Chapter 56: Raconteur

I do not own Fate/Stay Night and stuffs.

o. o. o.

Several hours later, the current residents of the Emiya Household were still situated around the thaumaturgically enhanced table.

It had all been a blur to Shirou once Waver's engagement had been officially announced.

He remembered some yelling and outrage from the audience, but that didn't last very long. After that had been discussions that belonged more to a lawyer's office that dealt with high class marriages and their assets.

Luvia had been brought into the conversation for a bit, no doubt related to her previous association and contracts with the Archibald family. He didn't really pay much attention to that either.

All things considered, Shirou didn't really have much say or impact for the rest of the trial. He was asked a few random questions that he answered absently, but otherwise was completely ignored. Which was probably for the best since he couldn't really get his mind around the sudden turn of events, and Saber didn't seem to think it was necessary to bring him around either. Not that she could at any rate.

The trial had, for the most part, been concluded. The room was mostly empty now. Animusphere had said something about wanting to talk to Shirou later about a potential side project if he was interested later before leaving himself with his documents. Soon enough, he was looking at an empty room…

Save for Waver, Sirius, Lorelei, Adashino, and Rines, sitting at the table that matched his own.

Judging from the look on the Queen of the Clocktower's face, the conversation was going to be as private as it was going to get.

Knowing that permission was granted to speak his mind, Shirou closed his eyes, breathed in deeply, and spoke.

"… Can someone please explain what the fuck is going on?"

The vast majority of people there looked at him as if he had just admitted to being a Dead Apostle Ancestor, irony non-withstanding.

"Oh? So the dog remembered how to bark." Reines Archibald giggled, a small smirk on her face indicated that she was enjoying this more than the usual sadist. "I'm afraid you need to train him a bit better, Vice-Director. It looks like your pet can still be a bit slow at times."

"I don't want to hear that from a family that can't even stand or speak without a crutch." Shirou vicious riposte seemed to smack the audience's faces for a second blow from the other direction, and it effortlessly wiped the girl's smile from her face instantly.

"Ohohoho he's pissed." Lancer chuckled, getting a series of glares from the other Servants in the room. Not that he cared. He was just saying what was on everyone else's minds. They all knew by now that the kid didn't mouth off like that unless he's ready to kill someone. Literally.

"Emiya. It would be best if you kept your position in mind as well when you speak," Lorelei chastised in a bored tone, yet simultaneously and wordlessly doing the same to Reines in the same sentence by acknowledging his statement about the Archibald's situation as fact.

"Forgive me, but I am more concerned as to Lord El-Melloi II's at the moment." Shirou glared at his boss. "Particularly as to how he's more or less became a glorified hostage for the rest of his life."

Before, while Waver had been enslaved and indebted to the Archibald family, it at least had been under the stipulation that he paid off the family's debts, fixed their crest, Reines came of age, and he became her personal tutor. An unreasonable list of requirements for most magi, but Waver had already fixed the family's crest some years ago, and while it had been under the table, a good quarter of the debt alone had been paid off via a combination of siphoning Shirou's payment under Lorelei, and a hefty donation from Kiritsugu in his will. Payment for his cooperation. Another eighth had been payed off by Waver himself via his own endeavors at the Tower over the years.

By the time Reines was old and capable enough to be a Lord, Waver was expected to have actually accomplished all four requirements for his freedom, give or take a few years to settle any further outstanding financial debts. But now…

"Hmhm. You do have quite the imagination. Normally one would consider marrying to a family above one's station, and being in charge of it no less, to be quite a boon." Adashino laughed in a far too polite manner that fooled no one there.

"Is that so? How's the married life doing for you? Adashino-san?" Shirou's silver eyes honed in on the woman as if she had just become his next target. It was an open secret in Japanese culture to make any comment on an older woman's single status was more or less taboo.

"What are you doing?! Shut up!" Rin hissed frantically, not at all missing the yamato nadeshiko's eyebrow twitch.

Lancer didn't bother saying anything by this point. He was too busy laughing his lungs out.

Sirius was of similar thoughts.

Waver shook his head. "I warned you he gets testy whenever he gets blindsided like this. Especially after everything he's just had to go through. Being polite is one thing, but pretending to play ignorant at this point will only make him worse. Unless all of you want to take turns getting verbally attacked by him to see who can handle the most abuse, I suggest you tell him the truth and stay with it. He's in no mood to play the well behaved fool, and I for one do not blame him."

"Don't treat me like a child, Waver. Even I can see that this is conveniently the best possible outcome for the Barthomelloi Faction in the Tower." Shirou cut him off tersely, turning his attention to the Vice-Director.

"I might not pay attention or care for the politics in the Tower, but I'm not blind. If Waver was condemned, the trial had set the Archibald family to burn eventually under its own weight, taking away a valuable resource to the tower and a longtime supporter of the Barthmelloi name. The other way around would throw the tower into chaos, with Waver obtaining more influence in the Tower than he can manage and throwing the political power balance out of sorts. Not to mention bring into question just how far the Vice-Director is willing to support her family's allies and commitments, regardless of the scandal. A Lord with no major family support? Even with his popularity and achievements, he'd be murdered within half a year."

"If, he stayed and resumed his duties. Of course," Lorelei interjected with the faintest of tones indicating that she had expected them to do the opposite. "And if you done nothing about it like fools."

They had not been fools.

Between Shirou, Waver, Sirius, and Kiritsugu, they had conjured up at least eight realistic ways for Waver to survive the fallout of the Grail War should his involvement be discovered. Five of which were already completely useless after the Archibalds had made a spectacle of his actions and tried to tear him apart. But they still had three viable options left… had Waver not been tied down with the engagement, which was not something that any of them had considered remotely possible.

The only thing they had left now was less of a Hail Mary and more of a threat of mutually assured destruction. A last resort that was suicidal at best and at worst… they still hadn't calculated how bad the fallout could get.

"Fools or not, it's clear that several parties put in quite an effort to cut any options we might have had," Shirou indirectly accused.

Had one side prevailed over the other, or both collapsed, the Tower and more specifically the Barthomelloi family would have lost both resources and face.

With this engagement though, and both parties still afloat, Lorelei's political clout would not be slightly marred at worst, but emboldened. Waver's support among the newer generations and smaller families in the Tower had been underscored with the trial and couldn't be ignored any longer by the older families. Making him the official Head of the Archibald Family, and solidifying his image as a rags to riches story that they could all (supposedly) empathize with would only embolden their support, which would indirectly strengthen Barthomelloi's influence.

They had been played.

Shirou didn't know what the ultimatum was for Waver denying the proposal, but the fact that the man had gone through with it at all meant that he had been pushed into a corner with no other way out. And considering how poorly the Archibalds had been playing the game, it could only mean that someone else had made a move to make this so.

And he had a good idea who that someone was.

He didn't know when or how, but the Vice-Director of the Clocktower had navigated both parties in the heat of the moment to fall directly into her hands. All while claiming to be a mere witness throughout the entire trial and even seemingly supporting Shirou's side a few times.

He had given the woman an inch, and the bitch had taken an entire marathon.

He was impressed and pissed as hell.

And the proverbial cherry on top was that officially, his hands were now tied.

"What do you want? Vice-Director," Shirou all but growled.

"From you? What I should have had from the start. Obedience." The young woman didn't smile once, but the satisfaction was clearly heard in her voice. "You have had your fun, Emiya. You may have gained some confidence with your newly expanded arsenal of Noble Phantasms, but I doubt you are childish enough to assume that makes you untouchable."

Shirou, to his credit, didn't so much as budge at her accusation. Even with his shroud, he didn't betray a single thought.

Unfortunately, several other individuals at both tables were not so prepared.

"Eh?" Reines blinked in surprise. "Arsenal of, what are you talking about Vice-Director?"

"It appears that Emiya-san has been holding more secrets than anticipated." Adashino's near perpetual smile slipped as she too contemplated Lorelei's statement.

No one at Shirou's table said anything, but the worried glances and flinches that Bazett and Sakura gave him were telling enough.

Shirou looked at Sirius and Waver. The former's previous easy going demeanor was gone, and replaced by a surprisingly impassive mask. The old man's direct eye contact alone was enough to tell that he wasn't the guilty party.

Waver on the other hand…

"It was the curse in your swords." Waver sighed. "We put too much importance on just how significant it was during the trial."

Shirou frowned briefly in confusion for a moment before realizing what Waver was alluding to and nearly smacked himself for the oversight.

Lorelei knew that his swords, Kiritsugu, Natalia, and Maya had been forged from Kiritsugu's remains, and that they retained the curse of Angra Mainyu. The curse of a legitimate God.

She knew he had been able to project the swords from memory after examining them in a single night.

Just from looking at them.

And he had been repeating the action in front of her face for literally years.

If he could recreate a God's curse from memory, and he was able to replicate Noble Phantasms by looking at them, then the jump between replicating the latter from sight to memory wasn't very outlandish.

She had known about the curse beforehand, but the trial had underscored just how significant it was. A Chekov's Gun that was negligible for years until it had not. By itself, it wasn't important to her, but the fact that Shirou could replicate it was another story entirely.

Their greatest tool to proving themselves to the Association had wound up inadvertently stabbing them in the backs.

She likely didn't know about his Reality Marble, yet, but she had made a dangerous leap towards that deduction.

This was probably what she had used to corner Waver with. The evidence he couldn't argue that forced him into agreeing into the engagement.

But, the timing of the reveal in itself was abnormal.

Rather, the fact she wasn't confronting him about it in person, on Clocktower grounds, meant that regardless of what accomplishments he had may have achieved, even if it would result in a Sealing Designation, she didn't intend to lock him up or use him for experimentation.

Then again, it might simply have been because she wasn't confident of detaining him without mass destruction and loss of resources.

"I simply didn't want to put you in a conflict of interest," Shirou plainly stated.

"Whose interest? Yours?" Lorelei probed.

"No. Yours," The teen corrected factually.

It was easy enough to understand. Shirou had his hands in subjects that would cause problems if it got out. This would in turn rope Barthomelloi into the mess. She had supported him and Waver so much over the past few years that there was no possible way of coming out unscathed if their dirty laundry came out. And as the Vice Director, she was literally obligated to turn them in if she found out about the problems.

It was the most textbook example there was of "Ask no questions, and I will tell you no lies".

She wasn't amused anymore. Her finger tapped lightly on the table, a sign that she was losing patience quickly.

She could either keep going down the rabbit hole, delve into a topic that might be more trouble than it was worth and shoot herself in the foot in the process, or she could drop the matter in its entirety and go on knowing that Shirou was now a wild card whose true capability was no longer a known factor.

And that wasn't taking into account the Servant under his influence.

"Take off that ridiculous shawl. I feel like a fool every time I speak to you with it on."

Shirou grimaced for a moment before complying despite the worried looks he got. Within a few seconds, his scarred face, paling hair, and tanned skin was exposed to everyone. There were minor bags under his eyes from the exhaustion that he was still suffering from the War.

"… Lad." Sirius blinked. He was probably the most familiar with Shirou's transition over the years, the effects that his magic had on his body. Like everyone he had seen the scarred left side of his face during the trial a couple of days earlier. But to see it all of it together just underscored just how much of a toll the war had took on the teen. All in all, Shirou looked like he had aged a good ten years to those in the Tower that knew what he looked like.

It was blatantly clear to anyone that had known and seen Shirou before the War, he had changed. He had fought. He had killed. He was not someone that would stand being fucked.

The Queen of the Clocktower didn't say anything immediately. Instead she just stared down her Dog, who didn't back down in the slightest.

It was one thing when their standoffs was over the phone. Doing it face to face, even if it was through a mystery, was another story altogether.

"… What are your aspirations, Emiya? Now that this farce is all but over with?" she asked calmly. "A Servant. Power. Notoriety. Animusphere has already shown interest in having discussions with you regarding your own personal approach to your family's craft. Temporal Transmutation is not an unheard of field of study, but it is a niche one with few practitioners."

Whether or not she was being purposefully insulting by skirting his adoptive position in the Emiya Family was anyone's guess.

"Animusphere, huh? Can't say I've put much thought one way or another at the moment, but I won't say that it doesn't sound interesting." Shirou tasted the name in his mouth. Outside of the trial, he had not dealt with the family in any real capacity. Or with anyone from the Celestial Body Department of the Clocktower. They did tend to be more involved in time-space related projects and mysteries in the Association, and had taken a few classes to increase the number of tricks he could use in conjunction with his Tracing, but other than that he didn't know much about the department.

