Disclaimer: I do not own the Fate or Tsukihime it belongs to Kinoko Nasu and Type-Moon.

Moonlit Fate

Chapter 11

"Well," Sakura said, returning to the living room. "Fujimura-sensei's asleep, in her usual room where she stays in whenever she spends the night here. She should wake up in about an hour or so."

"How do you think she'll react to, well, everything we've told her?" Shirou asked as Sakura approached.

"Good question," Sakura said. "She might think it was some sort of bad dream, but it's also likely she'll realize it isn't. Maybe both: she'll think it was sort of strange dream at first, but when she realizes the time and, well, who's in this house right now, then she'll probably figure out that yes, everything we've told her is true."

Shirou stayed silent for a bit, and then he sighed. He glanced to one side, where Arcueid and (surprisingly) Archer were watching more cartoons (or rather anime). "And then what?" he asked, turning back to Sakura.

Sakura shrugged. "She'd probably try to start over," she said slowly. "Ask for a refresher on what we told her earlier, along with clarifications and things like that. She probably won't act like she did earlier, but then again it is Fujimura-sensei we are talking about."

Shirou grimaced slightly at that. After a moment though his stomach grumbled, and Sakura giggled. "Oh that's right," she said. "We never did have breakfast, did we?"

Sakura began to walk into the kitchen, Shirou getting up to follow her as well, Saber following them with her eyes. "At this time though I don't think it's breakfast anymore." Sakura said, opening an overhead cabinet to begin bringing down some china.

"Then what would you call it then," Shirou asked from where he was riffling through the refrigerator's vegetable cabinet. "Late breakfast or early lunch?"

"Too wordy," Sakura said with a laugh. "How about brunch?"

Shirou laughed too and nodded. "It fits." He said. "So what do you want to cook?"

Sakura paused in thought for a moment, and then glanced at the three blondes in the adjacent room, Saber stoically sitting at the table, and the King of Heroes and the White Princess of the True Ancestors watching anime on the TV. Sakura smiled and turned back to Shirou. "In deference to our guests," she said. "How about some western food for a change? It'll have to be somewhat heavy though, given the time."

Shirou nodded his agreement. "It's not a bad idea." He said. "Though seeing as Archer-san is who he is, we'll have to cook the best meal we can, don't we?"

"Naturally," Sakura said with a nod of her own. "Alright, I'll get started on preparing, and well, first of all, thinking of what to cook. In the meantime, do you mind telling the school that, well, Fujimura-sensei's fallen ill, and can't go to work today? And that we have to keep an eye on her?"

Shirou blinked. "I don't mind but," he began. "Why don't you do it?"

"Well for one thing it is your house that Fujimura-sensei is sleeping in." Sakura replied. "And for another thing, you're her ward. Either way, it's more appropriate for you to call instead of me."

Shirou made a sound and scratched the back of his head, but nodded his agreement after a moment. "I guess I can't argue with you there." He said, already turning to walk to where the landline was. "Alright, I'll be back in a few minutes. Don't push yourself though, when I get back I'll help you think up and prepare brunch, alright?"

Sakura laughed and nodded. "Yes, yes." She said.

"Now that we've dined for the morning," Archer began as he lounged at the table while Sakura and Shirou were busy soaking the dirty china, utensils, and kitchenware in the sink. "We should address our other issue."

"What's that?" Arcueid asked, slumped sleepily against the table.

"The Holy Grail War of course." Saber said.

Arcueid blinked, and then pushed herself upright. "Are you going to fight in the war?" she asked, turning to Shirou.

Shirou didn't answer at once, rinsing his hands first and wiping them before approaching. "Well," he began. "I guess I am."

"Why?" Arcueid asked, while Archer slightly narrowed his eyes.

"Well for one thing Saber accepted my summons, didn't she?" Shirou said hesitantly. "And from what I know of how Servants are summoned, the Heroic Spirit in question has to accept the summons, otherwise it would fail. Since Saber trusted me enough to accept my summons, I don't want to betray that trust by not fighting, even if I don't really have any wish for the Grail, nor do I even want to right. Especially since I owe her my life."

"Rider," Sakura growled, approaching the table as she did so. Saber narrowed her eyes, as did Arcueid who actually growled. Archer however, just looked thoughtful.

