#meltyu

It was early in the morning, and the sun had only just started to shine when Shirou woke up. He slowly opened his eyes, and rose up with a slight groan. His body felt heavier and ached, somehow, and it took effort to not just drift back to sleep. This was definitely strange. He was used to waking up at hours most would consider unnatural, so why was he so tired now?

  However, as his mind started to shake off its grogginess, the memories of the night before came flooding back to him.

  Saber.

  He quickly rose up, and headed out of his room at a pace nearing a run. That was right. Last night, something almost killed him. He was going to make his last stand in the shed, but then…that was when Saber appeared. The tall figure, his chest emblazoned with a strange glowing mark, had defended him against the intruder, and after that – Well, a lot of things happened. The most concerning image that crossed his mind, however, was the image of Saber, battered and torn and barely standing.

  He couldn’t tolerate that image. That was why, before he made breakfast, got ready for school, thought more about the Holy Grail War he had been thrown into, or did anything, he needed to find Saber. He made his way down the hall, the aching in his body growing into a sharper pain with each step. Sure, he had tried to block an enemy Servant’s blow with his body, but this was just getting inconvenient.

  Shirou made his way to the first major room of his house, the kitchen. Oddly enough, he could smell something fragrant from the room, as if someone else was cooking in there. Had Sakura come early or something? He stepped into the room, expecting to be greeted by her smiling face. Instead, he saw someone very different.

  “…Saber?”

  That was definitely Saber in the kitchen, though he wasn’t wearing his armor from last night. He had a loose white shirt on, which exposed a good portion of his back, showing a strange, leaf-shaped mark. The man looked cramped and out of place in the small area, but he carried on all the same with his work – cooking up a small meal for one. Upon hearing Shirou’s voice he turned around, still holding a stirring spoon. “Good morning, Master. Are you feeling alright?”

  Shirou attempted to process both Siegfried’s sincere concern, and the strange sight before him. “What are you doing?” He spoke with hesitation, not really able to comprehend why Saber was cooking at the moment.

  “Well, since you were injured last night, I thought I’d fix something up for you while you recovered. Modern devices make cooking so much easier now, it’s incredible!”

  Saber smiled, seeming genuine, and Shirou was practically sent into shock. “T-That isn’t necessary! I’m fine!” He wasn’t used to this at all. Someone he had just met last night cooking in his kitchen? Concerned for his well-being? Sure, this was his ‘Servant’, but this was just too much for him.

  His Servant seemed equally surprised at his response, and stammered out an apology. “Really? I’m sorry Master…should I just stop? I mean, you really shouldn’t be alright after last night, but I’m sorry if I offended you somehow.”

  “Saber…” This was a far different man from last night. The intimidating gaze in his eyes and the formidable air of a warrior (no, something even greater than that…a dragon, maybe?), had been replaced by something far more gentle.

  Actually, it was more than just him being gentle. Was Saber some kind of pushover?

  Shirou recovered, and walked over to his Servant. “Don’t worry, I’m not offended. I just need to get ready for school.” And make breakfast for his multiple houseguests, of course.

  “Shirou…you took a full-out attack from Berserker with your entire body. You shouldn’t be going anywhere today.” Siegfried paused, another realization coming over him. “Technically, you shouldn’t even be alive.”

  “I’m fine.”

  Technically, he wasn’t. He still ached all over, and moving too much did hurt. But he had always been durable, and it would be strange to suddenly call Taiga and Sakura up and tell them to go home. Unfortunately, that logic probably wouldn’t convince Saber. The Servant added an additional comment as well. “The girl from last night is coming back later today too. She…also suggested that you stay here.” Saber hesitated a bit with his choice of words, and Shirou knew exactly why. Rin wasn’t the type to ‘suggest’ things. Rather, it was either do them or face her wrath later; honestly, Shirou would rather see Berserker again than an angry Rin. He did appreciate Saber’s efforts to soften her probable threat, however.

  “So that’s how it is…” Shirou sighed, and leaned back on the wall. “I guess I should call in sick then.”

  After a few minutes, and once the calls were done, he turned to Saber and smiled weakly. “I guess I’ll be having the breakfast you made today.” He was reluctant to stay home, even with the Grail War going on, but at least he didn’t have to prepare his own food as well.

Saber’s cooking wasn’t the greatest – at least compared to the cooking Shirou had done, but the meal was definitely edible, and it did taste good. He thanked the man for the meal, but Saber modestly brushed it aside.

  “No need to thank me, I’m only doing what I can for my Master.”

