[She twitches at that, and finds that her hands have clenched into tight fists. Though she makes an attempt to relax them, she can't say it's working all that well.]
If either of us were willing to make that trade, we would not have been involved in the War in the first place.
[Though... at the very least, Illya shouldn't be losing both of them. And she hasn't forgotten what else he told her.]
So... when you denied it, the Grail made it impossible for you to see her again?
( Well, no. That's not quite what he meant. She needed context, further elaboration. It's not as though he wouldn't fight tooth and nail to see Illya again, however, there were other factors at play, both ones Iri could probably assume, and ones he'd been holding close to the chest. )
I cannot imagine a world in which Acht would allow me. ( He confessed. She knew as well as he did that Acht would require a vessel in upcoming war. Illya would be their prime candidate. He lingers for a moment more, before adding: ) I've been cursed, Iri.
( Angra Mainyu. All the World's Evil. It's been stalled, in this world, but there's no telling how it will affect him going forward. His grip around Iri tightens, giving her a shoulder to cry on if she wished. )
[She's aware that Acht would fight as hard as he possibly could to keep Kiritsugu away and Illya under his thumb, but the true worry is him actually being able to prevent it. By all rights Kiritsugu should be able to make his way through whatever defenses the Einzbern patriarch erected. It was his forte, really.
Yes, that's right. ( His confirmation is near immediate, busying himself by stroking her hair. He didn't want to think, didn't want to dwell on the implications. Who knows how much longer he'd have to live, let alone saving his daughter. ) Angra Mainyu. All the World's Evil. That is the curse I bear.
( He's doing his best not to choke on his words. Not to break down and cry in front of her. Yet, he couldn't help but feel as though his stability has hanging by a thread, and Iri was at the end of it. )
I woke up covered in Grail mud. ( He cannot imagine that'll be especially good for his health. In a slightly weaker voice, he adds: ) I'm sorry, my love. I failed you.
All the World's... [Irisviel attempts, for a brief moment, to try to wrap her mind around that concept. It goes about as well as one might expect, and she's forced to just stop and shake her head in utter disbelief.]
It can hardly be considered your failure... none of us knew, even guessed that the Grail was tainted in such a way. I can't even fathom how that could be... or how no one discovered it in the first three wars.
[That's not really what's important now, though, is it?]
So then... everything we were trying to do was doomed from the onset. And Acht won't... there's no way he could accept it, even if you tried to tell him.
[She knows the old man well enough to be certain of that.]
( Yeaaaah, Kiritsugu has his suspicions about that. )
Ask Justeaze.
( Wait, no. Actually he should elaborate. )
I suspect that someone would've attempted to summon Angra Mainyu during the prior war. Likely the Einzberns, as they'd be the most desperate.
( I mean, why do you think they hired him, Iri? As for Kiritsugu's part, he doesn't even seem exasperated, exactly. Just... tired, weary. As though the world were crumbling beneath his feet. )
[It's actually kind of impressive, in a horrible way. Everything he tells her in this conversation is only making things worse. At this point she's starting to feel a little numb.]
Summon... Angra Mainyu.
[How does she even address that?]
I know all Magi are a little mad by definition, but... that is utter madness.
And yet, I wouldn't put it past them. ( He was trying to avoid saying this much, but. ) Angra Mainyu copied your personality, Iri. That means they were connected to the grail, itself.
( Please don't make him elaborate further than that. )
[All she can do is shudder. Her hands have crept up to her arms, wrapped around herself as she feels the chill of sheer horror at what all this means.]
So when they were summoned, then slain and returned to the Grail, they became a part of it. And even after the Third War's end, they lingered on... indelibly part of the Grail now.
[And so not only can they not use the Grail for their intended plan, but if anything they desperately need to prevent it from being summoned at all.]
It's as though our intentions were being mocked from the beginning.
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synflux2024-02-20 07:43 pm
no subject
If either of us were willing to make that trade, we would not have been involved in the War in the first place.
[Though... at the very least, Illya shouldn't be losing both of them. And she hasn't forgotten what else he told her.]
So... when you denied it, the Grail made it impossible for you to see her again?
no subject
I cannot imagine a world in which Acht would allow me. ( He confessed. She knew as well as he did that Acht would require a vessel in upcoming war. Illya would be their prime candidate. He lingers for a moment more, before adding: ) I've been cursed, Iri.
( Angra Mainyu. All the World's Evil. It's been stalled, in this world, but there's no telling how it will affect him going forward. His grip around Iri tightens, giving her a shoulder to cry on if she wished. )
no subject
But if he was being held back by something...]
Cursed? By... the Grail, you mean?
no subject
( He's doing his best not to choke on his words. Not to break down and cry in front of her. Yet, he couldn't help but feel as though his stability has hanging by a thread, and Iri was at the end of it. )
I woke up covered in Grail mud. ( He cannot imagine that'll be especially good for his health. In a slightly weaker voice, he adds: ) I'm sorry, my love. I failed you.
no subject
It can hardly be considered your failure... none of us knew, even guessed that the Grail was tainted in such a way. I can't even fathom how that could be... or how no one discovered it in the first three wars.
[That's not really what's important now, though, is it?]
So then... everything we were trying to do was doomed from the onset. And Acht won't... there's no way he could accept it, even if you tried to tell him.
[She knows the old man well enough to be certain of that.]
no subject
Ask Justeaze.
( Wait, no. Actually he should elaborate. )
I suspect that someone would've attempted to summon Angra Mainyu during the prior war. Likely the Einzberns, as they'd be the most desperate.
( I mean, why do you think they hired him, Iri? As for Kiritsugu's part, he doesn't even seem exasperated, exactly. Just... tired, weary. As though the world were crumbling beneath his feet. )
no subject
Summon... Angra Mainyu.
[How does she even address that?]
I know all Magi are a little mad by definition, but... that is utter madness.
no subject
And yet, I wouldn't put it past them. ( He was trying to avoid saying this much, but. ) Angra Mainyu copied your personality, Iri. That means they were connected to the grail, itself.
( Please don't make him elaborate further than that. )
no subject
So when they were summoned, then slain and returned to the Grail, they became a part of it. And even after the Third War's end, they lingered on... indelibly part of the Grail now.
[And so not only can they not use the Grail for their intended plan, but if anything they desperately need to prevent it from being summoned at all.]
It's as though our intentions were being mocked from the beginning.