The Reading of The Lost Hero of Chaldea

by ahdokobo

The Olympians and demigods are all gathered when a certain book containing a special story falls into their hands. With a warning attached, everyone decides the best course of action is to learn more about this book, as well as the hero the story centers around.

4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Excuse me?!" Annabeth called out, causing Miyu to let out a giggle.

"You even react the same as Ana, that's so funny." Miyu said with a smile, still hanging onto Percy. Annabeth's eyes narrowed, before she decided to try and separate the two, only for her to quickly let go and jump away, leaving a blushing and confused Percy standing still.

Annabeth glared at her, before standing in front of Percy. "This Percy is my boyfriend, not yours." She stated sternly. Miyu blinked a few times, her smile not fading in the slightest.

"Ah, I suppose your right. I'm not technically his girlfriend, since you were first, these things matter, at least that's what mom says. Good to see that you two are like that in this world too." She said while rubbing the back of her head, becoming more like a grin.

Listening to her words, nearly everyone realized what she said and what she was implying. Annabeth's glare morphed into an expression of shock. Percy managed to recover by this point and understood what was said, deciding to interject.

"Even if it's a parallel world, I have a hard time believing I'd ever cheat on Annabeth! You have to be lying." He called out, his gaze firmly planted on Miyu who giggled at his words, annoying him a bit.

"What do you mean by 'cheat'? I'll have you know we're all quite happy with our relationship." Miyu answered smugly, catching Percy off-guard, understanding what she meant. Before anymore words could be shared, someone intervened by bonking her on the head. "Ow! What was that for?" Miyu called out, turning and looking at Thalia with a pouty face.

Thalia looked at her sister with an exasperated expression. "Because 'you know who' isn't here to punish you for teasing them like that. She especially wouldn't like that you're teasing them specifically." She answered, causing Miyu to sigh.

"Aw, but I wanted to see how alike they are. Besides, what she doesn't know won't hurt me." She said with a huff. Though, everyone paying attention could surmise by their conversation that Miyu was simply messing with Annabeth and Percy.

"Wait, so you were just messing with us?" Percy asked, wanting clarification Miyu only responded with a guilty smile and laugh.

With everyone watching the little show going on, they all missed the Vortex glow, making a similar sight as when Miyu and Thalia appeared. Contrary to their appearances, however, the this person's appearance was quiet with no yelling or sounds coming through, nor was there a crash.

"I apologize for my sister, she tends to tease those close to her. Unfortunately for you, that includes you and Annabeth in our world." Thalia told them, though, before she could make Miyu do the same, something wrapped around Miyu's body.

"Oh, that's not good." Miyu managed to say, though her expression seemed more resigned, rather than worried or afraid. Just as she finished speaking, she was pulled away.

The gods noticed the ruckus and returned to their previous positions, seeing that their newest visitor had appeared. Athena had to admit, she was very surprised by who it was. This surprise was shared by the demigods and hunters, who had all reacted to Miyu's capture by readying themselves for a fight, only to pause when they saw who it was.

Standing in the 'landing zone', was another beautiful girl. She had long, silky blonde hair underneath a New Yankee's baseball cap, with her hair tied off at the end with a ribbon, allowing her to show off her beautiful hair without it getting in the way too much. Though, everyone noticed a streak of silver in her long locks, as well as some in the bangs that peaked through the front of her cap.

The next thing noticed was her sharp, piercing steel colored eyes, which were currently fixed on Miyu in a small glare. It was the only indication of her mood, as the rest of her face was set in a calm and cool manner. Aphrodite couldn't help but notice her beautiful light tan skin, which almost looked like it belonged to one of her own daughters. She could also make out some light makeup, though it wasn't enough to be noticeable to most people. It was just enough to enhance her natural beauty, which was rather surprising.

She was dressed differently from what they would have guessed, wearing brown boots, blue jeans with fringed brown leather riding chaps covering them, a black t-shirt, blue jean jacket with an owl embroidered on the shoulder, and a blue bandana around her neck.

They also noticed she had a few accessories, the most noticeable being a brown satchel bag that had a few vials filled with something on the outside. She also had what appeared to be a hard cover case on her belt, looking to be the size of a deck of playing cards. As well as a sheathed dagger of some kind behind her waist.

Some may have second guessed themselves, but they could all tell who it was that had come through. 'Annabeth?!' Percy thought to himself in shock, not expecting to see another version of his girlfriend. Though he quickly recovered, remembering what was going on, and realized that the other Annabeth had pulled Miyu to her with some sort of silvery rope.

"What did you do?" She asked, pulling the rope so that Miyu was only a foot away from her. Miyu actually looked a bit panicked, surprising the ones watching.

"I-I didn't do anything this time, Ana! I swear!" Miyu called out, before pouting a bit. "Besides, we both know I don't have the magical energy nor the knowledge to pull something like this off."

Ana scoffed at her words. "Maybe not the knowledge, but if anyone could brute force this, it'd be you. How am I supposed to know this isn't another one of your little pranks?" Miyu blinked a few times, before she answered with a scoff of her own.

"Please, I have standards, thank you. Pranks are only fun when everyone's laughing and having fun. Plus, I wouldn't dare interrupt your date with Percy, you know that." Miyu replied, with Ana narrowing her eyes a bit, before sighing. She brought her hand down and grabbed one of the cards, before tapping it, causing the silver rope to disappear. The card now having the image of the rope on it. Everyone quickly realized that it was a mistform card.

Ana put the card back into it's case and proceeded to bring her bandana up to her face as she looked around. "I'll believe you this time. Still, this is rather odd." She said, her eyes quickly glancing over everyone in the room. Her eyes slightly widened at Percy, before she shook her head and moved on. They then settled on Annabeth, who was in shock at seeing another version of herself. She tilted her head, bringing the bandana down as she did so. "Fascinating."

"Eh, it's a little lackluster for me since there's no alternate me. I'm guessing you noticed what I did?" Miyu asked, glancing at Ana as she did so. Ana hummed, before nodding her head. Her eyes studied Annabeth for a moment longer, before turning to her sister. She reached back and grabbed her bag.

"Speaking of noticing things, here." She said, opening the bag up. To everyone's surprise, a little white fox jumped out of the bag and landed on Miyu's shoulders. Miyu's face lit up upon seeing it. "She ran up to me a few minutes before I was sucked into that vortex."

"Inari! I'm sorry, you must have fell out of my hood when I was brought here." She said, petting the little fox that was resting on her shoulder. Annabeth shook her head, deciding to look around a bit more.

"Annabeth?" A voice rang out, getting Ana's attention. She recognized it easily, turning to see that it was her mother. Her mother seemed surprised by something, but she wasn't sure what it was. 'No, I have an idea what it is.' "You're covered with the scent of magic, and a bit of that one's magic." Athena said, pointing towards Aphrodite with a small glare.

"Well, I use magic, so that's one answer. As for the other, I was on a date before being dragged here." Ana answered with a shrug. "You told me it doesn't hurt to look good when going on a date." She added with a small smile, surprising many who heard her. Some were pretty sure they saw Athena slightly blush at her words, but she managed to maintain her stoic expression.

"Also, it'd probably be best to call me Ana while I'm here. It may get confusing otherwise." Ana clarified, not wanting to get mixed up with her alternate self.

"You adjusted pretty quickly to your arrival." Apollo noticed, causing Ana to look over at him. She hummed, before shrugging.

"Analyzing things is what I'm best at. All I had to do was take what I saw and heard when I was in the vortex and add it with what I saw when I first arrived here to arrive at a feasible answer. Judging by the changes I noticed, the lack of some people and the addition of others, some changed appearances, and even power differences, it wasn't difficult to surmise my current predicament." Ana answered, placing some strands of hair behind her ear as she did so.

"Wow, that sounded a bit too much like Athena for my liking." Apollo laughed, getting a glare from Athena. Though, she had to admit, it did sound like her. The demigods couldn't help but be surprised by how Ana spoke, being so used to Annabeth's way of talking, yet even that wasn't like what Ana just said.

"Sorry, we broke her of that habit awhile ago, but still she gets like that when she's nervous." Elder Thalia explained to the others with a nervous laugh, as she made her way towards her. A few noticed Ana's cheeks redden a bit at her explanation, but she didn't say anything to deny it.

"You don't have to be nervous, Ana. We're here too, you know?" Miyu said, attempting to comfort her. Ana groaned a bit.

"I don't want to hear it from you. I heard what you were doing earlier." Ana said with a huff. "Trying to give Percy the wrong idea isn't good for my nerves, or my health!" Her outburst surprised the campers a bit, seeing another version of Annabeth acting in such a way.

"Ah, I was just teasing. Besides, it's not like it was our Percy." Miyu replied, rubbing the back of her head with a guilty smile. Ana quickly turned and grabbed Miyu by the arms and proceeded to shake her a bit.

"Don't say it like that, dummy, you'll make it worse." Ana told her, with Miyu giggling as she did so. Thalia shook her head, already used to seeing such things. The others might not be, since Miyu and Ophelia didn't have counterparts in this world, but seeing the three sisters act like this was everyday life for her. 'They were more manageable when they were younger. Now? They're a handful.'

The observers here may have seen Miyu's little joke as just a joke, but the truth was, if Percy showed the qualities Miyu was interested in, it would likely stop being a joke. Everyone in this world would likely be concerned about that, but considering how the Emiya siblings viewed love, it would be normal for them. Thalia doubted that Ana would actually have a problem with it either, neither would Miyu for that matter. Her siblings were quite open minded when it came to love and relationships. She blamed Shirou.

---

After Ana managed to calm down, she whispered an incantation and erected a bounded field around the three. Everyone watched the three speaking to each other within, likely giving Ana a full rundown on what was happening. The gods had to admit they were quite interested in the magic being used, as they couldn't actually hear the trio. Even those that could read lips were at a loss, as the trio were speaking to each other in Japanese.

The three seemed to come to an understanding, nodding, then dispelling the barrier and heading to their respective areas. Miyu saw Hestia waiting for her with a familiar smile on her face. It was one that caused Miyu to pause for a moment, before letting out a sigh and hanging her head. Ana recognized it as the smile she would have when one of them was about to be scolded. Thankfully, she only had to deal with one mother at the moment, rather than multiple. Though, she noticed Aphrodite giggling a bit at the sight of the pair.

Elder Thalia went back to the hunters, but was accompanied by a few campers, though it was Lacy that was the most noticeable one. Ana couldn't help but smile at the sight of her little sister. It seemed that some things didn't change even in another world. Lacy was just as cute as ever.

Ana made her way over towards the campers, seeing many of them gawking at her and even whispering to themselves. She simply brushed them off. Their opinions mattered very little to her. Save for one, who appeared to be waiting to see where she'd sit. Ana smirked a bit, before abruptly appearing next to Percy and taking a seat right next to him on the left. On his right was Annabeth, who slightly glared at her, before grabbing her boyfriend's arm.

It was amusing to see Percy's torn expression, as well nervousness, as being sandwiched between two versions of his girlfriend must have been a lot. Ana merely smiled at Percy as she crossed her arms and her legs in her seat. As she did so, Lou Ellen Blackstone happened to move closer to her. She could guess the reason, but decided not to say anything. She figured Lou Ellen would ask her about magic when she felt the time was right.

"Um, I hope it's not a sore subject, but why do you look so different?" Percy asked, with Ana noticing he was looking at her hair. Percy knew that Annabeth once had a streak in her hair, but it faded and wasn't anything like Ana's.

Ana shook her head. "It's not a sore subject, rather, it's more like a sign of dedication." She answered, pulling her hair over her shoulder and looking at the streak. Her hair was nothing like her dad's, thankfully, but she wouldn't lie and say she hated it. In fact, she liked that she had that in common with him. "Pushing one's magic too far can have adverse effects sometimes." She answered, not wanting to reveal anything.

Percy nodded, acting like he understood, which he might have, but Ana was sure he likely didn't. She couldn't explain that she pushed her magic circuits beyond their capabilities, since they didn't know she was Shirou's daughter yet. Her steel eyes could be written off the same way, especially since Hecate wasn't here.

"How did you learn magic?" To Ana's surprise, it was Annabeth that asked her that, rather than Lou Ellen. Ana blinked a few times, as she assumed her other self had a bit of magical knowledge, but it appeared she didn't have any. 'Are we really anything alike? Perhaps there's more to this than I thought.'

"I'd rather not give anything away, but I will say that I found a teacher and figured having another tool in my arsenal would be helpful." She answered easily, since it was the truth. At least, in regards to Hecatic magic, which is what she called the magic she used without her magic circuits. "You should find a teacher, it'd probably be really helpful."

Annabeth hummed, before taking on a pose that told her that she was thinking about something. Ana considered doing it herself, wondering if she could use the resonance of the soul to teach her quickly. 'Perhaps I can spar with her after this. Actually, I think all three of us should do that. I feel like they could use a bit more training. Everyone feels a bit weaker here.'

Athena couldn't help but look at the two versions of her daughter. It was slightly disconcerting seeing two sides of her daughter, so alike, yet also different. It appeared Ana was a bit more like her, but also, not at the same time. It was very strange. Even the way she spoke to her was different, more familial.

She was pulled from her thoughts when Hera spoke up. "I'll be reading this time." Getting everyone's attention. Athena was surprised they were starting, but figured it made since considering what happened last time. After this, she guessed there would be a real break, since the mortals still needed rest. It was during this time that Athena wished to speak with her alternate's daughter. Despite trying to keep a lid on her emotions, she could already feel how much her other self loved Ana.

Unknown to Athena, but a few other goddesses also felt the same emotions flow into them, though they didn't understand why. Aphrodite had noticed how Ana mentioned going on a date, but also ignored the point of it. She did feel her power on her, which meant it was more than a spell she cast on herself. Aphrodite, herself, had to have done that for it to linger. Normally, it could be written off as her meddling, but the emotion she felt when she looked at her was different. As well as the closeness she felt. 'Strange.'

Artemis hummed, feeling it too, but wrote off the feelings as respecting Annabeth as a competent person. In fact, Artemis would even consider her for her hunters if she wasn't with Percy. So, for her, she was able to ignore it a bit, even if something was scratching at the back of her head telling her that was wrong.

Hestia was the one who noticed the most. Not only could she feel the emotions from the book, but she also felt Ana's emotions towards her and the others. Family was her one of her domains. Which meant that Annabeth considered Hestia family. That surprised her a bit, but considering how she acted with her daughter, she figured it made sense. She guessed that she must have been close with demigods associated with Aphrodite and hunters of Artemis. Enough to see them that way. Though, a thought at the back of her mind told her that the answer was much simpler, if a bit outlandish.

She'd just have to wait and see if that was the truth.

Hestia often took care of Shirou when he first arrived in her world. She remembered how he had trouble sleeping, never being able to have a decent night's sleep. She often used her powers on him, getting him to calm down and allow him to sleep.

After some time, she began to grow curious, so she decided to try and see what he dreamt of. Fire, death, and loss, those were the main culprits when she jumped inside the dream. She did all she could, and slowly, she saw him get better. The nightmares didn't come as often, and Shirou actually looked healthier.

Then her mother helped him, he was better, or at least, she thought he was. She noticed his eyes fluttering and his grimacing and his tossing and turning were major signs that he was having another nightmare. 'It's been months. I thought you were better, Shirou. I can see that what you've been through has really left a mark on you.'

She placed a hand on Shirou's head, 'We help each other, Shirou. So, I'm going to do what I can to help you.' She had a comforting smile on her face, as her hand began to emit a faint golden glow. She took a deep breath, before closing her eyes.

"No surprise there, especially when you consider what we've seen so far." Hades spoke first, knowing that Shirou's trauma was likely quite vast. They never got an exact explanation for what he went through, but he guessed they'd be getting an answer soon.

"It was smart of you to use your powers on him, Hestia. But, I am surprised you waited this long to use this specific trick." Demeter said, looking a bit saddened by what was shared. Though, Hestia was also the same.

Percy couldn't help but grimace a bit. He remembered having nightmares occasionally. Still had some from time to time actually. If Shirou was anything like he thought he was, then it was because he blamed himself for not saving someone.

Miyu frowned a bit. She did know that her dad struggled with nightmares, but they were rare by the time she grew up. She also never knew the contents of them. A part of her wasn't sure if she wanted to see it. Unknown to her, but Ana was of a similar mind.

---

After a moment, she opened her eyes, being treated to a rather sad scene. Shirou was breathing heavily, holding black keys in his hands. He was in a destroyed city that was on fire. Smoke billowed up into the sky, the fire was spread throughout, and everything was wrecked.

The sigh actually caused more than a few to recoil. The destruction they were seeing was incredible. Many had seen mass destruction events before, but this felt way more malicious than anything they had seen.

In fact, a few couldn't help but be reminded of Pandora for some reason.

He charged forward and threw his black keys, before grabbing a few more and stabbing into the group of skeletons in front of him. "Trace on." Magical energy pooled into his hand, before a dagger with a jewel on the end appeared in his hand. She had seen it before, Shirou called it an Azoth blade.

He threw the dagger into the middle of another group of skeletons, before it exploded, destroying them. He didn't even wait to see what happened, he quickly turned and ran towards a nearby alley. He quickly slid and picked up a girl, one with long purple hair in a school uniform of some kind.

"Sakura! Come on, wake up, please." She could tell how pained he was, how frightened he was. "Sakura, please be alright." He traced some kind of red garment, before placing it around her. He was about to begin CPR when her hand rose up and touched Shirou's face.

No one could really say anything, rather, they didn't want to say anything. It was easily noticeable that this woman was someone who meant a great deal to Shirou.

It was Aphrodite who really felt the impact of what was happening. Thanks to the book, she was able to get a good grasp of what was happening with her powers, as if she was actually observing in person. Needless to say, she could feel the love the two shared for each other. In fact, she actually noticed that Sakura's love was quite immense compared to most humans she had observed before.

"Sen...no, Shirou." Her voice was weak and her eyes barely opened up. "You're alive. That's good." Shirou's eyes widened, before he tried to put on a reassuring smile, though she could tell he was sad.

"You'll be okay, Sakura. It's going to be okay. Just, don't speak, I can figure something out. I'll save you." He wiped the blood on his face with his finger, before placing it over Sakura. "Crap, what was that rune? No, that won't work. The sheathe mom gave me? Does it still have enough magical energy left in it?" He muttered to himself.

He was about to put his hand to his chest when Sakura grabbed ahold of it. She smiled weakly at him, with tears running down her cheeks. "It's okay. It's too late, Shirou. Can you...please stay...with me?" She asked him, Hestia could tell she was on the verge of death.

"Of course, I can." He replied, and for the first time since she had met Shirou, she saw a few tears run down his face. Hestia felt a sharp pain in her chest at the sight. She noticed that Shirou could see that Sakura was breathing her final breaths. "I'm sorry, I should have got here sooner." She placed her cold hand on his face and gave him a weak smile.

The campers and hunters couldn't help but be reminded of the times they had lost people themselves. They couldn't help but empathize with the hero. The thought that you could have saved someone if you were just a bit quicker. For them, it was a thought that bothered them and they blamed themselves, but they learned that sometimes you just couldn't save everyone.

