"Oh?" Rachel cocked her head in surprise. "And for what reason do I owe being sought by one as loathsome as you?"

In Ragna's arms, Tsubaki shifted toward the girl's voice, sightless eyes narrowing. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"Relax, Tsu, Rachel's just an absolute bitch to me." Ragna stepped over to Rachel, scowling. "Just thought you could take us somewhere. That okay?"

"…Take you somewhere?" Rachel pursed her lips, some seed of realization sprouting. Ragna taking someone somewhere like this? What on earth was this anathema up to? "Whatever do you mean? I demand you explain yourself."

"We're on a date. I want to show her the church. You're the only one who can take us there. That explanation enough?"

Rachel's expression did not change. However, a squall of wind cut through the street and buffeted Ragna and Tsubaki. Something lit up in Rachel's crimson gaze. "I suppose."

"Then, um…" Tsubaki shivered, wondering why the temperature had just dropped ten degrees in the space of a few seconds. "Could you please… um, take us there…?" She still had no idea how they would travel so far outside of the city in such a short time.

"I fail to see why. If you wish to waste your time on pointless romantic excursions, find some other means of transportation."

Ragna growled. "She's blind, you dumbass. How about you stop being as much a bitch as possible and throw her a bone?"

"Is that so? My condolences, Miss Yayoi." After a few moments, Rachel sighed. "And I assume you would require transportation back following the conclusion of your… date."

"No shit, rabbit."

"…I shall consider it." Rachel turned to Tsubaki as she approached the two, the raging wind cooling down. "So, Izayoi has robbed you of your sight, I see. May I ask what transpired for you to so foolishly use the weapon?"

Now it was Tsubaki's turn to growl, although she hid it the best she could. She really did not like whoever she was speaking with in the least. "If you must know, it was done to defeat Sector Seven's Azrael and save Ragna's life, as he had saved mine. If Azrael's reign of terror has come to an end, the toll I have paid is more than worth it."

"I see. It is quite remarkable you retain your fire, even if you should never lift a blade for the remainder of your life. Unfortunately, I cannot see the Librarium holding much use for you at this point. A pity; I wish you luck in your future prospects."

"With a shake of his head, Ragna stomped past Rachel. "Well, if you're not gonna help, I'll go find something else me and Tsu can do. Why the hell are you here, anyways?"

"To ensure your safety."

"…So, where the fucking hell were you when Azrael was going all psycho asshat on me?" Ragna scoffed and stormed away faster. "Whatever. We're gone. You wanna go somewhere else, Tsubaki?"

"Hold on. I have not yet denied your request."

"Then hurry it up and deny it already, so Tsu and I can get on with our date."

"I…" With a sigh, Rachel conjured up a rift in space. "Shall acquiesce with your request. You wished to bring her to the church, did you not?"

Ragna stopped and glared back. "…And just where does that really lead? Because like hell do I believe you're actually helping us after all that shit you just spewed."

Rachel gestured to the portal once more. "I assure you, I intend no trickery." And another gesture, the only outward sign of her impatience. "Enter, lest I change my mind."

After a few moments, Ragna looked down at Tsubaki, who had not stirred in his arms for some time. "You up for it?"

Tsubaki nodded, although she unconsciously drew herself closer to Ragna. "Yes. I… really would like to go."

"Alright." As Ragna trudged over to the portal, he shot Rachel one last glare. "I swear to god, Rachel, if you pull anything here…"

He stepped through the portal.

Tsubaki squeaked as she abruptly dropped onto soft grass, no longer suspended in Ragna's arms. A moment later, his cry sounded from above, followed by a solid thump. "…Ragna?"

"The goddamn bitch left me ten feet off the ground." Spitting out soil and grass, Ragna lifted himself off the ground and knelt at Tsubaki's side. "You okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine." Tsubaki crawled slowly in the direction of Ragna's voice, each movement slow and cautious. "Well, um… are we at the church? Why does it smell like fire?"

