There was no way it could be some kind of fluke thing. The dome like shield that was covering the mountain looked too flawlessly executed for it to be some freelance assassination attempt. Even from his own balcony, Nagisa could see the army tanks in the street, the people rushing out of their homes to see what was happening. It was all so bone chillingly real. Something inside of Nagisa right there and then just knew it was the end.

But even from his apartment, Nagisa couldn't really tell what was happening. The air in the room told him Karma was feeling the same way. Or, at least, was thinking about something. Acting fully on impulse, Nagisa knew he couldn't just stay here. His feet carried him of their own accord as he left his bedroom.

"-now with no place to run thanks to the Shield of Earth, is the culprit behind the moon's-" The TV played what looked like an emergency broadcast. His mother was sitting in front of it, very still.

"Mum," Nagisa begun, without the time to think about phrasing it well. "Can you watch Daichi for a few minutes?"

Taking her attention away from the TV, she turned to look at him. "What is this?"

"Please." There was no use in hiding the desperation in his voice. "I'll tell you everything after, but."

Whilst he attempted to come up with any kind of explanation, she stared at him, blinking almost robotically. Her lips pressed tightly together and she lowered her gaze. In that moment, Nagisa felt like he had no choice but to just take her silence as agreement. When all was said and done, he knew she wasn't cruel without true cause.

So Nagisa just nodded, and re-entered his room. "Come on," he said, "it's okay to go."

To his surprise, Karma didn't say anything. As Nagisa looked over at him, though, his eyes were like a storm, a whirlwind of ash and fire and electricity. It wasn't the face he usually wore when he was concentrating. There was something far more abstract going on up there. Still, he followed Nagisa, all the way out of the building and out into the streets.

"This road is closed!" Some sort of official was shouting. "Please follow instructions!"

He had to keep going, using his smaller body to his advantage to duck between people as the crowds got thicker. Eventually, there wasn't much further he could go due to the guards blocking the road, but he could see the bright dome of light clear enough. A tsunami of dread washed over him. How naïve had they been, to believe that all of this could end peacefully?

"-This monster is in a stand off against the entire planet, of all things, and has taken some of our nation's junior high students hostage, having gone under cover as a teacher. He is an extremely-"

The speech continued to play, from loud speakers, and Nagisa clenched his fist. It was so completely twisted and wrong, nothing at all what Korosensei was like. He felt sick, at the way they were so remorselessly dragging him through the mud.

"It's their job to say that kind of stuff," Karma said beside him, noticing his agitation. "Whatever this plan was, they planned for the public's reception. This is just damage control."

Nagisa didn't care. It was still wrong. But he was helpless where he stood. With the amount of military personnel around, he didn't have a hope in hell of sneaking in. From right where he was, Nagisa was certain he'd only be caught and immediately arrested if he even tried it, and that wouldn't help anyone. He continued to push forwards, though Karma hung back.

"Nagisa!"

Nagisa turned to face the girl running toward him. "Kayano!"

"What is all this?!" She said, coming to a stop beside him.

It seemed other members of their class had showed up, too. Terasaka had managed to break to the front of the crowd, and was threatening someone, though to no avail. It wasn't as if the officer knew who they were, he supposed.

"Nagisa! Kayano!" Isogai rushed up towards them. - "Did you see the news? This is awful!"

Before Nagisa could answer him, he was blinded by bright camera flash. All at once, there were countless cameras pointed at him. Not even a person comfortable with attention should be okay with this. Nagisa couldn't even see how many there were, but it felt like he was on display for the entire world.

"Look at this!"

"Could these be the students that had been threatened by that monstrous teacher?"

"-You're those junior high hostages, right?!"

"-Excuse me, how do you feel right now?"

"-You must be relieved to hear he's been captured!"

Nagisa blinked, unable to fully focus on all the voices surrounding him. With microphones practically shoved under his chin, he could hardly even breathe. Weakly, he registered one of their comments. Korosensei had been captured? Was that what the lights were all about?

"What's this about him forcing you to perform sham assassinations?"

"What was it like spending a whole year ruled by a teacher who could explode at any second?"

At the sound of commotion, Nagisa turned his head. Muratamatsu was trying to break free of one of them. "Shut up! It's none of your business!"

"He's not the evil teacher they're saying he is!" Kurahashi addressed the cameras.

