Hey, everyone. I'm glad that my last Index fic got a positive reception so here's another one, specifically another Touma/Itsuwa story. This one's a straight sequel to "Miraculous" so they're an established couple. Given the timeline of the last story, this one takes place I'd say…in the earlier points of New Testament. Read on and enjoy the fluff!

I do not own anything.

Within Arm's Reach

"What the hell has happened to you?"

Touma blinked. "Huh?"

Fukiyose continued to glare at him half-expecting it to be enough to coax an answer out of him. Thirty seconds of straight glaring and confused staring ensued. It was too much. "Don't play stupid with me, Kamijou. I'm asking you what the hell happened to you?"

The spiky-haired teenager continued to stare at her in confusion. "Uh, Fukiyose, can you give me some details here? I'm seriously drawing a blank as to what you're talking about."

To Touma's quiet relief, the black-haired girl didn't hit him, or go off on him. Not yet anyway. Heaving out a sigh, she firmly crossed her arms and continued to glare at him, albeit it lost some of its intensity. "Touma, when it comes to grades, you're in the bottom tier, but far from the worst of the class. Or at least, that's how you used to be."

"…Uh-huh." Touma answered back. "You're talking like I've undergone some kind of weird change."

"Well, not physically at least. You still have the same old spikes that you had before. Granted they do seem a little…shiner."

"Why thank you, Fukiyose." Sheepishly declared the Level-0 Esper. As he expected, Fukiyose's brows knitted in annoyance. "Any thoughts on my new body shampoo?"

"I'm being serious here."

"Really? I couldn't tell." Touma sniped back with his usual wit.

As expected, the health-obsessed girl looked less than amused. Truth be told, she was actually expecting this kind of response from him. She knew what she was getting herself into. "Your grades have gotten better. You, doing better academically. Albeit you're in no way on the path to making valedictorian."

"Woah, it's a good thing I was never aiming for that position, but it would have been nice to have." Shrugged the teenager.

"Gee, good to know your aspirations haven't changed…or maybe they have." She shot back, the last part filled with intrigue.

Normally, someone in his position would have said they were feeling uncomfortable. Touma was feeling a little bit of that, but not enough to hit the brakes, not that he knew they'd do any good. "Okay, fine, maybe I've decided to try to improve my grades just a little. What's the big deal?"

Leaning forward, he the Level-0 was forced to stare into his classmate's dark eyes. He had no idea what was running through her mind, and frankly, Touma would have preferred not to know. Still, for better or worse, Fukiyose was going to let him know. All he could do was brace for that; it's not like it could be any worse than what he'd been through before.

"…Are the rumors about you having a girlfriend true?" She asked point blankly.

Touma blinked. "…Why does that matter?"

"I want to know if you do or don't. Is she the one who's been tutoring you?" The long-haired girl pressed. Her gaze was as unwavering as thunderclouds. Luckily, Touma had been in that situation before, occasionally facing down actual lightning. Still, Fukiyose's gaze could be pretty intense. He didn't like being under it.

To get out from under it, Touma had a feeling that telling the truth was his best move. Plus, trying to lie to Fukiyose would likely come back to bite him in the ass. Telling the truth was his best bet, and it was a bet he took. "Yeah, I am, and yes, she's been the one tutoring me. She's…she's a pretty kind and considerate person. One who I think would make for a great teacher one day." The night of his and Itsuwa's date remained forever ingrained in his mind. Everything they talked about, everything that talking had led to…he'd never forget it. Amongst those discussions had been the reveal of Itsuwa's personal life. It wasn't surprising that a teacher's child might aspire to become like their parent; Touma would certainly give her his full support if that's the road she went down.

Truthfully, he'd prefer that over her attempting to break into competitive racing. Somedays, he wondered if his girlfriend thought about making that exciting leap.

Back to reality, Fukiyose…took the news in silent acceptance. She didn't explode in anger or heartbroken despair, which he was happy for. It's not like this was a soap opera.

"I see…ah, so that means I'm out fifty yen." The health-obsessed girl declared, leaning back with her arms crossed.

"Fifty yen? Wait, you mean there really is a betting pool going on? And fifty yen is how much you put on me actually having a girlfriend?" Touma shouted.

Fukiyose took note of how he seemingly was more surprised by the amount of money she had in the betting pool than the pool itself. "What? It's not like I was going to gamble three digits or more on your topsy-turvy love life, which seems to have finally gotten better."

"Thanks for the compliment, Fukiyose." He meant it. His classmate saw that as her eyes widened in shock, and her cheeks took on a slightly pink hue. Touma wished he hadn't seen it, but he had. Again though, he was glad that Fukiyose was taking the news so well. There were worse ways this whole thing could have gone. A stray thought crossed his mind. Upon latching onto it, Touma realized that if he took it, he could potentially blow up this entire meeting. His decision was made in a split second. "If you want, I could…ask her to tutor some students here, you included."

Immediately, her eyes narrowed. "You're saying that I could use some tutoring?"

