"Mystic code testing? Me?"
That was the question Shirou asked Da Vinci after she brought him over to her workshop.
"Yes. Do you know what a mystic code is?" Da Vinci asked.
"Yes. Mystic codes are special items that help Ritsuka in his quest to restore humanity. They give him certain skills and power bonuses as well."
"Yes. However, it's not limited just to Ritsuka as well."
"What do you mean?" Shirou asked.
"Shirou, you and other servants can equip mystic codes as well."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Now come on, I need you to test these new mystic codes out!" Da Vinci exclaimed happily.
Shirou sighed at the situation he was in. Earlier, he was just walking in Chaldea's hallway and suddenly, Da Vinci popped out of nowhere and dragged him to her workshop.
"All right. Just what mystic codes are we testing out today? Hope it isn't something really heavy or something really extravagant or something embarrassing."
"Oh! It's nothing like that actually. Rather, they're really light."
"Really?"
"Yeah! If anything, mystic codes look like regular clothes or suits. They're not like heavy armor that you see knights wearing. They can also take in the form of items as well."
"Huh."
"Yeah. Anyway, just let me just make the mystic code from my crafting table. I'll be right back!" Da Vinci exclaimed happily, excited to create a new mystic code for Shirou to test out and show it to him. While Da Vinci was crafting the mystic code, Shirou waited in a corner of her workshop.
"Wow. It's only been a few months since I've arrived in Chaldea, and yet trouble seems to always find me. First was meeting Saber and her alternative selves, multiple Tohsakas, Sakuras, Illyas, Luvia who's apparently a pseudo-servant vessel to a goddess, a girl named Miyu who happened to be my little sister from another universe, my alternate future self, an alternate version of dad, Illya's birth mother, Fuji-nee who's also a pseudo-servant vessel although the outfit she was wearing looks like she's in animal pajamas, Rider, the lancer that killed me once, and Gilgamesh. Then came the time where I met the Knights of the Round and was appointed as "Queen Shirou" and apparently Mordred's mother or stepmother. And now this..."
Shirou sighed as he tried to make his mind relax from all the thoughts he went through.
"Honestly, at this point, I'm not even sure if any day in my life will ever be normal...or if my life didn't have any sense of normality to begin with..."
"And...it's done!" Da Vinci exclaimed happily.
As Da Vinci did the final touches on the mystic code, she then brought it out for Shirou to see. As Shirou looked at it, he was surprised at how it looked.
Why? Simple. The mystic code Da Vinci crafted looked like the clothes he wore in Fuyuki when he was still alive. The mystic code Da Vinci was showing was Shirou's old white and navy-blue long-sleeves baseball jersey t-shirt with the navy-blue covering the sleeves and shoulders, blue jeans, a white and black jacket with the black covering the sleeves and the shoulders, and a pair of white and black shoes.
It was like looking back a distant memory, one that he went through a long time before...
Before he became a heroic spirit...
"Uh...Da Vinci...did you came up with the design?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Because the mystic code that you just created happened to look like my old clothes that I used to wear when I was still a human."
"Really?!" Da Vinci exclaimed, surprised that she managed to create something from Shirou's past without knowing. "So...you don't like it?"
"Huh? Oh no, it's not that. It's just that...well...it brings back memories from my past."
"I see. Anyways, try it on."
"Alright."
Shirou then took off the clothes he was wearing, which was his red sash, his white kimono, his armored pants, his steeled toe boots, and put on the familiar clothes he knew before.
He still kept the katana though.
"Well, how does it feel?" Da Vinci asked, waiting for the results in anticipation.
Shirou smiled. "It fits perfectly."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Well then, you can leave now."
"Wait? Don't I need to take it off first?"
"Not yet. I need feedback for the mystic code, so for the rest of the day, just wear it. By tomorrow, return to my workshop, give me the feedback, and I'll see if it needs some adjusting or not."
"I see. Well, I'll be off then," Shirou said as he left Da Vinci's workshop.
"Oh boy, I hope that mystic code of mine doesn't attract people...especially the ones that already knew Shirou..." Da Vinci thought as she went back to work.
After Shirou got out of Da Vinci's workshop, he began to head towards the cafeteria. After all, one of his jobs in Chaldea is to feed a bunch of hungry lions.
"Man, it's been a while since I wore these clothes," Shirou thought happily. "Can't wait to show these to Saber, Tohsaka, Sakura, and Illya."
As he was walking down the hallway, a certain blue lancer recognized him and called him out.
"Hey kid!"
Shirou turned around to see Cu Chulainn, carrying his spear and wearing the same blue tights that he saw many years ago.
