Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Type-Moon, Nasuverse, or Fate franchise. I just wish I own Jeanne and every incarnation of Arturia Face out there, and Scathach. I do own the plot though.

Act 0: Faith Born in Flames

Everything was burning. It was a view that came out straight of hell. Everyone was screaming in pain, desperately crying for someone to help them. It was in the middle of this inferno that a boy,looked no older than seven or eight, walked alone. His clothes were blackened from soot and a gash on his forehead was leaking blood. His left arm was wrapped around his body, as if supporting himself, and something hung by a chain of beads was clenched tightly in his right hand.

With each step he took, he ignored the pleas for help from others who were trapped inside the flaming wrecks.

'I'm sorry...'

With each step he took, he lost more and more of himself. He even began to forget about his parents and how they looked.

'I'm sorry...'

With each step he took, his body wracked in pain as the unholy flames licked him. He was dying, and he knew it. But he persisted and keep on walking through the flames even if he knew he was dying. All because of his faith on one thing that was left of him.

"Have faith in the Lord, ******! He will always protect you for as long as you believed in Him!"

He remembered the last word of that woman who had the same red hair and amber golden eyes like his. He didn't remember who she was, but recalling that memory made his chest hurt. Perhaps she was his mother, sister, or another family member, but it was this faith that was left of his old self and his dying self-preservation instinct had instantly and desperately clung into it. His faith in the Lord was preserved even as everything else about him was lost to the all consuming inferno around him.

He knew a kind yet stern man taught him everything about his faith, yet he didn't remember who he was. He remembered the woman from before took him into the church every Sunday to pray to the lord, yet who she was had escaped him. He remembered the man and the woman from before told him about a holy maiden who led her people into freedom, yet was betrayed and burned at a stake in the end. Unlike the memories of the man and woman, something inside of him held to those memory strongly, similar to his faith, even if everything else about him was burned by the wicked inferno.

The boy stumbled on uneven ground and fell face first. He struggled to stand up, but his body finally had reached its limit. With the last of his strength, the boy turned around and saw the blackened sky above him. He slowly turned his head to his right where he opened his palm, revealing a once beautiful ornate silver cross with an amethyst embedded in the center. It was now blackened with soot and burnt marks. He remembered it was the last gift from the woman from before, and he remembered it was a sign of his faith to the Lord.

The boy didn't hear the dying screams and cries of help anymore, only the crackling of unending inferno. He guessed they had died and soon he was going to join them. He already felt the flames about to consume him so he made his last prayer. It was the same prayer that the holy maiden uttered as she was being burned alive.

"O Lord… I entrust this body to you…" The boy closed his eyes, clasping his hands around the rosario he held and bringing them to his chest, waiting for the inevitable.

Only to feel a droplet of water on his face, followed by another, and another. The boy weakly opened his eyes and saw it was raining from the darkened sky above, extinguishing the unholy flames. It was as if God Himself was interfering to end this inferno on earth. The boy only watched in wonder and confusion at this miracle.

Why was God decided to act just now? Why did He only saved him, not those people who begged for their life? Why?

Footsteps.

He heard the footsteps of someone, irregular and desperate, as if that person was looking for something. He faintly heard that person, a man he believed, was shouting something, but it was muffled to the boy. The sounds of footsteps paused for a moment, before they became faster and louder as if the owner of those footsteps was coming for him.

Fading amber met with sunken, hollow black eyes. Their owner was indeed a man, a middle aged man with messy mop of black hair and dishevelled appearance. Despite his empty eyes, the man's expression showed nothing but joy and tears were threatening to spill from his eyes upon meeting his wavering gaze.

"You're alive…!" the man croaked joyfully. He then proceeded to hug the boy with all strength he could muster. "Thank you…! Thank you…!"

