Despite her predicament, Kaede was still humming to herself as she cooked. At least this time she wasn't being slowly burned and poisoned from shackles of iron, and she knew Gilgamesh was more of a collector. He had no interest in her at this point outside of finding where Gil had gone and as a hostage.

So long as she didn't try to escape or attack him, he had no actual interest in her. Probably why he had allowed her free reign of the temple while he went out to taunt the remaining Masters with his location.

Kaede felt completely alone, which was probably why she had started to sing in English something she had read in one of her favorite fantasy series.

"Far over the misty mountains cold

To dungeons deep and caverns old

We must away ere break of day

To seek pale enchanted gold.

The dwarves of yore made mighty spells

While hammers fell like ringing bells

In places deep, where dark things sleep

In hollow halls beneath the fells.

For ancient king and elvish lord

There many a gleaming golden hoard

They shaped and wrought, and light they caught

To hide in gems on hilt of sword.

On silver necklaces they strung

The flowering stars, on crowns they hung

The dragon-fire, in twisted wire

They meshed the light of moon and sun.

Far over the misty mountains cold

To dungeons deep and caverns old

We must away, ere break of day,

To claim our long forgotten gold.

Goblets they carved there for themselves

And harps of gold; where no man delves

There lay long, and many a song

Was sung unheard by men or elves.

The pines were roaring on the height,

The winds were moaning in the night.

The fire was red, it flaming spread;

The trees like torches into the night.

The bells were ringing in the dale

And men look up with faces pale;

The dragon's ire was more than fire

Laid low their towers and house frail.

The mountains smoked beneath the moon;

The dwarves, they heard the tramp of doom.

The fled their hall to dying fall

Beneath his feet, beneath the moon.

Far over the misty mountains grim

To dungeons deep and caverns dim

We must away, ere break of day,

To win our harps and gold from him!"

(A/N: This, if you haven't already seen the movie The Hobbit: an Unexpected Journey, is the full song that the dwarves sing before Bilbo joins their quest. I have no idea why they mangled it in the film.)

Kaede looked up when she heard clapping.

"You sing rather well. Where did you learn such an interesting song?"

"From a book. A fantasy one to be exact."

"Know any others?" asked Gilgamesh curious.

"There is one other I know by heart from the series. I'm surprised that you actually liked it. Normally I get asked to quit singing by my father...though that might be because half the time he's got a raging hangover."

She normally tended to sing at that volume when Kiritsugu had another night out with Sirius as punishment.

What Kiritsugu never told her was that her voice was good, but she could do with a few lessons on how to sing properly. He was just grateful she could hold a tune... Shiro certainly couldn't.

Though they had managed to get him to quit singing in the shower when he was thirteen by having Kaede record his voice in private and then playing it back for him. He was good about taking a hint.

"Well, let's hear it then!" said Gilgamesh impatiently. Hearing her sing was a pleasant way to pass the time.

She blinked, but she decided that it wouldn't hurt anything to humor him.

"All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all who wander are lost.

The old that is strong does not whither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,

A light from a shadow will spring.

Renewed shall be blade that is broken,

The crownless again shall be king."

Gilgamesh blinked. That was a rather short song.

Kaede however noticed that Amethyst took note of that song, and an idea came to her. She could easily adjust the last part to fit her and use it for her Reality Marble.

Gilgamesh left her alone after a few other songs, but the damage was done. Kaede had finally found an aria for her little addition to Amethyst, and now she just needed a chance to use it.

And once she brought it out, she knew in her heart that her Gil would return.

This was it. They would retrieve Kaede or die trying. And since Archer was more than happy to actually help for once, considering he had been through the temple countless times before, they had a general idea of what they would be facing.

Of course this was the first time he would be storming the place as Archer and not Shiro. He had never lasted to the end of the war before. He wasn't sure if he liked the feeling.

Archer would be showering the place with his arrows, Saber had been fully charged the night before thanks to a rather blunt Kiritsugu who had informed his son of a simple prana-exchange ritual that had him blushing like no tomorrow, and Illya would be coming as well with Herakles.

To the shock of the group, Kiritsugu would be joining them with his Thompson Contender, the same gun he used in the last war that was loaded with special bullets that would turn a Magus's crest against them.

