It's been awhile, sorry. Personal matters kept me from working on this as much as I wanted. But here's the next chapter.


Mien sat in the hideout's hot spring, making sure the broken bone in her arm had finally set. Once she felt certain of the limb's recovery, she got out and quickly dressed. After putting her shoulder-length pink hair up into a ponytail held by her two hair ribbons, she made her way to the training grounds. She kicked the door to the outdoor area open, ready to get back into the action.

"Somebody train with me right now!" She declared, startling everyone outside. Tatsumi stopped his pushups. Akame, sitting on his back, stopped her humming to the rhythm of his workout. And Leone set down the small boulder she had been shoulder-pressing. All to stare at the new arrival. Making Mien immensely uncomfortable with the fact that she had interrupted them.

"Oh, hey Mien." Tatsumi finally called out, shaking his head to knock some sweat away from his eyes. The motion made the rest of his body buck, forcing Akame to roll with his motion to keep her position.

"I'm glad to see you're all better." The red-eyed girl told her with a hint of a smile.

"What are you doing?" The pinkette hesitantly asked, trying to understand why she had caught them in such a strange set-up.

"This one's really pushing himself, training all the time." Leone's thumb pointed at Akame's current seat. As if to show off, Tatsumi restarted his pushups. Mien took it as a sign of his new behavior.

"From the moment…" A deep breath to recover cut off his reply, "I put on Incursio, and I could feel it. It's packing so much power it's going to take all of my strength to use. So I'm going to become stronger and be like Big Bro." He reached a point where he could take a moment to make eye contact with the sniper. "As it stands, I can barely use it's invisibility for five seconds. If I want to wear it for long periods of time, my only choice is to get stronger."

Mien couldn't stop a slight blush from crossing her face at the serious expression Tatsumi was making. But then she remembered Leone's not-so subtle observations, and quickly crushed the unfair reaction. One look at Akame's uncommonly warm smile at his response confirmed it was the right choice.

"Well it's good to see you understand your limitations." The pinkette replied, looking at Leone.

"I don't know about that. He's already doubled the amount of pushups he did with me on his back from yesterday." The blonde pointed out, smirking at the idea of Tatsumi's relentless growth.

"It's not his fault there's a large weight difference between us." Akame flatly responded, making everyone freeze and the air crackle with tension. The blonde moved and Tatsumi didn't have time to brace himself.

The brawler's fist landed on the top of Akame's head with loud thump, its force transferring down to Tatsumi. He managed to hold himself up against the initial blow, but quickly felt his arms go numb before they collapsed on him. Akame sat atop the flattened boy, holding the welt on her head with a few tears and questions in her eyes. While Leone considered pulverizing her boulder as a follow-up, Mien only looked at her friend with mild disappointment. Apparently the black-haired girl's nature wasn't something that could be magically cured by dating her precious childhood friend.

"You're all here. Good." Najenda stated, having managed to sneak on the quartet of assassins with a full travel pack strapped to her back. The four turned to their boss, wondering what could have brought her out to the training field.

"Boss, going somewhere?" Tatsumi questioned from his spot prostrated under his girlfriend.

"Headquarters. We've got three Teigu and some large intel drops from Lubbock before he got stuck with Kurome." The silver-haired commander said. She set down the great doubled-bladed axe Belvark at her feet, making the ground shift under its weight.

"But isn't that supposed to be extremely heavy?" He got to his feet after Akame deftly rose and stood out of his way.

"Oh this old thing?" The one-eyed woman casually shouldered it, making Tatsumi's jaw drop. "I can't use it as a weapon, but I can transport it."

"Hey," he nudged Mien's shoulder. "Is she a superhuman or something?"

The sniper sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "She's an ex-general. You really need to pay attention." The pinkette spared a moment to look at Najenda's sincere smile before giving another disappointed look at the only male present.

"Akame, you're in charge while I'm gone. Your focus for strategy is 'work together,' got it?" The boss told her.

"Okay, I think we can manage." The red-eyed assassin replied without much thought.

So apathetic. Tatsumi thought before he considered their group's composition. A melee brawler and self-healing tank, a one-shot sword wielder, a long-range sniper, and himself with his mid-range tricks and Incursio. Actually, it's pretty balanced.

"Don't hurt yourself thinking about it too much." Mien admonished him with a light shoulder slap. "It just means she'll get it done."

