Sorry for the late update, but life got in the way xD Anyhow, here is the first part of the two-parter:

There was the tell-tale sound of the TARDIS materializing as the Doctor and his two companions stepped out; dressed in brown, blue and red, respectively. The Doctor was talking excitedly about something his female companion, the legendary King of Knights – Artoria Pendragon, or rather Saber – was not too thrilled about.

"Doctor, you are very well aware of Shirou's cooking skill. I assure you that we do not have to go to a restaurant to try out this 'Pizza'. Merely buying the ingredients should work."

"No, Saber. If you already have a time-traveling space ship, of course you have to go into the land that invented pizza: Italy!"

Shirou simply sighed at the bickering pair. Taking over the kitchen was a surprisingly easy task, given that the Doctor couldn't cook very well and Shirou's skills bordered on EX-rank (or so Saber had said). The assortment of spices and other new ingredients was inviting for him to sharpen his skills even more; something Saber insisted upon. But when he'd asked what they should have for lunch and the Doctor suggested Pizza, Saber looked confused. He went into a hearty explanation about one of Italy's best dishes and by the time he finished, Saber asked her former Master if he would make some of it. Then the Doctor looked horrified, stormed out of the kitchen to the console room and coordinated the TARDIS into Italy.

Either way now it was time to end this madness. "Saber, we simply can enjoy ourselves here, without any kind of aliens, invasions and holy wars that are in truth corrupted. I'll get the ingredients for pizza on our way back."

This seemed to soothe the knight, as she huffed and turned her gaze towards the building where they 'parked' the TARDIS.

"Yes, I see. That would be most fortunate, Shirou. There is another concern however, Doctor."

"Hm?" said Time Lord stopped his little mental victory speech, "Yes?"

"Is it a smart idea to leave the TARDIS here, in another person's garden? Will it not be stolen?"

"Oh, no. No, no no! Of course not, people mostly ignore it. Now come on, let's eat!"

The mismatched group left the grounds, the Doctor ignoring the nagging feeling in his back that the TARDIS got lost once already in Italy. Walking through the districts however, Shirou noticed something.

"Uhm, Doctor?" waiting for the affirmative nod, he elaborated, "Pizza was invented around the 18th or 19th century, no? This looks to be… earlier?"

The group stilled its march. The Doctor looked guilty as Saber stared at him, her brow twitching in annoyance. He had learned the hard way that you were not allowed to go between the King of Knights and her hunger. Even without the legendary blade she was a force to be reckoned with. There was another memory resurfacing – another noble had looked the same way at him in their visit in Italy, which turned out to be quite …ashen.

"Don't worry, Shirou, Saber. We're in Italy! It's the country of love!"

He grinned delighted at his companion's blushing expressions. Really, it was too easy teasing them, sometimes. They walked around further, noticing how everything was very quiet. Not one human soul was on the streets, even though it was broad daylight.

"Strange…" the Doctor took out his screwdriver and scanned the air. Nothing. Absolute silence. "…it's as if the whole place is asleep."

Years of battle and conflict made Shirou's and Saber's shoulders tense, and she reached automatically for her sword…

…which was not there. Saber cursed inwardly, wondering when she'd get herself a new weapon. Everything she tried out was insufficient with her fighting style and would break sooner or later. Or was simply ineffective against some of the more curious beings she encountered nowadays. She was no Servant anymore, and as such had no access to Excalibur, since she'd given it back to the Lady of the Lake. While she had still mastery on Invisible Air, it needed something it could latch onto, however. And while she could call upon her armor with relative ease – it being also blessed by the Fae and able to disintegrate into pure prana by her will – the armor didn't come with a sword.

Which made it ironic in hindsight that she still wished to be called Saber. Maybe she should opt for Berserker or Assassin now.

A simple broadsword entered her vision, and she relaxed her stance for a moment, taking it. She gave a thankful smile to Shirou, which he returned, Kanshou and Bakuya already traced in his hands. He offered her to trace Caliburn, but she politely refused. The sword broke in her hands, and as such, she will not wield it again.

Changing her posture again, she saw the slightly annoyed glance from the Doctor.

