It seemed like it just couldn't be helped. I could try as hard as I wanted, resist with everything I had, and do everything in my power to convince myself otherwise - it wouldn't do me any good. And with that in mind, I had to admit that as much as rationality and logic told me to keep trying, my heart thought nothing of it. It didn't care that their wouldn't be a happy ending. All it appeared to care about was the here and now.

So much to my displeasure, I let my amber eyes wander in her direction. They rested upon her cheery face and I couldn't help but soften up and smile a bit. Her vibrant and joyful eyes lit up, making them sparkle and shimmer in the evening sunlight. Her lips, so pink and soft, curled up into a warm smile before cracking into a full grin. Her blonde locks waved with the gentle breeze, finally free from the restraints of her habit (A/N: her hat) and they shone brilliantly with the trickling streams of light. Her nose crinkled up as she laughed while twirling Azmaria round and round.

And although those were the most captivating of her features, I also took notice of her dress as it swayed along with the rest of her body. She had discarded her white stockings and boots, leaving nothing but her long, well-defined legs to stretch out and her feet and toes to play in the grass beneath them. The dirt from the Earth below would stick to her heels, but she hadn't a care in the world for such a petty matter like that. Her arms were outstretched, gloves also removed, and I could easily see her tiny hands, so small and fragile looking, but also strong and trained. Those hands that were gentle and tender were also perfectly equipped to shoot any type of gun and hit almost any desired target. The way her body contrasted with what it was actually capable of was yet another beautiful thing about her.

I watched her fingers grip tighter to Azmaria as they spun faster and faster in a rather inelegant dance. It wasn't to say that they lacked any sort of grace, but more to get across that they looked rather childish and carefree - which was precisely the point. Her roaring laughter echoed louder and louder and it almost completely overpowered Azmaria's petite and ladylike giggle. She began snorting and hiccupping like a piglet, but I found it strangely adorable. She didn't care who heard her, what they thought, or what they said about her - she was just Rosette.

When the twirling and spinning began to get out of control, and the laughter became too much to handle, both girls decided to let go. Azmaria stumbled backwards and landed a bit harshly on her bum. Although it was sore and she was trying to rub it for comfort, she was still in a miniature fit of laughter. Rosette, on the other hand, went flying back into the nearby stream and made a rather loud splash. When the water finally settled and pooled around her, she was soaked head to toe. Both of our eyes were on her and her unreadable expression and we began to worry. Maybe she had been hurt or perhaps she was angry now...

But then her near-obnoxious laughter erupted again, ten times more violent than before, and even I couldn't suppress a chuckle of my own. Sometimes she was just too much for me to handle. So I gathered myself from my place on the ground and decided to take a few steps in the chilly water to help her up. Unfortunately, my kindness always seemed to have consequences, for when I reached out my hand and she took it, that was the end of me.

Before I could do anything about it, I had been yanked from my upright position and plunged into the shallow body of water. Being entirely submerged, my entire body quivered from the cold. I tried to frantically push my arms around and rise to the surface, but a rather heavy force prevented me from doing so. It didn't take me long to realize that Rosette had latched on to me and was trying to hold me down, but I executed a quick rolling maneuver and shot up for air. She used her legs to propel herself away from me and then resurfaced a good ten feet away.

My eyes were once again lingering on her and her glimmering body. The water droplets reflected beautifully on her in the light and I felt my cheeks flush a light shade of pink. She, however, was not admiring me as well - she was preparing to start an all-out water war. She took in a big gasp of air and dove under again and I knew she was headed for my legs. She would try and cut me off and make me slip under. I was left with no other choice but to take a breath of my own and plan my counter-attack.

Azmaria stood on the grass and shouted after us to be careful and to be sure not to stay in too long or we might catch a cold. Normally, Rosette would be hollering for her to come join us, but with how rough she wanted to play, it was best for her to just watch. I knew full well that I could never really hurt Rosette, but I also knew that she had no desire to hold back when it came to hurting me. That was just the nature of our games.