Najenda pulled out a small black book and sighed. "Also, I'm going to see about getting some new members since we've got so many stuck in a deadlock in the Capital. Though I'm not quite sure if we'll get any battle-ready recruits. We're going to need them, considering how weak I am."

Tatsumi froze while their boss continued. "You managed to slay Esdeath's Three Beasts and confiscate their Teigu. Though the ice bitch is still matchless, you've done great work. The people on the ship and every soldier that would have faced them owes you their lives. Hell, you even struck a blow at the Empire's public morale." Tatsumi felt a bitter twitch pull his mouth into a painful half-smile, half-frown position. "You've become strong, Tatsumi. Keep going and you'll only become greater."

"Boss…" Tatsumi couldn't really take the praise, not when he knew why it had turned out like it had.

Leone, seeming to sense this, cut him off. "You know, when I was talking to Bulat once, he told me you might one day surpass him and he wanted nothing more than to see it happen."

"Big Bro…" Tatsumi ducked his head to hide the mixed tears of grief and happiness. A moment later he felt a pair of arms wrap around him, and let himself be pulled into Akame's embrace.

Checking to make sure all of her bags were stable, Najenda turned to leave. "Be proud of yourself Tatsumi, you've started to change things around here. So survive to become the man that Bulat believed you had within you." Her words managed to reach him, even as her feet carried her away.


Aria stepped out of the carriage into the coastal town, feeling a strong sea breeze caress her cheeks. She took a second to get her bearings, turning in a circle to find the harbor. Her hood dropped under the force of the wind, letting her blonde hair loose and allowing the sun to touch her no-longer deathly pale skin. Emparthos, now loose enough to be classified as a tight necklace, twirled around her neck and occasionally caught on the cloth of her high-necked white silk dress and her familiar red cloak. Her unofficial uniform as Tsu's authority outside of the Capital he was caged in.

This is the closest port to the islands he spoke of. She thought as she walked down the streets, the ocean slowly growing behind the buildings she passed. After clearing the final block, she began to look around the dock in search of a passenger ship or any type of private vessel she could hire.

By the time she found a boat and hired it to sail tomorrow, it was nearly nighttime and she could hear the rowdy sailors making their way into various bars and taverns for their daily imbibing. So she set out and found an inn several blocks away to stay in for the night. The middle-aged man seemed a bit confused by her appearance but didn't question her before he gave a room key. By the time she reached her given room, a sense of uneasiness had settled over the former noble. To calm her building trepidation at the journey, she jumped onto the provided bed and remembered the conversation that had started this.


Earlier….

Tsu picked up Schere and carried her to her room in his large suite of rooms. Aria watched as he tucked the four year-old doppelganger in with a tenderness that told her all she needed about his heart. He took a seat nearby, making sure his mother-of-pearl eyes met the young girl's.

"A long time ago, a young boy lived on an island of monks. One day, a strange man arrived by ship and asked the monks for help. But they refused the stranger and told him to leave. Meanwhile, the boy played on the beach near the ship, curious about the people that had come to his home. When the man returned from the monks, sad that they refused him, he saw the boy playing on the beach."

"Why did the boy live on the island with the mean monks?" Schere questioned, wanting to know more. Aria silently agreed, realizing that Tsu was telling her his life story in the guise of a mere bedtime tale.

Tsu gave the purple-haired girl an understanding smile. "Because it was the only place he knew. And the monks weren't mean to him." He watched the slow nods of the females before he continued. "The strange man asked the boy if he lived on the island. The boy told him that he did. And so the boy asked the man if he was from a place far away. The man chuckled and said yes. Then the boy asked him to take him along the next time he visited the island. The man agreed to do it, but only if the boy could convince the monks to help him. The boy smiled and agreed, already knowing the way to make the monks do anything. So that night the strange man sailed home while the boy ran into the forest on the island."

"Why would he do that? It sounds scary." The girl pulled her sheets up closer, shivering at the thought of being alone in the dark.

"Because that night was a special night. The full moon was shining bright over the island, meaning the monk's god would be out in the forest."

"The monk's god?"

