Fate/Bonds Beyond Humanity

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11- The Cat And Curiosity.

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The alarm clock goes off and he opens his eyes slowly. Emiya Shirou was in no rush to get up today, he honestly had little to do and wasn't in the mood. Still, he has a routine that he wants to follow and there was at least one person for him to cook for, giving him enough incentive for him to get up.

Usually Shirou had a certain rush on his step to get ready, do some exercise and go to school but today it officially marks the first day of his break.

There is no rush, no hurry and no urgency but there is also a negative side to all of it, something that becomes painfully clear once he finishes getting the plates ready for the meal and Liz comes from her room upstairs for breakfast.

Koneko is gone for the duration of the break, Rias was confident that Liz could keep an eye on him by herself since there were no unknown devils in town.

To keep their interest safe and protect their clients, when the Second Owners left for their vacation in the Underworld a team of devils was called to replace them and take care of the town.

It was a group composed from the peerages of other devils and Shirou could call on them with Rias' blessing. Not that he felt he needed it so he didn't get the contacts when she was offered.

Didn't change the fact that without school he actually is not seeing as many people as he used to. That and he is finding himself a bit lonely.

He grew used to seeing the ORC everyday and cooking dinner for a full table every night and while Liz is not bad company by any means, Shirou is missing the friends he made in the last few months.

After breakfast both residents of the house separate, Shirou is going to do the chores while Liz is going to watch TV. There was nothing left of the breakfast and he will have to figure out what to cook later on in the day.

After cleaning part of the house Shirou goes to see what Liz was watching. Apparently the news was slow that day since they were doing research on the opinions of people about the beginning of the break for the schools and how some students planned to use the break.

Most of the shots were taken the day previously from what he could see but there were lots of people who were excited. 'Wish I could be like that.' Shirou thinks to himself when a student appears to be bragging about going out with his family to a resort. 'It certainly beats being stuck here with just Liz.'

The maid herself is not the problem, the problem was that the rest of his family were 'no show'.

"What do you mean? You aren't coming back?" Shirou was speaking to his sister 'personally' for the first time in a good while. It was night and he was using his cellphone while in his room.

He had barely arrived from school when the call came through. Because of her residence on the Clocktower and by some new rule from the place, they couldn't use technology to talk with each other and Shirou sucked at communication spells.

To help midgate the problem they used their parents' company to send letters to each other with all they could talk about during the week. But for whatever reason that night Illya decided to call him.

Only when she told him that she was staying in London during his break was that the reason was clear. *I am sorry Shirou. It's just that I am running an experiment right now and I can't leave.*

"If you are running an experiment, how are you calling me?" It was a dumb question and he didn't really care about that. He just wanted to understand.

*I found it unfair that I am not getting back like how we planned. It's just that it took me too long to get the materials to start.* Illya lets out a sigh, she was frustrated as well. *For now we are just in the initial stages and by the way things are going I will be working on this until next year.*

'That means she isn't coming even on the end of the year break.' Shirou sits down on his bed. "Is there anything you can do?"

*No, just leaving to call you is actually costing me a lot.* Illya admitted sheepishly. *I only have Sella here who I trust but the people I work with don't like her very much.*

That made Shirou upset but he took a deep breath to calm himself. "Okay, that is fine. Maybe when our parents show up we can go to London instead."

Illya stays silent for a moment, then two. Shirou was starting to get worried that the call may have disconnected when she suddenly says. *Our parents are going to be working for the next few months.*

"Wait! You spoke with them?" He hadn't had the chance for months.

*Yeah, they passed by England the other week and dropped by to say hello.* Illya was smiling until she remembered that not the whole family was there. *Mom is furious with dad, I have no idea why. * He didn't either. *They had to go to Scotland for something and they are going to be unreachable for a while.*

Shirou manages to connect some dots. "They asked you to tell me that they weren't coming either."

*Yes.*

"This is going to be the first summer we are going to be apart." At least since he could remember and he didn't like that one bit.

*Hey! Don't worry! Your onee-chan is going to compensate you!* That wasn't the problem.

Ever since he came to this home, ever since after the fire…

"That is right! I can go to London with Liz! We could-"

*NO!* The scream was too high, so much so that the phone had problems processing it.

"What? Why?" The way she screamed had him worried. 'Did something happen? Is everything alright there?'

But she didn't scream for herself, her panic was for him.

On the other side of the globe, Illya remained still like a statue for a second before smiling. "Sorry Shirou but for now it's not a good idea. Your onee-chan wouldn't be able to stay with you as much as she would like." It was a good thing that Shirou couldn't see her, even he would be able to tell that her smile was fake. In fact, Illya didn't even know why she was smiling. "Don't worry. It's just this time. Next summer we can even go to the beach or something."

Around her some people were looking at her weirdly while a young man, practically an adult with a strong disposition with short black hair, smiled and approached her. His physique is covered by a long black school uniform that looks japanese mixed with chinese and also has long sleeves but anyone could tell he is fit. His blue eyes never leave the back of the albino woman as he steps on the ground carefully to not make any noise.

Silently he grabs the cellphone from Illya's hands. "HEY!" Before she could react he had a hand on her face to keep her back

"It's fine Illya-chan, there is nothing wrong for your boss to speak with your brother right?" He then presses his ear on the phone. "Hello. Sorry if my japanese is kind of rusty. I haven't been there in a while."

*Oh, it 's fine. I can understand you perfectly.* Shirou's voice didn't calm Illya, if anything it worried her. *I heard you are Illya's boss? Are you a teacher in one of the departments?*

"Well, you could say that I'm the founder and boss from a departament alright." He starts pacing around, Illya was glaring at him but the others around the room watched with smiles, some with amused ones others with cruel ones. "I'm also the one who gave her the materials to get the project Heaven's Feel started."

*Ah! Then you have my thanks! You have no idea how much she wanted to do it and our parents kept denying her.*

"I can't necessarily blame them." The man lets out a small laugh. "It is a sorcery, something reeeeally dangerous. But that is why we need some time. If she doesn't get it until the end of the year we are going to have to go for other projects."

*That is generous of you. I thought the magicians of the Clocktower were crueler than that.*

In Japan Shirou couldn't help but hear a chuckle coming from the other side of the line, he figured it was his imagination. *The Clocktower is a cruel place indeed.* The man on the other side also whispered something but Shirou couldn't make out what. *I am sorry that your sister can't join you this summer but we have a timetable that we must follow. But I can promise you something; by the end of next year at the latest she will be free from any obligations.*

"That sounds ominous." Shrou whispers it without thinking.

*It does? Damn, sorry man. It means that there is a project I need help with and that once she does it then I won't ask for anything else for a while and your family can spend some time together.* It feels like the man on the other side was chastising himself.

"No need to apologize, I just couldn't stop myself from whispering that."

*Hahahaha! I think I like you, Emiya Shirou! Maybe we can meet next time I go to Japan. I think you will meet one of my associates first. When he heard that Illya had a brother he made plans for a trip-* Then a strange noise came from the other side. *Oops. Looks like the break is over. Don't worry about your sister, I promise to keep her safe. Sayonara.*

With that the phone got turned off and all that Shirou could do was stare at his cellphone.

Shirou couldn't help but let out a sigh as he steps inside his workshop. He was carrying a box with some tools he made in the club's workshop, tools he made to make the process of forging easier.

But it would be harder anyway for other reasons, he only had Liz around since Setsuna also left the town for the break. His friend returned to Kyoto to spend some time with her family, something he can't blame her for wanting.

It was not necessarily a bad thing either. It has been far too long since Shirou created something by himself, it would take longer and the number of failures will grow substantially but he can learn something from them, something that may help him in mass producing EMs.

Entering the workshop proper he smiles. It was empty, his works still on the one at the club, but it was still clean since he made sure to maintain it at least once a week, usually Sundays.

As Shirou starts to place the materias on his desk he picks up his new hammer. It is made from a bone of a wyvern, the best material that he could find in matters of resistance and durability, the pincers he is using are made from a material found in the Underworld and even the anvil could be of some special material but he hadn't time to find something that could replace his old anvil, in his opinion some classics are still the best.

After setting aside most of his new tools he gets a notebook he always left around for work and starts to write what was his next project. It was a present from his sister and was a little bigger than his open hand. He has been using it for years and while he got others, he always liked to go back to this one when working on a new idea, leaving pages for new projects he would start from scratch.

And his next one was an undertaking that he would need some new ideas and maybe even older ones. He was going to work on something he found himself lacking for a while; his defense.

In his spars with Setsuna and Kiba, and to a lesser extent his fight in the mall, he always finds himself in dire straits because he lacked a good defensive alternative. His most recent outing in making shields helped but not enough and he promised himself to never end like he did against the assassins.

Humanity first made a weapon only after making something to stop it. And they got better at both with time. Shirou intends to follow the same trajectory.

But his shields were awful. So far the best function that he could have for them was an improvised defense and he couldn't put magic on them for the life of him. Every attempt Shirou made to generate a spell in a shield resulted in failure.

Finishing some notes about the subject he considers his choices; number one: try and improve the shield project, something hard to do now that he won't have access to the better workshop at school. He could have asked for the keys from Rias and the others but that would be a waste of time unless he decided to live there for the break.

'The clubhouse is cool but I don't necessarily need the ley line for this. It's not about power or mana, it's about skill.' Or option number two: try to make swords into shields. Even when he wrote that he couldn't help but think. 'This is idiotic.'

A paradox, a sword can be used in defense and a shield can be used for offense but their methods of creation, primordial functions, shapes and goals. Anyone can use either weapon for attack or defense but in their core, one is for killing and other is for protecting.

When he realized what he had written, Shirou rips out the page and throws it in the trash can before setting the thing on fire. 'I refuse to believe that.' The redhead is a sword, both in origin and element, just the thought that he was, by the same logic, made for killing, leaves him annoyed. 'Focus.' He slaps the sides of his face and starts to take notes again.

Making shields always cost too much mana for him, a sword doesn't have enough area to cover his body. Passing by some older notes he sees that only recently he started this kind of project with the shield he made to try and counter Kiba.

But this was not about spars anymore. Time to make something useful and that can keep him alive and intact. Which means back to the basics.

With a pros and cons list.

A shield is a better cover, it can take more blows and if he could forge spells in them he would have a better area to work with.

