Summary: Archer EMIYA had seen many things since becoming a Counter Guardian after his death. So many lives lost. So many things that could've been done. So many different choices. So many versions of a man who once was, men who never got to be like him, staying with either a black-haired or a purple-haired girl. He wasn't expecting to hear his old name from his newest Master's lips. Yet, strangely, it doesn't sound bad coming from her.

Note: Dedicated to my first Gold Archer and the first Servant I knew outside of the original Saber herself. I've loved Robin Hood for a long time, I still do, but I can't deny how long the OG red Archer himself carried me in farming and boss fights alike in Fate/Grand Order. There's a reason he's halfway to Bond Level 9 in-game for me.

Inspired by some real life events and my constant desire for hugs in difficult times, more so in the face of some coworkers claiming I'm not doing enough when they've been apparently unfair to me instead.

The theme for this chapter is the track titled Unlimited Blade Works by Hideyuki Fukusawa, for Ufotable's Unlimited Blade Works adaptation of the original Fate/stay night visual novel. For those looking for a more action-packed song, I'll point you to the song Hero by Skillet.

Otherwise, please enjoy. :)

Day 22: Need a Hero

In all of his time as a Heroic Spirit, Archer never thought he could hear someone's soul crying out so loudly for a hero. Not just any kind of hero, but a hero of justice of all things. How odd. After storming the war-torn lands of Orleans, there was something about Vy Duong's entire being that called to him when he arrived at Chaldea.

Amongst those white walls and empty halls, Vy appeared small with her 158 cm of height and long brown hair. Far too young to be the last Master of Humanity. Almost like a little girl, scared and lost from looking for her parents. And, sure enough, tears were close to spilling over from those wide brown eyes, but they still earnestly stared at him alone as Vy had said those words, so long ago.

"C-Could… could you please lend us your power?!"

I need help, her soul said. Could you please help me?

Archer still wondered why she didn't physically voice that. Why did her soul say it instead? In another place, in another world, Archer could vaguely remember the summoning chant of another girl, a girl who wanted to live up to her family name. That girl had promised to be the best Mage the Tohsaka Family could ask for, but in the end went back to being a human, just to keep another him from turning out too rotten. It said something when his newest Master was fighting to bring back her entire family from suffering the unfair Incineration by King Solomon, staying human the entire time in the face of decay.

Vy Duong was not a Mage. She wasn't even that skilled with Magecraft either, having to rely on Chaldea as a whole via Mystic Codes and mana support to keep going through the Singularities. Compared to the Emiya Shirou that Archer despised with all of his heart, Vy Duong probably wouldn't even survive a Grail War on her own. But, to Archer's surprise, she was human.

So, so imperfect of a human. More so than Rin, from what he could remember now.

Maybe it was the first time Archer had found Vy slumped over her desk in her room when everyone else had already fallen asleep, trying to turn the page in her newest textbook of study to keep up the work. ("Don't worry, Archer," Vy had said at the time with a tired smile. Her glasses were tellingly falling crooked against the bridge of her nose as she looked at him. "I haven't done an all-nighter yet, and I don't plan to do one now.") Or perhaps it was the first boss battle they had tackled together, where Vy, in spite of her latent fear, commanded him to use his Reality Marble of a Noble Phantasm (he was still tempted to laugh in the face of the FATE system — a forbidden Magecraft as his ultimate weapon was such a fitting thing for a Faker like him) with all of her strength, the three lotus petals of her Command Seals glowing brightly from the back of her left hand. ("Let's do this, Archer!" He had never seen Vy so determined until then.)

Nonetheless, he found himself curious. Why did she ask for a hero if she kept working so hard on her own?

Why did her soul keep crying out like it wanted to be saved when she kept demonstrating she could do it herself?

"Why—" Slash. "Are you—" Clang. "Still FIGHTING?!"

Archer didn't bother giving the former human known as Lev Lainur an answer, merely wielding Kanshou and Bakuya with careful ease as the Demon God Pillar continued to writhe in its vessel's form in the middle of the White House. Fangs poked out from past his lips as Lev — no, Flauros — continued to squirm at the endless barrage of swords, magic projectiles, and arrows all being sent his way, eyes a dark red as he looked past Archer and the other Servants to focus on the only Master in the room.

