Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate franchise it belongs to Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon.

Purified by Fire, Dancing with Fairies

Chapter 27

The moment Ayame opened the doors in the cold of the dawn and saw a heavily-breathing, and clearly tearful Sella standing on her doorstep, she knew something was wrong. Ushering the broken homunculus into her house, she sent a thought to Saber, who immediately donned his armor and summoned Excalibur into his hands, and stood guard as Ayame prepared and then poured tea for her unexpected guest.

"My lady is dead." Sella said without preamble.

Hot tea spilled on the table as Ayame's teacup fell from nerveless fingers. "…what?" she whispered.

"My lady is dead." Sella repeated tonelessly.

"My sister…Illya…is dead?" Ayame echoed.

Sella nodded slowly, and then sniffing, looked away while tears streaked down her cheeks. "…how?" Ayame asked in a whisper.

Sella sniffed, and wiped at her face while trying to pull herself together. And then she began to explain, of how ten years ago Kiritsugu Emiya had served as Einzbern's Master during the Fourth Holy Grail War. She explained how as a result of his failure to win and return the Holy Grail to Einzbern, the head of the Einzbern family, Jubstacheit von Einzbern, had ordered Kiritsugu's daughter Illya made into the vessel for the Holy Grail, much like her mother had been before her.

Sella then explained how the founding families had each contributed to the Holy Grail War, or as it was properly called, the Heaven's Feel ritual. Tohsaka had provided the spiritually-potent land to hold the ritual on, Makiri – later known as the Matou – had provided the means to power it, and Einzbern had built the Grail, which was divided into two. There was the Greater Grail, the wish machine the ritual was meant to power, and the Lesser Grail, which would serve as the vessel for the energies of fallen Servants to be fed into the Greater Grail upon the ritual's conclusion.

The three families had diverged after the First Holy Grail War, as a result of differing goals for the Grail. Tohsaka wished to reach the Root, Makiri wanted to use it bring about utopia, and Einzbern to reclaim the lost Third Magic, but despite that they each continued to contribute what was required, or at least Tohsaka and Einzbern did. Tohsaka continued to allow Heaven's Feel to be held on their land, and Einzbern prepared the Lesser Grail to be used in each war.

Originally the Lesser Grail had been literal cups made in the image of the legendary Holy Grail, but during the Third Holy Grail War, the Lesser Grail had been destroyed early on in the conflict, rendering the whole contest moot from the very beginning. In response, Einzbern designed the Lesser Grails for the fourth and fifth wars as homunculi themselves, the better to avoid risk and danger until they were called upon to fulfil their reason for existing.

However, this brought disadvantages of its own, chief of which was that even with a homunculus supernatural ability to store and channel magical energy, there was still an upper limit that would be surpassed due to the sheer amount being gathered for Heaven's Feel. To continue to contain that energy within a homunculus' body required equivalent sacrifices in other areas, and as a result, after the death of the fourth Servant, Illya had been paralyzed, left in a vegetative state and only able to communicate with her retainers by means of telepathy, and with the death of the fifth Servant just hours ago, her mind and soul would have ceased to be, subsumed into the sea of magical energy contained within her.

Ayame had sat silent and unmoving all this time, but when she heard this, that he sister was not merely dead but actually had had her soul consumed by the Grail, exploded in rage. She didn't say anything, as no there were no words that could express what she felt. Sella could only flinch and look away as Ayame got up, and kicking the veranda doors down, screamed and impotently shook her fists while crumpling to her knees. Nearby, Saber could be heard speaking softly in Old Welsh, chanting a prayer from before Christian times, invoking a peaceful rest for yet another child sacrificed for her family's insane ambition.

"…my lady wanted you to know that she was sorry that it had to end this way." Sella continued. "She also wanted you to know that she was happy to have met you, and to have gotten to know you ever so much."

"…it didn't have to end like this!" Ayame exploded, and getting to her feet, kicked at the broken doors again. "God damn it! God damn magi!"

Sparks erupted from Ayame's fists as she screamed again in rage and grief, golden lightning crackling and arcing all over her body. "No…it didn't." Sella agreed, and again wiped her eyes.