After writing the small pros area he goes for the cons.

'Mana' was the first thing he wrote in bold letters.

Because of his magic, transportation is irrelevant and since he figured out he could make things from a distance, weight is negligible for the most part. Push comes to shove he could make a giant piece of metal and plant it in front of himself to take the hits.

He tried to imagine how such an idea would have worked on the mall's fight and found it lacking. A big enough shield could survive the Noble Phantasm, in fact he was sure he only lived because of how much metal he made, but the werewolf could just go around and kill him.

That brought out the second con; speed. Forgetting the cost of mana for a moment, a shield is heavier than a sword in general. Trying to move with a shield without proper training and practice is suicide. It was also needed to use a proper sword with the shield for balance.

'With my magic, balance is not an issue. There is also the fact that it didn't matter the shield and sword combo, one hand will always be on the defensive. I suppose that using two swords at the same time would replace such a problem.' He wrote the idea down with a question mark to the side. "They would have to be perfectly equal, twins. Not an easy thing to make since they would also have to be made to work together. I suppose I could make one and trace twice?"

For now that was not his focus, he could work on it later. It still didn't change the fact that he wasn't as fast as he wished he was.

'I mean, what use is a shield if I can't react fast enough to use it?' Because the project is for him. Shirou wasn't going to sell it with Rias or use it at school. It is for him, to help him survive.

To avoid death so Liz didn't become a soulless machine.

"That is not even counting the mana." He lets go of the pen he was using and just lets himself go in the chair, looking to the ceiling. "Maybe I should make a folding shield? Something I can carry around?"

Staying down there was not going to help if he didn't have some ideas. He decides to leave the workshop and go to his room. Maybe he will have some ideas later.

A few days later, the house needed groceries. "I am coming with you." Liz said when he told her he was going shopping.

"Huh?" The sudden comment startled Shirou. "You want to go buy groceries? You actually want to go buy groceries?" She nods at him. "Let me make this clear; you want to go out with me, to the market, and buy stuff?" She nods again and the redhead doesn't hesitate to approach her and place a hand on her forehead. "Are you sick? Need mana? More food?"

"No." Her familiar monotone tone wasn't helping him, if he wasn't in a simple shirt he would think the heat had gotten him and he was hallucinating.

"Then why? You usually just tell me what you want?" Left unsaid that if it was Sella he would find it normal and would be all for it to go shopping with her. But Liz? Until he joined Kuoh she pretty much lived on the couch.

"I want to go with you to protect you." Part of him really didn't like her answer.

"Liz. Rias said everything is settled now. You don't need to protect me 24/7." Shirou notices that the maid is just looking at him, something in her eyes that he couldn't say exactly what it was. "You don't need to worry anymore. Stay here and relax, I will be back soon and you shouldn't be bothered."

Now the maid frowns and places a hand on Shirou's cheek, surprising him. "I want to protect you." She said looking him right into his eyes. "Until the day you are stronger than me, I will be there for you. And even then, I will stay by your side, until you send me away."

He was blushing. Shirou couldn't help himself with such a declaration. Liz's expression looked the same but he could see in both her eyes and the way that she said the words that she meant it. Besides, she said 'until the day you are stronger'. That meant she believed in him anyway and that meant a lot for him.

"Fine." There was no way he could deny her. "But put some pants on first. You are not dressed appropriately to go out."

With a nod the woman goes to her room to put on proper pants. She also came out with a shirt with short sleeves, realizing that her whole normal attire was going to attract too many eyes.

It was a nice day in Fuyuki, hot but not overbearing. The duo is going shopping by foot since Shirou planned to buy their groceries in the place that his family always did. After turning into a corner they are in sight of lots of people.

The summer is always a good time to sell and buy, not only students are on break but most people also go to use their vacation days this time of the year. All around there were people buying and selling. There was an ice cream parlour that was packed, a lot of teens were all around buying stuff and whole families looked to be enjoying the day.

Liz sticks behind Shirou as they enter the first store, it was a few hours before they could walk back home with everything on hand.

Since it was only two people there wasn't as much to buy as usual but Liz does have a healthy appetite and they end with both their hands full. Took them a little more time than planned since they were looking for a type of chocolate the maid had as a favorite of hers and the sun was already setting.

Now there were way less people on the street, it was the time that the couples and night workers were starting to come out. None of that bothered Shirou as he made the math of how much they managed to save by buying some cleaning products on a bargain.

From nowhere in Shirou's opinion, Liz got really close to him, her chest hitting his back. "Liz? Something wrong?" It was weird that she accelerated while he kept his pace.

"I think someone is watching us." Once she said that Shirou started to look around.

As far as he could perceive most people were taking care of their own business, some look at him now because he started to move his head too much but he noticed nothing suspicious. "You sure?"

"Yes." The redhead was now fighting panic. If there was a confrontation at that moment, lots of innocents would be caught in the crossfire. He could see all the smiling faces around and he didn't want to allow such peace to be broken.

"Let's hurry home. If someone is chasing us, the boundary fields can help." The closest one, still in the middle of the street, a little away from their home, was made to drain the will of anyone with malicious intent and warn of said malicious intent. If it was a hired gun then that may be enough to settle the whole thing.

The only weakness that the fields really had is to pinpoint the exact location of the invader since they were big and if the person connected to them was feeling every presence around their neighborhood they would go insane.

Liz had no complaints with the idea but remained close to Shirou, as much as she could without disrupting their steps as they walked. Then someone spoke in shock.

"Emiya? Leysritt-sensei?" Both turned to see Matsuna, the teen with a shaved head was looking at them with his mouth open in shock. "What are- How- Are you two on a date? Wasn't Emiya going out with Higurashi-sama?"

Upon seeing his fellow student Shirou look a step forward, it was more because he deduced the one that was watching them was this person. "Matsuda-san, wasn't it? This is a misurderstanting. We are just doing some shopping."

The almost bald student points his finger, in a hand that was carrying some bags, to Shirou and demands to know. "Then you two just found each other in the middle of shopping? Why is she so close to you then?"

Being the bad liar he was, Shirou decides to go with the truth. "She was telling me that someone was watching us. Was that you?" How she knew was because of her combat instincts and awareness but the Kuoh student didn't know that.

"Ah, maybe?" Now the perverted looked a bit ashamed of his actions. "I just found it weird how a student and a teacher were walking so casually side by side."

"It's not weird, I live with Shirou." And suddenly, dread shows up on both students' faces.

"What- Wait- What?" Matsuda is without words and Shirou knows that if he didn't think quickly that would spread in the school so fast he wouldn't have peace outside of his classroom. Maybe even in it.

Lucky for him Liz nods and continues. "His father saved my life and has been allowing me to live with his family ever since."

Relief washed over Shirou as he saw his fellow student look at him with understanding. 'Truth is a powerful thing.' He wonders to himself. 'Or is omission? Either way, thank you Liz.'

While the idea of a beautiful teacher living with him would actually help him in popularity with the guys at school, and bring about their jealousy, it would also have lots of people asking questions he would prefer not be answered.

"Whoa Emiya, your dad must be a really nice guy. Either that or he is trying to build a harem." The redhead didn't know what to make of such affirmations, in the past he would accept the first and deny the later. Shirou thinks he can still deny the latter but after what he learned from his father he wasn't so sure anymore. "Hey, next term is going to have a day when the parents can watch their children in school! Think he will show up?"

'If there is a God? No.' Instead Shirou said. "He travels a lot for work, usually it is just me and my sister at home." But not anymore, still he is not going to say too much.

"And the teacher?" Matsuda asked with a perverted smile.

"Yes." Shirou rolled his eyes but the boy didn't care.

"Damn, you are lucky Emiya." And with that the boy started to leave. "I got to go. Have a new edition of 'My Sister is a Princess' to play. Maybe we can hang out some other time."

They watch as Matsuda leaves and once he is out of sight Shirou turns to ask Liz a question. "Is someone still watching us?" The maid turns her head to the sides for a couple of seconds before looking at him and shaking her head. "That is good." Liz looks depressed for some reason. "What is wrong?"

"My senses thought that boy was a threat. That shouldn't have happened." Not liking where that train of thoughts was going Shirou threw an hipoteses to help cheer her up.

"Maybe he has a sacred gear or some special bloodline that he hasn't realized yet. Either way you were right." That wasn't working, the maid still looked conflicted. "Maybe I will bake a cake today." Looking to the side he could see that she stood rigid in place. "What do you think? Chocolate? Or strawberries?"

She didn't disappoint him. "Caaaaaaaake." Her mouth was watering and her eyes now carry a happiness he always finds joy in seeing.

"Let's get home then." And they were off, not worried in the slightest.

Watching from a rooftop was a black cat and if anyone looked at it, they would say it had a frown on its face.

"Shirou, you need a break." He had just done some exercise that morning when Liz grabbed him by his shirt and started to drag him back to the house.

"What are you talking about Liz? I barely started my workout." The redhead found himself being dropped on the cough and on his hand was shoved a control. Not for the television that was already on, but for the game console connected to it. "What came to you today?"

"Your mother usually is here to make sure you rest on your breaks." Liz says as she sits down on a chair to the side and pulls out a magazine. "But this year she isn't."

"And you decided to do her job?" After a nod from her, Shirou sighs. "Liz, I need to train."

"Shirou, you are on a break." Rarely can he see her so demanding. "Do something normal teenagers do. I setted up your favorite game for you."

"Liz…" He tried to appear upset.

"Shirou…" She didn't care. "You are on a break. Do break things." Before he could say anything she continued. "You do the chores, cook, train and also work in your workshop. Take a break."

'It must be really bothering her if she felt the need to say all that.' Shirou decides to make an observation. "You could do more than just wash your clothes."

She lowers her magazine and looks at him. "Do you want to eat charcoal?"

"Fair point." The house only had two chefs and Sella was out. "Okay, I will take a break for today, just for today!"

The woman didn't even look at him, going back to her magazine and he realized that if she ever wants him to take a break all she has to do is the same thing she did today. Unless he decides to fight back he will always find himself in this position, if anything, his favorite game was just something to occupy his mind while he rests.

'Still, she put a lot of effort into this, more than usual.' It has been a long time since he played a video game, there were only a couple of games he played alone and the rest was with his sister and without her he felt there he didn't get into the mood anymore.

