Author's Notes: And once again I manage to take another rampaging plot bunny out of my head and put it on here. Nothing fancy, this KxA is just something I wanted to write beofre school starts in three days. (sighs dejectedly)

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Autumn. It was always such a beautiful month. The leaves that were left on the large, sturdy trees that sprinkled the hilltop were painted in bright reds and soft yellows, and the evening sun cast everything in a warm, glowing light.

“Beautiful view. As usual.”

“Yes. There are very little monsters present in the area. I don’t think we’ll be disturbed.”

Anna stretched and plopped down on the grass. “Too bad Racist Central’s just right under the hill.”

“Don’t think about such things. The people of Ozette aren’t important, right now.” Kratos laid down next to her, resting his head on her thigh. “Think about more pleasant subjects. Like the sunset, or the fact that you don’t have to dress up as a man to hide from Desians when we are in Tethe’alla.”

She bent her head over his, an eyebrow raised slightly. “I don’t really mind going around as a guy, and does my leg look like a pillow to you?”

“No. Do I bother you?” He asked.

“Ah, forget about it. Do what you want.” She leaned back on her hand, the other already running through Kratos’s brown hair. She smiled down at him, but he had his eyes closed. The two had taken a break from the dying world and all of it’s troubles once again. She hadn’t seen him this relaxed and uncaring in weeks. It was difficult to remember all of the suffering going on in Sylvarant in a place such as the one they were in now.

“Something on your mind?” Now Kratos had his eyes open, and was studying the expression on her face.

She blinked, somewhat startled. How long had she been staring at him? “Sorry. Just thinking.”

“About what, if you don’t mind talking about it.”

“Uhhh,” she hesitated. “I was just wondering how today can be so peaceful, even with all of the other things going on.”

“Hmm. I see.” He turned away from her, like a restless sleeper. “Anna?”

“What’s up?” It would figure that his relaxed demeanor wouldn’t last. She could feel his calm replaced by something tense and troubled.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you this for some time now.” He paused. “Do you blame me?”

“Blame you? You mean for the Human Ranches and everything?” she looked around her. In her minds eye, she had a vision of several of those detestable buildings spread out in the distance. She thought over the question carefully, and then finally said: “First tell me why you didn’t stop Yggdrasill before it got out of your control.”

“I tried,” his voice was low. “Many times. Both Yuan and I tried talking him out of his plans. It was too much, we said. We attempted to convince him that his ideas were insane, but he never listened.”

“Did you two consider other...methods of persuasion?”

“I...he was my student for many years, Anna. I saw him as a younger brother.” He looked back up at her. “The thought of picking up my sword against him made me sick to my stomach. Yuan, however, was not so forgiving. They battled, and Yuan barely escaped with his life. I believe Mithos’s strength and skill surpasses my own, now.”

“He’s better than you?” Despite the seriousness of the matter, she couldn’t help but whistle low. “Damn, we really are screwed, then, aren’t we?”

“Please answer my question.”

“Okay, okay.” She frowned down at him. “Well, I suppose the Ranches’ existence is somewhat your fault,” she trailed off.

“But?” He prompted.

“But I, for one, am okay with that.”

“Are you?” He sighed. “I’m responsible for much of what has happened to the worlds, and also...” he reached up and lightly touched the Exsphere above the neckline of Anna’s shirt. It flared weakly under his fingertips. “Do you honestly think you can forgive something like that?”

“Wait a second, you’re only indirectly responsible for the Angelus Project, and I mean very indirectly.” Annoyed, she removed his hand from the jewel embedded in her skin and squeezed it a little. “Besides, you helped me escape from Kvar, so of course I can forgive you.”

Kratos smiled up at her. “Thank you, Anna.”

She waved away his gratitude. “No need for that. Despite the fact that defeating Mithos feels like a futile effort, you’re having a go at it anyway. As long as you can acknowledge and try to correct your mistakes, then the thoughts of other people really shouldn’t matter to you.” She grinned and bent her head down close to his. “And that’s my word of wisdom for today, hope it helped.”

Kratos leaned up so that his lips pressed against hers. After one slow, blissful moment, he pulled away from her and rested his head against her thigh once more. "Yes, your words have helped me greatly. "

A little embarrassed, she looked away from him, but the corners of her mouth twtiched upwards once more. "That's good to know, Kratos. Glad to be of service."