"Yeah. We're here." Ragna glanced around as he placed a comforting hand on Tsubaki's shoulder. The charred supports rising from the ashes like the ribs of some fell creature, the lingering burning scent, the desolate ruin surrounded by a sea of forestial tranquility… Yes, he was certainly home again. "And that's because it burned down a while ago. If you want, I could take you out to the, uh, foresty places. Less, uh… ashy."

"Oh?" A third voice chimed in from beside a nearby tree. Rachel stood there, glaring at a Ragna. "If that is the case, then why was I required to bring you two out here? Surely it would not have been too much trouble to travel outside of the Hierarchical City I found you two in?"

"Goddammit, why the hell are…?" Letting the question die, Ragna shook his head, pulled Tsubaki in close, and snarled at Rachel. "Yeah, I'm gonna lead a blind woman through busy streets with the NOL looking for any chance they can to bring me in, into an unfamiliar forest without knowing if it's above the seithr line. That would begoddamn brilliant."

After a few moments of consideration, Rachel sighed and took a seat. "Very well. Do as you will."

"Thanks, bunny-leech. Now piss off until we're ready to go back." Ragna wrapped his arm around Tsubaki's shoulders. "You wanna stick around here, Tsu? Or go out to the forest?"

"Here." Sinking against him, Tsubaki closed her eyes. The burnt scent surprised her, but other than that, the very air felt… clean. At least compared to the metropolises she had lived and worked in all her life. "I want to know what happened here. This… is where you grew up, right?"

"…Yeah. It is. Come on." Even as her arm came around his waist—for support, of course—Ragna directed her closer to the burnt-out husk of a church. He balked as he took his first step onto the charred wood. "Uh… you sure you wanna sit down here? It's real ashy and shit."

"I… yes, it's fine." Tsubaki lowered herself, feeling around for anything dangerous below her before sitting down fully. Her darkened palm sought out something to sit back against on—the remnants of a wall, or something—but met Ragna's glove. She found herself steered to the side, where her back met a flat surface, probably a wall. She smiled, looking down. "Thanks. U-um… do you mind telling me…?"

"You wish to know of his upbringing? I fail to see what interest such an irksome dog provides." Rachel's voice cut her off, bringing a sting of annoyance. "And how disgraceful it is for one of nobility to sit amongst ashes as you now do. Have you no pride in your heritage, Miss Yayoi?"

"Mind leaving her the hell alone already, rabbit?" Ragna shook his head as he dropped down beside Tsubaki. "Well, I'll keep it brief. Lived here with siblings and guardian most of my life, then some jackass showed up, killed the guardian, possessed my brother, chopped off my arm, and left for me dead while taking off with my sister. Oh, and this place burned down then, too. Rachel saved my ass, helped train me, and I went after the NOL once he was done. The bastard that fucked over my life is with them, so I wanted to kick his ass and get my sister back. And they were doing some pretty… uh, not-good projects, too."

"Oh, a truly splendid explanation." Rachel sniffed, voice dripping with sarcasm. "It is truly remarkable how few details you mention, given that they are largely—"

"Thought I told you to be quiet, rabbit."

After a moment, Tsubaki sighed. "Um, Miss Rachel? My apologies if you find this rude, but could you please leave us be?" Not something that she should need to ask, but since Rachel couldn't seem to acknowledge that they were on a date together…

Rachel huffed. "If you insist."

"Thank you." After a moment, Tsubaki snuggled closer to Ragna. "…May I ask about these projects?"

"U-uh, um…" Ragna froze up, completely unable to comprehend the affection at first. After a deep breath to calm himself, he slid his arm around her. "…Nasty stuff. Mostly from screwing around with the Boundary. Human weapons and the like. And the jackass I mentioned before is kinda behind everything, too."