Flauros didn't deserve any respect. Not after it had killed Olga-Marie, who, while unbearable in Chaldea's records, didn't deserve a death at the hands of her own creation. (Black holes, even metaphorical ones, were messy.) Not after it had scarred Vy and Mash, leaving them unsure until Archer had arrived.

Flauros, in Archer's own opinion, deserved nothing. In honor of that, Archer could at least divert his attention from trying to monologue.

Still, the bastard felt like talking, from the looks of it. "You are a mere human — destined to be Incinerated!" Spittle was flying out of Flauros' mouth at that point, making Archer instinctively duck to dodge it while still focusing his sword strikes, and even with blood starting to spurt out of the many wounds covering Flauros' human vessel, the Demon God Pillar was still looking at Vy. Not at Archer, not at Robin Hood, not at Marie Antoinette, not at Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, not at anyone else. Just Vy. "You are Humanity's worst Master — destined to die with the rest of the lot! So, why—" Flauros was screaming once Archer got in another clean hit with Kanshou. "WHY DO YOU RESIST?! HAVE YOU SEEN NOTHING?!"

Archer felt the smallest tingle in the back of his head before he could hear it. A single, dark Gandr shot flew past him, hitting Flauros right in the head.

"BECAUSE MY FAMILY GAVE ME EVERYTHING! BECAUSE I WAS TOLD TO LIVE EVEN AFTER SOMEONE I LOVED CLAIMED I DIDN'T DESERVE IT!"

It took Archer a moment too long to realize it was Vy screaming those words. He allowed himself a single second to glance behind him, and he could see the glow of Vy's lotus Command Seals from her clenched left fist as tears shone in her brown eyes past her glasses, actually accentuating the glare in those wide irises as she stared back at the wounded Flauros with cold, cold fury.

"Senpai…?" was all Mash got out past the shocked stupor she found herself in, holding up her shield before Vy shook her head.

"Me being Humanity's worst Master? Maybe," Vy said, her voice pitched downwards to reflect the silent rage bubbling up in her figure as her shoulders tensed. Her right hand was still tellingly raised in the air in case she needed to fire another Gandr bullet. "But a quitter? Fuck no. Not after everything Mommy and Daddy did for me."

Flauros was gaping now. Archer wasn't sure if he was doing the same, but he gripped Kanshou and Bakuya tighter.

"Daddy had to drop out of high school to escape South Vietnam and the reeducation camps the Communist Party decided to put everyone in after the Vietnam War ended. He had to leave Grandma, everyone behind, just to make it to America by boat, where he could've died in the 2-3 years he was stranded at sea." A dark shadow overcame Vy's originally kind features, her teeth grinding enough for Archer to make out the unsaid emotion starting to run through their bond. It was cold but so, so familiar. "Mommy had to balance work and school just to help the rest of her family live in a one-room house in America once they all immigrated, and that's not even getting into the struggle of learning English in a place that was away from home, and then you—!"

Flauros bore his teeth, fangs shining in the White House's lighting. "What are you trying to get at with the sob story, wench—"

Archer considered. He then ducked his head to the side, just in time for another Gandr shot to fly past him and hit Flauros right in the head.

"Mommy and Daddy nearly gave up everything to find freedom and have my brother and me, you bastard!" Vy growled, her fingertips smoking past the sleeve of her Mystic Code. "WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO DECIDE THEIR WORTH?! WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO DECIDE IF THEIR LIVES ARE WORTHY OF YOUR ATTENTION?!"

Whoosh.

Archer did his best to hold back the instinctual jolt of surprise running up his spine once the mana was flooding his veins, and a single blink of his eyes was all he needed to know it was Vy's mana. A Command Seal. She really was compelling him to—

Someone else already decided I'm worthless. Don't you dare do the same to my family. Not when they gave up everything for me.

A cause worth fighting for.

