Little idea I've been holding on to for a whlie.

I don't own BlazBlue, and Magdalene belongs to Murder Media.

He had faced the Black Beast alone, he had survived in the Boundary for nearly one hundred years, he has stood on equal ground with monsters and godly beings alike and yet…his current task gave him pause.

"Uncle Hakumen! Uncle Hakumen!"

Passing through the door into the foyer where Hakumen stood, Magdalene came running at him as fast as her little legs could carry her—a stack of papers clutched tightly in her tiny fists.

"Do not run." Hakumen ordered bluntly. He could not possibly allow the child to injure herself on his watch.

"Oh! Sorry, Momma tells me not to run in the castle too." Magdalene did as she was told and slowed down to a trot. At least the child was well behaved. Once she reached Hakumen, she beamed and held up the papers in hands. "Look! I found the pictures I drew."

"I see…" Hakumen replied, though barely turned his body to address her.

"Here, take them!" Magdalene insisted.

Hesitantly taking the pages from the child, Hakumen held them away from his body slightly as he leafed through them so that his 'eyes' could still see them properly.

"Yes, very nice."

"No, you have to look at them, Uncle!" Magdalene pouted, believing Hakumen was only humoring her.

"I am." He assured.

"No, you're not. You're wearing a mask."

"I can see them just fine, child." Hakumen sighed.

"Oh yeah?" Magdalene put her hands on her hips, "Prove it."

Hakumen glanced down at the child. She had apparently inherited her father's stubbornness—some of his rude demeanor as well. Or would this be more akin to her mother's behavior? Probably a combination of the both of them. He would have to hope that maybe Valkenhayn would rub off on her in some way before it was too late.

"Very well…" Hakumen took the first picture and held it out for Magdalene to see. "This appears to the Grimalkin."

"The…what…?"

Ah, it looked as though her parents did not teach her that word. It was for the better, he would have to admit. That word seemed to be frowned upon in modern day anyhow.

"It is Jubei. Pardon me." Hakumen corrected himself.

"Yup, that's my Grandpa!" Magdalene took the picture and smiled at it, pleased with her handiwork. "Wait…how could you tell?"

"I told you, I can see just fine. Now take your drawings—"

"Do it again!"

"…Excuse me?" Hakumen questioned.

"Do it again! If you can't that only means it was an accident." Magdalene spoke with certainty.

Hakumen suppressed a grumble as he observed her next drawing. Based on the colors and general shape, it was easy for Hakumen to tell who the drawing was intended to be of. Still, though he wasn't about to say as much to the child, the smiles in this particular drawing seemed a little out of place to him.

Regardless, Hakumen held out the next picture, "It is your parents."

"That's right!" Magdalene took the picture and held it back up to Hakumen. "I worked really hard on this one. It was kinda hard because my Papa's coat has so many funny belts on it."

"Indeed." The White Knight replied as he handed Magdalene her remaining drawings.

"Wow, Uncle Hakumen, you really could see the pictures even though your eyes are covered up. Is that your magic?" Magdalene's eyes sparkled with curiosity. Such a specific question, Hakumen thought. Her mother must have been showing her some things lately. It also made him mildly curious if she would be learning any of her own, but that question was for another time.

"…In a sense." Hakumen decided it was best to be as vague as possible.

"Cool!" The child exclaimed as she did her best to stack her papers neatly. "Did you like the rest of the pictures?"

If Hakumen was being honest, he couldn't quite tell what some of them were. The only ones he could truly decipher were the ones featuring individuals he was acquainted with. Pictures featuring individuals such as her parents or Jubei and Valkenhayn stood out to him, but the majority looked like colorful blurs for the most part. Something in the back of his head told Hakumen that he should keep that information to himself though.

"Yes. You did quite well."

"Thank you very much!" Magdalene started looking over her pictures once again. "My Momma told me I should draw things I care about, so I picked family. But, um…"

Hakumen glanced down at the child when he heard her voice trail off. She was fidgeting in place and avoiding eye contact by hiding behind the papers in her hands. She was acting awfully timid despite being so excitable a second ago, the hero noted. Her behavior was odd to him, but it was probably just how children were. He admittedly did not know how to deal with such a situation though. His only guesses were that she was either hungry or was in need of the restroom.

"What is it?" He questioned.

"Um, I really, really wanted to draw you too, but I couldn't remember what your clothes looked like. I'm sorry…" Magdalene lowered her head, embarrassed before turning her big eyes back toward Hakumen. "Do you think I could maybe…draw you now?"

"If that is what you want." Hakumen shrugged.

"Really!?" Magdalene shrieked in response.

