What if...

Stein was walking home from work. The streets were filled with busy people. The buildings that were destroyed were rebuilt and the hole in the middle of one of the main streets had almost been fixed. Maybe just a week or so, then it would be as good as new. Things were slowly getting back to they way they used to be after the Kishin had attacked. There was peace again.

Stein let his mind wander to that fateful day…

Death the Kid, Black Star and Maka had successively gotten past Medusa and now Stein had taken her on. She immediately had the upper hand, but when she was distracted by the pleasure of successively reawaken the Kishin Stein saw an opening and was about to land the final attack. Images of the Shibusen nurse came forth in his mind and he unwillingly remembered his forbidden feelings. The scythe stopped barely an inch from her throat. Medusa seized the opportunity and held a vector arrow to his throat.

They both stood there. Unmoving and staring at each other.

"Why didn't you strike?" Stein asked.

"Why didn't you? You could have killed me with that blow." Medusa replied. "Is it perhaps because you've reconsider my suggestion? Do you want to join me now?"

"No." He said after a while.

"Ooh? Then why did you stop?" She smiled.

"Cos I want you to join me."

"What?!" Medusa and Spirit said in unison.

"Stein, what are you saying?"

"Shut up sempai."

"I won't fall for your trick Professor Stein." Medusa chuckled.

"I'm not trying to trick you."

"Stein! Snap out of it. We have to hurry…."

"Shut up." Stein said and threw the scythe away. It landed out of the circle of vector arrows Medusa had put there.

"Stein what are you doing?"

"Shut up!" This time it was Medusa who scolded him.

"How about it? Join me. Join Shibusen." Stein held out his hands as if to prove he was unarmed.

"Shibusen won't allow me to come back. There is no way they'll forgive me" Medusa kept her eyes on Stein's hands.

"Damn right they won't!" Spirit yelled and was about to say something else, but kept his mouth shut when both Medusa and Stein glared at him.

"They allow me there."

"You're not a criminal or a witch."

"I'll make sure they accept you." Stein said. The vector arrow on his throat twitched a little bit. Suddenly there was wavelength of a horrible soul. It made them loose their balance and they fell to the ground It was terrifying. Maddening.

"The Kishin…?"

"Was revived? Stein finished her sentences. He held out his hand for her as the last offer he made for her. And she took it. Neither of them could help, but to smile. Then they took off.

"We have to head to the city above. That is the only way he can escape." Medusa said.

"Right. Sempai!" Stein commanded.

"I hope you know what you are doing." Spirit said and transformed.

"I do." Stein assured him. "On three we break through here."

"One." Medusa started.

"Two."

"Three!!!"

They broke through and landed on the street above. Just in time to see Shinigami-sama land a punch on the Kishin.

"Quick. Throw the scythe to him."

"Shinigami-sama!" He yelled and threw the scythe and Shinigami caught it.

"Thanks there Stein-kun." He yelled back.

"Come. We have to help him." Stein said and started to run.

"What? Are you insane? That's the Kishin you're talking about. We don't stand a chance and besides Shinigami is taking care of him." Medusa grabbed his arm.

"I don't intend to fight him. We just have to stop him from leaving the area. And your vector plate is perfect for the job"

It was an intense fight. There was a lot of damage on the city, but the Shibusen students and teachers had evacuated everyone. Stein's plan of using Medusa's vector plate to keep the Kishin in the area proved to be of great help. The Kishin hadn't fully awakened its power yet, so Shinigami had the upper hand. Still it wasn't without risk. Medusa came to close to the Kishin a few times and if it hadn't been for Stein she had turned into ashes. Stein was also about to be hit a few times and thanks to Medusa's vector plate he was saved. Medusa also got the chance to prove that she had changed sides and saved Shinigami with a vector plate as well.

But eventually Shinigami won. And this time he made sure that the Kishin couldn't be revived.

"We did it." Stein said after a moment of silence. "Good job Medusa." He laughed.

"Yeah." She said. Suddenly she fell, Stein managed in the last second to catch her so she wouldn't fall of the building.

"Medusa! What's wrong??" He asked shocked.

"It's nothing to worry about. He barely hit me. I'm just exhausted from all the fighting." She panted. There was a wound about the length of a middle finger on her stomach. It was a clean cut, but it still bled quite a lot.

"Alright. I'll take you to the hospital." He said and lifted her up. Then he started to laugh.

"What is it?" Medusa asked curiously.

"It's just cos you are already a nurse."

