Disclaimer: I don't own Akame ga kill or any of its characters…

"Give me a break… why did I have to wake up at this time of night?"

Tatsumi walked through the base's quiet hallways in the dead of night, putting his white jacket on as he stopped by a window to glance outside at the falling snow. The weather was cold tonight, fitting the atmosphere and the mood of the place because recent events. Tatsumi leaned in closer against the window and watched the droplets of snow fall into the ground, with an image of Bulat in his mind.

"Aniki…"

Night Raid had just lost another one of its assassins today, and to make matters worse, they were still not fully over the death of Sheele that happened not too long ago. Bulat was one of Night Raid's strongest members, and his death had genuinely hurt the hearts of the other members, like what happened with Sheele.

But it was Tatsumi who, most likely, took it the worst.

Staring down at Incursio's key that he held in his right hand, he made his way to the kitchen, albeit in slow strides since he was currently deep in thought.

"First Sheele… now Aniki?"

During his early days in Night Raid, all of Night Raid's members stepped up to train him in their different specializations, but it was probably Bulat who had the most impact to his tremendous change. Sure, there was Akame to teach him how to be faster, Leone with hand-to-hand combat, and Mine with firearms, but it was his training with Bulat that helped him the most.

Too bad he wouldn't be able to train with him anymore.

Tatsumi had just gone from a mission to the Dragon Ship in the Grand Canal, to eliminate General Esdeath's feared "Three Beasts", where Bulat had met his untimely demise while facing off against his former superior, Liver. Sustaining wounds that needed the treatment of a doctor, he fell in battle while Tatsumi had finished the mission for him. Entrusting his teigu Incursio to Tatsumi, he died with a smile on his face.

"I promise you, Akame! I won't die and I will never make you mourn me!"

He eventually found himself wandering into the kitchen, feeling the urge to satisfy his thirst. His mind then recalled a memory as he entered the place, a memory that involved him and a certain red-eyed assassin when Sheele died. Heh, if he had to be honest, this was like dejá vu because of how similar the two situations were to each other, as well as the fact that it was a cold, snowy night when that memory resurfaced like what was happening right now.

"This is not a good dejá vu, then…"

He had never expected it, but it happened again.

The only difference is, Akame wasn't here.

"We're going to get rid of this Empire once and for all! And you won't have to cry anymore!"

Getting a glass and a pitcher of water, he began to pour himself a cold drink. While he was doing so, he thought about the promise he made to Akame… the one where he promised her that he wouldn't die, that they would free the country from all the corruption, and that nobody else would have to die between all of them.

Life's unfair at times, then.

Not wanting to stand until he would be finished with his glass, he turned around to face the table and take a seat, only to come face-to-face with the only other individual in the room, Akame.

"W-What the…" Tatsumi tried to say, wondering how the girl managed to stay unnoticed as she walked inside the kitchen earlier. However, he shook that particular thought of and simply chuckled, drawing the possibility that she might have been here even before him, and he just ignored her presence because there was too much clouding his thoughts at the moment.

It was either that or Akame was just too good in masking her presence.

"Good evening, Tatsumi." Akame said in her normal monotone voice, and the girl was dressed in her pink-patterned pajamas. Murasame was lying on the table just beside her while she was quietly munching on a large Evil Bird drumstick… perhaps as a midnight snack, maybe?

"Evening, Akame… uh, what are you doing here in the middle of the night?" he replied, furrowing his eyebrows as he sat on the opposite side of the table across her, bringing his glass of water along with him.

"I got hungry, so I went here to eat." she said without any hesitation, continuing to chew on her meat as she stared into his emerald eyes.

He laughed softly as he continued to drink from his glass, as if Akame's personality when it comes to food was the treatment for the sad thoughts that he was having earlier. He had always found her overall self to be weird, but he never thought that it could also be heartwarming. It was like the fact of just having her around, he'd be able to feel calm and collected like she does.

Yes, this was perfect way to get his mind off of Bulat for the time being.

The two sat there for the next few minutes in silence, and Tatsumi took his time in drinking water not because he didn't want to go back to sleep, but because he had thought of the promise he made to Akame once again. He felt ashamed to be in her presence, simply because he had failed in preventing another one of their friends from dying, especially when the wounds left by Sheele's passing was still fresh.

She probably hated him now, and she wouldn't even want to listen to him anymore.