"Yes." Hakumen didn't see any harm in it. If anything it would keep her occupied until he parents returned.

"Yay! Thank you, Uncle Hakumen!" Magdalene hopped forward and hugged Hakumen's leg, effectively startling the seasoned warrior, before making for the door in a rush. "Stay right there! I'll go fetch my crayons."

"Do not run."

"Oh! Sorry!" The halfling stopped in place and gave Hakumen a smile before leaving the room at a more reasonable pace.

Alone again for the time being, Hakumen sighed and decided he might as well take a seat for his portrait. He really didn't know how this came to be. One moment he is traveling on his own like any other day, the next he is being summoned by the vampire. He assumed she knew better than to waste his precious time, so he thought there was urgent business concerning Terumi or possibly Nine. Yet before he could even ask what he was doing in the familiar castle, the Dark One was already thanking him for helping in regards to a matter he never even agreed to.

Apparently the vampire and the Dark One were looking to have some personal time and needed a sitter for their offspring. Valkenhayn was assigned some task, and Hakumen believed Jubei must've been held up in one way or another, because he was the best they could get as it turned out. He couldn't fathom any other reason they would force such a task upon him. It wasn't as though Hakumen detested the child—no, not by any means. Even so, it was clear to anyone who met him that he was not well suited when it came to caring for anyone's young. He voiced these concerns to the parents as well, but despite all common sense, both the vampire and shockingly enough the Dark One thought he would do just fine. The surprises kept coming when the child seemed thrilled by the prospect of Hakumen acting as her sitter as well. Though he could had not the faintest idea why. He had only seen her a few times prior, and wasn't sure she was old enough to remember. Yet, when the vampire walked him to the foyer and announced the arrangement to the little girl, she could not seem more pleased.

And now there he sat, legendary warrior and hero to many, waiting to have his portrait drawn by a child.

He was a tad out of his element.

"I have them!"

Hakumen was pulled from his thoughts when Magdalene reappeared with a relatively large case of art supplies. Never too soon to pick up a hobby, the old warrior thought to himself.

"Slowly…" Magdalene told herself as she made her way across the room. Making herself comfortable at the coffee table across from Hakumen, Magdalene laid out a fresh piece of paper and began digging through her crayons. "Ready?"

"So long as you have no objection to me sitting."

"Nope! Just stay still and I'll work my magic heh, heh!" The Alucard heiress declared while brandishing a crayon.

"Carry on then." Hakumen nodded.

"Okay!" Clearly excited, Magdalene began work on her drawing. She seemed a little different almost instantly to Hakumen. It was probably the first time he saw her get so focused on anything. The little half-vampire kept her eyes glued to the paper with her tongue sticking out to the side in concentration—the only time she looked away was when she was grabbing another crayon or taking a look at Hakumen for reference. She was also clearly making a point to take her time. It was actually a bit interesting to watch her work, but for an entirely different reason.

All those years ago when he donned the Susano'o Unit, Hakumen never imagined he would be doing something so…normal ever again. The Susano'o Unit was only meant for one thing, and that meant he himself would only be meant for one thing as well. He was nothing more than a warrior, a sword, and he made his peace with that. He wasn't supposed to have any ties left to who he used to be. If he was being honest with himself, truly honest, he knew that wasn't the case. It was faint, but Hakumen knew he still had some care for his family that he would never be rid of completely. It was tiresome, but part of him was glad it was still there. It was only because of that lingering feeling that he could find any enjoyment out of this quiet time with his niece.

"I like your hair."

"Pardon?" Hakumen was again shaken from his thoughts when the girl spoke up.

"Your hair, I like it." Magdalene looked up from her paper and smiled. "It's long and pretty like my Momma's, but at the top it's spikey like my Papa's."

"Hm…" Hakumen hummed as he observed Magdalene color. His niece seemed intent on wearing down one of her crayons to capture the look of his pony tail.

His niece…

He was hardly able to believe he could actually say that. Attempting to distance himself from his former ties aside, he wasn't expecting either of his siblings to procreate with someone. Though the Dark One was more likely between the two options for obvious reasons, it was still a bit surprising that he did at all. At the same time, the vampire's feelings were clearly evident even to someone as closed off emotionally as him. Considering the Dark One's poor disposition he couldn't imagine anyone else being able to handle him either. All things considered, they probably matched well together…

Though Hakumen had to stop and remind himself such things were irrelevant to him anyway. The personal life of those two was not something he was the slightest bit interested in.

"Almost there!" Magdalene abruptly announced. "All I have left is your face, so please take off your mask, Uncle."

"…What?" Hakumen wasn't sure he heard her correctly.

