A/N: Apologies for the short chapter. Was going to be longer, but I decided to lengthen what would have been the second half and make it its own chapter.

The massive double blast-door into Kokonoe's laboratory roared as it slid open, drawing a wince of pain from Tsubaki. At her side, Ragna gave her shoulder a light squeeze, trying to comfort her a little. He guided her as he stepped into the chrome halls, glancing around in disdain. "So, uh… no welcoming committee?"

Tsubaki chuckled a bit. "Kokonoe's probably busy. Oh, um… do you have any idea what became of Tager?" A knot of guilt formed in her gut; how could she have forgotten the man that had ensured their survival against Azrael?

"He'll be fine. He got completely thrashed, though; Koko said something about needing to make new pieces of him." With a shiver, Ragna faltered. On that note, whatever became of their hunter? Just thinking of how outmatched he had been against Azrael, and not knowing the madman's fate, left him uneasy. More to dispel his nervousness than anything, Ragna raised a hand to his mouth. "Hey, Kokonoe! Where the hell are you?"

His voice echoed through the halls, but no response came. After grumbling under his breath, he sighed and resumed leading Tsubaki along. "God dammit. She's probably down working on some shit. Let's go see if she's got that Ars ready for you yet."

"Mm… alright. Although she said it would probably take a few days…" Tsubaki just allowed herself to be led along. Although she certainly didn't mind Ragna herding her around, she couldn't wait until she was able to move around on her own again. A sense of giddiness came over her at the thought, and her pace increased a bit. A moment later, Ragna's arm hooked her around the waist and pulled her back before she could get too far ahead. She gave a nervous laugh. "Sorry. I guess I'm just excited about the possibility that she's already finished."

"Yeah, I getcha. Hell, I'd probably be doing the same if I was you. But… yeah. Really don't want you trying to walk through Kokonoe's little shop of horrors on your own here. Some of the shit she's got lying around is beyond dangerous. Makes me wonder why she keeps it at all, but eh. Mad scientist. Guess it comes with the territory or something." Ragna pulled her in tighter, hoping she wouldn't mind. When her smile widened a little, he chuckled and took another look around. "Alright… let's see if I can't remember how to get to the basement here."

"No need, I'm here already." Kokonoe stuck her head out from a nearby door. As she approached them, she scowled. "Okay, look, I know you two want to get this whole Ars thing over with so you can go to whatever lovey-dovey bullshit you've got in mind, but we've got more important matters to deal with."

"Huh?" Tsubaki cocked her head in the direction of Kokonoe's voice. "What do you mean?"

"Azrael."

Both Tsubaki and Ragna paled at the name. Tsubaki found her tongue first. "Don't tell me… he's escaped…?"

"Nah, he hasn't. Bastard's locked up nice and tidy in my prisons. Amazing what absolute zero can do to even a monster like Azrael. However…" Kokonoe scowled. "The Sector Seven higher-ups contacted me and demanded his release. I told them to piss off, because Azrael is too goddamn dangerous, but those idiots don't have an ounce of logic in them. Braindead idiots."

"Wait, wait, wait." Ragna snarled, hand tightening around Tsubaki. "Those assholes want to release Azrael? Why the hell would they want to do something so goddamn stupid?"

"Well, they're the ones who released him in the first place. I think the Library's got them pissing themselves—after the shit that Azrael pulled in the Ikaruga War, I don't think anyone with half a brain would want him released again. But hey, the Sector Seven heads have proven that they're a special kind of stupid almost every time I've talked to them. So nothing new here." Kokonoe waved Ragna to follow her. "Well, anyways. I'm gonna have a little talk with Azrael. You guys come along; I need to talk to you both right after. And you'd better brace yourselves, because it's not good."

Both Ragna and Tsubaki faltered a moment. Tsubaki spoke first. "…Kokonoe, may I ask why you even plan to speak to such a brute?"

"Interrogation. He might not seem like it, but Azrael isn't a complete idiot. And at any rate, I wanna know what those dumbshits are up to." Kokonoe waved to them again, spurring them to hurry up and follow her already. "He should be thawed enough to speak by the time we get there."

"Okay. But, uh…" Ragna frowned. He didn't like this. At all. This was the bastard that had driven Tsubaki to sacrifice to stop; why the hell did she need to ever meet him again? "Why us? I'm pretty sure you can handle interrogation by yourself. Or do you just get off on tormenting us like the stupid rabbit?"