"Yes, a god of wisdom and knowledge. A friendly god who lived in the forest. And the boy searched for the god until he found him in a clearing. The boy told the god about his deal with the strange man and the god laughed. He laughed because the boy was the only person to ever stand in his presence and he came to ask something so simple. And so the god talked to the boy through the night, telling him many things about the world beyond the island and about the boy himself. By the time the god was finished, the moon was going to set and the sun would rise. So the god left the boy in the clearing and gave him a warning: The monks would not be happy with the boy."

"Why not?"

"Because he had seen their god and spoken to him, yet they could not. So the boy went to the monks and told them what the god had told him. When the monks realized what the boy had done and believed him, they locked him in a cage."

"Why would they do that? Shouldn't they be happy the boy talked to the god?"

"They were happy in their own way, but they were jealous too. The god didn't show himself to anyone and yet the boy had talked the entire night with him. And so the boy was trapped in the cage for a long time. Until the boy was no longer a boy, but a young man. That was when the strange man came back to the island. When he heard about what happened to the boy, the strange man made his way to the monk's home and set the boy free!" Tsu exclaimed like the man had defeated some great evil.

Schere smiled and her eyelids drooped. "Then what happened?"

Tsu felt a sad smile replace his passive storytelling face. "The strange man took the boy away from the monks, and let him see the world beyond the island." He looked at the child, now fully asleep.

He turned to Aria, who was waiting for him by the door to the room. They exited and Tsu closed the door, making sure Schere wouldn't hear them.

"So, is that all you're going to tell me? A child's story?" the blonde questioned him, pressing close now that she had witnessed one of his vulnerable moments. It was the only thing she could think of to get him to open up.

A glint of mischief and sadness crossed Tsu's eyes and settled in his smile. "I can't tell you most of it myself. That's what your next mission is: Go back to the island I came from. There you will find all the clues you need to figure out the rest of my story yourself." He replied, averting his eyes. "I need to stay here and make sure Esdeath doesn't figure out who is leaking intelligence or that Kurome and Lubbock are Night Raid. So do this and you'll get your complete answer."


Akame looked at Leone, who was soon leaving with Tatsumi to go inspect one of Lubbock's safe houses in the Capital before meeting with Tsu for their next information drop.

"Don't let him get into any trouble. Leave him at the safe house..." Akame instructed the blonde, who was yawning at the boring lecture.

"Gosh, you already sound like his wife." Leone told her with a sly smile, enjoying the derailment of the red-eyed girl's commands and abrupt stuttering. "But I get it. After all that kid's been through, he needs a break from everything to understand it all."

Akame nodded her agreement, still a bit flushed from her older friend's insinuations. "With half our forces stuck under the thumbs of the Capital, we all need to be more cautious and maintain ourselves." Her gaze flickered passed the blonde to a barely noticeable bottle of sake in the dining room.

Leone gave the words a serious thought before turning to leave. "Don't worry, I'll bring back some presents for you. Just make sure you show him what you got!" The moment she finished her proclamation, she closed the door on any stammered answer from the profusely blushing black-haired assassin.


Imperial City…

Tsu opened his eyes, fighting the mental agony that struck him every morning after his automatic Retrace. He gritted his teeth and held his hands up in front of his eyes, forcing himself to acknowledge that they weren't pinned to the ground with a stake running through them.

"The problem with living the same day over and over is that you never heal your scars." He muttered, pushing himself off of the covered bed that he had been laying on, still wearing his white robe. He didn't actually need to sleep, but to keep his appearance as a human he occasionally pretended to do so. Sleeping, eating, and other necessary life functions were not quite necessary thanks to the power of Lo-Shira and its Retrace. But that would only solidify his true nature as a monster.

He smirked to himself as he made his way to the Emperor's audience chambers. When did I stop being human? When I was granted this power? When my Emperor freed me from my cage? No, it's obvious…. The night I met the Danger-Beast god Luna was my last day as a human.

Tsu barely paid attention to what was going on, offering only thoughtless platitudes and subtle digs about the Prime Minister's weight when the opportunities arose. Once the presence of the two advisors was no longer needed, he returned to his suite of rooms to continue working. He felt a sigh bubble up at all the bureaucracy that had replaced the old system. Oh how I miss the days when my words were only second to the laws of my Emperor. But at least I'm not in that dull haze.