Ayame sneered at that, and stomped over towards Sella. "Oh that's rich," she scoffed. "Coming from you, Einzbern."

"…I too was meant to be a Lesser Grail."

"…what?"

"My sister Leysritt and I…we were originally supposed to be the vessels for the Fifth Holy Grail War." Sella said. "But after the fourth war…after it was decided that our lady was to be the vessel, we were branded as redundant, and scheduled for 'recycling'. If not Lady Illyasviel's intervention…we would not be speaking here and now."

"…you owe everything to her." Ayame whispered.

"Yes," Sella said with a nod. "I do."

Ayame made a growling sound in the back of her throat, and them stomped over to sit opposite Sella. Silence reigned for several long minutes, and as golden morning light filled the yard and crept into the veranda and the room beyond, Ayame's eyes slid towards Sella. "…why?" she asked.

"…my lady wanted you to know everything." Sella said with closed eyes. "She said you deserved to know. Both as her sister, and the only one in the contest fighting for a reason worth fighting. And because of that, she wanted you to be the one to claim it in the end."

"…Illya…" Ayame breathed. "…you…"

Sella sighed. "I was told to advise you to surrender the Grail to Einzbern after your victory." She said. "Your sister's grandfather is not a good enemy."

Ayame narrowed her eyes. "And?" she asked.

Sella also narrowed her eyes. "My lady then said as the ultimate victor of the war, you should do with it as you pleased." She said. "You may even claim Heaven's Feel, the Third True Magic, for your own if you so desire."

Ayame was silent for a long moment, and then folding her hands leaned forward on the table. "And what do you plan to do about it, either way?" she asked.

"My loyalty is to my lady." Sella said without hesitation. "Things should not have come to this. Surely there was a better way…but because Einzbern could not be bothered to find it, my lady is lost to me. If you choose to stand against Einzbern, then as I told my lady before she commanded me to go to your side, it will be an honor to stand with you, if you will have me."

Ayame silently stared into Sella's eyes, the homunculus just as calmly and resolutely staring back. Then Ayame glanced at Saber, the Servant giving a near-imperceptible nod of support. Ayame closed her eyes, and taking a deep breath, made her decision.

"If my sister trusted you," Ayame said while opening her eyes. "Then I'll trust you too."

Sella bowed low. "I am grateful." She said.

"Don't be so grateful yet." Ayame began. "I have absolutely no intention of letting Einzbern get their paws on the Grail. A family like that…which turns its own children into homunculi, discards them with cold, callous calculation, and sacrifices their very souls just for a chance to regain a lost magic…I will never ever trust them with something like the Grail. I don't give a damn if they were the ones who built it in the first place, or how much they sacrificed to get to this point, they cannot be trusted with it, much less True Magic."

"They will dispute that." Sella warned. "And no matter how truthfully you can claim that you won the Grail and the right to have your desire granted fairly, they will seek retribution for denying them their prize."

"In short," Ayame said with a laugh. "They'll be poor losers. Let them: I don't give a damn. I've already faced down an arch-magus once before, one who'd become a Dead Apostle and who'd lived for centuries. I faced him, killed him, and wiped out his entire line. If Einzbern wants to become my enemy, then I'll do the same to them if I have to."

Sella bowed. "As I said," she said. "It will be an honor to stand with you if that time comes."

Ayame nodded, and then tapped her fingers on the table. "…now what?" she asked.

"Berserker has fallen, as you well know." Sella said. "Only two Servants remain, your Servant and Tohsaka's Lancer…"

"WHAT?" Ayame asked in shock. "Tohsaka? As in Rin Tohsaka?"

"Yes, that is who I refer to." Sella said with a nod.

"How?" Ayame demanded. "How is she a Master again? I took away her command spells after Saber killed her Archer, and where did she get Lancer?"

"According to my lady," Sella began. "There are two possible answers: one, she infiltrated Lancer's Master's lair and killed him before taking command of Lancer by taking his fallen Master's command spells, or two, she received a fresh set of command spells from the Overseer before his demise, and that Lancer may in fact have lost his Master for a time, and simply made a new contract."