In spite of her accusing tone, the unlikely teen pressed on, knowing he was pushing his luck. "Well, it's not like your grades are the best. Plus, I don't really think you'd be able to stand for falling behind me."

Fukiyose's eyes hardened at the insinuation. Was it a ballsy move? Yes, it was, but it was actually rather in-character for the Touma Kamijou that she'd come to know. In his own bizarre way, he was offering to help, but he wasn't skipping out on the opportunity to have some fun at her expense. Behind her irritation, she was pleasantly surprised, and even a little amused.

"I'll have you know the odds of that happening aren't too high."

"Hey, you never know." He joked.

"Uh-huh. I'll just keep in mind what you said about you not aiming for valedictorian." She replied. Her annoyance faded as she moved back into a semi-serious frame of mind. "Does Index know?"

"Considering that she lives with me, yeah. She's pretty much like my annoying little sister. One that I never asked for, but here I am, saddled with her." There was a brief pause as the spiky-haired teen looked to his classmate, intrigue swirling in his eyes. All of his instincts were telling him that something was afoot with his health-obsessed classmate. While he could have simply let it go, he'd come too far not to. Besides, he felt like he had to settle this attempted investigation into his private life. "Fukiyose, if there's something on your mind, I'd appreciate it if you just came out and said it. Yes, I'm dating someone, and yes…it's a serious relationship."

That seemed to cause her eyes to light up. Quickly, Touma deduced that she'd been waiting for him to officially declare the status of his relationship. Now that he had, well…he would take what came next, good or bad.

For what felt like the first time in ages, Fukiyose Seiri smiled at him. It was so…clear-lanced and happy, happy for him. Touma felt an urge to slap himself just to make sure he wasn't dreaming after falling asleep in class.

"I'm…happy to hear that, because it sounds like this girl was able to kick your ass into gear when it comes to living." She declared.

Suddenly, he felt like he was looking at a big clear sky, seeing everything that it had to offer. Slowly, his lips curved into a smile. "Did I really look that…deflated?"

"I hated how you just blamed your rotten luck and walked through life with this almost disinterest."

"Is that what you call it?"

"It's how I saw it. There was always this…emptiness about you that worried me. Seriously, people without any drive to accomplish anything are the worst." Fukiyose explained, puffing her chest out to make a statement. Touma found it more amusing than threatening, which might have been what she was going for. The fact she wasn't able to invoke that feeling didn't seem to bother her. "Whoever this girl is…whatever else happened to you, it seemed it finally gave you that spark of life that you've been missing. I'm glad that you finally have it, because it means you can truly start living a healthy life style from now on."

Actually, I've been living that life style for the past couple of months. The ordinary yet not so ordinary teenager thought. Not that he would dare say it to Fukiyose's face. Odds were, she thought the relationship he'd been in had likely been going on for a few weeks, not months like it really had. He and Itsuwa had been rather good at keeping it a secret, at his behest of course. Touma was grateful that she'd indulged him. "Uh-huh. That's…good to know. Thank you, Fukiyose. Real big sister-like of you."

"But if you plan on keeping this relationship up, you're going to need to stay in good health, you got that!"

"Ah, there's the Fukiyose that I know! And you keep on turning down the position of class representative!"

Her nose wrinkled. "Too much stifling in that position. Besides, I'm much more comfortable where I am…and I'm willing to venture that you're happy where you are now too, right?"

Touma thought back to how his life had gone from crazy to even crazier over the last couple of months, then slowly scaled back down to its usual craziness. In the midst of all of that, he had one constant, a person whose life he kept in his heart, and his life occupied a similar place in her heart. Taking it all together, Touma found himself leaning back into his chair and smiling. "Yeah, I am."

Fukiyose paused, seemingly basking in the joy of his heartfelt smile. Then she reached down into her bag, which Touma had forgotten had been placed down in front of his desk. As he watched it, his eyes widened in horror and his blood chilled.

"But, you can be even happier, and I'm sure this mysterious girl of yours can as well with these health products. Now, I don't know how far along you two are, but-"

"Okay, thanks for the talk, but it's over! You did your job as the faux-class representative!" The Level-0 shouted while bolting upright. "School's over and I've got places to be, so do you, I'm sure!"

"Hold it!" She reached forward and grabbed him by the scuff of his shirt.

Touma sweated bullets as with her other hand, she finished reaching into the bag. He could think of a list of things that his classmate probably had stashed in there, which spoke volumes about how well he'd gotten to know Fukiyose. Personally, Touma believed without a doubt that Fukiyose had a future in the health business, potentially even advertisement. She was doing horrific wonders in the latter category, as he could personally attest.

And poor, unlucky me, a building block on her road to health-focused stardom. He mused behind a comical straight-faced. Touma was only barely paying attention to his classmate. His real focus was on the distant future, which he saw steadily being eaten up by Fukiyose.

At the very least he was lucky that he had such a considerate and understanding girlfriend in Itsuwa.