"…I see. Who is it? Who is this blight upon the Librarium?" Tsubaki scowled at the thought. Her fist clenched, but before she could exhibit anymore anger, Ragna's hand moved up and gave her shoulder a squeeze. She closed her eyes, breathing deep to quell the righteous flame burning inside her. "…My apologies for that. This isn't the time for such things; I can wait until after we're done here to ask about more."

"It's fine, Tsu." And as if to show sincerity, Ragna held her tighter for a moment. "Weren't kidding about the justice thing, were you?"

Tsubaki suppressed a light giggle, and snuggled in closer. "No, not at all." However, after a few moments, she sighed. "…I wish I could help you."

"Huh?"

"I want to help with… well, everything. Saving your sister, condemning the man who did all of that to you… No, it's more than that. I wish I could take you up on your offer to travel with you, so I may help you pass judgment on him. The more I get to know you, Ragna… well, I'll just say my initial impressions were highly inaccurate." A paused followed. "…But I can't. To do so would be to mark myself a traitor to the Librarium. And my loyalty to it will not waver. I'll do what I can to help you from inside, but… My apologies."

"Heh. Ain't a problem; didn't expect you to leave them." Ragna leaned closer, and after a brief hesitation, drifted his hand over to cup her cheek and tilt her head his way so he could best look into her eyes. "Gotta say, having someone in the NOL helping me…"

And with no warning, a large, green frog dropped from the sky straight onto Tsubaki's head. She shrieked, hands going up for whatever slimy thing had just plopped down into her hair, but Ragna beat her to the punch. He swiped it off of her head, held it in one hand, and set it down on the floor. "Rachel! What the hell did you summon George for?"

Some distance away, Rachel sipped from a teacup that she had acquired via unknown means. "Oh, my apologies. Merely an accident."

"…Accident my ass." Ragna snarled her way, hand coming back around Tsubaki's shoulder with an uncomfortably tight grip. "Why. The fuck. Are you treating Tsubaki like shit? I know you're hardly pleasant, but this?"

"I am not intentionally harassing her; the frog was meant for you."

"…Oh." Ragna's grip loosened. "Well, that's better. Still…"

"Ragna…" Tsubaki pulled herself up to her feet, leaning a hand on Ragna's shoulder for support. "Let's… let's just go into the forest."

"Yeah. Alright. Sure." Still growling under his breath, Ragna jumped to his feet as well, hand locking with Tsubaki's. "I'll show you to a nice place there. Nice, quiet, nothing around for the most part. Not even rabbits." He threw one last glare Rachel's way and started toward the forest, guiding Tsubaki along.

"Can't believe she did that. That stupid…" Two minutes of walking down the tranquil forest trail had done Ragna's temper little good. Grumbles and curses flowed from him, although he remained gentle in his shepherding of Tsubaki along beside him. Finally, he huffed a sigh and looked down at her. "You okay?"

"Huh? Yes, I'm fine." Tsubaki cocked her head in his general direction. "Why? What… was it that she summoned there, anyways."

"A frog." Brief pause. "The same one she summons to zap her enemies. Or me; bitch dropped it into my jacket once."

"What?!" Tsubaki came to a dead halt, seething. "…Why is she like this? What does she gain from tormenting us like she is?"

"She gets off on my suffering." Coming to a stop beside a long-fallen tree, Ragna sighed. He prodded her along a few more steps, and then eased her onto the log. As he sat down beside her, his hand brushed hers. "So, anyways. Here we are. A bit less… burned than the church."

With a chuckle, Tsubaki slid her hand over to rest on top of his. "Yes, I noticed. It feels so… clean out here."

"We're well above the seithr line, and there aren't a million active Ars around." Ragna looked down and smiled as her hand nestled on his. "This your first time out to a place like this?"

"Yes, it is. As a member of the Yayoi family, I was highly sheltered growing up. In fact, I… outside of a few instances at the Academy, I don't think I've ever stepped outside of a Hierarchical City. As Tsubaki shuffled an inch closer to Ragna, she fell silent. Was this really alright? Of course it was; it was just a single date. But no matter how much she enjoyed herself, something burned on the fringes of her mind, as though she were betraying Jin. It was utterly silly, but… She shook her head. No, this was fine. "So, um, thanks for taking me out here."