"Wait, wait, wait…" Ayame said while shaking her head. "That second one…how does that even work…?"

"This is all very academic." Saber interrupted. "Far more important here is that Tohsaka may have been responsible for the massacre on Mount Ryuudo."

"She very likely is." Sella remarked. "Her…coordination, with Lancer indicates that this is not the first time they fought together. Considering Lancer was not seen in battle until the incineration of Ryuudo, then it is likely that that was their first engagement, and such an overwhelming victory cemented their partnership. And yes, in light of other concerns, I would say that the 'how' of her reentering the contest is indeed, very academic."

Ayame slammed her fist on the table, and causing spilled tea to slosh everywhere. "That damn woman!" she snarled. "What is she thinking? What could she possibly desire from the Grail that she'd commit mass murder? There were nearly half a hundred people in that temple!"

"Objectively-speaking, it was a sound decision." Saber pointed out. "It took out two Servants all at once."

Ayame gaped at her Servant, and he turned to her with the eyes of a king. "I'm no saint, Ayame." He said. "And I won't pretend to be one. For the sake of my kingdom, I had to bloody my hands, so my people didn't have to. But…that's just the thing, isn't it? For the good of the many, a few had to be sacrificed."

Ayame bit back her words, and looking down for several moments nodded grimly. "I see your point." She said. "But I strongly doubt Tohsaka's reasoning is anywhere nearly as justifiable as yours."

"…I think I might know what it is." Saber grimly said.

"What?"

"Think, Ayame." Saber pointed out. "When this war started, do you think Tohsaka would have been capable of such an act?"

"Yes." Ayame said. "She's a magus. Among their kind, admirable people like Merlin are the exception rather than the rule. I daresay Morgana is a more common archetype."

Saber pinched his nose. "…point taken." He said. "But think: she was very much stable at the start of this war, and while prone to losing her temper, she was more…subtle, wasn't she? Not the type to do something so drastic as destroying a temple complex and killing everyone inside."

"…now that you mention it, that is true." Ayame thoughtfully said, and then her eyes widened in realization. "It can't be…!"

Saber nodded. "All her family's dark secrets have been dragged out into the light over the past several days." He said. "She's been forced to face them, and the realization that she's been living a lie all this time. But if so…then…"

"…then her wish is to set things right." Ayame finished before slamming her fist against the table again. "Stupid woman! It's not that I don't understand, but…it's pointless. You can't change the past. All you'd succeed in doing is create a new timeline, one that branches off from your original starting from the point of divergence. That is basically the whole principle of the Second True Magic, the Kaleidoscope!"

"I would daresay she is aware of that." Sella said. "But if her mental state is as Saber mentions, compromised, then she may be disregarding it whether in the desperate hope that she can prevent those dark secrets from coming to pass, or that all her sacrifices so far have not been for naught. Or indeed, both."

"Those were sacrifices that should never have been made in the first place!" Ayame spat. "And you don't overcome the specter of the past by denying them! You do that by facing them! Moving on! Starting over with the lessons learned from those mistakes, and the resolution never to repeat them again!"

"…but to do so would mean admitting Tohsaka's pride is hollow." Sella observed, and snarling in frustration, Ayame slammed her fist on the table again.

"STUPID MAGI AND THEIR STUPID PRIDE!" she roared. "Sella, where are they taking my sister's body?"

Rin stared as she found herself facing someone she never expected to see ever again. There, standing with a smile amidst the cracked and soot-stained courtyard of Kotomine Church was Kirei Kotomine. He greeted her with a bow and respectful applause.

"You have done well." He said. "Lancer seems to suit you better than Archer ever did. First Assassin and Caster, and then Berserker. The former though was unnecessarily destructive, and caused quite the collateral damage."

"A necessary sacrifice," Rin waved it off. "And one which will never have been once I have the Grail, and set things right."

"Indeed," Kirei said with a nod and a laugh, though he then adopted an expression of indulgent sternness. "Nevertheless, on the basis of principle, consider yourself…reprimanded, for your excessive tactics."

"Done…now what?"

"Now, we prepare."