'Ah...I see...' the boy thought to himself as the man laid his body on the ground once more. He didn't knew what he was doing as the boy closed his eyes and smiled. A warmth unlike any other spread over his body and unknown to the young boy, began to mend his wounded body. 'You saved me… Because you want to save this person…'

'Thank you, O Almighty Lord…' with that last thought, the sweet bliss of unconsciousness welcomed the survivor of Great Fuyuki Fire.

Kiritsugu Emiya was a broken man. From young age, he was always followed by suffering and losses. Those tragedies after tragedies had left him hollow, broken, and distorted. His dream of being a hero was twisted into a cruel mockery of itself. For any lives he saved, he had to sacrifice more lives in process. The endless cycle had left him embittered and jaded, and even began to hate the very idea of heroes as he viewed them as nothing but glorified murderers.

When Kiritsugu learned about the Holy Grail from the Einzberns, he thought it was his salvation, his ticket for a peaceful where no one had to suffer like he did. How wrong he was. He had sacrificed everything for the Grail. His humanity, his protegee, his wife, and even his daughter for the sake of his wish. Only for his dream to be shattered in front of his eyes.

The Holy Grail couldn't grant his wish, or any kind of wish, because it was tainted and corrupted. It could only bring death and destruction with All Evil in the World present inside the Grail. Kiritsugu rejected the Grail and the Grail cursed Kiritsugu in return.

Now Kiritsugu Emiya was a dying and broken man. Fortunately for him, a miracle came in the form of the boy who had miraculously survived the flames. Even if he didn't have much time left, he would raise the boy to the best he could, if he ever accept his offer. It was the only way he could atone himself.

The Magus Killer was talking with a doctor about the boy's condition. While the doctor thought it was a miracle for the boy to survive the Great Fuyuki Fire with minimum injuries, Kiritsugu knew better. He had planted the hallowed scabbard of Excalibur, Avalon, inside him to ensure his survival. Its legendary healing property was more than enough to heal the boy's injury and brought him back from the verge of death.

Nodding thankfully to the doctor, Kiritsugu decided to check on the boy. It seemed that he had awoken for some time and was in the middle of praying. The former assassin decided to not disturb the boy and watched on with a sad, wistful smile. How long it was for Kiritsugu since the last time he prayed to the Lord, or other deities out there?

Too long, he decided.

Since losses and tragedies followed him wherever he went, Kiritsugu had long discarded the idea of praying to God or any almighty supernatural beings out there. He never believed in the idea of salvation given freely as it could only be attained by walking path of the less bloodshed. Now look where he ended up now. He mentally mused that his current condition now was a divine punishment from the Almighty for everything he had done.

The boy finished his prayer and noticed Kiritsugu in the room.

"Hello there," Kiritsugu smiled as he greeted the boy. "Are you doing alright?"

"Yes. Thank you so much for saving me back then," the boy answered.

"I'm just glad you're alright," the former assassin replied. "Can you tell me your name?"

The boy seemed to think about it for a moment before a confused frown expressed on his face. "...I...I don't remember… I only know bits and pieces, so…"

"I see…" Kiritsugu sighed and winced internally. While Avalon healed his body, the same couldn't be said for the boy's mind. Apparently, the trauma he got from the fire had caused him to lose the most of his memories. Although, some of the boy's past still remained as seen from him praying before.

A thought then passed the boy's mind for a moment before he uttered, "…Shirou…"

"Huh?"

"Shirou… it's my name, I think…"

Kiritsugu nodded, acknowledging the boy as Shirou. "Now that you have awakened, you have two options to choose." The former Magus Killer sat on the chair next to the hospital bed. "You can go to the orphanage that the government opened for the children that survived the fire and wait for someone to adopt you."

Shirou nodded at his words imploringly,

"If you don't like it, then you can come with me. I will adopt you as my son," Kiritsugu added. It was the least he could do for the boy. The Great Fire of Fuyuki was partly his fault after all and raising Shirou might ease some guilt he felt.

"I'll come with you," the boy answered almost instantly. He then smiled at Kiritsugu, "After all, we met because of the guidance of the Lord. Refusing your offer means I was refusing the Lord's grace."

