"I have to take this. I'm sorry. Besides, there isn't really anything else to tell. I ended up with custody of Vivio. It's late, could you see yourself out? I'll see you tomorrow..."

"Of course you will. You know what's on the line. If you don't show up..."

"Hey, you didn't tell me you weren't coming to dinner... What's wrong? If it's about last night... that's no reason to avoid me. Call me when you're free to talk. I'll be waiting. Love you."

"Um. I'm afraid Nanoha-san has requested that you should not try to contact her. She's gotten behind on her work and she needs time to focus."

Standing, she retrieved it, returning to her desk. She tossed it into one of her drawers and locked it, returning at once to her work.

6:15PM, Thursday, Fate, Fate's Apartment

'Will this work? Will I finally break through all the way?' Fate glanced over at Vivio and smiled. "This is my place. You've never been here, have you? Want to come inside with me?"

"UNH!" Vivio grinned, looking this way and that as Fate opened the door. "Wow~! It's so clean!"

Fate laughed, amused at her first reaction. "Yes it is. I'm not one for making a mess. Are you hungry? Do you want a snack?"

"Can I have ice cream??" Vivio gave her a winning smile. "Pleeease?"

Fate laughed and ruffled Vivio's hair. "I have some ice cream bars in the freezer. You can only have one right now though. We might have dinner a little later than you're used to. Is that okay?"

"UNH!"

Fate helped Vivio pick out an ice cream bar and sit down on one of the kitchen island stools. Keeping an eye on the little girl, she turned toward Nanoha.

'She looks like she's scheming how to take back Vivio and run away again. Well, I won't let her.' Fate took a few steps toward Nanoha and reached out to hold her hand. Nanoha didn't resist, nor did she welcome it. Fate pulled her close into an embrace and whispered in her ear, "Is this what I have to do every time I want to see you?"

Nanoha said nothing, so Fate plowed on. "Something's missing, Nanoha. You're keeping something from me. Why? If you need help taking care of Vivio-"

"As if that would be why."

Fate pulled back to look at Nanoha's face, to see the instant regret as she let out more than she intended. 'She didn't want to say anything at all.'

"Why won't you let me be there for you anymore, Nanoha? I'm not going to leave you alone. Whatever it takes..."

"Don't. Stay away. It's better the way it is."

Fate frowned. She was getting nowhere fast with this.

"Fate-mama, where's the trash can?"

Fate felt Nanoha flinch, but held onto her as she turned toward Vivio. "It's under the sink Vivio. Thank you for trying to be neat."

"Unh! Can I color some pages while Mamas talk? I'll be quiet, promise!"

This time, Nanoha also looked up, and Fate could see the tears threatening to spill. 'Vivio doesn't need to see her Mom like this.'

"Of course you can, Vivio. Could you sit at the coffee table there? I'm going to take your Nanoha-mama out to the balcony to talk. If you need to go potty, the bathroom's down the hall, the only door that's open, all right?"

"UNH! Got it! Have fun!"

As Vivio settled down, humming quietly to herself, Fate watched her a moment before tugging Nanoha to the balcony. Like Nanoha's apartment, there was a window beside the door so that one could see into the apartment from outside, so long as the curtains were open.

Once assured they could both keep an eye on Vivio and the door was closed but not locked, Fate exhaled deeply. "All right. Spill."

Nanoha remained stubborn. "There's nothing more to say. I killed a person. It was written off as part of my job. Vivio was going to be sent to an orphanage after they finished running medical tests on her. So I volunteered and adopted her. End of story."

'I don't like the cold way she put that. She's definitely trying to avoid mentioning something.' Fate bit her lip. "You wouldn't be shaking like you are now if that was the 'end of story'. And that still doesn't answer why you would push me away. Don't you trust me? Have I done something to make you think I can't be trusted?"

Nanoha turned away, not answering.

Fate sighed and leaned back against the railing, alternating between looking at the sky, Vivio, and Nanoha. "Well, if you won't give me answers, I'll just list possibilities and you can tell me if I hit the mark."

Nanoha noticeably went rigid and then tried to relax.

'She's pushing herself... anyone can see that...' Fate moved forward and turned Nanoha's back to her so she could rub her shoulders. 'Her muscles are so tense! These knots... God, something's been stressing her out.'

But Nanoha's body didn't hold anything back. After just a few moments, she started to moan and lean into Fate's touch.

