Disclaimer: I own nothing.

I'm back. And I've done some thinking. Recently, I've been rewatching some old Adventure Time episodes. You know, even if I'm legally considered an adult and is supposed to have outgrown cartoons, I can't stop watching this show.

And then I remembered, I had an Adventure Time fic. Well, not that I forgot, I just chose to ignore it in favor of my other works. Anyway, I decided to take a look at it, and what I saw made me cringe, as well as smile.

Cringe, because I sucked as a writer back then (I still suck mind you, but damn, that was a whole other level of sucking), and smile, because I remembered how I started. I enjoyed writing. So that's what I'm doing with this story, and all my other stories. So for my sake, I've decided to rewrite that. It won't come up too soon mind you, but in the meanwhile, I encourage you people to read that first story. I don't always tell people to read my stories, but honestly, take a look at it if you have the time and like Adventure Time. I'm not embarrassed about it, and I sure as hell am not ashamed by it. Whether or not you're a fan of me, I can guarantee that you'll find something to nitpick about that story.

So take it apart, bash it, insult it, love it, like it, or ignore it. But honestly, that's where I started. That's where I began, where I learned to love my writing, even if it's crappy and absolute shit. I've grown as a writer; at least, I think I have. But it never hurts to look back at what I've made. All great artists know that their earlier works are never good enough. But they know that this was good enough for them at the time, and that they could improve over time.

With that said, I have to honestly ask. Do I try too hard when I write? Cause to me, I just write whatever comes naturally. Think of it as a sixth sense or whatever, call it wrong or not, but that's just naturally what I write. But don't mistake that for just writing what comes to mind. I go through a process as well after I finish a chapter. I read it, and reread it over and over again while looking for grammar typos and seeing what fits and what doesn't in my stories. Admittedly, I sometimes don't do a good enough job for it. But in the end, I post stuff that I'm satisfied with, that most people will like. Some don't, and I appreciate them being truthful about my story. But I need to know what you guys honestly think of my stories, don't just say they're all good. Or that don't worry about it. As a writer that actually wants to get into professional writing (fat chance), I need to know your honest opinions. Sure your positive reviews are encouraging, but I need something that will make me think, that will make me see what I'm doing wrong. I can take it, though once again, I'll defend my point of view if I feel like it. I just want reviews that honestly tell me what they think and don't just offer encouraging words, those things are poison to a writer.

Aside from that, this is rated T for a reason people. Ragna's profanity is one of them. Also, Rachel is literally immortal here. She really can't die. One of the villains in Blazblue (who I won't reveal cause spoilers) was concerned about Rachel and her immortality and power, that they designed a specific prison for her that will trap her for all eternity. Yeah, the Blazblue universe has people that will make the ORT their bitch if they want to. That said, only really high tier Blazblue characters can do that. Most of which are time-warpers and reality benders.

And with that wall of bold text out of the way. On with the show!

XxX

"Argh…" He muttered as he sat up. Damn, he had a splitting headache, whatever it was that hit him, it hit him hard.

"My head," He moaned as he raised his right arm to clutch it. Damn it, now it was throbbing. He needed an aspri- wait, right hand? "What the-"

He began as he pulled his right hand away from his head. There, he saw it, an arm. His arm. "What the fuck?" Was all he managed to say as he stared at it. Didn't it get slashed off by that knife? Why the hell was it still there?

He then looked around him, and discovered something even more bizarre. "Where the..." He began as he looked around him. As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but barren land and cloudy twilight skies. How the heck had he gotten here?

He stood up, forgoing dusting his pants as he stared at the yellow ground around him. Well, wherever he was, it was a wasteland. There was nothing but empty space around here. Nothing could be used as a landmark. Damn it, did that guy reattach his arm, before deciding he would have some fun with him by leaving him here? He didn't even know where here was! Did he want him to suffer?!

"Damn it Terumi you bastard." He muttered as stared at his right arm. Surprisingly, it felt right. Well, at least he had it. That meant his chances for survival were double now that he had both his arms. Not that having both would make a difference though. He didn't know where he was, and he didn't have any food or water or even any kind of weapon. It was simple math here, zero chances of survival times two still equals zero.

He was still very much fucked.

"At least leave me a weapon like your knife you bastard." He muttered under his breath as he sat back down. Saya always told him he was too impulsive sometimes, that he didn't things through. And he learned that she was right the hard way when he ran towards her and Terumi and got his right arm severed.

"That was one sharp knife though." He remembered the knife, that weird balisong knife he had that sliced through muscle and sinew. He remembered what it looked like, and what it felt like when it was slicing through his arm. He could use a weapon like that, there's no telling what sort of danger's he'll come acros-

Shing!

He scrambled back as a knife literally fell out of the sky and landed in front of him. "What the fuck was that!?" He shouted as he stood and looked upwards. That could have killed him damn it! Was he still here? Was he playing with him?!

He carefully scanned the sky and the area around him, not that it took much effort since everything was clearly visible in the wasteland. Finding nothing, he relaxed a bit, before he went over to the knife that fell from the sky.

He saw it glimmer for a second, before he recognized it a split-second later.

"Is that his knife?" He asked out loud as he walked over towards the knife and picked it up. He rotated it in his hands, taking in the craftsmanship and make of the weapon, before he raised it to his face with confusion.

Yeah, there was no mistaking it. This was his knife. What the hell was his knife doing here? No, a better question would be, why the hell did it fall from the sky?

He looked up again, trying to discern if he missed anything out of the ordinary. After a few seconds of just staring at the sky, he gave up and looked down towards the knife in his hands. Well, he needed a weapon, now he got one. Still, why the hell was this here?

Suddenly, a flood of memories surged into his mind. And as soon as the memories stopped flooding, he dropped the knife and immediately hunched over and heaved. Fuck! What the hell was that messed up shit?!

He heaved, but nothing came out. No food, only air and saliva. As each memory came into his mind, his heaving continued. One memory had a decapitated corpse, mutilated and bleeding as the body was eaten by the sithr, another memory had him seeing someone prostrate themselves, before having a knife shoved into their face and twisting it, sending blood and grey matter flying everywhere.