He might have dropped out of the assassination game, but that didn't mean he had given up entirely on his old skills. He just found new use for them that wouldn't be frowned upon. And as an added bonus, he was bringing his sniper rifle...his magically-enhanced to be a veritable cannon sniper rifle that is.

Shiro had been given a minor boost by Archer...namely the reality marble he had yet to fully develop. Unfortunately he couldn't use the same aria, because Shiro was different from his cynical future self. At best Shiro could get the girls out in a hurry while Archer kept Gilgamesh occupied.

They armed themselves to the teeth and headed out to the temple. This wasn't a battle they were going to, or a simple rescue mission. This was going to be a war.

When they reached the temple, it was quiet. So quiet that it was easy to assume the place had been abandoned long ago.

Rin gripped her jewels so tightly that if she held it any harder then it would cut into her palms.

Shiro was keeping close to Illya. Gilgamesh had already stated his intentions for his sister and he had no desire to see her dead. Or to see Kotomine brought back with her heart.

Illya was already slated for the same change Cassi and Kiritsugu had undergone when they learned that without help she would die within a year or two after the war. Her body simply wasn't meant to last any longer, not with her status as the lesser grail and half the things she had been put through before it had even began.

So in order to save her life, she was going to become a witch. She could still maintain Berserker if he survived, but she wouldn't be tied to the Einzbern clan by blood.

They had no use for a homunculus of her class unless there was a Grail war to begin. It was unlikely that they would force her to return.

Kiritsugu was on the bodyguard duty as well. He had no desire to see his children killed because he had done nothing.

Gilgamesh had Kaede by the arm, and to Archer's private surprise she was relatively unharmed. Compared to how Caster had left the girl, she was downright perky.

"Well, well... Seems like I have the best seat in the house to win the Grail!" sneered Gilgamesh.

Illya winced.

"So have you come to surrender?" he asked.

"We came to get our family back," said Shiro.

"Then we have a problem. See I don't intend to return her," said Gilgamesh with a smirk.

Shiro didn't seem that surprised by the idea Gilgamesh didn't want to let her go. Kaede's cooking had roped more than one person into wanting to keep her as their personal chef...she was the president of the Academy cooking club four years running after all.

(Shiro was vice-president and Cassi was their favorite secretary.)

Illya grew impatient. She wanted her little sister back and she wanted her back now. Kaede was the kindest person she had ever met and the fact she had been so sick because of Caster only to get kidnapped for her sake made her furious.

However it was Kiritsugu who noted something interesting about Kaede from his sniper scope.

Kaede's hair had a few generous streaks of red when the war began. But every morning it had thinned. The others were so used to the fact she had changing hair that they hadn't noticed the progression of crimson to gold, but he had. And right now her hair was almost entirely blond aside from a few strands of red...which he could see change color as the time passed.

She was definitely about ready to awaken something. The question was if she would have time to wake up before Gilgamesh did something.

Kaede felt the blood rush in her ears, the wind on her face, and the feel of Gilgamesh's armored arm on her shoulder. There was the constant thumping of her heart in the background.

She knew something was happening to her. Her magic was spiking like crazy and for some reason the Servant holding her hostage didn't even notice. She was having trouble staying conscious.

There was a roar in her mind, and she nearly blacked out.

Gilgamesh finally took note something was wrong with his hostage, as she began to glow golden under his hand.

"Kaede!" Shiro called out in alarm.

Kaede could see in her mind's eye a great golden dragon...one she recognized as her animagus form. For years it had eluded her, outside of her dragon illusion. It seemed that it had finally decided to quit hiding.

And that wasn't the only thing that decided to quit hiding. She felt another power below the earth where the Grail had been dormant stir.

The Heaven's Feel was responding to her. And not the one that inhabited the Grail, but the original one.

Her hair, which had been red since Gil had been summoned, was now the exact same shade of gold as Saber's. Not a single red strand was left.

Her green eyes shifted into a cat-like state, and she felt scales grow along her limbs. Talons sprang from where her fingernails were, and a long serpentine tail appeared. On her back were white wings tipped in gold, a light shade of blue and her favorite amethyst color purple. There were two smaller wings at the base of her head nestled in front of a pair of impressive horns.