"...Thank you," Kiritsugu answered with a thin smile. It seemed the boy was a religious one thanks to his former upbringing. Somehow, the answer Shirou gave to him soothed Kiritsugu's weary heart and soul. "I'll get the paperwork done as fast as I can. Though seeing that we are going to live together, I will tell you a secret of mine."

"What kind of secret?" Shirou asked curiously.

"I'm a magic user."

Kiritsugu and his adopted son, Shirou Emiya, decided to move somewhere else because Fuyuki City brought nothing but bad memories for him and Shirou. He pulled a favor from some of his contacts and moved to France instead where the father and son family lived in the outskirt of Orleans. Their new home wasn't anything fancy, just a modest two story house with a porch on the backyard. The new Emiya residence located not too far from a local church where Shirou always went to in Sunday.

The former Assassin watched with a smile as his adopted son was playing with orphaned children who was fostered by the church. This was how it should be, for children to play freely without a care in the world. Perhaps one day, he would be able to get Illya to join her brother…

Kiritsugu sighed heavily at that. Who was he to kid? The Einzbern no doubt had heard what he did and waltzing into their territory on the Black Forest was a suicide, given his frail and cursed state. Perhaps. presenting the truth would work? He somehow doubted that Jubachtsteit would ever listen to him, given that Kiritsugu had all but betrayed the Einzbern when he ordered his Servant, Saber, to destroy the Holy Grail.

"Oh? How unusual to see the Magus Killer around a Church like this."

Kiritsugu turned toward the familiar voice and saw his contact that provided his home in France was approaching. At the first glance, he looked like your kind, elderly Father, with neatly trimmed graying sandy brown hair and beard, and twinkling blue eyes. He was wearing black cassocks with black shoes and complemented by square-rimmed glasses resting on the bridge of his nose and golden rosary hung on his neck. But Kiritsugu knew better because this man was also one of the Executors of the Church who despite of his age and one of the bests. This man was known as Father Mattheus as everyone called him, though whether it was his real name or not was unknown.

"Mattheus," Kiritsugu acknowledged with a nod.

If the Father noticed any change in Kiritsugu right now, he paid no heed for it. Instead, he stood next to him and said, "You sure have stirred up things, Emiya. The Einzbern now consider you as a traitor and unperson for what you did back in Fuyuki."

"I suspect as much," Kiritsugu smiled in self-depreciating manner. "It is that, or condemning the world for a death sentence."

Father Mattheus quirked an eyebrow curiously. "What do you mean? Is it related to Great Fuyuki Fire?"

Kiritsugu glanced around and answered, "It is related somewhat, but I can't tell you here. Too many ears and eyes around."

Mattheus nodded and looked at what Kiritsugu was watching. He noted that the former assassin's attention was focused on a red-haired and amber-eyed boy with a burn-marked cross hung on his neck. "Is he your adopted son you told me?"

"That is right. I saved Shirou from the fires of Fuyuki and took him in," here Kiritsugu smiled a little bit. "That boy is very religious and has strong faith. He even made me to pray to God after who knows how long. Though considering it was all left of him after that fire… I am not too surprised with that."

"I see… a literal baptism by fire," Mattheus mused. "Or rather, a rebirth by fire."

"I would rather not to put it the way you did. Because what happened back then, it was in no way as close as those," the Magus Killer frowned.

"My apologies. I did not intend the slight," Mattheus placated.

"Dad!" Shirou called out as he approached Kiritsugu and Mattheus, smiling widely.

"Did you have fun, Shirou?" Kiritsugu asked as he knelt and patted his son's head.

"I did and I made some friends too!" Shirou answered enthusiastically before he noticed the man in cassock get up. "Who are you, mister?"

"You may call me Father Mattheus, son. I am an acquaintance of your father," Mattheus introduced himself smoothly.

"Oh, it's an honor to meet you, Father," Shirou replied before he bowed to Mattheus. "My name is Shirou Emiya. Will you join me and my father for supper?"