"Hey, sorry about taking so long. I, uh…after school stuff." He offered as he began walking down the steps to the street.

There was a brief giggle on the other end. "It's fine. Truth is, you're not the only one who's running a little late. I don't think I'll be able to make our date at the park either. I'm stuck in traffic." Itsuwa answered over the line. She sounded as disappointed as Touma felt. "Unfortunately, I was hoping to drop a few things off at my apartment then meet up with you, but it's looking like that idea may not work."

"I don't know about that; it still could work." Touma said. "We'll just have to move the time table a little."

"You'd be willing to do that, Touma?"

"Hmm, well, you are my girlfriend, and I'd be a pretty dickish boyfriend if I didn't suggest we make adjustments. It's not the first time that we've had to." The most knowledge he had with relationships came from his parents, books, movies, and TV shows. Of the four, well…the latter three actually ate up more of the experience listing. He was still without certain memories. "What do you say we move our date to six o'clock? Would that work for you?"

"S-Sure! That time frame would be perfect! Plus, I think there'll be some nightly performers coming out so…maybe we could…catch a show together?" He could practically hear the blush in her voice, and Itsuwa probably knew it. Truth be told, she wasn't that hard to figure out sometimes, something of a contrast to her boyfriend. "Um…remember to dress for the weather!"

"Yeah, but hey, it's not snowing yet."

"Um…can it snow in November? Here in Academy City?"

"Oh, believe me, sometimes it has. This is a weird city with a lot of weird things going on every second of the day. As we're talking, for all we know, a small-scale war involving Esper powers, paramilitary groups, and your ordinary street thugs is probably happening somewhere in the city." There was a pause as he looked up to the cloudy sky. "Eh, that and possibly some magician that's snuck in. I've had to include those too since you guys started showing up in Academy City more often."

In Academy City where science ruled with, at times, an iron fist, the existence of magic seemed almost like finding some wild animal that had wondered in from the forest. Touma actually thought that was appropriate sometimes. Just like any wild animal, they could prove to be…dangerous. Sometimes, he felt like the Magical World could be even more dangerous and wild than the Scientific World. Granted, it wasn't all doom ad gloom.

Befitting old fairy tales, within the Magical World, he'd met some amazing people, people who'd become like beacons of light for him, and oddly enough, he'd become the same to some of them.

With Itsuwa, it was a feeling that went both ways.

"You be careful, alright?" She said over what sounded like the blare of car alarms.

"You too. From the sounds of things, traffic's getting pretty bad." He chirped.

"It is, but it's nothing that I can't handle, or anything worse than what I've seen."

Touma felt his stomach rumble as he thought of his next words. "Um, Itsuwa, if you want…we can always…rent a bike and go for a ride. I mean, the race tracks should still be open so…if you're up for it…"

"Really? That'd be great!" I know just the track!"

What the hell did I just sign myself up for? He questioned before arriving at the answer, A high-speed drive that'll leave my stomach feeling like it's been forced up my throat. Again, he'd been forced to make peace with the fact that his girlfriend was a speed demon. Amazingly, in spite of his extremely rotten luck, Itsuwa never had any fear of crashing with him riding with her. It was a quiet fear that Itsuwa had picked up on just before World War III; he confessed to her that the thought of her getting into an accident because of him genuinely terrified him.

"Touma," She began in a surprisingly calm and soothing voice. "In all your time you've been here in Academy City, has every bus or taxi you've ever rode in ended up crashig or the passengers ended up killed or maimed?"

"Um…no. At least not that I'm aware of."

He remembered how she smiled at him, then reached for his right hand and held it up to her. Her touch was…Touma honestly didn't how to describe it. Looking into her warm yellow eyes simply left him feeling safe and warm and happy. It was her ability to bring out those feelings that made him choose to enter into a relationship with Itsuwa.

As the call ended, he was reminded of just how much the relationship had come to mean to him. He'd been telling the truth to Fukiyose, the relationship that they had was serious, even though it was only a couple months old, and they'd had some…time taken out during that time. Still, they'd made things work, and they were continuing to make things work.

5:35 PM…

"I'm impressed, you've actually learned how to take care of the dorm when I'm gone."

Index made a face at him, an occurrence that happened on a daily basis. Putting her hands on her hips, she did her best to glare him down. Touma merely shrugged and stared back at her; he was quietly bracing himself for a bite to the head. They still happened, but thankfully they'd…receded in number.

Again though, they still happened.

"Just so you know, even if I'm not a master housekeeper, I have learned how to take care of myself! Itsuwa's even helped!" Index shouted.

"Yeah, she's told me about it. She said that you're a determined student." The black-haired teenager chuckled. His words temporarily broke Index's glare, she ended up blushing herself. "Index,"

"You know what I'm bracing for." She said, taking a seat directly in front of him.