And it caused him to switch his thoughts back to Bulat once again, filling his mind with the memory of what happened during their mission. Maybe he was too reckless for his own good… maybe his optimism had become too much…

Then, the moment he had finished quenching his thirst, Tatsumi stood up from the table, unknowingly catching Akame's attention as he proceeded to wash the cup that he just used. He kept his attention focused on himself, taking a deep breath to recompose himself.

He stole a glance at the red-eyed assassin at the table, before he shook his head slightly. He didn't need to get Akame involved in his problems.

After he finished washing the cup he had just used, he set it back in the dish rack and proceeded to make his way out of the kitchen, but not before turning to look at Akame to at least let her know that he was heading off. "Well good night, Akame… I guess I'll be heading back to my room and get back to sleep…" he said, continuing to make his way out of there.

But before he could truly leave the kitchen, he suddenly felt someone grabbing his hand and held him back.

Tatsumi turned his head back to see Akame in front of him with a concerned look. "Can you stay for a bit? I have a few more grilled drumsticks if you want." she said quietly, staring into his eyes.

He didn't know why Akame would ask him to stay and offer him food knowing her personality, but he found it comforting nonetheless, which deeply contrasted the depressing thoughts that he was having before. From how he knew Akame, she was an introvert who'd mostly keep her real feelings to herself but she was also caring and kind to her friends, and that included Tatsumi.

He wasn't in the mood to talk with anybody right now, but he also didn't have the courage to flat-out say "No" to Akame, so he nodded and gave in, following her to the dinner table as he took a seat again. This time, he was sitting just beside her instead of way across the table, as Akame gave him a fresh Evil Bird drumstick.

"Thanks…" he said genuinely out of gratitude, both of which were because of her sharing her food with him and because of the sense of comfort that she was, maybe unknowingly, showing to him right now.

Just by one simple action that she had done, he was already on the road to recovery.

The minutes passed again, and Tatsumi did nothing but take very slow bites of his food, as his rested on his hand while his elbow was propped up on the table. He was plainly staring ahead of him, as he looked like his mind was focusing on something else instead of the drumstick in his hand. The thoughts about Bulat's death were coming back and as a result, he lowered his head slightly as he was about to shed tears.

But just in the nick of time, Akame finished eating the Evil Bird meat in her hand and turned to face him with a solemn look.

"Are you alright, Tatsumi? You look completely different compared to your normal self for the whole day." Akame enquired, staring at the young man in front of her.

Was it really that obvious to her? If Akame can figure out what was wrong with him, does that mean the other members can find out too? Tatsumi still felt that she was upset with him, so he had to deny the intention of telling her about his problems, as much as he wanted to open up and let his emotions out.

"Nothing's wrong." Tatsumi replied, removing his elbow and head from the table as he faced her, before lowering his gaze as he looked down on the ground.

"Don't lie to me, Tatsumi. I've seen your normal face and the face you make when you have a problem… and for this day, I'd say it's the latter." Akame pointed out bluntly.

"What are you talking about? I was just thinking about —" he cut himself from his words, realizing that he was about to give himself away, but it was too late.

"See? There is something wrong with you." she affirmed, before speaking once again. "Now tell me what it is."

"Fine, I think I'll just get this off my chest… I don't care even if you beat me up for it…" he muttered, turning his gaze to the side to avoid hers.

"Beat you up? What do you mean?" Akame tried to ask, only to get her question ignored when Tatsumi spoke once again.

"Do you remember the promise I made to you…" he hesitated to say it, but he knew he had to because otherwise, this wouldn't be resolved. Like what Akame applied in her life, kill the doubt and go straight for the kill. "When Sheele died?"

The red-eyed girl was temporarily shook for a moment, before she lowered her head and let out a deep sigh. "Yes, I remember that night Tatsumi…" she muttered, turning her head towards the window. "And come to think of it, this seems similar to that time… if you're going to talk about it…"

"I'm sorry, Akame." Tatsumi thought to himself, realizing that he just changed the entire mood of the atmosphere just by mentioning a particular night that he didn't want to share. He knew that he had reminded her of a dreadful memory, just by seeing the sad smile on the girl's face. Now, he felt more ashamed, wondering if he should still continue on with telling her if she would be affected in this way…

"Stay strong Tatsumi, and don't waver in battle!" Bulat's voice echoed in his mind, causing the brunette to shake his head and clench his fists, doing his best to stay calm and determined despite all this.