"No problem." Still, Ragna frowned. "Something wrong?"

"Oh, it's… nothing. Just thinking." Tsubaki turned a bright smile his way, trying to ward off the demon of doubt. "So, what did you do out here?"

"Chores and shit, mostly."

"Ah… um, my apologies for asking, then."

With a laugh, Ragna brought his hand around to ruffle her hair a bit, earning a surprised squeak. "It's fine, Tsubaki." He looped his arm over her shoulders. "Well, besides that crap… uh, well, I didn't have much time for stuff, really. Um…"

He looked away, struck by nervousness. Not really something he particularly cared to talk about, but hell. She had opened up a bit about herself, so the least he could do was return the favor, right? "I… well, my sister was sick a lot, and Celica… I mean, our guardian was freaking ancient, so she couldn't do that much. So I got stuck doing most of the chores, and tending to my sister. But, uh… well, just a second, let me get something."

"Okay."

Ragna rose and stood atop the tree, not wanting to drift to far from Tsubaki. He reached up in to the branches of a nearby tree, and pulled free a leaf. After sitting down beside his date once more, he folded the leaf, the rust of years passed since the last time he'd done so slowing the process. With the leaf folded, he brought it to his lips and blew. A clear note sounded. Beside him, Tsubaki jumped at the high note and turned to him. "Ah! What…?"

Grinning, despite its pointlessness, Ragna lowered the makeshift whistle. "A leaf. Learned how to fold one into a whistle when I was a kid. First time in a while I've made one, though." He pressed it into her palm. "Want to try?"

"Ah… um, sure." Tsubaki fumbled with the tiny instrument in her hand for a few seconds before finding what she hoped was a proper grip on it. As she lifted it toward her lips, she paused a moment to ask, "Um, do I have this right?"

"Uh… turn it around, it won't sound from that side."

"Ah, okay." After flipping it around, Tsubaki lifted it and closed her mouth around its end. She blew, and a high, windy sound came forth, utterly lacking in any musical quality. She flinched and turned to Ragna. "May I ask what I did wrong?"

"Too much air. You, uh…" Ragna paused a moment, trying to think of the best way to instruct her. Best to lead by example, right. "Um, about this much air…" And he blew lightly on her cheek.

A crimson blush painted Tsubaki's cheeks, but she just nodded and blew into the whistle again, trying to emulate the amount of air he used. A clear note sounded, and she beamed a little before repeating the sound. She lowered the leaf and smiled in Ragna's direction. A simple joy, to be sure, but… "Never would have thought you to have interest in music, Ragna." But then, until a few days ago, she never would have thought he could be anything less than a monster.

"Eh. Not that big into it. Never really had time, you know." Once again, Ragna wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and this time, she responded by leaning in against him. A blush crossed his face as well. "How 'bout you?"

"Well, I never picked up any instruments or anything, but singing's long been one of my hobbies. U-um…" She looked down. "Maybe in a bit, I could… sing a little for you…?"

With a chuckle, Ragna lolled his head against her. "Sure, sounds good. Whenever you want to."

"Mm, okay." At that moment, however, the wind gusted, far harder than it should have. The sudden gale caught the leaf between Tsubaki's fingers and wrenched it out of her grasp, sailing through the air. With a gasp, she started after it on instinct, but came to a quick halt; there was no way she could try to recover it. A pair of rough hands came around her shoulders to brace her and keep her from pursuit, and she turned back Ragna's way. "Ah, s-sorry…"

"You did nothing wrong." The edge in Ragna's voice made Tsubaki brace herself, and a moment later, it roared in the opposite direction. "Goddammit, Rachel, what do you want now?"