"Very well," Archer conceded after a moment. "As you say, Saber trusted you enough to answer your summons, and from what Sakura Tohsaka tells me, arrived just in time to save you from Rider's assault. You have my compliments there, boy. Even if you did lose the battle and nearly lost your life, Humans – even magi – would not normally last long if at all against incarnated Heroic Spirits. That you managed to defend yourself to an extent, enough to summon – if accidentally – Saber here, is worthy of recognition."

Shirou looked taken aback, and Archer smiled. "T-thank you." Shirou said with a polite bow, Archer's smile widening.

"But going back to my point," Archer began. "It is certainly meet that you return Saber's trust in you by fighting alongside her, and it is just as meet that you repay your life debt to her."

Shirou nodded, but then Archer's eyes narrowed. "But," he said. "I do not believe that you have no wish for the Grail."

Shirou's eyes widened. "What?" he asked.

Archer gestured with a hand at Shirou's command spells. "The Grail would not have granted you command spells had you no desire that you could present to it to be granted." He said. "You may not recognize it as a wish, but certainly, you have a burning desire or desires for one thing or another, and that is enough."

"But I…!"

"Tell me, Shirou Emiya," Archer interrupted sternly. "What is it that you want most in life? What is it that you would do and give anything to achieve or gain? Answer, and you will know what it is that you wish for."

Shirou looked down in thought, while Sakura looked worried. Archer narrowed his eyes at her briefly, knowing that she knew what her friend wanted most, would wish for, but for some reason, feared it.

Why?

Archer returned his gaze to Shirou, and softened his expression. "Perhaps you do not know what it is?" he asked with a similarly-softened tone. "If so, then you should not have to deny it. Admit your ignorance, and in doing so take the first step to correcting it. You cannot learn when you yourself do not admit the need or desire to learn."

Shirou took a deep breath, and nodded. "No," he said. "I know what I want. But it's not something that the Grail could grant. Weill, it might be able to grant it, and it probably saw it as my wish, but I don't need or want the Grail to grant it. If it did, then there's no point."

Archer smiled with veiled approval. "A commendable opinion," he admitted. "And? What exactly is it that you wish for?"

Shirou drew himself up, his eyes meeting Archer's own. It was certainly impudent, but Shirou wanted to look at the King of Heroes in the eyes when he said this. The King of Heroes after all, was the first and greatest of heroes, and earlier had mentioned or rather recognized the steel of Shirou's spirit.

And while Shirou didn't normally care much for how other people thought of him, considering what it was that he wanted most, he wanted to show that steely spirit once more, when he spoke of his dream and ideal. After all, Archer was the King of Heroes.

"I want to be a hero."

Archer's eyes went wide in surprise. This was not something he'd seen coming. "What?" he asked.

Saber's eyes narrowed slightly, while Arcueid looked troubled. "I want to be a hero." Shirou repeated, his eyes bright and eager, lips smiling likewise. "Just like my father before me, I want to save someone. If I can save at least one person, like my father saved me, then I'll be content."

Shirou briefly closed his eyes, and then nodded. "Though," he continued. "I'll try and save as many people as I can. That's what it means to be a Hero of Justice, after all."

Archer looked stunned, Arcueid and Saber pained, and Sakura sad. And then Arcueid shook her head, her blonde tresses flying. "Oh Shirou," she said. "You really think saving people is what it means to be a hero, don't you?"

Shirou looked at her in surprise before narrowing his eyes in resolve. "There's nothing wrong with helping or saving people." He said.

"I didn't say it was." Arcueid said. "I'm just saying that's not what it means to be a hero."

"Then what is?"

"I don't know." Arcueid answered, to Shirou's surprise. "But I'm sure it's not about saving people. If it was that, there wouldn't be any heroes."

"If it was that, you'd have failed already." Saber said, Shirou's head turning quickly to look at her.

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"You told us all how you came across that vampire lord, Chaos or something." Saber said, before narrowing her eyes. "If saving people is what makes heroes, then you've failed, because you couldn't save the people in that building."

"You can't save everybody, Shirou." Sakura murmured.

Shirou looked down at the table, remembering the apartment block where the Tenth Dead Apostle Ancestor had gone on rampage. He remembered the mangled corpses, the pools and trails of blood, the abominations that made up the ancestor's body tearing at them and at him…

…and he remembered ten years ago, walking through a sea of fire, ignoring the pleas and cries for help all around him, wanting only to save his own life…

…and most of all, he remembered that haggard face looking down at him in the rain, those empty, broken eyes, and that desperate smile, as though the savior had been the one that had been saved.