As anyone who lived a long enough life could tell, there were exciting times and boring times. And for Tsu those boring times were often centuries spent in a hazy partial conscious state that left him with little recollections of the time and only a vague knowledge of what had happened. He turned his mental efforts away from recollecting and pointed them at the stack of orders he needed to fill out. Guard changes and prisoner transfers for the prisons, public execution orders, establishing patrol groups and routes for the Capital's Imperial Police, and a few private intelligence reports to pass off to Leone at their next drop-off. The reports weren't even his anymore, instead coming from Aria's backlog and own investigations since he was being politically blocked from directly interfering with anything beyond his spheres of control as head of the judicial system. A total neutering as an informant, if he admitted it. After a few hours of the hand-numbing work, he really wanted a chance to enjoy a good warm drink under the sun.

Which will have to wait until after I meet with Esdeath's new squad. He thought in irritation. Was he mad that his plans were being torn apart or because no one seemed to understand the plans in the first place? Yes. Yet here he was, in the Capital, doing everything he could strengthen the Empire while undermining its forces. Whose side was he on? The Empire's. Then why help the rebels? To protect the innocent and use them to destroy the corruption eating away at my Emperor's good creation, all while refining the good traits of the ones who will survive thanks to my plans.

A flash of purple and a tug on his robe snapped him out of his self-contemplation, signaling it was time for a light meal with Schere. He scooped up the four-year old while she giggled, knowing it was his way of making up for time lost working. It had only taken Schere a few days to understand the situation and quickly make the best of it.

As he carried her to the palace's kitchens, Tsu considered the very hypocrisy he was carrying. He had lied to Aria, flat-out. Nearly everything he said was a lie with some speculation on his part, but none of that applied to Schere. Because she wasn't even from this timeline. The young girl currently in his arms was none other than the Scheele of the previous timeline. One who thankfully had no memories of either of her future lives.

As to how he had broken this taboo in his mind; it was a stupid mistake that he couldn't fix. After receiving the information about Scheele's death that he had meticulously planned to prevent, he had snapped. His angry feet carried him to her childhood home, and in a fit he used his power on it. And not just a little bit. No, he had poured every bit of power he had gathered across the millennium, even using his own blood to reflect more moonlight to himself by creating a puddle around his feet. Before long he had Retraced it all the way back to the previous timeline, leaving a small child standing in front of him with an ancient ruin that was supposedly her house behind.

He had immediately explained that her home was gone, that he would take care of her, and made other types of promises to soothe the very confused girl before spiriting away the time-shifted child. Before long he found himself traveling in a carriage with her, outside the Capital with a new on-the-fly plan that needed to be executed. And lying to Aria.

A light fist hitting him told him that he had arrived, and with a practiced gentility he set her down to choose what she wanted from the dozens of cooks. The adults looked at him for confirmation of her choices, making sure to suggest healthy foods under his malevolently parental glares.

After enjoying his meal with her, he returned to the suites with his charge and began to prepare for his meeting with Esdeath's newest enforcers. Emperor, aid my resolve as I protect your legacy.


Kurome led Lubbock through the halls, skillfully hurrying to the meeting room. By the time the short assassin had reached the hallway where the room was, the two were surprised to see a navy blue-haired male bracing his back against the door while frantically looking at a piece of paper. The two Night Raid members quickly put the pieces together, absorbing the boy's burlap sack of fish, blue leather coat, and stitched-anchor scarf.

"Sailor, what's got you panicking?" Lubbock questioned, squatting near the shivering navy member.

The boy's hands latched onto Lubbock's gray greatcoat, "Please tell me you're part of the new security squad, please!" His mildly accented words giving him away as another country boy stuck in the city. "We're supposed to be meeting here and the head torturer is sitting in there!"

Lubbock looked away from the boy and back to Kurome, who stood by watching with one eyebrow raised in amusement. She reached into her pouch and pulled out several sticks of pocky to munch on while waiting for Lubbock to give a response.

The green-haired assassin sighed before pulling the sailor to his feet, "We are. Now try making sense. I know the Capital can be strange but whimpering isn't going to make it easier to get by."

The naval-themed boy straightened up at the admonishment before nodding. "Of course, of course. Sorry about that. My name is Wave. And you two are….?" He looked from Lubbock to Kurome and back again several times. The black-haired girl sensed the way his eyes moved from the pocky stick in her mouth to her snack pouch. Like hell am I sharing with you. She clutched her candy close to her chest.

