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derekscorner · 10 months

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Fated Rantings: Miyamoto Iori & Seiba

Where to even begin here...Iori is a rather interesting protagonist compared to the others I've watched so far. Sure, Shirou or Seig are decent but very honest and straight forward.

Iori isn't as simplistic in his world view. If anything he's deceiving himself and accidentally misleading others. However, he is not a villain either.

In a few routes Iori fights to maintain the peace of the era. Seemingly for his sister, Kaya's, sake. He never makes that overtly known but a few lines show this. At one point he ponders the wars end and dismisses his thoughts because he views Kaya as happy and adaptable.

But, every now and then, things will seem to pause. Characters will stop to take note of oddities in Iori's words vs his actions. Iori himself will state multiple times that he is not kind.

He's a ronin in the loosest sense as he only reached adulthood after the warring period was done. He serves no master and makes a living serving his community instead.

People see him as an upstanding young man, Yui Shouetsu even begins to fall in love with him because she sees her ideals reflected in Iori.

But this is a facade. One that Iori himself does not really make intentionally but one he doesn't elaborate on either. The only people that see through this facade immediately is the female Musashi and Chiemon.

Female Musashi is understandable. The Musashi of Iori's timeline was male but the female one lived a similar life. She raised her own Iori and she notices rather quickly.

Chiemon on the other hand sees through it quickly because he is similar. All of his rants in story are not wrong save for the difference. He may see them both as similar but in actuality Iori is scarier. Chiemon is a traumatized child, scared and burned but Iori is a demon waiting to let loose.

You won't see this Iori until you get the "Entreat the Darkness" route.

Of course, the question some of you will ask after reading that is "does that make Iori a villain?" to which I will once again say "no".

Iori, by his own admission, isn't kind. He does what he does because the age of war is over. Even if he did cut loose it would go nowhere in an era of peace.

He also helps others, even times when it's not wise too, because he seeks to understand them. Iori views nearly everyone he meets as possible opponents and thus tries to understand them in the hypothetical outcome he can kill them.

What he is seeking, the desire that made him a master in the ritual, was the desire for carnage. He's a sword demon and his life's goal is to surpass the swordsman ship he saw the night Musashi saved his life.

The reason he dismisses magecraft despite his talent, the reason he lives as a ronin, is his true desire to be the best swordsman possible.

However Iori is not without emotions. I would argue that the list of people he truly cares for is small while the rest fit into "allies for now" and "possible opponents later" categories.

The reason he seeks the peaceful end in other routes is due to his genuine care for his sister. He has a genuine bond with his master Musashi even if that bond is the shared desire for him to cut her down vs her desire to have a worthy opponent.

He even comes to be close with Saber. Whether I would call them friends or not is difficult however.

Yamato Takeru

As the story progresses it does this beautiful thing of showing traditional art moments of Iori and Sabers life. This is an example of masters and servants seeing the lives of the other through dreams.

It's shown in several Fate works. You'll likely be most familiar with Shirou seeing Artoria's life as King Arthur from Fate Stay Night.

It was only in retrospect of the 'Entreat the Darkness' ending that I saw how beautiful this was because it highlights Saber reflecting Iori's own habit onto him.

Iori helps to understand, to see weaknesses, and Saber uses that to stop him in the Dark Ending by using Iori's own move to kill him. You even see Saber taking it into practice early in the story in the segments where Saber will imitate Iori's sword training.

At first this is portrayed as Saber having fun. To some extent they probably are but that's just an aspect of what he is doing. You see, Saber realizes that Iori isn't quite right mid way. He realizes the dreams and desires he saw were Iori's.

He came to understand that Iori's actual desire vs his actions do not match. This pains him. Saber is a little gremlin at first and dismisses Iori for his weakness.

They grow closer as Iori indulges Saber in their love of food, sight seeing, and so on. By the middle point you'll get the idea that Saber's wish is for this kind of life or perhaps he just wanted a friend.

