Author's Note: Lots of people seemed to be wondering about Tatsumi and Esdeath's engaged life, so this chapter will be a quick look into it. We'll see Mine discovering the real secret of why Seryuu remains a Jaeger and Bols and Susanoo striking common ground next, I promise. You will also have a surprise twist regarding the promised dinner scene that will make things even more awkward/funny, and then we will finally meet the new threat that's on the horizon.

Chapter Seven: You never go to war alone.

Later that day…

Tatsumi sighed heavely as he made his way through the capital's residential district; it had taken them a few hours of shopping, but him and Lubbock were confident they had found a few gifts to bring to the dreaded dinner they both were going to be forced to attend, and that the gifts they had each chosen were good enough to keep both Esdeath and Najenda happy that each one's gift was superior to the other's.

Actually, Tatsumi had no idea what to made of Esdeath anymore after her confession; when she had literally begged him to "conquer her", to force her to change her very nature…he had never seen her so vulnerable, yet she had shown no sign of weaknesses. At first, he thought I was all part of a plan to get him to lower his guard so she could do with him as she pleased, but there had been something in her eyes that night…a spark of humanity and frailty he had never expected to see on her face. She seemed truly afraid of the idea of losing him, to the point that she had actually changed the course of history and ended a war, all because the idea of losing him, either to death or hatred, had made her see beyond her very beliefs and nature. Perhaps she was right. Perhaps he could conquer and change her for the better.

Esdeath loved him with every fiber of her being and with the whole of her heart; he had no doubt of that. But at the same time, Tatsumi couldn't figure out his feelings for her. He was attracted to her, of course. No sane man would be unable to feel some sort of attraction to her beauty, but he was torn over his actual feelings for her. Before, he had pitied her, as he saw her as a broken, empty person with little humanity in her heart; when he had decided he couldn't convince her or save her after hearing her past story from her very lips, he thought he could had faced her as an enemy if they meet again. But now she was her enemy in a different war, a war in which Esdeath was enemy, battlefield and objective. He couldn't lose this war, of course…and he didn't want to. Not anymore. Not after she had clung to him in desperation, a woman so scared of losing the one thing that made her feel love and kindness, she was willing to go to war with her own twisted nature.

The problem was that while Esdeath had asked Tatsumi to fight and change her, she also seemed to be trying to help him do so as well. Of course that as a general and a warrior, she remained the stoic, merciless and chilling figure she had always been…it was part of who she was, after all. But when she was alone with him, or when she let down her guard in public if they were close, she showed a gentle, loving side that was still different from the dominating, manipulative and clingy persona she had showed him before. Tatsumi suspected she was trying to change herself, but he also knew that Esdeath being, well, Esdeath, had no idea how to limit herself or even how to act natural. Of course that she had asked Bols for advice, which Tatsumi knew would make things worse for him, as Esdeath would understand his words, but then would put her unique spin on it…after all, war and battle was in her very nature, and she couldn't change that. In her eyes, only Tatsumi could. And knowing that this was true scared Tatsumi to his core; because her love for him was so strong, she could actually trust him with her very existence, her very person…and Tatsumi had just realized that this meant he couldn't see her as he had before, scared of her advances, of her insistence and obsession. He knew he had to save her; no matter the cost…her love for him alone deserved that.

Tatsumi sighed as he leaned against a street post. His memories went back to his home. Back then, he had never been loved before…he loved Ieyasu as his best friend, and he had always wondered what his true feelings for Sayo had been, but destiny and the Empire's cruelty had stolen that from him. He thought of Aria, who had showed him kindness and love, only to then show her true nature as a monster who had taken the only people he had called friends from him…he could still remember her voice, full of hatred and madness, until he had silenced it forever. How ironic it was that a monster like Aria had tricked him into loving and caring for her, while Esdeath had done the exact opposite, never tricking him or hiding her true nature from him, as twisted as she could be, Esdeath had loved him honestly and openly. He made a weak smile when he thought how funny Sayo and Ieyasu would find his current predicament.

That gave him enough energy to reach the end of the street. Tatsumi stared at the exact spot where the residential district changed into the noble district, which lead into the Imperial Palace.

