Disclaimer: Fate/Stay Night, It's spin-offs, and its complementary materials belong to Type-Moon. This is a fanfiction written for the author's personal enjoyment and can be read by general public without any need of compensation whatsoever.
Prelude: Rebirth
Shina Emiya and The Holy Grail
A flow of energy from the depth of Earth jolted It awake, returning Its sentience after ten years of nonexistence.
The first thing It felt was a desire to be released from Its formless prison.
Currently, there was only one gate opened. A way out protected by man-made seals and curses capable of binding even Deities. A very small opening, It could only released a small fraction of Its existence through that gate.
Disappointing, enraging. But It knew that even a gate that small should suffice for now. There had been a tiny trace of Its remains in the other side that should allow It to adapt, to gain a real form, to live.
Like water, It oozed Itself out to the world Its creator deemed as real. Warmth welcomed Its arrival. A comforting, lulling warmth that only the purest living being had the right to feel. A being completely opposite of what It was.
It separated Itself from the part floating inside the warm place. The part started to explore the new place as a seed as It returned to Its prison in waiting.
Like any seed should, the part would grow.
Like any offspring should, it would one day find its origin.
Like any existence, once it reaches completion, it would make a choice.
When that time comes, It will be released from Its confinement.
At that time, the world will feel Its wrath and fall into the abyss of despair.
]}I{[Opening: The Huntress
The dark workshop was illuminated only by the glowing summoning circle. The person who had prepared the ritual in the first place, Ryuzaki Tohsaka, stood before it; his mouth chanting the incantation while his mind is focused on an image of the creature he was attempting to summon. In his outstretched hand he held a single card that was emanating a bright light. The simple piece of hard paper became a gate that connected Ryuzaki's material body with ethereal mystery from beyond the realm of mortals.
Enduring the wave of chill and agony running through his vein caused by prana circulation, Ryuzaki reached the most crucial part of this summoning ritual.
“... I announce. Thy body shall be under my command, my fate rest in thy blade. Submiteth to the call of the Holy Grail. If thou willst obey this mind and reason, respond to my call.”
At that point of his chanting, the light emanating from the circle moved, creating a tornado of light. It was a sign indicating his success, but Ryuzaki knew that the time for celebration was yet to come.
“I make an oath here. I am the one to become the virtue of all Heaven. I am the one to lay out the evil of all Hades.”
The light intensified, forcing him to squint his eyes. The prana flow inside his body accelerated, rapidly reaching his uttermost limit!
“Thou seven heavens, clad in trinity of words, come past thy restraining ring and protect the balance!”
The circle glimmered in a blinding, brilliant light accompanied by a thunderous roar and mighty wind.
“Did I make it?” Ryuzaki let out a question once his circuit have calmed down, shortly after the light began to dye down, leaving rolling clouds that covered the whole circle. From it, a silhouette of a human emerged.
“My Servant...” Ryuzaki said in awe. He checked the card in his hand with a glance. What once had been a blank card without any picture or inscription on its surface now bore an illustration of a female knight with a bow in her grip, drawn upward as if to oppose the sky.
He had summoned Servant Archer.
“I have come forth in response to the Grail's invitation. Are you my master?” a soft, feminine voice asked in even tone as the being he had just summoned finally entered Ryuzaki's vision and rendered the young man speechless.
Archer, that was how he must refer to the thing from now on. It was a girl one feet shorter than Ryuzaki was. She was an ivory-skinned beauty with brilliant, curious pair of emerald eyes and a waist-length hair that seemed to have different shade of color for every inch of it. She dressed in a clothing that radiated both ferociousness of a woman warrior and graciousness of a princess. Elegant pieces of green cotton weaved into a gown and pieces of leather body armor fittingly covered her ample body.
She was breath-taking to look at, even as the light emanated from her summoning circle started to dwindle.
“I am. I am your master,” Ryuzaki finally replied dazedly once he gained enough consciousness to close his hanged jaw. Remembering the standard procedure his father had taught him, he quickly showed his card to Archer. “Oh, here. Here is my grimoire... you are Servant Archer, right?”