"I need to draw your face, so take off your mask, please."

"No." Hakumen said.

"Huh? How come?"

"What you see is who I am, child. I am no more, nor am I any less. For all intents and purposes, this is my face."

"That isn't true. You do too have a face, my Momma said so." The little girl pouted.

"Blasted vampire…" Hakumen muttered to himself. Ever since the child was born, the vampire had used her as an extra excuse to harass the White Knight over various things. He wasn't entirely sure as to why, but that woman hardly needed proper cause to annoy him. "It is still irrelevant, child. You will either draw me as you see me, or not at all. Those are your only options."

"B-But…but…!" Magdalene stuttered out.

"That is final. I will not tell you again." Hakumen spoke with enough force that Magdalene flinched back a bit.

"O-Oh…okay…" Maggie slowly turned back to her drawing. "Sorry, Uncle… I didn't mean to bother you…"

Well this was an odd, new feeling.

He didn't know what it was—he has never budged with anyone else before in his life, but when he saw the little girl shrink back dejected, he couldn't help but be bothered. That feeling only got worse when he heard little sniffs coming from the child and saw her rub her eyes with the back of her free hand.

He upset her, clearly.

Hakumen could admit he might have been a bit too stern with her just now, but it wasn't like he could do anything else. He didn't know for sure if Magdalene had ever met Jin Kisaragi, but he couldn't even begin to explain what his situation was to a mere child if she recognized the face. Not to mention what would happen if she ever went to her father with this information. The sensible part of Hakumen reaffirmed that he had to keep his former identity as secret as possible…

"Magdalene."

"Y-Yes…?" The halfling spoke quietly.

"I need you to understand…" Hakumen began, "…That you must keep this a secret. I…wear a mask for a reason, after all."

"Huh…?"

Magdalene straightened up and regarded Hakumen as he hesitantly reached up to his mask.

He couldn't believe he was doing this.

A single, audible click reverberated through the room as Hakumen removed his mask and carefully placed it on his lap. He needed to blink a few times before his eyes could focus—it had been some time since he last took off his mask. Once his vision cleared up, he glanced down at his niece to look at her with his own eyes. Magdalene met his gaze with a curious expression and tilted her head a bit to the side. He sincerely hoped that she never met Jin Kisaragi, or if she did, he hoped that she would not make the connection.

"You look tired." Magdalene said matter of factly.

Well there goes that worry.

"Hm." Hakumen hummed.

"Did you get enough sleep last night, Uncle?" Magdalene continued, totally over her sadness from a moment ago. "I know it's not always the most fun, but sleeps important. Momma and Papa told me so!"

"I've been resting fine, child." Hakumen replied simply. It's not like he could explain to her that he was literally unable to tire.

"Mmmm, if you say so. Hold on just one more second, please." Magdalene ordered as she looked back down to her drawing.

"Be swift about it." Hakumen said more so to himself than the child—he didn't want to upset her again, but there was no telling when her mother and father would return. The thought of the Dark One seeing who he once was made him itch if for no other reason than he didn't know how things would go after the truth was out. It would be an annoyance, Hakumen was sure of that much. Even so, it was somewhat pleasant to see things with his own eyes again, Hakumen thought. It was always a bit much to take in seeing as the eyes of the Susano'o observed so many things at once whether he liked it or not. It was almost relaxing to just scan the room he was in. Though as he took in his surroundings, Hakumen decided that the vampire was a hoarder. There was simply too much junk littering every inch of the foyer. At least it was kept spotless, Hakumen noted, but that was surely thanks to Valkenhayn. As he continued to look around, his eyes landed on a mirror. It had been many, many a year since he last saw his former face…

He did look tired.

The sudden feeling of pressure on his knee shook Hakumen from his thoughts and when he turned back he could see Magdalene leaning against his right knee, starring at his mask.

"Can I try on your mask?" The little dhampir asked.

"I thought you were drawing." Hakumen looked at the table, but only saw a blank sheet of paper where Maggie was sitting. She must have flipped the page over.

"I'm done. Can I wear your mask? Oh! Sorry, may I wear your mask? My Momma says that's what it is proper to say when you're asking for something."

"…I suppose if you must."

"Yay! Thank you, Uncle!" Magdalene cheered before, once again, catching Hakumen off guard by climbing up his leg and situating herself in his lap.

"H-Hold on…!" Hakumen stuttered.

Did he really just stutter?

"What's wrong, Uncle?" Magdalene asked.

Hakumen was about to order the child to get down, but when she looked up at him with pure innocence in her eyes, he felt his voice catch in his throat. For all of his bluster, he really didn't want to upset her again.