Mattheus smiled and looked amused at this. With a chuckle, he replied. "Very well. If you could please lead the way, Emiya?"

Kiritsugu sighed and muttered low enough under his breath, "Like you don't know where our home is…"

Mattheus only smiled as his old contact led him toward his home. Meanwhile, the Executor was chatting with Shirou and was impressed with his knowledge about Christianity, although there were redeemable gaps thanks to his amnesia, and his faith to the Lord. If he didn't knew any better, this boy would make a good Executor in the future, provided that Kiritsugu allowed him to. Lord knew that there were so many heretics out there needed to be taken care of before they became a bigger threat.

Once they arrived in the house, Mattheus was once again surprised when Shirou immediately headed to the kitchen after he washed his hands and feet to prepare supper for him, his father, and their guest. Seeing Mattheus' raised eyebrow, Kiritsugu chuckled sheepishly and explained to his acquaintance.

"I'm very helpless when it comes to housework. In fact, I nearly burned the house down when I tried to cook something. Shirou then took it on himself to teach how to cook and housekeeping."

"Some father you are," Mattheus shook his head amusedly before he regarded Kiritsugu more seriously. "Your son is a Magus, is he not?"

The former assassin sighed wearily. Trust his told contact to know about his son with a single glance. "He is. Twenty seven B-rank magic circuits is not something you find on a first generation Magus, so most likely he came from Magus family that has a tie with the Church," Kiritsugu answered as he surmised his theory about Shirou's origin.

"Do you want me to look for his family?" Mattheus asked, but Kiritsugu shook his head.

"No, he was all I have right now. I don't have much time in me, so at the very least…" the former assassin trailed off with a sad, wistful look. "…Please allow me to be selfish this time."

Mattheus sighed, "If there is anyone who has the right for that, it is you Emiya. Very well."

"Thank you, Mattheus."

"However, there is one thing that I want to ask you,"

"What is it?"

"What do you think of your son becoming an Executor?"

Kiritsugu's eyes widened when he heard Mattheus' proposal. "…What?"

"You heard me, Emiya. I want to recruit your son as an Executor for the Church. We are getting shorthanded these days and a new recruit will be much appreciated," Mattheus explained.

The former assassin's eyes narrowed dangerously and became cold, just like during his days as the Magus Killer. "Explain."

"With the death of Kotomine Rise and Kotomine Kirei in the Fourth Holy Grail War of Fuyuki as well as the loss of our numbers in the last Death Apostle raid, the Church is now looking for some new talent for their replacement. I admit my visit here is actually not just a social visit, but also to scout for new bloods as well," Mattheus replied evenly as he stared unflinchingly right at Kiritsugu's cold eyes. "So imagine my surprise to find a potential recruit raised by the Magus Killer. He has the right mindset and possibly a child of a Church affiliated Magi family with a potential as well. It will be a waste for me to not to try to recruit him."

Kiritsugu just stared at him with cold, blank eyes of the Magus Killer.

"I will not try to recruit him immediately knowing how much he meant to you. For now, try to roll the idea to him and listen to his opinion. I will not force him or you, but it is my most sincere hope that he will join. People with talent and mindset like your son does not come often, Emiya," Mattheus added.

Kiritsugu closed his eyes and sighed heavily. He looked at his son who was busy in the kitchen, bustling around as he prepared for the supper. "I have no intention to drag him into our world, but…"

Mattheus arched a curious eyebrow, motioning to Kiritsugu to continue.

"That boy… he never stopped to ask me to teach him magecraft since the day I revealed to him that I am Magic User. I never know why he insisted so much, but I turned him down each time he did."

"Then why don't you have a talk with him? Ask him why he wanted you to teach him magecraft in the first place," Mattheus suggested. "Besides, you have not tell me what you know about the cause of Great Fire of Fuyuki."

Kiritsugu grimaced in remembrance as the cursed Grail, using the face of his beloved wife, cursed him for rejecting it. "…Tell me, Mattheus. What do you know about Angra Mainyu?"