"You're...lancer."
"Hey! I have a name you know! The name's Cu Chulainn! Anyway, how's Chaldea for you?"
"It's crazy here. Apparently Saber has a bunch of alternate versions of herself, Rin's apparently a goddess and has alternate versions of herself as well, Sakura's also a goddess and has multiple versions of herself as well, Illya's has alternate versions of herself, there's a girl called Miyu who's apparently my little sister from an alternate universe, Luvia's apparently a goddess, an alternate version of my old man is here, a version of Illya's mom is here apparently, my caretaker is here, Rider's here, Archer's here, and Gilgamesh is here and still hates me."
"Wow."
"Yeah, and that's not even the weirdest thing I've ever seen."
"Really? Then what is?"
Shirou let out a sigh before saying it. "Being called "Queen Shirou" by the Knights of the Round."
For a moment, Cu was stunned at what Shirou just said. After a few moments of silence, Cu started laughing like crazy.
"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! No way! They called you "Queen Shirou?!" Just how?! I mean, that's something I would never see in my entire life! Just what did you do to earn that title?!"
Shirou let out a sigh before continuing. "I blame Merlin for that. Apparently, he blabbed about my relationship with Saber to the Knights of the Round. Then the knights tried to interrogate me and then Saber and her alternate versions found out about it, and the rest is history."
"Wow. Sounds like bad luck man!" Cu said in fits of laughter.
"Yeah. You know, I'm surprised that news about this hasn't reached to everyone in Chaldea, consider what Merlin could do at a time like this."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Saber would always tell me that he would make pranks on people."
"Wow. By the way, I just noticed now, but what's with the new outfit you're wearing? It looks like your old clothes from the last time I met you in Fuyuki."
"Huh? Oh, it's a new mystic code Da Vinci wants me to try out."
"Really? Judging by the looks of it, she seems to have copied the design perfectly."
"No kidding. Anyways, I got to go. Bye. And also, don't tell anyone about this," Shirou said as he started walking again.
"Hmm...so mystic codes can look like that huh...might as well ask Da Vinci for a new mystic code later..."
As Shirou arrived at the cafeteria, he paused for a moment and gathered his thoughts. "I hope things don't get awkward...like what happened when I met my altered future self...
(A few days earlier...)
Shirou and EMIYA were preparing food in the cafeteria, when a certain man came into the room.
That person was EMIYA Alter, and he was shocked to see his younger self here of all places.
As EMIYA Alter and Shirou looked at each other, a few thoughts went into their minds.
"WHY IS MY YOUNGER SELF HERE?!"
"Who's that guy and why does he look like Archer?"
After a few minutes of staring at each other, EMIYA Alter eventually left the cafeteria in a rush.
"Who was that?" Shirou asked.
"Apparently my altered self," EMIYA replied.
"EHHHH?!"
(Back to the present...)
"Well...here goes nothing..." Shirou thought as he opened the doors...and was instantly stared at by the people in there.
Why? Because inside the cafeteria was Arturia and her alternate selves, Ishtar, her rider version, and Ereshkigal, Parvati, BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, Illya and her alternate selves, Miyu, Astraea, Jaguar man, EMIYA, EMIYA alter, Medusa, Medea, and Archer Gilgamesh.
And their reactions were just crazy. The Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Luvia, Miyu, and Medusa looked at him in wonder, EMIYA and EMIYA Alter did a spitake after seeing their younger self wearing the old clothes they used to wear before they became counter guardians, Medea surprised seeing the boy once again, Taiga didn't seemed to have any reaction to it, and Archer Gilgamesh looking even more furious as him as the mystic code Shirou was wearing reminded him of the time he lost during the fifth holy grail war.
"Shirou...those clothes..." Arturia and her other versions muttered.
"Those clothes...I thought I would never get to see them again..." Ishtar, her rider version, and Ereshkigal muttered.
"Sempai...that outfit of yours..." Parvati, BB, Passionlip, Meltlilith, and Kingprotea said.
"Onii-chan..." Illya, Kuro, Sitonai, and Miyu muttered.
"Shero..." Astraea muttered, thinking how good he looks in those clothes.
"Shirou..." Medusa said, not expecting to see those clothes again.
"Boy..." Medea muttered, surprised to see him again.
"Faker..." Archer Gilgamesh muttered in anger with flashbacks of his defeat coming back to him.
Taiga was the only one who didn't seem to have any reaction.
For a while, silence was in the air...untill EMIYA asked Shirou a question.
"You...you...where did you get those clothes?" he asked nervously.