Right before the border between the two districts, was the place Tatsumi called home now. He stared intently at the large but still somewhat modest two story wooden house. It was build like a cabin from his region, made to stand the hard winter and makes the most of the spring and summers. Esdeath had bought it without consulting him, but it had been a pleasant surprise; maybe she had sources of her own, or perhaps she actually knew him better than he thought; Tatsumi would never call home a place in the noble district as long as he lived. Not after what Aria and her family had done to him.

His memories drifted as he closed his eyes.

He remembered how during their first days together, Esdeath had actually asked him about his past. After he was finished, she hadn't said a word at all, but just embraced him. He had denied and refused to see the facts for a while, but truly, Esdeath and he had both common ghosts in their pasts. The day after that, Esdeath had asked him to accompany him to the noble district. Tatsumi had almost suffered a panic attack when they arrived at their destination.

It was Aria's family state. The place was abandoned, but everything was still in place, including the outside shed were his friends and countless others had been tortured to death.

"Why would you bring me here?"-Tatsumi asked, fighting his tears from showing.

"Did you bring Incursio with you as I asked, Tatsumi?"-Esdeath replied in the icy tone she used only hen in battle or facing an enemy.

Tatsumi could only nod at her question. He had never seen her talk and look like that since they had been reunited.

"Summon it"-Esdeath said, making clear it was an order.

Tatsumi acknowledged her, not even questioning why. He pulled out Incursio from his back and activated it, letting himself be enveloped by its power and changing into its armored form. It had been a long time since he had done so. In fact, he had hoped he would never do it again.

"Now what? What do you want of me?"-Tatsumi said, feeling anger building inside him, a voice telling him that she had no right to do this to him.

"I want you to destroy this place."-Esdeath replied.

"What?"-Tatsumi snapped.

"You heard me. I want you to tear this mansion to its very foundations"-Esdeath said.

"What would be the point of that?"-Tatsumi said.

"Humor me"-Esdeath reply, staring directly at him. Her eyes made it clear she wouldn't budge on this.

"Fine"-Tatsumi huffed as he approached the front gate of the mansion, and withdrew his lance. With one clear strike, he blew the door, frame and wall into pieces.

"Happy?"-Tatsumi replied as he turned at her.

"Again. Keep doing it until I order you to stop"-Esdeath said as she crossed her arms around her chest, staring defiantly at him.

Tatsumi huffed, and with another blow, made a wall and rows of furniture in the entrance lobby turn into rubble and debris. He turned around and stroke down another wall, using the momentum to turn around and slam his lance into the entrance staircase, making it explode in a shower of marble and wood.

He turned around, only to see Esdeath facing him in the distance. Just the sight of her made him mad for being toyed with.

"Fine, I'll give you what you want!"-Tatsumi screamed as he let himself loose. His swings became a blur as he mowed down wall after wall as he screamed in anger…but in just a few seconds, that anger had turned to rage. When he wrecked his way through to the living room, he relived the memory of Aria and her parents lying to him, manipulating him while his friends and so many others were being tortured and killed just a few meters away from him. After that, he could no longer see clearly, or even feel Incursio's weight on him anymore.

Esdeath watched the whole scene from afar, her expression as icy as her stare. The once proud mansion fell apart from Incursio's blows with little resistance, as the screams filled the air. Esdeath didn't even move or changed her expression as the whole place collapsed on itself, sending dust everywhere. On the middle of the ruins, the lone form of Incursio could be seen. It was immobile for a few moments, then its head turned around, focusing on the sole remaining structure in the grounds.

The shed

With a scream that didn't sound like any that a human being could make, Incursio ran towards the shed, colliding with it at the same moment that it swung its lance with all its power. The small structure exploded as if it had been struck by lightning, releasing a cloud of dust and debris that enveloped the whole area.

Without changing her expression, Esdeath made her way across the mist of destruction, stopping at the edge of the place where Incursio had attacked.

She waited as the dust settled, and stared at the scene in front of her.

In the middle of the rubble was Tatsumi, lying on his knees, as Incursio's power had long left him…yet he kept slamming with his fists at the ground and the rubble, ignoring his pain and the blood from his hands.

Before he could react, before he could realize, he felt himself being embraced from behind. He turned around, and through the tears clouding his eyes, could see Esdeath looking at him. Her prior glare and commanding presence were completely gone. All that he could make through his tears was the look of concern on her face. Before he knew it, Tatsumi had buried his face in her chest, his tears overcoming him as her embrace became stronger.