The dinner was superb, in Mattheus' opinion. Despite his age, Shirou has a real talent in the kitchen. Now he really hoped the boy would join the Executors now. At least now he and his brother at arms wouldn't worry eating bland foods during their Apostle and Heretic hunts.

Still, it didn't do a thing to settle his uneasiness from what he learned today from Kiritsugu. If it was true… Then his superiors need to know about this, as soon as possible.

The question was, would the Magi listen to the Church this one time?

Meanwhile, Kiritsugu and Shirou did their daily stargazing in the back porch of their home. There was only silence between father and son as they gazed at the starlit night sky. Kiritsugu was still thinking about Mattheus' offer to make his son an Executioner of Church while also asking himself why did he revealed the Tainted Holy Grail to Mattheus who would definitely tell his superiors in the Church.

'I must have getting soft…' the former Magus Killer mused to himself before he glanced at his son. While Kiritsugu had used Structure Analysis on him back then when he first adopted Shirou, he had used it out of curiosity and wasn't planning to make him a Magus or even a Magic User like himself. To Kiritsugu, the supernatural side of the world brought nothing but misery. He lost his first crush, his adopted mother, his wife, his protegee, and his daughter because of it. He had no intention to let Shirou walk into that side, despite his son's insistence to teach him magecraft and the talent he has.

He then recalled of Mattheus' suggestion to ask Shirou why he wanted Kiritsugu to teach him Magecraft in the first place. It was fair enough, he thought to himself, since Kiritsugu usually just rejected it gently without hearing Shirou's reasoning. What was the harm of listening for once?

"Shirou," Kiritsugu called to his son. "Why are you so insistent on me teaching you Magecraft?"

"What makes you ask that, dad?" Shirou asked back.

"Nothing, if it is only to satiate my own curiosity," Kiritsugu answered.

Shirou shifted a little before he answered. "It's… well… I think I remembered a bit of my past when you told me you are a magic user." Kiritsugu arched a curious eyebrow as he motioned Shirou to continue. "I remembered something … from my past. That man… my father, I think, told me that I was special. I guess when you mentioned you are a magic user, that means I am too. Besides, if God gave me this, then why I shouldn't do something good with it?"

Kiritsugu sighed and went silent for a moment before he answered, "…Yes, you are. You too are a Magic User with a good potential. Remember when I used a spell to check on you? That spell also showed me that you have necessary Magic Circuit to use Magecraft."

"Then, why don't you teach me?" Shirou asked, a little confused.

"…Because I don't want you to be like me…" Kiritsugu answered tiredly.

"What do you mean, dad?" Shirou asked curiously with a little of trepidation on his tone.

"You're a good boy, Shirou and your intention is very noble, however the world does not exactly work that way, especially when you're talking about the world of Magi," Kiritsugu sighed and looked at Shirou. To his adopted son, Kiritsugu seemed to suddenly age for quite some years judging from the tired look on his face. "Take an example of me, Shirou."

"You?"

"When I was a young boy, I dreamed to be a hero that can save everyone. But when I was faced with reality, my dream… it suddenly become powerless and had no meaning. It was because of my father's obsession with immortality, I lost my first friend and an entire population of an island were also killed. He was also very first person I've ever killed. Some years later I have to kill my own adopted mother along with the whole passenger of a flight just because another Magus would stop at nothing to reach Akasha… even if he had to cast away his humanity. After that, I had to watch my dream became twisted over and over again… The amount of people I have to kill to save the others… it made me sick. And then… just when I think there was a salvation for this world… to be a better and peaceful place…"

"Dad…" Shirou said when he noticed his father was trembling. What happened prior to Shirou's adoption must had affected Kiritsugu deeply. "You don't have to continue."