He could feel her attention on him, Shirou could refuse to play but the point is for him to rest and if he wanted to take a nap she wouldn't object.

But Liz had got out of her way to prepare his favorite game and he wasn't going to waste the opportunity. 'It's just for a couple of hours.' He tells himself. 'Just let the early morning pass and I will stop before lunch.'

Emiya Shirou forgot that games can be fun and distracting, it was almost time for lunch and he didn't stop playing to make anything. Not that he realized that since he was immersed in the game itself.

It couldn't be helped for him, he really likes the game since it was a mix of plenty of stuff he enjoys. The story was good, even if tragic. The protagonist is a man that does his best with the hand he was dealt with and the music was excellent.

However there is one aspect of the game that Shirou likes more than any other, something that when combined with the rest made this game his favorite: he can beat it without killing anyone except some characters and he is rewarded for it.

It is a feature that is also in some other games of the series but messing with them also meant dealing with the main story and he got confused by it, even if he saw the point of it.

So playing this individual game was enough for him and since his score was bigger the more sthealty he was, playing smart against his enemies, he could enjoy it. Even the reasons of the main antagonist, the former mentor of the protagonist, were things that he could love regardless of the tragedy.

Because of how much he played the game as a child and how he adhered to its philosophy of only fighting when absolutely necessary, he had managed to get the highest rank when he was younger. Part of him was looking forward to some of the scenes in the game already and he didn't even realize it.

In fact, he was already singing the main theme, not too high to not bother Liz who stayed by his side the whole time. "...I give my life~ not for honor but for you~." He whistles a little more of the tune before continuing. "Still, in a dream, sna-"

*Ding Dong*

The doorbell interrupts him and both residents of the house look at it and then to each other. For a moment Shirou thought that Liz would get up but the woman just got back to read her magazine, meaning that there was no threat and she had no interest in going.

Shrugging, the redhead pauses the game and looks at the watch on his phone. "I played a little too much." It was almost noon. "I will check the door and then make something."

"Delivery?" Liz suggests, surprising him. "You could go back to your game."

She really wanted him to rest but shrugs. "Nah, played too much already. Will get the door first."

There was a moment where he expected that Liz would react more, maybe offer to open the door or something. Instead she lets him do it, either satisfied with the break he already had taken or thinking that he would go back to play after cooking.

Shirou had no intention to go back to play because he had an idea. The game actually offered him a solution for his conundrum for his most recent problem. It was not a complete solution but it is a start.

Before anything else, he needed to answer the door. "Yes?" Upon opening it, Shirou looks around. "No one?" 'Was it a prank?'

"Oi, down here." He does as the voice says and looks down, there was a cat there and Shirou found himself kneeling before it.

"Are you a familiar, little fella?" He moves his hand and starts to scratch the back of the cat's head, having it purr.

"Damn. You have good hands." It said, pressing its head more on the hand. By the voice, Shirou deduced it was male. "But no. Can I come in? I have some questions that I want to ask?"

"What about?" Shirou was still scratching the cat's head, seeing no reason to stop.

"I'm part of the task force investigating the ley line incident." The cat said. Shirou immediately gets on guard and stops scratching the cat. "Don't worry. You aren't in trouble."

"It 's not that." The redhead says quickly. "But the whole incident is still being investigated? I thought it was settled."

It was the first time in his life he heard a cat sigh. "Tell me about it. We have been looking into it for months and more mysteries just keep piling up."

"I believe a report of the incident was filed by Rias Gremory." And the cat nods, confirming the information.

"Yes, I already read it. The matter is that the incident goes beyond what occurred at your old school and that is why I'm here. I need you to answer a couple of questions in regards to the fire that happened 10 years ago." Upon hearing those words Shirou freezes, the memories of that time invading his mind.

He could almost smell the smoke-

"Snap out of it.." He felt a weight on his shoulder and noted that the cat was on it. "Now I know I did the right thing coming here. You are really a victim of that blasted ritual."

'Victim? Ritual?' Shirou can't deny the first but the second was new.

"Who are you?" Liz shows up, stepping right behind Shirou and looking ready to kill the cat.

"Calm down. I was just helping him to keep his life force under control." The cat then jumps down and takes a couple steps back. "I'm not a threat here. I'm an investigator trying to make sense of a case that is almost 10 years in the making."

"The fire… it has something to do with it?" That wasn't good for the redhead, just thinking about it was enough to make him feel sick.

"Yes. If my theory is correct then it's an absolute. The reason for the creation of the new ley lines is that fire and what created it." Shirou really didn't like what he was hearing, not at all.

For a moment he felt himself drifting back to that place, in a night without stars. Smoke was-

"Shirou." Liz's voice snaps him out of it again.

"I knew it. This confirms it." The cat muttered but both residents of the house could hear it.

"'Knew' what?" Liz demands to know and before she steps forward to grab the cat Shirou stops her.

"Excuse me but I didn't catch your name." The request surprised the cat.

"For the duration of this mission you may call me Kuro. It's too dangerous to use my real name until the culprits are caught." Kuro didn't even bother to hide that the name was fake but that was fine for Shirou.

"Would you like to come in?" Everyone else looks at Shirou like he was mad. "What? I also want to know more about the fire and what happened."

Liz felt she should remind him. "This could be just another assassin."

"To be fair," Kuro decides to interject, "If I was going to kill him it would be when he opened the door." Then came a chuckle from the cat's mouth. "Not that this boundary field would let me do it that easily. This thing is weighing on me even as we talk, ready to react to the slightest provocation. Whoever made this is paranoid. Really paranoid."

"Fine." Liz resolves to accept, still taking measures to stay between Shirou and the cat. "But I have my eyes on you."

"No problem." They direct the new guest to the living room and Shirou realizes that this is the first time he is going to entertain a cat in his life.

His family never had pets or anything like that and when it comes to familiars he met some of the Gremory's and he had no problem with them. At the end of the day Shirou just acts to them like he would with any other person since most can actually talk.

Once the cat is properly on the couch, the magus decides that he needs to be a good host. "So… Anything to drink?"

"There is no need. We need to have this conversation and I think I'm not really welcome." Kuro turns to look at Liz who hadn't taken her eyes off the cat the whole time. Shirou didn't have in him to chastise that. "I suppose that before I ask questions I should give you some context to the situation. You see, after months of investigating the ley line, our leader branched her investigation adding the story of the city itself to try and find the reason for the sudden burst of ley lines. By studying a lot of maps and details that I won't bother to explain because it was boring and annoying, it was discovered that the ley line that was here previously had for some reason expanded."

"I heard about it before, how a ley line can only grow by outside actions and such." Shirou decides to reveal what he knows to avoid the repetition of the subject and the cat nods.

"Good, so to tell a long story short; after studying the whole story of this city, we came to the conclusion that the inciting incident was the Fuyuki Fire as it was dubbed." The cat gives a second to see how Shirou would react but besides closing a hand the redhead seemed fine. "But then we found problems on how to proceed with the investigation, lots of details about the fire are missing, lost or contradictory. The whole process had stagnated again when we realized that someone had sabotaged the reports."

"Sabotaged? What do you mean Kuro-san?" There was anger on Shirou's tone but the cat knows that it's not directed at it.

"Someone rushed the process, we don't know who. The result was that the investigation ended too fast and too easily." A frown appears on the cat's face. "Everything is too suspicious. In the end you could read the 'act of the divine' on some reports together with, 'bad luck' and 'an idiot did it'. That was frustrating beyond measure."

"I can understand that." For a lot of reasons. The fact that someone sabotaged the information that could prevent future tragedies was already getting to Shirou's nerves, add to the fact it was the incident that he can't even think about without having a small attack just made it worse. "What can I do to help?"

"Not even waiting for the rest of the explanation?"

"Is it necessary?" The magus questioned back. "I don't like what I am hearing and I want to know what happened. If helping your investigation is the solution then ask what you need to know."

The cat could see in the magus eyes he was not kidding. "Do you remember what happened that day?"

"Yes." He fought off any reactions but the cat raised an eyebrow.

"You are stronger than you look or something is protecting you from the consequences of the event." That got a reaction.

"What consequences? Besides my loss of memory and panic attacks I never had anything else."

"That was not a panic attack." That got Shirou's and Liz's attention. "What you have is a curse or something passing as a curse."

"Shirou can't be cursed." Liz said it with such certainty that left no room for discussion.

"Why? Is he a transdimensional being so powerful that curses would literally burn out before affecting him? Or maybe he possesses an artifact capable of denying all evils of the world? Or better yet; he is a god, living a human life but still protected against things that would disrupt it?" Kuro sounds smug while compiling the list.

Liz's face didn't change. "Artifact. Family secret." That was a new one for Shirou.

"What artifact?" Kuro on the other hand looked impressed. but noticing that the woman wouldn't answer, it shrugs. "Huh. That explains how the ritual didn't kill him. Can think of quite a few able to offer such protection. But we are getting side tracked." Kuro then jumps in Shirou's lap and looks him in the eyes. "You should be dead."

"I know that." Shirou admitted freely. "If my father hadn't save me-"

"No. Not about that night. While that may be true you should be dead after too." Liz was about to rip the cat away from him and in half but Shirou raises a hand to stop her.

"What do you mean?" The cat looks down, not liking to deliver bad news.

"All other survivors are dead." Kuro was looking directly at Shirou, waiting for a reaction.

He had one. "Dead? The survivors? Do you mean the ones that escaped the fire?" The hands of the magus looked ready to tear the chair he was sitting apart.

The thought that someone else passed by that hell, saw the same things, suffered the same hardships and also managed to get away, to live, should be something wonderful, to bring him joy.

But hearing they died in the same breath, it was a nightmare.

"Yes. All of those that were present in the area when the fire started, in other words not the rescuers or anyone that entered after, could be considered the survivors of the fire that is suspected of being a ritual made for some unknown purpose." Kuro jumps to the ground. "Do you have a map of the town? It would be easier to demonstrate with aid."

"A physical map? Made of paper?" That wasn't a thing Shirou had seen in a long time.

"No, the 3D one that can spin around, show the layout of the city and can be displayed from the phone." The sarcasm was evident. "What kind of half baked magus doesn't have a map prepared in case of emergency?"

"Give me a moment. My father probably has something." Shirou gets up and goes to check while the maid and the cat stay in the room.

