It too a while and a couple revisits but I finally completed this. I’m happy to have seen this to the end. It leaves off in a bittersweet yet saccharine note. I’m happy and hopeful for their future.

Christ... This is fucking horrible. Seriously good writing, I'm crying my eyes out while I type this. Poor Kiritsugu. Everyone knows how this ends, and yet. Its still awful.

I know I'm pretty late to the party but gosh that last scene hit my feels.
You portray the two so realistically, it only saddens me further knowing how this all ends T_T
Great job on the writing nonetheless, it's quite rare for me to feel like tearing up when reading.

So beautiful I can't even begin to describe it. Oh my God the feels are too much

I'm back to reading this again, and I still love the progression of this. I also love that you are taking a full account of Kiritsugu's life. Of course, with a character like his it might be easier than with some others, but I still commend you for not falling into the tempting trap of ignoring all the component pieces of a person's life and history to make a romantic arc run more smoothly. How much of this is drawn from canon facts, elaborated upon, and how much of it is your embellishment upon that? If that's not an easy question to answer, I understand, but it makes me curious all the same. For example, you noted Kiritsugu's last night with Natalia and I'm trying to remember what if anything we know about that. I have never heard or read translations of the drama CDs, so I'm having to go on faith. Anyway, I love this. The moment when Irisviel says her name was touching, and the opportunity she has to surprise Kiritsugu and to remind him of the necessity of accessing his own emotions to teach her about them was intriguing, well-written, and on an emotional level a little tantalizing about things to come.

I am really struck with the detail that you have given with Irisviel's eyes being striking to Kiritsugu because they are a very similar color to the color of blood. I am also very pleased that you are continuing to construct and explain your take on Kiritsugu based on his past experiences. I think that gives a lot more punch to your interpretation of his character that is perhaps a little more charitable than what one might get on a base read-through that didn't harbor a particular sympathy for him. I think that it works, but I also think that it is something that works from your particular view as an author, if that makes sense. I am very interested to see where it goes. I also love the image that he is a knight looking for a princess in danger and that he rejected this image, even though it was his own mind that posited it. I think it's interesting to bear in mind how young Kiritsugu was when he must have come to the Einzberns.

This prologue is short, but as I read I feel like I should comment as I go so I don't lose my train of thought as I come and go. I find it interesting that you are giving Kiritsugu a sense of empathy and compassion for Saber after the fact when it seems that throughout Fate/Zero he actively resists having any at all. I am wondering how that may thematically impact the rest of the story, and I look forward to reading more.

I realize that this story was finished quite a while ago, but I just recently watched Fate/Zero.

Despite the tragedy, I really am looking forward to reading this. From what I can tell so far, you're a talented writer.

I'll be posting reviews periodically, if that's alright with you. Thank you!

It was a beautiful story, stunningly done and very well written. Thank you for delivering such a great experience. I prepared myself for the "feels" I'll surely get at the end, yet it still manged to hit hard.

This shall forever be in my favorites of favorites. I can't wait to move on to the SN sequel.

Oh... This was just stunningly done. I was so much more impressed by Fate/zero than I was by Fate/stay night, so I was really excited to find a story- not to mention such an excellently crafted story- about the events of Fate/zero! I'm literally crying over this ending. Beautifully written.

I wasn't prepared for these feels.

This is such a gem in the entirety of FFN and I'm so glad that it exists because these two are my Fate OTP. You portray both of them so true to their canon counterparts and the way you just put together words to evoke such a powerful emotion within the reader is breathtaking.

I'll be leaving another review when I finish reading the entire thing, but for now - kudos. Their first kiss got me poor heart all aflutter qq

Chapter 18 is my favorite because you showed kiritsugu and illya spending time together. Something we didn't get a lot of time to see in fate/zero. Your story actually made me cry seeing how happy Illya is with Kiritsugu. Job well done

I read the story from beginning to end. And I loved it.

I love how you caught the characters so well, specially Kiritsugu, who is such a complicated character to write in my opinion, but you brought him very well him, as well Iri and the others. Also, this is one of the few fics that really made me sheer tears, specially the last chapters. The epilogue in particular is perfect, I also like to think that Kiritsugu and Irisviel reunited again in the afterlife, it is so sweet :'). I guess that means Illya is reunited with them after she dies (preferably in the Heaven's Feel route where I feel she shines the most at the end).

Beautiful work. Greetings!

Already on a sad note? Welp, I'm not crying yet.

Beautiful ending. Thank you for this wonderful story