As each disturbing memory came into his mind, he tried to focus. He knew that the knife that he had held was in the memories; the balisong knife was the prominent item aside from the people getting killed and mutilated.

He also knew these images were memories and not just delusions. The scenes were too vivid, the faces too real. There was no way in hell these things were an illusion. He wasn't so messed up he'd dream up of these things on a bad day.

Finally, the last of memories stopped, and he recognized it for what it was. A memory of him, getting his arm sliced and being left for dead on the ground. A memory, not of Terumi's, but of the knife's.

He straightened himself, as he looked down at the knife. He himself reacting to it, wanting to just grab it and chuck it far away. However, instead of doing that, he bent down and picked it up.

"I don't like it, but this is my only means of self-defense here." He paused as he looked around. "...wherever here is." He muttered as he pocketed the knife. He didn't like it, really he didn't. But if it was between using a tool that was used to kill people or getting himself killed, then the former was the only way to go. He'd save Saya first, before he'd drop dead.

"Now," He began as he looked around for the umpteenth time. "Where the hell do I go?" He looked up at the sky, and saw nothing but clouds with a twilight sky. No sun. Well, there goes using the sun as a compass.

"Damn it. Whatever." He turned right, and stared out into the wasteland, before he started walking. He couldn't use anything to help him get out of this wasteland, so he'll think while he walked. Hopefully, he'll find something that'll get him out of here.

He hadn't even taken ten steps, before he saw something in the distance. It was erect, and seemed to be stabbed into the ground. He squinted his eyes, and saw in detail what looked like a sword. A katana. It looked familiar, like he had seen it before… wait, that looked like the sword that Jin-!

Before he could finish his thoughts, something pulled him. He felt the world shift around him; he saw the wasteland get left behind as he was pulled backwards, before he felt his vision blackening, his consciousness fading as the wasteland disappeared and was replaced by the darkness.

Azure Blade Works

XxX

"Guah!" He sat up straight, his body having thrown itself forward as he suddenly stopped falling.

Wait, he had been falling? But he was on a bed? Was he dreaming?

He grabbed his head and shook it. Damn it, whatever that dream was, it was trippy as hell. He hadn't felt like this ever since Saya started getting sick and he started getting worried sick.

"Well, looks like you're okay if you can shake your head like that." A voice, right next to his ear. He hastily looked to the side, trying to spot who it was that spoke out to him.

He saw a woman, well, a beastkin woman. She had a rather casual lab coat on that exposed her midriff. She had pink hair that did nothing to hide the two pink cat ears protruding from the top of her head, and also two pink tails that were wrapped around her waist like a belt.

He narrowed his eyes warningly. "Who the hell are you?" He turned his body towards her, not only to make him look bigger, but also to have easy access to the floor and the door behind her if she ever lunged for him.

In response to his body movement and words, the beastkin woman only laughed derisively. "Kid, you're gonna have to try harder than turning your body towards me to intimidate me. I know someone that's nine feet tall, and has a body that would put a brick wall to shame." The woman then smirked, her face full of confidence and assurance. "Besides, you're in no state to go dodging any of my attacks if I ever felt like eviscerating you."

He swallowed nervously. She wasn't kidding, he could tell. She could do those things, and she wasn't at all fazed by him. He could try and make a break for it, but the only exit happened to be the door right behind her. There was a window by the bed he was in, but he doubted he could turn and open the window before she was upon him.

So instead of doing anything rash, like jump out the window or make a break for it, he sighed and plopped himself down on the bed. Well, since he wasn't dead yet, that at least meant one thing. "You're not going to kill me." He tried hard not to make it sound like a question.

The woman nodded her head at him. "That's right; you catch on pretty fast kid." Her tone was sarcastic, and he could detect a hint of amusement in it.

He growled at her. "Then were you the one that saved me?" He asked; reigning in his voice before it turned into a shout/question. He didn't want to piss this woman off, at least, not until he got answers.

In response to his question, the woman laughed, full of mirth and sounding completely mocking. "Hah! Now that's rich." The woman let loose a long breath, before she calmed herself and pulled out something from her pocket. At first he thought it was a cigarette, but as the small white rod was pulled out, he saw that it was a lollipop. A pink one, likely strawberry flavor.

The woman popped it into her mouth, before she moved it around a bit and let it settle by the insides of her cheeks. "Like I'd have any interest in a kid as uninteresting and dull as you. I've studied enough about vampirism thank you, and I've got nothing more to add to that branch and have moved on." Vampirism? What the fuck was she talking about?

Apparently sensing his confusion, the woman smirked, before she stood and walked over towards the desk right to the other side of the room. She pulled open one drawer, before she pulled out a hand mirror and started walking towards him, not even bothering with closing the desk.

"Here kid," The woman tossed him the mirror as she got near. He almost let it slip through his fingers, before he managed to grab it tightly. He looked up and glared at the woman, who only shrugged her shoulders listlessly. He let his glare drop, before he turned the hand mirror to its reflective side and raised it to his face.

He almost dropped the mirror from the sheer surprise. As it stood though, he sat straight up and stared at his reflection.

"What the fuck?!" Was his eloquent question as he stared at his face. It still had the same facial features, the same length of eyebrows, the teeth and nose, almost everything was the same as it had always been. The only two differences were that his right eye, which had previously been as green as his left, was now blood red, and his eyebrows, which were very much the same length as before, was now sheet white.

He looked up some more, and saw that his eyebrows weren't the only thing that was white. His previously blonde hair was now as white as his eyebrows, and was just as messy as his previously blonde version of it.

"What the fuck!" He repeated, this time as a curse as he examined his face. "What the hell happened to my hair?! My eyes?!" He didn't drop the mirror, as he was still too busy examining his new features, but his question was addressed to the woman that was staring at him bemusedly.

"Side effect." Was the woman's short reply. He let the mirror drop to the side of the bed, before he leveled a glare at the woman. Fuck her being stronger, he wanted answers!

But before he could question the woman, who was now sporting a smirk as she sucked on the lollipop still in her mouth, another voice called out, this one old and male. "Oi Kokonoe." The door jingled a little, before it was opened from the outside as a small figure walked in. "I heard shoutin' the kid awake yet?"

