The drive is far too slow for his liking.

Upon arrival, he immediately sees why Lily was so upset over the phone. The wreckage is in no way beautiful; what once was several rows of military-issued high grade technology, along with the few soldiers manning the outpost, now spreads across the sandy land in pieces, stretching out for what must be at least a mile. Much like someone had chosen to simply massacre the entire area, no rhyme or reason to it.

Just like her, he thinks with black amusement.

"Look at this," Lily says from beside him, disgust stark in her voice. Her blue eyes are narrowed in the harsh sunlight. "All of it- ruined. We might be able to salvage some of it, but she really did a number on it all. Even… Even the people are..."

Blood splashes over various stretches of ground, trails leading to mauled bodies. Inside, Ren can't help but feel sorry for them, turning his gaze from their mangled forms because it's hard to face them, to know they're all dead and he has yet to capture their killer. This isn't the first time he's been faced with a mess like this, and he's sure this won't be the last time he sees it. No one is a match for Tsubaki- once she has you in her sights, you're already nothing more than a corpse. She'll tear you to irreparable shreds with a luscious smile, taking down absolutely anything that dares to get in her way.

Anything but him, that is. Only he is enough to stop her. Only he is able to take her down- his purpose in life is to end her once and for all.

He will never stop trying, until the day she finally surrenders to him.

Lily presses a hand to her cheek, inhaling deeply, and he pulls himself from his thoughts long enough to touch her shoulder. "Are you alright?" he asks her.

"Yeah." She lets out a trembling breath, looking over at him apologetically. "Sorry, I'm not really… a fan of blood, y'know? Or… anything like this." She laughs without mirth, her gaze cast down. "I'm usually okay, it's just… I knew so many of them."

"I understand," he says simply, nodding to her. He's not surprised she's affected so harshly. She most likely knew them all by name. Her makeshift family, the ones she once took care of and valued- now lying in unfixable heaps, ragdolls in the dust.

Tsubaki's favorite pastime- destroying the things that people love most. Her pleasure watching the light drain from someone's eyes is unbearable, pure carnal desire, too similar to something he's come to know far too well.

It's much the same as how he feels, while he dreams of breaking her.

"Anyway." The blonde beside him massages her upper arm with one gloved hand, wispy tendrils of hair lightly blown in the wind. "From here we start searching. We need to find anything helpful, check ID's, et cetera."

"Alright. Let's split up; we'll cover more ground that way." Ren tries not to allow anything to color his tone. Lily would never understand his desire to see Tsubaki alone- and to be honest, he wouldn't want her to.

She looks at him then, her lips forming a grim frown. There is no mistaking the worry on her face; her expression is nothing but an open book.

"Okay…" Her hand touches his shoulder then, hesitant, deliberate- cautious. "Ren… Be safe, alright? The others will be here soon, so if anything happens-"

"I'll call you. But I can handle myself, remember?" He taps the handle of his sword to ease her. "I'll be fine. Watch your back, Lily."

For a moment it seems she's going to force him to take her along anyway, but she sighs instead and offers a smile- her way of letting go.

Nodding to her, he turns and starts scouring the area, putting distance between he and Lily. Even before he'd left her presence, his mind was consumed with 'what ifs'. What if Tsubaki's waiting for him to show his face? What if he's holding out for nothing?

What if this is their final meeting?

Such a bittersweet thought that is, and it comes with a deluge of emotions he's not ready to face quite yet. Chasing it out of his thoughts, he forces himself to focus on the task at hand, his boots crunching against gritty sand while he searches for anything resembling a human being. (Dead or alive.)

Not long after, he stumbles upon a body in mostly one piece. Gunshots are embedded in their skull and chest, no more than an hour old, blood splattered across their uniform and pooled around them. Ren kneels down to inspect them, finding their ID hidden in a side pocket.

Teto Kasane. He can vaguely recall this girl, a pink-haired ball of enthusiasm. What once was vibrant life on her childish features is now nothing but pale, marred fear permanently etched. She was young, one of the newer recruits- and now she's just one of Tsubaki's broken toys, left to rot.