  His words only seemed to irritate Shirou, however. Saber was doing a lot more than that, in his opinion, and while Shirou wasn’t angry, he didn’t think it could be ignored. “Only doing what you could? You didn’t have to cook, especially on your first day after being summoned.” He paused a little, thinking of something to say so his words wouldn’t seem so firm. “I appreciate it a lot, Saber.”

  He smiled at the Servant, and Saber couldn’t help but smile back. Their fate on the battlefield might be uncertain, but at least getting along in a peaceful context would be possible.

  –

  To be honest, Siegfried wasn’t certain what to do when he was initially summoned. As someone who lived his entire life by the wishes of others, he was never truly in control. There was always another purpose, another desire, another task he had to complete for someone else. However, now he was the Servant of someone who not only had no knowledge of the grail war, but also someone who didn’t seem to have desires of his own.

  Initially he thought it would be simple. He’d protect his Master, they would attempt to retrieve the grail, and he would have his wish fulfilled. But the boy didn’t want that. Shirou seemed determined to fight on his own, even if it was impossible. He wasn’t eager to be taken care of either. What did Siegfried even do in this case? The person he served didn’t want to be served, and he was left in a strange new situation.

  Still, at least he had a goal to focus on at the current moment, as he easily blocked another blow from Shirou’s sword. They had been training in the dojo for a while now, at his own suggestion. An accident like last night couldn’t happen again, even if Shirou had somehow survived.

  He tried to go easy on the boy, but even that was still brutal because of his nature as a Servant. His blows were slower, but that was simply compensated by having more power behind them. In normal fights he used a combination of calculated blows and pure force to defeat an opponent.

  Surprisingly, Shirou still hadn’t given up. He was breathing heavily, and he had been knocked down more times than they could count. Every time Siegfried had apologized profusely, of course, only to be met with Shirou somehow getting up and wanting to train more.

  However, it was only a matter of time before exhaustion got in the way of determination. After attempting to dodge a few more blows Siegfried paused, looking down towards Shirou. “Master, I think that’s been enough for today, hasn’t it?”

It took a couple seconds, but Shirou caught his breath and nodded slowly. With that, they put the wooden swords away and rested. Shirou leaned against the dojo wall, and wiped the sweat from his brow. “So this is what it’s like to fight a Servant…”

  “An actual fight would be a lot harder than that.” Siegfried watched as Shirou’s expression slowly changed, likely a part of him finally comprehending what he was up against. “If you do have to fight someday, focus on surviving, not winning.”

  His Master nodded, and while he still didn’t look pleased, at least Siegfried’s message had gotten through to him. They paused for a bit, but soon Shirou’s voice broke the silence. “Saber, let’s do this again tomorrow, okay?”

  “Master? Are you really that eager to do this again?” Naturally, Siegfried was confused. He had suggested the training, but it was mostly to make his Master realize just how weak he was compared to the Servants.

  Unfortunately, Shirou didn’t seem fazed at all. “If I’m going to help you fight, then I need to learn how to defend myself, right? So we’ll keep training.” Nothing had changed at all. Despite getting a better idea of a Servant’s power, Shirou still wanted to be on the battlefield.

  “You know, it would be safer if you stayed behind. Why would you want to fight in this war?”

  As far as Siegfried was aware, this was an average teenage boy. If he wanted a wish granted, he needed to survive. If he wanted to ‘prove himself’, he shouldn’t be performing the equivalent of suicide. So why was he so insistent on this?

  “I have to fight.” Shirou replied, pausing for a moment. “I’ve always wanted to be a hero of justice, but…if I just hide in my house, how can I save anyone? So that’s why.” “Ah…I’m sorry if I pried too much, Master.”

  “Call me Shirou.” He smiled at his Servant, hoping to relieve some of the embarrassment showing on his face. “It’s around time for lunch by the way. I’ll start preparing it!” With that, Shirou rose and walked out of the dojo. While he still looked sore from the training, the small break seemed to be enough for his recovery.

  Siegfried replied, saying that he’d be out in a moment, and remained, meditating on the dojo floor.

  A hero of justice, huh? Someone who didn’t fight for their own selfish needs, or for the needs of others, but instead for their own ideals. Like a code of honor, but based less on rules and more on principle. Now that he thought of it, a long time ago, that concept crossed his mind before. When his existence as a personified wish-granting machine came to an end, he wondered what it would be like to live that way.

It would be nice, he had thought. Living as a hero would be an improvement over his sorry state. And if that was how his Master – Shirou – wanted to live…