Steak said: Sad how they ended up as sex friends only.
What?
They certainly *don't* end up as just "sex friends". Yeah, they have a lot of sex, but that's not the *only* thing their relationship is based on, or even the main thing. Their relationship is just like any other relationship (i.e, they *have sex*).
Probably more so, actually. I don't know many couples where one of them actually sacrificed their life for the other (and then said other waited for the rest of her life hoping he'd come back). That obviously hasn't happened in this scenario (since they're together), but it shows how devoted they are to each other.
So why did Rider feel the need to try and encourage Shirou to hook up with Sakura in Fate/Hollow? I know part of the reason why she did it was because she herself had feelings for him (damn him), but she had to have some basis for thinking that their relationship wasn't a good one.
Because Sakura has absolutely no self-esteem (after being treated so badly by Zouken and Shinji). She doesn't think *she's* good enough for *him*, and thinks that he won't reciprocate. In any case, she clearly *does* want him in HA, from what I can tell. She just isn't pushing *hard enough*, which is what Rider is trying to push along (Sakura is far too reserved to ever make a move like that, so Rider is trying to force him to see his feelings for her). Shirou doesn't make a move on her because he thinks it's wrong, because she's his junior, and his friend's sister. The issue is precisely that he doesn't *want* to think of her sexually, because he thinks it's wrong to do so. Saying that their relationship is solely about sex would imply exactly the *opposite* of what you are saying.
Try playing Heaven's Feel. It'll explain her reasoning adequately. In any case, what I was talking about is their relationship after that, which is *definitely* that strong.