Naturally, the reporters ate it up and spun it. "Did that monster tell you to say that? How awful it must have been. You can tell us the truth. These are the innocent children that monster used as hostages!"

Why were they pitying them? A sinking feeling rushed through Nagisa, as he realised that Karma must have been right. It suited their narrative, the story they wanted to report on. There was no need for the truth, in their eyes.

"You have no permission to film here!" Karasuma's familiar voice boomed over their interrogations. "Leave at once!"

"B-but," one of them started, "what about our duty to report the truth?"

Karasuma stood talk, considering them all. "And terrify junior high kids for sheer entertainment value? Some duty! By the authority of the Defence Agency, this area is off limits. In the interest of public safety, I'll ask you to leave. I'll take these students into protective custody."

Relief washed over Nagisa at that. Not just because he was being removed from the limelight, but also because there was a certain stability that came with Karasuma. No more government lies, he was sure, as their teacher Karasuma was somebody they could depend on. Nobody protested, apart from the press, as he lead them into a tent the military had obviously set up on a provisional basis.

"Karasuma Sensei…" Isogai begun, once everybody had gathered round. "What happened to Korosensei?"

But then Karasuma stood up straight, and Nagisa could tell he was building a wall in-between himself and them. "Time was up. The government implemented their last resort, the one they'd been preparing all this time."

"Their last resort?" Isogai pressed.

Takebayashi pushed his glasses up his nose. "That barrier, you mean?"

"That's the only cage to keep him trapped," Karasuma explained. "In a week, they'll use a high power laser to kill him."

Nagisa caught on immediately. He could see it all, how the government must have been preparing all of this. Right then, he knew that really they were a decoy. Something to keep Korosensei distracted and in one location. For them, it must have been a win win situation. If the class managed to pull off an assassination, it would still be problem solved. Somehow, that made his blood boi.

"No! What about our assassination?" Maehara questioned, though it was useless.

"You tried your best so far." Karasuma said, no emotion showing in his voice. "Now leave the rest to us."

Terasaka eyed him up. "Oh, now you're the big man, all 'leave it to us'?!"

"We're completely in the dark!" Kurahashi complained.

"And that statement made it sound like it's all Korosensei's fault!" Kanzaki added.

"This is not cool," Kataoka said. They told us to kill him, and now they're elbowing in on our job?!"

Perhaps he'd just grown up a lot recently, but when Nagisa thought about it, that wasn't his view. Being used didn't sit well with him in the slightest, of course it didn't, but he mentally took a step back. If he were in a position of power, and there was a chance the entire world could be destroyed, he wouldn't sit there and do nothing. Karasuma was right, they'd had their chance, and not completed the assassination in time. It was only natural that such drastic measures were to be taken. Nagisa couldn't resent that.

"And it won't sit well with Korosensei unless we do the deed!" Isogai pointed out.

That, then, flipped things around for him. Though he understood the other perspective, Isogai's words struck him in the heart. After everything they'd been through, it would be the worst betrayal of all to step back and let the government over. This entire year, Korosensei had been the best teacher, had supported and built them up in preparation for the day they'd kill him. Letting all of it be for nothing, disappointing Korosensei… It made Nagisa's stomach turn.

"Karasuma Sensei, please, let us go!" Nagisa joined in on the begging.

"There are elite troops posted throughout town and on the mountain. No more openings for you to use to your advantage." Karasuma's stare met Nagisa's dangerously, as if he was planning on trying something. "Give it up."

Somehow, Nagisa found his voice. "No! There's so much we haven't talked about with Korosensei! So much we still want to do! So please, let us go-"

Before Nagisa could continue his protest, Karasuma yanked him by the shirt, slamming him back down onto the floor. It wasn't hard enough that he'd be truly hurt, in fact Nagisa didn't think he'd even bruise from it, but it still shocked him. He'd never laid a finger on them, outside of training. In a sense, it pleased Nagisa to know he was seen as enough of a threat, rather than something dainty.

"I can't let you go!" Karasuma's voice had more urgency in it. "This is national policy! Now you listen closely, Nagisa kun…" He tugged him back up by the material of his clothes. "Don't give me a hard time. Are we clear?"

There was something there, Nagisa could tell. This was no regular scolding. Locking eyes with Karasuma, he couldn't hide the emotion that was dancing around in there. Nagisa just knew, on some kind of instinctual level, that Karasuma didn't truly believe in the government stand point. But that wasn't all. Nagisa practically lit up, placing why the phrasing of his words had sounded familiar.