And he remembered that summer night, when his father had told him of his dream.

When I was young, I wanted to be a Hero of Justice.

Shirou clenched his fists. "No!" he growled. "Even if I can't save everybody, that won't stop me from trying. Everyone deserves a chance to be saved when they need to, and I'll do everything I can to make sure they get that chance! I…!"

"Shirou," Arcueid murmured sadly.

Sakura closed her eyes, while Saber shook her head. "You're only going to hurt yourself, Master." She said. "The path you seek promises nothing but suffering. Its sole fruit is ruin."

Shirou snapped towards Saber, his eyes ablaze, but Archer's voice – all the more impressive given how soft it was – cut through the tension like a knife through butter. "Enough," he said. "If he wishes to save people, let him try. At the very least, he admits he cannot save everyone, don't you, boy?"

Shirou briefly looked down, but then he nodded, and raising his head met Archer's eyes again. "I do." He said. "It doesn't mean I won't do everything I can to try."

Archer smiled and nodded. "You're going to need every inch of that steel, boy." He said. "But, know this: saving people isn't all there is to being a hero. It's part of being one, but it's not what it means to be a hero. And neither is justice: indeed, saving others, and delivering justice in need of it, are results expected of a hero. But when all is said and done, what it means to be a hero is something else, something simple and yet profound."

Shirou blinked when he heard this, and gathering his resolve narrowed his eyes. "And what's that?" he asked.

Archer's smile widened slightly. "Impudent, aren't you?" he asked. "To be a hero is to carry the weight of the whole world on your shoulders."

Everyone on the table looked surprised at that, even Shirou. Arcueid's eyes were wide, while Sakura and Saber's mouths hung slightly open. "W-what's that supposed to mean?" Arcueid asked. "You don't literally mean that, do you?"

Archer's smile turned smug, though not infuriatingly-so, and he swept the table with his eyes. "When you know what those words mean," he said. "Then you will have taken the first step on the Path of a Hero."

Chuckling at their confused expressions, Archer rose, picked up his jacket, and slinging it over a shoulder walked towards the veranda. "Sakura Tohsaka," he said. "Saber and I have previously reached an understanding on our expectations of each other. Based on that, adjust our strategy accordingly. Until you have need for your King, I take my leave."

Nodding at the gathered teenagers and the single vampire, Archer vanished in a swirl of golden motes. "What was that supposed to mean?" Shirou said. "A hero carries the weight of the whole world on their shoulders?"

"I don't know." Sakura said, while Saber and Arcueid alike shook their head. Sakura sighed, and smiled a small smile at Shirou. "Though, while it seems the King of Heroes invited all of us to try and understand what he meant, as the one who wants to be a hero among us, I think you're the one really meant to understand it."

Shirou nodded, and Sakura's smile faltered. After a moment she sighed again, and squeezed her arm with a hand. "Sorry." She said, and Shirou looked at her in surprise.

"For what?"

"For not backing you up earlier, and…"

"No, it's fine." Shirou interrupted, patting Sakura on a shoulder. "I mean, it's not like it's the first time you've tried to convince me to 'grow up', as Fuji-nee puts it. I understand you only mean well, so it's fine."

Sakura nodded silently, and Shirou smiled at her. "Don't worry about it." He said.

"It's expected to worry for your friends, isn't it?"

Shirou laughed. "I guess so." He said. "Just don't let get to you."

Sakura's smile returned. "I won't." she said.

"So," Arcueid began. "You're really going to fight in this war."

"Yes." Shirou said with a nod.

"You're going to try and be a hero, in this was and after."

"Yes."

Arcueid looked sad. "Heroes die all the time." She said softly. "And, you can't save everyone no matter how hard you try."

Shirou was silent, but after a few moments he sighed and nodded. "I know." He said. "But as I said to the King of Heroes, I'll still try, no matter what."

"But when you try and fail," Arcueid said. "Then what? What will you become, Shirou?"

Again Shirou was silent, and after a few moments gave Arcueid a smile. "I'll be who I'll be." He said. "We are our choices, and we can always choose to take a better path."

This time it was Arcueid's turn to be silent, and to speak up after a few moments. "Then why don't you?" she asked. "I don't want you to die. And your friends don't want you to die either."