Most importantly though was that he hadn't heard anything actually bad about the Animusphere family outside of the fact that they were recluses on par with the Einzberns. That wasn't necessarily saying much, but it wasn't a mark against them at least. Yet.

"And what of your current commitments?" Lorelei's eyes narrowed.

"What of them?" he asked impetuously. "The past few weeks have been a hassle, but I have yet to fail any the responsibilities that I have taken under your name. I am not some shameless haphazard fool or some prideless noble magus that presumes that I can renege on my promises now that my goal's been met. I took a job, and I will honor my word and finish it to the best of my abilities."

"Be careful with that tone of yours. You make it sound as if being in my employment is the equivalent of just another occupation. A mindless task you can simply move on from once completed."

"A child can tell that what I do is far from a normal job, Vice-Director, but at the same time it does not hold the same glamorous merit to me that you assume." Shirou frowned. "I am an adopted child of an assassin. I have a unique skillset and some minor potential, but regardless of what role I hold in your circle at the end of the day, year, or even this century, I will be seen and treated as nothing more than a dog by the Association at large, including yourself. And while you chide me on my oversight and ignorance, I could say the same thing of you right now."

"Oh? And what, dare say, have I overlooked?" Her tone was dangerous, clearly daring him to insult her any further than he already had.

Shirou leaned forward and met her glare with his own, his tone becoming deadly quiet. "I didn't become this strong because of you, and I certainly didn't obtain this strength for you. You have no claim to my power other than what I allow, and quite frankly, to see you act like a spoiled child like this because I happen to have my own agenda for once and didn't tell you disappoints me. You didn't want Shirou Emiya to begin with. Just the Magus Killer… or rather, a Magus Killer to parade about."

The twitch on her face was enough of a tell that his words had surprisingly hit home.

He relaxed back in his seat and closed his eyes. "That being said, I am not ignorant of the favors you are still owed, even if they were all ultimately to further your agenda. I used them to the fullest for my own purposes, so it's pointless to complain about them. You gave me more of the Emiya Crest. You have opened doors and enabled me to further my magecraft. You put me on dangerous missions. All to further my experience, my reputation, my power, and by extension, your own hold on the Tower's populace."

Waver knew he was treading dangerous waters, but he couldn't help but speak up. "Then what are your plans for now?"

Shirou shrugged and scratched the back of his head. "For the near future? Try and have everything make sense again. I've been so busy trying to worm my way around the War in its entirety that I haven't seen much point or purpose in thinking about anything long term."

"You're joking." Reines gaped and turned to Waver. "He's supposed to be your first student. How have you not covered something so basic?"

"Forgive me if I have a habit of over prioritizing my objectives and priorities," he dryly stated. "Regardless of what my plans were, I never desired to be a long term face at the Association. I don't have the patience or the stomach for endless pointless backstabbing between fools that endlessly put their pride before their own progress. The only long term projects I do have are some experiments with my personal mysteries, which I can do on my own for the most part, and enjoying my life. And I fully intend for it to not include endlessly hunting down Magi, faulty rituals that can potentially wipe out humanity, and Dead Apostles. Let someone else deal with that nonsense."

Merem had the decency to look somewhat put off at that last part, puffing out his cheeks and avoiding eye contact with his host.

"… Heh."

That lone bitter bark of laughter sent chills down everyone's spines as their attention was once more drawn to the Queen of the Clocktower.

She lifted her head up, her eyes indicating that she was beyond enraged. "I am disappointed, Emiya. I knew you lacked motivation, but to think you'd have such base aspirations for the future. No aspirations or intended applications for the power and potential you now wield. If you weren't so valuable to me, I'd put a Sealing Designation on you right now for your sheer foolishness."

"That's the biggest empty threat I've ever heard you make." Shirou didn't back down, his position just as firm as her own. "I still respect you and what you do, Vice Director. That said, you really think I'd just roll over and let myself be taken just because you told me to at this point? The resources you'd need to subdue me would be impossible to hide, much less the excessive fallout that I will ensure will take place in such a scenario. With the public support you've given me recently, there's no feasible way you'd be willing to smear your own name to the extent needed to take me down. Dying to some unknown third party's not an option if you want to keep the Barthomelloi name unstained, and there's barely a known outside group that you'd be willing to publicly admit is capable enough to take out a resource like me without being forced to declare war on them immediately afterwards. A meaningless chore if there ever was one. And you can't personally throw me away. Especially now, since as far as the world's concerned, I haven't done anything wrong."

Rin would have chastised him for his outburst, but she was too busy coping with the fact that most of the blood had drained from her head. As had most of the others that had heard his crass statement.

If he died for some petty reason after his name's been hyped up this much, the Barthomelloi name was smeared. If he died for some big controversial reason, the Barthomelloi name was smeared. If he vanished, the Barthomelloi name was smeared. If he went rogue or rebelled against the Association, the Barthomelloi name would be far more than smeared.

But if he played by the rules like he normally did, then nobody would be the wiser, and the Barthomelloi name would only grow in prosperity.

If there was one thing that the Vice Director valued above all else, it was her family name. And Shirou had somehow managed to weave it into her own noose.

He was her dirty little secret. Her deal with the devil.

And it was only going to get worse in the future if she didn't play along.

"Humph." Sirius snorted, getting several warning looks from those on his side of the conversation. "Oh piss off. You lot know he's right. This bloody inquisition is just a way for her royal highness to try and act offended that we've been hiddin' the lad's potential. Like every other Magus with a lick o sense would have done in his position. In case you haven't noticed, he hasn't broken any rules or done anything that would tarnish the Barthomelloi name. This whole farce's just ta coddle a girl's scuffed ego for a humiliation that only she can see. Load of shite if ya ask me."

It was a miracle that the table wasn't split in half as the Queen of the Clocktower stood, drew her rapier, and pointed it at the old man while channeling a monumental amount of prana. Had Shirou been there, he would have compared the mystery around her weapon's mystery to a heavily degraded version of Saber's Barrier of the Wind King, minus the invisibility.

"Care to repeat that, McGinty?" There was no mirth in her cold demand. If the old man didn't chose his words carefully, they would without question be his last.

Despite the threat to his life, the Mystic Code Crafter didn't even flinch as he looked at her almost as bored as could be. "Get to the point of this already, Lass. You're wasting your own time, trying ta play the victim when you've already won the fuckin' lottery. It's embarrasin'. You're supposed ta be a perfectionist. Not a greedy bloody pig like half of the inbred idiots claiming ta be from an old family these days. Get your shit together."

The Queen and the Old man stared down one another. Whether blood would be spilled was anyone's guess.

"You have some nerve, speaking to me like that in spite of all I have granted you." She stated emotionlessly.

"Ah could say the same girl, pointin' my own work against me like that. Or did your folks conveniently forget ta tell you about the favor I did 'em before you were bred? You must have been told about the fiasco at the Masurian Lakes, right?" Sirius didn't so much as flinch, more interested in the sword than the one holding it.

Everyone could tell that Lorelei saw red for a brief moment. Her expression turned ugly and the grip on her sword tightened visibly.

But as swiftly as the apex of her anger came, it just as swiftly died off with an uncharacteristic and irritated click of her tongue. With a flourish, her sword returned to its scabbard and she returned to her seat. "… How my grandsire ever allowed himself to fall into debt to a crass fool like you is beyond my comprehension."

"Skill and talent don't give two damns about where it lands. Otherwise half of the stories and progress man has made over history would sound bloody dull and be the same damn thing over and over again." Sirius waved off her grievance as if it came from a complaining child.

"Masurian Lakes?" Shirou couldn't help but ask, despite knowing how poorly it would reflect on him.

"You could say it was my Grail War, lad," the old man answered before anyone else could make a sound. "You have your stories, I have mine. Doesn't matter how old it is, diggin' up a shitshow will smell the same."

"Mmm." The message was as clear as it could be. Leaning back, Shirou took in a deep breath and calmed himself down before looking at the Queen of the Clocktower. "Vice-Director. I've worked for you for three years. I'm not your enemy, and I have no intention or desire of ever being your enemy, or smearing the Barthomelloi name for that matter. That said, to put it in the old man's words, I am not going to roll over and be fucked on a whim. I have taken precautions to protect myself and others should you or any other parties have any ideas. And should those fail, I have taken measures to ensure that the ones responsible for it will regret it."

Shirou and Lorelei stared down one another, like two apex predators about to come to blows over territory.

"This certainly escalated quickly," Adashino whispered to Waver. "It's not every day that someone attempts to tempt the Vice-Director so brazenly."

Waver shook his head. "You're mistaken, Miss Adashino. It's no bluff. It's an ultimatum. And the Vice-Director knows it."

The Yamato Nadeshko blinked in surprise. "Really?"

He looked back at Shirou's image, the shroud of Martin hanging off of his neck, exposing his face for everyone to see. "Anyone familiar with Shirou knows he's terrible at lying. His face's an open book that's easy to read. That's why the Vice-Director told him to take his shroud off. She knows he's not lying. And she knows he's capable enough to not carelessly disregard his actions."

Unfortunately, Lorelei forgot that the real headache was trying to read Shirou's body language when he was telling the truth.

"And do you know what these precautions are?"

"If you're suspecting that I aided him in subverting or sabotaging the Vice-Director or the Barthomelloi family in some capacity, then I'm afraid you will have to settle for disappointment. I have always advocated for working with her, never against." He evaded the question deftly.

He was only guilty of hiding the fact that Shirou was some bizarre Apostle variant, and hiding his Reality Marble. Even then, his main focus after finding out was organizing situations such that Shirou could "die" or vanish from the map in such a way that his condition would never be discovered so the Vice Director's name wouldn't be smeared. I.E. She wouldn't go on a crusade for their heads with the sickening wells of resources the Association and her family at her back.

Knowing Shirou, whenever he had time to plan his mind was the sharpest tool out there, but when cornered and angered from out of the blue like this…

That idiot. He had warned the boy countless times not to do exactly this, no matter how bad the situation got. To get through the entire War only to screw it up in the aftermath due to losing his temper was absolutely asinine and ridiculous. He had thought he had trained the boy better than this, but apparently… apparently… wait.

All eyes were on Shirou and Lorelei now. All watching with baited breath.

Waver let his wander to those that were with his student. Rin. Sakura. All the Masters in Fuyuki were as disturbed with the current turn of events as the people on his side of the conversation and enraptured to the smoldering conflict taking place.

All the Masters.

His eyes met the King of Rats'.

There was no widening smile or wink or nod of affirmation. No subtle signs or attempts of communication at all.

"Tch."

All eye turned to the Queen of the Clocktower as she made the uncharacteristic sound.

"You are a remarkable headache, Emiya. Even now I can't determine if claiming you was a boon or a blemish. Even now I have half a mind to deal with you simply to put this quandary to rest and be done with it."

Shirou's posture didn't relax in the slightest. He wasn't an idiot.

Lorelei frowned, as if trying to rearrange her own thoughts. "… Why did you speak of Kaleidoscope? He may be responsible for the war, but his relevance to the situation is minimal at best. You know my thoughts on acknowledging his existence."

If she was expecting to catch him off guard by the change in topic, she was mistaken.

"The Wizard Marshal left a long term project in the hands of the Tohsaka family. One that we found necessary to complete and utilize for the final battle. A mystic code. Its use would have unquestionably attracted his attention."

"And no doubt prompt him to take interest in the current Tohsaka head. Another resource and layer of protection to yourself. Speaking of him and exposing him in the trial… you were trying to bait him into publicly declaring it. Another shield to hide behind." For the briefest of moments she turned her attention to Rin, scrutinizing the surprised girl who had not expected to be put on the spot so suddenly. "I am impressed and appalled at your audacity to lure not one but two Apostles to your aid, along myself."

"The child is abundant with surprises," the King of Rats stated without shame. "Stacking the deck with so many unlikely and influential parties without a moment's hesitation despite the potential repercussions. It was right to keep an eye on him. He's far too interesting to ignore when he starts to move. It's been quite some time since someone like him has walked the world."

"Likely due to the fact that most would not last long." It wasn't a threat, not completely. It was completely reasonable to assume that anyone that could stir the underworld political scene this much so recklessly would be a major target to put down.

"I said it's been a while." The rat repeated shamelessly, not at all bothered by acknowledging how suicidal Shirou's actions were. "Though how much longer he will last is another discussion in its entirety."

He wasn't joking. And nobody was ignorant enough to assume that he was.