"It's no use, Nagisa." Karma, who had been hanging away from the rest of their class, stood and entered the fray. "In the end, he's just another company man. When push comes to shove, he'll just follow orders to save his own skin."

"That's exactly right," Karasuma nodded. "My position lets me protect people when they need it most. Besides, even going by my own conviction, I'm thinking he should be killed after all." Apparently done with them, he begun to walk through their gathering, stopping to talk to another soldier. "Arrange transportation and escorts for them at once."

"Sir!" The guard responded and followed Karasuma out of the tent.

Not wasting any time, Terasaka vented his frustrations. "Dammit! Karasuma! That bastard!"

"Terasaka kun…" Nagisa begun. He just had to get this feeling out.

"Huh?"

"Karasuma Sensei just said 'don't give me a hard time', very clearly."

"Yeah?" Terasaka looked at him weirdly. "So what?"

"Remember what he said earlier? 'If I ever have a hard time, I'd trust you without hesitation. I can count on you'." Nagisa gulped. The rest of what he was about to say was just a theory, and he would be addressing it everyone… He just hoped he was right. "So I think 'don't give me a hard time' means he trusts us and can count on us to handle things. We have Karasuma Sensei's trust – he's leaving this to us. So…" Nagisa wasn't the best at making plans. "Let's put our heads together and sort it all out: what we want to accomplish, what we're capable of, what Korosensei would want us to do."

Thankfully, he was let off the hook. "Nagisa kun's right," Isogai stepped up. "Nobody else here would be comfortable just leaving this. Korosensei wouldn't be either."

Of course, there wasn't a lot they could discuss in that space, where anybody could potentially hear them. Together, they just agreed to discuss it all on their class group chat. They had Ritsu on their side, of course, who could make the chat secure against even the government. There was no solid plan, quite yet, but Nagisa knew it would involve infiltrating the mountain. Even if all it meant was seeing Korosensei one last time, it would be worth it.

When the escorts came for them, nobody resisted. With the disruption, the streets were absolutely rammed with cars, so it wasn't a fast journey home. Nagisa sat there, in an admittedly nice car, watching the world go by through darkened windows. It wasn't hopeless, though. He wouldn't let this be the end, no matter what the government tried to do.

Nagisa was at least grateful that they didn't insist on walking him to his front door. If anything, though, that just made it incredibly obvious they were being watched. He and Karma, who had managed to convince them to take him back to Nagisa's too, would have to be very careful about that in the coming days. It was time to start watching the movements of security cameras, though he wouldn't be surprised if there were ground agents too.

Ready to meet his fate, Nagisa pulled the door open. Inside his own apartment, the entire experience felt foreign. There were no windows with a sightline of the school from there, and the rest of it was all kind of neutral. Like a self contained bubble. The TV and radio were turned off, so there was no sound apart from the distant blaring of sirens.

"Both of your faces were all over the news," Nagisa's mother came back in. She was carrying Daichi, who looked comfortable enough at least. "What is this?"

Nagisa swallowed. "Mum, I-"

She glared at him. "Think long and hard on this, Nagisa. I want to hear the full truth from your own lips."

"I-I-"

"I'll take Daichan," Karma cut him off. Something in his expression told Nagisa not to question it. Thankfully, his mother didn't resist him, in fact she held Daichi out like an offering. "This isn't a conversation for me," Karma said as he passed Nagisa to get to the front door, leaning in close enough so that only he would hear properly.

Karma had left him to it, then. Really though, Nagisa knew that he wouldn't go far. He was right, this did feel like a conversation Nagisa needed to have with his mother. All he needed was to find the inner courage to do so. Easier said than done.

"So," his mother begun shortly. "This is the reason behind everything. You were held hostage all year and you were acting out."

"No!" Nagisa exclaimed quickly. "That's not-"

Her face clenched up. "I don't recognise you anymore."

"You're right," Nagisa said, dragging the fire out of him. "But I've changed for the better, mum, not the worse. We were never held hostage."

"Then what?" She snapped. "What explanation do you have?"

He cringed. "Just please don't freak out."

Of course, he hadn't changed out of his school uniform, before rushing out. So he could easily reach into his trouser pocket, and bring out the government issued knife. Somehow, she didn't start screaming, though the fear in her form was very obvious.

