Switching over to present tense now.
Magical Vanguard Shirou
Breach (I) ~ Hope (II)
This is a memory from the pa-
EMIYA. SHIROU.
"Ugh... Agh... URGH!!!" Images flash through his mind: suffering, pain, agony, tragedy; they turn Emiya Shirou's brain into mush. Twisted red light crawls around the edge of his vision.
EMIYA. SHIROU. EMIYA. SHIROU.
This is a memory from the past.
Kuzuki's fist impacts with the shadow's body, and Shirou feels a sudden, agonizing pain on his arm. The shadow explodes as the blast of energy tears through its core, and Shirou screams, as his arm just felt like it had exploded.
He loses focus, and he's suddenly standing over Kuzuki's dead body. Could it even be called a body? The bones are nothing more than splinters lying on the ground. His limbs are bent at impossible angles, and the muscle tissue has shattered in various parts of the body. All that remains of Kuzuki are some slabs of meat, and the glasses he used to wear.
IT'S YOUR FAULT.
EMIYA. SHIROU. EMIYA. SHIROU. EMIYA. SHIROU.
No...
This is a memory of the future.
A-Ah... No...!
--I want to save everyone.
Shirou can't help but stare at the scene in front of him. The carnage in front of him could only be described as monstruous. The ground has been turned into a steep wasteland, with huge concrete spikes and holes that fall into a botomless sea. Regardless, that is not what horrifies him.
It's the bodies in front of him that do.
Stop...
IT'S YOUR FAULT.
EMIYASHIROU EMIYASHIROU EMIYASHIROU EMIYASHIROU EMIYASHIROU
Glass shatters.
"STOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!" Shirou jumps out from bed, soaked with sweat. He breathes in and out with difficulty, as he places one hand on a wall to support himself, and places the other on his chest.
"SHIROU!" There is a shout from the next room, and with a thud, the door to the room adjacent to his is wide open. Green eyes panickedly look at him, as he feels two arms help him stand. "Shirou, are you alright?" Saber's eyes look worriedly at him.
Shirou pants. He cannot answer. He is too worried about his dream. What had that been? Why had he seen that? Why...!?
Regardless, he must answer. He wouldn't want to worry Saber. "Th-thank you, Saber. I'm fine, really, I just..." He is interrupted as he is sharply turned and his eyes are forced to meet Saber's.
"Shirou." Her emerald orbs pierce into him. "Your yell was so loud it could probably have been heard from outside the house." Her grip tightened. "--Shirou. That's not alright at all."
Shirou blinks, but as he tries to answer, "It wasn't that bad-" the door that connected the hallway to his room opens harshly.
"Senpai?" Sakura asks, fearfully, as she walks through the door her Nee-san had opened in a hurry. She is worried about Shirou, so it is natural that she would want to see what had made him scream like that.
That was the original intention, though. As soon as Sakura steps into the room, the first thing she sees is Shirou's sweating, muscled body, and as her eyes look over his body, she sucks in her lower lip and a stream of blood gushes from her nose. 'S-Senpai's ass-' Her legs go weak as she falls to the ground, a goofy smile on her face.
"Sakura!" Shirou yells, dragging Saber with him as he catches Sakura. "Are you alright?"
The only answer he gets is soft mumbling.
There is a sigh, and a third person enters the room. Tohsaka Rin grabs her sister, and starts to drag her out of the room. "Damn you, Emiya-kun, making me wake up like this for nothing..." She mumbles out, as she drags Sakura out of Shirou's bedroom.
Said boy can only blink. "What was that?" He frowns.
Saber still can't help but feel bothered. 'Still...' If Shirou was fit enough to move like that, she guesses he's alright enough. So, she carefully releases her grip on him. He doesn't fall.
Shirou turns to look to Saber. "So, Saber, can you let me get changed? You can go have breakfast now." He nods at her, who nods reluctantly in return.