Lorelei leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes in deep contemplation. It was clear that she wasn't happy with Shirou's new independent streak, regardless of her recent victory in the political field. He was a tool that she couldn't control nearly as well as she had assumed, but he was at the same time a unique tool that was too valuable to simply discard like trash.

She glanced over at the girl sitting at the table, who was watching the interaction with a certain sadistic interest that couldn't be hidden. "You seem to be quite entertained, Reines El-Melloi Archisorte. Ironic, seeing as your family is just as responsible for the recent drama as my wayward pet."

So far, technically none of Shirou's actions have been against her. Just without her knowing, which in some cases was just as bad. In comparison though, the Archibald family had been quite aggressive in their shallow efforts to regain any recognition and wealth as of late. The hit on Shirou. The public condemnation of Waver. One would think that they were self-destructing on purpose.

Reines had the decency to look embarrassed. "You are addressing the wrong person, Vice-Director. While I officially hold a position of power in my family, I am young and my words disregarded more often than not. Ignoring how highly I think of my older br-, my fiancée, I still advised against the actions taken against Emiya and later my Lord. The others were particularly adamant on reclaiming face in the Tower after whispers of our position being under Emiya's started to spread in jest."

Shirou closed his eyes, and slowly counted to ten in his mind to calm down.

Saber noticed something was off. "Shirou?"

"Luvia started that rumor a year after we met as a joke to embarrass me since she knew I hated the attention. Before we knew it, it had spread through the Association and treated as borderline truth." He answered as briefly as he could.

The Servant looked briefly at the supposedly guilty party and noticed right away her paling disposition. "… Once more the careless jests in court spark the fuel to unnecessary war."

"You look like you have something to say, Emiya," Lorelei noticed his stressed expression.

"Just reminiscing on why I hate dealing with Clocktower aristocracy as a whole. Don't mind me," Shirou evaded the question deftly, which wasn't too hard since he was telling the truth. Thankfully nobody bothered to probe further than that, or notice Luvia flinch at his statement.

"Hm. Regardless of your sentiment, I suppose that you are not solely responsible for all of the recent madness. Your lack of forethought aside, this situation would have been addressed with significant more ease had the Archibald family not attempted to meddle in affairs that were not its own."

They only set one of his friends against him in a soul binding contract while arming her with not one but two Servants, isolated one of his largest resources under penalty of death. And, when all that failed, shout to the entire fucking Moonlit World what happened in an attempt to play the victim, which prevented everyone from resolving the War and reporting what happened discretely so that this very thing wouldn't fucking happen.

"Had Waver not been placed in charge of the family, I would seriously consider suggesting my own form of repercussions right now as compensation for the recent completely unnecessary ordeals we endured." Shirou emphasized the "we" part to underscore just how badly the Archibald family had fucked up not only his position, but Lorelei's as well.

The fact that he actually suggested that he would have come after the Archibald Family himself was enough to drive home just how angry he was. The worried looks he got from the other Masters in turn, was enough to tell that he would have genuinely gone through with it.

And given his success rate and track record, he would have been able to pull it off too.

"For revenge?" The Queen lifted an eyebrow.

"No. For assurance." Magus were stubborn. They wouldn't stop to get what they wanted unless they were either dead or magically restrained.

"Hoh? Even if we are not at our prime, you'd actually be willing to make enemies of a noble family?" Reines asked curiously.

Shirou gave the girl a dry look, as if she was an idiot. "No. I wouldn't."

Waver's fiancée looked smug and slightly confused at his reply, until he continued.

"Enemies are a waste of time. They're an affluent distraction for those that are unwilling or incapable of dealing with such annoyances. I don't bother with having something as useless as 'enemies'. I have friends and those that I am close to. People that I interact with frequently. I have acquaintances that I speak to on occasion. Then there is the bulk of humanity. And at the end of the spectrum, I have targets. Not enemies."

Shirou's cold statement caught even Waver and Lorelei off guard.

"After a great deal of effort, over the past two weeks, I finally do not have any targets left." Save Archer, but that was a story in itself. "And I would be most grateful if things stayed that way. Lady Archibald."

Reines wisely had the decency to not look so confident or amused anymore.

"Hoooh?" Lancer spoke up, a curious and hungry gleam in his eyes.

"Lancer." Bazett hissed.

The Spear of Ireland dismissed her warning and looked around the room. Unsurprisingly, it appeared that most of the other Servants came to the same conclusion he had.

Even Assassin couldn't hold back the faintest of grimaces. Ooof. Tough luck bud, finding out that your kid had that sort of personality.

"Shirou," Waver cut in firmly, pulling out a cigar and cutting the tip off. "As understandably displeased as you are, I would appreciate it if you did not make such insinuations about my fiancée."

Shirou's hard expression faltered, unprepared to be chastised by Waver of all people. "You're serious."

"I am grateful for your concern, but I am capable of fighting my own battles on occasion." Waver lit the end of the cigar and took in a deep breath. "The Archibald family is my responsibility in full now. I will make sure that its members are fully chastised for their misguided actions. It has been made clear that the previous leadership has been less than efficient in fulfilling its role and obligations. Now that my position is no longer a mere accessory, I believe I can fulfill it, in interest."

Meaning changes. Lots and lots of changes. Changes that were going to be extremely public and piss off even more of the old bloods inside and out of the family.

"Humph." Reines puffed her cheeks out like a child, not liking what Waver was clearly announcing to everyone before taking interest in Shirou's unsettled state. "Well I guess it isn't too bad. Having someone that can push around the Magus Killer so easily as the head of our house won't make things too terrible."

Waver blew out a cloud of smoke, staring absently at the ceiling. "Reines. We may be engaged, but I am still your tutor, and as such I am quite disappointed in you."

"Hm?" Several eyes looked at him curiously. Including Adashino's. "What are you implying, Lord El-Melloi II?"

"Nothing excessive, Miss Adashino. I am merely chastising her for her inability to ascertain the base fact that my allies are not the same as the Archibald family's allies, and vice-versa. Unless of course, you assumed that after this day I would be conveniently be on friendly terms with several notable factions in the Association."

Reines had the decency to at least acknowledge that he was right if her sullen demeanor were any indication.

"Ah. Of course. I presumed too much then." The woman chuckled lightly, not amused by Waver's light self-deprecating joke, but at the very real possibility that Waver's trials in the Clocktower were only going to magnify in the foreseeable future, and the fact that he knew was going to be miserable for said duration. "On the bright side, at least you have now been assured company throughout your ordeals."

Waver's eyebrow twitched, and while he didn't say anything in retort, it was clear that he had to put in some physical effort to do so. "Lady Vice-Director. Perhaps we should stop with our roundabout conversation and get to the point of the matter. There are tasks on both sides that soon require addressing."

Lorelei Barthomelloi nodded briefly. "Emiya. Officially, you will be awarded and commended for your successful actions in Fuyuki. Your security clearance within the Clocktower will be elevated by two tiers, granting you access to resources on par with our top ranked Enforcers. The limit to finances you may withdraw from the Association for both Missions and personal use will be upgraded to reflect your status. Finally, paperwork is already underway to place you as head of your Servant-assisted task force."

No one was relieved in the slightest. These were all cosmetic benefits to Shirou and anyone that even remotely knew him could tell as much. The money might be nice for a side project or two, not that he would ever use it given his personality, but otherwise it was all near useless to him.

"Unofficially, you are on probation for insubordination and refusal to inform the Association about a potential Counter Guardian invoking threat to humanity. Regardless of the threat Zouken and Kotomine posed, the fact you had so little faith in the Association's abilities is more than disappointing. Enforcer MacRemitz will be your watcher for this duration until otherwise stated. Your role in managing Fuyuki is done. You have no say in what goes on from this point forward in Fuyuki outside of serving as an advisor to the other Masters. As far as I'm concerned, Berserker has more authority than you do. Am I understood?"

Shirou clearly didn't like the order if his frown indicated anything, but he held back his thoughts. "… Understood."

The Vice Director pretended to ignore his momentary insubordination. "Enforcer MacRemitz?"

"Understood. Ma'am. I'll put Lancer on him if I have to." Bazett managed to school her expression, knowing that she was going to be called eventually.

"Just make sure you don't kill me in the process, Master," Lancer snarked mentally. "The kid's got that look in his eyes again. Safer to keep tabs on him from a distance than being in his way."

"You sound scared," she shot back irritably.

"Of the kid? By himself? On a normal given day? Never. I'd hand his heart to him before he'd know I had it. Even he will admit that I'm his worst matchup. Now though? When he's on guard and already likely preparing hell knows what with at the bare minimum Saber on his side and you in your current state? No offense, but I'm more worried about what would happen to you if I took a step out of line right now. No, just keep it safe and put me on watch duty. Your job isn't to stop him from doing something stupid. It's to snitch afterwards. Let the kid handle the fallout. Odds are he's already planning for just that right now, and I doubt he'd hold it against you if you did. You know he's messed up like that."

Bazett grimaced at Lancer's logic. She hated it when he was right about the brutal truth. "I could…"

"Don't lie to yourself, Master. You already know you can't stop him. Not unless you want to give up something that you can't get back," the Servant warned gravely. "And unless you're being willingly oblivious, you should have figured out what that viper of a woman just did. Kid certainly has, and he doesn't look happy."

She schooled her expression and risked a glance at Shirou. She wished she hadn't.

Judging from his ominously cold expression, her next concern was the likelihood of him plotting Barthomelloi's murder right then and there.

She could hardly blame him, considering that the Vice Director had in one fell swoop more or less put everyone's lives as collateral for his actions for the next few days.

Putting Shirou on the bottom of the totem pole more or less meant that everyone in the building was responsible for all of his actions and keeping tabs on him. So if he did anything suspicious now, someone would have to know, or they all would suffer the consequences.

And just their fucking luck, something monstrous was in Fuyuki that he had already claimed responsibility dealing with by himself.

If they trailed Shirou, they risked making things worse. But if they didn't, they risked pissing off the Vice Director big time, and there was little hope of getting much past her after everything that had just transpired.

Bazett mentally cursed their recent paranoia into Shirou's actions. It would have been so much simpler for all of them if they hadn't suspected anything was up in the first place and Shirou managed to get away with what he needed to do without them worrying.

"Good." Lorelei's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "Since the chain of command has been established, your presence is no longer required for the meeting, Dog."

Everyone stilled at the sudden dismissal that came from nowhere. Even Shirou was caught off guard by it. "I… what?"

"The rest of this meeting will entail the management of resources and recovery of Fuyuki with what Association members remain in your town. Caster's rampage has dwindled the numbers significantly, so a careful hand is required to navigate them properly. Unless you have something significant to input to this discussion, your presence is no longer necessary."

Rin was the Second Owner. Sakura was the Makiri head and familiar with any leftovers that Zouken may have. Illya could manage the Greater Grail. Luvia and Bazett were association representatives with significant field experience, the former also possessing significant funds and resources of her own. Merem was the Church's representative.

Shirou on the other hand, had more or less lost his backing from the Association for the moment, and there wasn't much he could contribute to the recovery effort at a face value save for being on the ground itself for manual labor. There was the rift in the leylines that Kiritsugu had made earlier that he could help out with a little, but between Waver, Sirius, and Kiritsugu himself there, he was more redundant than anything.

A key player reduced to a non-entity, in the span of a few days. A normal person or a prideful warrior would be enraged by the turn of events. A trained soldier would swallow the indignity and take their orders.

Shirou just smiled bitterly and let out a tired laugh. It was frustration of a different sort. Not out of anger or despair, but acceptance of the ludicrous irony that was taking place. At best, he was annoyed at the implications as to what these changes would entail later. He couldn't care less about what meaningless authority he had in Fuyuki and the Association in the first place.

"Fine. By your leave then." Without the slightest hint of putting up a fight, Shirou got up and made his way out of the room. "I'll be in my workshop."

Saber looked like she wanted to say something, but a glance from Shirou stopped her instantly. Instead she followed him outside with a concerned and confused expression that the other Masters in Fuyuki were desperately trying to hold back themselves.

The meeting went on for another hour and a half before it was concluded.

It took another five minutes for them to realize that Shirou was no longer on the property.

The note on his workshop door that said he'd be back tonight and for them not to worry didn't help things.

o. o. o.

"You shouldn't have done that."

Lorelei Barthomelloi glanced at Waver Velvet in the private conference room. "You are far from a position to dictate what I can and can't do, Lord El Melloi II."

"You could be the wielder of a True Magic for all I care. A foolish move by any other name is still foolish," Waver brushed off her warning.

"I would think carefully of the moral you are trying to promote, and your current actions for that matter."