Touma's expression softened as sympathy overwhelmed him. There hadn't been any sort of official agreement between them, nothing so much as resembling a talk about their living arrangements. He helped save her life (at the cost of his memories), and just decided to live with him as his roommate. From there, he'd been drawn into the Magical World and all the mysticism with it. Not once did he ever blame her for it, and not once did he ever regret it. Even when it involved him getting roped into potential world-ending calamities, the last one of which she'd been a part of, though by anything but her own will. Index still sometimes found it hard to believe that World War III had happened while she was under Fiamma's captivity; doubly so given that she'd been unconscious throughout most of the war. Which had only lasted a couple of days.

Several across the world and the city had remarked how small scale it had been compared to the last two World Wars. Others had replied that any conflict involving Academy City was bound to end up as lasting for only two or even three days at most.

Still, so much had happened then, and yet here they were. Back in his dorm room, him back to going to school like nothing had ever happened. One could say that was another one of Touma's unique powers-his ability to take potentially life-altering, world-altering events, and simply shrug them off like they were nothing major.

But that didn't quite go for the people around him.

"You don't have to be in such a hurry to…move out, ya' know." He spoke.

"I'll have you know that I have places lined up for when I will be ready to move out. Several!" She proclaimed.

"Which means you'll be mooching off of someone else's food instead of mine." Touma mused.

"I can always come back to say hi. I'm sure Itsuwa would love to see me and cook for me." The silver-haired girl hit back.

There was a laugh, one that soon became genuine causing Index's jaw to drop. "Yeah, you'd come back to be a pain, but we'd welcome you in."

Index's mouth shut as her eyes widened in contemplation at his words. For as much teasing as they threw at each other, Index had quietly accepted that…even if Touma moved on, he wouldn't forget about her. Hell, he was willing to go to Russia on his own, braving fierce dangers to rescue her. And Itsuwa had let him go, fully accepting of his choices. When she and the Amakusa Church girl sat down to talk in the aftermath of the war, Index remembered how she simply broke down and cried into her arms.

It was Itsuwa that had to be strong for the both of them; Index knew it'd been unfair since it was entirely possibly that Itsuwa was hurting far more than her.

"Um…if I do that then…I'll…try and send you guys a heads up." She whispered.

"That would be nice. We'd be able to stock up on food for you to make disappear like you usually do."

And that was the final straw. Index's eyes went white in blocky, comical fury. "Tou…ma." She growled.

He'd lost count of how many times she'd bitten him; there probably wasn't any point in trying to keep track. Odds were, when he did die, he still wouldn't know how many times he'd been bitten. That evening, he tried to keep the number from increasing by one.

"Ow! H-Hey! Come on, I've got a date in a couple of minutes!" Touma shouted while attempting to hold back the smaller girl.

"Then you should have just kept your mouth shut!" The living index growled while trying to plat her jaws on his head.

While the two tussled with each other, the TV screen immediately changed. Where there once had been a TV show playing, there was now a special news bulletin. Touma would have ignored it while continuing to struggle against his roommate, but his eyes caught sight of the buildings assailed by smoke and immediately recognized them. His struggling ceased, something that Index didn't realize until she'd begun to chow down on his head and not feel an ounce of resistance. That was her clue that something was wrong. Slowly, she looked to the TV as well, curious as to what it was that had caught Touma's attention.

The special news bulletin played, live reports doing their jobs on the scene. Smoke rose from flaming buildings, fires eating away at them like a flaming rash. One look at the scene and it was clear that the devastation wasn't simply an accident, it was something else, something more violent. That thought was further affirmed as more explosions went off in the background. The reporters called it for what it likely was, a gang war.

Touma only just barely heard them, his mind was focused on the buildings themselves. Within a heartbeat, he recognized them.

"Itsuwa," he whispered, his eyes wide with fear. Within the next second, he'd grabbed for his phone, frantically searching for her number and calling her. "Come on. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up. Pick up!" There was nothing but silence on the other end.

"Touma," Came Index's concerned voice.

Looking to her, he saw the worry building up in her eyes.

"I'm going."

There wasn't a hint of discussion or argument. Index went for the closet with him, grabbing her own coat and shoes. Touma did the same, a mixture of fear and concentration on his face as he did so. Very rarely did he ever feel his heart race this much in the confines of his dorm room; it was a place of safety and security, but not anymore. That one news report had shattered that feeling; he feared that it'd been shattered for Itsuwa as well.

Her name and face repeatedly sounded and flashed through his mind as he practically stumbled out the door. It grew faster and faster with every step he took. Those steps quickly morphed into an all-out sprint. Touma couldn't tell when he began sprinting, probably the second he was out of the dorm room and racing down the street. He should have been out of breath after a minute or two of this, but he wasn't.

Touma simply ran, he ran and ran, feeling like he wouldn't be able to stop until he was able to hold his girlfriend in his arms again.

6:18 PM…

That didn't happen when he got down to the Kaneko Apartment Complex, or what was left of it.