Liz's eyes were not leaving Kuro, something that the cat found more amusing than anything and even made a show of licking her paws while keeping her eyes on the maid's, completely unconcerned.

Once Shirou returned, he laid the map on the floor, it was big enough that the street names could be seen. The cat looks at it and then uses a little magic on the tip of its tail to start making a drawing on an area close to its center. There were quite a few streets and buildings in the area but it could be compared to a small village in isolation.

"Notice anything?" Kuro asks both residents as they kneel to look closely.

"A circle?" Shirou points out the obvious.

"Correct, but pay attention to it. Can't you see anything odd about a circle on a map?" With the prompt of the cat, Shirou tried to see anything different about it.

He notices the area, the streets and their buildings. There was a park, plenty of big buildings and stores. 'No. This map is recent and the problem is not something recent that would be on this one.'

"You can't see it yet?" The cat asked and Shirou shook his head in reply.

"I think It's not something that would be on this map." That got the cat humming.

"Technically it's something I added to the map." The cat points to the circle. "This area, a perfect circle, is the area where the incident took place. The way I draw it is exactly where the explosion and devastation limited itself to. Its perfect, almost like a magic circle." Once Shirou had that pointed out to him he could almost see it with symbols, completing it. "Coincidence? We believe not and that this is actually some ritual which drew upon the lives of anyone in the vicinity."

"That circle!" It was huge, a whole section of the town was targeted by the spell and Shirou was furious just thinking about it. He was gritting his teeth and if something was on his hands it would be turned to dust by the pressure. That was the first time in his life Emiya Shirou ever felt so much hatred. "Who would do this? Who would do such a thing!"

"Shirou, calm down." Liz approaches him and places a hand on his shoulder.

"That is not even the worst part. In the last 10 years, all survivors of the fire died. Every single one of the people rescued that were in the circle when it began perished… except you." The voice of the cat came out full of pity. "Some had normal deaths, others were just bizarre. A sudden sickness that evolved too fast, part of a building that fell and only crushed that person, a lightning bolt hitting someone in the middle of town out of the blue and other instances made it all too suspicious to be normal."

That was a frightening thought for Shirou, just hearing that was enough that he felt awful again. "You said that what he is feeling is about this ritual?" Liz wants to cut to the chase and figure out what is wrong.

"Yes. Unfortunately I can't gather any evidence of that since the last other survivor of the fire died a few months ago." The time that took to reach this point in the investigation, the 'curse' had already taken the last couple of people who would be in a similar situation to Shirou. Now he is the last one left. "Whatever is keeping him alive must be stopping the ritual from finishing and we must find where the center of the ritual is and for that I need his help."

"Center of the circle?" The maid didn't find it so complicated.

"Maybe 'center' is the wrong word. What we need is its point of origin. Where the ritual was properly started. Once we find the origin, we can possibly determine what the ritual was and its purpose. I already checked the center and besides a new park there is nothing else." That just left one question on Shirou's mind.

"What do you need?" The cat nods, acknowledging Shirou's determination.

"Tell me as much as you can from that night. Any details you can recall will help."

"No." Liz cuts the idea down. "You saw how he reacted. I won't let you-" Shirou places a hand over Liz's.

"Liz, please." His golden eyes carried his determination and his voice was like steel. "I need this."

"You don't know what remembering is doing to you." In contrast, Liz's voice carries a deep concern. "Everytime you freeze..." She couldn't even finish.

"Don't worry about it." Kuro decides to intervene to not allow negativity to build up. "His problem is that the ritual may still be in effect but since his life force is the target I can help him during the conversation." The cat then jumps on Shirou's shoulder. "While I'm here you won't have to worry, I promise. So speak as much as you can and slowly. There may be some clues in your story."

"...I don't remember much. My first memories are of the fire and the death around me, and the smell, the smell was awful too. There was nothing but destruction, people begging to be saved or those that couldn't, those that were already dead." He paused for a moment, many times in his life he tried to talk about the events only for them to overwhelm him in some way, now he could. "I was a coward. I just kept walking while everyone else died around me. I walked and walked and walked until my body couldn't do it anymore. I ignored everyone, everything, I only had to walk forward, to keep walking forward, that was all I wanted to do. I can remember my legs giving out, more than once. I remember getting up to keep going. I remember a mother losing her child, a couple trying to save each other, I remember the screams. So many screams."

Shirou places a hand over his eyes. Just by closing them he could see himself once again in that situation, almost like he could see the child he once was, walking and trying to live through it. "Breath." Kuro instructs and he nods. Taking a few seconds to relax before continuing.

"I don't know why I did it but I kept walking, I saw a lot of buildings destroyed all around me. I don't have any idea where I began walking or where I finally dropped once my body couldn't move anymore."

"If you want, you can keep going." The cat obviously was offering in sympathy, this was the first time he could give such an account. "I promise I won't tell anyone." Which meant all was useless in the investigation.

"The sky." Shirou remembered something, still trying to help. "It was dark, maybe it was only because of the smoke but I couldn't see the moon or the stars." The magus tried to remember anything else that could help. "The fire. I think it was normal, like any other flame in a pyre. The smoke was also normal and-" He stops himself, trying to force any memory out.

"It 's fine." Kuro said calmly. "You can stop if you want. Or better yet. Tell me how you were found." It was not going to help the investigation but it was a way to pull the young man out of the spiral he was diving into. To finish things with a positive memory.

Shirou just stops for a second, a warm look in his eyes. "I was on the ground and I could barely move. I turned around, I don't know why. Maybe I wanted to look at the sky one last time? Heh, I don't know. I extended my hand for some reason, not sure why. But then I felt the warmth of another person's hand." He smiles at the memory, the only good one of the night. "It was my father's. It was like he had come from nowhere and just was there when I needed him. Then I think I saw the sun."

"The sun?" The cat asks in curiosity.

"The artifact." Liz reveals without much concern. There was no point in hiding that information and it would also avoid any misunderstanding that it had something to do with the fire itself.

"It must have been it." Shirou accepted that but he was still smiling. "I never paid much attention to it. It was like the light of the sun just showed up there on his hands and then dad was smiling. Such a smile full of joy and happiness. I think I heard him say, 'found someone', or something like that." Then the magus relaxes his breathing. "Next thing I know, I met my parents in the hospital and they asked to adopt me."

Shirou remembers feeling amused by that conversation, even when he revealed that he had no memories Irisviel was gentle and careful while Kiritsugu was blunt but still nice. It was him who just sprang out. "By the way. We are wizards." Much to the shock of his wife.

That was why he couldn't just believe his old man was some kind of monster/assassin. In his mind there had to be a reason, any reason, to why he had such a reputation. Shirou couldn't even deny it since many people confirmed it but he still needs to know why.

"I thank you for the information, Emiya Shirou. It helped." The cat jumps off his shoulder while Shirou just looks confused.

"It did?"

"Yes. The fact that your father reacted fast enough to help you mean he was privy that something was happening or was going to happen." The redhead didn't like what he just heard.

"You don't think he had anything to do with that! Do you?" Indignation and anger fills him but the cat shakes its head in response.

"No. But he knew something, even if not the details." The cat starts to pace around, humming for a second before continuing. "If he knew something then someone else may know more details. I just have to find out who and since your father is a human then another human may also know."

"You want to try and ask another magician?" The cat couldn't stop what came after.

"Nyahahaha! Asking a secret from a magician is like trying to pull teeth from a living lion. It's going to bite you, no matter how careful you are or how much trouble they are going to be in later." The cat kept walking in a circle, thinking out loud. "Best thing I can do is to infiltrate the mansion of one of the families that founded Fuyuki. Either Matou or Tohsaka."

That gave Shirou pause. "If it is about Tohsaka then I can get you to talk with the head of the family. She is an… acquaintance of mine."

Kuro stops and looks at Shirou for a second, then two. "Isn't the head of the family Tohsaka Tokiomi? Old fashioned magus? I mean, he would probably want to stay on your good side. I get that you may know his daughter, since you are connected to the Gremory she may even had made an attempt to talk to you or something."

"That was before. Tohsaka Rin is the new head of the family." That was information that the cat didn't have.

"The heiress did a takeover? That is rare these days." Kuro sounds impressed.

"She did it to protect her sister from what I could understand. Rias offered to tell me once but it was not my business. I only needed to know if she needed help." Which she didn't since the whole thing was practically solved.

"Wait a minute. Tohsaka is under the Gremory thumb then?" Shirou stops to think on the question for a minute before nodding.

"Yes. They have a lot of debts that Rias is taking over while also helping Rin manage her state better." The cat looks at Shirou smugly.

"And you are the magus in contract with Gremory right." After a nod the cat laughs. "Ha! That 's rich! Tell me something; Still want to help in the investigation?" He didn't need time to think about it.

"Of course!" For those that died, for the ones that suffered, Shirou couldn't let this go. After learning that other people died after having survived that hell, the same hell he escaped, there was no way that Shirou was stopping if he could help it.

"Can you get in contact with your father?" The question almost deflated the redhead.

"No, I haven't talked with him for almost a year." He can't even remember the last time he legitimately talked with the man.

"Well, there goes the easy way to get another lead. Harder one it is." Kuro said while sitting down. "You want to help me talk with Tohsaka, right?"

"And in any way I can." That was surprising for the cat. Still, that was an opportunity that Kuro wasn't going to let pass.

"Okay, then consider yourself deputized." The cat said, still amused.

"Huh?" Shirou sounds unsure. "Deputized?"

"Yes, for the duration of this investigation you are now my assistant." Kuro declares with a pompous voice. "We shall talk with the Tohsaka family and see where that leads us. You shall also take notes of any important facts and scratch my neck from time to time."

"Scratch your neck?" He was definitely confused.

"Hey, you said you wanted to help in any way you could. That means scratching my neck when I need to." Kuro then jumps on his shoulder again. "Also you will carry me. It means I don't need to hide from devils anymore and take side paths to avoid detection."

"Why are you hiding?" That made Shirou suspicious of the cat.

"Because I have no idea who knows what." Kuro admitted "If we go by those that have access to the intel and are able to modify documents, everyone is a suspect. I only approached you because you are one of the few that couldn't know directly what was going on."

"That sounds fair." Shirou gets up and prepares to leave, only for Liz to hold him in place. He had forgotten her hand was on his shoulder. "Liz?"