"Huh? Da Vinci crafted them for me. She said she wanted me to try out a new mystic code she had in mind. Why?"
EMIYA mentally groaned and facepalmed himself as he was looking at his younger self wearing his old clothes. "JUST HOW DID DA VINCI MANAGED TO RECREATE MY OLD CLOTHES AS A MYSTIC CODE?! OR BETTER YET, HOW THE HELL DID SHE KNOW ABOUT THE DESIGN OF MY OLD CLOTHES?! THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!"
Meanwhile, EMIYA Alter was having similar thoughts to his counterpart as well. "Okay, I'm so done with this. My mind can't take any more of my past self, and I'm already broken by Kiara. Somebody please finish me out my misery."
Shirou noticed the uncomfortable faces EMIYA and EMIYA Alter had on their faces and asked, "You two okay over there?"
"Yeah...we're fine..." EMIYA muttered.
"Just...relieving some...memories..." EMIYA Alter muttered.
"Anyways...you want me to help with the kitchen?" Shirou asked.
"Suit yourself."
As Shirou prepared to make lunch for the servants, he was glad that nothing bad happened when everyone saw him wear the old clothes he used to wear.
Little he didn't know that the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia were staring him the whole entire time when he was making lunch...
And they had a plan because of that...
(The next day...)
Shirou arrived at Da Vinci's workshop, ready to return the mystic code. However, as he went inside of her workshop, he noticed a pile of mystic codes in one corner of the room. As he arrived closer, he noticed that Da Vinci was working at her desk.
"Uhh...Da Vinci?" Shirou asked softly as he didn't want to disrupt her.
"Hmm? Oh Shirou! Hold on a moment! Let me finish adding this one piece here!" Da Vinci exclaimed while finishing her work. "Come on...and...there! That should do it!"
As Da Vinci finished added the last piece of her newest work, she then got out of from her chair and came up to him. "So Shirou, what are you doing here?"
"I came here to return the mystic code you gave me. Remember?"
"Oh yeah. How was it?" Da Vinci asked.
"For the most part, there was no problem with it. Although for some reason, Saber and her alternate selves, Rin and her alternative selves, Sakura and her alternative selves, Illya and her alternate selves, Miyu, Luvia, and Rider were staring at it for a while, Archer and his altered version did a spitake after seeing it, Caster seemed surprised although I think it's because she didn't expect to see me, Cu and Fuji-nee seems to not mind, and Gilgamesh...seems to hate it. Besides that, nothing went wrong with it."
"I see..." Da Vinci muttered.
"Hm? Is there something wrong?"
Da Vinci let out a sigh. "Well...it's a long story..."
(Yesterday...)
Da Vinci was in her workshop working on a new creation after she had made the mystic code which was Shirou's old clothes. As she was working, she noticed that someone has been knocking on the door. She then took a temporary break and went to greet the guest.
Only to see a bunch of Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia on her front door.
"Uhh...can I help all of you?" Da Vinci asked.
"Yes," they said.
Da Vinci then lead them inside her workshop, so she could figure out why a group this big was at her front door. "So...what can I do for you?"
The girls exclaimed, "PLEASE MAKE MORE MYSTIC CODES FOR SHIROU TO WEAR!"
Da Vinci was dumbfounded by the girls' request. "I'm sorry, but what?"
(Back to the present...)
"And that's why there's a pile of mystic codes that look like clothes in that corner over there." Da Vinci said after explaining her situation. "Apparently, the girls that knew you were so mesmerized by you wearing your old clothes that they wanted you to wear mystic codes based off designs that the girls had in mind."
Shirou was baffled at this. He didn't realize how much of an effect the mystic code Da Vinci gave him had this much of an effect.
"So...does that mean I have to wear all of those mystic codes?" Shirou asked as he pointed at the pile of mystic codes.
"Yes. And you can't refuse."
Shirou sighed at this. He wasn't going to catch a break.
"Okay. I'll do it."
Da Vinci smiled at his answer. "Excellent! Now you're going to try each one of them. And remember, you need to give feedback on all of them."
"Okay."
Shirou then proceeded to grab the first mystic code out of the pile. The first mystic code he pulled out happened to look like Homurahara Academy's uniform. "No way. Da Vinci managed to replicate my old high school uniform? Now this is literally a trip down memory lane. Pretty sure this was Saber's, Rin's, Sakura's, Illya's, and Rider's idea." Shirou thought as he was putting the mystic code on.
"Well, how's this one?" Da Vinci asked.
"It's fine actually. This one is also from my past. It's my old high school uniform."
"Really? How does it feel?"