At those words, Kirei led the way into the ruins of Kotomine Church. The church proper was the worst off, with the roof having collapsed and covered much of the floor beneath in rubble. The furniture had been reduced to charred chunks, and while the altar was in one piece, it was covered in soot and the stained glass windows and the crucifix behind had all been destroyed.

Neither Rin nor Kirei seemed to care however, as they passed through and into the atrium. The damage was less here, though there was plenty of broken glass and spilled dirt, the latter from overturned pots and vases which had once held growing plants, though said plants lay wilted and dying amidst the spilled earth which had once nourished their roots.

Again, neither Rin nor Kirei seemed to care. They quickly strode through the atrium, Lancer trailing behind them, and carrying the Grail vessel on his back. Kirei led them into his apartments, and through a dimly-lit stairwell, into a cellar underground.

"Place the vessel on one of the benches." Kirei said, while lighting candles and placing them in niches set into the walls.

"And then what?" Rin asked.

"And then we wait." Kirei replied.

"What?"

"The ritual to link the vessel to the Greater Grail is actually quite simple." Kirei said. "Once it's done, the Grail will manifest and simply await the final victor to advance to the World Gate, where they will offer their wish to the Grail to be granted."

"Why can't we do it now?" Rin asked.

"Perhaps you would care to check the time?" Kirei lightly asked. "You might not care, but I do, as even if your wish is granted, I must remain and pick up the pieces afterwards. I am helping you Rin, so I hope you can grant me the courtesy of helping me ever so much in turn."

"…fair enough, I guess." Rin conceded after a moment.

"Besides," Kirei said. "Your wish is more than what five fallen Servants' worth of energy can grant. You need six, and thus Saber's death to have it granted."

"I know." Rin snapped. "But, if there's nothing more that needs to be done here, then I'm going to go and prepare."

"Hmm…you do that."

Rin nodded and strolled off, followed by Lancer. Left alone, Kirei glanced at the silent form of Illyasviel von Einzbern, and smiled. He smiled at the memory of another white-haired woman from ten years ago, and how delightful it had been, to demonstrate the hollowness of her final defiance before he ended her life.

A shame I cannot sample this vessel's empty defiance before her consciousness was lost, but alas, one cannot have everything.

Now then…patience…soon…everything will come full circle.

Ayame popped her dress' star-shaped buttons into place, and then picking up her scarf, wrapped it around her neck. Pushing her hair out of the way, she regarded herself in the mirror, wearing the black and white apparel of Marisa Kirisame of Touhou fame. When she had first received it, she had been filled with glee. Now though…

"…damn it." Ayame swore, looking away and blinking away tears. She'd barely known Illya, just her name and some bits and pieces about her really, and had spent less than a day with her. But even so…she wanted to have known more, spent more time with her. And they could have…

…had it not been for the war, and Einzbern's cruel inhumanity.

"Not so different from Matou in the end." Ayame thought in black fury. "The only differences are that the Einzbern haven't offended the fey the way Matou did, and their methods are more refined, but no less inhuman. Damn them…damn them all…"

Approaching her destination, Ayame paused to collect herself with a deep breath, and then walked up to her father's shrine. Sinking to her knees, she opened the wooden doors, and taking an incense stick, lit them with her fingers before placing them in a small receptacle before her father's picture.

She prayed her usual prayer for his eternal peace, and then added something new.

"Dad," she began. "I…I'm going to go and finish what you started. You fought in the Fourth Holy Grail War ten years ago, didn't you? Kirei Kotomine told me. Yes, I know you told me not to trust him. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten. I don't trust him completely, but I don't think he'd lie to me about that. I also understand why you never told me. Dad…you were there, weren't you? In the final battle of that war…you witnessed whatever it was that caused the Great Fire, and killed and hurt so many people, including. But it's alright…I don't blame you. Because I know whatever it was, you never intended for it to happen, and in the end, you saved me. You gave me a second chance at life, taught me to value it, to live it well, and to use my powers responsibly. You taught me how to become someone I can one day look back to with pride. And for all that, thank you. Rest in peace, dad. I'll take care of myself, and one way or another, I'm going to make sure this Grail war will be the last."