"Shirou, you are too trusting." The white haired maiden pointed out. "A cat just shows up and you trust it because it can talk? It can be a trap."

Liz's priority is Shirou's safety, it's always Shirou first and everyone else second. She would be glad to wait for reinforcements, even in the shape of the devils, or just let the cat investigate after offering some assistance.

But now Shirou was planning to leave the security of the boundary fields with an unknown agent and that she wouldn't stand and let it happen so easily. She didn't know this 'Kuro', a name that is admitally false, even if she agrees that the possible ritual needs to be investigated for Shirou's sake.

"You have a fierce bodyguard. Cautious too." Kuro praised Liz but the maid didn't care, still looking directly at her charge. "Unfortunately I can only offer my word that I mean no harm. My objective is to figure out what is going on in Fuyuki and nothing else."

"Not good enough." Before Shirou could say anything, Liz was already on the case. "No reason to trust someone who doesn't even give out their true name."

The cat nods in acceptance. "That is fair. I wouldn't be too trusting either." However Shirou had something to say.

"You aren't planning to do anything wrong right?" Liz looks at him with a raised eyebrow. "Or to bring any harm to me or anyone else."

"No intentions but I will kick some butts if someone tries anything." That was not going to be enough for Liz but Shirou hopes that his solution will.

"Okay, give me a moment." He raises a hand in front of him and Liz already knows what he is going to do. "Trace on."

It is a double edge sword ornamented in a way Shirou didn't do much. It is smaller than the majority of his works, something that a child could lift with some difficulty. The handle was brown with an engraving on a circular pommel with the kanji for 'truth' made of pure gold. The cross guard also was made from the rare metal with two small scales on it.

"This is Truth Bearer." Shirou introduced his creation. "If you place a hand on this sword when it's active, we will be able to tell if you are telling the truth or lying. Or should I say paw?" Honestly the redhead didn't know if it was going to work on a cat, but then again Kuro wasn't a normal cat.

"A sword lying detector? I think the celts had something like that." Nonetheless the cat jumps back on the floor and places a paw on the sword, Shirou followed up by using his mana to activate it, giving it a blue hue. "Why make such a thing?"

"Let's just say I am getting ready for a conversation." And he had every intention of leaving it at that.

Understanding that the redhead had his reasons, Kuro spoke. "I swear I'm here to investigate the details of the ley lines." The sides of the balance started to shift, her words being judged. "I have no intention of harming Emiya Shirou and his allies if they don't try to harm me first or interrupt my investigation and am willing to even reward him for the help." Before finishing the cat added. "I also won't reveal my true name for his safety and mine."

Once the promise was given the sword stood still, the balance pending more to one side than the other. "See Liz? No lies."

"An interesting sword you have there." The cat praises while the maid was frowning. "Would something different happen if I lied?"

"The color would change and the scale would go to the other side." Shirou says after dismissing the sword.

"Its edge looks blunt." Kuro comments.

"I found no need to sharpen it since its purpose is not to fight but to make sure that someone speaks the truth without a shadow of doubt." It was in the design.

Once the truth is established and since the light was visible for all to see, few would be able to disagree with it. Being blunt made the blade less threatening but in a way that is one of the most dangerous weapons in certain situations. Didn't mean the sword doesn't have flaws.

"It doesn't compel someone to tell the truth." Kuro said with certainty. "I also managed to omit some details like what kind of reward I will give or what I will tolerate before I decide you are a threat to my mission." There was a playful tone in Kuro's voice.

"Just remember to warn me before the sudden betrayal." Shirou decides to go with the joke but then sobered up. "It can't force out the truth, I have no idea how to even begin on making that happen. But it can make sure everyone knows when someone is lying."

Nothing can be done with omissions since they were still the truth to an extent. Truth can also be interpretative depending on points of view or how the facts can be interpreted in a vacuo and that could also be used to dodge what the interrogator wanted to hear.

To create a blade capable of bringing out the absolute truth was something he couldn't do as of yet but he can at least be certain that if he wishes to have a conversation and not hear lies he pretty much could do it and that was all that Shirou wanted out of the Truth Bearer.

While both sides of the conversation stopped as the implication of the success of the sword sunk in them both, the third person in the room finally talked again "I'm coming with you two." Liz said while going to her room. "Just let me get a jacket."

Then a noise came out, it sounded like a voracious beast announcing its presence. Both man and cat turned to the maiden who stopped but offered no other reaction to the noise. "Actually, why don't we eat first? What would you like for lunch, Kuro-san?"

"I would prefer to go as fast as possible but I believe that your bodyguard will need the energy." The reference of Liz's output was not lost but that wasn't what bothered Shirou.

"Please, don't call her bodyguard. She is family." A tilt of the head was the reply but the cat shrugged. "What would you prefer? I was… preoccupied before and I haven't cooked anything yet."

He also wanted to just go out and do what he could to solve the mystery. But Shirou wouldn't go anywhere until everyone was properly fed. Together with Sella when the family was all reunited they made a rule that everyone would only leave the house satisfied and ready or not leave at all.

"Just make me a plate with some meat. I can work with little." The redhead raises an eyebrow and accepts that, walking to the kitchen.

"And for drinking?"

"Milk."

"That food was excellent, one of the best meals I ate in a long time." The cat has been praising Shirou's food the whole way to the Tohsaka mansion. At the moment it was sitting shotgun with Shirou behind while Liz drove the vehicle.

"Shirou is usually better. He was rushing today." Liz brags with pride.

"Really? I hope we can find time for him to make dinner then."

"Shouldn't we be focusing on the work?" Shirou was happy that the other two were getting along, food goes a long way to foster friendships, but he was still worried about the ritual that may be happening under everyone's nose.

"You can't be prepared for battle the whole time." The cat informs him, almost like a teacher. "If you do, your hair is going to go white before your thirties. We are not going to solve this the moment we speak with the Tohsaka and maybe they have no information that we can use." Kuro tail hits Shirou in the face since he was in between the seats. "If this fails, then we will have to talk with the Matous and if that fails the last lead is your father and nobody has a hold of him right now."

In other words, if the biggest families of the city are unable to give them any information, their best bet was his father. It wasn't how he planned to start talking about his past exploits but Shirou supposed that it would be a good place to start as any at the present point.

"We have arrived." Liz warns the other passengers as she stops the car close to a bar fence. Behind it was a mansion made in european architecture. The front of the house had a fountain and some space for a car to enter.

Everyone leaves the car and the cat jumps on Shirou's shoulder. "I will let you talk unless needed. Remember to use your authority as the magus with a pact with Gremory to make them talk."

"I don't think that will be necessary." They walk to the main gate and notice something odd. "No doorbell here."

"They will notice your approach by boundary fields." Kuro informed but Shirou felt odd.

"So… we just opened the gate?" He asks while Liz was already pushing said gate without stopping to think.

"Hmm. Odd. Someone should already be here receiving us." The black cat mentioned while they entered. "Maybe they had servants close by in the past when the times were better?" Kuro raises its head. "Oh, yeah. That is definitely the reason. The boundary field is already warning them that we are here."

They all felt the field wash over them, analysing their intentions and even if they were part of the moonlit world. The residents of the Emiya house look at each other. "Weaker than ours." Observed Liz.

"Some of their resources must be directed to other endeavors." Kuro says with a chuckle. "This family really is reduced if they are in such a state. Maybe I could have entered here and stolen the information with no problem."

"But would you even know where to look?" The redhead question made the cat frown.

"Good point. Is not like everyone has a file with their past projects in the house labed to a thief's convenience." They arrived at the door and with a handle there that Shirou used to knock on it.

"Coming." They heard a voice, a girl's voice but that wasn't Rin. Opening the door was a girl with the same hair color and eyes of the Kuoh student and a similar face. But that was all she had in common with Rin since she was more developed and had a chipper demeanor. With her hair braided differently and a smile she says. "Good afternoon. Can I help you?"

"Good afternoon, my name is Emiya Shirou. Is Tohsaka Rin present? I wish to speak with her." The girl takes a second to look at him, as if trying to recognize Shirou and he takes the time to look back.

She was dressed in a white summer dress with a pink vest covering her arms and shoulders. On her head she had a small red ribbon holding her hair back. "For what reason Emiya-san?"

"I need to ask for a favor." Kuro's tail hit Shirou in the back of his head, surprisingly hard for a cat. "Ouch. Okay, okay. I need to speak with her in my capacity as the magus in a pact with Rias Gremory."

The girl looks at Shirou in confusion for a moment until an older woman appears behind her. The similarities told anyone they were family, even in their dressing sense they are alike with just a change of color with the older woman's vest being teal instead of pink.

"Who is it, Sakura?" The redhead couldn't help but compare the woman before him with an older version of Rin. "Visitors?" The woman looks at all the presents and her eyes land on Shirou. "What can I do for you?"

Shirou could feel the tension on her eyes, the woman was trying to disguise it and give them a relaxed look but could see it clearly. She was afraid of him. "Good afternoon. My name is Emiya Shirou and I need to speak to Tohsaka Rin. Is she present?"

"Yes. Please come in." She opens the door, inviting Shirou and his group inside. The inside house is bigger than he is used to but there was a homely air and was well taken care of, Shirou respects that. "Sakura, please escort them to the main room as I go get your father and sister."

"Yes mother." Sakura turns to the visitors. "Please, follow me."

'So that is Tohsaka's younger sister.' That was the person that Rin sold her soul to save, the reason why his fellow magus is now working for Rias and would probably do so for the rest of her life. 'She looks normal and didn't recognize my name or Rias'. Does that mean she isn't connected to the moonlit world?' He found that difficult to believe.

They arrive at the main room, which has tables, books shelves, a big couch and chairs. There was also a piano in the corner of the room that caught Shirou's attention. It was the first time that Shirou saw a piano properly and he could notice that it was polished, it was closed and he could see all the details of the surface not noticing any marks or signs of neglect.

All in all it was a normal room that most families could have but the magus also took note of the absence of technology besides an old fashion phone in a desk on a wall.

"Can I offer you anything?" Sakura interrupts his thoughts with her question. "Maybe some tea?"

"No thank you Tohsaka-san, we just ate." Shirou replies, trying to be gentle.

"Oh, it 's fine. Please, sit down. I am sure that my father and sister are going to be here soon."