"Rachel bothered you guys on your little date? Gah. Not surprised, but still." Kokonoe reached an elevator and stepped inside to wait for Ragna and Tsubaki to get there. "And it's simple. I need enforcement in case Azrael manages to break out, and with Tager out of commission for the moment, that means you, Ragna. And I know you don't wanna let Tsubaki out of your sight if you can help it. So, if hell does break loose, get her to safety then come back me up."

"…You little bitch. Well, whatever." Ragna pulled Tsubaki into the elevator and stepped aside so that Kokonoe could control the lift. "Just so you know, if anything happens to Tsubaki during this stupid scheme of yours, you are dead. Got me?"

Kokonoe scoffed as the elevator began its slow descent. "Ha. As if a little brat like you could even hurt me."

"Um, Kokonoe?" Tsubaki spoke up, mostly to relieve the building tension, but also to take her mind off of Azrael even just for a few moments. "May I ask what Tager's status is?"

"Lug's in pieces. I can fix him, and none of his vital shit's been damaged, but…" Kokonoe scowled at the thought of such damage to her main subordinate. "He'll be fine. It'll just take a couple days before he's operable again. Why?"

"Without him, Ragna and I would be dead right now, so I wish to thank him. I'm very glad to hear that he'll be fine."

"Ah, right. Yeah, guess he did do a good enough job of keeping you idiots alive." After closing her eyes and sucking in a deep breath, Kokonoe slammed her fast back against the elevator's wall. "God damn Azrael! If I had my way, that piece of shit would be killed on the spot for all the shit he's done. I swear, I don't even know why I work with these idiots sometimes…"

"That makes two of us. On both counts." Ragna braced himself as the elevator doors slid open. "Alright, Kokopuffs. After you."

"Don't call me that, asshole." Kokonoe led them along in apprehensive silence to a door with ice creeping out from beneath it. "Alright, hold on a second. Let me make sure the room's warm enough for you two to not freeze to death."

The door cracked open, a rush of frigid air washed over them. Tsubaki eeped and buried herself against Ragna, the nearest source of warmth. Shivering and grimacing, Ragna nonetheless slipped his arms out of his jacket. "Here, uh…"

He pulled the coat off entirely. "Hold out your arms, Tsu. I'll let you use my coat here."

"Huh? Oh, no, I couldn't." Tsubaki shook her head, even as her teeth chattered. "R-really, I'll be fine…" Still, her arms lifted a bit.

"It's no problem. And shit, pretty sure I'm more used to the cold than you." However, seeing as Tsubaki already had her arms up, Ragna saw no sense in arguing further. He pulled the jacket around her, and brought her into a light embrace from the side again. "There. Better?"

"Y-yes. Thank you very much." Tsubaki smiled up in his direction. Warmth bloomed within her, at utter odds with the chill that crept through the hallway. She leaned closer, snuggling deeper into the embrace.

"Hey. Lovebirds. Room's fine. Stop flirting and get your asses in here." Kokonoe gave an irritable wave and stepped back into the room. She almost slipped on the ice, but managed to find her balance before she could fall over. "…And watch your steps. Actually, Ragna, you'd better carry her here. Entire floor's frozen over."

"Right." Ragna scooped her up into his arms, smiling a little as her arms came around his neck. He took tentative steps across the icy ground, following behind Kokonoe. At the end of the chamber waited a figure; Ragna snarled at the familiar blue mane. "…That goddamn bastard…"

Kokonoe drew out a remote and pressed it. A metal bench broke the ice from below and rose, right in front of the bars that held Azrael. As she took a seat, she glared at the slumbering giant. "Hey. Azzy. Wake up so we can get this shit over with."

"Hrm…?" Azrael's eyes snapped open, and Ragna found himself gripping Tsubaki tighter, a protective instinct taking over. With a yawn, Azrael tried to stretch, but his icy prison kept him in place. "…Kokonoe. It's been a while."

"Not long enough, you goddamn psychopath." Kokonoe glared at him, fighting down the temptation to kill him on the spot. "I'll be honest. If it were up to me, you'd be dead right now. But the Sector bigwigs said you get to live, so I guess I gotta keep you alive."