However, they all knew that Shirou didn't think like that. They had already learned about what kind of person he was. This was likely in his nightmare because he never forgot it. He continued to blame himself for it. The sight and thought of the whole thing already made more than a few of them quite emotional.

The daughters of Shirou Emiya were also bothered by the scene. They knew their father had been through many different ordeals, but this was the first time they saw him like this. To them, he was a wise and powerful hero who could overcome anything thrown at him. They knew that wasn't the case, as he wasn't a god or something, but they still idolized him. For them, seeing their dad like this only reminded them that he was indeed human. That even he could fail to save everyone. Miyu couldn't help but pull her legs up to her chest, feeling saddened by the sight.

"I was never...able to...tell you...this. But...I really...love you...Shirou." Shirou's eyes widened, just as her hand began to drop, only for Shirou to grab a hold of it before it did. He closed his eyes, gripping Sakura's hand tight, before placing both her arms over her chest.

"I swear, I'll fix this, Sakura. I'm going to find whoever caused this to happen..." Shirou wrapped her body up in the red cloth, before taking one last look at her, noticing the smile she still had on her face. "And I'm going to kill them." Hestia shivered at his words, at the cold rage present within. She had never heard it before.

Ana's eyes narrowed at the declaration, while Miyu's eyes appeared to glow intensely, before they quickly settled back down. While everyone had a different reaction to his words, a few noticed the reaction of the Ana and Miyu. For Ana, they didn't pay much attention to it, but for Miyu, they grew slightly concerned.

Miyu had so far proven to be a happy and kind girl who appeared to want everyone to be happy. She was cheerful and obviously enjoyed teasing others. However, some had noticed something underneath all that. Every once in awhile, something slipped through. It was enough to tell them that there was more to this girl than what she let on.

Aphrodite shivered a bit at Shirou's words, though it wasn't like Hestia's reaction. It was more like a jolt of excitement. She hid it, but she would admit that it was incredible.

"I would be disappointed if his reaction was any different." Ares stated in acknowledgement. He had done the same for people who killed those he cared for. It was only natural for one to avenge them.

He noticed the sound of fighting in the distance, before holding his hand out. A large bow appeared in his hands. "I'm going to borrow your bow, Sigma. If the whole of Fuyuki is like this, then it means everyone is gone, even Rin." He said, before she noticed circuits appearing on his neck and hand.

He opened the white Chaldea jacket he had on. He looked at his hand once more, looking at the red ribbon in it. Hestia's eyes widened, realizing that one of the ribbons she saw Shirou keep tied to his wrist belonged to this girl. "I know this is a singularity, but all the same, the Tohsaka sisters were my closest friends." He stuffed the ribbon into his pocket.

Miyu peered down at her wrist, seeing the ribbon tied there. Ana didn't react, but her mind drifted to her own ribbon, one she kept tied to her weapon. Ophelia even possessed one, being what tied up her hair. Their father had given them one each, telling them that they were symbols of their bond. They could easily tell that this was why he had given it to them.

He had mentioned the Tohsaka sisters before, but they didn't know that the ribbons had been something associated with them.

"I'm guessing these 'Tohsaka sisters' were close friends of your father?" Hephaestus asked, looking at Thalia and Miyu. The two flinched slightly, before looking at each other. Miyu decided to be the one to explain.

"Yes. He was raised alongside them. He stayed by their side until he went to Chaldea." She answered, not explaining everything she knew, since she wasn't sure if there would be more about them or not. She didn't know much, but she knew the important bits. Knowing her father, it's likely that if he never ended up going to Chaldea, he likely would have ended up with the two sisters.

The memory then faded, before he reappeared somewhere else. Shirou was standing with his bow, along with his friends and, what Hestia assumed was, a heroic spirit. In front of them was a bowman in red, though he appeared corrupted. The two began to speak, but all she heard was static, as well as the memory beginning to fade.

"I'm guessing this had to do with mother's magic blocking me." Hestia spoke, noticing that this was likely a memory with Archer. The thought caused her to frown a bit. She understood the reason, but felt like this was something she should know.

"It's a shame, I'm rather interested in learning about his future self." Athena sighed, realizing she'd have to wait.

"A potential future self. Archer isn't my dad." Miyu clarified in a sharper tone than normal, with a small frown mirroring Hestia's. Athena raised a brow, but brushed it off since it was her father she was talking about. It was enough to tell her that Miyu definitely knew more about Archer than she was letting on.

She had no clue why that happened, but the location switched again. Shirou was in a destroyed town, looking ragged again. Though, she could tell they weren't in Fuyuki. The sky was clear, except for a singular large wyvern, which Shirou appeared to be fighting.

She noticed a group of young children and a nun hiding behind him. "The moment I step out there, I want you to take the children somewhere safe and hide. Understand?" He spoke, though he was speaking in french. 'I hope Aphrodite never finds out about that.' The nun nodded her head.

"I think it's a very admirable trait to possess." Aphrodite said with a smile. Everyone knew that she enjoyed talking about how french was the language of love or whatever, so they didn't say anything about it.

"These singularities, they appear to not have any really effect on the real world, yet, Shirou seems to treat its inhabitants like they are real people." Athena stated, realizing what was happening. Considering what they had learned so far, it was the only logical answer.

"Whether it will have any effect on the timeline or not, they are still real people in that moment. At least, to him, they are." Poseidon decided to add. It didn't matter if what was happening in front of him was real or not, Shirou would react the same no matter what.

"He's a hero, so it only makes sense that he'd react that way." Apollo sighed, knowing exactly why Shirou would act this way. Any self respecting hero would do the same. They could likely be told straight to their face that what was happening wouldn't matter, but a hero would always act. Suffering was suffering, no matter what.

Because of the nature of dream sharing, she was privy to all of the things present in Shirou's head. So, when flashes of the fire Shirou was in when he was young, followed by what happened in the Fuyuki singularity and the multiple bodies of people burnt to death in this new place, flashed through his mind, Hestia saw it. She noticed his mind was focused on the loss of women and children.

'I couldn't save them.' Hestia heard in Shirou's voice in her head. 'I can't let that happen again.' Hestia was saddened by it, especially when she could tell that Shirou knew he couldn't possibly save them. Rationally, his mind knew that he couldn't do it, but Shirou still blamed himself.

'This isn't even all of his memories, this is only a dream. How much more of this is in Shirou's head? I saw some of his memories, I saw how much death he had seen, but I didn't think it was to this degree. Why didn't you tell me, Shirou?' she thought to herself, before shaking her head.

Percy couldn't help but think back to when he was in Tartarus, or even to Silena and Charlie's death. What he went through may not have been the same as what Shirou had went through, but he could understand. He still blamed himself for the deaths he felt he could have prevented, even if others told him otherwise.

Hestia had to reign in her own emotions, feeling the resonance through the book. Even without the book, the thought of it all pained her. The amount of pain the one she loved had gone through was immense. She already knew what her other self had to do. If she didn't, then that told her that this other world was different from this one. She couldn't imagine letting him continue to torture himself like this.

Miyu and Ana were both troubled by what they were seeing and hearing. Ana managed to hold it in, mostly by remembering the exercises she regularly went through. It sucked for her, mostly because she couldn't let out her emotions like her sister could. Unlike her, she didn't have another self to worry about. No one knew she was Shirou's daughter. Even Thalia, she at least had the benefit to know a bit of this before it happened, allowing her to prepare somewhat. However, for her and her sister, this was a first.

Miyu on the other hand, had to hold in some of her tears. She knew her father went through some difficult trials. He endured many terrible things, and yet, Miyu hadn't really thought about how much her father had actually suffered before she was born. The thought alone was enough to hurt her. This was before she was born. Her dad had a whole other life before her and it was something he never really shared with them. He loved them too much to speak about himself, unless he was trying to help them.

She loved her dad, like all of her siblings did. He was their hero and had grown up hearing their mothers tell them about those stories. Yet, it was only now that she was seeing what was behind all those grand stories that he went through. All the triumph and happiness was built upon a foundation of hardship, sadness, and pain. She understood why her dad never really enjoyed calling himself a hero.

The sad part for her, this was only one part of it. They hadn't even witnessed his whole journey. She hadn't missed Aphrodite's reaction to the mention of Kiara. She didn't know who it was, but for it to bother her, meant that it wasn't very good. If there was one thing she was a bit thankful for, it was that she could understand her dad a little bit more.

'Enough is enough. I won't let you torture yourself like this.' She thought to herself, before putting more of her power into calming Shirou's mind and heart. 'I'm going to help you, because we're in this together. Even if you're happy, that doesn't mean the pain is gone.' She exited the dream.

She opened her eyes and looked back down at Shirou, noticing him beginning to calm down. His breathing slowed and his body began to slacken. She ran her hands through his hair, before holding his hand. She laid down next to him, continuing to hold his hand. 'I'm sorry for not noticing sooner, Shirou.'

"You're already becoming a very good wife for him, sister." Demeter couldn't help but share, smiling at Hestia.

"It's only natural for me to support him during this time, right?" Hestia asked, a slightly pained smile on her face. She wished she could do more, but understood the limits of her own powers.

"Love can be a powerful medicine. You'd be surprised how much you'll be able to help him just by being there for him, Hestia." Aphrodite added, attempting to comfort her friend's nerves. She could feel how troubled Hestia's emotions had become during that segment. Admittedly, she knew that her words were only a small consolation. She didn't lie, but medicine did take time to work. Unfortunately for Hestia, she'd likely have to weather the storm a bit longer.

---

Shirou rubbed the back of his head, a bit confused at the start of his day, which started normal enough. He woke up, checked on Miyu and Hestia, then proceeded to make breakfast. A pretty awesome breakfast, if he said so himself. Though, he noticed that Hestia seemed a bit, out of sorts, as if she was focusing on something else.

He asked her what was bugging her, "Hmm, oh, nothing. I'm just thinking about something I need to do later, is all." She said to him, shooting him a small smile. "Hey, are you going to come right back from the bakery? Or are you going to stop by the store?"

"Um, I figured I'd just head back, unless something comes up, which I'm hoping doesn't happen. But, knowing my luck, chances are I'll get caught up in something troublesome. Then again, I haven't had any problems for the last four weeks since you came home." He replied, though, a part of him realized that he was due some bad luck.

"I see, well, maybe it'd be nice if you came home earlier today." Shirou raised a brow at that. "I mean, I thought it'd be nice to try normal family things. Like, watching t.v or something. Plus, Miyu likes it when you're home." She said with a smile.

"Um, sure, I can close the store down a bit early. So, I'll see you and Miyu when I get back home." Shirou replied, just before heading out for the day, though he was pretty sure that something was on Hestia's mind. The only question was, what? Hestia didn't normally get like this, unless something was on her mind. He figured he'd talk to her when he got back home.

"It seems the two of you are adjusting to your newly wed lives pretty well." Hera stated with a small giggle. Hestia slightly blushed at her sister's words, but wasn't too embarrassed. She was rather happy to see Shirou and her enjoying a normal life for once.

"It's such a nice image, seeing you with your own child. I wonder if it'll be possible for mother to join us? I know she'd hate to miss this." Demeter added, knowing how much Rhea would love to see such a story.

"Knowing her, she likely already knows about it and is keeping an eye on everything from somewhere else." Hades said with a sigh. He wouldn't passed her to do such a thing. She may simply be watching and waiting until an ideal moment.

For Miyu, Ana, and Thalia, the scenes were nostalgic. Rather, they were like memories from yesterday. For their father, when he was home, he was home. That went for their mothers as well. They tried to leave everything else out when it was their time to be together. "Normal" family things was the basis, but it quickly just became the Emiya family's way of life. While not normal in the traditional sense, it was normal for them.

Their dad would always be their dad, never anything else, when at home. The fact that they didn't even know about their family's unique circumstances until their powers started to develop was evidence of that. Even then, their parents never tried to treat them differently when they did learn.

He wondered if it had to do with his dream, though he didn't really remember said dream. So, he couldn't really base that off of anything. Really, he couldn't think of anything that would bother her about him. So, he figured it was something else.

Though, one of the good things he noticed, was that the hunters had taken a more relaxed approach to watching him. While they still watched, it was from a distance and they weren't keeping an eye on him at all times. In fact, a few of them came in for cookies and muffins.

"That's rather surprising." Apollo pointed out, with others agreeing as well. Artemis simply let out a small huff, not bothered by it all that much. Unless she gave them explicit orders not to interact with him, then she didn't really mind.

"Maybe we just got curious about how good it tasted?" Mia shared, though it was more a question than a statement. Considering it was her and a group of the hunters responsible for this mission, she felt she had to defend herself a bit.

"It could have also been Zoe who did it." One of the hunters said, knowing it was a possibility, if only to get a closer look at their target.

So, he had to admit, his normal-ish life was going pretty well. Though, there was still the part of him that wanted to fight monsters and save young demigods and clueless humans. He managed to resist the urge because of Miyu. There was something about her that caused that urge to lower significantly.

He was thankful that Aphrodite hadn't showed up recently. Partially, because of the fact that he didn't want to deal with divine beings that weren't Hestia. And partially because she nearly gave him a heart attack last time. Granted, he was prepared now, but still, the point stood.

Of course, some things just weren't meant to be. Shirou opened his eyes, noticing a familiar scent and aura somewhere close. Thankfully, Shirou had already hired a two people to help him with his bakery. It was originally because he was having a child, but it helped in situations like this.

"It appears that he's having some trouble adjusting. Though, that's to be expected." Athena said, carefully watching Shirou's state of mind. She was wary if these urges were simply nothing more than urges, or if they were hinting at a much bigger issue. Considering what they had seen of his mental state, she was betting on latter. Thankfully, it appeared his daughter with Hestia assisted with that, even if he didn't realize it himself. She could only hope her own child with him would help matters, rather than make it worse.

He turned to one of the workers, one named Emily, and told her she was in charge until he came back, before heading out. He didn't know exactly what was happening, but he was sure that he had to be the one who handled it. The hunters were doing good in keeping monsters away from the town, as there were a few demigods around, but still.

Shirou began to head to his home on the edge of town, riding his motorcycle much faster than he probably should. He didn't know why, but he felt like whatever was coming, was headed there. Which would have angered him, if it wasn't for the familiar scent.

"Oh, a familiar scent? Shirou hasn't met many gods at this point, so it has to be Athena or me. Though, I suppose it could be Artemis, but I doubt it." Aphrodite pointed out, hoping that it might have been her. Though, she felt like Shirou would have been able to single out her scent above anyone else, save for maybe Hestia's.

"It's likely Athena, considering how she operates." Hermes said with a nod. Though, Athena couldn't help but frown slightly.

"While there is a possibility of it being me, I highly doubt it. I don't usually do such things face to face." Athena answered, crossing her arms. While it may have sounded cold, there was a specific reason for it. However, it did tell her that it was likely what she thought it was. "If I had to guess, it's likely the child I had with him causing the familiar scent."

Annabeth looked at Ana for a moment, before deciding to ask her a question. "Do you know the child mom had with Shirou?" She whispered. Percy could hear, by virtue of being between them, but Annabeth didn't mind him hearing. She was curious and really wanted to know about the child.

Ana blinked a few times. A small smirk made it's way onto her face, "I do. I know them quite well actually." She answered with an amused hum. Annabeth frowned a bit, realizing that Ana wouldn't say anything more.

---

Once he arrived, he noticed that Hestia and Miyu were actually gone. He moved into the living room, where he found a note on the table. Shirou proceeded to read the note, telling him that Hestia had taken them to the cabin in the woods to go for a walk. 'Well, I suppose this works out perfectly.'

Shirou held out his hand, "Trace on." He wasn't expecting any hostility, but it was always best to be prepared. In his hands appeared a cylindrical container, one in the shape of a scroll. It was the hidden poisoned dagger of the Assassin class, Jing Ke. It may have been slight overkill, but he preferred to be safe.

He took a deep breath, waiting for the appearance of whatever was approaching. Shortly after, he heard knocking on the door. He placed the dagger behind his waist, with a hand on the handle, ready to pull the blade from the sheathe. He then opened the door, only to see someone who was clearly a deity of some kind.

Though, he could tell he wasn't on the same level as the ones he had met. He'd put him around the level of low ranked servant, though more on the higher end. He had curly black hair and was dressed in the men's traditional greek chiton, or whatever it was called. Shirou's greek knowledge wasn't all that great when it came to apparel.

The man had a smile on his face, along with a basket of some kind. "Are you Shirou Emiya?" He asked, though Shirou was a bit hesitant in answering.

"Um, can I ask who's asking? Or rather, what this is about?" He decided to ask, not wanting to give his name to some god right out of the gate. He didn't feel like getting wrapped up in troublesome affairs this early into his child's life. The man then conjured up some kind of clipboard.

"The name's Zephyros." 'Wait, this guy's the west wind? What does the west wind want with me.' "I'm here to deliver a gift to the mortal Shirou Emiya, from the goddess Athena." He replied, showing Shirou the clipboard. 'Huh, that's interesting. What would she want to give me? Wasn't she still trying to hide who she was?'

"And Athena was correct, because of course she was." Apollo sighed. Athena simply let out a huff, already knowing how it would turn out. Though, she would admit that she was surprised that Zephyros interacted with Shirou, rather than just dropping off the basket.

"Why don't you just ask me to do that for you, Athena? Heck, I'd even do it free of charge." Hermes asked, a bit insulted that Athena never asked him to deliver anything. Athena raised a brow at his words, before shaking her head.

"Because I know you have loose lips. I would prefer my child and their father not have to deal with things other than monsters. Zephyros, however, I don't have to worry about." She answered with a nod.

"Wouldn't sending the gift with your fake name be better? I feel like the person may get confused if you just send your gift with your actual name." Artemis chimed in, a bit puzzled at her sister's choice. To her surprise, Athena's face slightly reddened at her words.

"It may have been an oversight on my part. Normally that is what I do. How unlike me." She said shaking her head. It was clear that Athena was a bit troubled by this little mistake, but Artemis didn't see it as too much of an issue. Despite what they all tried to say, they weren't perfect. The fact that her hunters were missing members at the moment was evidence of that.

Miyu, Thalia, and Ana were paying attention to everything again. Mostly because they knew that Athena didn't really enter their lives until they were older. Their dad never mentioned Ana's arrival, just mentioning that Athena gave birth to her and attempted to follow the presumed rules of the gods by staying away from their child. It was a bit of a shock that Ana's arrival was so non-personal, but felt like it made some sense. Their Athena did have trouble with that, even now.

"Well, I'm Shirou Emiya. So, uh, do I have to sign something, or what?" He decided to just do it, besides, he knew that Zephyros wasn't an Olympian. Rather, he was one of the more minor gods. Shirou only knew who he was because he read up on all the gods.

"Oh, no, I'm not Hermes, I'm not really a delivery person. This was more of a favor, since Athena's kind of a friend. I just needed to confirm your identity. Oh!" He then produced a letter from nothing and handed it to Shirou. "I was supposed to give this to you, along with the gift. So, delivery complete. I'll be on my way, gods are pretty busy, you know."

Aphrodite really wanted to say something snarky, but decided to hold it in. That was low hanging fruit considering what was happening. Plus, she could tell that Athena was expecting it this time, which sort of ruined the fun. She internally sighed, but decided she'd just wait for a better opportunity.