"Mum," he said, "at school, they trained us in assassination."

And Nagisa begun to talk. At this point, he assumed nothing bad would actually come from breaking his confidentiality. So he started at the beginning, the true story of the moon's explosion, through their summer trip, the real reason he'd ended up in hospital that time, up until what was currently happening. Throughout his explanation, she remained silent, but not uninterested. He made sure to include all the good times too, rather than just the facts. They were just as important.

"I'm very sorry for not telling you the truth before," Nagisa said. "But I hope you can understand. I know it might sound ridiculous to you but, this year has been one of a kind, and there's nothing I would change about it."

"'One of a kind'," she scoffed. "Every day, it's something new with you." She stood, turning away from him.

Nagisa's head shot up. "W-where are you going?"

"To lie down," she snapped.

Feeling like he could just burst into tears, Nagisa stood there and just watched until she disappeared into her own bedroom. With everything that had happened that day, all he wanted to do was to pound on her door, begging for forgiveness and to be held like a little kid. But he took a deep breath instead, letting neutrality wash over him. He'd been through enough that he couldn't just collapse now, he would just have to steel himself and cope.

He opened the front door, stepping outside without locking it. Karma had positioned himself slumped against the wall, Daichi in some kind of a light sleep still, cradled in his arms. Though he was alert enough to look at Nagisa when he came out, Karma looked as if he could benefit from a very long nap. Sighing, Nagisa slid down the wall too, sitting down right beside Karma.

"That wasn't the worst she could have taken it," Nagisa said. When Karma didn't respond, aside from tilting his head slightly, Nagisa felt like curling up into a ball. "I just don't think-"

"She'll get over it," Karma said plainly, cutting him off.

Perhaps it was just because he was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, but he leant his head on Karma's shoulder. It wasn't really comfortable, Karma was muscular rather than soft, and the difference in their heights meant that Nagisa's head didn't really fit well there, but somehow he didn't care. There was just this something about being in his space that kept Nagisa drifting closer.

Karma's own head was tilted towards him, ever so slowly inching closer. It was as if a phantom had reached into his chest and gripped him by the heart. His body was clenched up, about to crumble and cave in on itself. It wasn't as though he tried to resist the urge to pull his body closer, but there was something else, deep down inside him, that made him hesitate.

The sound of Daichi stirring snapped him out of it. Nagisa found himself slowly blinking, as if adjusting to light, as he pulled back. Within moments, it became full out cries. In a sense, Nagisa was actually thankful for it.

"He's hungry," Nagisa got out. "We have to go back inside."

Karma shot him a look. "You can just tell?"

Pulling himself to his feet, Nagisa bent down, taking Daichi into his own arms. "I guess," he admitted, "I just have a feeling."

"Well," Karma used a swinging momentum to jump right back onto his feet, "we have an infiltration to plan."

He didn't speak much about the plan, as he watched Nagisa make up a bottle. Even when Daichi was soothed and ready to fall back asleep again, he kept whatever his thoughts were on lock. It wouldn't be an effective plan if he didn't let anybody else know about it, so Nagisa could only assume he was working out all the tiny details. At least he'd perked up.

Even when they lay down together, Nagisa could tell that Karma's brain was still working on overdrive. Considering how long a day it had been, that probably wasn't healthy at all. There was something erratic going on there, like some kind of mad scientist working out his next experiment. Perhaps it was wrong to disturb him, but Nagisa knew it could wait until morning. He waited, examining Karma's consciousness, until the right moment to strike. Karma jolted, at Nagisa's fingers suddenly pressing into his neck, but he did then calm.

They locked eyes, for a moment, before Karma wrapped his arms around Nagisa. This differed, greatly differed, from the other positions they'd been sleeping in. It would definitely qualify as cuddling. Nagisa weighed out his options, thankful that the darkness of the room was covering the flush he wore, before he decided he was okay with it. Karma relaxed, yet clinging to him like a teddy bear, was better than him being frantic.

Of course, it didn't last for more than a few hours before Daichi woke them up again, and they had to slip apart. Throughout the night, though, they were still mostly close. At least, up until the sun rose and Karma's relaxation had worn off. Nagisa had honestly never seen him so eager to greet the morning, but he decided not to question it.

