Chapter 2: A Promise Forged
"What… happened," I mutter as I regain consciousness.
I'm… in a bed?
Where am I?
Tilting my head to the right, there's a chair sitting right beside the bed and a bright lamp on top of a nightstand.
Was someone watching over me?
They sure as hell didn't handcuff or chain me to the bed so perhaps I got rescued while I was out cold.
I slowly get out of bed and stretch.
Maybe that whole ordeal was all in my head?
I slowly walk out of the room and continue down the hallway.
Damn, I'm hungry.
Those nasty rations will certainly come in handy now.
A rather pleasant smell hits my nose.
Is someone cooking breakfast?
That beats rations any day!
"Hey guys! What's for breakfast," I yawn loudly as I walk into what seems like the dining room.
I immediately gasp in horror.
My worst fears have come to fruition!
What happened to me actually did happen!
The Jaegers are sitting at the table!
And they're all looking at me now!
Except for the blue haired woman.
I-Is that General Esdeath?
I grab my chest feeling my heart race like crazy and I start hyperventilating.
What do I do?!
"Take care of it, Seryu," Esdeath sighs, seemingly not worried.
"On it," Seryu says, quickly getting out of her chair and walking towards me.
Attempting to turn and run, I trip and fall on my ass.
Unable to handle the stress of the situation, everything goes blank and I faint.
My eyes open and I'm back in a bed again.
Seryu must've placed me back in here.
Who's this person sitting on the side of my bed?
Looks a lot like…
"A-Akame?" I say weakly, grabbing the person's shoulder.
In almost an instant, I'm pinned down with a sword to my neck.
This girl's not Akame.
She's her sister, Kurome!
"Careful there. Confusing me for my sister is one quick way to die. Name's Kurome. Got that?" she says.
"A-A-Affirmative," I stutter, nodding.
A slashed throat is not a way I want to die.
Slowly, she removes her sword from my neck and sheathes it.
Almost about pissed my pants.
"I swear I don't know what's going on in that head of hers," she mumbles, picking up some kind of big snack bag off the nightstand as she leaves the room.
Guess I'm not getting any kind of conversation with her.
"Seryu! He's awake!" she shouts, going out the door.
Sounds like Seryu will be coming in here then.
Checking my body, they still didn't restrain me in anyway.
Not that it matters since they could kill me in an instant.
Even if I put my spy skills to the test, it would require all of the luck in the world to not get caught.
I have no choice but to rely on Seryu if I want to survive.
Seryu walks in, holding a tray with cookies, sugar cubes and what I assume is either coffee or tea.
Finally, I get some sustenance.
"Nice to see you're awake. It was a great move for you to faint though I'm sure it was in the heat of the moment," she says, locking the door and sitting in the chair beside the bed.
Of course it was in the heat of the moment!
People don't faint on command!
"Not like it was planned," I mumble.
"So what made you think it was a good idea to leave this room?" she questions, setting the tray on the nightstand.
"To be fair, I wasn't restrained in anyway," I point out.
"Because I'm the one who convinced them not to, silly. Be glad you weren't killed on sight," she says.
"A little warning goes a long way, you know," I say.
"Hungry?" she asks, picking up a cookie.
"Nah, I'm totally fine," I say sarcastically.
"Suit yourself," she says, eating it.
"H-Hey!" I exclaim.
"Then just say what you mean instead! Are you hungry or not?" she playfully scolds.
"Of course I am," I say.
"See? That wasn't so hard," she chuckles, picking up another cookie.
Reaching to take it from her hand, she pulls it away.
"I told you I wanted it. Stop messing with me," I say, annoyed.
"If you want it, then tell me your name," she says, smiling.
"It's Tetsuo," I say.
"Tetsuo, huh? A cute name for a cute guy," she compliments, putting a hand on my cheek.
"T-T-Thanks," I stammer, blushing.
"You're very welcome. Here's your cookie," she says, putting it in my mouth.
Breaking it in half with my teeth, she pushes the other half in past my lips.
Reminds me of something Leone would do to toy with me.
"That's really good," I say.
"It better be since I'm the one who made them," she giggles.
Now I know who not to upset to avoid my food being poisoned.
Granted, I shouldn't be getting on anyone's bad side here if I wanna live.
"If that's the case, then I look forward to the rest of your cooking," I flirt.
"How sweet! I promise to not disappoint!" she exclaims.
"Can't wait for it," I smile.
"I brought some tea as well. How many sugar cubes do you want?" she asks.