Fate spoke in soft, soothing tones, even as she tried to guess what was happening. "It must have something to do with Vivio... you're the sort of person that puts others' wellbeing before your own. If it's Vivio... maybe it has something to do with how she was adopted?"

Fate felt Nanoha tense again. 'I'm getting somewhere.'

"The records list Vivio's birth mother as classified, but it lists the adoption date as Vivio's third birthday. Vivio just turned four, so according to normal regulations, you should be off regular social worker visits. Although, if you really did kill Vivio's 'birth mother', they might want to watch you longer to make sure you're not all in all homicidal... Although, you said you didn't know about Vivio until she was two, which means it's been two years since then? If- Nanoha?"

"Stop it. Bad things will happen if you keep this up."

"Bad things...? What bad things, Nanoha?"

"... Never mind. It's really none of your business. Why can't you just-"

Without really thinking it through, Fate spun Nanoha around and kissed her. Nanoha struggled at first, and Fate pulled back just as Nanoha had lost the will to fight. 'She's crying...' Fate sighed softly and stroked Nanoha's cheek with the back of her fingers. "Nanoha... don't you see? I can't leave you alone because... you're important to me. The most important even. I can't stand to see you like this. But I want to be with you. I want to help you live a better life, a happier life. Vivio can accept me as a constant in her life. Why can't you?"

"Because I'm not five years old anymore dammit!"

'Vivio is... wait, five? That's when Nanoha was... there was more to that, wasn't there?' "Nanoha?"

"Forget it. Forget about me. Forget about Vivio. Just... just... leave us alone!"

And then, Fate heard it. Nanoha's thoughts. 'Leave me alone like you did that day.'

And that was when, Fate remembered. The last day she tried to contact Nanoha.

3PM, 20 Years ago, Age 6, the Takamachi residence

"That's the last of it. It looks like Nanoha is in good hands this time."

Fate held hands with Nanoha, looking her in the eye. 'I'll visit you, promise! So come see me at the center, kay? And call and let me know which schools they're sending you to so I can go to the same schools and... we'll stay best friends forever and ever!'

'Unh! It's a promise! Thank you for everything you've done for me Fate-chan. And your mom too. I'm sorry for bothering you so often.'

'It's not a bother! I love you, Nano-chan. I want you to be happy. So don't forget to call me if things go bad, kay?'

'Unh! You'll come running?'

'Yup! I'll come running!'

'If I break a nail?'

'Umm... I'll kiss it and make it all better!'

'If I kiss a boy?'

'Tell me all about it! .'

'Sleepovers and camps too?'

'Everything! Just because we don't live together doesn't mean we can't be tied to the hip or whatever they say! I love you, Nano-chan.'

'Unh! Me too, Fate-chan. Love you to itty bitty bits. Don't ever leave me, kay? You're the only one in the whole wide world I really really trust.'

'Leave it to me!'

"Fate-chan, ready to go? You two have been awfully quiet."

Fate leaned over and gave Nanoha a peck on the cheek. "I'll come visit as much as possible, kay? Promise!"

"Unh! See you later!"

8PM, Same Day, Age 6, The Children's Center

"Fate-chan, will you come here for a second?"

"Yes Mama?" Fate peeked in, having watched Lindy talk on the phone from the doorway. She waddled forward until she was standing next to Lindy's chair. Lindy picked her up and set her on her lap.

"It's about Nanoha."

"Nano-chan?"

"Yes, Nano-chan." Lindy took a deep breath and sighed. "Sweetheart, as we are now, you and Nanoha aren't going to be going to the same schools. We're on the border of the wrong school district."

Fate stared in disbelief. "But, but, all the other ones were in the same district!"

"I know, love, but the Takamachi's live in a different neighborhood."

"Can we move? Can we can we?"

"There isn't room for this center where they are."

"We can com...com... we can drive here every day, can't we?"

"I'm sorry, Fate-chan. I can take you to visit every now and again but... it's going to be hard on us if you try to visit too often. With the economy... things aren't looking good right now, and we can't afford as many needless spending. I'm sorry..."

"Can I still call her on the devices?"

"Those are really expensive to maintain, Fate-chan. You know those are only for emergencies."

"But... but!"

"Nanoha will be okay, Fate-chan. She's a big girl and her family already loves her. You don't have to worry."

'But... what if I'm not okay?'

"What about middle school? High school?"