And with that, he was gone in a flash, leaving the basket on the doorstep. Shirou raised a brow, before shrugging and reading the letter. "Dear, Shirou Emiya. You must be pretty confused, so I'll explain a few things. I'm Sophia, or rather, that's my disguise. I'm actually the Goddess of Wisdom, Athena."

'Okay, so she's finally coming out with it. Odd, but alright.' He thought to himself. "I really enjoyed the time I spent with you, Shirou. So, I sent you a gift." Shirou paused, before deciding to check said gift.

Ana's steel colored eyes narrowed slightly, already knowing what was going to happen next. She was interested in how her other self would react to the revelation. She figured that it might actually be sort of fun.

He crouched down, before noticing some movement coming from the basket. He opened it, removing some blankets before seeing something that caused his mind to shut down for a moment. In the basket was a baby, peering up at him with curious steel colored eyes, reminding Shirou of the eyes he would one day have.

He shook his head, before looking back at the letter "Her name is Annabeth. She's the child I was able to have because of you, Shirou. For that, I'm grateful. I have a feeling she'll be the greatest of any of my past children. I ask that you watch over her and raise her well. In the basket, you'll find something that will help you."

To say everyone was surprised was a bit of an understatement. The demigods who knew Annabeth broke into muttering and whispers, with Annabeth herself looking up at the screen in shock. Even Percy was surprised, not expecting Ana to be Shirou's daughter too. He thought that it'd be another child of Athena, but it turned out to be just Annabeth.

What everyone was surprised about, was that the two didn't look all that much different, save for their eyes. They supposed there was minute differences in their bodies, or the streak in her hair, but that was all. The biggest difference was that Ana could use magic.

Athena was also surprised that the two girls were the same, despite having different fathers. A part of her wondered why, but realized that it did explain Ana's actions so far. The reason she acted differently, it made more sense now. Yet, it was also undeniable that the two were still Annabeth. Like it was a constant in the universe.

"So, that's why you could use magic that could affect us." Poseidon stated, already knowing that Hestia's child displayed some magical aptitude as well. Her control over flames, as well as her speed, made that evident. Then again, he wasn't sure how much of that was magical aptitude or their own innate demigod powers, since the older Thalia also displayed frighteningly good control over lightning too.

The moment he finished speaking, Ana simply scoffed at his words. "Please, I haven't used any magecraft since arriving. All I've used is Hecatic magic, which is what I call the Greek magic system. I studied, I trained, and I learned how to use it, just like most demigods could. Granted, it was a bit easier to grasp because of mother's ties to magic, but that only got my foot in the door." Ana clarified, not appreciating how Poseidon wanted to write off her hard work as simply being Shirou's daughter.

Being Athena's daughter helped a bit, but in the end, it was all her. Heck, the Hecatic magic system was mostly created by her, blending elements of magecraft in for her own specialized brand of magic. However, the Hecatic magic system was made specifically to help demigods more easily learn magic if they wanted.

It was a lot of hard work, study, and trial and error, so she wasn't going to let anyone even hint at her having an easy time or mistaking it as magecraft. In fact, Magecraft itself was volatile and dangerous if you didn't know what you were doing.

"Any demigod here could learn if they put in the time and effort." She added with a huff.

"So, you're saying it's possible for me, for us, to learn what you can do?" Annabeth asked, not wanting to lose out to her other self. She was still having trouble wrapping her head around it, but understood that her pride as Athena's daughter was still there. If it was possible that she could catch up to this other self, she'd do it.

"If you put in the time and effort, yes. I actually was considering showing you a few things after this." Ana answered, with some of the demigods becoming interested.

"A bit touchy when it comes to your magic, aren't you?" Apollo said, noticing the annoyed tone she answered in. Ana let out a small huff at his words.

"My sister worked really hard on that magic in order to make it what it is today. To try and downplay her achievements by saying it was because of otherworldy magic is insulting. All of us are proud of her and would have reacted the same way. She just beat me to it." Miyu explained, a sweet smile on her face, though Apollo and the other gods could tell she was annoyed too.

"We don't want to reveal too much, and that was a bit over the line, but I would have spoken up too." Thalia Emiya spoke up, defending her little sister. Ana couldn't help but blush a bit from the words of her sisters. Her family always were her most ardent supporters, and she doubted if she'd ever be able to do anything without them by her side.

Seeing the three sisters' bond was enough to cause some jealousy among the half-bloods, though Annabeth felt it harder than most. Her other self actually had a family who stood by her and supported her. A real family that loved her unconditionally.

If there was anyone who understood how she felt, it was likely her Thalia.

"Ana..." Athena called out, getting her alternate daughter's attention. Ana turned and looked at her, seeing her mother's familiar calculating gaze. It was different from her mom's, as she could see that Athena's didn't hold the same warmth. "...what was the reason for that magic's existence?"

'Figures she'd pick up on it. Mom's always going to be mom, no matter the world.' Ana thought, looking at her sisters for a moment, before sighing. 'Time to use the oldest trick in dad's book.' "Honestly, I was just really interested in Hecate's magic and dad's magecraft. I got so into it, that I sort of pushed its boundaries over and over. I really wanted to make you and dad proud of me, so I pushed myself farther and farther until I got really good at it."

Honestly, Ana sucked at lying. She didn't know if this world's Annabeth was the same, but she definitely wasn't good at it. She saw Athena slightly narrow her eyes at her words, before being a bit thrown off at her words of making her and dad proud. She'd likely ask again, but she was safe for now.

That was her dad's ultimate move. The key was to not lie. Everything she said was true. However, it wasn't the whole truth and she was a bit political with her words, but it worked. Her dad used that trick to varying degrees of success depending on which mother he was using it on. Adding in a slightly emotional truth helped as well.

Manipulative? Maybe, but she was a daughter of Athena. Besides, it wasn't technically her mom, so she was in the clear. Even if Mother Hestia had a slight frown on her face, she did it for the preservation of the story. So she had a good reason. A decent reason. She had a reason.

Mother Hestia was always able to see through everything and then make you feel bad about it without even saying anything. Just the feeling of disappointing her was enough of a punishment.

Suddenly a clap got everyone's attention. It was Aphrodite, who was looking as elegant as ever with a sweet smile on her face. "Why don't we continue the story? We can save the fun things for afterwards. Aren't you all interested in what happens next?" She said, winking at Ana. It seemed Mama Dite was still looking after her, even without knowing the true extent of their bond just yet.

"If you ever wish to speak to me, or if you ever need anything, all you must do is pray and I will hear you. Perhaps, we can meet again soon, so that I may check on her. Yours truly, Athena." Shirou folded up the letter and stuck it in his pocket.

He looked back down at the baby, noticing her golden blonde hair, which surprised him a bit, and her lightly tanned skin. He was actually a bit glad she didn't have any red in her hair, considering it would have clashed with the golden hair she had. Sadly, she possessed his future steel colored eyes, rather than the grey eyes of Athena.

Ana slightly frowned, as she quite liked her eyes. They might not have been stormy grey, but the steel was still a part of her mother and father. Then again, she did notice that her dad's eyes didn't appear to possess the steel color she was used to seeing.

She admitted that she was slightly jealous of Miyu possessing some of her dad's red hair, but was happy knowing that her father liked her hair. Admittedly, Percy's compliments about her hair was a point in his favor early on for that reason.

He chuckled to himself, imagining what Archer would think of the situation. "Well, Annabeth, I suppose I should take you to see your sister and her mother. I'm sure she'll be surprised. Unless..." He trailed off, wondering if Hestia already knew. He would have been more surprised, if he didn't already have a child, and if he didn't know about Athena.

"Well, at least it appears he took it well." Artemis said, knowing of some of Athena's complaints in the past.

Athena let out a huff. "That fact already elevates him past many others. There were some who didn't appreciate my gifts, despite how precious they are." Even Annabeth's father attempted to return Annabeth when she was born.

Annabeth, herself, couldn't help but imagine what it'd be like if she was raised by Shirou rather than her dad. She loved her dad, she really did, but the truth was that her family never really understood. Miyu spoke of parallel worlds, so maybe there was a version where Shirou was her dad and only her dad.

Though, he was still surprised he managed to have a child with her. He noticed something inside of the basket, figuring it was the other gift she put in there. He reached in and grabbed it, noticing it was a watch and coin. He raised a brow, before information flooded into his mind, though a sharp pain accompanied it.

'Despite being able to trace it, it seems there's still pain when I trace divine constructs. Not too big a drawback I suppose.' He thought to himself, before placing the watch on his left hand and placing the coin in his right pocket. "Your mom must think highly of me, if she's giving me these." He said, picking up the basket and looking at Annabeth.

"I'm surprised sister. I didn't know you were in the habit of arming your partners so well." Artemis lightly teased, knowing she rarely, if ever, did such a thing.

Athena let out a small hum, a slight smile noticeable on her face. "I normally wouldn't. Typically, I warn them of the dangers of raising a half-blood child, as well informing them of some countermeasures. However, my other self must have been quite impressed by Shirou's skills, and believed him capable and worthy enough to receive those gifts." She answered, knowing the shield was likely a replica of her Aegis.

Elder Thalia smiled at the mention of the shield. Athena had given her one when she first left to attend Camp Half-Blood. She still had it with her to this day.

He noticed her tilt her head somewhat, before letting out a small coo. Shirou let out an amused chuckle, before taking a deep breath. His life was going to get a bit more busy than it already was, considering there were now two children he had to take care of. Honestly, he was a bit put off with her having a child with him without even hinting at it.

Then again, he remembered her after their spar. 'I see. I should have noticed it sooner.' He shook his head, before heading back into the house with her. Thankfully, the moment he did so, Hestia appeared from the flames of the hearth with Miyu in her arms.

"At least he's aware of it in hindsight." Hermes chuckled lightly.

"Some guys don't even get that." Apollo added, amused at the thought of some of Athena's past flames.

"I think I was quite clear with my affection for him. Though, perhaps a stronger hand like Hestia's would have been wiser." Athena replied with a hum. Her other self showed quite a bit of emotion to Shirou.

"I'm interested to see Hestia's reaction. Though, I'm pretty sure I already know what it'll be like." Aphrodite said with a giggle.

Hestia groaned a bit, but decided to roll with it. Chances were, she'd be fine with it, if a bit guilty. However, she felt like Ana's arrival would actually be a plus, considering how Miyu had a positive effect on him.

Miyu had a fox-like grin on her face, pointed at her sister Ana. Ana only clicked her tongue in annoyance and turned away, with more than a few being puzzled at the interaction.

She had a large smile on her face, one that was mirrored by little Miyu. Shirou smiled at the sight, always being amazed at Hestia's beauty. He noticed that her height had increased since they first met, being about the height of Atalante. Her figure was still the same, reminding him of Medea a bit.

"I'm guessing that the two of you had a pleasant time." He called out, getting Hestia's attention. She still had her warm smile on her face as she replied.

"Yes, we did. You're home a lot earlier than I thought. You should have called, we would have waited." Hestia then looked at Miyu, who was playing with her hair. Surprisingly, she wasn't pulling it or anything. He wondered if she would end up being like Hestia. Inwardly, he hoped so.

Ana scoffed. "Sadly, that hope suffered a regrettable death."

Miyu huffed her sister's words. "You're just jealous you can't be as awesome as me. Besides, I am like mom, dad even said so."

Ana shook her head. "He was talking about your looks. You and I both know who you take after." Those words caused a few to raise a brow and listen a little closer.

Miyu narrowed her eyes at Ana. "It's a blend, same as you. Isn't that rght, Little Rose?" She spoke straight, before singing the last two words like a nickname. Ana's cheeks reddened, as she let out a small gasp.

"You little...you don't get to call me that, you pyromaniac!" Ana called out, her voice raising. Percy wasn't sure what to do, since he wasn't familiar with sibling arguments, but felt he had to do something. It was still Annabeth after all.

"Uh, guys, maybe we should just..." he attempted to placate the two, before both quickly turned towards him.

Miyu's fiery eyes glowing slightly and Ana's eyes seeming to glint like light catching on a newly drawn steel sword. Their next words came out with ease, as if it had been said a hundred times before. "Stay out of it, Percy!"

Percy wisely leaned back in his chair with his hands up. The scene caused a sense of deja vu for Apollo. Before anything else could continue, a warmth quickly settled over the room.

"That's enough from both of you! Ana, be nice! Miyu, quit antagonizing your sister!" Hestia called out in a stern voice with a small glare. Some of the gods rubbed their eyes, thinking they saw a flash of Vesta take over, but highly doubted it, attributing it to a trick of the light.

Both girls stiffened, instantly recognizing their mother's voice and tone and quickly responding together, "I'm sorry!" The two then sat straight, but kept their heads down. Hestia looked at the two girls one more time, before letting a small sigh and then returning to her usual smiling self.

"Wow, that was impressive, Hestia." Aphrodite said, actually a bit in awe of her friend. The other gods were similar, as the two didn't stop out of fear of a god. It was clear the Emiya children were rebellious of the gods in general. No, they reacted because it was Hestia the mother, not Hestia the goddess, who scolded them.

Athena wasn't sure how to feel about it. It made her feel a bit sad that her daughter reacted that way towards Hestia. Not because of Hestia, but because of the uncertainty that Ana would listen to her if she did the same.

Hestia, however, knew that there were three people the girls would listen to based on the emotions she could pick up on. It was Aphrodite, Athena, and Artemis. The thing was, she also knew that Ana looked at her as a mother. It was clear as day how Ana felt about her. She loved her almost as much as Miyu did.

However, she didn't much appreciate her children fighting like that. 'Honestly, Shirou must spoil them if they can still argue like that.' She thought to herself, unknowingly mirroring Vesta's own thoughts on the matter. "You may continue, Hera." Hestia said sweetly, making Hera nod in response, actually feeling a bit of fear of her sister's shift in attitude.

"Yeah, well, something came up. Though, it was probably for the best that the two of you weren't here when it happened." Shirou then reached into the basket, carefully picking up Annabeth, who was letting out small hums as she looked around.

He noticed Hestia's eyes widen at the sight. He then saw a moment of realization hit her, causing her to let out a guilty chuckle, while scratching at her cheek with a finger. Shirou just let out a sigh, while shaking his head. 'So, she knew, but forgot to tell me.'

"This is Annabeth. She's also my daughter, specifically, the one I had with Athena. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you, my dear Hestia?" He asked with a smile on his face, it was a look that he had mastered from being around the likes of Rin Tohsaka, including Ishtar.

"Oh, um, well, you see..." Hestia stammered out, before she looked towards Miyu and smiled. "No idea. Hey, Miyu, why don't we go meet your little sister?" Shirou's eye twitched at the emphasis she put on 'little sister'. It was then that he realized why she rushed having Miyu.

Miyu, despite her mother's small scolding, still smirked a bit at Ana, who noticed said smirk. Ana couldn't help but click her tongue.

'We're technically the same age, almost being twins, yet she lords being the big sister over me despite acting nothing like a big sister!' Ana thought, frustrated at all times Miyu pulled that card. Granted, there were times where she took her older sister role seriously, like it wasn't always joking around, but Ana was pretty sure she acted more mature than Miyu most of the time.

She wanted to let out a sigh, but held it in. She had dealt with it most of her life, so she was used to it. It didn't mean there weren't times where she wanted to throttle her sister.

"It's kind of weird seeing Hestia act kind of immature about something like that, right? Or is it just me?" Apollo asked, looking around the throne room, before seeing Hestia smiling at him.

"Whatever do you mean, Apollo?" She asked, causing a slight chill to run down his back.

"Uh, n-nothing, just forget I said anything." He quickly said, even stammering for a moment, before shrinking in his throne. Ana's eye slightly twitched. 'So she does get some of that from mom.'

"Don't worry, Hestia. I totally understand and support you a hundred percent." Aphrodite stated with a thumbs up. Hestia's smile became a bit strained, as she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.

"I don't blame you either, sister. After all, he is married to you now. It's only natural for you to act that way towards the one you love." Hera decided to add, at least to show some solidarity with her sister. She really did understand her too, so she wasn't lying. Though, she would admit it was kind of funny to see her sister acting in such a way.

Poseidon was still a bit grumpy about the whole thing, but Hades agreed with Hera. It was quite entertaining to see this new side to his elder sister. To the gods, and even the half-bloods, Hestia was someone who always seemed above such things. Always acting as the intermediary for Olympus and seemingly wiser than most others, yet, seeing her so emotional was a bit relieving.

'Seriously, Hestia?' He thought with a sigh and defeated smile. He shook his head as Hestia and Miyu made their way in front of him and Annabeth. Shirou watched as the two girls seemed to look at each other, before they both reached out and touched the other's hand. Shirou and Hestia were surprised when they felt a pulse of magical energy at the point of contact.

Shirou's eyes widened, before he focused on his two daughters. After focusing and using his analysis, he noticed something about the two of them that completely shocked him. The two girls had magic circuits, but they were different. The overall function was the same, but it appeared more like a magic crest in utility.

He could already tell, they would be able to use his world's spells. They would also be able to make use of his tracing. How effective it would be without his reality marble, he didn't know, but it didn't change the fact that they would be able to. He noticed they possessed a more divine feel and energy. He guessed magic would come naturally to them.

"Okay, what's a magic crest? It sounds totally different from magic circuits. Also, why does he seem surprised that you'd be able to do what he does?" Percy couldn't help but ask, hoping he'd get a simple answer.

Ana decided to be the one to answer. "A magic crest is a collection of magic circuits that is passed down from generation to generation. They are filled with the knowledge and spells of the previous head, to allow their successor to continue their work. They are basically extra magic circuits that are implanted into the heir. Once there, all the heir has to do is connect to it and they'd be able to use whatever spell is logged in the magic crest. Think of it as a copy and paste for magic spells, though that's a simplified explanation." She explained, trying to dumb it down for Percy.

There was some discussion, but Percy had another question. "But, Thalia said that magic circuits can't be transferred to another person." Her said, remembering what she had said before. However, Thalia Emiya merely shook her head. She managed to restrain herself from reacting in any different way that may tip someone off, like Athena, but she knew she had to clarify herself.

"I never said they can't be transferred. I said that there would be considerable risk to him and the transferee if he were to do it." She clarified, crossing her arms as she did so. Ana and Miyu looked at her with a small smile, before looking back to Percy.

"Creating magic crests, as well as transferring them, was a special process that was usually done by people who specialized in such things. It's like a doctor who specializes in surgery. That's what they do and they are well rewarded for it. That's how important crests are, as well as circuits." Ana further explained. "As for why he was surprised by our circuits and our ability to maybe use his magic, it's mostly because we skipped needing a crest and just had some of his knowledge of magecraft in our circuits. Granted, it wasn't much, but to get that without a crest, in his original world, it'd be impossible."

"Ana theorized it had something to do with how we were born." Miyu added, as they weren't born like a normal person. They were born through a special form of bonding. She was lying that Ana came up with it, as it was actually her dad and Athena, but that would be spoiling the future and she knew better than to do that.