Once she felt the transformation complete, she roared loudly.

Seeing the shock in their faces, Kaede flexed her new wings, nearly sending them all to the ground.

She wasn't some weak over-breed dragon of the modern era. She was a Phantasmal Beast from a bygone age. One that hadn't been seen in over a thousand years.

A holy dragon of immense and terrible power.

And she was pissed.

Inside Kaede's Reality Marble...

Gil was howling at the look on Gilgamesh's face. And the look on their faces. And the best part was that once Kaede settled down she would be able to bring him out!

She had finally found the perfect aria to use her Reality Marble, and Gil was eagerly awaiting her first real use of the Court.

Behind him Lancer, Rider, and Arcuied as Berserker were playing a game of poker. This was his time, not theirs...besides, chances were that they would be getting some extras in the game as soon as this war was over with.

Gil was getting ready for a fight with his original self from the last war. There would only be one winner in this fight, and whoever came out on top would claim Kaede or Saber.

Kaede was rampaging towards Gilgamesh. The others were still in a great deal of shock at her sudden transformation, so there was no help in that direction.

Suddenly Gilgamesh managed to trap her in a set of heavenly chains... it had bound something much stronger than she was at the moment back when he was alive, so there was little chance she could escape it.

However the chains had been used to trap a dragon...not a suddenly very angry and very hormonal female witch. Kaede slipped past them, sword in hand and her armor fully powered.

Saber was the first to get over her shock, and she charged at Gilgamesh, with Archer following.

Gilgamesh grabbed Kaede's right hand which held the sword and smirked evilly at her.

"You have my interest now girlie," he smirked.

"And you have never held mine. The only man I'll ever love is Gil, and while you share his face you are not him," she growled. Gilgamesh growled at the reminder of his fake.

Saber suddenly broke them apart, and Kaede, fueled by her newly awakened Magic decided to unleash her Reality Marble before Archer could unleash his.

Her eyes glowed as she said the recently created aria.

All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all who wander are lost,

The old that is strong does not whither,

Deep roots are not reached by the frost

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,

A light from the shadows shall spring

Renewed shall be blade that is broken

The crownless again shall be Queen!

Where the air had been dense with a foul energy, it was swept aside by a clean breeze. The ground, which had been torn up by Kaede's talons, was covered with beautiful flowers. The sky above, dark and covered with a miasma cloud, had a beautiful summer day above.

Kaede's anger towards Gilgamesh was so strong that she almost didn't realize who had just put her arms around her waist.

"Calm, Kae-chan," said a familiar voice.

Kaede's heart skipped a beat as she registered the voice.

"Gil."

"I'm back. And I'm not going away ever again. Now I want you to stay with Shiro and Rin while I deal with this loser," said Gil.

"Gil!" said Kaede hugging him tightly. Her relief was so evident that Saber actually stopped and stared at him.

This was her first meeting with Gil, not Gilgamesh...and the difference was clear as day. Gil carefully extracted himself from Kaede and made sure Archer had her before she collapsed from relief. Then he turned to face his older self and his disgust with Gilgamesh was evident in his face.

"You!" snarled Gilgamesh.

"Hello Gilgamesh. I think it's past time we decided who takes on the mantle of King of Heroes, and who is sealed away permanently," said Gil.

And with that, the last fight to determine the winner of the Grail Wars had finally begun...

Here's an Omake for you all courtesy of Lupine Horror~

Kaede and Harry (Fate's Gamble version) meeting for the first time.

xxxxx

"Erm, hello there?" Kaede said hesitantly.

The girl had been kind of thrown off balance just now. She had thought she'd been about to die, she had thought that some quirk of fate had finally decided to kill her off, as some people seemed to have been trying to do for almost her entire life now.

Gilgamesh, the arsehole and not her sweet Gil, had not liked the feeling he had gotten from her. Of course, having been supporting Gil as long as she had, there had obviously been something of him that had rubbed off on her, and Gilgamesh had picked up on that, and then decided to kill her.

Rin had no prana, and things were bad between her and Archer anyway, so she wasn't likely to trust him in a hurry. Saber, too, had not been in the most ideal position to defend her, and Kaede's own reserves were really damned low right then. It had been Amethyst that had saved them, albeit indirectly.