"Looks like we have our own personal guards," Karma stretched out, looking through the window.

Nagisa joined him, and sure enough, Karasuma's agents were keeping an eye on them. Or, at least, were stationed outside the apartment building. With so much surveillance, it would be hard to really plan anything, so having Ritsu for communications was a massive advantage. Together, their plans would have to begin.

Somehow, he knew Karma had an idea, before he said anything. "It's a good thing we have a cover."

"Huh?" Nagisa questioned. "Cover? What cover?"

Karma smirked. "Time for Daichi's first cherry blossom viewing."

Getting the feeling that Karma was set enough in his plan without much regard for Nagisa's opinion on this, he mostly just decided to accept it. "It's too early in the year for that."

"Fine," Karma shot him a pointed look. "Time for a generic picnic that just so happens to be in a great position for surveillance."

Though he probably should have been more concerned or bothered about using their son as a decoy, Nagisa couldn't help but agree it was a good plan. Who in their right mind would bring such a young child to an environment like that, even without the added threat of accidentally being mistaken for trespassers by the army? Assessing it, Nagisa decided there was no real danger, at least not when compared with what they were planning to do.

As it turned out, pushing a sleeping infant around was the perfect disguise. Nagisa snuck a glance, and the agents barely batted an eyelid, suggesting they weren't finding their activity suspicious. Naturally, they couldn't get too close to the boundary, but they knew the mountain like the back of their own hands, and thus ways to approach it without drawing too much attention to themselves.

"So," Karma said, as town turned to foliage, "have any ideas?"

Nagisa stopped in his tracks. "I thought you had the idea."

Not stopping himself, despite his pace being slowed by trying to push a pram over uneven ground, Karma shrugged. "You're better at observation than anyone else. We only have one shot at this, so, we need to find the perfect angle."

He couldn't help but flutter under the slight praise. But it was also a lot of pressure, and Nagisa barely knew where to start. This was an entire mountain to deal with. But they were all familiar with it, given Karasuma's intense drills. Unless any member of the military had trained on this specific mountain, there was a significant advantage. So the main thing was finding the best route to take full advantage of that. Instinctively, Nagisa begun to consider the areas that had a lot of low roots and shrubs. Their class could run it blindfolded, but any outsider would potentially miss the danger and trip.

But Nagisa kind of got the feeling Karma had already thought of all of that. Any person could come up with that plan. No, Karma needed something only Nagisa could dream up. Unfortunately, it didn't always work like that. Nagisa had to be right in the moment, sometimes, to fully see the perfect route to success. But he could try.

To no avail, he just stared into the trees, brain going through all the possible choices. That, at least, until a twig snapped and heavy footsteps filled the atmosphere. Nagisa turned sharply, knowing it was too late to try and disguise themselves. They'd been spotted.

"Hey!" The soldier said, taking fast steps over to them. "This area's restricted! I'm going to have to ask you to-"

Karma pulled a kind of meek expression. "Oh? This area too?" He laughed it off. "Apologies, we thought it was just right up to the barrier. You know how it is with kids," he gestured, "this one doesn't like to sleep unless we take him on a walk."

The soldier softened, a little. "It's no problem, an honest mistake." Then, his face broke out into a full smile, like this was the most interesting thing that had happened all day.

"Yes," Karma nodded, "sorry to be trouble! Gee, it must be important work here, huh?"

The poor man sighed. "Patrolling an entire mountain for trespassers isn't that exciting. You're the only people I've come across."

"Right," Karma said. "Nobody in town even wants to come close, but we like the peace and quiet."

Sensing his cue to talk, Nagisa nodded. "Yeah."

The man barely paid attention to him, which seemed like it could work out in their favour. "How old is he?"

"Just over two weeks," Karma beamed. "If I'm honest, this is the most interesting conversation we've had in a while, too. So," he continued, "patrolling, huh? We come up to this spot a lot… When are your breaks? I could point out some great spots."

Nagisa was nearly astounded, as Karma continued to talk, about how well he was extracting this information. Given that the soldier wasn't paying all that much attention to Nagisa, he could pretty easily note down the important stuff, without raising alarm. Within minutes, Nagisa had the details of their break pattern, where the patrols changed over, their location... It would take a bit of work, but it was enough to make an accurate diagram of the soldier's paths. With this, they could play dirty, attack from behind.