He saw a… cat, probably three to four feet tall, walking on his hind legs with two swords strapped to his back and a tail that was just as tall as he was. His orange jacket had two recesses on the top, probably to accommodate the cat ears that were probably hiding under there.

He stared at the cat, before the cat spoke. "Well, guess he is."

He blinked once, before he continued to stare at the cat. He then turned towards the pink-haired woman – now identified as Kokonoe – and asked. "Is that a talking cat?" He had seen beastmen before, they had come and gone through the church and had prayed there or sometimes talked with the sister, some even played with them. But he had never seen a talking cat. Beastmen had properties that made them look slightly human, they had more skin then fur, and sometimes one would have trouble trying to figure out what the differences are between a man and a beastman.

The cat standing right in front of him was definitely not a beastman, nor was he a human. Too much fur, his legs were backward jointed, and though he had a tail and ears of a beastman, they were definitely more pronounced.

In response to his question, Kokonoe only smirked, before she removed her lollipop and pointed it at the cat. "That is Jubei. One of the six legendary heroes that helped stopped the black beast all those years ago." Kokonoe explained, before she shrugged and put her lollipop back into her mouth. "Not much to look at, I know. But the sooner you see what he really is, the better. He's a little too hyped for what he really is."

He frowned. "I don't care if he's my long lost grandma. I asked if he was a talking cat, not his life story damn it. I don't give two shits if he's one of the legendary heroes." Really, was it so hard to answer that question?

He suddenly heard laughter, and turned towards the cat – Jubei – and saw him hunched over and laughing.

His frown deepened. "What's so funny?" He asked, accusingly as he stared at the cat.

Jubei recovered some semblance of normality, and straightened himself, before he wiped a tear from his eyes. Damn it, whatever it was, it wasn't that funny. "Nothin' really." Jubei began before he took a breath and let out a small sigh before he turned towards Kokonoe. "That's the first time I saw someone shoot down your praise about me Kokonoe. Yer loosing yer charisma."

He heard a snort and turned towards Kokonoe. "If I had a knife to his throat or a bomb in his arm with the button in my hands, he'd agree with me."

He felt a little put-off by that. "Lady, you've got control problems." He spoke frankly and truthfully. Damn, she'd be a husband's nightmare if she'd do all that just to agree with her.

In response to his words, Kokonoe turned towards him and leveled him a glare. "Kid, did you forget that I could take your head off before you could even blink?" She asked, rhetorically if her tone was any indication. He didn't respond beyond giving her a shrug. If she wanted to, she would have already. Nothing wrong with pushing her buttons… yet.

He heard another bark of laughter, and turned towards Jubei. "Ha! This kid's a little twerp ain't he?" His words said insult, but his tone of voice said compliment.

He heard Kokonoe snort again, before he heard her standing and begin walking. "Whatever." She said as she came into his line of vision. She walked past Jubei, and went towards the door. She stopped right in front of it, and then turned around. "He'll be fine. Just nothing too strenuous and absolutely nothing stressful. The Azure is still stabilizing, and his body is trying to amalgamate the new arm into his system. I've held up my part of the bargain, so you better make sure you do too Jubei."

He turned towards Jubei, and saw the cat frown. "It wasn't a bargain kid. Ya forgot that I called in a favor?"

Kokonoe shrugged. "A favor from you is a bargain for me. You know exactly what I want. And as much as I want you to just leave me alone, I want to study the Azure even more. I'll be back in six months, for study. And I'm taking those chains." Kokonoe finished as she turned around and left the room without another word.

He heard Jubei sigh, and saw him start shaking his head. He heard him mutter something, but could only get the tail end of it. "…gther of mine takes up too much of me."

Before he could decipher what Jubei said, the cat turned around and faced him. "So," He began. "You alright kid?"

He frowned at the question. "What did you do to me?" He was supposed to be dead after all. He wasn't slow. He remembered having his arm forcibly severed, he remembered it flying off probably into the burning buildings, turning into ash. He remembered it all, the pain, the feeling of trying to move his stump of an arm, Terumi's voice and face. He remembered it all because he thought those would be his last memories. His last thoughts as he was taken by death's grip and pulled into oblivion.

But he wasn't dead, he wasn't in oblivion, and he certainly wasn't in heaven or hell.

"Yer a sharp kid. Figure it out." Jubei shrugged before he took the seat Kokonoe had been sitting on not a minute before.

He clucked his tongue in frustration, but decided against speaking out. "My arm got cut off, my brother was trying to kill me, and my sister was taken by a homicidal maniac called Terumi that probably had something to do with Jin going bat shit crazy, and my home and caretaker are all nothing but ashes now." He tried hard not to make his tone biting and angry, but all it accomplished was making his sound more bitter than anything else. "So you tell me, what exactly I haven't 'figured out' yet." He made air quotes as he said that.

Jubei stared at him impassively, his furry face and whiskers barely moving as he did so. He was a little disgruntled, but kept up his own face and stared right back. He wasn't in the mood for this kind of hard-ass shit.

For a minute, Jubei didn't say anything. Finally, he let out a small sigh, before he shook his head. "Well, glad to see yer at least lucid." Jubei commented. "Anyway, yer lucky to be alive honestly. I found ya half-dead and half-buried under a mountain of rubble. I managed to give ya first aid with basic Ars Magus, but yer arm, well, there are some things magic and science can't fix." He frowned, so he was just going to tell him after all that? No bullshitting?

"So I called in a favor," Jubei shook his head again. "I called in Kokonoe, and had her fix up yer arm. 'Course, I added something in it to give ya some incentive of losing it in the first place." Added something? What was he talking about?

As if reading his words, Jubei's feline eyes locked into his. He felt a shiver run up his spine, the sheer seriousness in Jubei's eyes told him whatever it was, it was dangerous. "The Azure Grimoire."

Azure Grimoire? What was that?

Before he could ask that question, Jubei interrupted him. "I'll tell yah everything else later. Right now, ya need to get some rest. Ya heard Kokonoe, yer body is still tryna' compensate having a new right arm. Plus the Azure is a bit temperamental."

He bristled a little at the explanation. "What am I, some kind of science project?!" He snapped. "If it's so dangerous, then why the fuck did you put it in me?!"