After several moments, he finally could bring himself to ask.

"Why?-Tatsumi whispered.

"Because you need to let go."-Esdeath replied. Tatsumi could only listen to her as she took his face on her hands, and wiped away the dirt and tears from it.

"You have suffered, Tatsumi. Someone like you, with your kindness and warmth. You would have never joined Night Raid in the first place had you been spared the pain and horror that was inflicted to you here, in this place. You would had never drawn your sword or taken a life had you not suffered loss like this. But you need to let go of that anger now. There is nothing you can do for the dead, Tatsumi…I know this well. All you can do is to keep living, keep fighting for what you believe in, with all the strength you have. You are strong, Tatsumi. You are strong in ways I can't even imagine or comprehend…but I do understand that whatever anger and pain you're relied on to fuel you as an assassin, they will only cause you pain and suffering now. You need to let go of them, Tatsumi. Else you will become what you hate."-Esdeath said as he caressed his hair.

"Why? Why would you even care about something like that? You said it yourself, that you can't even understand it!"-Tatsumi said the pain and memory still affecting his mind.

Esdeath's embrace got lighter as she let go of him, just as Tatsumi realized how hurtful his words had been…and that she didn't deserved them. With shame, he looked up to face her.

Only to find Esdeath staring at him, her expression one of complete concern. There were tears building in her eyes.

"You are right. I cannot understand it. Perhaps I never will. But I do understand that you are in pain and that you are suffering, and I cannot stand it. Perhaps there is truly no way for me to become someone you can truly love, Tatsumi. But I cannot live knowing the one I love suffers and despairs; even if I cannot understand his feelings, I will not stand by and see him be consumed by it. I will not. I can endure any pain inflicted upon my body; resist being subjected to any torture on me. But I cannot go on for a moment knowing that you are suffering, Tatsumi. Of that you can be sure of."-Esdeath said.

Tatsumi stared at her in disbelief…he now not only felt ashamed for lashing at her, but for not realizing it earlier, even when the clues had been there all long, in front of his eyes.

Esdeath had asked him to go to battle against her nature in order to save her from it…but that didn't meant Tatsumi was alone in this fight.

"I know. Thank you for reminding me."-Tatsumi said as he smiled at her. He would hadn't believed it months ago, but watching her wipe the tears of her face and smile back at him had been the most alive he had felt since the war had ended.

They walked together as they made their way out of the debris covered grounds. Outside the gate, a whole regiment of the Imperial Army had seemingly just arrived.

"General Esdeath? We just arrived as per your orders. What happened here?"-The commanding officer asked.

"I was inspecting this property I purchased. The foundations of the place where rotten and it collapsed."-Esdeath replied.

"I see. What are your orders then?"-the officer asked, choosing wisely not to pursue the matter further.

"I want this property cleaned of debris as soon as possible. This place is to become a memorial and cemetery of the victims of the corrupt nobles that supported Honest's reign"-Esdeath replied.

"But General…the noble houses in the sector might object.."-The officer replied, showing a sudden lack of self-preservation.

"Any nobles who wish to oppose what I choose to do with my property are free to bring the issue to me directly, Commander."-Esdeath said with a single glare.

"Of course! It will be done, General!"-The man said as he saluted and then wisely led his men into the property as fast as possible.

"So, did you had this all planned from the start?"-Tatsumi asked as they made their way home.

"Perhaps. I am a strategist, after all."-Esdeath answered as she took her arm around his. Tatsumi didn't offer any resistance. In fact, he couldn't help but question if he was going to be the one conquered after all.

Tatsumi smiled at the memory. It had come at the right moment, reminding him why he had to keep fighting.

He made his way through the snow filled front of the house. It was the middle of spring, yet Esdeath used her powers every time to make sure their house was covered in snow. Tatsumi thought at first that she did it to make him feel more comfortable, but he now suspected that Esdeath actually liked it herself. Perhaps it reminded her of her homeland.