As she leaves, Shirou can't help but glance at his right arm. There is nothing there. Yet...
EMIYA SHIROU...
"Wow, Sakura, you've improved so much!" Shirou exclaims as he finishes the food. "Your ability at Western dishes is even better than mine..." He chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Ah! But Senpai, I-I like your cooking the most..." Sakura says defensively.
"Really?" Shirou blinks, then smiles. "-Thanks. I try my best, Sakura." He is grateful that she says such things. It makes his cooking feel better, since he does it not just for himself. "Still, to me, you're better at Western dishes." He nods at his Kouhai.
Rin smiles at Sakura as well. "It's fine if you like Emiya-kun's, Sakura, but you should accept the praise that is given to you." Nodding, she continues to eat.
Saber nods soundlessly, agreeing with the general train of thought of the conversation.
Taiga pauses between the huge mouthfulls she takes every few seconds, and leans over to talk to Saber. "The mornings have been getting livelier, huh?"
Saber nods.
Homuraba Gakuen...
"-Well, we're here." Shirou sighs. He looks at the school gate, and frowns.
Rin stops walking, and looks at him. "Emiya-kun? What's the matter?"
Shirou turns his head to look down. "Shinji..." He grits his teeth. The events of three days ago pass through his mind.
Sakura also looks worriedly at Shirou. "Senpai, it's alright. I'll be fine." Sakura tentatively places her hand on Shirou's arm.
Shirou grits his teeth even harder. He closes his eyes. "--If he does anything to you..." Shirou starts, clenching his fist.
"D-Don't worry, Senpai! I'm sure Nii-san won't do anything!" She tries to reassure the boy.
"...Alright." Shirou concedes, sighing.
He just hopes he won't regret this choice.
Lunch period...
"--Kuzuki's missing." Shirou's head snaps up. His friend Issei's face is worried, and looks sad.
BA-BUMP!
Shirou feels pain lance through his chest. "-Have they managed to find him yet?" He asks, but knows it is futile.
Issei sadly shakes his head to the sides. "He's completely disappeared." His eyes gaze into Shirou's. "I don't like this, Emiya."
Shirou can only avoid Issei's gaze, because...
IT'S YOUR FAULT.
It's because he couldn't defeat that shadow fast enough. That is the reason Kuzuki's dead.
Don't let it happen again.
'--That's right.' Looking at Issei's sad face, his mind further strengthens. He won't let this happen again. Even if it costs him his life, he'll-
EMIYA. SHIROU--!
SHUT UP!!!
-be a hero.
"--Thanks, Issei." Shirou smiles to his friend. "I feel better now."
"-Huh? But, Emiya-!" Issei starts, but Shirou cuts him off.
"-Don't worry. Nobody will go missing, ever again." He says this with absolute cetainty. Not one more death. Emiya Shirou will not let somebody die like that, ever again.
Issei can only be further confused by Shirou's words.
The sun is setting. Shirou walks out of school, and knows where he has to go now. His mind is made up.
--If not one more death is going to happen, then on a War where death is always involved...
...He only has to cheat--!
Shirou breaks out into a run, with the park as his destination.
Illyasviel sits on a bench, waiting for her brother to come to spend time with her. She clasps her hands together, and sits in wait.
--He will definitely come, she reminds herself. It is not yet time for him to arrive, yet Ilya is already waiting for him. She is ready tell her Onii-chan how she feels, and tell him the truth about who she really is. But, as she thinks more about it, she wonders:
-Will he accept her feelings?
'...Yeah. Onii-chan definitely will. He will... right?' She says this, yet her older side cannot help but doubt it. And it worries her.
-Would he really accept someone who is supposedly his younger sister?
She is forced to stop wondering when a voice shakes her out of her thoughts.
"Ilya!" Shirou immediately spots the white-haired girl, who had been waiting for him. He calls for her, and he starts walking towards the girl.