"Well," the man said, "I'm now very behind schedule. I hate to do this, but you still aren't allowed to be up here this week."

Karma waved him off. "It's not a problem. Have a great day!"

They turned, making their way 'back down the mountain' until the soldier was completely out of earshot and eye. The whole experience made Nagisa giddy inside. By what he'd observed, the man wasn't feeding them false information. At least, unless he was a master at hiding his body language, though Nagisa was certain he'd read his intentions correctly.

"We should feed all of that back to Ritsu," Nagisa realised. "She'll be able to calculate the best route."

Karma nodded. "I have a few plans." When Nagisa looked over at him as if to question, he lowered his head a little. "You could tell, even though they're elites, they have rules to follow, a chain of command. We know this place better than them, so the best way is to mess with them – split off in small squads, and zero in on the bigger targets."

It made a lot of sense, actually. It wasn't just wild speculation, Nagisa could tell he'd really thought this through. He did as he said he would, when they got back, and supplied Ritsu with the information. After that, it was a waiting game, for the rest of the week. Now that they'd both played their part, returning to the mountain would just raise the alarm. So, with the help of their classmates chipping in here and there, everything was put into motion.

At least Karma was confident in his plan. He'd announced it on their group chat, even, and nobody had protested. Even sitting in his bedroom with Karma, Nagisa noticed the gears ticking behind his eyes. Nobody protested his request to take the lead, when it came down to it, though. Karma was good at playing to their individual strengths, drawing it out for maximum damage.

When the actual date of the assassination came, however, there was a lull towards the end. Despite being mostly trapped indoors with no school or anything all week, it hadn't dragged on that much. It was like one gigantic rush of adrenaline. Of course, Nagisa also had Daichi to take care of full time, which really should be considered an actual job.

Maybe they were just saving their energy, but it was actually kind of peaceful. Whilst they waited for the thick of night to come, they rested on Nagisa's bed, fully dressed in their special gear. They'd ended up with Daichi between them, more a bridge than a barrier. It occurred to Nagisa, then, that what they were about to do was real danger. It was worth it, to go out and honour their goals, to save the world… But it was a moment he may not be able to recapture, in the same way.

"Come on," Nagisa eventually found himself saying. "We only have a short window."

Karma nodded, pulling himself to his feet as he took Daichi with him, holding him close to his chest before kissing him briefly on the forehead.

Nagisa took him, hugging him in a similar fashion, his throat welling up. "We love you," he said, barely even a whisper. He just had to force himself to remember that this wasn't a goodbye. They'd be back, before morning, hopefully.

Knowing what Nagisa had to do, Karma nodded. "I'll wait for you on the balcony."

Gathering all the courage he had, Nagisa carried Daichi, making his way through his apartment until he reached his mother's bedroom door. All week, he'd barely even seen her. Only when their paths crossed, which was inevitable in such a small home. At least, she hadn't said much to him, and Nagisa could only hope it wasn't resentment.

She opened the door, and took one look at him, dressed for a mission. "So you're going out, then."

Gulping, Nagisa tried to remain calm. "Mum," he begun, "please… Allow me to go. I-I need to see my teacher."

Hesitating for just a moment, she exhaled. "Alright, if you believe it's the right decision."

"W-what?"

She looked him right in the eye. "I need to start making my peace. You're not the helpless child you once were. For any parent, that's a harsh reality to face, but… You didn't listen to me all those months ago. Admittedly, I was shocked, and angry, that you were so willing to throw your life away, make the wrong decision. I'm not saying I would take back my view point, but I see now. You defied me, yet, I know somehow that for you, you chose right. So I'm going to start having more faith in your decisions. If this is what you think is right, then, I believe you. Just please," she tilted her head, just a little. "Allow me to remain your mother on some things."

Nagisa felt inexplicably weightless. He tripped up on his words, trying to find the right ones. "U-uhm, will you-"

"Just don't make a habit of it," she said, taking Daichi from him.

He nodded. "We'll be back by morning."

"Nagisa." Her tone was sharp. "Nothing dangerous."

"Of course," he replied, and sprinted into his bedroom, straight onto the balcony, and into a jump, landing on the next roof top. He didn't have to turn, to sense Karma was right behind him. Of course, his centre of gravity had shifted since the last time he did anything like this, but his feet still knew how to carry him. As the others began to join them, they sped towards the school.