Things were different when they reached second year.
Not between them - by some miracle, both of them were able to maintain their odd friendship, and found a sort of safety from the rest of the world because of it.
But people looked at them differently, now.
Nagisa's gentle nature was fast becoming a hindrance instead of an asset, especially as he'd slowly been edging closer to a surprisingly high ranking. The classmates that had thought him a docile little puppy now stared at him with the madness of jealousy in their eyes; only Karma's constant presence did anything to diffuse their behavior. Nagisa was grateful. He had meant what he said when he told him he wasn't scared, but when given the choice, he'd rather not be beaten to pulp.
Karma, on the other hand, was garnering more attention - both for his violence and for his brilliant grades. The latter, as always, outshone the darkness of his former; as he gleefully told Nagisa one day, the homeroom teacher had even taken him aside and told him that "as long as he was in the right", he'd stand by him.
Nagisa smiled nervously, but asked, "Don't you think that kind of deal is difficult to maintain? I mean - what if you go too far?"
Karma laughed. "I know how this works. As long as your grades are brilliant, Nagisa, you can never go too far."
That attention wasn't limited to the teachers. Being the top in the B Class, the second-highest ranking class in the school, was enough to garner their peers' attention as well; especially those of A Class, who were forever on the lookout for possible classmates and competition.
The day after midterms when Karma scored top in class again, Gakushu Asano called forth his group, the best of the best, on their plan to welcome the red-head's almost inevitable introduction to their class.
