Why we're Here (Shirou, priv)

Shirou laughed at Marigold's reason. Deep down, he felt a small sense of relief that Marigold didn't seem to see him as a monster just pretending to be a decent human being. A large part in why he never felt motivated to talk about his past was because it was bloody and selfish. Shirou did a lot of things he was not proud of, things he regretted doing.

"I guess that's pretty much my life story," he said with a weary smile. He glanced outside the window, looking at the buildings and the people walking to and fro. "If Onyx appeared in this universe and continued his destructive behaviors, I'd have to stop him this time. Protect this universe."

Shirou turned to Marigold and grinned. "And I'm quite grateful that you are here. You definitely tip the scales in our favor."

"Guess that's both of our life stories." She said with a light chuckle, noting the weariness in Shirou's smile. The past always tired others out, especially if they've done a lot before points like these. Marigold stood from where she sat and walked over to the window, her eyes gazed outward. "And I'd help you protect our home from him, if and when he becomes a threat. Hell, that goes for anyone who dares to kill the peace." Her voice came resolute and confident at the last statement.

A glance over her shoulder, she smiled sweetly and giggled. "You flatter me, Shirou." The woman said easily, then turned her body to him fully. "This has been a very eye-opening experience. I've learned a lot and as they say, knowledge is only half the battle." Her arms crossed beneath her bust, followed by her letting out a soft, pleasant sigh. "Glad you took me up on this offer. We've only ever just been business with one another, so it's good to see I can have a friend in you."

There was silence, as Shirou did not immediately reply. He talked about his history, and it dredged up regrets and other poor feelings that he had long since buried. Shirou was the bad guy at one point in time. In fact, that's how his story ended in his home universe. He didn't die valiantly or as a hero. He died a manipulative, power-hungry dictator. And even though he was able to pull himself back from that, what he did still happened. For the people he left behind, that was who he was. And that was why Shirou worked so hard to restore Athens. That's why he was protecting it. He knew it didn't negate the evil he did, but he had to do something.

"How do you think our kids are going to turn out?" Shirou asked, breaking the silence to escape his thoughts. He thought he'd talk about his future now. It was looking more optimistic.

Now that was an interesting question to break the silence. The future, THEIR future. There was no surprise that Shirou, Marigold, plus a few others had children that had grown quite a bit. How were their kids going to turn out? Morgan was groomed to be a queen but she was also a special case, one that was the most logical young woman Mari had ever met. Maria was in the same boat but she was a playful thing, who loved almost everyone. A light giggle escaped from Marigold's lips.

"You know, it's hard to answer that exactly. We tried our best to raise our children to do the right things, but honestly, I think these upcoming years will answer that question for us. I just hope they'll do their best to make the right decisions... What about you, Shirou? How will your darling little Hoshiko turn out?" She asked him with a warm smile. Marigold moved to stand close to him, her eyes still gazing outward to the town.

"Hoshi..." Shirou closed his eyes. "Better than me, I hope. Though, I'm worried I messed up a lot. I restricted her freedom for what I claimed was for her safety, but now she's timid of the worlds and resentful towards me because of it. I hope that she becomes a good person, even if that means she hates me."

Marigold, after hearing the man's words, came to his side. A gentle, gloved hand had touched upon his shoulder, followed by her giving the god of death a simple, warm, confident smile. "She's at that phase, you know? Regardless of how well you do as a parent, I do believe they'll go through that rebellious phase, where they'll want to explore anything and everything, even if it means butting heads with their parents."

A light giggle left her lips, as her mind retraced to her teenage years. That was when she experimented with a lot of vices and other activities. Needless to say, it was befitting of a princess being groomed for the throne. "She doesn't hate you, Shirou. The fact you're not hounding after her even after she's gone, shows that you trust her at least a little and she'll pick up on that. Eventually, your daughter will even thank you for doing your best as a father. So chin up, Hoshi will be a wonderful woman, who'll love you til the end."