"Humph. Intimidating me won't distract either of us from the truth. You used Shirou's dedication to the other Masters as a litmus test to determine the existence of any unknown short term future plans he had in Fuyuki."

Had Shirou not have anything else on hand, he would not have reacted as poorly as he did to her unofficial decree. It was hard to miss that cold murderous glare he gave immediately afterwards.

Any other Magus probably would have reacted just like that for more prideful reasons. But Shirou had always been a peculiar individual. She knew the instant he reacted that he was still up to something in Fuyuki that he didn't want her to know about.

More specifically, he was up to something that essentially had to take place within the next few days to a week. The boy had spent years planning and setting up Zouken's death from under the monster's nose. Shirou could do patient if he needed to, but his reaction earlier indicated that time was not something in abundance.

"I thought you claimed that you had informed me of all of the boy's plans earlier. Including that foolish plot to save Emiya's daughter." Lorelei glanced at him with a sharp eye.

Waver shrugged, not taking the bait. "I did. The only thing that should be on his agenda now that the War is dealt with is his arrangement with Touko Aozaki, which you already deduced a while ago and we had suspected you'd figure out eventually. It's a curious procedure to be sure, but not one that we were too concerned you learning. Meaning whatever's going on now is something unexpected. My input on the matter now can only consist of insightful speculation and logic."

"For your sake, I hope that your contribution to this discussion consists of more than that."

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "For someone that is so interested in her dog's actions, you've been surprisingly ignorant of his subtleties today. Even Sirius picked up on a few tells Shirou was trying to slip by earlier."

"Tells?"

It had been during his initial outburst during their private conversation. Shirou didn't have a complete ironclad hold on his emotions at times, but his frustration with Lorelei had been extremely unusual. He had gotten too excited too quickly and easily in a conversation with a woman that he had known for years to be a cold-hearted and calculative bitch.

There had been something there. Something else in Shirou's body language. Or rather, something was missing that should be there given the circumstances.

This escalation wasn't the result of adrenaline, anger, and spontaneous decision making. No mistake, the teen was pissed, but it wasn't the deciding factor in his actions. It had been a planned argument. Not desired, and probably not intended for right now, but somehow seen a necessary eventuality.

Something had happened, or was still happening, that was out of the teen's control.

His outburst wasn't an immature act of defiance. It was an indication that something else was getting under his skin.

It sure as hell wasn't exhaustion or feedback from his mysteries. Waver had been there when Shirou was put through the ringer from Sirius' training. He knew damn well what the kid was like when he was forced to do something when beaten and exhausted, and what he just saw was not it.

"His constant prodding may have been intended as a warning of some sort. That Fuyuki wasn't stable yet for some reason, and that he was being monitored by the source. That or he wanted to keep those aware of the details to a minimum. There was a rather constant and controlled determination he had in his outbursts. It wasn't fake, but there was something clearly there."

"You truly think his rabid behavior was an attempt to warn me?" She had heard greater leaps of logic before from Magi, but it was nearly absurd to have it come from Waver Velvet of all people.

"It was clearly an attempt to tell you something." He shook his head. "Need I remind you of Shirou's general temperament? He's not the sort that willingly goes out and looks for trouble or sloppily picks fights. Rather, that unfortunate boy's the sort of ridiculous mess that attracts trouble itself. His very existence rouses curiosity in anyone that bothers to pay attention to him, and his passive nature entices others to ensnare him into their own plots as though there could be no ramifications for doing so. And the majority of the time, he doesn't refute these efforts, usually for one of two reasons."

"Which are?"

"One. He's not like the average Magus. He's fine doing favors for others if they ask. As far as he's concerned, it's easier to just do the request than get the requester to stop bothering him. Especially if the latter is particularly stubborn." Waver glanced at Lorelei in a way that indicated that he was clearly talking about her. "Two. The second party is one that is in some manner actively endangering the lives or safety of the few individuals that he's close to, unless addressed in some way. From what I've seen, he takes unnaturally extreme personal offense to the latter."

"You are insinuating that the boy will target me now?" She lifted an eyebrow skeptically.

"Doubtful. Though, I'm certain the idea's passed through his mind after you more or less shoved him into a corner. He's not stupid. If there's one thing you can trust Shirou to do, it's efficiently manage his priorities under stressful situations. That may change depending on what you do later though. No, what I'm concerned about now is not your safety, Vice-Director, but where the source of this unexpected deviation came from initially. By all accounts, Shirou is supported by the entirety of the Grail War, Servants included, and yet somehow his hand's still being forced behind the scenes."

"Do stop playing ignorant Lord El Melloi II. It does not suit you, and I am not one of your oblivious students. It is beyond blatant that Solomon is the source." Lorelei interrupted with a hint of impatience. "You and the boy meticulously plotted out the entirety of the war for years. The only true unknown factors that genuinely caught you off guard were Kiritsigu Emiya being a Heroic Spirit and the Vampire's participation. Meaning they were the only two realistic sources for this diversion, and while I never met the man, I doubt that it's the former."

Waver schooled his emotions. It wouldn't do to let anything slip now, skirting around Shirou's condition by such a thin margin. "I had no intention of testing your patience. I was merely looking out for myself. Carelessly bringing up the topic of Ancestors in your vicinity has consequences after all."

"I recommend you be productive lest you suffer consequences all the same." The Barthomelloi were among the elite of the elite, and they did not like being patronized, or assume they were being patronized.

"Unfortunately I can only provide speculation at this point. My knowledge and familiarity with the topic and individual in question does not compare to yours." Waver sighed, puffing on his cigar and ignoring the threat to his life. "Merem Solomon… I have only spoken to him the one time, however he was the topic of conversation with Shirou on a few occasions, which only makes the matter even more open ended."

"Open ended?"

"The reason behind his actions are ambiguous." He clarified. "Solomon may be an Apostle, but he is no fool. He couldn't to be one of the oldest of his kind and still free, and successfully negotiate with the Church. Say what you will, but such an existence all but requires an inhuman patience and self-control. Why then would he, one of the most passive Apostles in history, actively risk himself by forcing Shirou's hand for some cause, literally in the middle of Seven Servants? Why not wait?"

"You suggest someone is forcing Solomon's actions?" Waver's suggestion clearly intrigued her.

"It's a more realistic notion than him acting independently." He shrugged. "From what little I know about Solomon, the idea of instigating a situation while exposing himself to this degree on a whim is a bit far-fetched. Antagonizing seven Servants. Risking a colossal rift between the Church and Association. Right now Fuyuki is the center of attention for multiple world organizations, and yet he is continuing to act in spite of the exposure. He has too much to lose acting now and a high chance of failure, which again prompts the question 'Why?' Why now? Why go through with it in the first place? Why is Shirou willing to risk everything he just worked so hard for Solomon? As far as I'm concerned, finding out what he's doing in the first place is inconsequential to the matter at hand."

"Vampires." Lorelei spat out the word like it was bile. "No matter their origin and affiliation, they are nothing but a blight. Even now they cause nothing but problems."

Waver held back any comments that would underscore the woman's momentary lapse in self-control. "I take it you believe my rambling to be plausible."

"You said it yourself. The boy is not the sort to act independently in such a way unless motivated by an outside party. And as for the secondary party, Solomon usually follows a similar pattern."

"Which leave the tertiary…" Waver frowned.

"They are in Fuyuki." Lorelei came to the same conclusion that he did. "It would be pointless to attempt to motivate Solomon to move so quickly and rashly unless he was supervised in some way."

"There's a chance that Shirou's once again a victim of circumstance," Waver mused. "If Solomon's task requires an extra hand or specialist for whatever reason, the only person in Fuyuki, no, in Japan, he would likely trust would be him. Take that as you will."

"Don't be an optimistic fool. There are only so many coincidences that can be tolerated when it comes to that child."

"You clearly haven't spent much time around him then." Waver smirked. "That child attracts unwanted attention like a magnet when he's forced to move. From Vampires to Vice-Directors."

"Much like your pedestrian sense of humor." Judging from her tone, if he cracked another jab at her expense, it would probably be his last.

"Regardless of intentions, something is still clearly amiss in Fuyuki." He waved her threat way as if it was meaningless. "The fact that he tried to warn us covertly meant that it was something that he was trying to motivate us to take an action that only we could provide, instead of relying on the considerable resources that he has with the other Master and Servants."

Lorelei frowned. It wouldn't be any form of military, financial, or physical support. Having seven Servants on hand made the boy at the head of one of the most destructive groups on the planet. The Edelfelt family were among the most financially lucrative Magus clans in Europe. Even if the Association and the Church were paying attention to him now, they were on the other side of the planet. It would take weeks for anyone to accumulate a force powerful enough to… wait.

"He wants a distraction," she concluded. "The less attention Japan gets from the rest of the world, the better."

Waver looked at her pensively. "Turn away from Fuyuki. Decrease the odds of any excessive and irregular activity, and lower the chances of the third party's existence being discovered."

"And should this excessive entity's presence be one of untenable origins, should it be discovered now of all times." The political fallout would be unsavory, to put it politically correct. The common rabble on the other hand, would deem it a complete clusterfuck. "Solomon has likely already managed the Church's resources in the city already to unknowingly turn a blind eye to his deceit. He cannot risk the exposure. A quick inspection there would be all the proof we'd need that he's at least an accomplice."

"So ultimately, while it does serve his purposes, he was trying to help you after all." Waver huffed at the absurdity of it all. "And you answered by putting him on watch and holding those he saved as hostages. That might have been the right move to play, given Solomon was in the room watching, but the consequences of putting Shirou on the spot like that may be too much."

"You're worried he'll do something reckless."

"A foregone conclusion. We wouldn't be having this conversation if he wasn't." Fishing in his pants, he pulled out a cell phone. "No, I'm worried he'll exacerbate the situation in a vain attempt to mitigate whatever damages he expects might come subsequently. The less reason we give him to assume that we are his enemies, the less preoccupied he'll be about stepping on our toes which may or may not be there in the first place. It'll give him more options and take less desperate measures."

"What are you doing?" She eyed the device warily as he input a number.

"Attempting damage control." He pressed the call button. He waited a few moments before frowning and hanging up. "Instant voicemail. He's turned off his phone. That's not good."

"He's gone silent." Lorelei hummed. "I doubt he's even in his home anymore."

"This is why I told you that cornering him was a bad idea. He's already moving." Waver put in another number. This time it was picked up.

"Hello?" Luvia's voice answered.

"Lady Edelfelt. It's Lord El Melloi II. I just tried calling your host. He's left the house, hasn't he?"

Judging from the surprised choking sound on the other end of the line, he'd take that as a yes.

"Please tell me he at least has Saber with him."

"I, yes. They left together." Judging from her tone, she wasn't certain that they were together. Only that they had vanished at the same time. "We-"

"Be careful about what is said. This line isn't secured." Waver warned.

His words seemed to have a decent enough impact, as she didn't immediately respond. "We're putting in an effort with significant resources to search for him."

Meaning they were sending out Servants to track him down. As good as Shirou was, Waver doubted the boy could hide from them for long. Not unless he had a Caster on hand to help with the task. It might have been a different story if it was just one or two of them, but all of them? He'd be surprised if the kid managed longer than a couple of hours at best. "Don't stretch yourself too thin and expose yourself. The War may be over but that doesn't mean you should be careless. With all the attention you've been getting recently, there's no telling who or what might get a smart idea and try and capitalize on a brief moment of weakness."

"Shouldn't you be telling our dear host that?" Luvia asked with a dry sarcasm.

"Depends. Do you think that anyone that would try would manage unscathed?"

She opened her mouth to reply, but shivered at the idea of attempting to confront Shirou in his current state of mind. "… Is there anything you wanted to inform us in particular?"

"I've managed to talk down the Vice-Director somewhat." He glanced at the person in question, who was looking at him with an indifferent mask that betrayed no emotion. Oh he was definitely going to catch shit for this as soon as he hung up. "Our friend's still on thin ice, but your predicament isn't as precarious as you might assume. It's understandable that you can't be held completely responsible for his behavior given his accomplishments and skills."

"You mean…?"

"I cannot promise anything if he makes a show of himself again. I leave what happens in the short term to your judgement," he cut her off, making his message as clear as he could. Ease Shirou's concerns and make sure he doesn't do something stupid based on false assumptions. "I will try to handle issues on our end to make things manageable, but there is only so much that can be done, especially for me in my current situation. Do keep that in mind."

His chiding seemed to snap her out of her funk, as he heard a familiar conceited scoff on the other end of the line. "Humph. How ridiculous. I came to this backwater country to fight a war, not serve as a babysitter."

