thehometree | But my life is more than a vision--

Entry tags:

But my life is more than a vision--

| characters | Archer, Shirou, Rin, and whoever wants to join them in their endeavor. Feel free to tag multiple headers and jump threads within them!
| date/time | Monday, May 4th, onwards through the rest of the week.
| location | Outside the tree, near the mists.
| rating | PG for now, who knows later.
| summary | A complicated series of domestic scenes unfold as Archer, Shirou, and Rin set to work building a miniature kitchen out where they can have real fire, only to be interrupted by a storm.

It's been almost three weeks since Archer and Rin arrived in the center of the tree and gained their wings, only to be met by Shirou and Saber as well. That's just about enough time for it to dawn on those who might be concerned with the domestic details of day-to-day life that they have such a thing here, in between the confusion, the struggle to organize, and the fears of more giant spiders.

Archer's highest priority might be the salvation of all the souls around him, as much as he hates it, but bit by bit a new concern creeps up on him, almost unconsciously. Every time he serves Rin a subpar, barely-cooked meal, it pains him a little deep inside where he thought he was only hollow.

He decides to act.

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Other things concerned you in my timeline than providing an answer to the ghost of all you'd cast aside.

[ No, Archer got no answer from the Shirou he met in the Holy Grail War. How could he, a being who bound himself so utterly to his ideals that his very self fossilized within their sediment before shattering again, learn anything from a boy who turned away from that very dream?

(And yet--and yet, he remembers that at the last moment, when he could have stayed on to clean up the mess of the shadow and protect many people, instead he gave himself up to its lunging tendrils in order to save just one. As the Shirou he knew gave it all up to protect Sakura. That means nothing, doesn't it?)

He puts the thought away along with so many others. ]

But you still follow those things to your ruin, and the ruin of so many others.

You cannot be both an ally to Rin and an ally to justice, Shirou Emiya. There will always come a time when you must choose one over the other.

[what he cast aside...? the sheer thought of it caused the redhead to stop midflight, partially to readjust his grip on the berry as they were getting close to his house, but also to reflect upon that. his back was still turned to Archer all the same, his orange wings tinged like the eternal twilight that bathed his own hill of swords]

. . .

[he said nothing at first, only flying further ahead of the Heroic Spirit until they stopped a short distance away from their house. if Saber and Illya were home, he didn't want them to be involved in any of this. this wasn't something they could avoid. not now]

You're wrong. [landing on solid ground, he finally turned to face him. he already settled his score with him, and yet he was facing him again. who had more to learn from the other?]

I'm going to protect everyone. That includes Tohsaka. There's no other option for me. [he didn't want any other option] EMIYA is an ally of justice. His body is made of swords. But...

He also regreted his decision.

[if he was going to be pressed like this, he wouldn't hold anything back]

That's why I can't accept him. I understand what can happen. The ruin, the betrayal, the killing... [so why?] That's why I won't regret anything.

[it was like what he said to Rin before...]

That's why I'm not wrong. Because wanting to help others is never wrong, even if I spend the rest of my life chasing it.

[ Archer's shoulders draw up and square off as Shirou turns to face him; he means to look at him with cold eyes, but anger and frustration blaze too brightly in them for that. ]

No. There was never any other option for you.

[ The Shirou he knew from back home was no longer himself; he was a new entity, reborn and doomed in the same decision to throw away his ideals for Sakura.

But Archer's voice is heavy with bitterness and regrets. He sees this boy before him, this old echo of all his mistakes, burning so brightly with determination and fearless hope, and he does not know how it came about. He does not have the experience of that fight and the answer he received from it. He sees only the aftermath, and he hates it as he always has. ]

Perhaps--

[ 'Perhaps you cannot judge what's wrong, heroic spirit Emiya,' whisper his new experiences treacherously at the back of his head. It might be true; after seeing Shirou part way with the dream he once bound himself to, he cannot know anything for certain any longer. But he also can't show that to the Shirou he faces now. ]

--you've closed your eyes to your ruin for now.

But I will not have Rin's blood on your hands be what opens them.

[ He's sacrificed himself once for Rin already, when he could have stayed fast to save more instead. He won't back down from protecting her now. He can't. Even if the dead scraps of his dream still cling to his empty heart, inescapable, his feet carry him after his Master now. ]

There won't be any.

[his answer came swiftly, leaving no room for doubt or contemplation]

You and I both want the same thing. So... [he turns one more time, ready to leave Archer to drop off his berry before they continued on to where this new kitchen would be formed] The same goes for you, Archer. I may not let it happen, but if something happens to her on your watch...