It is in that dark ending that you realize Saber was understanding Iori as Iori was trying to understand Saber. The dreams, the sword practice, they were deciphering each other.

This makes the dark ending painful to be sure. Iori is happy to have died this way, in a battle but Saber is sad to have to kill another person they cared for. Perhaps the only friend Saber has ever had.

Saber's true name is Yamato Takeru. A prince of ancient Japan, direct descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu, and a figure that died alone with only a trail of blood in his wake.

Now I'm sure I seem like I'm rambling aimlessly but I'm not. I want to drive home the sorrow of this dynamic. Even if you get the good endings the game will end on the note of "his blade remains unsatisfied" or so on. (hinting to Iori's nature)

Iori is the closest thing Saber has had to a friend and Iori himself seems to treat Saber as one. On some level I'm sure he's thinking of ways to battle Saber but I do not think Iori's bond with Saber was a lie.

But to call them real friends is something I am still left pondering. Through Saber I am left wondering how genuine any of Iori's relationships were aside for the ones with Musashi and his sister Kaya.

You will even see fans say that the other endings are the best ones for others but only the dark ending is the one Iori truly finds fulfilling. He's not a villain of the story save for that one route but is he one in general?

It left me wondering much of what Iori said. Was his peaceful life fully without value in his mind? Is Iori a better person in the other routes for denying his darker desires?

Why is Iori's best ending the saddest? Better yet, why is his best ending the worst one for everyone else?

Questions I doubt I'll have answered but also ones that I'm not sure need answering. I wouldn't think so much about his story or this game if I had them.

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The original post got kind of long so I split it in two. Part 1 is here: https://derekscorner.tumblr.com/post/736119692207570944/fated-rantings

My other experiences with Fate can be found here: https://derekscorner.tumblr.com/tagged/fated-rantings

#fate/samurai remnant #iori miyamoto #yamato takeru #fated rantings

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pyropsychiccollector · 7 months

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Shiro Harem: Holy Grail War... of Love 4/7

As you guys know, the poll ended up being a 3-way tie... Technically. Although, based off the accidental "first" poll where Artoria had more votes tying her with Sakura... I'm gonna be generous and throw the King of Knights in here as an "unofficial" winner. It's the only poll that changed drastically enough, and I feel bad for flubbing up the first time. XD

... So, uh. Yeah. I'll be writing up 4 posts before posting anything. Be sure to cycle through my posts to find your favorite girl(s)... The official winners are Rin, Sakura, and Luvia. I'll be getting to Mitsuzuri, Illya, and Reines later. XD

The Beginning

To top off this series of posts, I'm going to do the "unofficial" winner, too... As stated, I flubbed up with the poll last week, and I fear that skewered results somewhat. While Sakura still got her votes, Artoria's... petered out... And I don't wanna disappoint any fans looking forward to her. XD It's only a small concession, but here we are~ Artoria Pendragon. Otherwise known as S E I B A. ... Saber. (人◕ω◕) I'm not as much into "Seiba Nation" as a lot of fans are... But this isn't a bad ship. ... I might just tweak some things to ramp up my own excitement. First, though... The disclaimer~

Fate: Stay Night is all about branching timelines. As such, to cater to all seven members of this harem in a single worldline, we'll be looking at an AU separate from the canon ones, regardless of how similarly events may play out. Just a forewarning.

As I did with the Sakura and Rin posts, I'll give a brief overview of the Fourth Holy Grail War, to start us off.

As most fans are aware, the Fourth Holy Grail War is Ground Zero for all the events that come about in the subsequent war... And it's just as much common knowledge that the Heroic Spirit Artoria Pendragon... and the Magus Killer Kiritsugu Emiya... did not get along.

Not. One. Bit.