He wonders how much the girl must have suffered- or if she did at all. The wounds are clean, precise- like the trained assassin was in a hurry to finish and get out. It's normal for her to leave scars, gaping wounds, ugly crimson injuries that are branded in your mind forever.

She once said it was because she loved it. She told him, when it seemed like the end and his sword was at her throat, her smirk heart-stoppingly close as he held her angrily to a wall and watched droplets of blood trail over the ivory skin of her neck. Tsubaki told him that she left such monstrous, wretched disfigurements because she wanted them all to have matching scars, to all be the monsters they were within so they would die as their real selves.

He should have finished her then and there- but she escaped him like water between his fingers, ever so easily evading him, leaving him empty handed and frustrated in more ways than one, just like always. A trait he's come to despise, because he wants her right where he can see her, where he can punish her and turn her inside out so he can see every scar on her soul.

As he stands, he feels something heavily cold press to the back of his head, leaving him motionless as warmth leans into his frame from behind. Slim fingers lightly trail over his hip, and he catches a glimpse of white and red. Instantly chills race through him, because he knows it's her.

"Hey there, Ren," her silky voice breezes over him, her breath tickling his ear as she whispers, dark venom laced through her flirtatious demeanor. "It's been awhile, hasn't it? Have you-" She moves in closer to him, hot, syrupy warmth amplified by his hyperactive senses. "-missed me at all?"

"Tsubaki," he growls, taking a deep breath. He needs to get control, because she took him off guard and he's suddenly far too focused on her proximity. He can smell her heady citrus scent far too close, feel her body up against his, and he's not prepared for everything- lust, anger, yearning- that rushes through him.

(When is he ever prepared when it comes to her?)

She chuckles, the gun holding him in place shifting just slightly. She's toying with him, drawing out the moment. He starts to count slowly in his head, biding his time. He'll wait for his chance, before she can pull the trigger he'll have her in his grasp and he'll catch her-

Her tone is disarming, lilting and velvet. "You seem all too happy to see me." His breath catches in his throat when her lips trail the edge of his ear. "It's been too long. I've missed your pretty face."

"Why are you here?" he forces through clenched teeth, his hands balling in fists at his sides. He can't see her, but he can hear the teasing smirk she wears. She's running her fingertips up his side, and he's starting to lose focus on what he has to do because she's too intoxicatingly close to him. It's always like this- a war of right or wrong whenever she's around. She's poison, black oil mixing with his blood.

"'Why'? Come now, Ren, you're the smart one." He feels her chest move as she hums to herself, and his fingers twitch at his sides, forcing himself to keep still because she can kill him at any second and she knows it. "I came to see you, of course. I just love watching your handsome self become all riled up when I'm with you. This time it almost seems like you were waiting for me. Were you?" she wonders, playful, like a cat cornering her mouse.

"Like hell." He wants her to get off him, because with her attached to him like this he can't think, and every thought he manages to resurrect goes in the wrong direction. His entire body is rigid, ready to move.

"Getting worked up, are we?" Her teeth graze the curve of his ear, and he's seconds away from turning on her and doing something- good or bad, he's unsure. She's fire against him, virulent heat. "I love it."

Unable to stand being cornered by her any longer, he jerks his sword from its sheath and ducks from her hold. A gunshot echoes out a mere second after, so close it leaves his ears ringing, but he's already moving, not taking a single moment for granted.

His sword slashes up, aiming for her neck but finding only air. Of course she's already in motion- she had clearly anticipated that he would react eventually. In this way, it's always like they're in sync; their body language is tuned together, and one knows when the other is going to move. It never fails to send him for a loop, how similar they are… and how absolutely different.

Sword gripped tightly in his hand, he's poised to attack her, his blue eye flashing. Only a few feet separates them, and this close to her he can memorize her every fascinating detail, from the scarlet and curve-fitting design of her short dress to the scars scattered along every inch of her skin. Anyone else would be long dead after having that many injuries.