Behind Ana, Lou Ellen was intently listening to everything being shared about magic and magecraft. It was really interesting to her. Sure, she may not be able to use magecraft, but that didn't mean she couldn't use some of their theories and ideas and apply them to her own magic. She was a daughter of Hecate after all, magic was in her blood. She still hoped to ask Ana to talk with her about magic later. There weren't many who were interested or cared about magic in the camp, so finding someone who did was an opportunity she wouldn't pass up.

'They're a perfect blend of my world and this new one.' Shirou shook his head, once again looking at both of his daughters. 'Will I ever get used to calling them that?' He wondered silently. Hestia looked at him with a startled expression, but Shirou only gave her a reassuring smile.

"They're okay. Just a minor discharge, probably from some kind of build up. I'll need to teach them when they get older." He decided to explain. Shirou was a bit hesitant, but figured there wasn't any harm in teaching them some magecraft. He knew the basics of a lot of spells, even if he couldn't use them himself.

"They're not dangerous, are they?" Shirou shook his head.

"No, not exactly. The circuits are still inactive and are mostly harmless. I'll keep an eye on them, as I'm not too sure what they'll be able to do with them, but they'll be fine." He was actually a bit surprised that they had circuits to begin with. He figured it had something to do with the bonding of the soul.

'Perhaps, the discharge had something to do with that.' Hestia then took Annabeth into her other arm, holding both girls. Shirou noticed that the two were interacting just fine now, with no pulses or anything. His eyes softened at the sight in front of him.

However, images of his past flashed through his brain. Images of people he failed to save. Images of the aftermath of Tiamat's march. Small, nearly inaudible whispers. It was no longer than a second, but it was enough to cause Shirou's hands to clench, before quickly relaxing.

The screen quickly shifted with static, showing exactly what Shirou was imagining in that moment. Small flashes, that only lasted for a moment, but the images were more than enough to cause some to turn away, get sick, or almost start to cry. For some, it was the whispers that unnerved them the most. Especially for Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia Grace.

The other heroes were also affected, but the three of them couldn't help but feel a sort of connection to Shirou. Thalia Grace and Annabeth realized why, as their other selves were in the room, but Percy couldn't quite understand. Though, one managed to keep herself from showing any effect. Piper Mclean. For some reason, she even felt the same thing as the other three. It wasn't from what she went through, it was more like feeling something that wasn't there before. As if, feeling emotions that were hers but not hers. It was enough to cause her to frown.

Thalia Emiya managed to cover Lacy's eyes before the event, saving her from experiencing the worst of it, though the audible whispers still frightened her. Lacy was their little sister, another world or not, so she would do what she could to make this a bit more manageable for her. When the time came, she hoped that what she saw made her happy.

Miyu and Ana, however, were affected the worst. As mentioned before, they didn't know this side of their father. To experience it was unlike anything they felt before. Even then, it was secondhand. If it was this horrible, what did it feel like for their dad when it occurred? How did he even manage to stay sane?

An odd question, as both sisters knew that the three eldest daughters weren't exactly normal themselves. However, even they were troubled by what had occurred. They worried about Ophelia, should she arrive. Her eyes and abilities would likely make this a nightmare for her. Especially since it involved their dad.

"His mind is punishing himself." Athena stated with narrowed eyes. She knew how complex the mind was. However, this was different from what she had seen before.

"Is there a way to help him?" Demeter asked, seeing how troubled Hestia was at what had occurred. She could see a shroud of sadness around her, likely experiencing the strange resonance from the book.

Athena hummed. "He'll have to confront it in some way. Though, even then, it's hard to say. It seems that he's able to stave it off by willpower alone, but that will only work for so long. If he allows it to buildup, it could have disastrous consequences." She explained, sighing after finishing.

"Hestia will save him." Aphrodite stated plainly, fixing her hair as she looked at a hand held mirror. The nonchalance and confidence in her words wasn't strange for her, but they weren't sure where it stemmed from. Her words managed to even drag Hestia out of whatever sadness was affecting her, getting her to look at her friend with a hopeful expression.

Miyu, Ana, and Thalia Emiya each looked at the Goddess of Love, wondering the same thing as well. They may have known how their father was currently, but that didn't mean they knew how these problems were resolved.

"You sound awfully confident." Hephaestus said with a slight scoff. Though, others agreed with him in his disbelief.

Aphrodite rolled her eyes, banishing away the mirror. "You are all looking at the problem as if it has a complicated solution, when it really isn't all that complicated. Hestia will save him, because she loves him." She said, resting her cheek against her palm, as if she was bored having to explain this. "It's like you all have learned nothing. Love is the most powerful force in the world. It can make the impossible possible, it creates miracles, and it can heal all wounds. As I said, love is the best medicine for him right now. Hestia has that in spades. There will be a trigger and when it's pulled, Hestia will be there. Mark my words, love will be the thing that mends the cracks of the broken sword."

There were many who wanted to refute her words, but they couldn't. There was a reason that Aphrodite was so feared. People chose not to anger her or be involved with her for too long. It was because her domain was tricky and unpredictable at times. However, they couldn't deny her words either. The one who believed her words the most, was the one who spent the most time with her as her friend. Hestia.

Miyu, Ana, and Thalia all realized something. Rather, it was Miyu herself more than anyone. The memory that stuck with her since she was a child. Her father returning home with that smile on his face. She realized that Aphrodite was more correct than she might have thought. Only, it wasn't just Hestia. Whatever happened that day, Miyu didn't have a doubt in her mind that what Aphrodite said didn't play a huge role in it.

Piper and her siblings couldn't help but be moved by their mother's words. Even Lacy appeared to feel much better after hearing it. In that moment, they couldn't help but think that they were glad that she was their mother.

He put on a smile, "Well, since I'm home anyway, why don't I make something to eat?" He asked Hestia, who smiled at his words.

"Can you make something from Japan? It's always delicious and you haven't made anything like that in awhile." She replied, causing Shirou to let out a small chuckle. He nodded and moved towards the kitchen. Shirou shook his head, 'That's all in the past now. I can't risk my life carelessly anymore.'

However, Shirou couldn't help but feel a small, nearly unnoticeable feeling deep in his gut. He ignored it, instead focusing on the images of Hestia and the two girls. It was enough to remove that tug in his heart.

If Aphrodite's words weren't totally believed before, seeing Shirou able to overcome his issues with the thought of Hestia and his daughters definitely helped her argument. Hestia couldn't help but smile at the thought. While she was sad that Shirou was trying to deal with it on his own, likely to not worry her, she was glad that his love for them was enough to help him in some way.

---

Hestia saw it. She saw the moment Shirou's memories came back to haunt him. It was only for a second, but it was enough. He acted like nothing was wrong, but she knew better. It was almost like he was subconsciously punishing himself for being happy.

She knew he couldn't keep going like that. His guilt would eat away at him until he destroyed himself. She still didn't know the full extent of his mental trauma, but she wanted to help as much as she could. She also wanted to know what the deal was with the red bowman.

For some reason, she was unable to hear or see what he was. Though, she wanted to know who he was. There was something bothering her about that specific person. She couldn't help but think about it. However, she decided to ignore it for the time being.

She wanted to focus on helping Shirou. He needed it. She wondered if it would be good for him to wander around occasionally, helping people and saving demigods. She knew that his trauma was deeply tied to him saving people. However, she didn't know if it was healthy to encourage it.

She didn't mind him doing what he did, but she did mind him going too far. Maybe she was being irrational, but Shirou did have two children. He was trying to be normal for them, but she could see it was building up inside of him. Normally, she would ask her mother, but she wanted to get through this without her.

'Now, the question, is what the best way to go about that is?' She thought to herself, before looking at Annabeth and Miyu. 'It hasn't been too long since Miyu, now there's Annabeth. Maybe they'll be able to help. Rather, I know they will.' She then smiled at the two. "Why don't the three of us go watch daddy cook?"

"Seeing you as a wife and mother, while also figuring things out to assist your husband is quite a highlight sister." Hera said with happy smile. "While I wish you had a more normal marriage and husband, this is undeniably so very like you." She added with a bit of chuckle.

"It makes sense that Hestia's compatibility with the human is quite high. They do compliment each other." To everyone's surprise and shock, it was Ares who had spoke those words. He noticed them looking at him, causing him to sneer a bit, before letting out a scoff. "I mean the man has been likened to a sword. When a sword is not in use, it rests in a sheathe. Hestia has become that for him. For a warrior as damaged as him, Hestia is the perfect choice. To further the point, flames soften steel, making it malleable and allowing it be shaped, or even repaired. The human was right, your natures line up perfectly. It's why he was able to take in your divine flame so easily."

Hephaestus hummed in thought, "As much as I hate to agree with him, he's right." Though, he would admit there was some flaw to the analogy. Just having that wouldn't be enough. There needed to be another to temper that steel, to shape it. Though, Hephaestus doubted the analogy needed that much thought. Hestia alone was enough. Besides, he doubted Athena would be the right choice to assist them at the current moment. As much as he respected Athena, her interference would likely complicate matters.

Unknown to everyone else, but those that knew Shirou's current aria, couldn't help but realize the significance of two lines in it now that Ares and Hephaestus had spoken. Two lines that symbolized two women who shaped their father into who he would become.

---

Shirou was sitting in the living room, in his rather comfortable chair, enjoying the nice quiet evening. The two girls were asleep on either side of his chair, each having fallen asleep after dinner. Shirou admitted, it was kind of nice. He then heard some classical music begin to play, causing him to turn his head towards the source.

He saw Hestia messing with some kind of old antique record player. 'Wait, when did she buy that?' He raised a brow, before she turned towards him with a smile. "Okay, I'll ask, why the music?"

"Because, I heard that it's good for children to listen to music when they're young, or something like that." She replied with a sweet smile, that caused Shirou to smile in return.

"Okay, I'm following, can I ask why you're playing classical music? Particularly, Mozart." Hestia then danced around the living room, almost floating, really.

The screen showed the scene. None could help but be entranced by the beauty and grace of Hestia's movements. Her beauty only added to the allure, despite her wearing clothes that weren't typically seen as alluring. It was a reminder why Shirou found Hestia so beautiful and always seemed to notice her no matter what.

"Aw, are you going to ask him to dance with you, Hestia? That would be incredibly sweet and would totally make my day." Aphrodite said with her hands clasped together, her head bobbing back and forth. Hestia blushed a bit, shaking her head before answering.

"I might. I can definitely see myself doing so if I was in the mood for it." She answered with a smile. Miyu also couldn't help but smile at the sight, as well as at her own memories. Shirou and her mother often danced together, either in the house, or on dates. Her dad was quite a decent dancer, which was kind of surprising to her, she wouldn't lie. Still, it was sweet to see their first time dancing together when she was just a baby.

Funnily enough, the other gods agreed that Hestia playing classical music for her children because she heard it was good for them, was a very Hestia thing to do. Even buying the old record player seemed a bit in character as well, since she did take after Rhea quite a bit. Hestia's siblings couldn't help but think that Hestia and Rhea were just old fashioned that way.

"Hmm, do you not like it?" She asked with a curious tone. Shirou let out a small laugh.

"Well, I do, but it's always a bit surreal, considering I knew the actual Mozart." He said, making a casual wave of his hand. Hestia then appeared in front him, holding her hands out towards him.

"Of course he does. It doesn't even surprise me anymore." Percy said with a sigh.

"Well, come dance with me then. Surely, he would be happy to know that you danced to his music with a goddess, wouldn't he?" Shirou noticed a slyness to her smile. "Or, does Shirou, my beloved, not know how to dance?" Shirou knew what she was doing, but it didn't stop the twitch of his eye.

"I know that you know that I can." He said with a deadpan expression. 'My accommodating nature made me a student or protege to many heroic spirits. Including Knights, Queens, Princesses, Kings, and everything in-between. Marie was actually one of those that taught me about stuff like that.' He reminisced.

"I wonder, does Shirou actually carry any titles from heroic spirits? I mean, surely he must be a knight at the very least." Piper asked, mostly out of curiosity.

"Shirou Emiya was recognized by many heroic spirits. A knight, praetor, student, vassal, among many other things. One could argue he is the successor to many of them, or even a unofficial member of other famous groups. Ritsuka Fujimaru also shared in this." The screen answered, as his daughters actually didn't know all that much. Shirou made mention of it a few times, but they didn't actually know if that was too much information or not.

The person in charge of the screen was rather general, so it must have been fine that way.

"When he mentions, Marie, is he talking about Marie Antoinette?" Annabeth wondered, curious since it wasn't specific. Granted, she was mostly sure that it was.

"Yes." Was the simple answer that appeared. Annabeth hummed, as she was beginning to understand more about heroic spirits and how it worked.

After checking on the two children, he looked back towards Hestia, before taking her hands and standing up. He heard her let out a small giggle. "I'm excited to see how well you dance, Shirou."

"Well, I'll certainly try hard not to let you down." He replied to her with a smile. Bringing her a bit closer towards him, causing her face to redden a bit. He let out a small hum, before the two began to move towards the music. Shirou wondered if she was using her powers, as he felt warm and at home as they danced together, though he knew that she wasn't.

Both were simply entranced in the moment. Hestia had laid her head onto Shirou's chest, with the slower music causing a sense of peace in both of them. Shirou had danced with a few heroic spirits, but none of them ever caused him to feel the way Hestia did at the moment.

Hestia let out a small hum, happily enjoying the moment. Considering what she knew of him, she had to admit that it was rather sweet that he felt that way. Even if she found it hard to imagine such a thing occurring in her world, she was happy to see an alternate version enjoying herself with someone like that.

He didn't know if it was the pleasant atmosphere, or maybe his own repressed feelings, but when Hestia looked up towards him, he couldn't help but still. He felt himself begin to lean forward, noticing Hestia's cherry red face. Rather than pull away, he saw her close her eyes tight.

Shirou had to admit, it was kind of cute to see an immortal goddess act like that. She was mature, sweet, wise, and thoughtful most of the time, so to get to see her act like this was always a sight to see. It was times like this that reminded Shirou that she was a true virgin goddess, as well as a goddess that was far more human than the other gods.

Aphrodite agreed with Shirou's thoughts. It was definitely a sight to see. Athena usually made it boring and didn't partake in romance, so she was never able to enjoy what it might be like to see one of them fall in love. She had imagined it, but being able to witness it was another thing entirely. Hestia really was like a young girl experiencing love for the first time. Unlike Athena, Hestia actually wanted to try and that was more fun and interesting to Aphrodite than anything.

Hestia was blushing quite a bit, as she had never actually kissed a man before. Seeing her other self go through the experience was enough to trigger her own secondhand anxiety about it. She admitted that it may have had to do with the book, but either way, she was embarrassed everyone was seeing this side of her. 'This really should just be an intimate moment between the two of us!'

Artemis was shocked that her aunt was actually going through with it. Not that she had a problem with it, but that didn't mean it wasn't shocking. She could sympathize with her thoughts. While it was impossible, she would admit she would likely act the same as her in her shoes. Knowing about romance and love, and actually experiencing it, were two very different things.

The others that were invested in it were all intently waiting to see what happened. A part of them doubted she'd actually go through with it, but a few that knew Hestia and understood what she was going through, knew that she likely wanted him to kiss her. It was the perfect moment to do it too, or at least, the Aphrodite cabin thought so.

Just as the two were about to connect, a chill ran down their backs. Shirou, himself, even noticed a somewhat foul smell coming from the forest behind his house. The two both looked towards the source, knowing where it was coming from. Whatever it was, it was pretty close.

"Boo!" Aphrodite called out with a frown. "They ruined a perfect romantic set up! It couldn't have been any better, even if I helped!" She added, sitting back in her chair with a pout on her face.

There were a few chuckles at Aphrodite's behavior, especially from the Emiya sisters. Poseidon was inwardly glad. At least a bit. He still didn't like the idea of Hestia being with Shirou. He might say it was because of unworthiness, but Apollo and a few others knew what the truth was.

Unlike Poseidon, Apollo wasn't that bothered by it. He was just glad that Hestia seemed happy. Though, he was pretty sure that Hestia was about to get a bit angry, since she was becoming a bit more expressive with her other emotions.

Shirou let out a small groan, before he decided to let go and take care of it. However, he didn't move, as Hestia refused to release him. He looked back towards Hestia, whose eyes weren't warm like usual. 'She's mad.' Shirou thought, using his super impressive Sherlock-like detective instincts.

"Hestia." He said simply, causing her to snap out of it and look at him. However, he decided to take a leap of faith. He quickly leaned forward and placed a kiss on her lips for a few seconds, before taking a step back. He could see the gears in Hestia's head spinning, followed by the moment she went haywire.

A small gasp could barely be heard, but those that did turned and saw Hestia with a massive blush and wide eyes. They couldn't read her mind, but could pretty much guess what she was thinking. The book's power likely didn't help matters.

Those thoughts would be mostly correct, but Hestia mostly let out a gasp because of how strong the wave of emotion she just felt was. She was embarrassed, of course, as seeing her first kiss was always going to be a big deal. However, it was also because what she felt was amazing. It was an overwhelming force of joy, love, passion, and excitement. She could easily comprehend why her other self short circuited. She wasn't even the one kissed, yet, that wave was unlike anything she had ever felt.

Realizing some people noticed her, she quickly grabbed her hood and pulled it over to hide her face. Miyu giggled a bit, because of her actions. She was able to spot that Hestia was trying to hide the smile creeping onto her face along with her embarrassment, but Miyu spotted it easily. She was still her mother after all.

Aphrodite was surprised by what she felt from Hestia. It didn't last too long, but it was intoxicatingly sweet and addictingly delicious. It was a very dangerous combination for a love goddess like her. First love, true love, healing love, and tender love along with much more all blended together, not mention a first kiss in a show of loving passion between husband and wife. Unbeknownst to her, but her eyes had actually started to glow pink, her divine power almost leaking out for a moment, before she reigned it in.

She took a deep breath, calming herself. 'My, my, if this is what my other self is experiencing from those two then I'm surprised I haven't been shown more. I would love to experience what Hestia just felt, even if it was only a fraction.' She was filled with a bittersweet feeling, knowing that it would likely never happen. Not only because Hestia was her friend, but because she doubted that Shirou would ever look her way considering her past. Still, she wondered what that kind of love would feel like? A love so powerful that she'd almost call it a sin.

If the love she felt from that small echo of Kiara's name was ugly, twisted, and wrong, then what she just experienced from that wave was the beautiful version of it that was filled with dreams and hope. Aphrodite's eyes widened a bit, understanding what it was that she felt. 'Salvation.' She thought with surprise. What she felt likely wasn't just Hestia, it was probably Shirou's too. This time, she couldn't prevent a bittersweet smile from forming on her face, nor the small bit of jealousy that formed towards her friend.

The Emiya sisters noticed Aphrodite and had to restrain themselves from acting on their own emotions. Seeing Aphrodite acting like that didn't feel very good. Her bright smile, liveliness, and loving aura always brought joy and happiness to their family, begrudgingly so in Athena and Artemis's case. It was times like this that they wished their dad would show up and do something to make her happy. However, they knew that it was getting close to Aphrodite's arrival.

Hestia shared her love story with their dad, that was true. But, the blue shroud Shirou was famous for wearing told that story as well. You had to look closely, as the embroidered designs were meant to not stand out too much as Aphrodite felt Shirou wouldn't wear it otherwise, but they were there. However, that story also included three others, with Aphrodite being the second. Aphrodite enjoyed telling them how she entered their dad's life, as well as how Ophelia was born, so they could only imagine that this Aphrodite would be overjoyed to experience it too.