He stared straight at Jubei, who didn't even flinch at his anger. Instead, he said five words that shut him up. "…Would you rather be dead?"

He couldn't find a response to that, so instead, he sighed and lay his head down and muttered "Stupid cat."

For a few seconds, there was only silence in the room. He didn't say anything more, nor did Jubei respond to his insult. He was about to close his eyes and take up Jubei's suggestion of sleeping, but Jubei interrupted him before he could.

"Listen, kid," The cat began. He didn't turn towards the cat, and instead continued staring up at the ceiling. But he did acknowledge he had heard him by nodding his head a little. He heard Jubei sigh, before he continued. "When I got to ya, you were plenty messed up. If I didn't step in and saved ya, ya might've been just road kill."

He closed his eyes and let out a sigh. "I get that." He really did. He was supposed to be dead. No two shits about that. Still… there was the matter of how Jubei saved him that was still unanswered. "But how exactly did you do it?"

He heard Jubei sigh. "I already told ya-" Jubei was probably going to tell him about his new arm and this Azure thing. But he interrupted by growling.

"Cut the shit old man. No one just carries around an arm while they're walking through the forest towards a church. No one just magically has an item that could kill people if it decides it wanted to go and play, and unless you're a vampire-cat thing, I doubt you're the one that turned my hair white and my eye red."

He turned to glare at the cat, but was met with an unfazed stare. He didn't let it bother him, he didn't look away. He just looked on and stared. He didn't want to be treated as some kid here. He stopped being a kid ever since Saya got sick. If he can handle seeing his little sister dying, then he sure as hell can handle finding out that he was half-dead and what exactly was done to save him.

He saw Jubei's mouth open, ready to answer. But before the cat could, another voice echoed inside the room. "This one is a bit uncouth isn't he?" He turned towards the door, only to see it still closed. Where the fuck did that come from then?

He turned back to Jubei, but something from he caught something from his peripheral vision and turned his head to the left. There, at the foot of his bed, was a… girl. She was in a black frilly dress that screamed gothic; paired with her blonde hair and red eyes you could almost say she was born for this look. Even her inner shirt, which was white, complimented her gothic look absurdly. The only stark color that stood out was her red bow, atop her head and blonde hair, that almost made her look like a…

"Rabbit." He said. Strange, that felt right and almost felt like a reflex.

In response to his nickname, the blonde haired goth girl narrowed her eyes at him. "Oh my, such an uncouth barbarian calling me by such a name? I would be scared of my innocence if I didn't know that you cannot touch me." The girl's tone was mocking. He scrunched his face, wait… those words almost sounded like they were imply- son of a…

"I ain't no pervert you bunny rabbit." He shuddered. Yeah. No, no way in hell was he going to take someone's innocence like that. Fuck no. There was sick, and then there was sick. The sister in the church didn't condone violence, she despised murder and torture, but she abhorred rape.

In response to his words, the blonde girl hummed in mock thought. "Perhaps," She amended with a mocking nod. "But you are still a barbarian that needs to learn some manners."

Alright, fuck that. "Who the hell are you anyway rabbit?" He didn't know who this girl was, but for whatever reason, she got under his skin a little too well.

In response to his question, the girl turned away from him and towards Jubei. "Have you told him about what he holds yet?" The girl asked, completely ignoring his question. He felt his eyebrow twitch as he readied stared at her. Now she was ignoring him? The hell was wrong with her?

"About the Azure?" Jubei responded, a bemused smile on his face as he stared at his frustrated face. "Yeah I did, as to what it does though, not yet. It's still too early."

The girl nodded her head in response to Jubei's words. "I concur." She said. Suddenly, as if being pulled by something, the girl began floating in midair. He almost couldn't believe his eyes at what he was seeing, but then something even stranger happened. An umbrella suddenly materialized in the girl's hands.

"What the hell?" He muttered as he stared. He had heard of Ars Magus doing amazing things. But floating and materializing something wasn't one of those things. "How are you doing that?"

The girl gave him a bemused/benevolent smile, before a chair materialized behind her. She then sat down, before a table and a whole set of tea cups and a tea kettle appeared on the table. The girl reached for the kettle and poured herself a cup of tea, and then dismissed the kettle with a wave of her hands. The girl then gave him another knowing look, before she sipped her tea silently.

She probably wasn't going to answer his question.

He heard a sigh, and turned towards Jubei, who was quietly shaking his head. The cat turned towards the girl before he spoke. "Aren't ya gonna introduce yerself to 'im?" Jubei thought for a second, before he asked another question. "And whatever happened to just letting him down easy? Why'd ya go and show yerself now Rachel?"

The girl – Rachel – put down her teacup, before she turned towards Jubei. "I do not offer my name and prestige to someone as uncouth as him. Just being in the same room as this barbarian may put a stain to my family's name." He growled, okay, this bitch was asking for it. Before he could say anything though, Rachel was talking again. "Aside from that, while I did say that he should be told about his burden in a calm time and location, preferably without me in his vicinity, I had an alarming epiphany about your daughter."

Okay, now he was lost. Why the hell were they talking like he wasn't here in the first place? "What the hell are you two talking about? Don't talk as if I'm not here damn it."

In response to his outburst, Rachel turned towards him and gave him a mocking glare. "You may as well not be here. You clearly have no idea what we're talking about. So why don't you sit quietly and let the grown ups talk. We have no use for your uncouth language and outbursts."

"Will you shut the hell up!" He had it. "Stop calling me uncouth! This is the way I talk to people that choose to get under my skin for no apparent reason! Besides, not like I'm not involved anyway. Whatever you guys did, I have to repay." His voice dimmed as he reached the end of his sentence. He hated to admit it, but he did owe them. He may not be the nicest of guys, but he was taught to always repay others kindness. He wasn't about to spit in that lesson, not when the person that taught him that was now long gone.

In response to his words, Rachel hummed. "Perhaps I have been a bit too harsh on you." She amended with a slight nod of her head. "Very well. As it seems you have been taught a modicum of respect and civility, you are no longer a barbarian."

He rolled his eyes. "Well gee, that makes me feel so much better." He said sarcastically.