"Is that so?" Azrael chuckled as his manic eyes settled on Ragna and Tsubaki. "And you're here. Heh. Good fight, you two. Would love to go again. Although you won't be walking away from it; I'll make sure to devour your flesh."

"Shut up!" Tsubaki snarled enough to bare her teeth. When she spoke, it was through gritted teeth as she did all she could to stem off her utter rage. "Don't talk to me, you monster."

"Whoa, whoa. What're you so mad about? You won, didn't you?"

Ragna growled at him. "At the cost of her fucking sight, you asshole. And hell, she probably would've died from it if Kokonoe wasn't around."

Azrael blinked. "…Huh? Something attack you afterwards or something? Only the loser of the fight should…"

"I overloaded the Izayoi to take you out." Tsubaki looked down, fists clenching in sheer rage. "Now leave me alone."

"…Feh. Get a new weapon then, geez. Tch. And here I was hoping for another go at you. Guess I'll have to settle for you, Bloodedge." Still, Azrael turned back to Kokonoe. "So. What do you need? You letting me go so I can kill you already?"

"Hell no, I'm not just gonna let you go. I want information." Kokonoe jabbed a lollipop in his direction. "What the hell did Sector Seven release you for?"

"To kill you."

"…Really." Kokonoe shook her head, scowling. "So those geezers think I'm in their way or something? Tch. If they think I'm just gonna roll over and let you go now, they're dead wrong."

With a shrug, Azrael leaned back in another failed attempt to stretch. "Well then. Hope you don't mind them dropping the hammer on you."

"Oh, don't worry. I won't let them." Kokonoe closed her eyes, thinking. "Alright. What kind of security measures did they put on you? I know that no matter how stupid they are, they wouldn't just leave you to your own devices without a safety net. Tell me… and maybe I'll consider releasing you."

"Sure you will. Under your control, of course. I know how you work, Kokonoe." Azrael snorted. He closed his eyes, thinking. As much as he wanted to spite this bitch, he couldn't give up this opportunity. Sure, maybe Sector Seven would raid the lab for him. Or maybe Kokonoe would just kill him outright if she was already so willing to go against Sector Seven. Better to try and get free now… and find a way to kill Kokonoe once he was. And in the meantime, he should be able to find some entertainment. "…They got a limiter on me. If any of my prey has no fighting spirit, my body locks up. Of course, I'm free to devour any prey that is willing to entertain me. Like those two. Even when they were running for their lives, they were at least ready to fight if they needed to."

"That's it? They think that's good enough to keep you from…? Gah, never mind." Kokonoe shook her head and pondered a moment. "…Well. I could probably reverse engineer that a little. And I'm sure as hell going to do it; if those idiots want you to be released, I'll do it on my terms."

"Heh. You never change, Kokonoe." Azrael smirked at her, a glint of tooth shining. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get on with it."

"I will after you're back in a deep freeze. Because like hell am I compromising my security measures too much." Kokonoe turned back to Ragna and Tsubaki, scowling. "You two. Get outta here. Don't want you to become human popsicles along with him."

"Hey, uh…" As Ragna scooped Tsubaki back into his arms and stood up, he cast a glare on Kokonoe. "What about Tsubaki's seeing eye Ars? You kinda promised to work on that, you know."

"And it's not ready yet. I'm still looking into whether or not it's possible. Besides…" Kokonoe jerked her lollipop back in Azrael's direction. "That dumbshit takes priority now. All my work on an Ars for Yayoi wouldn't mean shit if Sector Seven decided to raze this place or something. And I gotta fix Tager up as well. Ragna, you're helping me with that tomorrow."

With a growl, Ragna started her way. However, Tsubaki headed him off with a light nudge. "It's fine; I understand. Would I be permitted to stay in the lab while you work on these projects?"

Kokonoe cocked an eyebrow her way. "Don't you need to get back to the Library? They're going to wonder why you're AWOL, you know."

"Then I'll invent a cover story. "

After a few moments of consideration, Kokonoe sighed. "Three more days. If I don't get the Ars worked out by then, you'll have been here a week, and you'd better get your ass back to the NOL. I'll find a way to contact you about the Ars afterwards. That work?"

"You know…" Azrael scowled a little. "You have an excuse right in front of you."

Kokonoe wheeled around to glare at him. "You. Quiet. I don't think that punching the officer she meets when she returns is much of an excuse."