"…Nothing. Carry on."

"Okay!" Magdalene turned her attention back to the mask. She repeatedly turned the object over in her hands, scanning it with a curious expression as though she were looking for something. Finally, she placed the mask over her face and gasped. "I can't see! How do you see, Uncle?"

"Well… It is as you said—magic."

"Neat!" Magdalene's cheer was muffled slightly by the mask.

"Mm." Hakumen couldn't help but notice how much bigger the mask was on her compared to him as she continued to shift the mask around her face. It was perfectly expected, he thought, considering she was only a child after all.

"Oh!" Magdalene suddenly exclaimed and tilted the mask up to wear it like a hat. "I need to go to the bathroom."

"Ah, do you…need assistance?"

"No, sir. May I be excused?"

"Of course," Hakumen nodded.

"Thanks, Uncle!" Magdalene turned in Hakumen's lap, and after securing the mask on her head, she hopped down and trotted forward. Before going too far, she stopped and quickly grabbed her drawing. "No peeking! I want to see you see it first."

Clutching the picture to her chest, Magdalene hustled out of the room at a safe pace. Now that there was nothing but silence accompanying him once more, Hakumen relaxed into the chair. There wasn't much else he could think to do now that the child had finished her drawing. She had found one way to entertain herself already, so Hakumen hoped she would be able to do it again. It wasn't like he had any idea what kids liked to do.

Luckily, the problem was about to solve itself.

In an instant, Hakumen sensed the presence of the Dark One within the castle walls, which meant he and the vampire had returned. The White Knight rose to his feet without hesitation. As surprisingly pleasant as it was to spend time with his niece, Hakumen had things that still needed to be taken care of. He made his way to the foyer's exit as he rubbed his weary eyes…

Wait.

Hakumen patted his face once, twice, three times…

The child had his mask.

And he didn't know where the bathroom was.

"Magdalene!" He could not waste any time. He had to find the girl before her father happened upon him. Now rushing out of the foyer at a brisk pace, he peered in every room he crossed, hoping the bathroom was close. He could luckily feel the Dark One's presence with ease, so he could at least keep a safe distance while searching. Hakumen tried to reassure himself as much, but he suddenly felt that strong, and slightly dreadful presence steadily heading in his direction.

He was going to feel like such a fool if he had to hide behind corners until he found his mask.

"Magdalene! Where are you?!"

"Uncle?" The Alucard heiress called out, and it was close. Hakumen sprinted toward the sound of her voice.

"Magdalene, move toward me now!" Hakumen cringed at his own tone. "Please!"

"We're on our way!" The child giggled.

We?

Rounding one last corner, Hakumen's worry that the Dark One would spot him first died down, but his annoyance immediately shot up instead.

"Well, well, well—what have we here?" There stood the vampire herself with Magdalene cradled in one arm, while she used her free hand to hold the mask over her face.

"Vampire…" The hero growled.

"Oh my," Rachel beamed as she moved the mask aside to grin at Hakumen. "Now there is a face I have not seen in more than a few years."

"Return my mask this instant." Hakumen demanded.

"Magdalene, did you Uncle give you this?" Rachel asked her daughter, openly ignoring Hakumen in the process.

"Yes! I asked really nicely, just like you said, and he said it was okay." Magdalene confirmed.

"I see. Consider yourself honored, Magdalene, for your Uncle has not removed this mask of his in many years for any reason."

"Really!?" Magdalene gasped, and turned to smile at Hakumen.

"That is…" As Hakumen began to reply, he felt the Dark One's presence. "Vampire, return my mask!"

Before Rachel could respond, most likely with a taunt, Hakumen rushed forward and snatched the mask out of her hand. It took him merely a split second to affix his mask back where it belonged, and not a second too late because none other than Ragna turned the corner just as Hakumen straightened back up.

"Here you guys are." Ragna said.

"Papa!" Magdalene whipped around and immediately reached out for her father once she heard him.

"Hey, kiddo!" Ragna smiled back and lifted Maggie from Rachel's arms to hold her above his head, prompting a fit of giggles from the little girl. "You have fun today?"

"Yes! Uncle and I had a lot of fun!" Magdalene happily announced as Ragna lowered her down to cradle her with one arm.

"…Yeah? You really did?" Ragna questioned, clearly not sounding too sure.

"If you did not think I was capable of caring for your child, you should not have requested my assistance, Dark One." Hakumen spoke up.

"Yes, Ragna, you should give Uncle Hakumen more credit than that." Rachel interjected. "He wouldn't have given his mask over to Magdalene if they weren't having a merry time, after all."