Huffing, Touma stared at the half-burnt husk of the apartment complex. It was still standing, but a bite had been taken out of it. Smoke still rose from the burnt portions, rising up into the darkening sky. The sight was nothing short of ominous, especially if you knew someone who'd been living in the building like Touma did. While he was thankful the fire hadn't gutted the entire building, he was still horrified by what he saw.

He knew that his girlfriend lived on the sixth floor of the twenty-story building. On what was primarily the left side of the building. Unfortunately, the upper levels of that side had been the side that bore the brunt of the fire. On the surface, it hadn't reached all the way down to Itsuwa's floor, but that wasn't saying anything about the damage inside. If this had been some sort of gang violence gone array, then it's possible that the damage inside was worse than the outside. Touma didn't know that, and that lack of knowledge left him feeling terrified.

"I…she's alright, Touma. You know her." Index whispered, grabbing his hand for comfort. He squeezed back, knowing that he needed it, and that the magical index was right. His girlfriend had been through worse.

In spite of knowing that, Touma still felt nothing but suffocating worry. He looked down at her phone, calling her again and again.

"You be careful, alright?"

"You too. From the sounds of things, traffic's getting pretty bad."

"It is, but it's nothing that I can't handle, or anything worse than what I've seen."

"Um, Itsuwa, if you want…we can always…rent a bike and go for a ride. I mean, the race tracks should still be open so…if you're up for it…"

"Really? That'd be great!" I know just the track!"

That conversation…had he jinxed her? Had his rotten luck acted up again, this time coming with consequences greater than he could have imagined.

She's alive. She's alive. She's alive. He told himself, immense anxiety building up within him like a volcano about to erupt. That eruption would spur him into doing something reckless. Touma knew exactly what that reckless deed would be-pushing past the crowd, through the police barricades and running straight into the building. Word was that the building was still occupied, not with its residents, but with the criminals who'd started this. As a testament to how much he'd changed, his first thoughts weren't of stopping from potentially harming anyone else, it was of securing his girlfriend. Who he didn't even know if she was still in the building or not.

"Touma," Index's voice sounded again. The worry had increased as she had a feeling he was about to do something dangerously reckless. Scratch that, she knew what he was about to do. "N-Now wait a second, T-Touma. You don't even know if she's in there. She could still be on her way to-"

"I'm going in." He declared, his eyes suddenly hardening with his trademark determination. "Index, stay here. I'm-"

"Touma! Touma! Over here!"

The voice struck him like a bolt of lightning, widening his eyes to the point that the irises practically disappeared. His heart thumping in his chest, the Level-0 spun around on his heel, looking behind him. He saw her having pushed through the crowd that they were at the back of. It was still growing by the second, by the multitude of people completely disappeared from Touma's vision.

All he saw was her, her beautiful face that was panting, yet twisted into a gentle smile as she returned his gaze.

A heartbeat later and he took off. His short sprint ended with him slamming into her, nearly knocking her back. Itsuwa was forced to take a few steps back, but she quickly regained her balance, partially by wrapping her arms around her boyfriend's body. She could feel him trembling against her.

"I'm okay, Touma. I got a little bit sidetracked, but I'm alright. Hehe, the truth is, I was just about to call you and tell you we might have to move our date back a little further." She explained while gently rubbing his back. "I'm sorry that I didn't answer my phone, Touma."

He shook his head against her. "N-N-No, i-it's fine. I…I got a little scared, more scared than I should have been." Touma admitted. Surprisingly, his legs felt like they were toothpicks about to buckle any second. Maybe it was from the exhaustion of having ran several dozen blocks, or maybe it was just from the sheer relief. Either way, he practically had to hold onto Itsuwa in order to remain upright. "S-S-Sorry."

"He was about to do something stupid again." Index declared, jogging up to join them. She too looked visibly relieve to see the Amakusa Church girl alive and healthy, though considerably less so than Touma, who was practically clinging to her.

Not that Itsuwa had a problem with that. "Hehehe, it seems me being caught up worked out for the best." Still engaged in the hug, she looked up at the apartment building, her apartment building. "I guess I'll have to contact the others and tell them that my apartment's been compromised for a little bit."

Still holding onto her with his arm, Touma looked back. Though the damage wasn't exactly permanent, he could tell in one look it was going to take a while to repair, as in about two weeks or so. He was also pretty sure that during that time period, the building was going to have to be either cleared out on some levels, or some residents asked to be very careful. The safe bet would have been to temporarily move out for a little bit.

His train of thought stopped causing him to blink. Was that him being rational…or was it another part of his mind acting up? It certainly felt like the latter as he turned and looked to his girlfriend beside him, alive and well. Just the sight of her filled him with relief and happiness, almost like…when he came home to Academy City and called her up. The first time he saw her after World War III.

He'd never forget the tears that fell from Itsuwa's eyes as she stared at him, then flew into his chest, crying her eyes out. His arms wrapped around her and held her as she did, whispering to her that he was alive and he was back, and he was sorry for leaving her so suddenly.

Oh, how the tables had felt like they'd turned.