Shirou again didn't answer at once, but finally did after a few moments. "Maybe I still can," he said. "What the King of Heroes said about a hero carrying the weight of the entire world…I don't think he meant it literally, but…well, he's the King of Heroes, and the first and the greatest. I should at least think over what he said. And maybe, I can find a better path there, and make the ideal reality."

"Shirou…"

"Don't worry." Shirou reassured Arcueid. "We're friends, aren't we?"

Arcueid blinked and nodded slowly. For some reason, 'being friends' felt unsatisfying to her. She didn't know why, and while she didn't let it show it bothered her somewhat.

Still, she couldn't and wouldn't say no either.

"Yes, we're friends."

"Then," Shirou said. "Let's make a promise between us here, even you Saber, just in case you decide to stick around after this war, to go and see the cherry blossoms together every year, alright?"

"Very optimistic, aren't you Shirou?" Saber asked.

"I never give up." Shirou replied, and Sakura nodded.

"No, you never do." She said with a smile. "And you always keep your promises. So alright, let's go see the cherry blossoms in spring together, shall we, Shirou, Arcueid, and Saber?"

Arcueid happily nodded. "I'd like that." She said with a bright smile, while Saber nodded, though she didn't say a thing, at least for a few more moments.

"Moving on," she said. "About the Holy Grail War situation, what shall we do? Will we be allies, or not? Or will we have another arrangement, a compromise between those two?"

"I'm fine with an alliance," Sakura said. "But the King of Heroes likes to fight one on one, or so it seems. He would not appreciate anyone interfering in his battles. And I daresay the same goes for you, Saber."

Saber nodded. "So what did you have in mind?" she asked.

"We'll only come to each other's aid when asked." Sakura said. "Otherwise we won't interfere in each other's battles. Servant battles at least: I'm not standing by and let Shirou get pummeled by superior enemy magi."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Shirou said dryly, before smiling to take the edge off. "But I guess I can't deny against most magi I don't really have good chances of winning a fight. And I certainly won't stand by and just watch as Sakura gets pushed around either, by superior enemy magi."

Shirou winked cheekily at Sakura, who laughed softly and nodded. "I'll prepare familiars to keep us all in touch with each other." She said. "But most importantly, we won't confront each other on the battlefield until the very end of this war. Then we can finish this as equals."

Saber and Shirou nodded their agreement, but then Arcueid leaned forward. "What about you, Sakura Tohsaka?" the vampire asked. "What is your wish? You and we heard Shirou's, so what about yours?"

Sakura didn't answer at once, but when she did it caught them all by surprise, and silenced them all. A silence broken only by the ringing of the phone afterward.

"I don't know."

"Ah I've finally found you." Kirei's voice said over the phone. "I tried to phone you earlier this morning, quite a few times in fact, but you weren't answering. I assumed you went to the Emiya boy's residence, but since I knew you'd have been busy cooking or eating breakfast at the time I decided to wait until later in the morning and contact you through your school instead. Imagine my surprise when I found out you were absent for the day."

"Yes, well," Sakura said. "Fujimura-sensei's come down with something, and Emiya-sempai needed some help looking after her."

"I see." Kirei said. "I suppose that is an acceptable excuse."

"Quite," Sakura said. "So, what's so important you've been trying so hard to reach me?"

"Sarcasm doesn't become you." Kirei reproved. "Especially since you know that there are things going on right now in this city that are that important."

"Get to the point Kirei."

"Roa attacked last night." The priest said, and Sakura's heart froze. "I'll tell you the details later, but a large number of Dead have gathered at the following address."

Sakura listened as Kirei gave the address, and swallowed dryly. "And?" he said. "Will that priestess be there?"

"Bow has decided to follow the trail left by Roa." Kirei said. "Naturally, she's deferred 'cleanup' to us."

"I am not going to drag the King of Heroes out to cleanup. Talk about disrespectful!"

"I knew you would say that." Kirei said, and Sakura could almost see the smile on the priest's face. "But, this could also be a trap."

"What? How?"

"And for what purpose?" Kirei added. "It may be that Roa seeks to eliminate Bow's supporting forces, in short us, and have Bow drawn away with a false trail. And then while we're cleaning up, he pounces and takes us out."

"And you want us to spring it?"

"The Dead have to be taken care of." Kirei said. "And if the King of Heroes is present, even if it is a trap, I doubt Roa would last long before he's either killed or forced to flee…if he can."