"Still different districts, Fate-chan."

Fate frowned. There must be some way around this...!

"I'll walk! How far is it? I can walk there."

"Fate! I'm not going to have you walking the streets alone like that! It's dangerous."

"But...!"

"Don't make me ground you, little lady. I'm not saying you can't ever see her, just, don't expect it to be a regular occurrence. Besides, you have to think of the good things."

"Like what?"

"Like... oh... maybe Nanoha will get more attached to this family and she'll stick with them. She'll be happier that way, don't you think?"

"She won't."

"Fate-cha-"

"She needs me, Mama! I know she does. I need her, too. Don't separate us!"

"It's not like you're sisters, Fate-chan... She was never a part of this family."

Fate didn't want to listen to anymore. She hopped off Lindy's lap and ran out the door. She could hear her calling after her, "Fate! Fate-chan come back here!"

Fate stopped at the park, looking around. It was deserted. She closed her eyes and prayed that their connection would cross the distance.

'Nano-chan... can you hear me?'

'Fate-chan?'

Fate breathed a sigh of relief. The park was close enough then.

'I'm at the park, can you sneak out?'

'I don't think so... we're playing Uno together right now.'

'Oh... that's... that's good then. They're spending time with you, right?'

'Yeah... what's wrong, Fate-chan? Why are you at the park?'

'Um... Nano-chan... I have to tell you something.'

'What? What is it?'

'Mama says it costs too much for us to see each other every day like before.'

'You too? Takamachi-san told me the same thing. Bullies. I don't want to be apart from you.'

'Me neither.'

'I can call and tell Lindy they're being bad to me?'

'Are they really?'

'No. Yes, because I can't see you.'

'...Are they doing anything else? Besides that?'

'No... they're really nice. They're busy during the day, but at night, they make up for it. I'm learning to bake too.'

'That's great! Well... I mean... maybe you should stay with them?'

'And not see you? Why would I do that?'

'They'll protect you from having bad parents, right? Since they're your parents now.'

'But... Fate-chan isn't with me. It's not home without Fate-chan.'

'Things will be better when we're older, Nano-chan. We can be together again when we're older.'

'Then... you're leaving me? You're going to leave me alone with them?'

'They aren't bad people, Nano-chan! You'll be okay!'

'But I won't be happy. Don't you want me to be happy?'

Fate frowned. It was just like she had told her mom. 'When we grow up, let's move in together, kay? We'll always be together then. Nobody will ever tear us apart.'

'... We'll never grow up. It'll take forever.'

'I can wait forever and a half for you. Can't you?'

'It's a super super long time.'

'I love you, Nano-chan.'

'You'll always be my number one, Fate-chan. Don't forget about me, okay?'

'You either!'

'Mm... bye.'

'Bye-bye Nano-chan.'

6:30PM, back to the present, Fate's apartment

'After that, I stopped being able to hear her thoughts. She closed herself off from me, but why?'

"Nanoha?"

"Why do you keep coming back? I'd rather be left alone and never have to say goodbye to you ever again. At least then I won't keep thinking about whether you're doing all right or not."

Fate's eyes widened. "Nanoha... you're thinking about this all wrong. I-"

"You think I wouldn't love to live with you? To raise Vivio together with you? You were the first person I thought of when I was getting ready to adopt Vivio. But we can't. Not anymore. I'm a marked woman now. I don't want you to get caught up in my problems."

Fate reacted instantly, wrapping her arms around Nanoha's waist. "Silly girl. Don't you see I want to get caught up in your life? I want to make things easier for you. Don't underestimate me, Nanoha. We can get through anything together."

"You can't... you can't."

"Why not?"

"Because they know. They know what you mean to me. They know everything. If I let you in, they'll-"

Suddenly, Fate heard the dim chime of the front doorbell and looked to see Vivio racing towards the door. "I'll get it!"

"Vivio, wait!" Fate opened the door and moved towards Vivio, but just as Vivio turned to look at her, her little hand on the doorknob...

Vivio's small frame slumped to the ground.

"Vivio!!"

A/N: XO What will happen next~~~~?? 'Ell if I know. .n.n. Good times eh? Ack, I forgot about Arf! O.o Maybe she was asleep, idk. What happened to Vivio? Will Fate and Nanoha be bonded once more? Find out next on! Adopt Me! .!

And reviewers are loved  *gives out strawberries dipped in chocolate*