"I may be Humanity's worst Master to you, but I'm still Vy Duong!" Vy screamed, her free hand imitating — imitating Archer's hold of Bakuya as she aimed another Gandr shot. "The only daughter of Hiep and Nga Duong, the senpai to Mash Kyrielight, and Chaldea's last Master! You took away Olga-Marie and my family, Flauros!" The lotus on the back of Vy's left hand glowed, and Archer smirked. "NOW GIVE THEM BACK!"

I am the bone of my sword.

By the time Flauros had disappeared into fragments of mana, Archer exhaled slowly to let the tension fall away from his shoulders. The mana from the one Command Seal was fading away too, leaving him feeling slightly winded. He hid it with a careful sigh, instead choosing to straighten his back before turning around.

There was one last thing left to do.

"H-Holy Grail retrieved, Senpai," Mash said softly, her shield glowing with the remnants of the troubling thing in time with the growing worry becoming apparent on her face. "We can Rayshift back to Chaldea now, but um, are you okay—"

"Mash," Vy said carefully, so quietly, it was hard for even Archer to make out her voice. "Don't ask. Just this once." When Mash opened her mouth, Vy leveled the younger woman with a look that Archer knew must've said something because the Shielder paused, brows furrowing against her forehead. "Please."

Her voice cracked, Archer noted quietly to himself. Then it's— The thought was enough to make him sick to his stomach. Because really — had someone, once upon a time, really told Vy she didn't deserve to live? Just, who? Who had the balls to say that to a child when she needed a friend? Who had broken her heart enough to make someone as kind as Vy silent when it came to her problems years later down the line when she was alone?

Dying once to the flames, just waiting for someone to end it all was one thing. Getting hurt by someone you trusted was another thing. Left forever waiting for an apology that would never come, for a happy ending that the world kept saying would never arrive.

"Master," Diarmuid spoke up in the way all knights seemed to do, the slightest crack in his composure showing past the enchanted mole via the conflict in his yellow eyes, one of his spears dragging against the tile floor. "In spite of what you say, it is hard not to press when you do not appear to be—"

"Dia," Vy said in the same voice, making Lancer stop in his careful approach towards her, staying a meter or so away instead. "I know what you're going to say, so just please. Don't."

Robin Hood opened his mouth with a solemn, "Little sparrow—" before Archer decided. He gave himself a moment to shoot Marie a look, and the former Queen of France gave him a soft nod in return, a smile for once not on her face.

Even if she doesn't say it, she needs a hero in the end, Archer. Marie's blue eyes said as much. No one else did the same for her.

Of course. Why else would her soul end up calling for someone like—?

No one truly saved her until now. She was always shown how to do it herself. A former orphan-turned-Hero and a lonely girl who missed her family more than anything. How fitting.

"…Vy," Archer spoke her name carefully, walking forward to face the young Master. Kanshou and Bakuya were long gone at that point, leaving his hands open to take Vy's tiny shaking ones in a warm grip just as her shoulders tensed. "You don't have to hold it in." He made sure to keep his words gentle, careful, in case of anything. The sheer amount of emotion starting to flood the back of his mind through their bond was a telling enough sign as is. "There is no shame in allowing yourself to process what's happened. You shouldn't have to hold yourself up to the standards of Mages when they aren't here to judge you. We're not here to judge you for showing natural emotion."

"That… that doesn't mean…" Vy paused, ducking her head enough for her long brown hair to cover her cheeks, barely concealing the first track of wetness starting to trickle down to the tile floor. "I-I have to endure it. We've come this far, I can't just stop and cry and be frustrated when Flauros is gone, there's still—"

Ba má went through so much already on their own for me, I can still—

"You don't have to endure it all alone," Archer said, shaking his head and getting to one knee to look Vy in the eyes. "That's what Chaldea and us Servants are here for, Master. Unlike what that one person said to you, you've long proven yourself that you deserve to live just as much as your family, Be Vy."

Archer had no clue where the "Be" came from. If anything, it sounded like something reserved for a loved one's use, not a Counter Guardian like him who barely knew any Vietnamese. But the title seemed to have done it, because Vy was staring at him with widened brown eyes. "Shi…" Vy choked, faltering enough for tears to start bubbling up in the corners of her vision, dotting her glasses as her lips quivered. "Shirou…"

The former Emiya Shirou, for once, didn't flinch at the name as he put on the softest smile he could. In previous wars, he might've flinched at the reminder of his old self. Not anymore.