Rachel smiled at his words. "Yes, from henceforth you are now just an uncivilized brute." Rachel took another sip of her tea, purposely ignoring his angry glare. She finished sipping, before she put down her teacup on the floating table and turned back towards Jubei. "Now, you may be quiet as this conversation involves civilized people, an uncivilized brute like you have no power to speak here."

He was about to snarl, get angry, or do something like chuck a pillow at her. But before he could, Jubei interrupted with a sigh. "Rachel, don't ya think the kid's had enough? You remember what's in his right arm don't ya?"

Rachel only let out a harrumph, before she daintily picked up her teacup and sipped on it. Though she didn't say anything, he couldn't help but smile a little vindictively as he stared at her. Hah, can't talk now can you?

"Now what's this about havin' an epiphany or somethin'. What'd you think Kokonoe will do?" Wait, Kokonoe? Wasn't that the beastkin woman that was just here?

Seeing his confused face, Jubei nodded his head at him as if to answer his thoughts. "That's right kid, that high maintenance woman was my daughter. Ain't much of a resemblance I know, but-"

"There is no resemblance." He blurted out without thinking. He shut up fast thought as he saw Jubei stare at him blankly. He didn't care if the cat was one of the legendary heroes, but still, that didn't mean he didn't respect that he had power and could probably kill him in just the span it took for you to blink.

But instead of getting angry, or getting annoyed at his words, Jubei let out a harsh bark of laughter. "Hah! Ain't that right." Jubei barked in amusement. He calmed down somewhat, before he let out a breath. "Still, even though she takes up the looks of her mother, she's definitely my daughter. If not personality-wise that is."

"So you're a control freak like her too?" He asked, honestly curious about that.

In response, Jubei let out a snort. "You wish." Jubei features then lightened a little before a small smile appeared on his furry snout. "I'm much worse."

He stared at Jubei as he digested what he had said. Before he let out a small snort, which turned into a chuckle, which turned into full blown laughter. Jubei having mirrored the transition as well.

They were cut off from their laughter however, as Rachel let out a dainty cough. "While I do not want to interrupt such a humorous bonding situation. I believe we still have the matter of why I'm here in first place."

Jubei sobered up immediately. "Alright then," Jubei said as he pushed himself off the chair he was sitting on. "We'll talk outside. Somethin' tells me this isn't somethin' good." Jubei then turned towards him, before he leveled him with a slight glare. "And you get some rest. Like it or not kid, yer body simply can't handle this much power without supervision." And with that, Jubei turned around and began walking away.

He stared at Jubei's back as he left through the door, before he remembered there was someone else here. He turned towards the space where Rachel had a table and a chair and a tea set and umbrella. Only to find her gone. The air where she and all her items were floating in empty.

He rolled his eyes before he propped his hands behind his head and lay back down. It wasn't like he was expecting a proper goodbye from her, but damn, can she be any more rude? And he was supposed to be the uncivilized one here.

XxX

She reappeared inside the small common room for the inn Jubei had taken Ragna to after she had finished her operation with the arm and the Azure. Truth be told, the inn felt quaint, it had a sort of atmosphere to it that just felt warm and cozy. From the old-fashioned wooden sofas and chairs that had nothing for comfort save for cushions, and the wooden coffee table sitting in front of them. To the receptionist/owner of the little inn that was an old man with an ever present smiling face. It was homey, it was warm and inviting.

She didn't like being in it for all those reasons.

She quietly sat down on the wooden sofa with the comfortable cushions. Her previous table set and chair had disappeared as soon as she reappeared. She hadn't brought her pets with her yet, they were inconsequential things really, the only reason she kept them around was to channel all her latent power. As it stood though, teleporting and levitation is the least of her more strenuous powers.

She looked over towards the stairs, and saw Jubei walk down from it. He watched as the cat turned the corner at the bottom of the stairs and walk towards the reception desk. He spoke, and gave a small joke that made both him and the old smiling man laugh, before he nodded his head and turned towards her and started walking.

How utterly disgusting.

"If you try and open with a joke, I will leave this instant." She wasn't joking, if he tried and made her laugh, she'd leave. Important discussion or not, she did not like jokes. She did not like smiles, and she certainly did not like smiling at jokes.

"Sheesh," Jubei said exasperatedly as he shook his head. "Ya could stand to be a little bit brighter can't ya? 'Sides, I only told the old man to bring some food up to Ragna's room. Poor kid hasn't eaten in three days. I'm not even sure he knows that or not."

She let out a small huff. "If I chose to stand in the sunnier side of life, I'd burn to death." Not really, but she'd be annoyed. She then realized Jubei said something peculiar. "He hasn't asked how long he's been asleep?"

Jubei's face scrunched up in seriousness. "Not from when he talked with Kokonoe. I heard'em talk for awhile down the hall, kid didn't bother askin' for a glass of water."

That is… alarming to say the least. "Perhaps it is a side effect of the Azure. It eats seithr, so perhaps that is what it has been doing and giving nutrients for Ragna whilst he is asleep." That was the most logical solution, but also the most alarming one. Simply because the seithr concentration here was so low that it was almost undetectable.

Jubei gave a shrug. "Maybe. But I wouldn't want to just leave the kid alone with that thing." Jubei's regarded her with a slight nod. "That's why I'm thinkin' of training 'im."

She nodded her head in acquiesce. "I suppose that is for the best. The Azure Grimoire isn't something I have much knowledge on. At least, in comparison to you." That was true. As powerful as she was, she couldn't hope to comprehend, much less control it. The only person she knew that could gain a semblance of control over it was Ragna himself, but without the idea engine, most likely he'll try and keep from using it.

Another thought, and this time she frowned. "And I've interfered enough." Saving Ragna was the only thing she was allowed to do. To interfere directly into his life, to give him power by letting him train under her or her butler, wasn't something that was lightly thought about. She was supposed to be an observer only, if she wasn't careful, the timeline could change so drastically, could become something so distorted, that it would be forced to reset. It would cause chaos.

Chaos. She sighed; it really wasn't something that could be predicted. It could certainly be foreseen, something chaotic happening like an earthquake or a sudden downpour could be foreseen, but to actually see what happens and to stop it from happening wasn't something that was possible.