So, they'd keep quiet, even if they wanted to try and cheer up the love goddess.

Hera chuckled a bit, as she also felt a bit of Hestia's emotions, thanks to her domains. She was happy for her sister's other self. Unlike her husband, Shirou seemed to be someone who put Hestia above everything else, even himself. She was jealous of her sister, of course, but not in a mean way. Besides, Hestia deserved all the good things she recieved for putting up with everything in Olympus for so long. She felt she deserved a break.

She tried to speak, but nothing came out, only small little noises. He was pretty sure he would have seen steam rising from the top of her head if that was possible. "Well, I'm going to going to take care of our uninvited guest. You should take the girls and head to bed. I'll join you shortly." He said with a smile.

As he turned to head out, Hestia hugged him from behind, catching him off guard. In a small, somewhat embarrassed, voice, he heard, "Be careful, Shirou. Washing blood out of sheets is hard, even for a goddess." He let out a small chuckle.

"You got it." She then let him go, watching as he grabbed his black bow and a quiver of twisted swords near the backdoor. He stopped before walking out, looking over his shoulder towards Hestia. He offered her a reassuring smile, before continuing on.

The half-bloods agreed with Hestia's words. Getting blood out of fabrics was annoying. Most of the time, they just threw them away as it wasn't worth the effort.

Artemis narrowed her eyes. She had a bad feeling about what was going on. Considering the context clues, she wasn't that excited to see what happened next.

---

The moon overlooked the forest, like a singular eye peering down like a god. Shirou supposed it made sense, as Artemis was likely out. Whatever was going on, he had a bad feeling about it. Despite his words to Hestia, he couldn't help feel like something was going on.

The moon didn't give him the same reassuring feeling he got when he peered up at it at night. No, it felt like a sentinel. Watching his every move, studying him. He looked down at his watch, wondering if he'd have to use it already. Why Athena gave him something so valuable, he didn't know.

Apollo peered over towards his sister, who let out a sigh, confirming his thoughts. The hunters and the gods all had the same thoughts as well.

Athena hummed to herself. She was inwardly excited to see Shirou face whatever opponent he needed to confront.

It was a replica of her Aegis that manifested from the watch face. Thankfully, his didn't possess Medusa's face on it. The thought of that left a bad taste in his mouth, whether it was a different Medusa or not. As for the coin, it was just a simple celestial bronze spear. He could fight monsters with it, but against anything else, it was useless.

Some were surprised by the lack of a design on his shield. They understood why he would be uncomfortable with it, considered the implied relationship she had with Medusa, but thought he'd be more practical about it. Without the design, it was likely that the fear effect would be lost with it. Young Thalia admitted that it was a handy ability to have, but she also didn't know how'd she feel having a shield with one of her friends' faces on it.

Athena was surprised that her other self had omitted that design, but shrugged it off. Her other self likely figured Shirou was a good enough combatant to not need it. Considering it said it was a replica of her aegis, she was sure that it would possess it. However, another thought made it's way to the forefront of her mind. 'Shirou said tracing and analyzing divine constructs was something he couldn't really do. What if he mistook it for a replica, when it was actually the prototype?' Her eyes narrowed at the thought.

It would make more sense that way, at least to her. She wasn't the forgetful type. Not to mention, the way the letter sounded, as well as her other self's actions towards him, she couldn't help but entertain the idea that she'd gift him that rather than just another replica. She'd have to wait and watch, as she didn't wish to ask the daughters about it, sensing they wouldn't give her an answer on it anyway.

He didn't get why metal could be picky over what it could harm. It was a bit annoying actually. Though, that may have just been his inner sword speaking out. He couldn't complain too much, because he was similar, imagining his daughters and Hestia.

He shook his head, 'Now's not the time for that.' He reached into one of the small pouches on his belt. Inside was a bullet. It was one of the last bullets he possessed. He may have hated his Alter, but at least he gained something good from his knowledge, despite how brutal it was.

Normally, he wouldn't even entertain the thought of using it, but whatever was out in the forest, wasn't ordinary. He had a feeling it was a more legendary monster. He could smell the beast. It was deep in the forest, though he could already feel slight tremors from whatever it was.

"A gun shouldn't really have any effect on a monster. Though, considering the way he talks about it, I'm guessing it's more than a normal bullet." Hermes stated, his curiosity getting the best of him.

A the screen showed the bullet, with it looking pretty unassuming. Ana decided to answer them. "It's called an origin round, or origin bullet. Let's just say that, if anyone in this room were hit by it, it'd likely be game over for them." She said cryptically, surprising many of the gods listening. Some felt rather insulted by her words, but Ana added a bit more. "It has a bit of dad's soul in it. The process to make them is very difficult and his were made for him when he was in Chaldea. I think he said Medea was the main one who made them for him, but a few others helped."

"How do you put a bit of a person's soul into a bullet?" Athena asked, genuinely curious. Ana hummed to herself, before deciding to answer.

"You use a piece of the body." She answered, with some making pained or disgusted expressions. Ana smirked at the reaction. She made magic items and enchanted things, so she was used to it. "To be specific, dad used pieces of bone. They were ground up into dust, and following a few processes with magecraft, were made into bullets." She explained, but didn't say which bones, nor how much. Shirou had Avalon back then, so losing a few pieces of ribs wasn't so bad for him.

His eyes narrowed, before grabbing one of his arrows. He felt like someone was watching him, causing him to lift his bow in the direction of the feeling. Though, there was nothing there. Nothing but a beam of moonlight shining through the trees.

The hunters couldn't help but look at their lady, knowing that Artemis was likely watching Shirou. Though, they had to admit, they were impressed he was able to sense her.

He then heard a large roar, causing him to turn and fire an arrow. To his shock, the arrow bounced off the pelt of the beast. Shirou's eyes widened, seeing a gargantuan looking boar. It appeared like some of the worst demonic beasts he had fought in singularities. The hammer of a gun fired off in his head.

"Trace on." His circuits then burst to life. His black bow faded away, before another bow replaced it, with a very minuscule amount of magical energy being used to do so. As if it jumped out of his reality marble in order to fight the beast. The moment the sleek black and gold bow did so, Shirou knew what he was facing.

"The Calydonian Boar? Are you kidding me!?" He quickly reinforced his legs and jumped into the trees, just as it charged forward, completely demolishing the tree behind him. "It doesn't matter, you're still only a beast. The owner of this bow would be disappointed if I lost to you here."

"Holy crap, Arty, are you trying to kill the guy?" Apollo asked, with Artemis frowning at her brother's words. Inwardly, some agreed with his words. Everyone knew that the Calydonian Boar wasn't like other monsters. It was like a force of nature. They also knew that Artemis had the authority to summon it if she wanted, meaning that this was her idea.

"Of course not. The other me had to have watched him for a bit. Not to mention, my hunters likely gave reports about him. If I were to go based off of what I know and what I suspect, such as killing Orion, then he should be able to kill the boar as well. This is nothing more than a test." She answered with narrowed eyes. It made sense to her. Her other self hadn't seen him kill Orion, so she had to be sure. This test was the perfect way to do that.

If her alternate self was anything like her, she'd be watching him closely, wanting to see him kill it like a hunter. A small grin did creep onto her face at the fact that Shirou was using Atalanta's bow. Tauropolos would give him an edge in this hunt, but she'd know if his skills were borrowed or not, so she knew her other self would keep an eye on him. 'I hope you don't disappoint me, Shirou. Show me the hunter Atalanta trained you to be.'

Without a second thought, he began to fire off a barrage of arrows. The legend of Atalanta said she was the first to land a blow on the boar. Her bow carried that concept in it, meaning, his arrows easily pierced the hide of the beast. However, they weren't deep enough to kill it.

The beast roared out in pain, tracking his scent and charging forward. Shirou channeled all of the experience and skill he could from Tauropolos, jumping from branch to branch and tree to tree, firing off arrows as he did so. 'This will get me nowhere fast. I need to try and find a way to land a decisive blow.'

He thought about what noble phantasms he could use to kill the beast, but he was still wary of the presence he felt watching him. His bows switched so fast that it was nearly unnoticeable to him, so he doubted they noticed. A thought crossed his mind. 'If I used Phoebus Catastrophe, would it alert this world's Artemis and Apollo, or just mine?'

Miyu answered before anyone could ask. "Phoebus Catastophe is the noble phantasm tied to Tauropolos. Basically, shoot two arrows into the sky, then a storm of magical arrows rains down onto the area you choose. The problem dad has, is that the incantation to activate it, is technically an offering to Artemis and Apollo."

Many understood the dilemma. Shirou didn't want to draw their attention, or rather, he didn't want to take the chance that it'd draw their attention.

The boar charged again, but this time, it jumped up and rammed through multiple trees. Shirou had to quickly jump to another branch and swing off of it onto the ground. The boar seemed to be getting smarter, and quicker. Neither of which appealed to Shirou.

He quickly darted through the forest, firing arrows into the air, bending and curving arrows around trees, and firing head on to confuse the boar. At the very least, he could kill it by turning it into a pincushion, but he doubted that would work. It was like it was getting used to his arrows.

"Whoa, he's really good." The young Thalia called out, with the hunters nodding their heads in agreement.

"His movements and skill with the bow are beautiful." Mia said, entranced at Shirou's hunt against the boar. All the hunters noticed it too. Being in the wildnerness was like second nature to him. He was able to move through it as if he lived there. There was no doubt in their minds, he was trained by the most famous hunter of Artemis. Some would even argue, the best hunter of Artemis.

Artemis couldn't help but grow slightly emotional at the sight, not even registering her hunters' words and excitement. Watching Shirou face the boar filled her with a bittersweet feeling. It was like watching a mirror image of Atalanta. He may have been using her bow and augmenting himself with it's experience, but there was no doubt that he was able to move like that as well.

By himself, it may not be as clean, but considering he was perfectly adapting her movements to his body told her enough. As she watched, every other moment a flash of Atalanta replaced Shirou's figure. Still, she was proud of her, especially for training Shirou as well as she did. Seeing him do this basically confirmed how close he likely was with Atalanta.

Miyu and Ana had to admit they were a bit jealous. Not of their father, of course. It was just, they never could reach that level of skill in hunting or movement. Only Ophelia had that honor. They could easily imagine their little sister in their dad's place, moving around the forest firing off arrows with a smile on her face. Archery was the main skill Ophelia inherited from their dad.

'I'll use a few of my sword arrows, that should do the trick.' He grabbed one of the twisted blades, before firing an arrow that pierced deep into the boar. A smirk appeared on his face. 'So that works, good to know.' However, that was immediately followed up by a insanely fast charge.

He jumped to the side, activating his watch as he did so, causing the shield to deploy and take the brunt of the boar's tusk. It negated the force, making sure he didn't break his arm, but gravity wasn't something immediately dissipated, especially when he was in the air.

The attack launched him back into a tree, causing it to splinter the moment he made contact. The breath was knocked out of him, however, he was spared from previous injury thanks to reinforcement. He looked back at the boar, who was beginning to turn from his charge.

The demigods and hunters all winced, knowing how much that sucked.

Looking at it, his mind reverted back to when the demonic beasts attacked Uruk and the surrounding areas. Seeing them killing indiscriminately, always being too late to save anyone. He grit his teeth, before the image of the Calydonian Boar returned in front of him.

"You're starting to get on my nerves." Shirou gripped the bow in his hands tight. 'Don't think about the past, worry about now.' Despite what he portrayed to everyone else, projecting and using noble phantasms did put a strain on his body. At the moment, there wasn't a problem. However, if he kept going the way he was, he would tire himself out.

He slung the bow across his back, grabbing the coin from his pocket as he did so. He knew this was a bad idea, but he felt like he could do it. He opened his hand, causing the spear to appear in place of the coin. He had an idea. One that would require him to take a hit or two.

Athena and Artemis raised a brow at his thoughts. Athena tilted her head to the side a bit, wondering what Shirou was thinking of doing. Hestia frowned though, not really liking that Shirou was willing to hurt himself so easily. It seemed her other self had a lot of work to do.

However, if it worked the way he thought it would, then he could easily kill this thing by piercing its heart. Hestia would probably be mad if she found out, but if he didn't kill this thing here, then it would rampage through the forest, then it would follow the scent of his children and Hestia. Hestia could destroy it, but he didn't know what punishment she would face.

Hestia's eye twitched. 'So he does know that I'd be mad, but he's going to do it anyway.' She couldn't help but grumble a bit.

Demeter and Hera chuckled a bit at their sister.

He wasn't about to allow that to happen. So, he would kill it. He charged forward, holding his shield in front of him. The boar charged and Shirou stepped to the side while angling his shield. The beast hit the shield, just as Shirou thrust his spear forward, easily impaling the beast. He then took a hop backwards, letting the gravity of the attack push him back again.

This time, Shirou was able to land on his feet and avoid any trees. He let out a deep breath, changing his spear back into its coin form. The beast charged forward after turning around again. 'It really is just a beast. A bit smarter than usual, but a beast all the same.'

Shirou took a few quick steps forward, before sliding underneath the rampaging boar, allowing it strike his shield and him into the ground. The weight was immense, but the moment he reactivated his spear underneath the boar, the weight subsided. The boar let out another loud roar, before running away and turning towards him again.

The eyes of the beast indicated that it was figuring out what he was doing, but Shirou didn't care. As the final nail in the coffin was happening now. Rather than stand quickly, he made his way to his feet slowly. He allowed himself to stumble a bit, before steadying himself with his spear.

He shook his head, before holding his shield up once again. However, he was already preparing for the next stage. The boar noticed his weakened appearance, and just like any monster that saw weakness, it pounced. Without any warning, it charged once again. 'I win.'

Athena let out an amused huff, a small smile creeping onto her face. 'Interesting, but I approve.'

Artemis smirked at Shirou's idea. She understood what he did and had to admit, using the boar's animal instincts against itself was quite smart. Faking being injured to lure it in was a good idea. She did notice that he was injured, but knew he was overselling it. His injuries weren't that bad.

Ares hummed. 'Most do leave openings when delivering what they believe to be a killing blow. The same goes for monsters and beasts.'

Shirou allowed the shield to revert back to a watch, before holding his hand out towards the beast. "I am the bone of my sword." Shirou steeled himself, ready to receive the backlash. "Rho Aias." A pink iridescent flower then shot out from his hand, before seven petals spread open, as if blooming.

"Wow, that's so pretty!" Lacy called out, her eyes sparkling at the shield deployed by Shirou. A lot of the others agreed, surprised at the sight, especially those that loved flowers.

Some recognized the name, especially those familiar with the Trojan war. Annabeth looked at the it, realizing the correlation of the seven petals.

The boar then collided with the legendary shield. Despite Shirou possessing many different shields, Rho Aias would always be his greatest form of defense. It was also much more cost efficient, compared to something like Mash's shield. Each layer of his shield was the equivalent of a fortress wall.

"So that's why he said the shield in the museum was a fake!" Annabeth exclaimed, hitting her fist against her hand. She figured he may have had it, but wasn't sure since she hadn't seen him trace a shield.

"That's a powerful shield if what he says is true." Percy said, rubbing the back of his head. Honestly, it sounded kind of insane.

"Honestly, it looks like something Aphrodite would use." Apollo said, with the male gods agreeing with him. Aphrodite couldn't help but gigle a bit.

"It does match with my aesthetic, especially with how beautiful it is." She told them, admiring the shield once again.

Athena was mostly surprised by its form though. It didn't look like a normal shield, being deployed more like something made of magic. "Why does it look like that?" She asked, Ana, knowing she'd have the answer.

"There likely was a literal seven layered shield at some point, but dad's is the shield in it's conceptual form as a noble phantasm. It's technically a bounded field, but the petals of magical energy are real and solid, as you can see." She said, pointing at the picture of the boar hitting her dad's shield. "When a petal breaks, it does hurt the wielder a bit, but better that than being impaled or blown up, right?" Ana added with a shrug.

Some were disturbed at how nonchalant Ana said that last bit, but decided to add it to her list of quirks.

So, imagine his surprise when the boar broke through a petal of his shield. The moment it broke, he felt some muscles tear, along with a few cuts appearing on his arm, but nothing too major. He was glad he didn't wear his jacket, otherwise it may have got blood on it, and he didn't want to dirty Hestia's gift to him.

He supplied more magical energy into the Aias, noticing the second petal beginning to crack as the boar continued to try and push through. However, Shirou waited for this moment, the moment the second petal broke, he de-materialized the shield and the boar fell forward as Shirou jumped to the side.

The second petal cracked a few bones in his arm, but with reinforcement to fill in the gaps, he didn't notice. With the boar finally on the ground, Shirou took his spear and stood in the stance used for Gae Bolg, before delivering a powerful thrust forward into the beast's heart.

The boar let out a bloodcurdling roar, however, Shirou simply pulled his spear out and stabbed into the throat of the creature, silencing it. "I hope you didn't wake the kids, you overgrown boar." He said with some exhaustion. 'Honestly, it shouldn't have been this tough.'

If he didn't think he was being watched, he would have ended it with one of his noble phantasms. In fact, he could have destroyed it with Phoebus Catastrophe, but that would have alerted two gods who he didn't feel like meeting anytime soon. Particularly, Apollo, for multiple reasons.

"Hey, I resent that. I bet the two of us would get along great." Apollo said with a frown. Artemis narrowed her eyes at her brother.

"That's not necessarily a good thing." She muttered, shaking her head. She returned her attention to the story. She was glad he didn't use another method, as this showed off his hunting skill quite a bit. Her other self was likely grateful for it as well. Still, she felt a bit bad, as Shirou was about to meet her other self, if he didn't want to.

Hestia couldn't help but smile that he was more worried about waking up their children about himself. She stilled for a moment, realizing she thought of Ana as her child. despite her being Athena's. However, she brushed it off, as she would be her mother since Athena wasn't there. 'Unless Athena shows up, which I doubt, I'll be Ana's official mother.' She thought, not disliking that idea.

Athena would admit that his plan did work. It was decent plan all things considered, especially when it was against the Calydonian Boar of all things. Though, she was even surprised that it managed to break a petal of his shield, while almost breaking a second. She knew it was powerful, but to nearly break through two fortress walls in a single charge was impressive.

The hunters were all impressed that Shirou had managed to bring down such a foe alone, since it would take a group of them to do what he did. They hoped that they would get to see him hunt a few other monsters in the future. They wondered how he'd do against a certain fox.

At their thoughts, the little white fox sitting on Miyu's lap huddled closer to her owner on instinct, unaware that they weren't thinking about her.

He held a hand up to his head, feeling the beginning of a headache coming on. He groaned a bit, before deciding to shake it off. "Guess, I'll head back home and get some rest." He said aloud, before beginning to walk back home. However, a large bow landed in front him.

He paused, before realizing that it was the bow of Orion. He tilted his head, before he looked up in the air. His eyes narrowed, seeing nothing. He shook his head, before picking up the heavy and large bow. It appeared smaller than when he last saw it, being roughly the size of his and Archer's black bow.