"Oh my. My most sincere apologies," a by now all-too-familiar voice answered. "I assure you, I was entirely unaware you had ventured here."

"Bull. Shit. Are you just trying to screw with us?" Ragna huffed, although when he took Tsubaki by the hand, it proved surprisingly gentle. "What the hell are you following us for?"

"Following you?" Rachel took a sip of tea from where she was seated on a log. "I have no idea what you mean."

An extended silence fell, and eventually, a growl from Ragna ended it. "Come on, Tsu. Got one last place for us to head to, if you're up for it."

"Oh! Um, sure." Tsubaki rose to her feet, clenching Ragna's hand, and glaring back in the direction of Rachel's voice. "After you."

"Alright. Just gonna take you to a nearby stream." Ragna gave Rachel one last scowl. "And don't fucking think about following us, Rabbit."

The stream glittered in the afternoon sun, its quiet burble the only indication Tsubaki had that she now approached it. The muddy ground sunk under her feet, and Ragna came to a stop beside her. "Well, we're here. Don't take another step unless you want to drench yourself in the creek. Pretty sure it's freezing this time of year, too."

Tsubaki gave a light chuckle and smiled his way as she took a seat. At least he was in a decent mood, even after Rachel's latest interruption. Although she didn't know how she would take another attempt from the girl to sabotage the date; it was highly irritating for her to continually butt in whenever Tsubaki and Ragna seemed to draw closer. Although, of course, that could be exactly Rachel's intent. "I don't know, it's not that cold right now. Um, how deep is it?"

"Eh, only a couple feet at its deepest in this part, and it's shallower than normal right. Gets deeper a bit upstream, though." Ragna sat down beside her, close enough for their shoulders to brush. "Uh, sorry there isn't more here, though."

Tsubaki shook her head. "No, it's fine. It's really nice being out here. Um, is there, like, anything we could sit on in the stream?"

"In the stream? Uh… a couple rocks and a fallen log. You wanna head to the log?"

"Yes, I would." Tsubaki rose into a kneel and fumbled with the laces of her shoes, the heavy combat boots of her uniform. After a few seconds of frustration, she sighed. "Ragna, could you… um, help here?"

"Huh? Sure." Kneeling down beside her, Ragna appraised the boot for a moment before untying its knotted strings. He slipped the boot off, followed by stocking beneath it, before repeating the process with her other shoe. Cheeks tinted red, he reached out and took her by the hand, not bothering to remove his own shoes. "Alright. Anything else you need to do first?"

"No, that's all. I just want to feel the water is all." Tsubaki allowed Ragna to pull her to her feet, where she just stood, awkward. "…Actually, could you guide me, please?"

"Yeah, I gotcha, Tsu." Holding her by the hand, Ragna stepped into the stream, guiding her gently into the water.

Tsubaki shivered as the stream washed over her bare feet, but kept pace with Ragna. Her steps pressed pebbles rounded by the creek's flow deeper into the streambed. In a short time, her guide stopped, and his hands fell upon her waist. She held in a gasp, but just allowed Ragna to lower her onto something firm, if a bit damp. Her hands brushed over the rough bark her seat to confirm that it was the log Ragna had mentioned. An arm looped around her shoulders, and she returned the embrace with one around Ragna's waist. "Thanks for bringing me out here."

"Ain't a problem." Ragna dug into a pocket, pulled out a leaf and smirked. "Hey. I picked up another leaf on our way here. Wanna make another flute thing?"

"Oh! Um…" Tsubaki pondered for a moment. An idea struck her. "Um, could you play it, actually?"

"Huh? Sure." Ragna folded the leaf, a fair bit quicker than the previous one. After appraising it for a moment, he put it to his mouth and began blowing into it. A note, and then a full, simple melody sounded.