"While I appreciate your reasoning, it would still be nice if you wouldn't walk around with a weapon at the slightest hint of danger."

Shirou snorted, "Says the man who went after the Weeping Angels with naught but a screwdriver."

"Sonic screwdriver. It's sonic. And now come on, I'm detecting a signal to the right." the Doctor hurried into the alley, followed by Saber and lastly by Shirou. They were silent, the only sound the humming of the screwdriver, until – and they were almost at the plaza in front of them – Shirou tensed.

Both Saber and the Doctor looked at him in surprise. "There's a bounded field around here."

"Oh, you mean the magic barrier thingy?"

Shirou nodded. "I didn't notice it before, since we landed in the middle of it, but it's clearly a bounded field. If I'd have to guess, it's surrounding the whole city."

"You would be quiet right, estranero."

Three pairs of eyes whipped around to the man standing in the pathway. Before the Doctor could even blink, Saber's blade was held against the neck of the man, only an inch from the vulnerable flesh.

The Doctor groaned. "Not again, Saber! Let him go." long gone were the days the Doctor tried to pay some kind of constant respect to the petite woman with a proper title. He turned to the man, who was now massaging his neck, looking fascinated. "I excuse myself for my companion, good sir."

"Accepted." his eyes were twinkling with joy. Shirou looked at the man.

"Were you the one who set up the bounded field? … I'm barely sensing any mana from you, though."

Saber however was still wary. The man escaped her natural instinct. "Who are you, if I might ask? A friend or foe?"

The Doctor groaned again. "You are way too distrustful, Saber."

She easily quipped back, "And you, Doctor, are way too trusting."

The man chuckled again. Holding out his hand in a placating gesture, he addressed the group as a whole, Shirou in particular. "It seems to me that you are not from around here, young mago. To answer your question, I didn't set the campo around la cita up; I am merely someone with fleeting interests in the art."

Shirou blinked. He always found it strange that the TARDIS translated speech to them but left out words that were accented differently, or that were curses. He'd have to ask the Doctor later. Now it was the Doctor's turn to look suspicious. "How do you know that Shirou is a magus?" he scanned the man again, but the screwdriver didn't detect anything.

"He's radiating a small, noticeable amount of what you 'magi' refer to as prana, Dottore. Just as signiora Saber is."

Saber looked equally surprised, but was silently impressed with this man's sharp mind. Something was bugging her, though. "You seem to already know our names, yet we still have to hear your own, good sir."

He laughed again. "Forgive me, signoretta. Il mio nome e Leonardo. As you seem to be strangers to this place, let me tell you that you are in Vinci, Florence."

The Doctor looked giddy at the man, and clasped his hand in a handshake. "Brilliant! It's my pleasure to meet you, Da Vinci! I love your works! Ignore these prudish people."

Saber's eyebrow twitched. While she tolerated many of his antics, this was certainly getting too far. She cleared her throat and positioned the weapon, balancing it partially on her shoulder. Shirou also was looking wide-eyed at the man, but didn't say a thing. "As much as it is pleasurable to meet you, Mr. Leonardo, it would do you good if you were to enlighten us over the situation at hand. Something the Doctor very obviously forgot to mention."

She glared at both men in her group. Shirou gulped, nodding. "She's right. Who set up the bounded field, if not the person that is still walking around."

The legendary man of many arts shrugged. "If I'd know, signiore, then I'd dispel it. I was merely coming into the city to get my requested canvas. Then I noticed you three amici, and here we are now."

Saber narrowed her eyes. "You claim to be no magus, yet you speak of dispelling the bounded field."

The Doctor and Shirou watched with ashen expressions as the petite blonde was readying her weapon once again, pointing it at the Italian. Both knew of course that the man in front of them was no threat, but Saber, coming a few hundred years before him, did not. There was only one hope Shirou had in mind, and it relayed heavily on her knowledge attained by the Grail.

"Saber…"

She glanced back at Shirou.

"From the knowledge you retained from the Grail, do you remember something like 'Mona Lisa' or 'The last Supper' or 'Louvre museum of Arts'?"

And with this comment, the tension in the air was dispelled.