He let out an annoyed groan, seeing all the pulleys and strings on the bow. He decided to pull back on the bow, noticing that it didn't lock in place. It did take more effort to pull back, but the arrows shot from it would make up for it. He thought it was a normal compound bow, only to see that it worked like a simple bow.

It was a strange bow, one that was more mechanical than he was comfortable with, but it had interesting features. Though, he wondered if he could create something unique from it. A new bow, one that didn't make him nauseous to wield. The bow felt cursed in his hands, and he didn't exactly want to run into Artemis or hunters with it.

The hunters winced, knowing that they were likely accompanying Artemis already. Thankfully, their other selves likely knew that Artemis was giving him the bow. They were also glad Shirou planned on making something new from it, rather than using the bow as is. His thoughts mirrored theirs, as the bow did have a sickeningly disgusting feel to it. It made sense if it was cursed.

'I'd need to get my hands on more celestial bronze, or some other high quality material, but I could do it. This bow only has a handle made of it, I'd need more for the limbs.' He thought to himself, before grabbing a twisted blade and spinning around with the bow drawn.

The moment he did so, he was met by a girl who appeared to be in her late teens. She was fairly tall, possessing a well built and athletic body that added to her beauty. She had shoulder length black hair and stunning silver eyes that seemed to glow in the darkness.

Artemis kept her composure, but felt a bit embarrassed at Shirou's description of her, mainly about her eyes. She realized that she must have chosen to appear in an older form to not alert him too much. Inwardly, she was glad that he wasn't too heavy on his compliments, nor did he seem to lust after her in any way.

The moment Shirou laid eyes on the bow on her back, as well as the hunting knives behind her waist, a sharp pain entered his head, causing him to wince. 'That's a divine construct on par with Artemis's bow.' The thought caused his eyes to widen. 'That aura, scent, and even her eyes. While they are different color, I'd recognize them anywhere.'

"Lady Artemis." He said softly, before lowering his bow. He saw a somewhat surprised expression appear on her face, before she went back to her neutral expression.

"Whoa, he picked up on that quick. Artemis must not be that different if he was able to do that." Apollo said with a chuckle. Artemis frowned, before her eyes widened, seeing the screen begin to change.

The moment it did, it was replaced with an incredibly beautiful young woman with long white hair and round blue eyes, wearing a silver ornamental necklace with a long white shoulderless dress that faded to a fiery red at the bottom. The dress showed off quite a bit of the woman's assets, having a 'v' like shape between her rather large breasts. It was clear this young woman was a goddess, which only caused some jealousy among them. Even Aphrodite couldn't help but be a bit envious of her, as even she admitted the woman was a beauty.

They then noticed the words on the screen. "Shirou's version of Artemis, Goddess of the Moon." Needless to say, everyone couldn't help but be shocked at the appearance of the goddess, though none were more shocked, and horrified, than Artemis herself. She instantly moved her hands in front of her body, as if afraid that she'd end up looking like her other self.

"Wow, Artemis, who would have thought you could be so hot. It almost made me jealous for a moment." Aphrodite said with a whistle, earning her a glare from Artemis.

"Shut up! That isn't me! The worlds are completely different." She immediately retorted, not wanting to believe she could ever wear something so revealing. Thankfully, the screen didn't use her dress from her last ascension, otherwise the goddess may have exploded.

"Despite the appearance, she does sort of have the same aura and eyes as our Artemis, doesn't she?" Demeter pointed out, understanding what Shirou was talking about. There was a clarity and sharpness that the two versions shared, and the aura they possessed as a goddess shined through, one that made them appear untouchable, divine, and worth your respect.

Funnily enough, the males understood why Artemis was part of the named people who were mentioned to have influenced Aphrodite's current form. Though, they weren't going to push their luck and say it out loud. They weren't that stupid.

"J-Just continue with the story! And remove that image already, we get it!" Artemis yelled, attempting to move on. She wasn't expecting such a thing. She was pretty sure that whoever managed the screen did it on purpose. Which only frustrated her more.

Though, some of the goddesses couldn't help but wonder what their counterparts looked like. Shirou never mentioned them, but that didn't mean he was completely clueless. If Artemis looked that beautiful, then surely their counterparts were similar. Then again, they thought their current forms were perfect as it was, only Artemis would make such a fuss about that, but that didn't mean they weren't curious.

Hestia would admit that she kind of wanted to know too, but was fine with not knowing. After all, she loved her appearance. Besides, a part of her felt like it wouldn't be all that drastic of a difference.

Left out was the mention of their true origins. However, it was mostly because they'd come to know about that truth much later. The one behind the screen couldn't help but think about Aphrodite's reaction to it, as even it couldn't help but feel saddened by the circumstances of that story.

Shirou then did a quick scan across the trees, noticing little flashes of silver. 'Her hunters must have me surrounded.' He quickly began to recall a large amount of swords, readying himself in case he needed to fight. If something happened, he could project them quickly.

The hunters managed to break out of their dumbfounded state at seeing their goddess's counterpart once mentioned. They all focused back on the story, mostly because they wanted to get their minds off of it. Considering their lady wanted to forget it, they felt they should do their best to not think too deeply about it, even if they were finding it difficult.

Mia and the Young Thalia noticed the words though, and couldn't help but grow anxious. They may have been confident in the hunters, but they had seen what Shirou's swords were capable of, to an extent, and had no desire to see their other selves face them.

"You are the hero that killed Orion, yes?" She said to him, her voice had a rather sweet tone to it, though there was an edge present as well. Shirou simply nodded his head to her question. "I see. I expected to see you use those runes, yet you managed this without them."

"I admit, your skills with the bow are impressive, as were your movements. Who was the one who taught you how to hunt like that?" Shirou was nervous. This wasn't his Artemis. From what Hestia told him, this one was far different. So, he'd play along so he didn't get turned into an animal, or a woman.

A few of the campers chuckled at Shirou's fears. They completely understood. Many of them were the same way, even when it came to just looking at Artemis. They couldn't imagine actually having to speak with her to such an extent.

"A friend of mine. I was already an archer when I met her, but she taught me how to hunt properly. She was a great teacher." He answered, choosing to leave out her name. Artemis nodded to his words, before pointing at Orion's bow.

"I wanted to test to see whether or not you deserved those spoils. If you had used any other methods to kill the boar, I would have kept it. However, you didn't, as such, the bow is yours. However, this was only the first test, Shirou Emiya." Shirou's eyes widened at her knowledge of his name.

Artemis didn't say anything, but was glad that her earlier thoughts were correct. Her other self wished to test Shirou and used the boar to do it. However, it appeared that she would be testing him further for some reason. She couldn't imagine why, but realized that it would likely be answered.

'I knew I shouldn't have given my name out to Caroline, but I couldn't help it at the time. No, it was the right choice, she needed someone to save her.' He thought to himself, before looking back at her. "What do you mean, the first test?" He asked, causing Artemis to give a satisfied smile.

"I wish to see the prowess of the man who killed someone powerful enough to kill gods. So far, you have used that power to help others, so I wish to make sure that is what you continue to do. Besides, a few of the hunters who you saved wished to see you, and complimented your skills greatly."

"So, I will test those skills sometime in the future. For now, I'll simply observe. Despite you being a male, as well as a stranger, I feel a strange connection to you. I suppose you could say I am also satisfying my own curiosity, but if possible, I would like you to assist my hunters from time to time." She finished, causing Shirou to tilt his head.

That was a surprise, even to Artemis. She could hardly believe she'd ask such a thing from him, especially because he was a man. Though, she guessed it had to do with her curiosity about their connection. Which she now understood was her counterpart in Shirou's world. Remembering it caused her to frown.

"Assist them? I apologize, but what do you mean?" He asked, a bit puzzled at that.

"My hunters are, for lack of a better term, a bit challenged when it comes to men. Perhaps, you could assist them in that regard, and maybe help train a few? I have a feeling you are skilled in close quarters, which will help them greatly. There are also some monsters that I would feel much better about them hunting, if you were with them."

'So, really, she wants me to try and make her hunters more comfortable around men? Then she wants me to train some in close combat? I have a feeling that isn't all there is to it.' He thought to himself, but he couldn't imagine what else there could be.

The hunters were all a bit embarrassed, but couldn't refute what was said. Even now, they were still like that. Some had issues even being close to men. They couldn't imagine Shirou being able to help them. Though, getting better at close combat did sound appealing. They were hunters, first and foremost, but understood needing to improve that aspect.

The campers were disappointed at that. For them, the hunters lack of close combat expertise actually helped them out. If Shirou assisted them in that, then they knew their games against each other may end up becoming a bit one sided.

He watched her walk up to the boar, before she placed a hand on it. The boar then dissipated, leaving a rolled up and tied pelt in her hand. She then threw it towards him, causing him to quickly move to catch it. "A hunter shouldn't let materials go to waste." She then turned and began to walk deeper into the forest.

"I will see you again soon, Shirou Emiya. I will leave a few hunters here. Should I need to speak to you, they will act as my proxies. Oh, and also..." She stopped and turned around with a small smile on her face. "Tell Aunt Hestia I said hello." Shirou's eyes widened, before she disappeared into the forest.

'She knew.' He let out a sigh, noticing the scent of her hunters had disappeared along with her. 'My bad luck really doesn't want me to be normal.' He turned and began to head back home. 'I wonder why she didn't seem upset? Also, what did she really want from me?'

Hestia's face reddened at the implication of that. She wondered if that meant Artemis had seen her other self's kiss with Shirou. It wasn't that bad, but it was still embarrassing.

---

Shirou couldn't even understand what had just happened. First, the boar, then Artemis. He wondered if it had to do with Tauropolos, since she said she felt a connection to him. However, he felt like something else was going on. Honestly, he didn't like it too much.

He didn't know if he wanted to get too attached to that many people, and from the sounds of it, that would be happening soon. He felt like static rushed through his mind, giving him a quick glimpse of holding Sakura's body in his arms. However, it only lasted for a flash, before he resumed walking.

Hestia, his daughters, Athena, Caroline, and even Rhea, were enough. He didn't have to worry about things like that with them. He didn't have to worry about losing them. He just wanted to focus on being with his family. 'Is that really what you want?' Shirou shook his head.

A few of the gods narrowed their eyes upon hearing the other voice.

The Emiya daughters also sat up, their interest growing quite a bit. It didn't sound very good and was pretty worrying.

Athena had an idea of what was happening, and she didn't think it was a good time for it to happen, especially with Hestia not being around.

Hestia and Aphrodite both frowned the moment it happened. Both knowing that Shirou needed Hestia at the moment. Hestia could only hope that her other self could feel Shirou's dilemma with her powers.

He was going to spend time with his family, raise his daughters, and be a good father. He wouldn't deprive his daughters of a father like he was. 'Don't you wish for a world where everyone is saved? One where everyone can share their happiness with others?' Shirou shook his head again, gripping the bow tightly.

'What of those that disrupt the balance of the world? What of the evil that will threaten their future?' Shirou grit his teeth, his jaw clenched tight. 'Would you sacrifice the lives of those around you, just to achieve your own happiness?' "Shut up." He spoke quietly.

'In the end, you can save neither others, nor yourself.' "Shut up." Step by step, he continued forward. This was all he needed to do. 'It doesn't matter in the end. Archer told you, didn't he? It's endless. Conflicts will always come into view. You can't help yourself. You'll be drawn in to save them.'

Miyu and Ana shivered a bit, sadness filling their hearts. Seeing their dad so damaged was unthinkable. In fact, they absolutely hated it. That voice in his head, they wondered how long he dealt with it. No, they wondered if he continued to deal with it even now? The thought was enough to cause them pain and guilt, especially if they never noticed it.

No, they were sure that their dad didn't deal with this stuff anymore. They would have known, and surely, they would have been told by their mothers, right?

Hestia noticed that it was like he was at war with himself. One side taunting the other, while the other attempted to shut it out. He was torn, even if he really wanted to be with Hestia and the girls, his guilt punished him for it. She couldn't imagine such a deep feeling of guilt and self-loathing for simply trying to be happy with his family.

Athena and Aphrodite were both wondering how to heal such wounds. Aphrodite still believed Hestia would be the key, but was beginning to believe that he may need a bit more. Hestia stablized him, but there was something else he required to get past it, she just wasn't sure what it was. She was determined to figure it out.

'We will continue to do so, until it destroys us. That is what it means to be a sword. No matter what, we must continue to fight. No one else, but us. Save them, Shirou. Can't you hear their cries? Can't you feel it calling to you?' "Shut up!" Shirou finally reached his limit. 'You abandoned everyone by coming here.' "Trace on."

He dropped the bow and the tied up materials, before projecting Rule Breaker into his hand. Just as he was about to stab himself with it, hoping whatever was causing the voices was simply a curse of some kind. Just before he did, his tunnel vision cleared, and he felt a kind, warm, and loving feeling come over him.

Hestia and Aphrodite inwardly sighed with relief, with many others glad for the relief. It didn't matter who it was, what happened was troubling for them. It was as if they were experiencing it like him. The whispers and guilt, all eating away at your psyche.

They were bothered by it so much, that no one thought to even ask about Rule Breaker, just picking up on clues that it dealt with curses somehow.

Though, they couldn't help but be a bit terrified that Shirou was prepared to stab himself with such an ominous looking blade. The fact it looked like it would suck only added to the matter. Considering how high he brought the weapon up, told everyone that he was prepared to fully stab himself just to rid himself of what was happening to him.

He shook his head and refocused himself. In front of him was Hestia, dressed in a some pajamas she had bought when they visited a city once. She had grabbed ahold of his arm, stopping him from stabbing himself with the dagger. She looked at him with a sad expression, one that caused a sting to his heart.

Miyu, Thalia, and Ana each winced a bit, feeling the same sting upon seeing their mother's face like that.

Unknown to them, but many who saw it felt the same way. Hestia just had that effect on everyone.

The dagger dissipated into embers as Hestia smiled at him. "It's okay, Shirou. You're going to be alright. You're home, now." She said softly, wrapping her arms around him. "I came down to wait for you, and I'm glad I did. I didn't realize you were going through so much until today."

Shirou took a deep, calming breath. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you like this. I don't know what happened." He replied, causing Hestia to look up at him.

"You never need to apologize for that Shirou. Everything you went through, I'm surprised that you managed to hold it together this long after mother fixed you." She let go, before picking up the things Shirou dropped, teleporting them away. She then grabbed his hand, threading her fingers around his, and began to make her way into the house with him.

"I'm just used to always doing something that furthered my goal of saving others and not worrying about the consequences. I don't know, maybe the stress caused it." He said idly, "I'm surprised I even managed to make it home without veering off." Hestia led him through the house, before placing him next to his closet.

"This is our home. Your home, Shirou. Plus, with these..." She then lifted their hands together, showing their rings. "I know you'll always find your way to me." She said with a sweet smile on her face. "Now change, so you can get some rest." She then let go and stepped away for a moment.

As he changed, he decided to ask Hestia a question. "Is it wrong for me to focus on my family? To not focus on saving others?" Shirou shut the closet door, seeing Hestia standing behind it. She had a concerned expression on her face.

"Shirou, you're a hero, but that doesn't mean you aren't just a normal human either. I love that you want to focus on us, I really do. But, it's in your nature to want to help people. I noticed that you're someone who always jumps headfirst into things, but this isn't something that you can do that with."

She walked up and placed a hand on his face. "I should have told you sooner, but you have to find a balance, otherwise you'll feel like your betraying yourself. I don't want that. I want you to be careful, so that our family will always have you around. But, I don't want you to change who you are. Understand?" She then pulled him along again.

"You're doing quite well, sister." Hera stated with a nod. "He needs your wisdom and strength right now."

"You're like a refuge or pillar for him. That love and support will definitely help heal his heart and mind a bit. You're right though, Shirou does need to find some sort of balance. He may have jumped into his role a bit too hard, too fast." Aphrodite pointed out with a smile.

"It's likely he'll need your help to find his way through this, but if anyone could do it, it's you Hestia." Demeter told her, attempting to cheer her up a bit.

Hestia nodded, understanding what the they saying. Her other self seemed to understand this a bit, or at the very least, was piecing it together. She didn't notice that she was beginning to not even care that everyone was speaking about her like she was her counterpart, something Miyu and Ana both noticed.

"I see. Is it that simple?" He said aloud, mostly to himself. He hadn't felt something like that in a long time, but he couldn't imagine that feeling going away that easily. Hestia pushed him onto the bed, surprising him a bit. She followed right after, laying her head on his chest.

"It's never that simple. It will take time to heal, Shirou. Trauma doesn't go away so easily. Being around me, as well as you traveling, made you not notice it. But, now that you aren't working towards helping others all the time, you had an episode, as well as a nightmare last night." She said with some sadness in her voice.

"But, I'm here with you, Shirou. You don't have to go through this alone. I'll do my best to help you, as will your daughters." Her voice was bright and sweet, causing Shirou to smile at her words. "If you're a sword, then I suppose we'll just have to be your sheathe." She said, looking up at him with a smile.

Everyone's minds went back to Ares's words about their relationship earlier, surprised the god of war was actually right for once.

Apollo and Athena both nodded at Hestia's words about trauma taking time to heal. It wasn't something that easily taken care of, well, most of the time. In this case, Shirou definitely needed all the help he could get.

Hestia smiled at her other self's words. Her other self appeared to be really good at understanding Shirou and helping him understand himself.

"That sounds fine to me." He replied, though he was wondering about everything that happened. He didn't realize how much wanting to save others had been ingrained into him. He hadn't ever thought about it, but now, he wondered about it. How much of it was him, his ideals, and his guilt? Was being a hero even in him? Was Archer right?

"Don't." He heard, causing him to look at Hestia. "You're making that face you make when you start to overthink things. Don't worry about all of that, right now. When the time comes, you'll be able to confront all of that, but for now, we need to focus on you getting better. And that starts with rest." He smiled softly at her, before laying his head down.

"Of course, whatever you say Lady Hestia." He replied, before he felt Hestia hit his chest, causing him to let out a small laugh.

"I hate it when you call me that and you know it." She said with a pouty face. She then laid her head down again, "Promise me that you'll tell me when something's wrong. That you'll let me help you with this."

"I promise." He replied, causing Hestia to hum in response. The two laid there in the quietness of their room, with only the few sounds being the small coos and such from Annabeth and Miyu.

Everyone was glad for the bit of levity, even drawing a few chuckles from the audience. Despite the heavy nature of their talk, it was good to see the two were still the same as before.

Annabeth couldn't help but be reminded of the fact that the other her appeared to be raised by Hestia. She was curious about that and couldn't help but wonder what such a life would be like. Considering Ana and how different she appeared to be, she was pretty sure that it must have been pretty great. Hestia was known to be one of the nicest and most loved goddesses, so having her as a mother must have been amazing.

"Shirou?" He noticed her begin to slowly crawl up towards his face. "C-can I...can I kiss you?" Her words were quiet and her cheeks were red. He wondered if she would ever not turn red from physical acts of intimacy. Then again, she did seem to get used to kissing him on the cheek from time to time.

Aphrodite smirked at Hestia, who only turned away from her friend's attention. Her own cheeks did the same as her other self's. She was pretty sure that the answer to Shirou's thoughts was no, at least for her.