"Yeah. Wasn't suggesting it." Azrael smirked a little. "Tell them that I was set devour her flesh when she went blind. As I can't fight a blind girl, I dragged her back somewhere for her to recuperate. She was gone so long because that's how long it takes to recover from what I do to my prey."

As Ragna and Tsubaki both tensed up, Kokonoe blinked. "…What the goddamn hell are you up to, you psychopath? I know you don't give a shit about anything besides fighting."

"Hey now. Who says I need to be up to anything?" Azrael closed his eyes with a shrug; Kokonoe blanched at how much he had thawed. "Just giving you lot a practical suggestion."

Ragna snarled at him as he turned for the exit again. "Like hell we're listening to a piece of shit like you."

"…I dunno. It's a possibility." Kokonoe shook her head and followed Ragna. "Well, better get Azrael back into cryostasis before he escapes. You two, go rest a bit. It's late. …Well, I guess Ragna can do whatever, but Tsubaki, you're my patient. Sleep. Now. We'll talk more tomorrow; sorry for getting derailed by Azrael."

Tsubaki nodded. She had already received the news she was most interested in, even if it was not to her liking. "Alright. Thank you for everything, Kokonoe."

"No problem." Kokonoe jabbed her candy straight at Ragna. "And you're not sleeping in the same bed as her. She needs rest."

"The hell?" Ragna's face flushed red at the thought and he snarled. "Wasn't planning on it, goddammit. Was going to take the chair beside her to keep an eye on her. If that's fine, of course."

Tsubaki nodded and smiled in his direction. "I have no problems with it."

"Of course you don't, you want… never mind." Kokonoe shook her head as they left the frozen room. With a press of a button, the door slammed shut, and the temperature within dropped once more. "Well, whatever. Just don't do anything with her. Like I said, she needs to rest. Now piss off, I need to start on figuring out what to do with Azrael."

"Alright. This is a horrible fucking idea, but hey. You're completely insane, so it's fine." Before Kokonoe could respond, Ragna disappeared into the elevator with Tsubaki. He looked over the button panel while Tsubaki stifled down a giggle at his last jab. "Um… oh, right. Your room's on ground level here."

The elevator whirred into action, and Ragna leaned back against its wall. After heaving a sigh, he smiled down at the woman in his arms. "So… uh, have a good time there?"

"I assume you mean on our date." Tsubaki blushed a little. "Yes, I did. Thank you very much, Ragna. Did, um, you enjoy it as well?"

Ragna grinned. "Hell yeah. Stupid bunny-leech aside, of course. Uh…" Heat seared across his cheek as well. "…I know you've gotta go back to the Library and shit, but you think we could do that again some time? I, uh…"

"Of course; I'd love to." Tsubaki curled tighter against him with a wide smile. "I… do want to get to know you better here. Although, I suppose we'll have plenty of time if you're going to be staying around the lab with me."

Ragna couldn't help but smile a bit more at the thought. The door opened, and he stepped through, trying to remember where Tsubaki's room was. "Yeah, you're right. And I'm sure as hell sticking around here a bit. At least until you're cleared to go. And especially now that Azrael might be running loose again."

"Mm…"

"…You're not alright with her decision, are you? Because I sure as hell am not."

"Azrael does not remotely deserve freedom." A vengeful fire burned in Tsubaki's voice, and her grip around Ragna's neck tightened until her nails clawed into his skin. "He deserves to be brought to justice and slain for the threat he presents to society. If I ever get the chance, I will do it myself without hesitation."

"Uh, Tsubaki?" Ragna blinked down at her. He certainly admired her fire, but… "I really don't think you're really capable of fighting him like that…"

"I know. You don't need to remind me of my handicap; it frustrates me to no end every time I open my eyes." Tsubaki huffed, before closing her eyes and looking down. "…Ragna. Please. Promise me that if I am unable to bring Azrael to justice myself, you will do so in my stead."

Ragna stared down at her for several long moments before nodding. He had to, after all that had happened because of Azrael. "Yeah. You got it. That piece of shit's dead first chance I get."

Tsubaki closed her eyes, fighting down a yawn. "Alright. Thanks, Ragna. I hope you don't mind if I drift off right now…?"

Ragna shook his head. "Course not. Get some rest, Tsu."