Accepting the offer Shirou sits down on a chair, Kuro moving to his lap and laying there while Liz positions herself behind him. Even if the maid is dressed as she usually does with just the addition of a blazer, her posture is defensive and ready to answer any threats.

Shirou notices that Sakura was sitting as well and looks uncomfortable, so he decides to try and start a conversation. "So, your name is Sakura right?"

"Yes. Sorry for not introducing myself before." She gets up again and gives him a small bow. "My name is Tohsaka Sakura."

"Allow me to introduce myself again, Emiya Shirou. Sorry I can't get up, but this little guy must be tired." Sakura approaches him and extends her hand.

"May I?" He didn't see any problem.

"Of course. He likes it on the back of his neck." Which was good since the cat was with its back to Sakura and she could reach it out easily.

"He is well behaved. Is he your familiar?" Shirou shook his head while he pondered.

'If she knows about it then she knows about the moonlit world. Maybe I am just thinking too much and Tohsaka hasn't told her family about me.' He decides to say. "Just a friend I made recently."

Sakura nods in acceptance. "His fur is so soft." Her hand moves a bit and the cat purrs.

"What is going on?" Tohsaka Rin exclaims, entering the room in a panic. She was in a red shirt and a long black skirt that reached her knees. Her hair was in her usual two tails. "Emiya... What are you doing to my sister?"

From the angle she had entered it was clear to Shirou there was some confusion, Sakura's face was too close to him for comfort and her hand was practically on his crotch "Tohsaka, calm down! This is a misunderstanding."

"He was just showing me his pet, nee-san." Sakura takes a step back as Rin approaches and sees the cat.

"Huh? You got a familiar now, Emiya?" Rin stops herself closer to her sister while Shirou answers the question.

"This is just a temporary arrangement. I hope there is no problem in bringing him here."

"Of course not." A man's voice answered before Rin could, prompting Shirou to turn his neck and see the mother of the house arriving with who Shirou supposed was their father. "It's an honor to receive you in our house Emiya Shirou, I heard much about you."

The man was dressed in a red suit and Shirou couldn't help how he was dealing with the summer heat. That lasted until he noticed that it wasn't that hot in the house and could only attribute it to magic.

"It may be a problem since we don't know what his little pet is." Rin points out but the man brushes off making a motion with his cane with a red jewel on it.

"No sense Rin. Asking for a magus to enter in the house of another without some security is bad form. If anything we should praise his caution." It was clear that the girl didn't like what her father had to say but decided to drop it.

"What can I do for you Emiya? I doubt that you came to my house to ask how my summer is going." Shirou notices that the father looks ready to say something but holds himself back.

"I am here to ask if the Tohsaka family has any knowledge from a ritual that may have happened 10 years ago, give or take." The siblings blink at each other but the adults' reaction was quite different.

"I will go get some tea. Any preferences?" The mother of the family offers and when Shirou shakes his head she turns to leave without another word.

"Forgive Aoi. She is fearful of what you are implying." Tokiomi says while placing his cane on the ground and getting up.

"And what am I implying?" The man smiles.

"You are investigating the suspicious fire of 10 years ago, correct?" After a nod the older man smiles. "We had nothing to do with the fire."

"Wait! Why would we have anything to do with that?" Rin was glaring at her father, feeling like he wasn't telling her something.

"Because close to 10 years ago I almost participated in a ritual that possibly would involve using that location as a stage for the final confrontation of our ritual." Tokiomi admits it easily.

"That is the first time I am hearing any of this." Rin was still glaring at her father but the man apparently didn't care, instead he turned to his younger daughter.

"Sakura, please go help your mother." The girl looks to her sister and then to her father confused before giving everyone a small bow and retreating.

"I have no intention of harming anyone here." Shirou said, realizing that now the only people in the room are magi capable of fighting.

"I am not saying you will, but you can." Tokiomi replies, playing with his cane, it had a ruby encrusted on top of it. "The same way that I can't complain if you came prepared for a fight, don't blame me if I want the security of my family if you don't like my answers."

The statement surprised Shirou. "I don't want a fight."

"But you don't need to fight to ruin us." The older magus said, turning to his daughter. "You forgot that he is the magus with a pact with the devil that owns you Rin, show some deference."

'Deference?' The way that Rin talked to him before was somewhat casual but it had respect, she said his family name and if anything she was in the right to demand what an almost stranger is doing in her house.

"Emiya wouldn't harm a fly, he is too nice for that." Rin says with a nod, sitting down on a chair opposite to him. "Ask your questions, my father will answer with the best of his ability."

"But you may not like what I have to say." The man interjected, his eyes never leaving his daughter before he sat down again.

"The only thing I will hate you for is if you are the one that started that fire."

"No." Tokiomi was direct.

"Did you have any knowledge that the fire was going to take place?"

"No."

'Is he avoiding talking too much?' Shirou wonders.

'Father, what are you doing? You already told him of a ritual in that area!' Rin screams in her mind while keeping herself still.

"The ritual that you were going to participate in… did it have any chance of starting such a fire?" That got the man to raise an eyebrow.

"Didn't your father tell you about the Holy Grail War?" Now it was Shirou's turn to raise an eyebrow.

"My father?" Shirou could remember Liz telling him something about it. "I know that there was supposed to be a fight, right? Did you guys start it even after he tried to stop it?"

"No. That one was, as I said, canceled. Mostly because of your father, the Magus Killer." Only when the man said those words that Shirou knew he gave away that his father was really the Magus Killer.

'Or maybe he already knew. I can't tell with this guy.' He was still disturded by the implications. "What is the Holy Grail War?"

Hearing the title Rin couldn't believe that Shirou was really the son of such a man. Deciding to not commit to any train of thought, mostly because she saw Shirou as too nice to be the son of such a person, Rin focused on the conversation.

"What it was," Tokiomi assumed a lecturing pose, "it was supposed to be a competition. 7 magicians would summon 7 spirits to fight each other. Spirits of heroes long dead fighting for a wish to be brought forward by the Holy Grail."

"Isn't the Holy Grail a sacred gear?" It was Rin who interrupted her father, not that Shirou minds since he only knew the basics about the holy cup.

"It was not the real one. It was a tool made by the Einzebern by utilizing the body of the most powerful homunculus ever made. With it the servants, how we would call the spirits that would be summoned, could be called in 7 different classes that carried some of their story and Noble Phantasms."

"Noble Phantasms?" Rin couldn't believe it. "You all figure out means to call spirits and have then use Noble Phantasms? Why fight then? Use them for research! I bet if we get a magician summoned they would be willing to help!"

"The reason why the conflict was necessary was because the tool of mana needed to keep Heroic Spirits on our world is too big for even an army of magicians." Tokiomi elaborated.

"Heroic… Spirits? How can you summon a complete-" Shirou stops himself once he realizes it. "The grail…it could use Heaven's Feel."

"Correct." The older magus confirms. "It couldn't use its complete form but it would be enough to summon a weaker form of the spirits. A form that would be called servants and fight together with the magician so both could get the prize, a wish from the grail." The two younger magi were giving their full attention to the elder Tohsaka. "They would be summoned in one of such classes: Saber, sword users that made their name with a blade and would be the strongest class in general parameters, Lancer, spear users that would more directed to speed and power losing on luck to compensate, Archer, the user of the bow that would be excellent at a distance but weak at in a straight fight, Rider, those whose mounts share their legends and would be able to use powerful Noble Phantasms in return for greater cost of mana, Assassin, not fighters but stealth masters able to infiltrate and kill the careless masters while being the worse at fighting, Caster, magicians from legend that could turn any area into a fortress and Berserker, they who gave up reason for power being the most physically overwhelming class."

"That is not taking into account the spirits themselves." Rin talks about the moment that her father finished. "If you consider that some Heroic Spirits are naturally better and with bigger legends, regardless the class they are summoned in, they still would be power houses."

"While the lesson is appreciated," and any other day Shirou would be more patient with it, "we are getting off topic. Why was the war canceled? How do you know it was canceled?"

"Because the grail was made by the Einzeberns and your father destroyed them and got rid of the grail." The argument was clear, no grail, no war.

At least when it came to that particular ritual there was no reason for it, no prize to be conquered or means to make the thing happen. By destroying the Einzbern, Emiya Kiritsugu put a complete halt on that particular ritual.

Shirou felt a scratch on his leg and looked down to see Kuro looking at him. He scratches the cat's head but its eyes aren't leaving him, almost demanding that he asks some kind of question.

"You… Do you know of any rituals that could have caused the fire?" The man in red shakes his red.

"Not the ritual itself, the fire would be used to make sacrifices but from the way you talk, the fire itself was magical." It was a hint, telling Shirou that Tokiomi needs more information.

"...I am the last survivor of the fire, all the others died in the last few years." Shirou revealed and a gasp told him that Rin couldn't hold back her shock.

Tokiomi took it in stride. "I see. It may be a coincidence." He offered.

"The area of destruction of the fire is a perfect circle." That caught the Tohsakas' attention.

"You are sure?" Rin asks while her father starts to think.

"A credible source," that he only met today but he wasn't going to say that, "figured it out. Not only that but there are contradictory reports which lead us to believe that someone is trying to cover something up."

"I see." Tokiomi stops to think but Rin has some questions.

"Why come us? And who is this source of yours." The demand sounded reasonable for Shirou.

"Because we have few clues and we need a direction." It was Kuro who spoke, sitting down on Shirou's lap. "It's either you or Matou."

"Who is this cat?" Rin glares at the feline who glanced back at her father.

"If you have any leads that can help us, we would appreciate it." Kuro goes for the diplomatic route while Tokiomi looks at it, giving all his attention to the cat.

"You already checked the devils and other races." He points out. "We are your last hope of a solution."

"Was that too much on the face?" The cat doesn't deny.

"We aren't the ones responsible for the tragedy that happened." Tokiomi even lets go of his cane for the first to show he wasn't a threat and neither threatened leaving it on the couch, he believes completely in what he was saying. "But if another ritual happened then they used the ley line to be the strongest at the time."

"Hard to find since the event itself changed it." Kuro said.

"But if the ritual truly is responsible for the change then its effects must be monumental." Tokiomi points out. "Whatever the goal is or was, everyone in the moonlit world should be able to feel it."

"Have you felt the mana when the original explosion started?" Shirou was the one asking.