[you better believe he won't stand for it. even if he knew the reason why he did what he did in his time]

[ Discontent flashes in Archer's eyes--not the deep and abiding bitterness of before, but a more banal irritation. There's something about the way Shirou speaks of Rin.

He throws one last challenge to him as he turns away. ]

And just what is Rin Tohsaka to you, that you could possibly take care of both her and your ideal?

[ It's a rhetorical question, or meant to be, and yet-- ]

I'm done talking to you, Archer. [that pissed him off. he didn't want to be angry even after he explained his stance. but it looked like it wasn't good enough... he wasn't done "talking" to him persay, they still needed to create a kitchen and help Rin, Saber and anyone else that needed better meals, but,]

I'll listen to you as much as you want after. Right now we have a job to do.

[dipping into his house, he drops the berry off before returning to Archer. she was someone that he cared about. somebody that he loved and wanted to protect. she was someone who would help him become a proper magus, to catch the back of the man he was currently mad at right now. he couldn't doubt anything, not when he was being pressed like this. it wasn't a matter of 'could' Shirou Emiya take care of her and his ideal]

I'll follow you.

[Shirou Emiya would take care of her and his ideal]

You cannot protect both human beings and ideals, Shirou Emiya. You know that. It's the choice you have made.

[ That's all he says, before turning to head out of the tree, his huge red and grey wings spreading behind him. ]

[he stands there for a moment as Archer turns his back to him again... he wants to be mad at him still. and maybe some part of him deep down still was... but seeing that back, even with the huge red and grey wings spread behind him, they only seemed to accentuate what he was following. his seemingly more frail wings by comparison buzzed on his own back.

he was following him again. when he realized that he was staring again, the redhead shook his head and picked up his pace, heading out of the tree with Archer as they made their way to where their new kitchen would be]

Edited (whoops forgot the spoilers) 2015-05-05 19:03 (UTC)

[ He lands some distance away from the tree, with the mist looming high above them, and turns to survey the ground. ]

Yeah, this is fine.

We should gather materials and reinforce them to be strong for building. Are you still inept at that magecraft?

[it looks simple enough...but with enough work, it would be no different from the storage room. could they store some here as well as the tree? he wondered... he didn't want to muse any further outloud least they brought up Tohsaka again]

I can keep up, Archer. [he almost wanted to find something and reinforce it in front of him just to prove his point, but he'd let his words and actions towards the cause speak for themself. with both his training under Rin and his own (unnatural) progress thanks to his connection to Archer, he should have been able to manage. heck, if he could reinforce a desk in a panic to protect himself from Rin's wrath at school, he could make strong enough foundations when concentrating]

So we gather everything first before we dig out the foundation. If we can strip off pieces of bark, that might be good for boards.

[and branches of course]

Edited 2015-05-06 00:46 (UTC)

[ There's no response to that--'I can keep up.' Perhaps he can; perhaps that's the choice he made in that timeline. And what of Sakura, then? What of Rin? If Shirou has dedicated everything to his ideals once again, the people who will fall by the wayside--

Archer is silent and still for a moment, dwelling a little too long on a thought like that which would once have never occurred to him. Before, he only thought of how his ideals ruined his own existence, and not what they did to others. Now, having seen what he saw--

He speaks abruptly, to chase his dire thoughts away. ]

Yeah, though we should be sure it's not rotted or weak; that would be your luck, Shirou Emiya.

[such dire thoughts are deaf to the ears of the ~~naïve~~ young Shirou Emiya as he looks back to Archer]

It can't all be rotting and weak. And if it's weak, that's what strengthening can fix.

Edited (i'm a good speller i swear) 2015-05-16 03:23 (UTC)

Idiot.

[ But the actual malice has gone out of his voice; he sounds more impatient than anything. ]

If the wood is warped and knotted, strengthening it will only make its twisted nature stronger. It's not like reinforcing a rolled-up poster, which is naturally even and self-supporting.

[the rolled-up poster... asking if he remembered anything about getting his ass kicked by Lancer too is fruitless. so he just, no puns intended, rolls with it]

Either way we have a lot of work to do and we'll grab whatever we have to.

Oh?

[ A smirk flickers onto his face. ]

What if we have to grab something that upsets someone? Will you choose to sacrifice our kitchen, or their happiness?

[for once a jab goes over his head. a rarity in the presence of Archer]

If someone is upset over taking rocks or wood, I'll make it up to them if a kitchen bothers them so much.

[ He gives a faint sigh as the opportunity to needle Shirou slips away. ]

Go look to the east of the tree for materials. I will take the west.

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But my life is more than a vision--

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