"Since the war is over, you literally have nothing but spare time, so you might as well be productive with it." Brushed off her attitude effortlessly. "That being said, I hope you lot didn't overreact and committed all your resources into finding our friend."

There was a wary pause before Luvia replied, as if contemplating what exactly to say. "Do waste your concern on less pointless fears, Professor. Some of us here are still more than capable of managing our valuables properly."

"I'll stop worrying when I can finally put this mess behind me. Not a second before." Waver shook his head, not believing his lie for a moment. Who was he kidding? He was engaged to Reines. He was going to die at an early age from prolonged stress due to overexposure to an extroverted sadist a decade younger than him, magic be damned. He'd rather be poisoned. It would be quicker that way. "I expect a message when everything is finally addressed."

"It will be done. Thank you for your help. It will make matters easier to address now." Luvia didn't like to hope, but she really was banking on it right now as she hung up.

Waver closed his phone and turned to Lorelei. "It's not a theory. Someone's in Fuyuki."

o. o. o.

The soldier took his headphones off and looked to his commanding officer. "Looks like our spotters were right. Target's moving on his own."

"I wouldn't call being with a Heroic Spirit on his own." The senior looked at the reports he had been examining. Both highlighting when Shirou left on his Hayabusa and when several signals that could only be Servants did an hour afterwards. But no other Masters. Not bad considering that their men had to stay at least three kilometers away from the property in order to have a hope of not being detected by the Servants inside. "Probability of successful infiltration?"

"Low. The property still has at least one Servant inside. Probably Berserker at the bare minimum."

"And those blasted bounded fields of Caster's would get in the way of any swift responders. Even if we managed to distract that monster, the Masters would have more than enough time to summon the rest back with their Command Seals. And that's if there isn't another Servant on the grounds." The man clicked his tongue, clearly annoyed. "If you didn't know better, you'd think they were still ready to fight in another War."

He wasn't foolish enough to assume that just because the bulk of the Masters were women and children that they would be easy targets. He had seen Altrouge enough times to have that bit of naive thinking killed in him.

Magi were annoying by themselves, but even without the Magus Killer and the Servants, that house was still hosting an Enforcer, the head of the Edelfelt family, and Merem fucking Solomon. Aimlessly charging in wouldn't do anyone any good.

"Orders?"

"Maintain watch. Unless there's an absolute certainty we can get our hands on one of the other Masters alive, we're not to move so much as a finger. And make sure no one's caught by any rats this time."

Both men allowed themselves to shiver. They maybe technically immortal from Parade, but the memories of watching their comrades swarmed like that… no. It was best not to dwell on it.

They were loyal men to their commander but even so, they could not deny that Apostle Ancestors were still monsters all the same, and as such they would never truly comprehend the twisted games they played and enjoyed.

o. o. o.

Saber didn't say anything as she sat next to Shirou.

When they had first left the household earlier that day, she had many grievances on the tip of her tongue. About how foolish his actions were. About how pointless it was to assume that he'd be able to hide from the combined efforts of Assassin, Rider, Caster, and Lancer.

… About how she wanted to drive the motorcycle instead of being passenger… and subsequent critiques of how he rode said Hayabusa.

But every word that made it up her throat died the instant she saw his face.

Her Master was beyond livid.

She had thought she had seen the worst of his moods during the Grail War, but the recent position the Vice-Director had placed him in had put him in a situation that nearly demanded rash decision making.

In hindsight, it made some sense. Shirou had been prepared for the War. Even potential unfortunate surprises that he didn't necessarily like were still contemplated and hypothesized well in advanced. Deaths of allies. Caster stealing Servants. Etc.

But the position Solomon had placed Shirou in now was a completely new game with different rules that he had not and was not prepared for. A game that few were particularly prepared for… or even aware of for that matter.

She turned her gaze off of her Master and took in her surroundings. She had expected to come to a secret base when they had left. A shelter of some sort, or a dive to spend some time in moderate privacy.

She didn't expect to find herself in the middle of Fuyuki Park, sitting on a lone bench out in the open and completely exposed.

She shifted slightly, somewhat uncomfortable due to the tainted mana in the air that pervaded the area. It was hard to admit that just a short while ago, at least to her, these grounds were where she had battled Lancelot and Gilgamesh. The remnants of the social facilities and houses that had once been her scrubbed clean from sight.

"Is this truly the best place to be given the circumstances?" She finally managed to speak some of the concerns that weighed on her mind.

"… There's no point in hiding. Caster can break into my workshop as easily as breathing, and everyone leaves biological tissue in some quantity in their home. She could find me whenever she wants."

Saber frowned as she tried to follow Shirou's logic and realized that his mad dash out of the house was just so he could get out in the first place. Had he tried later when the other Masters and Servants were paying attention, things would likely have been far more unpleasant. "As hospitable as you are, it is unlikely that free food and board will be enough to soothe matters once we return."

"I'll manage. Somehow," he absently replied, not moving an inch from his hunched over pose, staring off over the bulk of the park. It was blatantly obvious that he was strategizing just how to navigate the mess he was in now. She had seen him in pretty much the same position in prior uncertain points over the past few weeks.

"Yes, but why here exactly? This park-" Saber trailed off, knowing that she really didn't need to explain why their current location wasn't exactly ideal.

"I let my guard down and slipped up. Here… you can relax and not." The constant faint trace of Angra Mainyu in the background put anyone magically sensitive on edge. Like a faint unpleasant buzzing in the background. Far enough to not be truly grating, but impossible to completely ignore.

A frown marred the King's face. "It is unfortunate, but you cannot claim sole responsibility for this turn of events, Shirou."

"I can when I'm the only one that's willing and in a position to do something about it." Asking for Fina to postpone things would lead nowhere, and there was no point in asking Merem to change his mind about accepting the deal. Not attending the exchange at all was an even worse idea, as there was no telling what the pirate would do on his own accord with knowledge of his condition.

More gruesome options were also not feasible. Killing either one of the Vampires would open him up to a whole Moonlit world political shit show that he did not want to be a part of, even if he could somehow successfully pin the blame on the other. Killing both and claiming that they did one another in might work, but the odds of getting away with that idea were so slim that he didn't even consider it viable.

The exchange would happen tonight, and he had to attend it. Meaning his identity as an Apostle, or whatever the fuck he was, would soon be exposed to Altrouge Brunstud's party, and beyond.

Or at least, that was what would happen if he couldn't find a damn way to prevent that.

Problem was, as stated earlier, he couldn't just go up and kill Fina, no matter how happy that might make Lorelei. Oh who was he kidding, that woman was never happy.

Political fallout aside, the Apostle was the Seventh, meaning the guy was guaranteed to be an immense nightmare, figuratively and literally, to kill in the first place. Simply cutting or blasting him to bits probably wasn't going to work.

Which meant that he'd need some way to "motivate" the corsair, and his boss, to keep quiet about his identity in the first place.

Turns out it was infuriatingly more difficult to try and plan combat and negotiation tactics against an eldritch vampire pirate that he knew little about compared to six people that he had spent years if not decades growing up, researching, and sometimes training with simultaneously.

Who knew?

He couldn't be weak about it either. Asking or trying to make an arrangement, or being in a contractual debt with Altrouge in particular was an outlandishly bad idea. It was literally safer to make a deal with the theoretical Devil of biblical myth than it was to shake hands with the Master of Blood and Contracts.

He had signed enough deals in his life. He was not going to chain himself to another monster. Rule Breaker be damned.

Then again, if it was a contract of his own making… then maybe…

"You do realize that you are doing the exact thing that Kiritsugu and the others were concerned about in the first place," Saber chided. "You are purposefully trying to take everything upon yourself."

"Better me than the others. I'm the easy target. I'm used to it." It wasn't so much of a reply than it was a statement.

A scowl marred her face. "You shouldn't be. You, of all people, should not have to undergo such trials after what you have accomplished. Not alone."

He glanced at her skeptically, giving her a look that she would find insulting if she didn't already know the basis behind it.

"Don't you dare accuse me of being a hypocrite now of all times, Shirou Emiya. You know what I'm talking about. Even if I did isolate myself from my subjects in order to become the perfect King, I was not foolish enough to ignore my knights and services they provided me."

"They aren't knights, Saber. They did not dedicate their loyalty and lives to me. They are competent in their own ways, but I refuse to treat them as my subordinates and use them to solve my own problems." His tone was hard and resolute, as if he had clearly set a line in the sand that he will not cross under any circumstance.

"No. But they still trust you despite what you have done. And they are without question worried about you. Dedication of that caliber is rare to come across in this world." She put a hand on his shoulder. "Enough that I would not be surprised if they do something outside of your expectations in an attempt to help, regardless of your feelings or intentions. It is as you said. They are not knights, and they have sworn no loyalty to you, but I do have some experience with regards to situations like this."

Judging from the grimace he made, it was clear that he couldn't argue against her lecture even if he disapproved of what it meant. "Any chance of being able to convince them to keep to themselves?"

"How familiar with my tales and ventures are you?" Saber probed skeptically. She said that her knights were loyal, and they were, give or take the occasional personal adventure her men had, and ignoring the whole mess that ended her reign.

She did not say that they were particularly and consistently well behaved as a whole. Nor would she ever.

Bedivere and Gawain were proper examples of how knights should be, but some of the others could not go anywhere without causing her headaches, like Mordred, Tristan, and Kay… especially Kay. The number of achievements he made was only matched by the number of times she and the rest of the kingdom had to "save" him from debt collectors and brothels.

"Damn it." Shirou allowed his scowl to give way to an almost childish despair, dropping his head into his hands.

Saber almost allowed herself to be amused by his reaction. Instead, she substituted it with relief that her Master was not completely swallowed up by the situation and could still allow his emotions to show to this extent.

Her relief only lasted for a few scant moments as a familiar tingle traveled up her spine and her eyes narrowed. "Shirou."

"Relax, Saber. As much as I'd love a good scrap, the time and place aren't doing it for me." Lancer walked up to them as cool as could be with his hands open in a lazy peace offering. Not that it meant much knowing how fast those hands could be occupied with his spear.

"I thought Caster would be here first," Saber curiously prodded.

"She would have if she wasn't still overly paranoid about everything. Wouldn't leave her Master alone in the house with just Berserker looking after her." Lancer shrugged, clearly not caring either way what she did. He turned his hand and revealed a stone with a rune in it before flicking up with his thumb and tossing it away like trash. "Regardless, it gave me a good shot of finding you first. Well, it was between me and Archer with his eyes, but something tells me he's not putting in much of an effort at the moment."

It was probably for the best that EMIYA didn't get there first regardless, for obvious reasons.

Saber sighed. "I am thankful that you are not being aggressive about this, but you should be able to tell that my Master has no intention of returning soon."

"You and everyone else. Don't worry, Saber, we can see there's no point in trying to drag the kid back. It would be far more trouble than it's worth." Lancer crossed his arms and frowned. "That doesn't mean that we won't try to get you to spill on what the hell's going on though."

"I figured." Shirou lamented. "So? What punishments has Rin come up with so far?"

"From what I can tell, at least from your perspective, the worst that shrew's conjured is letting Archer and Assassin into the Kitchen-"

Within three seconds, half a dozen nameless blades had manifested themselves and fired at breakneck speeds at Lancer. All of which were deflected and blown off course automatically from his Protection from Arrows skill. At least two deep furrows were dug into the earth, but they would probably be ignored by the general public if found.

"Oi oi. Don't shoot the messenger, kid. I was against it too." Lancer didn't so much blink throughout the attempt on his life.

"Shirou. Calm yourself," Saber chided, as if her Master was a child.

The teen took in a deep breath, but didn't say anything, instead settling for giving Lancer an annoyed glare.

"Yeesh. You know, one of these days, you're gonna have to come out and tell everyone what exactly your problem with Archer is." Lancer knew that there were a good number of people that didn't like what they saw in the mirror everyday, but this was taking it a bit too far.

"He exists." Given the tone, it was abundantly clear that Shirou firmly believed what he said.

"In comprehensive detail," the spearman deadpanned before shaking his head. "Whatever. The others can bother with that mess. I'm just here to make small talk and ensure you're not rigging the city to explode."

"Shirou is rather occupied with plotting his current course of action. Unless you have something relevant to update him on, I request you forego your former task," Saber politically advised.