"Yes, it was strong and foul. Rin must remember it well, both of my children felt it at the time." Everyone's eyes turned to the new head of the family and she nodded.

"I do, but I don't think it's necessary to talk about it." Shirou then had an idea.

"Do you have any maps of the city's ley line? Something that can point us to the best place for such a ritual at that time?" The man nods.

"What good family magician family doesn't keep maps of the area?" Tokiomi asks rhetorically. "I also made note of the best places to build a secondary workshop. One of them may be the one you are looking for." Shirou could feel the cat's smugness when he talked about the map. "Rin, please entertain our guests. I will be back in a moment."

The older man departs, leaving only the students, the cat and the maid that remained behind Shirou. A few seconds pass as Shirou looks at Liz and then turns to ask something to RIn. "Can Liz sit down?"

The head of the family shrugs. "I thought she was standing from preference. She can sit down if she wants."

But she didn't move and Shirou didn't know if he should ask what was happening. He could understand that she is a little more protective after the fight at the mall but he thought that the weeks after would have already calmed her a bit.

Realizing that Liz wasn't going to leave his back unguarded he decides to change the subject. "Your father is nice." Kuro hits its paw on its face.

"It is just because you are the one with the most coveted contract on the planet." Rin said with a scowl. "Even if I am the official head of the family it doesn't stop my father from playing games. He probably left us by ourselves in hopes that I can charm you and join our families in some way."

"That's… bizarre." Shirou didn't know what to say about the topic.

"Get used to it. Once more magicians join our school you are going to be their main target. One way or another." That got the cat to chuckle.

"Someone is going to be really popular in a few weeks." Shirou then scratched the cat's neck.

"I prefer to not think about it." Unfortunately for him, the cat still has more to say.

"And you aren't trying anything because?" It was clear that the question was for Rin.

"I have no interest. If I will be my someone it will be someone that I can live with and while Emiya is an excellent chet and a decent magus I don't know him enough to want a relationship." She then looks behind her to see Sakura showing up with a trail. "Sakura?"

"Mother is making dinner but I decided that the tea can't wait." She places the trail in the middle. "Ah, Kuro-chan is awake? If I knew she was awake I would have brought some milk."

Rin believes that their mother was trying to keep both of them out of Shirou's way. Most magicians aren't kind and while Rin knew that Shirou was a nice person, her family had no way to know the same.

"It's fine." The cat answered. "You are too kind, Sakura-chan."

"Oh, you talk Kuro-chan? Then maybe I should introduce myself again?" The girl prepared to make a polite bow but the cat interrupted.

"No need Sakura-chan, you are such a nice girl. And don't worry about me, Shirou here already fed me enough for today." He would disagree with that but changed the subject.

"Sakura-san, are you in middle school? I don't believe that I ever saw you around Homurahara when I had gone there." He was going with the fact that Rin was also a student of his former school, something that Sakura nods to.

"Yes, I also studied there but I think we frequented different circles." The girl sits down and offers him a cup of tea. "Now I am in the middle school subdivision of Kuoh but next term I can join the main high school if I keep my grades up."

"That is good, it means that you are going to join your sister. I hope she is ready to show you around. The first day can be… pretty hectic." He spoke from experience.

"You are also a Kuoh student, Emiya-sama?" Sakura's question came with a smile.

"Please none of this 'sama' business. Call me Shirou if you want too." Shirou was enjoying talking with the younger woman but she shook her head.

"No, I must show you the proper respect you are warranted." Kuro, who was finding everything funny, offered a suggestion.

"Since you are going to join his school in a year or so, why not call him 'senpai'?" The younger Tohsaka claps her hands at the idea.

"Yes, I would like that! Would you mind, senpai?"

"No, I wouldn't." Shirou saw no problems since he was technically her senpai already. Drinking a bit of the tea he couldn't help but comment. "Ginseng? This is great."

"Yes, my mother and I started to practice this brand of tea. I hope it's to your liking." Shirou nods in admiration.

"I know how to make a good tea but never like this. What's the secret?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just something I tried while I was making a cake." From the corner of his eye Shirou could see that Liz was fighting off a reaction.

Chuckling he comments. "We can trade recipes. I will give you a chocolate cake recipe and you tell me how you made this tea so good." He even checked to see if there was some magic associated with it.

There was some to preserve the tea leaves but nothing that affected the taste. "Weeeeell, maybe we can negotiate."

Rin felt her eyebrow twitch as she watched her sister interact with Shirou. 'What the hell? What should I do? What should I say? And isn't he taking this senpai thing a little bit too fast?' The two of them were talking about cooking out of all things with Kuro interjecting now and them with opinions of good dishes, not how to cook but to eat.

There was a part of her that wanted to stop the proceedings, that was the part that fought to become the head of the Tohsaka to protect her sister. But her racional side was telling her that she was exaggerating, that her overprotective streak wasn't needed in this situation.

'Besides, Shirou is harmless. If he would date Sakura he wouldn't go asking for my permission, he would ask her out and if that happened I would totally allow it.' He is not like most magicians and it would be an union her father would-

Discretally Rin starts to look around the room, paying attention to all the objects that could have a gem of some kind until her eyes land on her father's cane. It was a good thing she hadn't grabbed the tea just yet since she almost ruined the chair she was sitting on with her nails.

'Father, you stubborn mule.' Since he wasn't the head of the Tohsaka anymore he can't propose anything officially. That won't stop him from trying more stubble methods.

Even if Rin was right and he left to make sure she interacted more with Shirou there was the possibility that her mother wasn't apprehensive from an unknown magician in the house and more like playing matchmaker.

"Sakura, can you pass me father's staff? This way Kuro can sit beside you if he wants and Emiya's lap can take a break." The younger sibling blinks for a second and then smiles when the cat lets out a small laugh and says.

"Are you implying I'm fat Tohsaka-chan?" There was no malice in the tone.

"Not at all. Just want to make it easier for Emiya to use the table instead of holding the cup in his hand the whole time." It was her justification since she didn't want to let out that her father may be spying on them.

"I suppose I can move to the couch for a bit." The cat said, giving a side look to Rin. "Just to get another perspective."

That could have been an indirect but not what Rin was focusing on. "It's no problem Tohsaka." Shirou adds a second later. "Kuro-san here is not heavy at all."

"It's kind of you Shirou but maybe you should stretch your legs for a bit." The cat goes to the floor first. "Sakura-chan, if you would." With a nod, the girl gives her sister the staff.

Immediately when she places a hand on it she can tell that there is a mana signature affecting the mana stored on the gem. Even now Tokiomi wasn't bothering to hide his intentions.

This game between them was getting annoying for the actual head of the family, he can't challenge her but that was not a challenge, it is a loophole he is using to try and get the best deal his family can have in the future and Rin can't even call him out on it since technically he is doing nothing wrong.

The only real 'creep move' was that he is keeping an eye on the events happening and that can be argued that he is looking over his daughters that he left alone with a visitor he doesn't fully trust yet.

So, while Shirou and Sakura bond over cooking, all Rin can do is sit down and wait for her father to come back. And he should be back already since their workshop is not out of the house or anything.

The man ends up returning a few more minutes later, two maps on his hands, Rin recognizes them both. Her father was really going to reveal the best places for workshops on Fuyuki that aren't already in use, or at least the ones that were good 10 years ago.

"These are all the places that could be useful for rituals. I also picked one specific for that area if you want."

"You have a specific map of the area?" Tokiomi looks confused at Shirou's confusion.

"Don't you have multiple maps from your residence. I have hundreds of maps of the city that have been passed down for generations." Kuro talks before Shirou could give an answer.

"His father still hasn't had 'the talk' with him yet. You know the one; you are to inherit this and that." That made Shirou pause.

"I… think he had the talk with my sister. She is the older one of the family." Not that he isn't waiting to have his own conversation with the man.

Tokiomi agrees with that. "While there is nothing wrong in presenting the more detailed aspects of our world to the oldest children first, you are the one now in a pact with the Gremory clan and future head of your own family. It's time to start planning your legacy."

'And there it is.' Rin had to hold back her scoff. 'He didn't waste any time, did he? Not even a minute of presenting the maps and he was already talking about legacy and other stuff.' Everything just made Rin mad with her father.

Shirou wasn't really listening to him, his focus was on the map as Kuro jumps on the small table and also takes a look. "Three locations. Easy to check." Shirou nods and replies.

"I think I have seen these places around town. One is an apartment complex, the other is a company of some kind and the last one is in the park." More or less the same on his map from earlier in the day.

"If I may comment something." Tokiomi interrupts while bringing out another map. "None of these locations were or are the best ones to place the grail in. I am sure Kuro-san knows what I am talking about."

"The cave beneath the temple." The next map had lots of places marked with 'X' and circles, the Ryuudou Temple being the main one with a note to the side saying it was the most efficient one. "But that territory has a natural protection against the supernatural. Depending on the ritual that can be disruptive."

"Either way, we better check the places just to be safe." Shirou gets up and collects the map of the places that would be in the circle. "Kuro-san has already checked the park, two more to go."

"I am sorry that I can't be of any more help." Tokiomi offers his hand for a shake and Shirou takes it. "But I hope that if you ever need any assistance then you know that the Tohsaka family is always ready to help."

'You son of a-' Rin managed to hold her thoughts back before she finished insulting her father. "I am going with you."

"Huh?" Shirou and Sakura look at the actual head of the Tohsaka in confusion while the cat chuckles.

"Fine by me." Kuro replies while Tokiomi smiles.

"Of course Rin. There is nothing wrong for you to learn more about the city we inhabit."

'Wait, what?' Rin's brain needed a time to reboot after her father said that.

"We don't want to impose, Tohsaka-san. We can investigate on our own." After Shirou said that Tokiomi brushed him off.

"Of course you can. But you don't know exactly what you are looking for and another magus of considerable skill can be useful." Every word of her father's mouth was processed by Rin until she reached a conclusion.

'That was what he was gunning for! Not Sakura, me! He wants me to spend time with Emiya and bring the deal into our family!' Even if she had become the head of the Tohsaka it was Tohsaka Tokiomi who kept his family afloat for the last few decades.

His business sense may be bad and he doesn't care about modernities and technologies but he was still a magus raised in the traditions and politics that gave him an edge on his daughter when it came to strategy and plans.