"I'm pretty sure that ring you refuse to take off, means you don't need to ask." He said with a smile, but he must have underestimated something, as she practically pulled his face into hers. He had to admit, it was kind of flattering. After a few seconds, she finally let go, before she immediately flipped over, facing away from him.

"I love you, goodnight." She said really quickly. Shirou let out a small chuckle, but decided not to tease her too much. He wanted to tell her about Artemis, but he figured he'd wait until tomorrow. Besides, he had the feeling she wasn't in the right state of mind to deal with it.

"I love you too, Hestia, goodnight." Shirou leaned his head back and closed his eyes, ready for the long day to be over. His mind kept wandering back to what had occurred earlier. He knew he was messed up, anyone with a reality marble was obviously distorted, but he didn't think he was that bad. Needless to say, it worried him.

He then felt Hestia flip back over, before snuggling closer towards him. He didn't open his eyes, as he already knew she was trying to get his mind off of it. 'Her powers really are something else.' He thought with a smile. He would figure everything out, and then he'd be able to move on with his life. At least, he hoped so.

"What a bold move, Hestia. I applaud the aggressiveness." Aphrodite said with a chuckle. Seeing Hestia act in such a way was very interesting. The kiss was quite cute, she had to admit.

"Reality marble, I'm guessing he's speaking about his inner world." Athena mumbled, thinking to her self. "From his words, they must be incredibly rare, but how does one manage to gain access to it? Very interesting." She openly voiced her thoughts, talking to herself.

Miyu and Ana would have loved to answer her, but they didn't actually know. Ana studied it, asking her dad, but only got that same answer. Having one meant your view of the world went against the norm or something to that extent. How they formed and why, she didn't know. Her eyes briefly glanced at her sister, who raised her brow at Ana once she noticed.

---

Hestia had seen many things in her life. She may not have interacted with many heroes, but she had witnessed many of their actions. The man that she thought of as her husband, had been through things many heroes could only dream of. He was someone who not only bore the weight of humanity on his shoulders, but had actually saved it.

There weren't any other heroes who could boast such a thing. That was the main reason that she thought that Shirou deserved to rest. He continued to push himself, far beyond what he was capable of, to save humanity. He achieved it, but his guilt continued to push him further.

It didn't matter what he did. His own self guilt would push him farther, until it would eventually destroy him in the end. It saddened Hestia, but she couldn't give up hope. She knew a decent amount about the human mind. Her mother had even managed to heal the damaged parts of Shirou's emotions.

So, she figured that she would be able to help Shirou in a similar way. She paid attention to his dreams and thoughts, wanting to learn more about him. She watched the hell that he went through when he was young, the fire and the screams for help he had to endure.

'This was where it all started.' She thought to herself, seeing the young version of him walking amidst the flames. It broke her heart to watch, but it allowed her to see a different version of him. She then watched as he grew, helping others where he could, until he eventually grew enough to leave.

Everyone was intently paying attention to the story, but none more so than Miyu and Ana. Thalia was interested in specifics, but had heard a good deal about Shirou's life before. She had feeling that she told about it because he trusted her to help them through the information when they learned. He trusted Thalia quite a bit, which surprised her. Though, she had a feeling it had to do with why Shirou gave her Clarent.

Considering his relationships with servants and everything, she wondered if maybe it was because she reminded him of Clarent's wielder, since she knew Mordred was a girl in his world. Though, that didn't feel right, as he didn't ever treat her in a way that would suggest that. It always appeared to be in a way that one would treat their child. Even when watching her train and sparring with her, it was always more like a proud father than anything else.

The idea that he considered her the daughter he never had with Clarent's wielder crossed her mind, but brushed the thought away. She doubted she had that much in common with Mordred, so it couldn't be that, could it?

Shirou worked as a freelance enforcer for something called the clocktower. It was here that he hunted down mages that threatened the natural order, as well to protect innocent people. His main partner, was a woman named Bazett. Someone who had access to a noble phantasm and runes.

They worked alongside many people, including the holy church. It was here that Shirou learned about Black Keys and their many functions. They were armaments that Shirou began to experiment with to a great extent. He hunted down many evil beings, but it was also where Shirou lost what innocence he had left.

This was what he did until he learned about Chaldea. He applied, being accepted for his high aptitude in ray shifting. She was getting a small crash course into his life, being surprised that this was what his dreams were comprised of. He was flashing through his life at high speed.

Everyone was slightly surprised at Shirou's early life, but not too much, since they remembered his mom was basically an assassin. But his daughters were another story.

They weren't too troubled by the revelation, being more bothered by the fact that he never told them about his early life. It seemed very interesting. They did know that their dad didn't really like mages, save for a few, so him hunting them down wasn't that big of a deal. Bad guys got taken down, that's how they saw it and how they operated themselves, so they weren't all that bothered.

They were sad that he likely had to witness so much suffering and sadness that it affected him all the way until now. They thought about their own lives and moments of guilt about actions they may have changed or ones that hadn't been taken.

She saw him go through Fuyuki, France, Okeanos, and so on and so forth. He befriended many different heroic spirits along the way. Him and Fujimaru managed to surpass the odds, facing off against a primordial god and other god-like beings and winning, but at great cost.

She could feel the weight increasing as he went through each singularity. Each life he felt like he failed, all building until the Salem singularity. She began to slowly understand why he was the way he was. It all began in that fire. He may have been getting better, but that fire still haunted him.

'Survivors guilt, PTSD, and a hero complex.' She thought to herself. The moment he stopped, it built up until he finally exploded. Yet, he continued to fight against himself, for those he loved, for her and their daughters. Honestly, she was a bit flattered that he was going so far for them.

She could see how much he loved them. How much he loved her. He was willing to abandon his own sense of justice to raise his daughters and to make her happy. However, it was this same thing that caused her to feel some pain. She didn't want Shirou to implode because of her and their family.

She knew that if he kept doing what he was doing, he would grow to resent them, and that was something she didn't want to happen. Shirou deserved to be happy, for everything he did for humanity. His guilt made that impossible, but she would do what she could to fix that.

"It was indeed admirable, even if it is mistaken." Hephaestus sighed, understanding the sentiment somewhat.

Aphrodite frowned, being reminded of how much Shirou loved Hestia. She was happy for her, don't get her wrong, but that didn't mean she couldn't be envious a bit.

Poseidon even had to agree with Hestia. The man deserved to rest and enjoy himself for his accomplishment of saving the world. A thought mirrored by Ares.

For Ares, Shirou was a warrior who had fought many great foes and overcome great challenges, many which should have killed them, even noticing that he lead men into battle in those singularities at times. War may have been his domain and he might relish in it, but he understood that worthy warriors also deserved their rewards. The fact he had these problems was evidence of the horrors he witnessed. Where some may think Ares would find it weak, he found it commendable that the human was still going forward in spite of them.

Hera found her view of Shirou increasing because of her sister's summary of his character. It was clear that he was nothing like Zeus. She doubted her husband could go against his own nature for her. Heck, she doubted he'd even try. Shirou loved her sister and was willing to suffer to make her happy. While it was wrong, she could see that he had Hestia's well-being in mind. She agreed with her thoughts that Shirou was a hero who deserved his happy ending.

Demeter was the same, with all three sisters agreeing with Rhea's thoughts in the story. Hades hummed, as he found himself wondering what his sister could do to assist her husband. It was a shame, as he knew that his other self would likely assist her in this endeavor if he knew about it. Though, he also knew that with the current time period, he was likely not very good company.

However, there was something that bothered her. The red archer and what he represented. She realized early on that anything to do with him seemed to be hidden from her. Anytime he showed up, the memory would begin to deteriorate before locking her out entirely.

She didn't know why this was, but she figured that it had something to do with Shirou. Something that Shirou didn't want to be known. However, the lock was weak. It seemed like whatever happened to Shirou, must have weakened it somehow. A part of her wondered if she should redo it.

If it was harming him in some way, then surely, if she fixed it, he wouldn't be so troubled. The moment she lifted her hand up to do so, she found herself inside of a memory. She assumed it to be Shirou's, but it wasn't. At least, not completely. "Conflicts came into my view for as long as I was alive."

"Ooh, Hestia's going to learn a bit about Archer finally!" Aphrodite said with excitement. She was interested in it too, as this other future self seemed quite interesting.

Athena hummed, as she was also quite interested. How much different was he compared to Shirou? Considering Miyu's reaction earlier, she had a feeling that it was quite noticeable.

"I wasn't naive enough to think that there would be no conflict, I just wanted the people in my view not to cry." Hestia wondered what was going on. She watched someone dressed in modern clothes and a red shroud walked among a camp of some kind.

"My vision expanded after I saved one. Ten after that one. Then a hundred after ten. How many was it after a hundred? It was then that I realized that the ideal of a hero of justice was just a convenient fantasy." She could hear Shirou's voice in this older person's voice.

"Tell me, Shirou Emiya, will saving humanity be enough for you? Of course it won't. You'll continue to save others, striving to be a hero of justice, until it destroys you in the end. The difference between us, is that there's still hope that you'll find a way out. It's the least you could do, to make sure you don't end up like us."

The image then changed, showing the red bowman besides a darker version of himself in black and gold. The three were on the roof of a skyscraper, each were bloody and injured beyond what any sane person could handle. Swords and rubble surrounded them.

Hestia's eyes then opened, showing that it was already morning. She noticed that Shirou was still fast asleep, which surprised her. 'Usually he wakes up before me.' She thought to herself. 'Maybe, it'll be good for you to sleep a little longer.' She placed a finger onto his forehead, injecting a bit of her power into him, before deciding to take care of the things Shirou usually did.

"Hmm, not much info, but it was clear that Archer regrets his path." Athena spoke, understanding that Archer was trying to warn him away from being a hero of justice.

Those interested in Archer were slightly disappointed, as they hoped for more information regarding him and who he was. Though, admittedly, what they got was pretty telling.

Miyu and Ana frowned, refusing to accept that their dad could potentially turn into that. Even just hearing the way he spoke was too different from what they were comfortable with.

---

Aphrodite decided to pay a visit to her new favorite bakery. It had been awhile since she last saw Shirou, so she thought she was due a visit. She walked into the bakery with a smile on her face, but the one standing there wasn't Shirou, it was Hestia.

"Oh, I'm finally back." Aphrodite happily stated, wondering when she would be seen again. Of all the gods, she felt that she was the best choice to assist Hestia in her current endeavors. It had nothing to do with her wanting her other self to see Shirou again. Not one bit.

'Hmm, not who I was expecting, but this is fine too.' She thought to herself. She sauntered up to the counter, but noticed that Hestia didn't seem to notice her presence. 'Hmm, well that's interesting.' "Hello, earth to Hestia."

Hestia jolted, before finally noticing her. She then smiled at her, "Oh, hello Aphrodite. Sorry, I didn't notice you come in." She said, before quickly grabbing some cookies and placing them on the counter. Aphrodite quickly took one, before looking back towards Hestia.

"I noticed, it seemed like you were deep in thought. It wouldn't happen to have something to do with the fact that Shirou isn't here, would it?" Hestia simply shook her head with a smile on her face.

"No, he has a valid reason for not coming in today." She replied, "He's at home taking care of the girls." She then shot Aphrodite a pleased smile. Aphrodite's eyes widened, before she let out a gasp and made a happy squeal.

"Why are you so comfortable with Aphrodite knowing about your life? She'd be one of the last people I'd want to know about my personal life." Hermes asked, as most knew that Aphrodite liked to spread gossip around. Considering Hestia was trying to hide Shirou's existence, they didn't know why she was fine with Aphrodite of all people.

Hestia tilted her head at the question, a clueless smile on her face. "Uh, because she's my friend? I trust Dite not to spread anything around like that." She replied, surprising some of them. They knew Hestia was nice and all, but it felt like they were missing something.

Aphrodite smirked at Hermes. "Exactly, I can keep secrets if I want to. It's just none of the secrets most of you are worth keeping secret." She told them with a shrug, though her words were quite frustrating to them.

"Hestia, you had a child?! No way! You're even wearing a ring, that's amazing! Wait, I have to know, how was it?" She asked, almost jumping over the counter. Hestia simply smiled at her, before she tilted her head.

"How was what?" Aphrodite looked at her with a dull look, before noticing that she had a clueless smile on her face. Aphrodite visibly deflated, before letting out a small groan.

"Darn, never mind, you had a child like that owl." She let out a sigh, "It's a shame, I really want to know if he'd make a good lover. He certainly looks like he would be, but appearances can be deceiving." Hestia had some slight reddening on her cheeks at her words.

"Of course that'd be the first thing on your vulgar mind." Athena scoffed. Aphrodite simply let out a huff at her words.

"I wouldn't expect a prude like you to understand. I think it's a reasonable question to ask." She replied, crossing her arms. Both missing Hestia's embarrassment at story Aphrodite's question.

"I...I don't think I'm ready for that yet." She replied, before shaking her head. Aphrodite let out a small smirk at Hestia's words. 'How interesting.' Then she narrowed her eyes, realizing something.

"Wait, you said 'girls', as in plural. Unless you had twins, which I highly doubt, then that must mean there was someone else." She looked at Hestia closely, who seemed a bit sheepish at her words. "And considering that Shirou doesn't seem like a jerk, I'm guessing it was done in a similar manner."

"It was that owl, wasn't it?" She watched Hestia flinch at her words. "Hestia, I'm wounded, after all that skirting around and trying to keep me away, you let Little Miss Wisdom have a child with him instead of me? Oh, Hestia, you wound me." She saw Hestia's eye twitch at her words, causing her to smile.

"Oh, Hestia, I'm only half-joking. No need to get upset." She quickly said, grabbing another cookie from the plate. "I must admit, of all the gods, I didn't think that you'd be the one who decided to break the rules. Though, I suppose it makes sense, considering your domain."

"Sadly, I haven't experienced anything strong enough for me to do such a thing. I admit, I'm a bit jealous." She let out a small hum, before looking back towards Hestia with a smile. "But enough about that, you looked troubled. Anything I can help with? I happen to very good with giving advice to friends, you know."

"Seeing Aphrodite like that is still a bit odd. It almost feels like she has ulterior motives." Apollo pointed out, with the other gods agreeing in some ways. Aphrodite never really got involved with things if she wasn't interested in it.

Miyu, Thalia, and Ana couldn't help but feel bad about everyone's opinion on Aphrodite. She didn't appear all the bothered, instead, just keeping up her usual attitude, but it was still a bit much. The three were also still puzzled at her demeanor and actions. She was acting a lot different from what they know.

Mama Dite was smart, kind, and gentle. She taught them all quite a bit, but they never saw this side of her. They wondered if Shirou changed her that much, or if something else was going on, as they noticed moments where the side of her they were familiar with poked through.

Hestia looked at her for a moment, before she brought a hand to her chin. Aphrodite watched as the gears in her head began moving around, obviously weighing her options in her head. Aphrodite just shrugged before grabbing another cookie from the plate.

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask you, besides you have more experience with heroes than I do." Hestia then let out a small sigh, "Very well, but you can't tell anyone about any of this, okay? I mean, despite everything, we've managed to keep a low profile for awhile." Aphrodite simply smiled before nodding.

However, the two then felt a cold shiver down their spines. Their eyes widened, before they both turned towards the direction they felt the feeling come from. Hestia inwardly panicked, as it was the direction of her home. Aphrodite's eyes narrowed when she recognized some power signatures.

However, she also felt a jolt of another feeling. One that she had only felt when around Ares, however, this one was far different. It was far more pleasurable and enticing to her, as well as filled with love. She wanted to know what it came from, so she looked at Hestia. "Shall we?" Hestia turned towards her with a serious expression, before nodding.

Ares frowned at that, but didn't say anything. Considering what she said, he could only guess that it was something from Shirou.

Aphrodite felt a jolt from the resonance, experiencing what her other self did. A pleasurable shiver ran through her whole body. The power and raw passion she felt from it was incredible. Her cheeks reddened, her eyes flashed pink, and a moan almost threatened to escape her lips, but she held it in. She let out a small breathy sigh, before bringing hand up to her cheek. 'Oh my, that was certainly unexpected.' She had to hold herself in check, otherwise she was afraid she might lose it.

Thankfully, she was fine right now. Though, she did feel like she'd need to take care of herself later if she kept feeling these things from Shirou and Hestia. The fact that it was from them only made it feel more forbidden and exciting. She shook her head, deciding not think about it.

"Seems like something troublesome has occurred with Shirou." Hades stated with a hum. He wasn't all that worried, as he felt that Shirou would be able to handle it. Depending on what it was, he didn't see any reason for Hestia to be worried. Then again, he didn't experience the feeling she did.

Hestia frowned, not appreciating that someone or something would dare try to threaten her home. The sheer audacity of it was incredible. It told her that whatever it was didn't know whose home it was. Her fiery red eyes glowed with intensity at the thought. The demigods who noticed were all reminded that, for all of her warmth and kindness, Hestia was still a goddess. Not only that, but she was also the eldest of the Olympians, barring maybe Aphrodite.

Poseidon admitted that seeing Hestia's anger was enough to frighten him. There were two gods that everyone didn't want to anger in such a way, and that was Aphrodite and Hestia.

---

Earlier, all was quiet and peaceful. Shirou had managed to finally put the girls to sleep. The two of them were going to be a handful when they got older, he just knew it. He smiled to himself, before taking a seat on the ground. In front of him was a small blanket, where a few weapons were laying.

"Trace on." He held out his hand, going through each process of his tracing slowly. To see a weapon slowly be created from flames was always interesting to see. At the moment, he was trying to recreate some of the higher tier noble phantasms he had access to.

He managed to trace the sword of one of the Saber's he partnered with. In his hands, Caliburn appeared in all of its glory. He let out a hum, before a small smile appeared on his face. He let out a sigh, before laying it down next to Merodach, Gram, Durandal, and Aestus Estus.

Everyone was amazed at the weapons shown. Some were more simple than others, but it was clear that they were beautifully made and masterworks. Even just looking at them, they could feel the power that each weapon likely possessed.

None were more impressed and excited than Hephaestus. For a blacksmith like him, to see such amazing weapons was a dream, much like when he was able to look upon Shirou's Unlimited Blade Works. He easily recognized the weapons, knowing about them. Though, the other Olympians and him felt a twinge of pain upon seeing Aestus Estus, likely since it was a Roman weapon.

He knew those were weapons of kings. The legends of three of them were specifically that they chose the king. Merodach was surprising, as it was a weapon from long before the others. It was the first. Then there was Durandal, the unbeakable sword. They were powerful weapons of legend. Even Aestus Estus was a beautiful blade, despite its unique design.

The demigods were awe of the weapons too, as they had heard stories of some of them. Even if they didn't know about each legend, they knew enough that those weapons that they couldn't help but be in awe.

Though, many admitted, that it was Caliburn that really drew their attention. It was amazing and just felt like a blade of a king. They knew the story of the Sword in the Stone and of Excalibur, so seeing that Shirou was just wielding the sword easily was a big deal to them, even if they knew he possessed the weapon already.

It was amazing how he was able to trace such high level noble phantasms and not feel too much of a strain. He guessed he had about a little less than 3/4's of his reserves still ready to go. 'The potent magical energy and my flame have really improved my circuits.' He thought, inspecting the blades.