Jubei hummed as he closed his eyes. "I suppose ya might be right." Jubei's feline snout then curled up in a smile. "But that doesn't mean you won't stop by every now and then am I right?"

She let out a harrumph. "Of course," What kind of question was that? "As much as I cannot interfere with Ragna and his life, that doesn't mean I cannot interact with him and watch him in close proximity." Loopholes, there was always one. And being an observer, she was allowed to observe things. In whatever distance she wanted.

Jubei let out a small chuckle. "Ya really like the kid don't ya?"

She frowned and leveled Jubei with a glare. "How could I possibly like someone so uncouth, uncivilized, and so crude? You insult me with those words."

Jubei raised his paws in defense. "My bad, my bad." He let out a small sigh, before he dropped his paws. She then noticed that his smile was still on his face. "Ya love 'im."

She kept a straight face, and didn't react. It would be unseemly and unladylike to react in an unsophisticated manner. So instead of shrieking in defiance, she instead, gave Jubei her hardest and coldest glare. "I do believe we are getting off topic. Since when has this conversation been about me?"

Jubei however, was unfazed by her glare, and only shrugged his shoulders. "Alright I'll drop it." She nodded her head, which was for the best. If she heard another word out of him implying he liked Ragna in the slightest, then she would have left without another word.

Jubei then relaxed a little, before he gave her a questioning look. "Alright, back on topic. What's this 'bout my daughter?"

She sat primly before she gave Jubei a serious look. "Those chains she took, those aren't something I'm comfortable just giving to her."

Jubei gave her another shrug. "That makes two of us."

She frowned. "Then why exactly did you give them to her so readily?" She didn't trust Kokonoe. The scientist beastkin woman wasn't immoral; she was amoral, which probably was a hundred times worse than being immoral. At least with immorality, she has standards, with amorality, she had none. She only chose to keep going, never mind the repercussions.

Jubei gave him a strange look in response to her question. "She was the only person I trust that could actually get the job done and not run-off with the arm itself." Jubei contradicted her thoughts, but before she could say something biting, Jubei continued. "As amoral Kokonoe is, she isn't someone that doesn't keep her word. Her mother made sure of that."

She let out s slight nod. "And she did well to raise her to do that much." She agreed. "But the fact remains that if she is given those chains, there will be deep repercussions to it. And it isn't the fact that she took the chains and she is willing to use them, it's the fact that if she does use it, she can probably reproduce it. At least to some extent."

Jubei nodded his head at her. "And I can agree with that. But still, she was the only person I knew that would be able to see if anything starts going wrong with the Azure. Her mother taught her everything she knew in that regard."

Well, he was right. If anyone knew what the Azure was and what it could do, Kokonoe's mother would be that person. So it would only be logical that she would have taught Kokonoe everything she knew regarding her research and the Azure. Still… "Nine was indeed a good person. But Kokonoe isn't her mother. Kokonoe is willing to do things that Nine would never think of doing."

Jubei sighed. "Ya got me there Rachel. I guess it all comes down to just trusting Kokonoe to not do something drastic." Ah, there it was. Trust.

"I'm afraid that isn't something I can just follow." She said truthfully. "I simply do not trust Kokonoe like you do."

In response, Jubei gave her a slight smirk. "Well too bad, I trust her enough to allow her this leeway. If ya got a problem with it, I suggest ya do something about it yerself."

She gave Jubei a blank look. She was a little miffed at the response, but she didn't let it show on her face. That would just give Jubei something to be amused about. So instead, she chose to ignore the jab. "Very well, if you feel so strongly about this, I suppose you have my trust in regards to it." She said a little too tightly. "But be warned, if she ever does something that is a direct danger…" She let her voice trail, letting Jubei fill in the rest.

Jubei nodded his head, understanding what she was getting at. "I know. If that ever happens, I'll take care of it." Jubei said. His voice hard and a little detached. That was no surprise however. A father that might be forced to 'take care' of his daughter if she ever does something dangerous wasn't anything normal.

"'Sides, it's not like the chains are the only thing from a different world." Jubei added, and she her frown deepened. He was right, the chains were attached to the arm that was now Ragna's. And with the Azure in it as well, there was an added danger to not knowing what it was and what it could do. "But I'll make sure that nothin' happens to it."

She nodded her head at Jubei's answer. "Very well," She then floated up, before she regarded Jubei with one last look. "Now I must take my leave. I've lingered enough in this realm for today. And this discussion has drained the last dregs of my energy. I shall slumber for now, but I shall return in a week's time to see Ragna's tutelage under you."

"Aren't ya at least gonna say bye to the kid?" Jubei asked as he stood up. "If he's gonna be seeing you for a number of times, it's best if he gets used to yer face."

She let out a slight harrumph, before she turned away from Jubei. "I doubt that crass individual has enough brain power to remember my face. Besides, I will not be gone long." She was about to teleport away from the premises, but then she remembered something else.

She turned back to Jubei, and gave him a questioning look. "Do you still have them?" She asked, tone indifferent.

Jubei gave her a surprised look, before he settled himself and just shrugged. "'Course I do. Those things aren't somethin' I'm willin' to part with anytime soon."

For some reason, she felt inexplicably at ease at those words. It wasn't like she liked seeing him in that red coat, but if Ragna was ever forced to fight without a weapon, well, there was a timeline where he had been killed without the BloodEdge. And she didn't like the thought of reliving that memory anytime soon.

She nodded her head. "I shall take my leave then. See to it that boy has enough control over the Azure by the time you finish training him. But do not neglect training him in the arts of magic and science either. If he grows up as nothing more than a killer, I will be most cross with you."

Jubei let out a sigh as he shrugged his shoulders. "No pressure eh?" He joked a little, giving a slight laugh as he did so. "Don't worry yer pretty little head Rachel. I'll make sure the kid has enough training. I won't send'im out there with nothing but the Azure in his right hand and a sword on his back. That much you can be sure of."

She nodded her head at Jubei, before she turned and left. Letting the darkness consume her as she traveled back to her own home. She felt slightly better at hearing Jubei's reassurance, but still, whatever those chains were, and whoever's right arm was attached to them, they were still from another world. And there was also the fact that she had seen someone before the portal had closed, someone from another time or world. Most probably both.