For him, the preservation of his family is paramount and he does want the happiness of both of his daughters. Before him is the most influential bachelor in the whole of Japan. Even if he had an idea of who his father was, that was not a problem since he saw the idea of the man killing his own family difficult.

On the other hand his family would be elevated if Emiya Shirou joined. And since he was not the oldest child of the Emiya family there was a chance he would join the Tohsaka instead, freeing them of the debts the family now have with the Gremory since they would have a pact.

Or the second hypothesis was that Sakura married him and they became family either way. For Tokiomi it was a win if either of his daughters entered into a relationship with Shirou. Their main family wouldn't have as many privileges but he knew how generous he was thanks to some materials Rin shared with him.

No magician on the planet would give up such a chance and Rin could see the way he smiled at her, he wasn't even hiding it. On the contrary, he was pretty much flaunting to her that she fell into his trap.

But that is fine, she knows Shirou better than him. All she has to do is give some excuse and the young man will accept her racinality to leave without her. All she needs-

"Good thing nee-san is going with you." Sakura says with some relief. "It sounds like you are going to go look into something dangerous, senpai."

And now Rin has to go because if she doesn't her younger sister is going to be mad at her. She could see in Sakura's eyes how proud she was of her older sibling and how sure she was that Rin would help her new friend.

In the end, she accepts her fate. "Well… are we going or not?" Rin directs herself to leave her own house.

"Ah, okay then." Shirou turns to Sakura and Tokiomi. "It was a pleasure to meet you both." He gives a bow of respect that Sakura returns but Tokiomi just gives a small nod.

"The pleasure was ours Emiya-san. Please don't hesitate to return if you need anything else. Maybe after the investigation you all can come back for dinner." Rin had to bite her lips to not reply to that one.

She notices Kuro passing her with Liz and the cat's eyes were on her and they were full of mirth. 'That small thing is having fun at my expense!' She couldn't call her father on his plan either since that would be in front of her sister, her sweet little sister that she loved with all her heart and wanted to give her no troubles after giving back her freedom.

Deciding that she didn't need to hear anything else, Rin left the house. For a second she debated coming back and getting some of her jewels just in case but decided against it. Leaving the house, the redhead steps to her side and places a hand on her shoulder.

"I am happy to have you with us, Tohsaka." Shirou tells that to his fellow magus with a smile.

She nods in acceptance. "Thanks. Where are we going to check first?" Shirou still had the map but he shrugs.

"Let's get to the car first, with luck the first place we take a look is going to have some leads." That didn't reassure the girl.

"You know it has been 10 years right?" Rin couldn't help herself but say it. "You may be looking for something that isn't there anymore."

"But I need to see to it anyway. With my own eyes." Shirou looks ahead decisively. "If there is nothing then there is nothing. But if a ritual really happened, there must be some consequence, some evidence and that may lead me to the guilty party."

For him, the course was set. If there is a chance, even if small, that he can find the ones responsible for the hell he lived through and the people that died in that hell. Even if he can't find anything for now he will still undertake this journey, if only to put some of his nightmares to bed.

…..

Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, this next segment has nothing to do with it and its just a follow up to the Archer theory I did on the last chapter, if you have no interest feel free to move on since this has nothing to do with the story, just some of my theories and justification for my previous theories.

I will say, the feedback I got on the Archer thing is fascinating, lots of people brought out their own theories that were fun to read and raised some points that brought out questions from me.

I just have a couple of doubts that made me disagree with some things and I will show them here. Again, these are my theories, feel free to agree or disagree if you like, I will just point out why I have these theories. There will be spoilers of other works. You were warned!

Okay, the majority for some reason talked about how Shirou from the normal ending of the fate route is going to be the one to become Archer but that was not the question.

If I had to classify one of the Shirou's to become Archer I would say it would be the UBW one, it was because of him that I referred to the bootstrap paradox. It makes more sense to me since he had already the basis to be Archer and with time he could lose himself in being a counter guardian since that is what they are a reference to in my interpretation, the boy who dreams and the man that lives the dream and recents it with the later remembering of his young self to move on. Still, that may be wrong or we could have a multiple Archer situation, either way, that is just an opinion.

Another that some raised was that he could get his noble phantasm in museums or in his natural life. That one I disagree with because of how the world of Nasu works. The Magus are, for the most part, selfish people you will ever hear about in a realistic way, the majority of them want to essentially become a god in a way that the world itself doesn't want happening. Alaya itself tries to stop people from reaching the Root, which is one of the functions of the counter guardians.

If there is a noble phantasm around they will try and get it. There is an argument that he could get some in the Clocktower but neither he or Rin would have enough pull for such a thing before he left to start his journey... supposedly. Maybe a certain vampire helped.

Another point still in the same vein is EMIYA being summoned in other Grail Wars and that one is complicated. Basically his summoning should be impossible save certain conditions. There are only two confirmed wars he was called to, technically three but that was Nameless and there is a whole argument there if he is really Emiya Shirou or not, but for the confirmed one, they go like this.

5th Holy Grail War; summoned by Tohsaka Rin, the magus in question had no catalyses and decided to try and call someone compatible with her by maximizing her energy output at the best time possible. Two factors change that fate, maybe three in highsight but the obvious ones are that she missed the time and used her pendant full of mana. Archer still carried the jewel in the time of his death and that is a catalyst, add that to the fact they are in Fuyuki, there is a world threat in the form of the corrupt grail, his younger self is around and you have a very big set of circumstances that favor his summon. That also complies a little bit on how Alaya works for the most part.

Alaya was once part of Gaia and both are like a computer to the preservation of their main priorities, Alaya is humanity and Gaia was the world. But when there is a problem they don't pull out the big guns immediately, and both have really big guns that I will elaborate later, they first work by coincidences and accidents, literally. A person in the right place at the right time can be way more effective than any army.

Grand Order; That war is both an argument to how EMIYA gets his weapons and as another war that he can be summoned in. In the Grand Order humanity is screwed, or better yet, extinct. Situation is critical and Alaya can't do a thing because the villain is OP and can time travel with the only hope being basically a hail mary made from the efforts and plans of many people in the organization Chaldea. And that is just part 1, 2 is another beast entirely, pun intended.

Alaya can give support and it(she?) does. Most of the singularities already have some servants fighting on behalf of humanity and they are usually the ones that are the best for the job, both by the opponents that are about to be faced and because of the place of the battle. Those guys can be called by other humans but Alaya is always there pushing things in the right direction because counter guardians won't cut it.

A there are plenty of good examples of this phenomena but my favorite on this case is the chinese Losbelt; humanity there was content and ignorant, they had no challenges and no suffering of any kind but they also had no wisdom or drive to improve their lives and because of that there was no way for Alaya to call heroes of the proper story to the rescue or support since it was a world with no need for heroes.

But when a single human from there realizes that, and more heroes are called and they are the best ones for the job...kinda, the ones the protagonist also have good coverage but then again Alaya may have helped there, not the strongest ones but the best ones for it. That is an example of Alaya's work.

Can Archer get new weapons from the Grand Order? Yes, but he already shows up stacked. And he appears before Bewoulf for example, the guy who has one of his favorite swords.

And that is why I believe that Alaya just downloaded on EMIYA's brain all the weapons he needed. He is already the most versitally counter guardian of the know bunch, if anything Alaya doesn't even need many since that one alone is so versatile.

Could he get the weapons from the past? That is also possible, but some don't exist in the past, they are concepts first or have no form at that point like Rho Aias.

Gate of Babylon? There is this comment by joshudario4 that describes well how Shirou may have seen some of them. But he himself hit the nail, they are predecessors, not the ones he actually uses because the stronger the weapons the harder it actually is for any version of Emiya to trace them. That is the balance that Archer and Shirou need to deal with, trade power for efficiency and use them well.

Gilgamesh is the King of Heroes, the First Hero, his legend precedes all and that is why his weapons are the best with some exceptions. Shirou can get quite the arsenal from there but they are mostly powerful weapons with little efficiency, either because they cost too much(giant sword, you know which) or their effects are not as good as some future ones. We don't see a Gae Bolg for instance coming from Gil considering that it was made way after him and the concept of reversing causality is way different from the sword that chooses kings.

Still about what Gilgamesh can have or can't, the reason why he can't have Excalibur or God Hand is because of his own personality. Excalibur is the sword of the planet while God Hand is basically Herakles' divinity turned into a protection for the Berserker version of the guy.

Can anyone see Gilgamesh asking for the World's protection? Or forgiving the gods that he hated? That is actually a good contrast between the King of Uruk and the Most Famous Greek, one hated the gods and chose death over making peace with them while the later was respected by them and gained divinity for his actions becoming a god himself.

There are other examples but it all boils down to who Gilgamesh was. His status as the First Hero gives him many perks that his successors would one day have and since he was the first king, collector and a lot of other stuff that he is the first of.

But being the first doesn't mean the best. In the end, while older magic is stronger, humans get better into making stuff with time.

Okay, sidenote before the end of this section, if someone analyse the tropes of the Epic of Gilgamesh you are going to find; the chosen one trope, divine parents, a destination rival, becoming friends after the fight with said rival, bein spurred in a journey after the rival's death just to realize that the real treasure are the friends we made along the way. And others...I am serious.

Now I will quickly explain how Alaya's defense system works at the best of my understanding in an oversimplified matter:

1- Coincidences and human actions. As stated previously the first line of defence is humanity itself.

2-Counter Guardians. Brutal defenders of humanity, not true heroic spirits but humans, as far as we know, that accepted Alaya's contract in some fashion, I have no idea how or why, and are usually killing machines.

3-Servants, heroic spirits. Following previous logic that is kinda clear, I hope.

4-Grand Servants. Basically the 'In case of apocalypse in the form of a Beast, press this button'. Those that play Fate GO know what I am talking about. They are the servants that are considered the best, including for example the First Hassan and you don't want to mess with that guy.

What is the criteria of selection? Complicated. Do we know all the members? Not yet. Are they powerful? Some of the strongest servants of all time.

Back to the topic, in reality I don't know how EMIYA came about, all I have are theories and I have no clue where most of his armaments came from. Someone posted a theory that when Shirou makes a contract with Alaya he becomes part of a collective that is essentially part of EMIYA. That is another that I can subscribe to.

Thanks for the comments and attention.