"I figured. Well, it's your lucky day, cause believe it or not I actually do have something of worth to tell ya kid." Lancer smirked. "That Lord El-whatever called up Caster's Master a bit after you left. Don't know what he did exactly, but he claims that he managed to calm down that shrew of a boss of yours to an extent. No doubt he figured something was up and wanted to make sure you didn't go into a complete panic and do something stupid."

Shirou's eyebrow twitched in clear annoyance before he let out a sigh. He had let the situation get to his head. He had put in an effort to hint that something was off in the first place, but didn't bother to assume that Waver would go the extra mile to help him out when Lorelei put him on the spot.

It didn't change the situation much, but at least now he knew that the others weren't in as much danger from the Association from his actions as he initially feared. Not that that was saying much, considering the whole Apostle Ancestor bullshit going on, but it was relieving.

"… Thanks. This whole situation…"

"Kid, you're talking to the guy that single-handedly held off an army for three years. Trust me. I know a bullshit hand when I see one, even if I don't know the whole story yet," Lancer bragged, giving Shirou some surprise empathy.

"Yeah. The Connacht Army. That's actually how I figured out that Caster set up an Ath n'Gabla around the temple entrance. There was no other way she'd be able to hold off a full frontal charge that had Berserker and Saber in it otherwise. You'd need an army to hold off something like that." Shirou gave the Irishman a tired smirk.

Lancer shook his head. "Haha. Smartass. Who are you kidding? We all know that things would have been far messier if Assassin had actually worked with the Witch to the best of his abilities."

Both Shirou and Saber made a face at that prospect. Lancer may have been half joking, but the pair had a far better understanding of just how bad Kiristugu could get if he wanted. Just thinking about what he could have done instead of what he actually did do during the war was… sobering.

Before they could say anything though, Lancer and Saber both stiffened. "Incoming."

Seconds later, Rider materialized near Lancer, her expression as unreadable as always.

Shirou could immediately tell she was not happy with him.

"Any hope of him returning to the house?" She asked Lancer evenly.

"Not a chance in hell." He didn't appear worried or ashamed at the fact in the slightest.

Despite being blindfolded, it was abundantly clear that Rider was giving Shirou an unpleasant look.

"Fair warning, if you get the bright idea to try and force him back, I'm not helping." Lancer held up his hands.

"I am not here to fight. I'm not Archer."

"Technically…" Lancer started, glancing at Shirou before getting a warning glare from Saber. "Nope. Never mind. You're absolutely right. You are not Archer. Sorry for the mixup."

It was hard to tell what exactly Rider thought of Lancer at that moment, but it wasn't flattering. Thankfully, she wasn't one to waste time on small talk and got back to the matter at hand. "Shirou, Sakura wanted to speak to you earlier but you left before it could happen."

The teen frowned, recalling how he was called aside earlier that morning before the trial. "Un. She looked worried about something. But is this really the best time and place for it?"

Rider paused, no doubt talking mentally with her Master. "She says that given the circumstances, it would be best not to leave things to chance."

"More secrets? Still? Now?" Lancer's expression broke like a child that was told he had just been given more homework.

Rider remained quiet for a moment before relaying Sakura's intents. "It's up to Shirou at this point. Sakura wouldn't mind if the others knew, but she's worried it might somehow interfere with what Shirou's planning."

The addressed held back a tired sigh. Great, just what he needed. Another surprise factor. "Tell me what you can for the moment. If it's that bad, I'll ask Lancer to leave. No offense."

"Fine. Whatever. Just stop with the suspense already."

The conversation was silent for a few moments before Rider spoke up again. "Last night, during the event that agitated you, you were witnessed by the Rat."

Shirou didn't let anything slip through his body language, but he was sure that the Servants were still reading him somehow. "The fact that you're telling me this means he came to Sakura about something. He's not one to gossip about private events."

Rider nodded slowly before pausing, this time she was clearly reacting to something she heard. "He claims that you manifested, your sword, during the event."

"His sword?" Lancer blinked in confusion. "What are you… wait, I think I remember my Master telling me about this at the start of the War. Swords that made him some anti-magus monster that I had to watch out for. Weren't they made using Assassin's original remains?"

"I still don't know where you're going with this." Shirou ignored Lancer's rambling.

"The Rat claims that the sword felt different than normal. The curse was more potent. Sakura's concerned about the implications if true, as is the Rat." Rider summarized her Master's worries.

Shirou was clearly surprised by what Rider claimed and turned to his Servant for her own two cents. "Saber?"

The blonde shifted somewhat uncomfortably. "I, share similar thoughts, but didn't know if the effect at the time was of your own doing since you didn't seem to notice. You do not wield that blade often, so I was uncertain if what I witnessed was expected."

Frowning at what he heard and the potential implications, Shirou immediately held up a hand from his lap and effortlessly pulled his personal secret weapon out from his Reality Marble.

The second it materialized in his hand, all the Servants there immediately edged away from him.

"Holy, that thing's your sword?" Lancer blinked in surprise. He had encountered unsavory weapons before. His own Noble Phantasm was cursed, but he sure as hell didn't expect something made in this era to reek with such an ancient malignancy.

"That's a Divine curse, but channeled by the imprint of a human will and Origin." Rider frowned, recalling information that originated from her personal experience as a divine being. "No, not channeled, merely directed. The curse, without question it is being mitigated by Assassin's, by Kiritsugu Emiya's, Origin in that tool."

"Shit, so that's what offed Assassin when he was alive? Gotta give the guy credit where it's due. That's one nasty way to go, and he still used it to his advantage." Lancer peered closer at the weapon with an appraising eye. "Now that I get a better look at it, I can practically feel that guy glaring at me from the blade as if he was pointing his gun at me. It's not a Noble Phantasm, but you have one hell of a piece, kid."

It wasn't a powerful weapon by any means. He could break it with a flick of his wrist with barely a thought. But then again, he could do the same to Caster's Rule Breaker. Either way, he'd rather be slashed nearly in half again by Saber's Excalibur than get scratched by this thing. Better a clean cut than a guaranteed infection.

Shirou frowned, not noting Lancer's comment. "You're right. Something's wrong. The curse isn't supposed to be this strong."

His mind delved within his Reality Marble, where another copy of Kiritsugu was resting peacefully on the Hill of Blades. In his world, nothing appeared to be amiss. The sword was as it had always been, in a dormant state overlooking the crimson light of the sunset and basking under the full moon. The curse in it was placid as always, unlike the blade in his hands…

He dismissed the materialized tool effortlessly and waited a few moments to gather his focus.

"Trace. On."

Selecting weapon. Concept of Creation. Basic Structure. Composition Material. Skill of Making.

Nothing wrong or abnormal found so far.

Experience of Growth. Manufacturing process.

No. No change in the sword or in the curse was found.

The gun clicked in his head. It had only been recently that he realized that it was the hammer of a Thompson Contender. Fitting.

The gun fired, and the new copy of Kiritsugu entered the outside world as if diving into a pool into a new world…

"?" He frowned as the weapon materialized into his hand, once more radiating abnormally with Angra Mainyu's curse.

"Well?" Saber asked.

"It's reacting to something. Resonating with a source in this world. The sword itself hasn't changed." He summarized his conclusion with a grimace. "Sakura was right to bring this up quickly."

"You think the Grail might be activating?" Lancer frowned. "I thought Caster said she had it under control?"

"She might, but that doesn't mean that there might be aftereffects from all the fighting and chaos we stirred up. Sakura's still a Lesser Grail with Gilgamesh's spirit in her, and who knows how much of the Greater Grail's system the Witch messed with. Caster may have merely been occupied with the main functionality of the system and its connection with Marjatta and completely overlooked Sakura's link to it." Shirou clearly did not like that potential idea, but it was a very likely possibility all the same. He glanced at Rider expectantly.

"She's already going straight to Caster for an examination." She hid her concern well. "Hopefully the situation will be one we can address."

"Worst case scenario I get on all fours and beg Aozaki to make a second body for Sakura." Shirou muttered under his breath. "As good as that woman is, I doubt she can recreate corrupted Holy Grail fragments."

"Why not ask her to make you a body? You know, for your vampire problem?" Lancer pondered.

Shirou shook his head. "Doesn't work like that. Touko's puppets are perfect genetic and physical replicas of the original. Nothing more. Nothing less. They require samples from the original body to make. I'm an Apostle like my Origin is Sword. It's a part of me like my DNA, no matter how much I think it's a pain in the ass. Sakura's Grail fragments are embedded in her, and Illya's body was experimented on extensively. External factors. The Grail components still there, albeit dissolved and all over the place. I got rid of what I could but Sakura's body's still a Lesser Grail. You can't replicate that with a blood and skin sample. Worst case scenario is that they're still attuned to the System, but they won't be directly affected by it anymore."

"Magi are rather reluctant to do such favors for one another. What did you offer for her services in the first place?" Saber pondered.

"The entire process behind Tracing. My magic." He answered nonchalantly, getting surprised looks from the Servants. Even Rider knew that Magi held onto the secrets behind their Mysteries with more care than their own children.

"You're serious?" Lancer blinked owlishly. Trained in the Sage arts himself, he knew just how ludicrous the idea of giving away one's secrets in their entirety really was.

"It's not that big of a deal." Shirou waved off their expressions without a care. "Not many would be able to find a use for it to begin with, let alone conjure up the means to pull it off. If my notes got out to the general magus community, THEN I'd be worried, but my agreement with Touko prevents her from divulging anything she might have that utilizes the notes I give her under penalty of her circuits frying her soul, be it in the form of her own notes or tools that she might make afterwards."

The Mysteries behind Tracing came with two, well, more like two and a half major roadblocks that most Magi needed to overcome before they could replicate what he could do.

The first was perfecting and familiarizing oneself with the seven steps in the first place. The number of people on the planet that had a hope of pulling this off to a satisfactory level were equal to the number of people that had a hope of achieving perfect Reinforcement. Sirius was one such rare individual, but even he didn't have the natural disposition for advanced projection itself. At best, he could manage to make a perfect copy of that knife he stored in his body that he showed off during the trial, and that would still take another decade, and only with the knife in question.

The second was accurate and reliable data retention and processing of the item being Traced in the first place, and where Unlimited Blade Works showed its true value. It didn't matter how good one was at examining an item in the first place. If they couldn't bring up said information perfectly later on, the spell might as well be pointless.

The 'half' part was getting it all working at once, and considering how hard of a time Rin had trying to even attempt the process with a block of lead, a singular element, he was pretty sure he was safe for the time being.

Hypothetically, if the Magus world ever did somehow managed to crack all the secrets of his mysteries in a hundred some years (his money was on Atlas. They actually had the setup to pull it off eventually), he'd be fine with that since he'd probably be dead by then. He had no intention of being some freak that was semi-immortal or an idiot that condemns his children to some pointless suicidal task.

There were enough of those in the world as it was.

"For your sake, I hope you're right about that, kid. Truth be told, you're way too calm about this kind of thing for my tastes. Never met a magic user that was so blasé about their craft as you are." Lancer grimaced.

"I use what I have and appeal to what others want. Simple as that, Lancer."

"Simple. Coming from the guy that just ran away from his own home."

What little good mirth Shirou had gained vanished instantly.

"So what happens now kid? Come up with any absurd plans yet? Gotta be honest, it'll be nice to see what it's like from the giving side of things for once."

Shirou gave him a hard glare. "… No. I've got so many restrictions pulling me in so many directions I'm practically spread eagle right now. One wrong move and, it'll be messy. Fuck, I hate politics."

"You and everyone else that has half a soul." Lancer knew the feeling intimately. "But, politics eh?"

"Don't." Whether he intentionally slipped out that bit of information was anyone's guess, but it was clear the teen wasn't going to say any more on the topic.

The Servants all gave one another probing looks to see if the others had anything to contribute. Saber had an unreadable mask of indifference on, clearly intending to hide her Master's secrets, while Rider… also had a mask of indifference on, but she was usually like that. Lancer was just getting frustrated.

"Aaah. This is getting annoying." Lancer scratched the back of his head in frustration. "Fine. Fine. Hold on. I'm dredging up some of my old teacher's lectures. How about this. What's the biggest holdup you have right now kid?"

"Hold up?"

"Problem. Road block. Issue." He crossed his arms. "What's the one thing that's in your way that, if somehow gone, would free you up just enough to bullshit your way out of everything like you normally would?"

"I have a list that..." Shirou shook his head before frowning in deep thought. "But the factors that I could actually influence from here, in the time I have left…"

The teen's finger tapped on his leg at an even pace as he thought deeply about his situation.

Not one of the three Servants missed the frown that slowly etched itself on his face, growing deeper and more distinct as the seconds passed on by.