Sakura didn't reply, and after a few moments Kirei continued. "Well," he said. "Given you and the King of Heroes' recent encounter with the Tenth, and your previously-stated desire to live up to your responsibilities as the Supervisor of this territory, I thought you might want to know, and get involved. I'll be waiting outside the site until about two in the afternoon. And yes, I'll be more than capable of taking care of this myself, even if it is a trap, enough to get out at least while there's sunlight. Well then,"

Sakura stared at the phone as Kirei's end went dead, and after a moment replaced it on its mounting. For a few moments she just stood there, thinking, and then with a sigh went back to the living room where a bemused Shirou was teaching Arcueid a child's game.

"Alright," Sakura said. "I've got to go out and deal with something. Shirou, you should stay here and wait for Fujimura-sensei to wake up."

"Okay," Shirou said with a nod. He paused, and then asked a question. "What's this all about?"

Sakura glanced at Arcueid. "Roa attacked last night." She said, and their eyes widened. "He's gone to ground, but a lot of Dead have holed up along the river in the underground tunnels. They have to be cleared out of there."

Arcueid stood up immediately. "I'm going with you." She said with a tone that brooked no disagreement.

"Of course you are." Sakura said, though as usual she made an effort to avoid actually meeting the vampire's eyes. "It's not like I could say no."

Arcueid nodded. "Will you be alright?" Shirou said. "I know I can't come with you since Fuji-nee needs looking after, but,"

"I'll be fine." Sakura said. "I'll have the King of Heroes with me, and the White Princess, and my guardian. He's a retired Executor, just so you know."

"Yes, you've told me before." Shirou said with a nod. "But that wasn't what I was worried about."

"Oh?"

"Will you really be alright? I mean, they're Dead, that is they're the familiars of a Dead Apostle, so…so, I assume there's a lot of blood. And there's your…"

"I can handle that just fine." Sakura said, waving Shirou's concerns off.

I think.

Shirou sighed and nodded. "Alright," he said. "I guess all I can do here is trust you and those with you. And, I've never know you to break promises either, so remember our promise earlier, alright?"

Sakura nodded, but Shirou paused and glanced towards Arcueid. She looked back at him, and he smiled at her. "Watch out for my best friend, alright, Arcueid-san?" he asked.

Arcueid didn't reply at once, but after a couple of moments she returned Shirou's smile and nodded. "Alright," she said. "I will."

Shirou nodded at her, and then turned back to Sakura. "Good luck then," he said, getting to his feet to show to the door. "You're going to need it."

"I hope we don't have to." Sakura quipped along the way. "But thanks. I'm definitely coming back though. I don't plan on dying just yet, especially since I still have promises to keep."

"That's the spirit." Shirou said with a laugh. They arrived in silence at the door, where the girls replaced their shoes and prepared to leave.

"You'll be alright by yourself?" Arcueid asked as Sakura opened the front door.

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Shirou said. "I doubt enemies will attack in the day, and even then, well, Saber's here. And you'll hopefully be back by dinner I suppose."

Arcueid's eyes seemed to harden at the mention of Saber, but she nodded. "We will." She said. "We still have to finish our conversation from earlier."

The two magi looked curious at that, and Arcueid's smile grew as she glanced to Sakura, who subtly turned her eyes away to avoid meeting Arcueid's. "I still want to know after all," she said. "What Sakura here's wish is after all? As the King of Heroes said, she could not have joined this war if she didn't have one."

A/N

Yes, Kirei knows about Shirou. Not that he's a Master (yet), but that he exists and that Sakura has him as an informal apprentice, he knows. And to be honest, considering Kirei's obsession with Kiritsugu, I'm rather surprised that he canonically didn't show any interest in Shirou early on. Though, I suppose he might have dismissed Shirou as unimportant after Kiri died, and only gained interest after Shirou became a Master.

No, no one outside of those who need to know or were there – Kirei, Sakura, RIN, and Kariya (because he was an old friend of the family) – know about the relationship between RIN and the Tohsaka. Shirou knows about Sakura's (lingering) haemophobia, but not how and where it came from. And it's not like he'll pry either.

I'll probably do another chapter for Taiga and Shirou, and another chapter for Archer, Sakura, Kirei, and Arcueid to clear out those Dead, and get some character development in. Or I'll blend them together. And then we get to the first 'real' confrontation of the war: Ciel vs RIN. Yes, I know there will also be a concurrent Rider vs. Lancer, but be honest: you could care less about that match compared to the one between Ciel and RIN.

Well, that's it for now.