"Tracker." Lubbock gave his alias, then noticed where Wave was looking. He threw an arm over the boy's shoulder. "And that is Kurome, who won't share her snacks no matter how much you look at them." Wave flinched and turned back to Lubbock, red-faced.

"Oh, I wasn't… I mean I-" His bumbling attempts to respond were interrupted by an excited shout.

"Salutations new teammates!" An orange-haired girl with mechanical arms jogged up with a small dog on a leash bouncing behind her. She stopped short of them and saluted, in accordance with her Imperial Police uniform. "My name is Seryu Ubiquitous!" The three turned to her, each feeling apprehension at her approach for their own reasons. Kurome broke the pocky that she was holding and quickly tossed both pieces into her mouth while Lubbock's arm tightened around Wave before relaxing. The poor sailor was too busy staring at the girl's prosthetics to even notice.

"This is certainly not stylish!" A man's unusually high-pitched voice complained, making them look behind Seryu to see a well-groomed man in a lab coat over a yellow suit. He brushed his black hair along his white-streaked section, letting out an annoyed noise. "I was planning on making such a great first impression, but now…." He paused while his eyes caught both Lubbock and Wave. He strode immediately over to them, his eyes running all over them with enough fervor to make Kurome shiver. "Though you two are quite stylish."

The two in question immediately balked at the attempted flirtation, scrambling backwards until they hit the door to the meeting room. The sound of more feet approaching made them turn, hoping to find salvation arriving. The three still standing also turned, curious about the arriving group.

Who they saw were two males, one very familiar with his white robe and neutral expression while the other was new, his blond hair pinned back with a metal feather and an open white robe of his own covering his black shirt and pants.

"Why are you all standing outside?" Tsu's tone managed to be authoritative despite its lack of emphasis or emotion. Kurome and Lubbock were surprised by the advisor's presence, especially with his less than favorable view of General Esdeath.

"Advisor, sir! I didn't expect to find you here!" Seryu bounded up to her former commander in the Imperial Garrison. "Are you joining this group?"

Tsu's emotionless eyes flicked away from the orange-haired girl to the two members of Night Raid before returning. "I'm not. But Run here," he gestured to the blond next to him, "is. I merely came to discuss certain protocols with your new leader and ran into him."

Seeming satisfied with his introduction, Run bowed and noticed the closed door of the meeting room. "Is this not the right room? Or perhaps it's still locked?" He elegantly stepped through the small crowd gathered nearby and opened the door to reveal a member of the Incineration Squad pouring out fresh tea into enough cups for their large group.

Kurome watched with mild interest as the man jumped at the captive audience he found himself performing in front of. Lubbock used the moment to smack Wave over the head for being scared of something so ordinary and not all that surprising.

The Incineration Squad member bowed and made several panicked noises. "I'm sorry to be the last one to introduce myself, considering I'm probably the oldest one here despite my shyness. My name is Bols and I look forward to working with all of you."

Everyone outside took a second to recover while Run smiled at Bols and eagerly sampled the offered tea. While the blonde sipped away, the rest of them entered and took seats. All except for Tsu, who stood nearly hidden to the side with an air of impatience.

After several minutes of everyone enjoying their tea, courtesy of Bols, Tsu spoke up. "It appears that your commanding officer is late. As such I will-" His proclamation was interrupted by the arrival of a masked woman. She strode into the room, as though challenging everyone in the room.

"General, please save your testing for another day." Tsu's words took on a hint of annoyance, raising a hand to the bridge of his nose. The masked female started at his words, before removing her mask.

"How else am I to gauge them and their weaknesses without fighting?" Esdeath questioned the advisor with her own annoyance.

"I said another time. You may have been given this security squad at the Emperor's request, but I am here to remind you that both you and the members of your squad will not be given leniency when operating in my jurisdiction."

"Is that a threat?" Everyone felt the room grow cold as ice coated everything within several feet of the general.

"It's a warning. Civility is expected of the Emperor's servants. Simply ask any of the three here that have worked for me." With his piece said, Tsu left the room, which seemed to ease some of the cold tension in the room. Though it did nothing for the icy floors.

Kurome looked at Esdeath, surprised that the fearsome general had listened to him. "I imagine that working with the advisor is not something you enjoy?"

The icy-colored woman looked at Kurome, an expression of mild disgust on her face. "I find his methods… restraining."