Touma still held onto her as he, Itsuwa, and Index all formed into a little trio, one of many groups that watched the fire fighters continue to put out the blaze. There weren't any more explosions, but the sounds of commotion were still present. Clearly, whoever had started the fire was still trying to put up some sort of fight. Granted, as the minutes slowly dragged on, the fight seemingly ended.

While none of them, especially Index, could see for certain, several people were eventually dragged out in handcuffs and restraining devices for their Esper powers.

"Well, I guess you won't be running off to put yourself in danger again after all. Thank God for that." Index mused, shooting an aside glare at the spiky-haired Esper.

"Um, uh…yeah. I…sorta guess so."

"Touma." Itsuwa sounded. Reaching up to cradle his face, she fixed him with a hard stare. "The police and fire department have this under control. It's being handled." She wasn't being too forceful with him, but it was clear she didn't want to turn this into an argument with him. Namely, she didn't want the worry that he'd had for her thrown onto her for him.

If he ran into danger for the sake of helping others like he always did, that's exactly would happen.

That left only one option left. "Okay then…let's…let's go home, you guys." To his left, he saw his roommate and surrogate little sister, and to his right his girlfriend, as unlikely a thing as that was.

They smiled at him showing they were in perfect agreement with his choice.

7:44 PM…

The moment they got back to his apartment, Touma wrapped his brain around how he could apologize to his girlfriend.

It wasn't an apology that Itsuwa would see coming, and once she got it, odds were she'd deny that she needed an apology. She'd argue that the fact that he was so worried about her was something she found deeply endearing. The spear-wielder also would have likely seen through to the root cause of the apology, beyond the reasons that Touma would give.

Before the mess in Russia, she'd been to Touma's dorm room a total of four times. The first time had been memorable for the both of them, it'd been the start of the night that would involve them confront Acqua of the Back, the Amakusa Church reassembling in full, and ending with Acqua's defeat. Oh, and the night where both Touma and Itsuwa would come to some important realizations about themselves.

Amongst the Amakusa, the night was more or less a celebratory day, one that they would always invite Touma to take part in. It was rather bizarre to think that out of all of the factions he'd become involved with, he was on the friendliest ground with the small-scale Church led by a woman who'd attempted to kill him when he first met Index what felt like a lifetime ago. In fairness, of all the factions, both scientific and magical, the Amakusa Church was perhaps the least shady. Plus, there was Itsuwa.

He'd openly admitted how he loved her cooking, and frankly how he enjoyed watching her cook. A kind and beautiful girl like her cooking for him? In the quiet safety of his own room? Such a thing was nothing short of miraculous, yet such miracles weren't the sort that happened to him. He was the "God of Misfortune", and he bore the title with silent acceptance. Though there were some who'd have argued that his title was actually misleading.

Here he was, in his dorm room helping his girlfriend prepare dinner, just the two of them.

"Hmm, you know what, I think I'll stay with Kaori tonight. She always lets me snack on all the sweets I want!"

"What? Hey, that's a lie, she has limits! You're just able to make her push them!"

"Which is another awesome reason for me to stay with her for tonight! Or maybe the next couple of nights!"

As soon as Index said that, his eyes widened. Now, for all of his less than stellar academics and perceived incompetence, Touma Kamijou could be a rather sharp person. More so when it was the people he held close to his heart. Funny enough, all he did was hold those people there, he didn't truly let them until only a little while ago. Misaka had called him out on it, and she'd been right to. Could a person live forever holding people close, yet keeping them somewhat at bay? Touma had learned the answer might have been no.

While he and Index talked, his eyes had wondered to Itsuwa, who stood several feet away talking on the phone herself.

About a week of living alone, though occasionally with his dormmate stopping by, with his girlfriend. What guy could be so lucky? Not Touma Kamijou, yet in his kitchen he stood, watching his purple-haired girlfriend at work. His gazing didn't go unnoticed.

Whenever their eyes would meet, Itsuwa's cheeks would blush red causing Touma to look away, his own cheeks turning pink and even red. It was comical, they were acting like they had to tip-toe around each other instead of as a couple that had been together for a near full month. Their time together had been…interesting though, a couple of dates here and there intermixed with international upheaval that climaxed in a war between another country and Academy City.

Looking back at her, Touma felt his heart again race. He felt like there was more he had to tell her, more he wanted to apologize for, yet his mouth wouldn't work. It was a strange feeling, one he hadn't felt for any other girl he'd met; he took it as further proof that Itsuwa was perhaps the girl for him.

Fully believing that, he wanted to do his best to treat her right.

"Touma," she merely whispered feeling his hands wrap around her waist. "You…you don't have to apologize."

He chuckled. "So, I was that obvious, huh?"

Reaching up and softly cradling his cheek, while still keeping her eyes on the stove. "You're such a kind and considerate person, sometimes maybe…a little too much so. But that's something I like about you." His presence against her body had her body pulsing with electricity. It seemed like just yesterday that pulsating would have been enough to make her crumple to the ground. "You know that I've been through more than just a burning building and some hoodlums, I know that I live in Academy City."