"Whoa, for real!?" Ragna looked between Rachel and Magdalene as Hakumen hung back and simmered. If it weren't for the little girl being around he might have actually picked a fight with the vampire for that one.

"Mmhmm! Uncle let me wear it too!" Magdalene smiled proudly.

"No kidding… Hey, Maggie, what does he look like?" Ragna leaned in and whispered, as if Hakumen was going to miss that. However, before Hakumen could interject, Magdalene shook her head.

"Sorry, Papa, I can't tell you."

"Huh? How come?" Ragna questioned.

Magdalene looked over at Hakumen and smiled, "Because it's a secret!"

"What? Even from me?"

"Yup! Uncle wears a mask for a reason, Papa!" Magdalene declared.

Seeing such a wholesome scene play out before him couldn't help but make Hakumen chuckle slightly, which drew the attention of the Alucard family seeing as it was such a rare sound to hear. He strode forward and placed his hand on Magdalene's head, "Well said child… Vampire, if you needed nothing else of me then I would like to be sent back where I was as promised."

"Yes, yes, of course. Come along, Mr. Hero." Rachel replied as she waved Hakumen along.

"Uncle, wait!" Magdalene called out, stopping the knight in his tracks.

"What is it?" Hakumen asked.

"Here, you can't forget this!" Magdalene held out a piece of paper face down—the picture she drew of him, no doubt.

"The picture? I thought you preferred to keep these?" Hakumen asked as he tentatively took the picture.

"I want you to have this one, Uncle. Besides…" Magdalene motioned for Hakumen to lean in, to which he complied. Once he was close enough, she whispered, "It's safer with you too. That way Papa can't see it."

"Hey!" Ragna chimed in.

"Hm, thank you, Magdalene." Hakumen said as he patted his niece on the head one last time. She smiled at the contact, but had a hopeful look in her eye when she looked back up at her uncle.

"Come visit again soon, okay?"

"…Yes, I think I will." Hakumen nodded.

"Promise?" Magdalene asked, holding out a pinkie.

"Hm? Oh…" It took Hakumen a second, but he did recall what the gesture was from some time ago. Still, he hesitated a second. It seemed like he was doing something absurd every second he was around the little girl. Even so, if today proved anything it was that he was powerless against those eyes. Hakumen reached out with his own pinkie and wrapped it around Magdalene's. "Very well… I promise I will see you again soon."

"Yay! I can't wait!" Magdalene cheered as she released Hakumen's pinkie—prompting him to face the vampire once more.

"Hey, uh, Hakumen?" Ragna hesitantly called out.

"What is it?"

"Well, um, it's just that... You know, thanks and all that. I appreciate it." Ragna scratched his head with his free hand, clearly a little flustered. Hakumen really couldn't blame him for the awkwardness, he realized. Never once, in any of the time loops or shifts or what have you, did he picture himself having such a normal talk with one he considered an enemy. Just went to show how much they both cared for Magdalene, he supposed.

"Think nothing of it. Vampire, if you would." Hakumen said.

"Right…" Ragna nodded before holding Maggie up a bit. "Say goodbye to your uncle, Maggie."

"Bye Uncle Hakumen!" Magdalene yelled with a big, waving hand to top it all off.

"Hmm." Hakumen returned the gesture with his own, more reserved wave just as Rachel's magic moved him back to the forest he was in that morning.

Finally back on task, Hakumen went to move forward when he remembered the paper lightly clutched in his hand. He really should've left it with Magdalene, he told himself. He had no real means to properly store the picture anywhere on his person. He would just have to have the vampire hold on to it for him as not to discourage the artist herself. Well, he had been holding on to it for a while now, might as well take a look.

Holding the paper out so that his 'eyes' may see it, Hakumen flinched when he observed the drawing his niece worked so hard on.

There he was with his long pony tail in all of its glory, with his tired eyes on full display and a rather uncharacteristic smile on his face. The positive interpretation of himself was one thing, but what made Hakumen flinch was the fact Magdalene had decided to include herself in the drawing—holding his hand with a big smile of her own.

"Hmph, I see she took some artistic liberties…" Hakumen spoke aloud. Taking a second to carefully roll up the picture, Hakumen tucked it away in a space in his armor at the waist before continuing on his way.

If he were asked, Hakumen still truly did not know why Magdalene was so attached to him. He wasn't at all confident in his ability to care for a child, but he would be a bold-faced lie if he said he didn't want to see his niece again. However, he did sincerely hope she would not ask him to remove his mask anymore. He was much more comfortable keeping it on these days.

Because if nothing else it meant he wouldn't have to explain to anyone why he was smiling so much.

There ya go. Review if you like. Could be a small sequel if people want.