And that thought didn't give her much rest at all.

XxX

"…" He didn't respond, he just stared. Honestly, he didn't even know how to respond. How were you supposed to react to finding out that you had something that was stronger and much more dangerous than a thousand hydrogen bombs in their arm that came from another world altogether? Go ahead, try and think of how to respond to that, cause he sure as hell couldn't think of anything besides saying, "The hell?!"

"Sorry kid, that's the basic gist of things as they are now." Jubei nodded his head to confirm his question and confusion. "Ya got an arm though, so at least ya got somethin' outta it right?"

"Cut the crap old man," He ground out. He was not in the mood of looking on the bright side of things here. The fact that he had something so dangerous and so unstable in his right arm that wasn't even his to begin with was almost enough to give him a mini-panic attack. "I don't want to hear no sunshine and butterflies, give it to me straight. How the fuck am I supposed to make sure this thing doesn't blow up?"

Jubei regarded him with a critical eye, before he shrugged his shoulders. "Right now, as ya are?" Jubei asked, and he nodded his head. To his dismay, Jubei shook his head. "Not much. If ya can't even control yer outbursts when ya get surprised, ya'll be killing not just yerself, but everything within a hundred thousand mile radius from ya."

Well… shit.

He gave Jubei a slight look. "You're… not exaggerating, are you." Though his words asked a question, his tone came out sounding like a statement. And to his further aggravation, Jubei shook his head.

"Sorry kid, 'fraid not. The Azure Grimoire is a lot of things, but being nice and small ain't one of 'em."

He clucked his tongue in frustration. Fuck. Fucking fuck. God fucking damn it. How the hell was he supposed to find Saya like this? Hell, he'd probably be better off jumping off a ledge then risk letting the damn thing in his arm explode and kill everyone from here to half-way around the world.

Jubei seemed to understand his inner anguish, and cleared his throat to make him look up at him. "Buck up kid, ya got somethin' most people can't even begin to imagine havin'. It ain't all bad."

He had it. "Ain't all that bad huh?" He repeated, slowly but holding all the anger he was feeling. "Why the hell do you think that you old coot?! How am I supposed to find my sister and save her, if I'm just a walking fucking time bomb?! At this rate, I'd rather just jump off a cliff just to make sure I don't accidentally blow up half the world!"

Jubei only regarded him with a cool eye, before the cat sighed. "Kid, calm dow-"

"Don't you dare tell me to calm down!" He snapped as he pointed his left finger at Jubei. "I've been through shit. I've gotten my arm cut-off, I've had to defend myself from getting killed by my own brother, and I saw my sister get kidnapped by a psychotic man with green hair that looked like it belonged to a lawn from a cartoon! Now I have a cat telling me that my arm, which isn't even mine, has a weapon of mass destruction that could kill millions of lives if I snapped?! How the fuck do you think I can calm down!?" By the time he had finished his rant, he was panting from overexertion. He was being immature, he had realized this the moment he opened his mouth for the first word. But he couldn't stop shouting, stop cursing, this wasn't fair. He wanted to save his sister, to find her and kill that sick son of a bitch that took her. Jin could take care of himself, but their sister was being kidnapped and used for who knows what by that sick fucker with the lawn green hair.

Jubei took all his shouting in stride, and instead of getting angry, biting back, or even shouting back at him to calm down, he just sat there in front of him and gave him a cool look. "Ya can start by takin' a deep breath. Control yer anger kid."

As angry as he was, he still understood that he needed to calm down. He wasn't stupid enough to let his anger get the best of him, and thus, consume half the world. Still, even as he took a steadying breath, he still felt angry, he felt cheated. This wasn't how he wanted his life to go, not how he wanted his family's life to go. He wanted to see them smiling, together, Saya and Jin, wanted to see them grow up. They were his only family, and now that was stripped from him. Never mind their home, their caretaker, he just wanted them back.

He felt his legs wobble, before they gave out from under him and he was forced to land on the floor sitting up. This… this was just a little too much, even for him. He always tried to be strong, for Saya and Jin. But… now he had no reason to be strong. How could he be strong?

"Kid, don't start cryin'." He looked up at Jubei as he heard his disapproving voice. "Yer not that weak."

He took one last steadying breath, before he pushed back depressing thoughts and stood up. "Yeah, I'm not." He turned towards the door and began walking towards it. Even though his legs were still shaky, even though he was still in shock, he had something to do. He cursed himself for showing something as pathetic as that. He wasn't weak; he had to be strong, for Saya and Jin.

"Where do ya think yer going kid?" He heard Jubei asked. He didn't turn to face him, and only continued to walk forward.

"To find Saya." Was all he said. He didn't have time to be moping around here. Screw having a weapon of mass destruction in his arm, he'd take care of that later. He still needed to find his sister.

A hand suddenly found itself in front of him. He turned to his left, and saw Jubei standing just by his side. "Kid, if ya do that, you'll only get killed."

He growled, before he pushed back Jubei's arm and walked past him. "Yeah well, what's it to you?" He snapped. But as he was about to take another step forward, he was suddenly yanked back by a hand on his shoulder. He fell on the floor as he stared up at the only one that could have done that. "The hell is wrong with you?!"

Jubei straightened himself, before he cast him a cold look. "Kid, I'm warnin' ya. If ya go out there, ya die."

He clucked his tongue in frustration. "And I asked. What's it to you if I die?" He half-growled/half-asked. Damn it, did this guy want him to repay him or something? Well, he didn't have anything besides the clothes on his back and the arms that he had… well, arm that he had.

Jubei let out a sigh. "Kid, I'm not keepin' ya here to make sure ya stay alive." That made him confused. But before he could ask anything, Jubei continued. "I'm keepin' ya here to make sure ya don't kill everyone."

That made him freeze. He had forgotten. His arm was a weapon of mass destruction.

Jubei sat down until his feline eyes were on him. "Kid." The old cat began. "Yer not just livin' fer yerself or fer yer siblings anymore. Yer living for everyone else on this planet. That thing that's in yer arm?" Jubei raised a paw and pointed it in the direction of his right arm. "That's somethin' that can and will destroy the world if it decided it wanted to. If ya go out now, yer not just killin' yerself, yer killing the world."