Anyone but him, as he recalls each and every scar of his own that travel the length of his body. Somehow, he can't help but imagine her marks and his connect.

(He would never get close enough to her to find out.)

Yet Tsubaki isn't just anyone, and she lives to taunt him, to drive him mad, as if her purpose is identical to his and all she wants is to destroy him from the inside out. (Or reverse.). A monster, a shadow, an enigma. His true opposite.

Her white coat, draped over her like a sheer curtain and stained with recently spilled blood, billows in the wind as she gazes at him, her gun already cocked and aimed. His eyes trail along her form, finding wounds that seem completely unnoticed by her that must be from her recent romp through their defenses.

She's like a bloodthirsty machine. Injuries, pain- they mean nothing to her. She is untouchable.

Only he is destined to be the one who stops her. It can only be him.

Her lips part into a sensual smirk, and he finds his sight once again captured by hers; the crimson depths of her iris pull him in, drowning him in blood and emotion. Her blonde bangs, dirtied and scattered over her face haphazardly, just barely cover the now-soiled gauzy bandages hiding her own missing eye. He crushes the spontaneous urge to pick apart the bandages, to see what her scar looks like. It's just one more thing that ties them together, and he wants to know just how similar they are.

He can't shake the sense of familiarity, either, that he feels from her. He can't explain why he knows her so well. If only he could play it off as a result of his obsession- but it's so much more than that, he's knows that it is and he will do anything to discover why-

The air seems to become colder as Tsubaki speaks. "Why not take a picture? It'll last longer," she says, a brow raising. "Staring is considered impolite, Ren- but from you, I'll take it as a compliment."

His teeth grind together. "What did you actually come here for, Tsubaki?" Her name is ever so bitter on his tongue. "I know it wasn't just to see me. What are you after?"

"Hmm? I'm not allowed to come see an… old friend?" Her minor hesitation isn't lost to him. "But, I suppose you're right; I didn't just come to see you. That's just an added bonus." She shifts slightly, but her aim stays trained on him, unwavering.

"So why?" he demands.

Her eyes harden, just noticeable to him. "I was looking for something… but it doesn't seem to be here. Which is rather unfortunate for your little friends- they came to see me at the wrong time. I'm just not in the mood for games today, and they made for excellent practice," she says flippantly.

Looking for something? Thankfully, now that she isn't clouding his thoughts, he can focus on what's important, including the bubbling curiosity in his chest. Tsubaki, looking for something here, so close to their boundaries?

"Either way," she continues at his silence. "It's not here, so I really don't have a reason to have stayed. But I just knew that you would come to see me, and I hate to disappoint." She flashes a cocky smile his way, letting out an edged laugh.

His grip on his sword tightens. He can tell by her tone that whatever she was looking for is important- it must have meant something to her, and that itself means that it's no ordinary thing. Burning suspicion engulfs him, and he suddenly has far too many questions he can't ask.

Vying instead from something that doesn't betray the whirlwind building within, Ren speaks. "What makes you so sure it isn't here?"

"Because it was stolen from me," she answers, a shadow crossing her features. "And I think I know by who. So when I find them..."

Her teeth gleam as her smile cruelly twists in malice, her voice dropping below freezing level.

"...I'll rip them apart."

As if on cue, a familiar voice calls his name in the distance. "Ren! Ren, where are you?"

Lily…! Tsubaki looks in the direction of his friend while he keeps her locked in his sight, every muscle in his body tensing.

If she comes here, Tsubaki will try to hurt her. She doesn't know…!

However, to his surprise, the red-eyed assassin lets out a short sigh, her mouth melting into a frown. "Seems like our time alone together has been cut short," she notes, tone clipped. "And I was hoping I'd have a nice, long chat with you for once." She turns away from him.