"Honestly, it still fits somehow," Shirou said with a smile. "I also do feel a slight power boost from it as well."
"That's great. Now let's move onto the next one."
Shirou then took off the mystic code and took another one from the pile. As he grabbed it, he took a better look. It was a butler outfit. "This one was definitely Luvia's idea," he thought as he put the mystic code on.
"How's this one Shirou?"
"This one is fine, although it's a little tight. You might need to loosen this a bit. Also, I feel a little bit more agile in this."
"I see."
"Yeah. Anyways, onto the next one." Shirou then took off the butler mystic code and grabbed another mystic code, which resembled a certain robe from a certain movie. As he put on the robe, he noticed that on the belt was a certain object from the same certain movie.
"This object...it can't be..." Shirou thought as he grabbed it and took a closer look at it. However, when he noticed a button on the object, he pressed it and then a red energy beam came out of the top of the object, surprising Shirou.
"You got to be kidding me..."
"Shirou, is there something wrong?"
"Hm? Oh, nothing's wrong," he said as he deactivated the object. "Anyways, the robes feel comfortable, although one question does pop into my mind."
"What is it?"
"Da Vinci, did you get this mystic code design from a certain movie?"
"Nope. Mysterious Heroine X Alter requested this."
"Huh. Didn't know that." Shirou then took off the robe mystic code and grabbed another mystic code from the pile. This time, the mystic code Shirou picked up was a chef's outfit, complete with a chef's hat and a pan as well. As he wore it, he wondered, "Just how many mystic codes did Da Vinci made? Or better yet, why did Saber and her alternate versions, Rin and her alternate versions, Sakura and her alternate versions, Illya and her alternate versions, Miyu, and Luvia asked Da Vinci to do this? Or why did Da Vinci choose me to test out that mystic code yesterday?"
As Shirou was deep in his thoughts, he didn't notice Da Vinci was calling out to him. "Shirou!" Da Vinci called out.
"Hm?"
"What do you think?"
"Oh, the mystic code? It's fine. I do like the colors as well. I also do feel a slight boost in health as well too."
Shirou then took the chef mystic code off and proceeded to grab another one from the pile. This time, the one he picked out looked like clothes from Shinjuku. It was a black jacket with a red shirt, black pants, and black shoes. It also came with a cross shaped necklace as well.
"Well, how's this one?" Da Vinci asked.
"This one feels fine as well. Not only that, but I also feel agile as well," Shirou said as he moved his body around. He then took off the mystic code and picked up the last mystic code from the pile.
However, the last mystic code was different...
Because it was a pair of swimming trunks with the same design as his old jacket.
"Uh...Da Vinci...is this the last mystic code from the pile?" Shirou asked while looking at the swimming trunks."
"Yes. Why?"
"Well...all I see is a pair of swimming trunks."
"Yes. That's the last mystic code you need to wear."
Shirou was baffled at how straight forward her answer was. "You got to be kidding me..." he said.
"Hey! At least it's the last one from the pile! And plus, why are you complaining about it anyway? You're wearing a red sash, armored pants, and boots every day you know! And don't try to make an excuse with the white kinomo as well. Everyone can practically see your body you know, especially the abs." Da Vinci argued.
Shirou shut his mouth after hearing Da Vinci's explaination.
"Fine..." he muttered. Shirou then took off the mystic code and wore the swimming trunks mystic code.
"Well? How is it?" Da Vinci asked while Shirou was putting them on.
"It seems fine...although I don't feel anything different from this one," Shirou replied.
"Is that so? Huh. Anyways, we're done with all of them!"
Shirou sighed in relief as they were done with the examining of the mystic codes. He then took off the mystic code and put on his normal outfit.
He was glad that this was over.
"Well then, thanks for your corporation! You can leave now," Da Vinci said.
"Okay. I'll be going then," Shirou said before leaving the room, leaving Da Vinci alone in her workshop.
"Phew. That took way too long. To think that I would have to make a bunch of mystic codes just to get Shirou to play dress up, and the fact that I actually placed a hidden camera in my workshop because the girls want to see this. Maybe I shouldn't also have done the girls' request to place a hidden camera here so that they can see Shirou in multiple mystic codes..." Da Vinci thought as she looked back at her work.
Meanwhile, in another room in Chaldea, all the Arturias, Rins, Sakuras, Illyas, Miyu, and Luvia were watching the whole thing, and they fainted immediately after seeing Shirou wearing all of those mystic codes, especially the last one...
Author's note: I'm going to be busy for a while, because college decided to drop a bunch of work on me, so expect slow updates.