But this is a development that comes about later in the war. At the start, Artoria had high hopes of serving her Master, and by extension his wife, well and emerging triumphant in this epic battle. He seemed to have a strange way of operating, but Artoria did as she was instructed, staying by Irisveil's side. Though he did not seem to know his place in his feelings about the subjects she ruled over, how they treated her as a "man" and not a woman, the King of Knights was willing to believe Iri that Kiritsugu was a noble man who sought for a peaceful world, to fight all evil in the world.

This war, however... Does not go as Artoria expects. After the battle on the pier, where she clashed with Lancer, Berserker, Archer, and Rider, Kiritsugu entered some... arrangement with Berserker's Master. And the war was temporarily on hold until an outside matter was dealt with. Artoria didn't understand the whole situation, but it apparently revolved around some girl that Berserker's Master was trying to save; that's as much as Irisveil knew about it. Something about the Matou family having stooped so low...

Still, the situation resolved itself, and the war seemed to be back on track. ... Or so Artoria thought. Apparently Kiritsugu was still holding Berserker's Master to whatever "deal" they struck, and so Berserker would not be her opponent, at least not for some time. Artoria feels mixed about this arrangement, as she fears Berserker stabbing them in the back in a bout of madness...

But it doesn't pan out that way. Iskandar holds a "banquet" among the Kings, and shortly after defeats Assassin, who intrudes on their gathering... Then the Masters band together to defeat Caster. And after all those exceptional situations, Artoria is almost glad to have her duel with Lancer at long last...

And then Kiritsugu ruins it, forcing Lancer's Master to kill his Servant... and then killed that same Master and his beloved in cold blood. That's the first real time Artoria understands that she and Kiritsugu will never get along.

... Yet Artoria gets an opportunity to reclaim her honor when she battles Iskandar. With his Reality Marble, it's a titanic battle... But she emerges triumphant with Excalibur. And around that same time, Berserker is felled by Archer.

Just like that, it's down to Saber and Archer to determine who will win the Grail... And Kiritsugu battles it out with Kirei. Gilgamesh proves too much trouble for Artoria, and even when Kiritsugu emerges triumphant, he betrays her and orders her to destroy the Grail for reasons unknown. At least unknown to her.

That war went on to be a stain for Artoria, one of her greatest failures... She and Kiritsugu never got resolution, and likely never would have even if they had gotten their happy ending... Their methods and ideals were too at odds. And yet... in the last few years of his life, Kiritsugu managed to save his daughter Illya. And he adopted Shiro, as the boy was made an orphan by the Great Fire. And they had Maiya supporting them as well.

It wasn't a perfect family life... Kiritsugu still died a few years after adopting Shiro. Maiya was left to care for the children, and Shiro promised that he would become a Hero someday in Kiritsugu's stead. Illya doesn't tell Shiro anything about the Grail War, even with her little brother picking up Trace and Reinforcement magic, as Kiritsugu had taught him. If she can help it, she doesn't want Shiro involved in the nightmare that is the Grail War. If they're lucky, they'll be old by the time the next one rolls around... That's what Illya is thinking, anyway. At least for the first few years.

That day for Shiro to stand up and prove himself... would come soon enough, as the Fifth Holy Grail War arrived. Cornered by Lancer after witnessing a battle between Servants, and then having been revived, Shiro summons Saber, running on pure instincts and fear.

It's... an awkward encounter. Saber repels Lancer... But Shiro knows nothing of the Grail Wars, barely knows any magic at all. He's even more spooked that Illya reveals she has a Servant of her own - Berserker - and hadn't counted on Shiro being involved in the conflict. Artoria gets a strange sense of deja vu upon seeing Illya, and she reveals that Irisveil was her mother, and Kiritsugu was her father. Shiro is the adopted son of Kiritsugu.

Artoria doesn't know what to think about these revelations... Shiro knows nothing of war, let alone the Grail War, and yet despite his lack of knowledge, despite whether he should bother getting involved... Shiro courageously accepts his role as a Master. As Artoria is soon to discover, Shiro is the polar opposite of Kiritsugu - the boy wears his heart on his sleeve, he's reckless, but he cares enough to protect people... Even tries to protect Artoria herself, despite their clear gap in combat ability.