"Activating last resort defenses." It had said.

No one had known what to make of that, not at first. A brilliantly bright flash of light had appeared in front of Kaede and something had appeared from within it.

*CLANG* *CLASH* *SMACK* *RING*

The rain of blades that Gilgamesh had launched their way was deflected by a hail of blades completely opposite themselves. Archer's eyes had widened, recognizing the effects of his own Unlimited Blade Works, despite knowing full well that it was definitely not him that had called them forth.

"Great, that's just what I need." A musical and soothing voice sounded, though right now it sounded rather grouchy. "I get dragged through the Kaleidoscope and the first thing I see is that golden dick head throwing swords around."

Everyone blinked as they got their first good look at who had appeared. The boy was odd, and it was a boy, despite how feminine he appeared to be. He looked, well, just like Rider had, and the onlookers were wondering if Medusa had had a kid that the myths forgot to mention.

The boy glanced over his shoulder at Kaede. He quirked an eyebrow. "Interesting soul you got there, just like my... Oh, damn you, Zelretch, damn you to the deepest, darkest depths of Tartarus. I am not a part of any dog and pony show, not even for another version of myself."

Gilgamesh did not appreciate being ignored, and launched a hail of blades at the boy. Interestingly enough, the one being targeted by a damn SERVANT didn't really seem to care that he was being attacked by one of the most powerful beings in the world.

He moved with serpentine grace, dancing around some of the blades heading his way, knocking others off course with a staff he held in his hands. Archer tried to analyze the staff, to try and work out who this person was and what they might be capable of.

Unfortunately, he couldn't get a reading on it. Not because it was a weapon from beyond the realm of human concepts, but simply because its primary function wasn't that of a weapon. It was like a computer, which had the added function of being capable of wiping out a city at full power as a bonus.

"Right." The boy said, when the hail of weapons ended. "I'm irritated right now, and I was quite relaxed before I got dragged into this mess. Now, shoo!" In the air around the boy, weapons began to appear and aim themselves at Gilgamesh. Along side those weapons, orbs of magic began to coalesce, but that wasn't what really drew everyone's attention.

A truly massive rune array began to form behind the boy, perhaps ten meters or more across. Pointing his staff at Gilgamesh, everyone could see a smaller, but no less intricate, array had formed at the tip of his staff as well. "Heaven Breaker!" The boy called, and a surge of prana of truly phonemonal proportions erupted from the larger runic array, right at Gilgamesh.

The flow didn't abate, not even twenty seconds later, and it was still going strong, the boy not looking fazed in the slightest at using more prana per second than a hundred magi would use in an entire lifetime. Gilgamesh, though not killed, was driven back, as not even he could hold the flood of prana back for long.

Once Gilgamesh no longer stood before the beam of prana, the boy cut it off. Still, the massive laser beam completely annihilated everything behind where Gilgamesh had stood for, by the looks of things, slightly less than a mile. A swathe of destruction had been carved out of the land, and the perpetrator was not even perspiring!

"So, how the bloody heck did I get here?" The boy asked.

"Erm, hello there?" Kaede said hesitantly, rather awed by the vast amount of destruction he'd so easily called up.

"Yeah, yeah. Hello to you too. Now, how did I get here?" He asked again.

"That'd be me, kid." Amethyst said.

"And you would be?" The boy asked.

"Amethyst. Ah, just so you know, it was Zelretch who named me, so please don't break me!" The thing sounded a little afraid of the boy.

"Amethyst?" The boy asked in an odd tone, his eyebrow twitching, as if he couldn't believe it.

"Yeah, Amethyst." the device replied.

"Who are you, and what are your intentions?" Saber asked. She got up, ready to defend her master and his allies, despite her rather pitiful condition.

"Hmm? Oh, me? I'm an alternate male version of her." He said, pointing at Kaede.

"Me?" Kaede asked, incredulously.

"Yeah, you." The boy replied.

"And what is your name?" Rin asked.

The boy shrugged his shoulders, as if thinking about something for a moment, before he replied.

"Call me Harry, Harry Potter."

Now before any of you worry about the fight scene, I can assure you I will do everything I can to make it totally EPIC. So if it takes a while before it gets posted, that's the reason.