Ayame paused, and then closing her eyes, leaned her head forward. "I've also met my older sister, Illya." She thought. "She's a Master in this war…I wonder, was that why you never told me about her? Sella's told me a lot of things, including how you were kept from her as punishment for failing to win the last war, and that was also why they turned her into the Grail's vessel. And considering the war's almost over…I'm sure she's standing with you right now, listening to my pathetic thoughts. Heh…I'm sorry, big sister. I wish we could have spent more time together, learned more about each other…but I'm going to make sure no one will suffer your fate ever again. This will be the last Holy Grail War."

Ayame opened her eyes, and clapped her hands twice. "Don't bother waiting for me, dad, big sister." She said. "I don't plan on dying tonight, or for a long while yet. Just watch over me, and you'll see I'll make you both proud. Goodbye."

Leaving the doors open to let the incense burn freely, Ayame got to her feet, and strode to the front. Sella had gone on ahead, to scout the route towards Kotomine Church, and to find and disassemble any traps Rin Tohsaka had placed along the way. Ayame and Saber would follow, and given Sella's limited ability in direct combat, would be the ones to storm the ruins of Kotomine Church.

"Are you ready?" Saber asked, waiting for Ayame at the foyer.

"Almost…" Ayame replied. She strapped on her belt and bandolier, and then wrapped her cloak around her shoulders before clipping the clasps into place. And then raising her hat over her head, put it on. "Now, I'm ready."

"Emiya's proving to be as good as I expected her to be." Rin remarked. "I'm not sure how, but she'd found and disable more than three-fifths of the traps and other obstacles I've had my familiars set up along the route from her house to here. Speaking of which…thank you, Kirei. Your providing me of her home address turned out to be very useful."

"I am pleased to assist." Kirei said with a smile.

"I'm curious, though." Lancer remarked with a carefully-neutral tone. "Why so helpful? Aren't you supposed to be neutral in this contest, and not take sides?"

"Yes," Kirei said with a nod. "But another one of my duties as the Overseer of the contest is to ensure whoever gains the Grail is worthy of it."

"And you think the little lady is worthier than her nemesis?" Lancer asked.

"I have yet to pass final judgment." Kirei said. "I am already aware of Rin's wish. She wishes to undo the wrongs done to her family, whether knowingly as in her father's case, and unknowingly in her case. That is a selfless desire, and one I judge worthy of the Grail. I am, however, unaware of what Emiya wishes from the Grail."

"And what will you do once you do?" Lancer pressed. "Pass judgment."

"Yes." Kirei said. "If her desires prove twisted, then it is my responsibility as the Overseer to prevent their realization. But if it is worthy, then I will stand by and freely allow them to determine who is worthier between them."

Lancer snorted. "You have an answer for everything, don't you, you fake priest?" he sneered.

Kirei did not answer, though he kept smiling. "Emiya is on her way." Rin said, and getting up from the couch. "I'm going to get ready. Lancer, take your place in the courtyard."

Lancer grunted unhappily, but neither did he disagree, and instead just vanished into astral form. "Well then," Kirei said. "In my case I shall prime the Holy Grail, so that the victor may claim it as soon as victory is won."

"You do that." Rin said before walking off. Kirei followed her with his eyes, and once she was gone, turned and proceeded to the cellar.

Illya's body stayed where Lancer had placed it, no consciousness left in her to control her body, not that it could have, at any rate. Not when the nerves were probably burned out or left insensate and unresponsive by the sheer amount of prana saturating the body.

Kirei didn't care about any of that. All he cared for was preparing for the war's conclusion. It was a shame that the King of Heroes had decided to back out for some reason, but whether or not he participated was immaterial. With or without him, Kirei would proceed, and bring forth a god into the world.

A lighter clicked several times over the next few minutes, as Kirei lit a number of candles and arranged them in a large circle around Illya's body. And then stepping to its side, he caressed her hair with deceptive gentleness.

Now…let the dam be broken, and all the world's evil spill forth!

At that thought, Kirei gripped Illya by the neck, and snapping it, ended her life in full.

A/N

It begins. We all know what's going to happen once the Lesser Grail's life ends. Sadly, Illya truly is too much like her mother in that light.