For a little girl who couldn't be saved until now—

"I'm here, Be Vy," Archer said with the same softness, squeezing her hands with the care she deserved. "And when we get back to Chaldea, you can ask for whatever you want for dinner. My treat, Master."

Vy sniffled, her brows scrunching as she took one hand away to wipe at her face with her sleeve. Over her shoulder, Archer could see Mash and Marie slowly approach them, hands outstretched with clear worry on their faces. "Wh… what about you, Shirou?" Vy said after a moment, sniffle cutting through her voice. "What do you want?"

Heh. You, asking me what I want? I don't want anything. If you ask, I can at least keep you out of the hell I suffered. Because even if my ideals were a mistake—

"I just want the girl in front of me to be happy," Shirou whispered honestly, smiling at the tearing-up Master as he raised one hand to rest it against Vy's cheekbone. Wetness gently spread out against his thumb, but he didn't mind it as he wiped at her eye, pushing the tears away from her vision. "And she can start by telling me what she wants to eat when we get home."

You wanted a hero of justice to be there for you just as much as any other kid did, didn't you, Be Vy?

The jab, albeit small, was still enough to spark a shaky giggle from Vy's trembling lips as she smiled at him, shaking her head. "L-Lemme cook with you," she sniffled, voice cracking at the edges as more tears trickled down into Shirou's palm. "It'd be unfair to leave it all to you, and, and…" Vy took in a deep shuddering breath, reaching up with her hand to press it against the one Archer still had on her cheek, squeezing back. "R-Rice porridge with carrots, chicken, and mussels is fine. Ba used to make it like that. Just," Vy's brows scrunched up again against her forehead, hair sticking to her cheeks as her words came out in a half-sob. "C-C-Could I get a hug, Shirou?"

Please. Please don't leave me alone.

Archer didn't even hesitate to pull Vy to his chest and by then, he could hear the stuttering hitch of her breath as the first tears began to soak his shirt. Vy's shoulders continued to shake under his arms as he wound them around her, loose enough in case she wanted to pull away and to let the others come in if they wished.

Robin and Diarmuid exchanged loaded looks of some kind once Marie arrived at Archer's side first with Mash in close proximity behind her, falling to her knees and resting a gentle gloved hand on Vy's head as she continued to sob. "I-I want to see Mommy and Daddy again, Shirou…"

"I know, Be Vy," Shirou whispered softly into her hair, petting her head all the while. Just like how Kiritsugu used to, for him. He still wasn't sure if he was doing it right. But for someone like Vy— "I know."

"I-I want to make sure Mash and everyone else can live again…" Vy cried, pressing her face further into his shoulder to muffle her increasingly loud sobs as the wetness started to spread across his shirt. "I-I want to see Dr. Roman sleep well again, to see Olga-Marie actually be proud and alive and not yell for once again…"

"Senpai…" Mash said softly, tearing up herself if her wavering voice was any indication. Dr. Roman himself was tellingly silent over his part on the intercom on Vy's right wrist, the quiet speaking for him more than the lack of words.

"I know, Be Vy," Shirou repeated firmly, pressing his cheek into her hair in the hopes it was enough comfort for a girl who was apparently deprived of it plenty as is. "I know. Is there anything else you want?"

Vy sniffled, her hands weakly reaching up and clenching his red robes into tight fists as she did her best to stifle her sobs to speak. "…I-If it's okay, can I ask for spring rolls? With, with um, homemade peanut sauce and tofu?"

Don't go. Please.

Shirou smiled wryly and nodded into Vy's hair.

I'll be a Hero of Justice just for you, Master.

"Anything you want, Be Vy," Shirou murmured honestly. "Anything you want."

Even in another place, with all Humanity in peril and no one else around, Shirou's battle had yet to end. But this time, maybe this time, he could succeed in saving another girl like he did for Tohsaka and that other him.

At least this time, Vy called for him. And it was an uncertain call, a small hope that could fizzle out at any time in the face of their enemy. Heck, it was a languid hope that could possibly lead him nowhere, but to Shirou, it was a nice hope anyways.