"Can't think of anything?" Lancer probed.

"No. Just one," Shirou stated ominously.

"And you don't like it." Rider concluded knowingly.

"It's a gamble. With somewhat reasonable odds, but on the off chance that it goes bad…" Judging from the look on his face, the consequences were exceptionally distasteful to him.

"I take it you would not be the only one that would suffer from the potential failure." Saber surmised.

His hands tightened into fists. "Everyone would."

The Servants glanced at one another warily.

"Shirou," Saber spoke up aloud, but didn't say anything afterwards. Most would assume that she was comforting him to some extent, but judging from the way her expression slightly fluxed, it was clear she was talking to him through their connection.

It took no more than a minute, but it was enough for them to discuss what the plan was, and for Saber to react with genuine surprise and concern. "That's?!"

"I know."

"But that would entail the others-"

"I KNOW," he cut her off harshly. If thinking of the approach put him in a bad mood, then discussing it clearly made it worse.

"Well this sounds pleasant." Lancer glanced at Rider, who remained seemingly impassive at the current turn of events.

He let out a deep sigh and looked up at the sky. It was late enough that the sun was starting to set. The curfew was still in effect, so he'd attract unwanted attention if he stayed out in the open for much longer. "Saber. Go home for now. Do what needs to be done, then regroup half an hour before the event. I'll, try and think of something else in the meantime."

"You're highly mistaken if you think I'm leaving you alone to your own devices Shirou." Saber gave him a look that brokered no argument.

"Rider, is it okay with Sakura if you stay out for a bit?" He deflected her statement and turned his attention to the other female Servant.

Momentarily caught off guard by the sudden request, it took her a moment to relay the message to her Master. "Sakura, is concerned, but does not mind if I accompany and supervise you for the time being, Shirou, so long as you refrain from engaging in any extraneous activity. She does wish for you to know that you will have a long discussion with her when you return though."

"Get in line. My Master's been constantly reaching for her gloves ever since the kid bailed on everyone," Lancer snorted.

Shirou knew he was going to suffer the consequences for his impulsive actions when he got back home, but it would have been nice not to be reminded of it.

"Shirou…" Saber clearly was still against if her expression was anything to go by.

"Saber. Please. We don't have much time left."

She opened her mouth to argue, but thought better of it and shook her head. Getting up, she gave him a stern glare. "If you cut off your connection while I'm gone, the other Masters won't be the only ones you'll have to beg for forgiveness."

"Wouldn't dream of it." Shirou had already returned his head back to his hands, trying to isolate his senses from the world to try and think of another way to deal with his current situation.

Knowing that the conversation was more or less concluded, Saber sighed and moved to where the Haybusa was parked. The parting glance she gave Lancer and Rider was enough to dismiss them.

Both visiting Servants went spiritual, but Lancer left soon afterwards, knowing that his presence wasn't welcome for the time being.

For several long minutes, Shirou sat on the bench, looking at the sky as it slowly changed colors.

"… Do you mind if I ask you some personal questions, Rider? You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

Surprised that he would confide in her, it took her a few moments to respond. "Not at all."

"When, when you were sent to the Shapeless Isle, what was the situation you had with your sisters? Why did they go with you? Did they know you'd, of your condition? Of what it would entail?"

Rider froze. Of all the things that he could have asked, she didn't expect things to go in this direction.

"I, must educate you on some subjects to give you a clear answer, Shirou." She started slowly. "From our conception, though we started physically the same, my sisters and I knew that I was imperfect. While they were perfected Divine beings that existed eons before their names were known by man, I, who appeared far later, was a defect. We were to be identical in concept and ideal, but with my coming came a rift that turned us into individuals. My physical body would accumulate and process time, or "age" as mortals would call it. While we were Gods, and thus susceptible to the collective beliefs of mankind, this defect of mine made me particularly vulnerable and exposed into reflecting those beliefs. From the start, my sisters and I always knew that I had the potential to be a monster. A hero killer."

"And they still stayed with you."

"Yes." She smiled faintly. "Even when my exile was finalized and we all knew my metamorphosis was inevitable, they stayed with me. Say what you will about their personalities, but they did not abandon me."

"Their personalities?"

Rider stilled. "What about them?"

"They weren't pleasant to be around for long for mortals, were they?"

"…"

"… You see some of them in Rin at times, don't you?" Chalk up one more similarity between Rider and Sakura.

"I have yet to be around Archer's Master long enough to make such an assumption." Judging from the diplomatic response, it was best to get back on topic.

Besides, the similarities were fleeting at best. Rin actually did work and took responsibility for her mistakes. Eventually.

"So you being able to age caused genuine conceptual faults in you and your sisters. I'm surprised the other Greek Gods didn't take notice and act on it."

"They did, but it amused them more than anything else. Most of the other Gods aged as I did, if you must know. Albeit the process was stagnated by consuming the Golden Fruit. My sisters were the exceptions with their eternal youth. Not the other way around."

"No kidding." He was surprised by the revelation.

"In hindsight, I would not be surprised if my exile was an elaborate scheme of the other Gods to rid themselves of my sisters. As I said, their existences were peculiar, even among the Divine. Not powerful by any means, just the opposite. But, unlike the others, Euryale and Stheno had things turned out differently, I believe they had the capacity to live and exist up to even in this deprived and empty time, though that may simply be just my speculation."

Shirou blinked. Genuine Gods that could persist into the Age of Man? No one knew what specifically ended the Age of Gods, but if that was the case. "They knew. When they decided to go into exile as well they knew that…"

"We all knew." Rider remised, glad that he didn't say any more than that. "I don't know when I forgot, but once that happened, the end was inevitable and paramount. I grew obsessed with fighting off armies and heroes in order to protect my sisters. Obsessed with power, with fighting, with feasting off of the blood of my victims to get the slightest edge. At some point during that process, I had forgotten. That we were supposed to die on that island, that we had decided to die there by our own means. Away from the Gods that had betrayed and abandoned us. My carelessness, merely accelerated the process."

She recalled Stheno and Euryale had frequently joked about potentially outlasting the rest of the pantheon and simply waiting them out, but she knew better. Her elder sisters' personalities were as wretched as the rest of the Gods', but they would not leave her alone to her fate. They had always been intended to be one. Three faces and expressions of the same perfect existence. While she had ruined that particular fate, it didn't change the fact that they belonged with one another.

Shirou didn't ask if she regretted it. He wasn't stupid or rude enough to even consider it. What was done was done. Rider loved her sisters, and lamented murdering them, but she clearly did not regret the time she spent with them on the Shapeless Isle.

"... They came on their own."

"Hm?"

"When you were exiled, you didn't ask them to come with you. From the sound of things, they decided to come with you before you knew it. Despite what would likely happen. Didn't they?"

"I…" Rider faltered, not expecting him to come to that conclusion. "Yes. They did."

"Mmm." She didn't know why, but for some reason her answer seemed to lift a burden from his shoulders.

"They didn't let you live it down, did they?"

"It wasn't a complete conversation unless they brought it up at least once."

"Heh."

o. o. o.

"He's not moving."

"He's still in the park? Out in the open?"

"Yes, and without his Servant. Should we engage?"

"Negative. He's not stupid. Barthomelloi doesn't take idiots. It's a trap. Maintain your distance and keep watch."

"What of the other teams?"

"Alpha can't find an opening. Charlie and Gamma lucked out though."

"Good. At least we'll have something to work with."

"Scared of a kid?"

"Scared of Solomon. I've been wiped out by those monsters of his twice, like the rest of our squad, remember? Couldn't care in the slightest about some brat that's barely has any field experience."

"Yeah well, word is he's some hot shit, so who knows? He might have some interesting tricks to show us by the end of the night. He did manage to survive this Grail War. Servants are no joke."

"Doubt it. Probably just lucked out with whoever he managed to scrounge up."

"We don't care what you believe. Keep an eye on him. We only have a few hours left before the meeting."

"Sir."

o. o. o.

Saber and Merem were in Shirou's workshop. Saber had been bombarded with questions and requests the second she got back, but time was short. There was an order to what she had to do, and some of the tasks she had been given might take some time. Thankfully, the others understood the urgency of her actions and gave her the space she needed, albeit with some reservations.

They were less pleased when she called Merem specifically to talk in private.

"I suppose Shirou has conjured some sort of agenda for tonight?" The Vampire probed as if talking about the weather. Saber walked around the workshop and started gathering the specific items that her Master had requested.

"That remains to be determined." She picked up a sash that stored several grenades in it. There were several of the like, but with varying contents depending on what the color and number on them was. Clearly each one was intended for different operations. "I presume you understand what my Master's primary aim for tonight is."

"Of course. My friend treasures his privacy and peace. He wishes to ensure that his identity as an Apostle Ancestor will not be spread by Altrouge and her ilk."

"Don't play coy. If you know Shirou as well as you claim, then you are aware that what you stated is merely a means to an end." Saber moved to a cabinet and searched its contents.

"To ensure the safety of those he cares about above himself. His friends. His family. Loved ones. It's remarkable how he takes his human attachments to such inhumane extremes. He'd rather risk exposing himself and make immensely difficult enemies than hazard the fates of those under his self-imposed protection. It reminds me somewhat of those under your command, Your Majesty." Merem meandered through the shed like a child exploring a small store for the first time. He paused and examined nearly every sword that floated above, both the ones that remained absolutely static and the ones that followed paths of all sorts.

"Do not patronize me, Vampire. Shirou does not, nor will he ever have the disposition of a knight. Do not slander him, nor my men with such a vague comparison." A Knight was a symbol of honor. Of peace. Of strength, valor, and the will of the King.

They frequently joked about Shirou's inability to be her squire, but they both knew that he would never fill the position. While he would gladly serve her by any means he could provide, he was not suited for the role.

"My apologies," Merem yessed her as he poked one sword that was not moving at all. "How interesting. It is common for Magi to weave and tangle their arts with space-time. But from what I can tell, your Master's actually attempting to directly, forge, for lack of a better term, it into his blades. A more basic, abundant, yet complex and stubborn material, one can never find. I can't even remember when the art was lost. It wasn't before I was born, but it wasn't recently either. I believe the degradation started in the Middle East around when the secrets to true Damascus Steel was forgotten, ah when was it? It's on the tip of my tongue…"

Saber frowned. "It's up to you."

The Vampire paused, halfway towards reaching for another blade. "Pardon?"

"Shirou's stuck. He admits himself that he can't make any progress or see success with the restrictions that are put on him. That you have put on him." She elaborated firmly. Accusingly. "As it stands, he will be forced to go through with tonight unable to enact any means of protecting himself and the others in the long term. Unless you have some sort of plan to silence this new Vampire tonight without repercussions, we will be exposed."

"Oh my. That is a problem." Despite his admittance, Merem didn't appear bothered or worried by the revelation. "However I am unsure what you think I can do. As much as I would revel in massacring Fina by any means available, there is a code of conduct to be followed. It isn't the right time or place to escalate hostilities with Altrouge. With that stipulation in place, I'm unsure what means of support relief I could provide that could tilt the scales. Once his identity is revealed, there is little I can do to control what the other party does with it."

"Do not play coy. A monster of your experience has no doubt conjured several possible options to play out tonight."

"Indeed, and most if not all involve great sacrifice to some degree or another." Merem admitted without shame. "I was hoping that Shirou would be able to conjure another amusing approach to the issue as per the norm. I suppose the conditions he has to work with are a bit suffocating, even for him. Barthomelloi is one of the few humans in this world that an Apostle can simply cannot ignore. Still, I don't know what I could do to rectify the matter."

"We need to tell the other Masters about the other Vampire, of the fact that Shirou's condition will be exposed," Saber stated, more or less ripping the bandage off.

Merem's ambient expression fell to an unreadable mask of indifference. Clearly he wasn't pleased by the request. "Oh? We need to go that far? I thought that Shirou wanted to get through tonight without any escalations."

"He does." Saber kept her emotions in check.

With a heavy feeling in her stomach, she informed him of her Master's scheme if given the leeway he desired.

The room was deadly silent for seconds that felt like hours.

And then…

"Heh. Hahaha."

Merem laughed.

"Hahahaha."

It was not a full blown and crude bellow that most humans or insane beasts with sentience would revel in. Rather it was a spontaneous and immensely amused chuckle, as if the owner simply couldn't help the reaction and let it out while gathering their thoughts.

"That's his plan?" Merem couldn't hold back his disbelief and mirth. "I have to admit, I'm somewhat surprised disappointed that this was the best he could come up with. Such a crude gamble would never work on Altrouge for long."

