The town was a bustling with a mass of faceless people. The people running here and there, never really stopping unless to meet someone or buy something. It looked like a normal city except for the fact that all the people had no faces.

"I haven't been here before," she stated, looking around the town. "Where do I go to get food?"

"I don't know. But I think if you ask, someone will tell you."

She moaned. It wasn't she didn't want to ask, but rather, she was embarrassed to ask. She regretted not doing this sooner or going with Julius to get the food. "W-well, I'm sure we can find it if we wonder around a bit. I-I mean it's not like we really need someone to tell us. If we don't learn from experience, then what good would that be?"

He smiled. "Then it's a date," he said, happily taunting the girl.

Her eyes grew big as her face lit up a bright red. I'll make you love me. She had almost forgotten what she had said. So, why now of all times was it popping up in her head. "I-it's not a date!" she stuttered, looking away from his taunting gaze. "W-we're just … shopping is all."

"Aww, come on, Alice," he whined sounding disappointed, but the girl knew that it was far from the truth. "It's a date. A d-a-t-e." While he words were playful, his smile was callous, sending shivers down her whole body.

She gulped. "T-then," she moved her eyes up to look at him, "what do you say we do?"

He blinked in surprise. "What … do we do?" He hadn't thought of that, but he had to give her credit for surprising him like that. It was too bad for her, he was a quick thinker. "Well," he grabbed her hand and pulled her close, "I have a few ideas."

"You'll just get lost," she pointed out his awful sense of direction.

"I happen to know these parts pretty well," he countered.

"Wait! You said that you!" He placed his finger over her mouth shushing her.

"I said, I don't know where to get food. Then, Alice, follow me."

She didn't say a word, only following behind the man, holding tightly his hand. Her whole face was embarrassed and she couldn't find the words to say anything. Yet, no matter what she said or felt, she felt safe with him holding her hand like he was.

"I think the food stands are over here," he pointed to the shops with awnings hanging over them. "What do you need?"

The foreigner could feel her heart thump inside her chest and feel the blood rush to her face. Strangely, however, she was calm. "T-thanks." She quickly looked down. "Umm … I need … umm. L-let's go over there!" She pointed to a shop with fresh fruit, an elderly old lady tending to it.

"Hello there," she said in a hoarse-like voice. "Somethin' I can help y'all with? This is your first time here right? If not, I'll be darned. My age must be catching up."

"Don't worry," the girl laughed, "we're first timers. I just need some fruit. Do you think you could help me?"

"Not a problem," she smiled, her mouth curling, showing her decaying, blackened teeth.

After she had finished talking to the shopkeeper, and getting her food, she and Ace left to get the rest of what she needed. And so, by the time that the two had finished, it was already dusk.

He kept looking at her; she kept spacing out throughout their whole walk. She said nothing as he just watched her, silently observing her every actions.

The girl sighed. "Ace, thank you for today. It was fun."

His eyes narrowed on her, his face unreadable. Without much thought, he reached out his hand and grabbed the girl.

"Ace?" she said in shock, half turning to face the man.

His other hand reached out and pulled her closer to him, the hand that he used to grab her hand, wrapping itself around her back.

"Ace! Let me go!" she screamed, face red, pushing the man off of her, causing him to fall to the ground.

A twig snapped in half as a foot stepped on it, crushing it. "You're supposed to be the strongest sword fighter and here you are being pushed down on the ground by a weak girl – not very strong if ever."

"Blood!" Alice shouted in shock, discomfort in her voice.

"Would you like to try it out?" he asked, raising up from off the ground. Once he was up, he quickly reached for his sword and pulled it out. "I can assure you, it's a run for your money."

"As if I'd take my precious time and waste it to fight the likes of you," he said, snubbing the man. "It's hardly worth the effort, if you ask me. You'll be lost soon anyways."

Ace tilted his head and looked at Alice, who quickly turned the other way. She coughed a few times before looking at Blood. "Umm...he...he won't fight you so...or...I-I'll make sure of it," she said, without ever meeting the man's eyes.

He raised his eyebrow. "I had no intention of fighting him in the first place. I'm leaving, so you two just continue on with whatever you were doing," he announced in a disgusted voice. "Please, don't let me interrupt you." With that said, he quickly turned around and left, acting as if the two were some kind of bugs that he couldn't stand to be around.

After a few minutes, he looked back. "Hmph, stupid girl."

Ace moved his eyes to where the girl stood. He could easily see the almost invisible shaking in her hands. "Alice, what's wrong?"

"N-nothing," she stuttered. "Nothing at all."

"But – "

"I said it was nothing. Anyways, I got what I came here for," she pointed out, holding out the bag of groceries in her hand., "so, let's go." She smiled at the man and held out her hand to him.

"Alright. Do you want me to take you back to Julius' place?" he asked, taking her hand.

"Sure."

Two the walked back, holding hands, but without really saying anything.

She sighed, was the reason she wanted to hold his hand because she wanted to be reassured she was safe? Or was it something else? She wasn't quite sure, but she felt relaxed by holding his hand so it didn't really matter to her that much. This was something she could get use to over time.