"Ah! Onii-chan, I'm glad that you-" Ilya begins, but is suddenly surprised as Shirou grabs her hand, kneeling down to her level.
"Please, Ilya! Help us fight the shadows!" Shirou yells.
Ilya blinks, "-Huh!?" then her eyes widen. "Onii-chan, wh-what are you saying?"
"I..." Shirou narrows his eyes. "You see, every night, we go on patrol searching for Shadows to destroy. And, I was wondering, if you could help us, since you and Berserker are really strong..." He mumbles, rubbing the back of his neck.
Ilya's heart is beating quickly. Is- Is he asking for an alliance? Would that even be ok? Her grandfather had wanted her to defeat any Shadow in her way and then claim the Grail in the name of Einzbern, but...
Could she deny what her Onii-chan was asking? The chance to spend more time with him?
--No way.
"I... I..." Ilya stutters. Sella and Leysritt would go nuclear, and if they told her grandfather, her decision would only end up badly. But...
Shirou stays silent. He knows that Ilya must be thinking deeply about what she'll answer, so he can only stay silent.
-But in the end, Ilya did love her brother.
"--Yes." She blurts out. After a pause, she smiles cheerfully. "Don't worry, Onii-chan! I and Berserker will definitely protect you!"
Shirou sighs in relief, sitting next to Ilya. "I'm relieved." He closes his eyes, pausing for a minute, then turns to Ilya. "So, what did you want to play, Ilya?"
The homunculus gazes into Shirou's eyes, sending warning bells off in his head. "Onii-chan, there's something I need to tell you."
Shirou smiles nervously. "Well, let's hear it then."
...
.....
.......
Shirou falls from the bench. He can only be shocked, of course. He just learned he had a younger sister all this time, who'd been abandoned by his father in order for him to raise Shirou. "Ilya..." He gasps out, grimacing.
Ilya smiles at Shirou. "--But, Onii-chan... That doesn't matter anymore." She starts. "Because, I have Onii-chan now!"
--No.
--That's wrong. Ilya shouldn't be like that. Shirou stands up, and walks over to Ilya.
Ilya continues to smile. "And since I have Berserker, nobody will hurt me anymo-" She is cut off as she suddenly feels warmth envelop her. It's not like the burning pain she feels when using Berserker, but a warmth that dulls her pain, it makes her blush. She feels the strong chest that is pressing against her head, and can only be silent.
"--I'm sorry." Shirou does not know why, yet he must apologize. "--I'm so sorry." Tears fall from his eyes. "I'm sorry, Ilya!" His embrace tightens. Because of him, another had suffered. He had ruined the life of a girl who couldn't even age from how she was right now. He can only hold her as a sign of acceptance. He can't do anything else, because it's too late.
--It's too late to save her.
Ilya feels like she should try to stop her brother's tears. Why is she so attached to him now? Why is it that she feels so warm when he is trying to protect her like this? Her arms wrap around protectively around Shirou's back. "It's okay, Onii-chan, it's okay." She says.
After many minutes, they release each other. Shirou smiles at her. "Ilya, I can't do anything to fix the past. But I want to ask you one thing."
Ilya looks up at Shirou. "What is it, Onii-chan?"
"Will you let me be your brother?" Shirou's voice strains. He needs her to accept. If he can't make his sister happy, he'll...
Ilya's eyes widen. Her mouth opens in surprise at what he said. But then, tears start to fall from her eyes. "--Silly Onii-chan." She says with misty eyes, smiling. "You're already my brother."
Shirou sighs in relief. He nods at Ilya, and picks her up. Ilya gasps out an "eep!" as she is placed on Shirou's shoulders. He smiles at her. "Let's go home, Ilya."
Ilya smiles. She feels like she's forgetting something, but smiles anyway. "Yeah!"
Somewhere, in the Einzbern Castle, Sella and Leysritt wonder when Ilya will be back home.
FORESHADOWING!
Originally Posted by nick012000
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