Kiritsugu inhaled and exhaled loudly. "The Holy Grail… I thought it was the miracle I sought all this time, so I gave everything to obtain it. But what did I got in the end? My wife is dead, my protegee is also dead, I will never fulfill my promise to my daughter to see her again, and I'm slowly dying. Do you see, Shirou?" He turned to his son and Shirou could see how much the deal with Holy Grail affected him. "This is why I don't want you to get involved with the world of Magi. You are the only salvation I got after all the mess with the Holy Grail, Shirou. I don't want you to end up to be like me, a hollow and broken man who lost everything because of his naivety to pursue an impossible dream."

There was another silence as Shirou looked away from Kiritsugu and gazed at the starlit night sky above. Kiritsugu sighed heavily as he too opted to gaze at the night sky. It was for the best to crush his hopes now rather than seeing his son becoming crushed by the cruel reality that was the world.

"…I won't end up like you, dad."

Shirou's sudden words surprised Kiritsugu. The not quite 8 years old turned up to him with a smile.

"I'm not saying that I would follow your dream, but whatever path I will take, I won't end up like you because you are going to guide me. Even if you are not here anymore, at least I know you will be watching over me so I won't end up like you. Besides…" Shirou then clasped the burnt cross, the last memento of his old life, with both of his hands. "God is here with me. He too will become my guide and make sure that I won't stray from my path."

Kiritsugu just watched in silence as his son declared his intention loud and clear. What caught him off guard was the certainty and determination carried in his tone. The former Magus Killer wanted to scoff at it or at least putting down the notion gently, but he found himself loss at words. He couldn't find a good argument to counter his son's notion. It was like… he found himself believing every words his son said.

The former assassin was having an internal conflict. Should he listen to his paternal instinct and vow to keep Shirou away from the Supernatural side of the world in general or should he listen to his son's declaration and baseless believe?

After another good deal of silence, Kiritsugu stood up and left the porch, prompting a questioning look from his son.

"Dad?"

"Go to bed Shirou. Starting tomorrow, you will be busy," Kiritsugu answered before he turned to Shirou and smiled at his confused look. "Don't you want to learn about Magecraft?"

Shirou's expression broke into the biggest smile he had ever seen. "Thank you, dad!"

Kiritsugu merely smiled and gestured him to enter the house. Shirou practically raced to his room and said a hurried 'goodnight' to him. Kiritsugu shook his head at his enthusiasm. While a part of him were against this decision, he couldn't help that this was the right choice. After all, a parent should believe in their child, right?

A/N: Welcome to my first ever Fate Fan Fiction. I have been a fan of Fate franchise years ago when I first learned of its existence years ago. Thank you, Saber, you Type-Moon's Cash Cow, for catching my interest. This story was born after months of playing Fate/Grand Order and several things I disagreed with Fate/Apocrypha. Like its main pairing and ending. I'm still trying to make sense of it until today and I think Jeanne could've done much better than Sieg the Homunculus. So who is better our resident Eroge Protagonist, Shirou Emiya? Pairing is serious business, you know? Since his past is pretty much blank slate, I took some liberty on it. I hope it will sit well with you all. So, the things changed here are:

1. Not all of Shirou's past is lost and he still retains bits and pieces, such as his Faith, hence the title of this story.

2. Ryuunosuke targeted the wrong family and ended up dead. The Master of Caster and Caster of the Fourth War are different this time around.

3. The Kotomines'alliance with Tokiomi revealed during the course of the war and they were dead when the Kotomine Church was blown up.

4. Gilgamesh is NOT the surviving Servant of the Fourth War and got bathed in the spilled contains of the Grail. Someone else is and the final boss of the Fifth Grail War is a different Servant.

5. The Fifth Grail War will be a war between factions ala Apocrypha, but with different sides and players.

Please tell me what you think of this. Your feedback for this brainchild of mine is much appreciated. Also, this chapter is not Beta-ed, and I'm looking for someone who has vast knowledge of Nasuverse and good grammar for my Beta. English isn't my first language so do forgive me and my less than stellar grammar. I hope to see you all soon since my schedule is somewhat packed. I'll try to update this whenever I can. Thank you for reading, and have a good day.