"Yeah, this big, crazy, wonderful city." He remarked. "Still, I…I'm sorry. When I saw your apartment on the news, I just…" The fear he felt was so…chilling. Touma couldn't say that none of his fights had ever invoked that feeling. One battle had, and it was the opponent who'd helped bring them together-Acqua of the Rear.

"That's how I felt when you…disappeared, but I didn't know where to run to. All I could do was wait. In a way, I'm envious that you knew what you wanted to do." She admitted. It wasn't something she was happy about as she hated the thought of Touma in pain in any way. Nor did she want to put him through the anxiety and suffering that she had endured when he went missing after World War III. That torment, she didn't believe she'd wish it on anyone, not even the worst sinners in the world.

Gently turning the shorter girl around, Touma leaned forward and kissed her, gently brushing their lips together. The kiss wasn't a fiery affair that could possibly lead to something else, it was merely a warm confirmation that they were both here, they were both together.

As enjoyable as it was, they didn't let it last too long after all, they did still have dinner to prepare. The couple dislodged, Touma quietly amused at how he remained self-conscious enough not to push things. With his rotten luck, he thought it surely would have happened, though maybe he'd been given enough scares for one night, or perhaps by some strange twist of fate, he was pushing past his legendary rotten luck.

"I hated how you just blamed your rotten luck and walked through life with this almost disinterest." Fukiyose had said earlier on. The afterschool discussion she'd shared with him seemed like so long ago, but thinking about it, Touma felt it ringing in his head like a bell.

While Touma wouldn't go as far as to say he was lacking something…maybe he was more guarded than he cared to admit. He liked to think that it was vanishing bit by bit.

A little past eight, their meal was ready. Two steaming hot bowls of buri daikon for them to eat. The trip back home from the Kaneko Complex hadn't been direct, but the stops along the way had certainly been worth in the eyes, and stomachs, of the couple. They found greater luck in finding some fresh yellowtail to use in the cooking.

While they ate, Itsuwa finally decided to get something off her chest and ask about the array of health-based products that he'd brought him.

"My not-class representative, the health nut, kind of shoved them onto me. She's figured out that I'm seeing someone and…this was her…bizarre way of helping." He admitted.

She laughed. "That was nice of her."

"Yeah, nice of her and for her, not quite as much for me." The spiky-haired teenager groaned before shrugging. "Still, I…kind of appreciate the sentiment."

"Did you tell her that though?" Itsuwa pressed with a small grin. Her boyfriend's silence and pink-tinted cheeks were answer enough. "You know, if you don't mind, maybe I could give some of them to the Amakusa Church members. They'd certainly appreciate the thought."

A light bulb illuminated the space above Touma's head. "You know, if you feel that way then…maybe Fukiyose might have just found an unexpected market base."

"Fukiyose Seiri? That's her name, right?" He nodded leading Itsuwa to continue with her eating, a slightly curious look on her face. Touma knew that a request was coming, and he felt like he knew which one it was. "Is there any chance I could…meet her?"

When they started dating, he thought it would be for the best if they kept it a secret from his school. Frankly, Touma didn't want any of his academic life coming to hound his girlfriend, even though she was willing to contribute to helping him improve it. Primarily, he didn't want anyone heckling Itsuwa…especially some prick trying to put the moves on her. Touma supposed in that regard, he'd become a little protective-possessive of his girlfriend. Was that normal? Was that alright?

"Sure, if you wanted to meet her then…well, maybe you two can meet at the gym. Or, if you want I could…introduce you two."

"You're worried we'll gossip about you?" Itsuwa playfully joked.

"You'd need something to talk about, and I feel like my name is going to come up." He responded with a deadpan stare that made her giggle. "Just stick up for me at least once."

"Don't I always?" She playfully asked.

If not for the table between them, he'd have reached over and kissed her on the cheek. The Level-0 internally laughed at himself, realizing just how much of a sap he was becoming, not that he was entirely against it. He supposed he could be patient and wait until after dinner…and maybe a little bit of dessert.

Touma certainly felt tempted when bath time arrived.

Now, he knew most guys in his position probably would have taken advantage of the situation to score. Honestly, he did feel a bit of temptation, or maybe a lot of temptation. He hadn't seen Itsuwa naked or anything but…he knew that she was a beautiful girl with a body that he'd…well, let's just say that he was proud to call her his girlfriend. But he was also respectful of her; he'd sooner bite his tongue than force her into something she might not have been ready for.

Would he and Itsuwa get there? Touma believed they would. When he closed his eyes and listened to the sound of her in the shower, he pictured himself right there with her. His hands caressing her naked, water-soaked body with soap. Her gentle voice moaning and crying out when he touched her in the right place, followed by him with her stroking his body. The images were so vivid and tantalizing that he-

No! No, bad Touma! You're not doing this every night when she's in the shower! He fervently told himself trying to focus his mind back on the TV.