Other than Gram and Durandal, the other weapons had good memories associated with them. Even Merodach, despite Shirou not getting along with Gilgamesh. The only reason he possessed it was because Gilgamesh lent it to him in the final battle against Goetia. He had to admit, it was a fine weapon.

The gods reacted to the name of Goetia, being surprised to hear of it. Though, they were shocked that Shirou actually fought against such a being. They may have been Greek gods, but they knew about demons and the other religions, so they understood how big of a deal Shirou's words really were.

However, he possessed a bit more fondness of Caliburn and Aestus Estus. Caliburn, because Artoria Lily was one of the first sabers he partnered with. Aestus Estus was for a similar reason, though he actually was able to use the original in the second singularity.

The demigods were still surprised that so many legendary heroes were actually women in Shirou's world. King Arthur being a woman was the one that still surprised them no matter how many times they heard it. In fact, they had trouble wrapping around how that story would even work if Arthur was a woman. Some made a mental note to ask about it later.

The hunters though, were quite enticed about that fact. Then again, they were a group made up of women, so of course they'd enjoy the thought of so many heroes being women.

He reached his hand out towards Aestus Estus, feeling a strange resonance coming from it. He could feel the divine flame Hestia gave him react to it. He didn't know how he knew, but he had the feeling that Aestus Estus would actually give him better control of his flames.

However, carrying around such a flashy weapon would raise eyebrows, so he thought about altering it to match his preferences, much like Archer did with Caladbolg and Hrunting. In fact, he wondered if he should begin doing that for all of his noble phantasms.

Annabeth was quite interested in seeing Hrunting. Because of her habit of reading books, Beowulf's story was one of the one's she had read about early on. Needless to say, she really wanted to learn more about it, as well as know more about the stories. She wondered if Ana, Miyu, and Thalia were told about them, and how much they knew exactly.

'It would give me something to do, while also keeping my mind busy. Besides, doing so would give me an edge for whenever I needed them.' He thought, before nodding to himself. Just as he was about to begin to experiment, he noticed something entering his bounded field.

He peered at his weapons, before shaking his head. With a mental command, he shot the blades around his daughters, before tossing a small rune engraved gem into the circle of blades, causing a bounded field to form. He created it to protect civilians when he wasn't around to do so.

He made his way towards the disturbance, stepping out the back of the house, before his eyes narrowed. 'Something's wrong.' "Trace on." He reinforced his body, checking his surroundings closely. Kanshou and Bakuya then appeared in his hands, before he quickly turned around with his blades ready.

However, he only saw the lead huntress he saved when he fought Orion, as well as another huntress. The other huntress was tall and had a certain grace to her that he couldn't explain, with brown eyes and darker brown hair, along with a skin tone similar to his sister from an alternate world Chloe. She had a beauty to her, but she appeared much to young for him to feel any attraction.

The silver circlet atop her braided hair gave her the appearance of princess. Both girls had a serious expression on their faces. Shirou knew that the hunters weren't hostile towards him, so he merely turned towards the forest, where he saw a large group of women, along with a few men, emerging.

The hunters and Artemis were glad to see Zoe again. The fact she appeared to be important was more than a little appealing, since they wished to see her again. According to the Elder Thalia's questions when she first arrived, then it meant she was still alive in their world.

Mia smiled at her reappearance, glad that she was with Zoe in such an important moment. Given her lady had appointed her to that post, then she was sure her other self would do everything she could to protect and look out for the family.

Artemis grinned at Shirou's description of Zoe. Her friend would likely feel a bit embarrassed about some of his choice of words, but Artemis felt they were an apt description.

Each one appeared to be dressed in armor that was mixed with modern clothing, along with holding swords and spears. All in all, Shirou counted around twenty. His eyes narrowed when he noticed them wearing some sort of symbol, one he recognized belonged to Ares. "Amazons." The circlet wearing huntress said aloud.

There were quite a few groans at the mention of Amazons, especially from some of the hunters. While they had gotten along better recently, the amazons were still a bit too much at times.

Aphrodite's eye twitched upon seeing Ares's little amazon group. Ares wisely chose not to speak, which Aphrodite was thankful for. Granted, she knew his other self likely didn't know what he did, but that didn't mean anything. This little stunt wasn't a good thing for Shirou and Hestia in the story.

Hestia frowned, already having a bad feeling about what was about to happen.

Miyu and Ana couldn't help but to let out a weak chuckle. They didn't particularly dislike the Amazons, so they couldn't really say anything. Plus, they felt doing so may reveal too much about the future of the story, so they kept quiet.

Shirou slightly flinched, as he knew Penthesilea. However, he shook his head, deciding not to focus on that. "Sir Shirou, please head inside while we deal with this." He turned seeing Mia readying her bow. He then saw something that boiled his blood.

"Bring her forward." He turned his head and saw the group part, revealing a captured Caroline. "Is that the man who saves demigods?" The lead Amazon asked her. However, Caroline simply glared at the woman and refused to say anything. Shirou gripped his blades tight, before he de-materialized them.

Aphrodite's eyes were glaring at the amazons on the screen. It was clear that she was angry now. Her children all knew it too. She clearly didn't appreciate her children being treated like this.

Piper also frowned, but was impressed that her sister appeared to not be afraid of the Amazon threatening her.

"Go inside and protect the girls." Both hunters shivered at the cold tone of his voice. "Release her, now." He commanded, flaring his magical energy enough to grab their attention. The Amazons all looked toward him, each had a calculating gaze.

"Hmm, it seems that this is place. We've been searching for you for awhile. How a human like you could cause such a rift within our people is beyond me, however, orders are orders. Surrender now, and we will ensure your safety, as well as the safety of your children." The lead amazon said calmly.

Shirou's eyes narrowed and his circuits were rapidly rotating, with Mia and Zoe both hearing a faint hum come from him, as well as what looked like steam from the few raindrops that had begun to fall. "Release her and return back to where you came from if you value your lives."

"Not happening. Lord Ares commanded us to find and retrieve the Unbreakable Sword. After confirming with the oracle, we found that it was a human hero. However, the Daughters of Steel are just as important to us as you are. As such, they will come as well." She said, placing a hand onto her sword.

"Oh man, he looks pissed." Percy grimaced. Considering what happened last time he got mad, well, he could pretty much guess what was about to happen.

Athena narrowed her eyes at the mention of 'The Daughters of Steel'. Such titles were usually reserved for prophecies and things like that. It told her that there was more to their appearance than Ares's usual stupidity.

Hestia's eyes glowed for a moment, before settling. The thought of someone attempting to take her child was enough to anger her quite a bit. It wasn't even her actual child, it was her other self's, but even then it was enough. However, she reassured herself that Shirou would do everything in his power to protect them. She also knew that Shirou wouldn't lose.

---

Mia had a feeling that Shirou's self restraint was beginning to crack. Even now, she could feel power coming from the man who saved her. Zoe was of a similar mind, though she was surprised seeing him like this. After watching him for so long, she couldn't imagine him appearing like he did.

"Do you not fear the consequences? Judging by thy numbers, I'm guessing that all of thee are in the minority in this decision. Are none of thee loyal to thy queen?" Zoe stated, trying to discourage them.

"We are loyal to Ares, not Bellona, as such we have answered the call. The Queen has no say in the matter. They'd rather wait than possess and raise the ones who will bring us back to our former glory. Are you hunters not the same? Why else would you be here?" She answered, causing Zoe and Mia to look at each other with puzzled expressions.

The Amazoness then laughed. "Oh, you don't even know about the prophecy about the Daughters of Steel? How sad." She then pulled her sword from its scabbard, before placing it next to Caroline, who flinched, but tried to remain strong. "Now, come willingly, or this girl will die."

Athena sighed, knowing her earlier conjecture was correct. It was because of a prophecy. Still, she would admit to being a bit interested in said prophecy, such as why they would go this far for it.

Artemis's eyes narrowed in response to it. 'Return us to our former glory? What does that mean? Will Miyu and Ana be that important in the future?' She thought with some surprise. Neither of them looked like hunters, not even possessing a bow. She noticed Thalia Emiya appeared like a hunter, but she was obviously a young adult woman around the age of 22 or 23. So, she wondered what that meant.

Hestia was upset that her children were being drawn into a prophecy already, despite not even being a year old. This was her worry about having children. For some reason, she couldn't bring herself to feel any fear though. She somehow knew that everything would be alright.

Miyu and Ana stayed neutral during the interaction. They knew about the prophecy and everything, but they couldn't really let anything give any hints. They really hated prophecies sometimes.

---

Memories flashed through Shirou's mind. Images shot through at great speed, though he remembered each one as if it were yesterday. A voice then resounded in his heart. 'Save her.' In his hands appeared a katana. The rest of the Amazons each readied their weapons. "Oh, you'll kill her, just like that?"

Shirou lifted the sword up and leveled it to his eyes. He widened his stance. "No, you'll kill her. Then, I'll kill you. Just like that." He then turned his head towards the hunters. "Go inside, now. Protect them." He said to them, causing them to flinch slightly. He turned looked Caroline in the eyes, and though she couldn't hear him, she was able to read his lips.

Shirou's words stunned the campers. Though, Athena was actually a bit impressed. While the others may think that what he said was quite cold, he likely bought the girl a bit of time. Without the hostage, the killer was as good as dead. Honestly, Shirou turned it into a no win situation for the Amazon. It was a big gamble, but she guessed that he had a plan.

If the Amazon cared about her own life, she'd have to think twice before harming Caroline. Still, as she said, it was a gamble. Sure, maybe the Amazon wouldn't kill her, but she still had the capability to harm her to make Shirou compliant. She'd just have to wait and see.

The message was clear. "Do you trust me?" Caroline's eyes widened, before they softened. She managed to nod her head a bit. She then saw him speak again, echoing words he had said to her before. "Close your eyes, okay?" Like before, she shut her eyes.

"Despite you threatening Caroline, as well as threatening to take my daughters, I'm willing to give you all one last chance, walk away with your lives, or forfeit them here." He stated loudly, however, none moved. "Very well."

Once again, Aphrodite could easily see that her daughter was infatuated with Shirou. Her hero that saved her life once before, was now going to save her again.

---

Zoe and Mia both stepped back, retreating inside the house, though they remained next to the door. Zoe decided that she would provide assistance in the event that Shirou needed it. While she didn't want to, she decided to listen to him. She knew how much he cared for his daughters, just the cold rage she felt from him was enough to tell.

She watched him load himself like a spring. The summer shower was now falling fully, completely covering Shirou, though she was doubtful that he was wet. The amount of steam coming from him caused her to think of smoke from a forge. She then heard him speak. "Behold, the speed of my hidden sword." Right before he shot forward, though he seemed to disappear right after he moved.

Even with her enhanced sight and abilities granted to her by Artemis, Zoe was unable to see him move, until he reappeared behind the Amazon leader, where she heard him speak in a solemn voice. "Mumyou, Sandanzuki." The Amazoness didn't move, until she finally fell forward onto the ground, dead, surprising all who saw it.

Artemis's eyes widened, shocked at the show of speed. It wasn't teleportation, it was simply speed. He was able to cross that short distance with such speed that to most it would appear like he teleported.

Ares was impressed. That was a skill unlike any other. Shirou likely enhanced himself to his limit to pull it off to that level, but he remembered him mentioning using the skill earlier in the story. Shukuchi.

Athena was of a similar mind, wondering what a fight between her and Shirou might look like if he included his magic abilities. Her other self would probably enjoy facing someone like him.

"Remember, I gave you the chance to run." She heard Shirou say, before the katana disappeared. He lifted his hand up to the heavens, a black and red ball of flames appeared in his palms, matching his own red shirt, red and gold scarf, and black jacket. The air was cold, perfectly representing the state of Shirou's emotions.

Looking closely, she noticed his eyes were now half golden brown and half steel, with even a streak of white appearing in his bangs. In a strong, yet cold voice, he spoke once again. "I am the bone of my sword." The red ball then formed into an ominous red and black blade.

---

The screen showed the weapon for a moment, before quickly becoming inert, removing the image. However, that moment was enough to startle even the gods. There was something about that weapon that actually caused some fear in their hearts. It reminded them of Zeus's thunderbolt, or one of the other mighty weapons crafted for the gods. No, that wasn't right either. For some reason, they felt that weapon was even greater.

It was enough to silence most of the hall, even the half-bloods and hunters, as they took notice of the gods' reaction.

Hestia had a sad expression on her face, knowing that Shirou had likely pushed his body beyond its limits, damaging him. The change in his eyes was evidence of that.

Ana and Miyu both understood that this was where their father got his unique eyes from. The strength he exuded and the instinct to save Caroline were definitely things that they recognized from their dad. In fact, it caused them to smile at the end. Of course, if they knew the consequences, they may not have, as Shirou wasn't as strong then as he was now.

Hera hummed, before looking around. She noticed everyone was deep in thought at what had just occurred. However, this was the end, so they'd have to wait until the next chapter of the story. For now, she had a feeling that Shirou's children had something they wished to do.

Poseidon looked at the screen, deciding to ask a question. "Hey, didn't you say Zeus would be returning last time? Where is he?" He asked, asking mostly out of curiousity, as it was quite peaceful without worrying about Zeus's ego.

The screen replied, "I decided to wait until the next section, to drive home my point to him." The gods couldn't help but wonder what that meant, but decided that they couldn't really do anything about it, so they just shrugged.

A clap caused the half-bloods to jump slightly, seeing that Ana was the one who initiated it. She covered her face with her bandana for a moment, taking in a deep breath, before dropping it and standing up. "Alright, we now have some free time before we continue. However, there's something I wish to test before we continue." She said, stepping off to the side.

The room was quite large, with a wider space than the original Throne Room of Olympus. Ana inwardly thought that it was perfect. She stopped, before turning around and looking at Annabeth. "You all feel very different from what I'm used to, so I want to see how different." She said, before reaching into her bag and pulling out a flashlight. "Flow." She spoke out in a command, revealing the glowing circuits on her body. She then passed magical energy into the flashlight, where it transformed into a staff of some kind.

It appeared to be made of some white wood and silver, with imperial gold designs. A handle near the top appeared to be inlaid with some blue crystals and tied with a ribbon. The top of the staff had a small cross shape to it, with a fan like between the points. There were different colored gems inserted at the top, each filled with magical energy. Those familiar with magic could see the numerous magical formulae that were inscribed onto the staff, which oddly also included runes.

It was a staff made for a magician, yet, appeared to be made for close combat as well. Ana spun the staff around in her hand freely, before striking it against the ground and pointing at Annabeth. "I want to spar with you first. I wish to see if my theory is correct." She told her, making Annabeth look at her with a puzzled expression. She wasn't sure what theory she was talking about, but figured it had to do with magic of some kind.

Athena focused on Ana, wondering what she was doing, but decided not to interfere. She was curious to see what her other daughter was capable of.

Annabeth paused for a moment, before deciding to answer her other self by standing and making her way over to her. Percy appeared worried, but figured that his girlfriend would be okay. If it went to far then he'd step in, but for now, he'd trust she knew what she was doing.

Ana noticed that Annabeth didn't seem to have a weapon, so she opened the small box on her hip and grabbed one of the cards, before tossing it her. Annabeth caught it, where it shined and a celestial bronze short sword appeared. "Your build tells me your more familiar with a lighter weapon. I have more in here if you wish to switch." Ana told her, with Annabeth shaking her.

"No, this is fine." She answered, feeling the weight of the weapon, noting it was near perfect.

"Man, I know Annabeth likes to plan for everything, but does Ana really carry that much stuff in her bag?" Percy couldn't help but ask quietly, though it was mostly rhetorical.

"She has a lot of things in there." Miyu's voice whispered in his ear, causing him to jump. He turned, seeing Miyu smiling at him. "Better safe than slaughtered, that's what Ana always says." She added, before sitting down next to him.

Percy blinked a few times, feeling a bit disturbed at the somewhat dark phrase. Miyu happily bobbed her head back and forth as she brought a little plastic spoon thing to her lips and ate something. Percy raised a brow, before looking down and seeing her eating some sort of strawberry ice cream, seeing that the cup said Häagen-Dazs. 'Where did she get that?'

Miyu noticed him looking at her, before motioning towards Annabeth, then to where she was sitting. 'Seriously? She even keeps stuff like that in there?'

He wondered if the Elder Thalia had anything to say, but quickly noticed that she appeared to be speaking with his Thalia. He hummed, before sighing. It seemed neither of the sisters thought this was a big deal.

His gaze wandered back to his girlfriend and her other self. The two appeared to be getting ready for their spar. He had to admit, he was curious about Ana's fighting style, but was somewhat worried about Annabeth's ability to face off against magic. He shook his head. It would be fine. He knew that no one would let them take it too far. Besides, he was more worried about who would end up being dropped through that portal next.

---

Done. Decided to do another chapter of this, since I was feeling pretty good about it. So, I did it. Yay. Anyways, it was Ana who appeared, because of course it was. She gets introduced in this chapter after all, but I did want to keep her relation to Shirou secret until it happened. I'll admit, this chapter was way longer than I thought it would be. It was kind of hard to write, not gonna lie.

Anyways, I wanted to show off Miyu and Ana's relationship as sisters, while showing off how they act when their a little more grown up, without spoiling too much about the story. Basically, the current characters are just natural progression characters at the moment. Ana was always going to learn magic and everything, with Miyu already being a bit teasing and such, so I thought I got away with it pretty decent.

I also wanted to parallel Ana and Miyu with Athena and Aphrodite a bit. They argue like siblings, but in the end, they don't really mean it. This also allowed me to show Hestia treating them like children and scolding them. It was actually kind of fun.

I've been doing my best to have everyone get some interaction in there, which I hope to increase as this goes on. So, hopefully I'm doing it okay. Also, some of the characters are better than in Lost Hero of Chaldea since they've mellowed out a tiny bit in the Percy Jackson canon. Such as Ares.

The next chapter will be the reading of the next chapter, obviously, but there will be a interlude after that, because of the time skip. That will allow me to write more interactions between the characters of Lost Hero of Chaldea and the Canon more freely. That interlude may or may not also include some of Chaldea from Lost Hero of Chaldea's world. Just saying.

I also hinted at some things that may appear in the future of Lost Hero of Chaldea, but nothing too concrete. Just small little hints here and there. Nothing too spoilery. I also wanted to hint that Shirou's daughters are a bit odd. Their outlook on the world and their reactions to things aren't normal. That's obviously because of Shirou being there dad, but I wanted to subtly point that out, like I have been in Lost Hero of Chaldea. That was always going to be a thing. They're a little off, if you know what I mean. They're meant to symbolize something for that reason.

Anyways, there were also some more direct answers to certain things, but posed as questions. Thalia was the main one, such as why Shirou treats her the way he does, while also indirectly hinting at his time in Chaldea and his relationships with certain servants. Basically, I've been doing a lot to give this some more life and extra info that Lost Hero of Chaldea doesn't have.

Thanks for all the support and reviews, it really helps out. You're all great. Feel free to ask questions, I usually try to answer. Once again, thanks for reading the chapter, I hope you enjoyed it, and, as always, until next time