For almost a minute, Tsubaki simply listened to the music with her eyes closed, studying its key and scale. Then her voice joined the flute, a low wordless hum. As the impromptu song continued, she sang louder, and gibberish words replaced the mere humming. Ragna stopped playing, just listening to Tsubaki sing, utterly mesmerized. After several minutes of singing, Tsubaki trailed off to a halt, and glanced away. "Ah… sorry. I shouldn't have just taken over like that…"

Ragna laughed and, to her utter embarrassment, drew her in even closer. "The hell are you apologizing for? That was beautiful, Tsubaki."

"Ah… well, if you say so." Tsubaki snuggled up against him, aglow with joy. "You played quite well yourself."

"Eh. I was kinda rusty, but…"

"Was that anything in particular you were playing?"

Ragna shook his head. "Nah. Might've been based off something I used to play, but I'll be damned if I actually remember anything like that."

"Ah, I see. Still, it was nice."

Silence fell, neither breaking their embrace. In the tranquility, Tsubaki's mind wandered into murky depths once more. Confusion about Ragna and Jin boiled within her again, but she batted it back with ease this time—she was doing nothing wrong at all here. However, no sooner had that demon been shattered than a new one took root. She shivered and frowned. Beside her, Ragna gave her a nudge. "Hey. What's wrong?"

"Oh, um…" Tsubaki sighed. "I'm… nervous about returning to the Librarium. I mean, I know there are policies for accommodation of the handicapped, and thus that there should be some position I could retain there, but…"

"You're worried that they'll still kick you out, huh?" He gave her shoulder a squeeze.

"Yes. I've spent my entire life training so that I may serve the NOL, and uphold its justice. If… if that's all been for naught…"

"No way in hell it was wasted. Your whole goal thing is justice, right? You really think you need the Library for something like that?"

"…If there are no principles for my justice…"

"Then just do what you feel's right. Or shit, you could pick out your favorite of the Six Heroes and just emulate him. Not gonna tell you to leave the Library, but they're not the only code of justice to follow, you know?" Although he certainly wanted her to leave the Library. "And remember, if you need someplace to go, you could, uh, travel with me, if you'd want."

"Mm. Thanks, Ragna. For everything." Tsubaki turned a smile towards him. Her hand felt up along his arm, over his shoulder, and up his neck before settling on his cheek. Using that as a guide, she leaned in and pressed her lips softly to his cheek, drawing a light gasp from Ragna. He stared down at Tsubaki, blushing as his mind tried to register what had just happened. The hand on her shoulder left to feel the burning spot where she had planted her kiss. Beside him, Tsubaki looked down, face the color of her hair. "Ah… s-sorry if that was unwanted…"

"Unwanted? Hell no, that was… I mean, ain't got any problems with it." Laughing, Ragna wrapped his arm around her waist, tight enough to draw out a squeak from her. "Uh, sorry."

"N-no, it's fine." Tsubaki sought out Ragna's free hand and clasped it between both of hers. "You're… sure that it would be fine for me to travel with you? I wouldn't want to be a burden to you…"

"Wouldn't offer if it wasn't. After a moment, Ragna sighed. "We should probably be heading back soon. You've gotta talk to Kokonoe about that Ars thing she mentioned, after all. Can't leave without learning it, I guess."

"Right. I'm ready whenever you are."

"Then allow me to send you directly back to Kokonoe's lab." Out on the stream bank, Rachel appeared, eyes closed and teacup in hand. "And allow me to apologize for my prior actions, Miss Yayoi."

Her words took a moment to register. Ragna and Tsubaki blinked, turned toward Rachel, and said in perfect unison, "What?"

An exasperated sigh answered them. "I was merely attempting to needle that filthy mutt as he so deserves, and believed that focusing on his companion would prove an effective change of pace. It would seem I was correct on this matter. You have my most sincere apologies."

"Bull shit." Ragna huffed, shaking his head. He took Tsubaki by the hand, and rose to his feet. "Just take us back, bunny-leech."

A/N: Just an update: AFH chapters 29+ are approaching completion. Shouldn't be much longer.