Kurome internally sighed with relief while Seryu spoke up. "But of course he is! He's in charge of the capital's justice system. So he enjoys making everyone follow his rules." The orange hair girl smiled, as if remembering something fond.

Esdeath's head fell slightly. "That may be, but we are above his jurisdiction. The Emperor has gathered all of us to eliminate Teigu users and bandits from the area around the Capital." She shot a look at Lubbock, who froze under her gaze. "So today, I announce the inception of the special security squad, the Jaegers."


Aria's morning was already going better than she could have hoped. Though the ship she had chartered was too small for any noble-born to even consider, her time with Tsu had showed her the error of those thoughts. They had set sail in the gray of dawn and were already out of sight of land. She turned from her spot on the side railing to look in the direction of the rising sun.

"So, why is a girl like you looking to head to the forbidden isles?" The gravelly voice of the captain sounded out next to her, startling her out of her thoughts. No one had snuck up on her so effectively before. In the Capital that would have been fatal.

Taking a second to regain some mental composure, the blonde turned to the grizzled sailor. "I have a mission that requires me to go there. My master told me that the answers I'm seeking are located on the islands."

The captain quirked an eyebrow upward, his eyes settled on Emparthos wrapped around the high neckline of her white dress. "Sad to hear that a girl as pretty as you is a slave." He had figured her for an upper-class heiress, not a well-groomed attendee.

She felt a wry smile form on her face. "I'm not. He's my master because I am his disciple. He saved my life and has taught me more than I could ever hope to learn elsewhere."

"Saved your life?" The captain gave a smile of his own. "From a forced marriage or some other aristocratic problem?" His cheeky grin matched the slight mocking tone he took with the blonde.

Rather than give him a response, she reached up and unbuttoned the top of her dress and pulled it down, exposing her neck and a bit of her collarbone to the sunlight. A thick, silvery scar ran from below the remaining cloth to just under her chin, a permanent reminder of Tatsumi's fatal blow on that night so long ago.

The captain gasped in shock, recognizing that the blow that left such a mark would have surely killed anyone. He took a moment to recollect himself after the sight. "I would also follow anyone that could make that possible." His sincere reply made Aria nod. He turned and started to walk away from her before pausing. "When we get there, I would ask that you realize it'll be more dangerous than sailing across the open sea."

"I'm prepared for that." She replied cryptically, closing up her dress with one hand and fingering the spikes of Emparthos with her other.


Leone threw open the door to the book-traders, setting off small dust eddies. She waved a hand in front of her face to clear the air while Tatsumi stood behind her in the morning foot-traffic.

"Welcome to the shop!" The blonde proclaimed, turning to watch Tatsumi step into the secret base.

"It's dirty." He observed, noticing a brand-new broom sitting in the corner behind the myriad of bookshelves and the service counter.

"Which is why you'll be cleaning this place up while I meet with our spy friend." She instructed him, pointing to a small room behind the counter. "Lubbock made this place back before he got embedded alongside Kurome, so we might as well use this to our advantage."

"What is the point of this place then? We have three people inside the Imperial Palace. Why aren't we striking?" He objected, letting his eyes drift across the dusty spines in search of interesting titles to distract himself.

"Because the Revolution's not ready. As much as all of us want that Prime Minister's head, if we're not careful about it, there won't be a country left over to have saved. Much less any chance of succeeding or surviving."

Tatsumi sighed, seeing the point she was trying to make. He grabbed the broom while Leone made her way to the front door. "What should I do if customers come in?"

The blonde gave him a confused look, her hand on the door handle. "Serve 'em. This is a store and you're now in charge of it!" She flashed him a smile before disappearing outside.

Tatsumi contemplated his current predicament before resigning himself to cleaning the store. Taking his time to sweep the floors, dust the shelves, and even clean the cobwebs from the window corners, he lost himself to the menial labor. As the afternoon arrived, he opened the store's door to let in some fresh air and signal that the place was open.

Now satisfied with his set-up, Tatsumi returned to a book that he had caught his eye while cleaning. Grabbing it before sitting on a stool behind the desk. Cracking open the tome to its first page, he quickly lost himself to the story.


Leone wasn't too surprised that Tsu would prefer to meet at a café. He was high-class like that. But she didn't expect it to be on the main street, only a few blocks from the palace. She took a look at her less than proper attire before deciding it wasn't going to make her reputation worse. She caught sight of her target sitting at an outside table, and felt a smirk cross her face.