Several minutes later and he heard the water stop, a clear indicator that her bath was finished. Touma had kept from looking at the bathroom, or even going near it. With his luck, all it took was a simple mishap for the door to come down, or for him to "accidentally" fall through it. That mishap had already happened to him before, and he desperately wanted to avoid any repeats for the next several days.

"Touma." His girlfriend called.

And in its place, he felt another impulse seize him, one incredibly similar to the first.

Instead of a naked or towel-wrapped Itsuwa, he got a dark blue pajama-wearing Itsuwa whose mere presence set his heart ablaze. He stood right on up, his cheeks blushing red giving away his inner thoughts and impulses. There wasn't any attempt to hide them as he drunk in the cute yet somewhat sexy look of his girlfriend. It was his first time seeing her in such clothing. At the back of his mind, fireworks exploded as he remembered that he was going to be sleeping with her for at least a week.

Another voice sounded off, how in the hell was he supposed to make it through a week of this?

Swallowing a lump in her throat, she walked toward him, her every step making his heart beat faster. Upon coming within arm's reach of him, she reached for his hand, his right hand, and held it up to her lips.

"We're going to make it through this, and whatever comes afterward." She whispered to him, before gently kissing the top of his arm.

The Imagine Breaker's power was the ability to cancel out any "unnatural phenome", be it Esper powers or magic. Love was a natural phenome. It could take many strange, wondrous, horrific, and outright weird forms, but it was a natural aspect of the world, a vital part of the world many would say. The mysterious power held no ability to cancel it out, even if it could cancel out God's Grace.

Which made it incredibly strange for a God-fearing woman like Itsuwa to so gently kiss it. She wasn't just kissing it, she was kissing the man it belonged to, sending him a message he got loud and clear.

Touma gently moved his arm from Itsuwa's, instead wrapping it around her waist. "I don't know how in the hell a guy like me ended up with a girl like you…but I'm sure as hell grateful." He whispered.

"I feel the same way, Touma." She gently responded. "Out of all the girls you know, I…I'm happy you chose me. I'm so happy that you came back to me."

When he finally returned to them, Itsuwa held onto him so tightly that she feared if she let go, he'd vanish from the world again, and this time he wouldn't come back. Clearly reading that anxiety, Touma stayed with her for most of the resulting day and night, keeping her close, loving her as he had before. It was enough that when they separated, she could bear it.

"Trust me, no matter what this crazy world throws at me…I'll always come back to you, Itsuwa. I swear it."

She had utter confidence in his words, and he'd yet to prove her wrong. It seemed like time after time, he reminded her of that. He definitely did when he emerged from the shower, refreshed and ready for bed. Little over an hour later and he hit the bed alongside her.

"You feel so warm, Touma." Itsuwa's cheeks never lost their blush, even as her body slowly began to relax, beckoning sleep alongside her boyfriend's. His left arm lay wrapped around her waist, gently holding her against him.

"You feel the same, Itsuwa." Normally, he'd be telling himself that he had school in the morning, thus it was in his best interest to get to sleep. Sleep would come, and Touma was confident that his dreams would be blissful, if not incredibly amazing. He hoped that his girlfriend's would be as well. "Thanks, for…thank you for so much."

"Honestly, I feel like you're the one I should be thanking. It's like I said at the hospital, you're something of a miracle worker, even if you have the power to reject all the unnatural things in the world. You're still able to do so much, bring people together and dispel the evil you encounter."

"Heh, okay, now you're just sweettalking me." He laughed.

She giggled in response. "I'm only telling the truth as I see it. My boyfriend is incredible, including being a great cuddler."

Yawning, he planted a light kiss atop her head. "And so is my girlfriend, the most incredible girl I've ever met." His eyes shut one final time along with Itsuwa's. Sleep came for them both, and it was indeed blissful for the both of them.

There were a number of ways the night could have gone for the both of them, some of them pleasant, some of them unpleasant to outright terrible, and others in just weird ways. This was Academy City after all. Still, Touma and Itsuwa were happy with how the evening had gone. They hadn't had their promised date in exactly the way they planned, but life was full of unexpected turns. Sometimes they were horrible, and other times not so much. Regardless, when one took that turn, it was always best to have a loved one close by, just as they did. Regardless of what twist and turns their lives took, they would have each other by their side, and that by itself was all they needed.

My second Magical Index story, and my second Touma/Itsuwa story. As promised, another cute little story involving the two of them. I wanted to use the ending of Index and start of New Testament as a basis; given the former ends with Touma effectively going MIA for a little bit, I think that'd have a bit of an affect on the people, in his personal life, especially potential romantic partners. I also wanted to take a stab at how Touma himself would be affected. Now that he's opened himself up to someone else, he's a tad more attached to them than he thought he would be.

Admittedly, I was a little tempted to turn this story into a lemon fic, but I decided against that. The general goal this time around was more some hurt and comfort with some fluff. Next time though, I'll write my first Touma/Itsuwa lemon for this two. Until then!