So she swam after me and I thrashed around and sporadically kicked to keep her at bay while I was twisting my body to flip and come up underneath her. When all she could see were the pockets of bubbles in the water, I grabbed both of her arms to restrain her and thrust her up above the water. She took a deep breath and I quickly pulled her back down, now trying to turn us so I was above her - I wanted her to look me in the eye before I flipped us completely upside down and I dove for the bottom. Did I mention that we had migrated out into deeper water? It wasn't that deep, mind you, but neither one of could touch the bottom without being on our tip-toes.

But then she turned the tables on me and pushed her arms outward and wrapped her legs around my waist. I accidentally let go of the breath I was holding as she spun around and switched our positions. Now it was my turn to fearfully look into her eyes before having my head rammed into the muddy floor. Surprisingly, though, she took mercy on me and forced us up for air before retreated yet again. I tried to take control back by pushing her shoulders, but she wouldn't have it. I soon found myself overpowered and then my head made a nice impact with dirty soil.

Rosette shot up and shouted in victory and Azmaria clapped for her and immediately began praising her. I eventually came up as well, spit out the nasty water that I was forced to take in, and coughed profusely. Neither one of them seemed too concerned about me, probably because they had their backs turned to me and were talking about how amazing and strong Rosette was. There were no limits to how much Azmaria admired and respected her and I couldn't blame her for that.

I trekked through the stream, dragging my feet the whole way, and fixated my eyes on her back. Her hair stuck to her neck and dress and water dripped from all over her - damn my cheeks for heating up again. Her fair skin was sparking and her dress clung tightly to her features. She was truly a beauty to be gazed upon. Is it bad for me to be thankful that no other men are around to see her? I have a feeling that I'd be extremely jealous and agitated if I saw them staring at her like I was.

But my thoughts were interrupted by Azmaria trotting over to me and taking my hand to help me out of the water. I shook my head and tousled with my hair to get the water out and then resorted to twisting my braid to drain the rest. I discarded my coat, shoes, stockings, and most everything except my pants and shirt. I was practically naked, or at least I felt like it, but now I didn't feel like I weighed three hundred pounds.

I laid my clothes out to dry on various rocks and tree branches, hoping they would be at least semi-dry by the time we left. Rosette grabbed hold of her soppy tresses and squeezed all the water out, just as I had done to mine. She started to complain about how hard it would be to brush out and Azmaria tried to comfort her and even offered to brush it for her. They smiled and laughed, completely forgetting about any worries or problems, and I started to think to myself how lucky I was to be in the company of such wonderful ladies.

As fond of Azmaria as I was, I could still picture my life without her. It would be hard to move on, but I could feel that time would heal that wound. Rosette, on the other hand, was a different story entirely. She was far too important to live without, to live without ever knowing, that thought actually upset me. I shook it off as fast as I could, lest I get one of their attentions and have to explain myself.

But all that aside, I was one lucky demon. I was allowed in the presence of God's holy messengers and people and I wasn't completely condemned. I was privileged to work beside them, be of some help and an almost-trusted ally. I was blessed to protect and stand alongside of the Magdalene Order's most beautiful and skillful women. I got to travel and see the most beautiful cities, even though I didn't necessarily get to enjoy them as much as I'd like. I went on wild and wacky adventures with the sweet and kind Azmaria, and sometimes even the strong and powerful Satella. It was absolutely wonderful.

But while I dwelled on my good fortune, I hadn't realized in time that I had an onlooker. Little did I know that Rosette had been calling my name and waving her hand in front of my face for a good thirty seconds now. I wasn't aware of anything, actually, until she violently grabbed my shoulders and shook the life out of me. I questioned her, she screamed at me, and now it would seem that my thoughts and actions of today would have to be another memory. Now I would get the wondrous pleasure of walking home with her yakking in my ear about staring off into space with Azmaria in the background wondering why we couldn't all just get along. This was certainly normal.

How long it would last, none of us really knew. All I can hope for is to one day get the courage to tell Rosette all of these crazy thoughts and pray to God that she loves me too.

"A/N: O.K. everyone, this is my first ever Chrono Crusade fanfiction, so please bear with me. The focus of this story was just supposed to be about Chrono's thoughts through a simple leisurely afternoon. There wasn't supposed to be an actual plot, per say, but it was more of a descriptive story. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed it, and I would love to get some reviews for feedback. Tell me what you liked, dislike, this was a good idea, this was terrible - anything. Criticism is always welcomed."