"Hey, sweetie!" She called out, throwing an extra sway into her steps as the entire street watched her make her way to Tsu's table. She watched his face manage to remain composed despite the clear annoyance in his eyes.

"Welcome back." He replied once she sat down across from him before lowering his voice. "You realize that rumors are going to be spread that you're my personal courtesan after that?" He set several small scraps of paper on the table for the blonde to quickly take.

"Really? You must be flattered." Leone read the miniature reports. "How are Lubbock and Kurome doing in that new security squad? It's already the talk of the town."

"They are doing fine, other than being that close to Seryu Ubiquitous without being able to kill her." He noticed the assassin's fist clench at the name. "But that's a different issue. How are Tatsumi and Akame? I know Tatsumi's not exactly emotionally literate thanks to me, but I certainly hope he hasn't debased himself further."

"Those two are stuck in the rut of wanting to move forward, but being too afraid to. Typical first-time issues."

"Good. I'd rather they stay like that." Tsu leaned back, relaxing at the common gossip. The blonde let an eyebrow raise at his comment.

"You are really old-fashioned. If they want to, they should be able to."

"What's wrong with believing that they need to be properly committed to their path?"

Leone rolled her eyes. "Because they are living their lives. Which means making mistakes, learning as they go, and loving with everything they have."

Tsu leaned forward, his eyes suddenly burning with an unnatural intensity. "Can you really say that as an assassin? A single mistake, a single word wrong could end your life. Are you willing to watch them die or suffer from another's fatal mistakes?"

Leone slammed her hands onto the table, standing over the white-themed millennial. "You would rather that they die without each other's comfort? Without knowing any joy? Are you that heartless?"

Tsu mouthed a response that Leone failed to hear despite her enhanced hearing, looking up at her with defiant authority. "There's a tournament later for Esdeath to find someone to wield Extase. Her whole squad and I will also be in attendance. Make sure he doesn't come, we both know he's not likely to restrain himself." His final part said, the advisor-spy stood up and turned to leave. But not before he offered one last loud comment. "When I see you tonight, I'll make sure the whole block is sending in noise complaints, not just your neighbors."

Leone barely had time to process the comment before she caught the various people milling around already whispering about her and Tsu. Realizing what he had just done, she couldn't help but feel a blushing smirk on her face. "He's less timid than Tatsumi, I'll give him that."


Lubbock looked around the private box of the fighting arena, still trying to gauge his chances of being discovered or otherwise removed from the group. The memory of Esdeath's displeasure about his supposed lack of a Teigu made him shiver. If Kurome hadn't spoken up, I would be an icicle. He looked over at his short partner, unsurprised to see her eating more candy.

"Slave-boy, come over here." Tsu's neutral tone made the new name for Lubbock more insulting. Lubbock turned to face the advisor for the first time, only to find himself stunned. Sitting across a small table from the white-haired man was a 4 year-old girl with long, unnaturally familiar purple hair. The advisor turned back to Lubbock. "Why are you still standing there?"

"Oh, right." Slightly numb from the haunting doppelganger, the green-haired assassin moved next to Tsu. "What did you need?"

"I want you to watch over my daughter Schere while I look for the missing General." He pointed to an empty seat in the box before standing up. "If she ends up with a sweet tooth like Kurome's, I'm blaming you." He started to walk away, clearly not waiting for an answer.

"That's pretty easy…. Wait a minute! Your daughter?!" Lubbock's raised voice caught the ears of all the Jaegers, making them turn to face the two speaking.

"Yes. My adopted daughter. I am quite fond of children and make it my duty to raise some from each generation in the proper Imperial way." Tsu's eyes betrayed nothing to the information-gatherer. "If that's all, I'm certain you will likely be capable. If you have any questions, ask Bols. He is quite the family man according to the rumors."

Lubbock watched as the millennia-old boy-man elegantly glided through the crowd to leave. Once he was certain that everyone's attention was back on the tournament, Lubbock took a second to scan the crowd before sitting across from Schere.

"Just where the hell is Aria at a time like this?" He muttered, unable to find Tsu's naïve, but loyal, blond companion. A sudden pit forming in his stomach told him it wasn't anywhere safe.