He looked away from Jubei's eyes. Damn it, he didn't have to go and make him feel guilty about it. He remembered how the sister that took care of them loved her job and the people around them. She had always taught them to see the goodness in people, and even for him, a pessimistic asshole (those were both his and Saya's words, though with Saya, it was just pessimistic dunderhead) he understood what the sister was telling them.

He couldn't just let the world die for his stupidity. Saya and the sister would both be disappointed in him if he ever met them again in the afterlife.

Not that he believed in that shit, but well, if the sister believed in that, then there must be at least something right?

He didn't know how long he was silent, but when he next spoke, it was with a question. "Then what do I do?" He asked as he looked up and into Jubei's eyes.

Jubei closed his eyes and then scratched the back of his head in a lackadaisical manner. "To be honest kid, that's entirely up to you. If ya think ya can get yer sister without killin' half the world, I'll trust yer word and let you go."

That was surprising. And his surprise seemed to show on his face as Jubei shook his head at him. "Don't take that as a free pass kid. The moment ya go out there and try and save yer sister. I'll be keepin' an eye on you. If ya go out of control, or ya start killin' things. I step in and kill ya." There it was, the kicker. But… that couldn't be the only thing he could do can it?

He thought for a second, before an idea popped into his head. "You're strong." He finally said. Jubei seemed surprised at the word. But before the cat could ask anything, he continued. "You're one of the six legendary heroes that helped kill the black beast right?"

Jubei hummed in thought. "We didn't kill it kid, we sealed it. Ya can't kill that thing even if ya tried killin' it's time." That confused him, but he pushed back the question that was in his mind.

So instead, he asked another question. "Can you train me?"

Jubei's face then scrunched up, turning into a hard glare. "Why should I?" Jubei asked. "I ain't babysitting a kid that can't even control his anger."

He growled. So he wanted him to beg did he? Fuck that. "If you don't, I'll walk out of that door."

Jubei shrugged his shoulders in reply. "Ya gotta do better than that kid. Ya can't bluff yer way into becoming my student."

He let out a snort. "I ain't bluffing old man. It's either you train me, or I walk out that door and saving Saya as is."

"Are ya threatening me kid?" Jubei asked, his feline eyes narrowed.

He shrugged his shoulders. "More like blackmailing you." It was really. But it was better than the alternative. He wasn't about to bend knee to a jerky cat that had some sort of hero complex.

Jubei leveled him with a glare, but that glare soon disappeared and turned into laughter. "Hah!" Jubei laughed as he stood up. "Yer alright kid. Get some sleep. We're leavin' first thing in the morning."

Wait… that was it? "The hell? That's it?" He repeated what he was thinking.

Jubei turned towards him and gave him a wry smile. "Kid, I was gonna train ya whatever ya decided to do." He watched as Jubei unsheathed a sword from his back. He then noticed it was a katana, a regularly sized one. But due to Jubei's height (which only really reached up to his shoulders) it looked long on the cat. "Alright kid, stick out yer hand."

Tentatively, he did so. He winced as Jubei's katana – Musashi – sliced his palm and draw blood. He instinctively reached back his hand and glared at Jubei. "The hell are you doing old man?!"

Jubei didn't respond, and only used Masamune to open up his own wound in his paw. He then reached out the sliced paw, and gestured for Ragna to grasp it. "Alright kid, we seal this with a handshake."

He looked at the offered paw, and then his own, before he nodded his head and reached forward. He grasped the paw, and immediately he felt the wound in his hand sting, but he held on. Firmly, he shook the paw, and then their hands were parted.

Jubei sheathed Musashi on his back. "Alright. Get some sleep kid, we got a long day tomorrow." Jubei said as he turned around and walked out the room.

He sat there, staring at Jubei, watching the cat leave. That was… a weird end to be completely honest. Was the guy unstable or something? He looked ready to kill him one second, and the next, he laughed it all off. And what was with that blood exchange ritual? That was even weirder. He only hoped that the cat had his shot. He didn't want to get rabies.

Wait a minute. That sword…. Jubei didn't say anything about his sword. So why did he know that name?

He sat still for a minute, trying to think of an answer, but came up with nothing. Well, whatever, not like it was important or anything. He probably subconsciously remembered the name since Jubei was a legendary hero. He remembered the sister telling them stories about them when they – him, Saya, and Jin – were kids. So that was probably why he knew the name.

He stood up, before he turned around and went over to his bed. But as he laid down on the bed, his thoughts were not on Jubei or his recent apprenticeship with the cat. Nor was it on his sister and brother and a sociopath with green hair. No, it was on Musashi.

He knew the name, and he had surmised that he subconsciously remembered it from when the sister was telling them stories. But…

Why the hell did he know the exact measurements of the sword?

XxX

Midterms. FML.

Oh. And I'm back. Woot!

Anyway, as you guys can see, Ragna swears. Perhaps a little too much. But that's part of his character. And plus, he's still a preteen here. I won't exactly state the age, but I can say right now that he'll 'mellow' out as time moves on. We were all hormonal teens once in our lives, so ya'll can probably understand this.

Aside from that, this chapter is more on world building and seeing who the characters are and what they're going to be doing. Most of you (I'm guessing) probably haven't played a game of Blazblue, so I'll try and give the characters and the story justice. I won't go drastically changing things. They'll stay the same. This isn't my characters, my plot, or anything really. I'm just a fan that's writing stuff so that people can and will appreciate the characters and the story more. There is a big difference between fanfiction, and writing your own story. And I hope that people will keep that in mind.

Aside from that, for the Blazblue heads out there. Did I do the characters justice? Are they in character? Did they stay in character? Or are they so horrendously off character that people will start liking them for the wrong reasons? I'd appreciate if you guys told me if I'm going off on some things or not.

Aside from all this. I'm also starting to write my own book. Don't know where the heck this will go, but it'll be good… probably. Hopefully. Wait, why did I tell you guys that in the first place? Ya'll probably don't care anyway. Kappa.

As to what effects Shirou's arm has on the Azure and Ragna himself. Well, you'll see in the next chapter. Let's just say that Ragna might look good in a blue and white uniform… not that he'll stay long anyway.

C.O.Y.L out, peace!