned, slowly. The offending party was already running away. Why would he need to have done that, if he hadn't seen anything?

The boxer noticed before Rin. Before she could even react, her opponent was gone. Off to eliminate the sole witness. "Damn it, wait!" She screamed, pushing everything she had left into enhancing her legs in an attempt to chase after her.

She already knew that she would be too late. Of course.

She hurried through the school halls, listening for any sign of combat. But even as she did it, she knew it was a losing prospect. There was no human who could fight a Servant. If her opponent found the bystander then –

There was a loud crack.

Rin screamed and threw herself up the nearest flight of stairs. The student was already down. Her opponent knelt over him, talking in a soft voice. She looked disappointed, but also resigned. "I am sorry. Is there anything you would like me to tell your family? I do not have much time to get your affairs in order, but I will do what I can."

"WAIT!" Rin shouted.

Her opponent looked up. So did the student. He was on the ground, clutching at his right arm which appeared to have been broken in several places. Had he tried to fight back and been blown away?

As soon as Rin saw his face, she could not help but freeze.

No. Not him. It couldn't have been him.

If he died... Sakura...

The woman who was planning to kill him looked almost happy that Rin was so upset. "I am sorry. There is nothing could be done. As a mage, you know the rule right? Only Masters and Servants are allowed to witness the Holy Grail War. My Master was clear. Any unrelated witnesses..."

Must be eliminated.

The woman raised her hand.

"Wait!" Rin shouted again. She was too weak to even manage to stop her from killing him. And beating her in a fight was right out of the question. But... "In other words, if that man was involved in this struggle, there wouldn't be a problem with letting him live?"

There was a pause. A troubled look crossed the boxer woman's expression. "Are you saying...?"

Rin put a hand on her chest. Shirou was trying desperately to crawl away from the Servant holding him, but she had a death grip on his broken arm. Even without the disparity in their strength, that was a losing proposition.

Rin steeled herself, and said the only thing she thought had a chance of getting him out of this alive. For Sakura's sake.

"That man, is my Master!"

X X X

So, if the images didn't work I feel like I should let everybody know the Pseudo-Servant Rin was fighting is Bazett. You can find what she looks like by looking up Bazett's FGO second ascension. As for Rin, just look for Rin's EMIYA costume and you should get the general gist.

X X X ended up being the best I could do for scene breaks, I will muddle around with formatting in future chapters.