It registers in him then that she's not going to do anything, she's just leaving, but she can't leave and he won't let her. It's a sudden, unexplainable panic that stems from seemingly nothing and everything at once. He wants her to disappear but he wants her to stay because she's perfectly shattered, broken like him and as much as he wants to destroy her he also wants to save her and-

"You're just leaving? That's not like you," he growls, and she pauses, just a slight halt in her step- giving him his chance to come at her, sword flying in a swift arc. He wants to draw blood- he wants to capture her, feel that insatiable heat in his stomach and her flawed skin under his hands and god dammit she's going to walk away and he refuses to let her go.

She easily moves out of the way, fluid flame that quickly evades his biting ice. Of course she knew he would attack, she always knows; she knows him better than he knows himself sometimes, and for that reason alone he wants to break the lock holding her every secret- the secrets that must tie into his past.

"Oh, come on, Ren- couldn't our parting be less dramatic?" she asks, her red eye piercing through him as she ducks and presses her gun to the underside of his chin, close enough to him he can see flecks of sapphire hidden in her iris, and trace the length of her scar. She has them deadlocked in position, his weapon inches from her neck, her finger tightly held to her trigger.

"Did you expect me to let you go?" He glares at her, daring her to make a single move.

"I thought perhaps we'd be a bit more civil about this. Can't we get along for a day?" she wonders, but there's no sincerity in her voice, simply teasing him in that sugar-laced poison she embodies. "After all, mortal enemies don't always have to kill each other."

He could laugh at the absurdity of that sentence, but he can hear Lily still calling out to him, getting closer, and Tsubaki catches on to the reaction he tries so hard to hide.

"Seems like you're needed, Ren- so you and I can finish this another time. Til then..."

Her gun shoves back into his throat, causing him to choke and falter- all she needs to make her escape. Just as quickly as the harsh pressure was placed, it vanishes, and he feels her lips ghost along his cheek, leaving behind a trail of fire.

"...See you soon, lover boy."

And she's gone. As if she were never there in the first place, like a figment of his twisted imagination; the crushing, beautiful, fatal Tsubaki once again becomes the air he breathes.

He lets out a short gasp, hitting his knees and clutching his throat as he forces himself to recover, unable to yell or force his opponent to return- it wouldn't matter if he did, however, because he knows she wouldn't. She's never once looked back at him each time they've left the other bloodied on the battlefield- whereas he always, always has, just to see her form disappear, swallowed back into the shadows she resides in.

Ren's just managed to gain his voice and composure back when Lily makes an appearance, running to his side to help him. "What happened?" she demands, her voice thick with worry, her fingers tracing his clothes to find any sign of blood or injury.

"Tsubaki," he rasps, clearing his sore throat to speak. "She was here."

Lily's face turns several shades whiter. "What? What was she here for- to rub in the fact that she took out this entire border? Are you alright, Ren?"

"I'm fine, Lily, I'm not hurt." Damn him- he'd had her in his grasp, so close, his sword inches away from ending it; yet she'd still gotten away from him because he's so, so easily taken in by her. He'd let her get into his head again- even now, her face is permanently etched in his mind's eye.

"Why didn't you call for me? Why did you face her alone, you dolt?" He lets out a low, surprised ow when she smacks the top of his head, kneeling in front of him.

"What? Why would I call you here? You know how dangerous she is, Lily-"

"And so do you, Ren!" she yells with frustration. "We both know she can kill you- so why do you always insist on facing her alone when you damn well know she couldn't care less if you get hurt. She's a killing machine, Ren. Her thoughts have one track- murdering anything that gets in her way. Are you blind to the wreckage around us?" She makes a wild gesture towards the mess of equipment and bloodied bodies Tsubaki left behind.

"Of course not, which is why I didn't ask for your help. I can handle her- you can't." he replies shortly, his gaze growing cold.

Lily darkens, and he knows he's said a bit too much, but he doesn't receive a scalding reprimand like he expects.

"..You're right. And I don't like that you're the only one who can," she notes quietly.

He falls silent as she stands up, offering her hand. "Come on, Ren. I have something I need you to see. Shion's already sent backup to scour and clean up, so we're no longer needed."

Inquiry rises in his chest. "Something-? What is it?"