Archer nodded in confirmation. The gesture caused Ryuzaki to immediately catch the sight of a pair of something sticking out of her head. The current lighting of his workshop prevented him from seeing it clearly.
“Correct. From now on, I shall be your sword and shield in this Holy Grail War. I swear on my matron Artemis that I shall not let any harm befall upon you as long as I exist in this realm.” Either Archer didn't notice his frowns or she decided that confirming who she was was more important than questioning her master about it.
“That's good to hear. Um... Archer, can you wait for a bit? Let me turn on the lamp.”
“Certainly.”
Uttering a quick thanks, Ryuzaki moved to flip the switch. A moment later, the workshop became brightly lit by white neon light. Archer blinked her eyes several times in response, only to find that her master was once again completely slack-jawed.
“Is there something wrong, Master?” she asked, tilting her head.
Shaken back to his sense, Ryuzaki closed his mouth and shook his head. “Nothing. Nothing is wrong. There is one thing that I need to ask you though...” he trailed off, having forgotten to choose the right words.
“Are you suspecting me of something, Master?” she raised her eyebrows in curiosity.
Ryuzaki flinched. It was barely noticeable for most people and perfectly unnoticeable for the rest, but not for an entity like Archer. “No. Just...”
Archer tilted her head to the other side. Ryuzaki flinched again.
“Are those ears and that tail... real? Are they really... uh... parts of your body?”
Indeed, positioned slightly above normal human's ears, there were a pair of pointy ears on Archer's head. From the inside of her skirt, a long tail that should belong to a lion sprouted out. Now that Ryuzaki could see them clearly, he couldn't help but thinking that Archer's adorableness was simply other-worldly.
“... They are. Why do you ask me that question, Master?” Archer asked, pouting.
Ryuzaki's mouth had almost broken into a grin that would make any woman feels uncomfortable. His currently neutral face was a desperate effort to conceal his awe.
God damn, there's no way my servant can be this cute!
I know, obvious reference is obvious. Just let this one slide, kay?
“Am I perhaps not the one you expected to respond to your summon?” Archer's next question came with her ears slightly dropped, giving an air of an abandoned animal to Ryuzaki's mind.
“No, that's not it. I only didn't expect to see your appearance being rather... beastly, yeah, that's the word,” he quickly explained while being careful to not directly looking at Archer in the eyes. “You are Princess Atalanta of Arcadia, correct? Raised by a bear in the forest, journeyed along with the Argonauts, hunted the giant boar of Calydon...”
Archer gave him a small smile. “Yes. That would be me,” she said, reaching the edge of her ear with her gloved hand. “My latest appearance when I was living becomes a part of my materialization now, I hope you don't mind it,” she added.
“No, not at all. I actually like that uniqueness of yours...”
Having seen women talking in front of him in many kinds of situation, Ryuzaki could sense a hint of melancholy in Archer's words. He could guess why. He had, after all, been reading about the legendary woman for the whole week in preparation for this ritual.
It would be better to not bring up the part where she was turned into lioness, he decided. Anything that would hinder his progress in this once in a lifetime event should avoided, after all.
Ryuzaki breathed in and out, returning his mind and body back to their idealized condition as he contemplated his next move. As his late father had instructed him via his journal, he need to show his determination towards his servant to gain her trust and cooperation.
Therefore, he put his right hand in front of his chest and bowed his back in respect.
“I haven't introduced myself. I am Ryuzaki Tohsaka, the sixth heir of Tohsaka Family magecraft. I entrust my life upon your bow and arrows, Servant Archer. Let us win this war together,” he said resolutely, sealing his fate.
The oath had been spoken. The contract between the two had been made. Together as a master and his champion, Ryuzaki Tohsaka and Heroic Spirit Atalanta entered the swirling spiral of chaos that was named The Fifth Holy Grail War.
To be continued...
Author's Notes: Thank you for reading Shina Emiya and the Holy Grail or What If Fate/Stay Night was an Otome Game. Like you should know by now, this is a gender bender story combining many elements of canon and its spin-offs. Hope you enjoy it.
This story has no beta reader, so if you are interested in helping me on that, I'd be very grateful. Any kind of comment and criticism is welcomed and highly appreciated. See you in the next chapter.
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Originally Posted by zhead