She felt conflicted about being contracted to the Emiya's once more, even if she knew Illya from 10 years ago... But the more she spends time with Shiro, the more she is willing to give this new Master a shot. Her ideals resonate with Shiro, rather than clash... And for that, Artoria is grateful.

The Middle Act

Saber is... a very loyal, and dedicated Servant. (人◕ω◕);;; However... It's awful enough that Shiro is willing to ally with his sister when clearly there can be only one victor for the Grail. But it doesn't stop there. One of Shiro's schoolmates is also a Master, and he wishes to ally with her, too.

This is not how Holy Grail Wars are conducted. Saber is quite cross about it. (人◕ω◕);;;;;;; As rough as the last war went, at least alliances were temporary... The way Shiro talks with Illya and Sakura... makes Saber realize that Shiro understands very little about how these conflicts are supposed to go. The Grail can only grant one wish, and Artoria is both dutybound to make that wish go to her Master and selfish enough that she herself wants the wish... To save Britain.

It's not so easy just letting Shiro make alliances as he pleases. Shiro gives his trust out far too simply, and it's hard enough assuming Rider won't pull something... But to turn her back on Berserker? Never. Saber is too paranoid, and she almost rejoices when yet another schoolmate turns out to be a Master and she rejects Shiro's attempt at alliance.

... Because if four of them were on the same team, how was this conflict ever supposed to end? That's what Artoria worried over, in those early days of the war. Shiro was too trusting, and moreover there were just too many children doing battle... Saber needed to personally destroy some Servants, or she would never get any peace of mind about this.

Shiro tried calming her down, and while Artoria could understand not wanting to end his sister or his friends, the fact is their Servants needed to be eliminated. At the very least. When Shiro asks for kendo lessons, Artoria does so with gusto; she's a hard taskmaster, and she needs to vent.

Things go downhill when Caster kidnaps Shiro in an attempt to steal his Command Seals. Saber, Illya, Berserker, Sakura, and Rider all mount a rescue operation and defeat Caster, Assassin, and Caster's Master... Saber's thrilled to have made progress, and yet... For the next few days she fretted over Shiro and refused to continue training him. She didn't want him to get captured again and lose his Command Seals...

Not too surprisingly, however, Shiro does win her back over... with food. If cooking was a type of magic, Shiro would be the undisputed master. ... And to Saber's dismay, she has a rather... insatiable appetite. She grudgingly goes back to giving Shiro kendo lessons, though she impressed upon him the importance of letting her handle the Servants. With only five Servants remaining, Saber was beginning to plot how to take down Berserker before he could turn on them... Not that she escaped Illya's shrewd gaze; Illya assured the King of Knights she would never hurt her brother. They'd find a way to get the Grail without turning on each other, Illya and Sakura were quite adamant about staying loyal to Shiro.

It doesn't reassure Artoria. Not exactly. Shiro keeps insisting they're a team, but she's increasingly wary of Sakura and Illya betraying her, and just keeping Shiro alive. Saber doesn't like being paranoid... But after the last war, how can she not be?

Eventually they battle it out with Archer and Rin. And they come to discover Archer is a future possibility of Shiro, bitter about being unable to fulfill his ideals, and bitter about being betrayed in life... Archer wanted to destroy Shiro to end the cycle, but it wasn't to be. Not when he was fighting 3 against 1... 4, if you count Shiro trying to throw himself into the ring. These revelations about Shiro aren't easy to swallow, though Artoria certainly understands sacrificing themselves for one's people...

Shiro's problem is that he wants to save everyone. Including his enemies. It's a lofty dream... Perhaps too lofty. At least on his own. While Artoria still seeks to have her wish granted, she also finds a stronger resolve to support Shiro and his dream. Because in him, she senses a similar noble spirit...

Alas, Gilgamesh rears his ugly head. He takes down Berserker, and kidnaps Illya. He informs them of the Grail's true nature, taunts them and challenges them to come and fight...