"I was. I still don't get your point."

"It's just this whole situation. You were a nurse and I'm taking you to a hospital. You were also an enemy, but now you are a heroine."

"I'm not a heroine."

"Yes you are. You saved everyone."

"No I didn't. I only helped."

"Shinigami-sama could have been killed if you hadn't moved him out of the attack. So have a part of the glory as savoir of the world." Stein smiled at her when she blushed.

Now almost a year later the city was rebuilt and everything was back to normal. But there was one thing for sure that had changed. At least for Stein. He now had someone to come home to. Medusa had been forgiven her sins and was allowed to live in Death City. But she was under observation, since there were some who still didn't trust the witch. She now lived with Stein in a newly rebuilt house. His house hadn't been destroyed or anything. It was Medusa who had refused to live in his creepy house. So with help from her vector arrows and plates she had the house rebuilt in no time. It was only Stein's office and lab that were allowed to stay the way they used to be. The mother-child relationship between Medusa and Chrona had improved extremely. Mostly because Chrona was so gullible and forgiven her, but Medusa had apologized and it was clear she meant it. Chrona stayed at Shibusen because Medusa and Stein still had a tendency to get in to violent fights since neither of them knew anything of love. So instead of saying how they felt they got in to fights. It left a huge mess, but they never actually hurt each other. They just fought.

"Good evening Professor Stein." Lucy the flower shop owner greeted.

"Evening Miss Lucy."

"How are things going?" She asked. Lucy was one of those persons who loved to gossip, but in a nice way.

"They're fine thanks. And how are you?" Not that he cared so much, he was just being polite.

"I'm fine as well. Miss Medusa came downtown this morning." She said and closely watched Stein to see how he reacted.

"Did you now?" He said absently. It was a little odd. Medusa preferred to stay inside since she still got some evil looks from the townspeople. But she did go out sometimes.

"Stein?" A female voice brought him back to the present.

"Oh Miss Marie. Hello." He greeted.

"Are you headed home now?" She asked. She had a huge bouquet in her arms.

"Yep." Stein said.

"OK good. Here take this." She said and gave him the bouquet.

"What do I do with it?"

"You give it to Medusa of course." She smiled.

"Huh?"

"Look here is how it's supposed to go." Marie said. "You give her the flowers and she becomes really happy and gives you a kiss. Then she has cooked dinner for you and you giver her a kiss for it. And then you probably know the rest." She giggled. But he didn't know it and didn't ask.

"A kiss eh?"

"Don't tell me you've never kissed her?" Marie exclaimed.

"No I haven't."

"Well what are you sitting here for?!" She said and pushed him forward until they reached his house.

"Good luck:" She said and gave him thumbs up. He just stared at her for a while and then went inside. He tried to imagine the scenery, but it just looked too wrong in his mind. It was the kind of things that happened in movies, not in the house of a mad scientist and a witch. But wasn't it love he felt for her? He wasn't sure, since he'd never known it. But this was a feeling he didn't know, so it could be love. Maybe I should read a book about it, he thought.

"I'm home." He muttered when he came inside. No one answered. But he heard the water running upstairs. There was the nice smell of dinner in the kitchen and he followed it. It was some kind of stew and rice on a plate for him. There was a paper bag on the table, he knew it was Medusa's, but curiosity made him look in it. Books. Several books. He smiled. They were love stories. She had had the same idea as he did.

"Fuck!" There were muffled noises upstairs. "Vector plate!" And suddenly Medusa was in the kitchen only wearing a towel. "Stein?! What the hell are you doing here?"

"In case you had forgotten. I live here." He said. "Did you go shopping today?" He asked and pointed at the books in the bag. Medusa was lobster red in the face.

"You bas…"

"Here. For you." Stein said and gave her the flowers.

"What the…?"

"I went shopping as well." He lied. Her lobster red color became a more natural pink.

"T-thanks."

"You're welcome." They stood for a moment in awkward silence. Then Stein leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek. Her hand flew up and stroked the place he kissed.

"Why did you do that?" She asked.

"Miss Marie said that people in love kiss each other." Stein said and sounded like a little child convincing one of its other friends. "And she knows more of love then either of us."

"Does she now?" Medusa smiled her wicked smile and leaned forward, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply. Stein froze in astonishment, but then he relaxed and kissed back.

"Don't you seem awfully eager?" Medusa teased. He just scoffed and kissed her again. He stopped after a moment, not sure how to proceed. Medusa chuckled and led him upstairs.