Saber lowered her weapon from a surprised Leonardo, looking with wide eyes at Shirou. Almost in a whisper, she asked: "You mean…?" followed by a mortified expression at Shirou's and the Doctor's nodding. Turning slowly back to the legendary artist, she bowed curtly, muttering an embarrassed apology. He was staring at her in shock and wonder.

"No, no, no need to apologize, signoretta. This was only a misunderstanding, after all."

Shirou was about to reply, when the density of mana in the air rapidly decreased. Even the Doctor, as un-tuned he is to magecraft, could feel it. Scanning the atmosphere with his screwdriver, he muttered something incomprehensible.

"Leonardo, I'd hate to impose upon you, but could we –maaybe- continue this talk in private?"

The man nodded. "Follow me then, Dottore. My house is outside of the influence of the bounded field."

0.o.0.0.o.0

They arrived a short while later at the aforementioned house – actually a rather big manor on the outskirts of Vinci. Both Saber and Shirou were looking around like little children at Christmas, taking in the sights of the constructions.

Planes, artillery, anatomical studies, drawings of humans, animals, and other beings; there was a model of a city, an improvised aqueduct system and a magic-detecting bounded field that seemed to be transportable.

There were mathematical notes lying around, almost as if they were uninteresting.

"...wow..." Shirou was impressed; he'd been in the Louvre once, with Rin in tow, but this was on a completely different level. Hurrying past the model of a Marrabecca, he came to a stop with the rest of the group.

"Excuse il mio mess, per favore. I hadn't got time to clean my workshop."

"No, don't. It's alright." The Doctor glanced at his two companions and grinned, both grinning back. "It's a great privilege seeing your works, Leonardo."

Saber nodded. "Indeed." she was examining some of the pictures on the side, some of them still unfinished. Seeing something particularly interesting, she leaned forward. The Doctor glanced around himself. "Say, Leo? Would it be alright if we looked around a bit?"

"Si. Do as you wish. I will prepare some rinfresco."

And as the artist left, the time-travelers scattered around. "Shirou, what's the situation with the bounded field anyways?"

The teen looked up from the miniature model. "We wouldn't be able to dispatch it. Whatever made it has to show itself first."

Saber quipped in, still examining the picture, "Shirou is right. The field reminded me of some of Merlin's workings. It seems to be incredibly powerful. And subtle. Whoever did it is no amateur."

The Doctor sighed and scratched his head with the screwdriver. "Where are the easy to tell alien invasions? I'm starting to miss them. Blimey."

"Don't be like that." the Doctor could tell Shirou was smirking even with his back to him, "at least all of the monsters are from earth."

A few minutes later, da Vinci came back with the refreshments. He set the tray onto a nearby space, and walked over to Saber. She was still examining the picture, even though the rest of the group was already in the living room, waiting for the king of knights.

"Do you like the drawing, signoretta?"

Saber looked up at him. "Yes. It reminds me of something an old friend showed me once."

"I see."

"I do have one question though," she glanced back at the drawing, pointing to the earlier found oddity. "this... symbol; what is it?"

"..." the artist stayed silent, waiting until the Doctor and Shirou approached them, both with questioning looks on their faces.

"What's wrong, Saber?" Shirou leaned in, puzzled. She gave him a subtle glance, her main focus remaining the Italian genius. "I was merely questioning the meaning of this odd symbol. Nothing of concern."

The Doctor also leaned in, both men flanking the girl. "Hmm... you're right. I don't remember ever seeing this picture before. Leo?"

Leonardo was silent, watching them with weary eyes. "This picture is... was a prototype for my 'Last Supper', you could say." he took a deep breath. "I first envisioned it differently, si? But after my committente said it looked bad, I changed it." he smiled worriedly. "I still keep it around. Non lo so why, though."

Before any of the guests could comment on the strange behavior, da Vinci clasped his hands together. "We will dispel the campo in the night, si? I am starting to fear for the well-being of the cittadini."

"Ah-yes, yes of course."

Review Time:

Mazoku Tora'inu - Ah, I didn't know that

fanfic Reader - wait and see :) at least one of the questions will be answered in the next part

And I also shortened the chapters, as the first one was like the 'pilot', so it was longer than what I'm comfortable with writing, so the next part will hopefully be out faster XD