It's a lot for Saber to take in. The wish-granting cup that she's tried to win for two wars now... It's nothing but a corrupted abomination. And moreover, Gilgamesh remained behind in this world, and she had been unable to defeat him last time. After Shiro performs that ritual with Rin to obtain more magical power, Saber comes to the realization that Avalon is implanted within Shiro... And she deduces it was Kiritsugu's doing. Shiro gives it back to her, hoping it will be enough to overcome Gilgamesh...

And she does. Artoria emerges triumphant in this battle, just as Medusa defeats Lancer and Shiro defeats Kirei... And after rescuing Illya, they all resolve to destroy the Greater Grail. They don't have to fight each other anymore, just destroy the Grail...

Artoria manages it. And yet... even though she expected to fade away after accomplishing this final task, because Shiro had one Command Seal left... Through some miracle, the ensuing explosion of energy granted her a new mortal body. And the same was true for Medusa.

This wasn't the ending they were expecting... But Artoria thinks she can live with this outcome. She didn't save Britain from ruin... But she does have a second chance at life. Opportunities like this almost never come by...

The Future

Living in the modern age... takes some getting used to for Artoria. She got a taste of it in both of the Grail Wars she fought in, but she knows full well this new arrangement will be... longer lasting. And moreover, she and Medusa both lost their Heroic Spirit abilities. Artoria still has muscle memory, and can move relatively quickly... But she's no longer superhumanly strong.

... And that's alright. Artoria can tolerate being "just a human" again. She's not overseeing another kingdom, but she does have a treasured family in Shiro, Illya, Sakura, and Rin. Artoria is even formally introduced to Mitsuzuri, and they hit it off pretty well. Seeing Maiya again when she returns... makes Artoria feel conflicted, but she can tell the woman is looking out for Shiro and Illya, keeping Kiritsugu's enemies off their trails.

She obliges Rin's plan to take Shiro to London for a few years, believing it would be just like a vacation for the three of them... Except Rin doesn't think bringing Artoria along is a good idea. ... And Artoria has quite cross words to say about that, insisting she must stay by Shiro's side...

Eventually Artoria grudgingly acquiesces. It's pointed out that if the Clocktower ever found out that she used to be a Heroic Spirit, she'd be experimented on by mages in no time flat. It's all too tempting to visit her homeland... It's just not a good idea for Artoria to do so at this time.

At least Shiro promises to bring her there someday. ... So that's something.

Artoria keeps the house in order while Shiro's away, juggling the antics of Sakura, Illya, Mitsuzuri, and Taiga-sensei... Sure, Shiro and Rin graduated from high school, but there's no need to do away with the honorific.

When Shiro gets back... Artoria is glad he's home. More than words can describe. (人◕ω◕) Of Shiro's girls, she's definitely the de-facto leader. It's too troublesome to let any of the others take charge. Artoria-chan is very prim and proper, and rules will be followed... (人◕ω◕)*** Even though Sakura took Shiro's virginity... Artoria is never able to quite forgive her for that. (人◕ω◕)

Rin bearing the first children is also an affront to Artoria's honor, but... Artoria will happily take the children that Shiro plants in her womb. (人◕ω◕) As competitive as she can be, the former King of Knights must still set an example. ... Even if she's jealous and moping. (人◕ω◕)

It's fine~... The end goal is to ensure Shiro's happiness. And to help him save others. As former leader of the Knights of the Round Table, Artoria is pleased to have all that battle experience, to help Shiro in the most dire of situations.

Everything will be fine~! \(人◕ω◕)/ Shiro and Artoria will uphold each other's honor. They respect and admire each other. Truly a touching, heartfelt couple. (人◕ω◕) ... If Artoria views the other members of the harem as her new "subjects", that is her business. No one else's. (人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)(人◕ω◕)

#fate stay night #artoria pendragon #saber artoria #Shiro x Saber #Shiro x Artoria #Shiro harem

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