Saber was about to speak, but Shirou whispered something through their connection. "And if you factor in the Command Seals and that peculiar ritual you vampires are to take part of within the next decade?"

The vampire's laughter stopped instantly.

For the first time since she met the small monster, Saber had witnessed a genuine hunger in his eyes.

"Oh. Oh Shirou you naughty and vicious child, I knew I talking to you so much over the years would yield something unpleasant, but to think it would rear its head now. When you put it that way... my apologies. I, no, you're right. You're absolutely right. At face value it is a foolish idea to play with, since we would without question play with it to the greatest extent. But with the options that your Command Seals give… no. Altrouge would still play with you. Once she learns of this, an encounter is inevitable, but she would wait. Like with Tatari. Say what you will about that one, but she can be patient. A decade is seen with the same value as half a century to us. With oncoming events, she cannot afford to agitate the field as much as she'd like."

The two maintained eye contact for several long moments, probing the other for any hint of deceit or uncertainty.

Slowly, the King took out the paper she had rummaged from Shirou's workshop and placed it on the nearby table.

"Do you consent?"

Merem's smile widened, and for the first time, his fangs were visible. "I'll get Assassin."

It was best to move quickly.

They were burning precious moonlight.

It was going to be an interesting night.

o. o. o.

Omake:

Shirou sat in the closed room, waiting for his interrogator. From what he had heard, it was likely one of two individuals. One he couldn't care less about, but the other…

The door opened, revealing both his greatest and least anticipated person.

"Mr. White." Kotomine Kirei calmly walked into the room, looking at the paper in his hand. "A supporting engineer for your world's Chaldea. Specializing in temporal systems, you supported in developing and enforcing several of the projects and programs to the point that your role is considered essential by many of the staff. It says you and several from your dimension were accidentally transferred here due to an accident with an experiment with the Fourth Magic?"

"That's correct. One of my colleagues back home is a student of Kaleidoscope. She was summoned to assist in testing synchronizing the Spiritron Calculation Engine to the other projects in our world. There was an irregularity, and I ended up here. Considering how fickle true magics are, I suppose I should consider myself lucky."

"No doubt." Kirei sat down, his unreadable gaze glanced at Shirou's face. "So. Why pick such an obvious alias?"

"Safety precautions. Mostly." Shirou shrugged. He had not publically called himself Shirou Emiya for over a decade. His friends and close ones still called him that, but, "Shirou Emiya" was dead in his world, and it was better that way.

"Even in a world that isn't yours?"

"Can't be too careful. Magi aren't exactly the most trustworthy folks out there."

"I suppose. What with needing to support a Servant and all." Kirei looked at Saber's picture. Shirou didn't know if it was from her personal wish to finally start growing, her irregular state, a lack of Avalon in her, or a mix of them, but she had grown over the years to become a beautiful and well-endowed woman.

It didn't stop her from being able to hand his ass to him whenever they sparred. It did, however, force her to start practice binding her chest so she could move properly, which irritated her greatly.

That said, her physical changes, and update to her hairstyle, had altered her appearance enough that no one would see her as King Arturia Pendragon. At least, at a first glance.

Even True Magic could do nothing against the phenomina known as "Saber Face". Damn it Alien Assassin Arturia…

No. He absolutely refused to call her by that ridiculous title. Not even in his own head and he will fight anyone that tries to tell him otherwise.

"The Organization here has been very kind and supportive of us." Shirou smiled kindly. "It was only natural that we help them out with their own ordeals."

"Yes. It does say that contact with your own reality has been made and you are finishing preparations to go back soon. How convenient."

"You're insinuating that I'm behind the ordeals recently."

"The timing is rather convenient, wouldn't you say?"

"It's already been stated that we came here by coincidence. The irregularities here during the missing year made it so that Saber and I were more likely to come out during our failed experiment. Unless a Priest would know something about advanced dimensional thaumaturgy, I doubt explaining it to you would make any difference."

"Hm. Well, you do have a point. I have some basic education in the craft, believe it or not, but not to the extend you do."

"Tokiomi Tohsaka, correct?"

Kirei froze, not expecting to hear that name.

"The one who taught you. Tokiomi Tohsaka." Shirou's lazy expression didn't change one bit, but his eyes were drinking in the man's reaction like a sponge.

The Priest slowly put down the paper. "Do you by chance, know me in your world?"

"We met a few times." Shirou supplied. "I doubt you knew my counterpart here though."

"And why's that?"

"Can't find any trace of him when I looked through Chaldea's servers. There was a good chance I could have died during a specific event when I was a kid."

"My condolences."

"Don't be. If we both existed at the same time, then it would cause nothing but headaches. Literally in my case."

"You sound like you already have some experience with that."

"More than you want to know." Shirou hoped that no one would ever find and ask him about the stockpile of rare mana prisms he had in his room. It was he dirty personal trophy and he was not ashamed of it in the slightest.

Kirei didn't say anything for several long moments. "… You're from Fuyuki, aren't you? A native Japanese Magus with a Servant. You participated in the Grail War. Are you a Tohsaka?"

The man smirked. "No. Rin would have a heart attack if the mere idea of linking me and my accomplishments to her family name ever became a possibility."

The Priest frowned. "Rin Tohsaka. I remember that girl, but she's…"

"Dead. Along with the entirety of the Matou Family, the Einzbern representative, and a good number of others. In this world. Animusphere was many things, but he was not a merciful Master." Thankfully, the man's Servant was.

Solomon. Of all the Servants and names he had to come across… it was infuriatingly ironic.

"But you were." Kirei was slowly connecting the dots.

"I was, to the ones that actually listened to me and didn't strive to make things worse." Shirou prodded. "Couldn't have a repeat of the Fourth War, now could we?"

Kirei's body slowly shifted. To an untrained eye it was hard to see, but to Shirou it was clear the man was gearing for a fight. "Who are you?

Shirou's body language mirrored his. "I'll answer your question if you answer mine."

"Which is?"

"What happened to Gilgamesh?"

In this world, Kirei Kotomine did not remain in Fuyuki and take up his duties as Rin's guardian. Soon after Fuyuki burned down, the man had headed straight back to the church and gone on several high priority missions that vanished him from the map. And yet, no sign of Gilgamesh. No affluent, golden haired, nearly perfect individual was seen in the decade after the Fourth War. Or after the Fifth for that matter.

No sign of himself, or Kiritsugu either.

"And why would you want to know of the fate of my departed teacher's Servant?"

"Because a guy like that doesn't die easily. I should know."

Kirei blinked. "You killed him?"

"It was a team effort. And not without risk and a bit of luck."

"And who is to say that someone else did not take up the mantle in this world during the Fifth War? Servants are not infallible, and Gilgamesh is prone to letting his guard down."

Shirou snorted. "Lying doesn't become you Kirei. We both know he was dead long before then."

"You sound as though I was responsible for his supposed demise."

"I hold your ability to construct and carry out plans in very high regard." There was no sarcasm in Shirou's voice. He was being completely honest.

Kirei didn't say anything.

"Detaining the crew of Chaldea so there aren't any "distractions" from waking the A team? Oh no, please give some of us some credit. You're not that linear. You're stalling Kirei. DaVinci are all busy with the pods, and the rest are all locked up, so they can't do anything else. They can't look anywhere else. In here. Or outside."

A flash of light. A clash of metal.

Kirei jumped back and examined the black key that he had just struck out with. The chipping in the metal showed that it was lost the battle against Shirou's unmarred right arm.

"You must be desperate for time, trying to silence me now. The old you was far more patient." Shirou sighed in his seat, cracking his neck slowly as if he wasn't in a rush. "Hm. No. Rather, you can't afford to be exposed this soon. I highly doubt that Mulisk is a significant part of your plan now that the facility is in your hands. A tool at best. If I send word out to the Association…"

Three more Black Keys flew at him like bullets but were deflected with a wave of Shirou's metallic hand. Each tool had the power behind it to pierce steel, but they were thrown off without a care.

Chaldea rumbled as an explosion went off in another part of the building.

It was a bit earlier than planned, but now that time was confirmed to be a factor, all bets were off. The sooner they moved the better.

Kirei didn't fall for the distraction, his hands curling into fists and his body making a pose. "You're not human."

"Who knows? Not like you can complain, with that thing in your chest." He was the Tenth, but he was still mostly human. Well, not that the first meant anything here. Apostles still existed in this world, but the organization known as the Twenty Seven was nowhere to be found. His title meant nothing here, not that it meant much to him to begin with.

The Priest finally let out a scowl. "Who are you?"

Shirou smiled bitterly, and finally turned the direction of the conversation to where he wanted, and pointed to his head. His tan skin topped by a mop of white. "When I was a kid in Fuyuki, I had red hair."

The room was silent. The statement seemed to come from nowhere, and for the briefest of moments, Kirei was at a loss.

Until he reached an epiphany.

A burning city.

An assassin rummaging lost through the rubble looking for survivors.

Standing over the lost man as the latter rushed towards a child that had just collapsed in the devastation.

The swing of a blade.

Staring into the empty eyes of the dying child as the last dredges of life exited his body. His rust red hair melding with the flames around them.

"The boy…" He whispered, as if seeing a ghost from his past. "… Emiya."

The building shook once again. The explosion was closer this time.

Saber must be angrier than he thought. Probably shouldn't have acted out ahead of schedule. Oh well.

"Care to explain what abomination you're trying to manifest this time Kirei?" Shirou probed almost mockingly, a plain steel short sword appearing in his off hand.

The blade shattered as it came into contact with the Priest's fists, and he was forced back into the wall of the room.

"Gh!" He stumbled on his feet, and felt his shoulder kreak from the damage he took. All in all, not bad for a blow that was meant for his heart. "That's, not the strength of a human."

No. If anything, that was the power of a Servant.

Well now. Things truly had taken an interesting direction in this world.

Kirei didn't say anything. He was busy already rushing to close the distance and finish Shirou off.

The Apostle Ancestor smirked and instantly plotted out his next move.

Caster had killed the man in his world, but that didn't mean he couldn't enjoy doing it here.

"Trace. On."

o. o. o.

A/N:

As always, thanks Wayfarer for betaing.

I'M ALIVE!

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is what happens when the office gives someone a 4-5 month job and a due date of 1.5 months. This, I just. Ugh. I'm tired guys. I'm totally beat.

I'll keep these notes quick so I can get this chapter out fast.

Got a girlfriend. Lasted a few dates. Then mutually called it off cause we weren't right for one another, but we're still friends. Yay.

Work drove me nuts the moment new year started.

Just did my taxes. I'm crying now because I owe the gov damn big chunk of money.

Boss just retired last Friday. We got him a decanter with a ship in the glass, two bottles of whiskey (one was Johnny Walker Blue), a brass sextant, a dinner, and a big ass cake. So yeah, we partied hard and now we're… still waiting for upper managment to decide a replacement.

When you mix that with the fact that our new supervisor, the guy above my boss, is ALSO new to the department… oh this is gonna be fun.

FGO's good as usual. Birthday's coming up. Coronavirus is gonna kill us all. Market's crashing. End of the world. Chinese government's fault as expected. Yadayadayada.

Oh, and for those of you that are gonna bitch about how the omake isn't canon because in the FGO verse the HGW in 2004 Fuyuki was the first one, I know, I don't care, blame Zelretch.

Seriously, I feel like a good ¾ of the haters of my fic only exist because they can't get over the fact that some people actually treat most of my world building in this fic as direct canon for some reason. It's not my fault that some people got introduced to the nasuverse through my fic people. Quit your bitching, get over it, and calmly and politely explain to the misinformed what is and isn't legit like a normal rational person would.

Well, that or because my fic isn't as grimdark as Fate Zero. Fucking Emos. Go back to your poetry. Normal people don't want to be perpetually as miserable as you unless it's election ye- FUCK.

The other quarter do have valid critiques though and I appreciate your input and your time. Thank you.

Blarg. Tired. Gotta do work and stuff tomorrow.

I should be on schedule for the next chapter. I'm real sorry for the wait guys. Hope everyone's doing well with that virus going about. Be careful and please do your research about how to deal with it and take care of yourselves. Don't rely on what the main news stations are spewing out. They're gonna fuck us enough as it is this year.

SO REVIEW! WORSHIP THE LOG! SHIROU IS TRYING TO MAKE A MONUMENT DEDICATED TO MURDERING ARCHER MADE OUT OF RARE MANA PRISMS AND IT WILL BE GLORIOUS! AND REVIEW AGAIN!