"I've been doing research on Tsubaki," she tells him, her normally cheerful face grave. "I've… found some things I think you should see- but everything's back at my house."

"How did you…?" he asks in disbelief, and she gives him a wry, unpleasant smile.

"I'm not as innocent as I look," she jokes lightly. "I hacked into Hatsune's data files."

A rush of excitement goes through him as he looks up at her. "Are you serious?"

"I've always been skilled with my computer. I have it all saved. And…" she trails off a moment, pursing her lips. "I have something to give you."

"What is it?" He's already thinking of everything Lily's research contains, what it could reveal to him about Tsubaki. It could be their turning point- everything he needs to know to finally make their battles come to an end.

Why... does that scare him?

Lily just tilts her head at him as she pulls Ren from the ground.

"You'll have to see it to know."

.X.

The blonde woman's home is somewhat larger than his, he can't help but notice.

Stepping inside the entry, she casts a vaguely embarrassed glance his way as she moves through her living room. "Sorry it's a bit messy- I wasn't going to have you come over for awhile yet."

"It's fine," he answers, trailing after her, feeling somewhat lost. Everything for her is so different; the interior is nothing like his house. There are paintings on the walls, little trinkets scattered throughout that speak miles about Lily's nature, magazines splayed on the oaken coffee table and . The carpet is a lush blue, everything standing out with a homey feel. The entirety of it gives him cozy, warm vibes that he's never felt walking into his own home. It exudes the motherly, gentle atmosphere that Lily herself gives off.

It feels so… human.

She flashes him a reassuring smile, beckoning him with one hand as she finds her way to the stairs at the end of the room. "You really should come see me more often, Ren. I never mind visitors."

A stab of guilt at her invitation runs through his chest, the various times she's asked him over or wanted to go out suddenly a reminder at the forefront of his mind. He heaves a sigh, before offering a thin look of enthusiasm that easily cracks. He really does have to wonder why Lily always makes an effort to include him. Someone like him dulls her shine- how does she not realize he's no better company than Tsubaki herself?

It's best if he doesn't bring that up with her.

"You were quiet on the way here," Ren begins instead, adjusting his cap as he treads up the creaky stairs. "What did you find? Why won't you tell me?"

"Because…" The blonde glances back at him, a puzzling expression on her features he can't quite decipher. "If I told you, I don't think you'd understand it the way you need to. You have to see it, Ren."

His mind quickly occupies itself with trying to work out the unclear meaning behind her words, but Lily offers nothing more for him to go on as she steps onto the second floor, falling quiet as she opens the first door to the right of the hall, moving out of the way for him to enter after her and softly latching it behind them.

The room is small, but not empty; a thick wooden desk sits at the end of the room, a silver laptop placed on it and facing away from him. Heavy, full bookshelves line the walls, illuminated by the orange glow of the setting sun through the few windows spread through the room.

"Stay there," she instructs, striding to the other side of the desk and opening a drawer, rummaging within it a moment before pulling out a box that fit snugly in the palm of her hand, colored an off-white.

Gazing at it, she moves back to his side, her jaw set. She takes his hand and places the box in it, inhaling deeply.

"What is this?" Ren asks her, unable to take his eyes off the object warmed by her skin. Something inside him balks at having it, but he doesn't know- can't begin to understand- why.

"I found it. I… I think it belongs to Tsubaki," Lily says, her tone clipped. "Which is why I'm giving it to you."

Hesitantly, he slowly raises the lid of the box to reveal the small object within. Almost immediately he stiffens, his fingers tightening a bright white around it with shock.

Inside sits a small ring that could barely fit the tip of his pinky finger, its silver metal band worn and somewhat discolored with age. Embraced by it is a plastic, still shiny green flower emblem.

This- this is-! Flashes of his dream, the vision he had resurrected during the night, race through his mind. This ring… it's the same trinket that those children had-!

"I don't know what it means…" Lily says, her voice hushed as she carefully surveys Ren's reaction. "But I know you do. I know that somehow, Ren, this means something, and you're the only person who can connect the dots."