"I'll take five please," I reply.
"Talk about a coincidence. I already put that many into mine. Here," she hands me her cup.
After she mixes sugar into the other cup, we both take a sip.
… Bleh.
"You lied. This is so bitter," I say while she puts down her cup.
Seryu suddenly lunges at me, her mouth pressed against mine all the while my cup falls out of my hands and shatters on the floor.
Her kiss is very decadent, her tongue painting the taste of sweet tea in my mouth.
I pull away, panting heavily.
With a lustful look in her eyes, she quickly straddles my lap and grabs my shoulders.
"Was that sweet enough for you?" she whispers seductively.
"Y-Y-Yeah," I stutter nervously.
"Let's continue. Please don't fight it," she continues whispering, her hand ruffling my black hair.
I'm at a crossroads.
Death is the outcome if I refuse her advances but if I go with it, I'm losing my first ever to someone I don't love and on top of that, Sheele's killer.
To truly survive means to make sacrifices as they are needed.
Am I ready to commit to that?
"This is too soon. L-Let's just take this whole thing slowly," I carefully say.
"What? Is there some girl from Night Raid you're fond of? I believe we established that you're mine now so just forget about her. Unless you would rather be executed," her voice slowly rising with anger.
"I-It's not like that. I'll give you what you want. Just answer a question I've been holding onto," I say.
I'm on thin ice but I have to know!
"I'm listening," she says.
"Why did you kill Sheele?" I ask.
"I assume you're referring to the one who wielded the Imperial Arms known as Extase. Did you have the hots for her or something?" she doesn't let up her threatening tone of voice.
"She was like a sibling to me as are others of Night Raid. They're like a replacement for what I lost. You took her away from me," I say coldly.
Didn't we talk about this last night? Why do you still fucking care? The rest of Night Raid will die too if you really want your revenge. I highly doubt you could get them to stand down and go into hiding. They would see you for the traitor you are and strike you down without a second thought. So why even think there's a way for them to live? So you don't feel as bad screwing them over? Grow up! Can't get what you want all the time!
Shut up! Shut up! Shut your damn mouth! T-They would understand why, wouldn't they? Out of everyone, A-Akame and Chelsea would at least forgive me, right?
Even after all you have been through, you're still so naive. Tsk tsk.
"You want an apology? In that case, I deserve an apology too," she says, calming down.
"W-What do you mean?" I question.
Her eyes fade into darkness.
"Oh, you don't know? Night Raid is responsible for murdering my now former superior, Ogre of the Imperial Police. Had that never happened, I probably wouldn't have gotten into that deadly encounter with her and her friend. Ogre would most likely be here as part of the Jaegars and not me. My superior was killed by a member of Night Raid. I killed one of you as a result. So call it an act of revenge. I call it justice! It's no different than what you're looking for, isn't it?" she says, her voice seething with hatred.
See? You gotta remember that Night Raid is no better than you. They aren't good people and neither are you so stop with this moral bullshit you decide to be off and on about. It's all fair game!
"That's… truly unfortunate… for both of us. For whatever it's worth, I'm sorry that that came to pass," I say, deeply hurt.
Why didn't they tell me about Ogre's assassination? Maybe their kindness was all an act? Did they realize my intentions? Or did they never trust me to begin with? I don't know. My brain hurts just trying to think now.
"While I'm not sorry for killing her, I'm sorry that I hurt you by doing so. Forgive me?" she says, suddenly dropping the animosity in her voice.
"S-Seryu," I press my lips against hers, my hands caressing her ass.
If you truly cared for me and are watching from above, then I ask that you please forgive my treachery or at least try to understand my reasoning, Sheele. That goes for you too, Bulat.
When all is said and done, I'll stand before them and only then will I accept punishment.
"Let's make each other feel good from now on. That's what this little deal of ours is for. Give me everything I want and I'll do the same for you. I promise to abide by that, Tetsuo," she says softly.
"I promise to abide by it too," I say.
Continuing to make out, we're abruptly interrupted by a loud knocking on the door.
"Seryu! Esdeath is ready for interrogation," Kurome shouts.
"Got it! I'm on my way," Seryu shouts back.
"From what I've heard, Esdeath isn't exactly one to show kindness. How am I supposed to avoid torture let alone execution?" I ask.
"Don't worry about that. I'll handle it. Do you trust me enough to do that?" she questions.
She's the only person who can save me.
"I-I do," I say.
"Then let's go, shall we?" she grins.