Tatsumi could barely see the afternoon crowd that he was running through, trying to escape the truths of the book he had been reading.

Your Love is My Lie was the unique title of the work that had forced him into this panic, something he would have never suffered if it weren't so familiar. The story was about a man who returns to his hometown after his twin brother is killed. At the funeral, he meets his brother's wife and they slowly fall in love. But he notices how she constantly mistakes his name for his brother's. How she switched out his clothing for his brother's. And many, many other things that convinced him she was using the man to replace his dead brother entirely.

By the time the main character figured out what was happening, the seeds of doubt Tatsumi had been hiding for so long sprung forth with accusations. She was using him. She wasn't his childhood friend Akame, but a time traveler brought there by Tsu. She was only focused on changing the future, not him or their relationship. She was replacing her dead Tatsumi with him.

Shut up! He mentally screamed at his hidden fears. His charge through the crowd abruptly ended when the crowd did. Taking a second to recognize the street he was on, Tatsumi found himself with too many questions and not enough answers.

"Boy, come over here. You look too troubled to be running around in the sun." A woman's voice made him turn to a small shop nearby. Sitting on a bench outside, a woman holding two ice creams was looking at him with warm icy-blue eyes. His eyes widened, taking in the woman's well-developed curves beneath a black full-length dress. Her blue hair flowed past her waist and twirled in the light breeze, convincing him that this wasn't an illusion.

The woman cocked her head and held out one of the ice creams. "Well?" Tatsumi didn't take the time to think before he grabbed the cold treat, hoping it would cool off his overloaded mind.

"Thanks." He told her before sitting next to the kind woman, making her smile.

"What's got you all worked up? A boy your age shouldn't have that much to worry about." Despite the prying nature of her question, the warmth of her voice convinced Tatsumi that he should answer.

"Love." He replied, trying to keep a reign on his own spinning views of the emotion.

She gave a wry smile. "So that's what got you down? Is it because you love someone or because someone loves you?"

Great question. "My girlfriend used to love someone that looked a lot like me, until he died suddenly. We met and started dating only a little bit after that. Now I'm doubting whether she loves me for me, or because I remind of that guy." Tatsumi rested his elbows on his knees, hunching himself over. "And the worst part is that I'm even doubting. I should know the answer but I don't. And now it's tearing me up."

Tatsumi heard the slap before he felt it. He let out a hiss of pain immediately covered the sore cheek. "You're an idiot. What matters is-"

"General Esdeath. Assaulting civilians will not be tolerated." A disturbingly familiar voice proclaimed flatly. Tatsumi turned to see Tsu standing there, an uncharacteristically hostile look in his eyes. When the luminescent white eyes met his own green ones, shock replaced everything else in them. "Tatsumi?"

"Old man?" The young assassin muttered, catching the attention of the woman. He saw a quick smile cross her face as her eyes became as cold as their color.

"Advisor, I wish to inform the Emperor that my search is over. I've found the one that I love." She replied to Tsu, slipping an arm around Tatsumi's shoulders. He panicked and flinched, realizing that he was currently sitting next to the deadliest member of the Imperial Army. Her fingernails dug into his shoulders, rendering him immobile. She brought her lips close to his ear and whispered, "play along and we both live."

"You dare…." Tsu started to answer her, his rage reaching his voice for the first time Tatsumi have ever heard it not directed at him.

"By the Emperor's decree, remember Advisor? Whoever I chose would become mine, no matter their affiliation, status, or other qualifications? Surely you don't mean to disobey the Emperor?" Her last question took on a mocking tone that made Tatsumi a little nauseated.

Tsu's hands balled into fists for a few seconds before they relaxed. "I cannot disobey the Emperor. Take him." The white-haired man spat the last two words out with such venom that Tatsumi recoiled like he'd been punched.

As Tsu stalked off, he felt Esdeath stand up. Which dragged him to his feet considering her grip on him. "Come along now, we must not wait time." She told him, setting off down the road without waiting for him to move. Before Tatsumi realized it, he was being dragged.

A thought only reached him as he looked over his shoulder to see the Imperial Palace getting closer.

What did I just get myself into?


What awaits Aria on the forbidden islands? Will Lubbock ever get a decent compliment from someone?

Even though the hands of fate were pushed away, Tatsumi still managed to fall into Esdeath's clutches.

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