He examines the ring, his throat closing. It's so familiar… like he's even held it in his palm before. That's impossible- how could that be? Unless…?

The ringing of shattering glass floods the room from behind the blonde woman, and he and Lily duck and cover in shock, neither expecting the sudden explosion. His face contorts in pain when glass cuts across his cheek.

A flash of red catches his eye, along with the unmistakable sheen of a gun's muzzle.

"Lily, watch out-!"

His panicked reflexes don't have time to kick in, and he's unable to react fast enough to the intrusion, his words too late.

Grinning from where she stands beside Lily, her gun cocked and pressed tightly to the other woman's head, Tsubaki presses a hand to her hip, shifting among the shards littered at her feet from her unexpected entrance.

"You didn't think I wouldn't follow you, right?" the blonde assassin murmurs, her eyes only for Ren, her teeth glimmering in her smirk. "I knew one of you had it. Lucky for me, it's not a big deal if I kill this one." The gun presses harshly into Lily's head, and Ren reaches out futilely, as if to stop the force of the bullet with his palm alone.

"Don't hurt her, Tsubaki," he says in a low growl, his heartbeat racing fast, too fast under his breast. His fingers are painfully tight around the small box in hand, and he itches to reach for his sword; but he knows one wrong move will result in Lily's blood being spattered across her study.

"This is what you want, isn't it? You can have it- just leave Lily out of this." Ren urges slowly, each syllable measured as he addresses her. He slowly extends his hand, willing her to take the ring box.

"No, Ren, you can't let her take it- you need it!" Lily tries to protest, but is silenced quickly by a persuasive shove from her captor, her blue eyes watery as she stares holes into him.

Tsubaki takes a moment to consider her options, tilting her head. "Oh, I wasn't going to ask permission, but thanks for your consent," she says dryly.

With a snap of her wrist, she's plucked the box from his grip effortlessly, her fingertips just brushing his gloved hand before withdrawing; yet even that small graze threads fire through him.

Something crosses her face he doesn't recognize as she examines the container, something foreign and beautiful and somewhat innocent that flickers only a moment before her mask returns- it makes him wonder why such a useless trinket could mean so much to someone like her.

"You have what you wanted," Ren presses, ever careful with his words. This is where it gets tricky. If he can just catch her off guard… "Now leave Lily be."

The assassin pauses, closing her eyes for just a sliver of time. A humorless smile spreads wider on her face, and a sinking feeling envelopes him.

"Sorry… but I have no place in my life for forgiving pathetic enemies."

Another fleeting second passes as something akin to regret crosses her features; it's such a human emotion, so confusing and dazzling and numbing coming from her, that it takes him off guard.

A mistake he will never forget making- that he will never forgive himself for.

A click resounds; Tsubaki utters something, but he's too shocked to register it as her finger pulls the trigger, closing the door on whatever hope he may have had.

The explosion is deafening.

His vision is filled with crimson; he's screaming, drawing his sword in anger and pain and oh god what has he done he's too late he's breaking apart and there's so much blood-

"Lily!"

A/N: This is unbeta'd.

This is also written to the songs Word Game, Re:Birthed, Prisoner of Love and Desire, and Soleil.

Yes, I'm aware it's been a month since my last update. Yes, I am also aware this chapter is 5k long. No, I don't think this does nearly enough justice to KB/R:B, but I did my best and I'm sticking to it. Since I know nothing of KB's plot other than the PVs for the songs, I really did just go at it with my imagination. Bear with me, everyone.

I'm thinking... two more chapters in this arc, and it comes to a close. Which means a lot of shizz is going to go down in the next chapters, so hold onto your seats, ladies and gents, it's gonna be a mess.

Also, I'm hoping the next chapter isn't as long as this one, but *sweats nervously* I never make promises.

And I have no idea when next update will be because life is whacked.

Nice.

Thanks for reading and all that jazz! Reviews are always appreciated!

Read on~!

~disclaimer~ I own nothing but broken fate and a lot of screaming.