Of course, being the only snow covered house in the city attracted children of every district, as it presented them with the chance to fight with snowballs and play that they only had in winter. He chuckled a bit when he remembered the first time he had to explain to Esdeath what a snowball war actually was. She had gotten a bit too carried away when she saw him play with some children. As a result, both of them had to apologize to several sets of parents about their sons and daughters returning home looking like snowmen. Pretty much all the parents accepted their apologies rather quickly.

"Well, at least she is trying…I have to try harder as well."-Tasumi sighed as he turned the doorknob…only to be blasted into the distance by an avalanche of snow.

…..

Once he had changed into warm clothes and helped Esdeath clean the snow from the rest of the entryway of the house, he found out that the avalanche had been Esdeath's way with dealing with a kitchen accident.

"I was trying to make a cake."-Esdeath sighed as she placed a rock hard, carbon like round shape on the kitchen table.

"It's okay. But you know, I'm a very good cook myself. You don't really have to try and do these kinds of things. You are a general after all."-Tatsumi said as he tried not to look at the crack the burned cake had made when dropped on the table.

"Well, I'm not going to be a general all my life! And besides, it's a matter of pride! I cant let anyone else have sweet kitchen memories with you!"-Esdeath huffed.

Tatsumi rued the day he had told him about Akame and him being pretty much the only cooks in Night Raid. Months ago, that would have been reason enough for Esdeath to destroy Akame, but now, it was the same as her rivalry with Najenda. If it involved him, the she had to be the best at it, no questions asked. Tatsumi was starting to think he had a better chance of surviving the old Esdeath's love at this rate. He didn't even realize that she remembered her pre-war self as "Old Esdeath" anymore.

"Well, maybe you could just hone your skills by cooking the things you already know to cook? Then you could branch out into new areas"-Tatsumi suggested.

"I'm not going to have you living on military rations and camp stew! Unless…."-Esdeath suddenly got a pondering look on her face.

"Unless what?"-Tatsumi asked with dread.

"Well, I didn't learn much traditional Partas Clan cooking recipes when I was a child, my mother dying before I had any memory and all…but I there's a couple things I could try"-Esdeath answered.

"See? I knew you would think of something!"-Tatsumi said, suddenly relieved.

"Of course, I would have to replace snow dragon with earth dragon…I can't vouch they will taste the same, but once we hunt one we will find out"-Esdeath said, not realizing Tatsumi had gone pale from her mentioning hunting and cooking a danger beast so casually.

"Well, we aren't going to do that today, right? We have dinner plans!"-Tatsumi said, hopefully.

"Oh right. I thought you knew already"-Esdeath replied.

"Knew what?"-Tatsumi asked.

"The dinner with Najenda and her "fiancée" got cancelled."-Esdeath answered.

"Really? Too bad."-Tatsumi lied. He was sure Lubbock has been ecstatic to now they had gotten out of that carefree.

"Well, we are still going to dinner with them. Najenda and I both got invited to eat at General Budou's house tonight."-Esdeath added.

"What?"-Tatsumi said in disbelief.

"Yeah, Grujen came with the invitation a few hours ago. General Budou's daughter returns home tonight, and it seems they want her to see a few familiar faces when she arrives. Grujen said it would help her feel welcome, since, she and her father haven't spoken or seen each other since she defected to the Rebel Army lat year."-Esdeath explained. As usual, she was completely oblivious to Tatsumi's shock.

"General Budou has a daughter….and she was a member of the Rebel Army? And we are going to be there for when they first see each other after all this time?"-Tatsumi asked, hoping against hope that Esdeath could see the actual situation.

"Yeah…after all, she was our roommate back at the Academy. We are pretty much her only friends"-Esdeath answered.

It was at that point that Tatsumi actually fainted. Of course, Esdeath had no problem using the occasion to put her resuscitation skills to good use, although Tatsumi might had appreciated is he hadn't been so thought at it. He also might appreciated her not helping more, had he known what was expecting him at that dinner.

Next Chapter: The mystery of how Seryuu remains a Jaeger and an agent of justice in these peace times is revealed, much to Mine's horror, as she discovers that Seryuu might be more terrifying at being nice than at being her usual self. Meanwhile, Bols receives a surprise visit while at work, leading Susanno to come to terms with the relationship between living teigus and humans. Also, Lubbock's feelings get him dragged more into Najenda's schemes, while Budou faces the one enemy he considers his match: his own daughter.