"Yeah…" he breathed out, running his hand all over his hair. "It feels so much like that night… but, do you remember the words I said to you at that moment Akame? What I promised you that time?"

It was impossible for her to forget about it. The promise that Tatsumi made to her when Sheele died was something that made an impact on her overall self when it happened, and it actually gave her hope, hope that they would come out on top after this war without any of their friends having to die. Out of all the comrades she had worked and bonded with throughout her life, Tatsumi is the first and only one to have made a promise that he wouldn't die, and that he would stay alive until the end so that she wouldn't mourn again. Despite the chances of him staying alive after all of the bloodshed being extremely low, he fearlessly made a pact that together, they would bring about the death of the Empire.

Together, they'll come out as the winners of this war.

Akame looked at the table and slowly quirked an eyebrow, before reaching out to grab another Evil Bird drumstick, probably to help her think straight since she always found satisfaction in meat. "You promised that, you won't die and… we'll defeat the Empire together… and… none of… our… friends… —!" Her eyes widening slightly, she stopped midway in her attempt to eat as she turned her head back towards him and she could definitely see the sad smile that was imprinted on Tatsumi's face.

"Yeah…" was all that he could mutter out, leaning his head against his elbow on the table.

"You mean —" Akame tried to say, but the young man had already spoken enough for her.

"That night, I said… that I won't let any more of our friends die. I promised you, and I remember it with all my heart. But… Aniki is gone now… and… I wasn't able to do anything about it… I let him die on that ship, and I failed you…" he stated, sighing deeply as he shook his head.

"Tatsumi, are you blaming yourself for what happened to Bulat?" asked Akame in a concerned tone, leaning closer towards him so she'd be able to hear him a lot better.

His silence was a good enough answer accompanied by the look on his eyes, telling the raven-haired girl the whole story as she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, shaking her head in denial as well.

"Tatsumi, you can't blame yourself for what happened. You may have been there, but you made the right decision. If you has decided to intervene in any way, you might have ended up getting killed." Akame's grip on his shoulder tightened, as she continued to speak on behalf of her personal feelings. "Do you think Bulat would have wanted you to die during the mission, Tatsumi?"

"No. But I could've done something to at least prevent his death from happening…" he replied, his hair shadowing over his eyes while his mind again went back to the time that him and Bulat were at the Dragon Ship, specifically during his last moments. "I could've brought his body back here and he would still be alive…"

"You did the right thing, Tatsumi. Those Beasts would've kept on targeting civil servants in the Capital if they weren't eliminated. Bulat would've never forgiven you if it came to that." Akame pointed out, looking genuinely hurt with every passing second as well. She didn't want to recall any memory that involved the demise of one of the people she cared about, but Tatsumi needed her right now.

He needed her.

Tatsumi sighed deeply, turning his gaze to the side as he scratched his head due to the pressure of those dark and sad thoughts invading his mind. "I'm sorry, I'm just too… caught up with what happened… Bulat dying… was just too unexpected…"

"Tatsumi… it's alright… listen to me, it's not your fault." Akame grabbed the sides of his head and made him face her, as the two assassins stared into each other's eyes. "Nobody blames you for what happened, Tatsumi… so please, let's just move on from this horrible tragedy. I don't blame you either for this, Tatsumi…"

He broke their eye contact, looking down on the floor as a few tears finally came, slowly streaming down his cheeks.

"But… I failed my promise… Bulat died in front of my eyes and we —" before he could speak any further, Akame's arms reached out further and wrapped together around his head as she pulled him close.

In a shocking action, the red-eyed assassin had pulled Tatsumi's head and hugged him to her modest bust, similar to what Leone does to him all the time. However, instead of suffocating him with the lack of air and fooling around like the busty blonde Lionelle user, her embrace felt soft and caring, and it definitely showed that Akame wasn't trying to kid around to lighten up the mood.

Tatsumi's eyes widened and his face began to heat up as he realized that his face was just between Akame's bust, making him forget about his depressing thoughts for the first time ever since he woke up from bed. His eyes stopped producing tears as the ones on his cheeks were beginning to dry up. Meanwhile, Akame was also blushing, yet she somehow had a warm smile on her face as she softly ran her fingers through the young man's hair.

"I believe in you, Tatsumi…" Akame said, closing her eyes as her blush deepened. "The promise that you made to me that night, it was the first time somebody promised me that they weren't going to die. The first time that somebody promised me that I wouldn't cry anymore." she admitted, smiling slightly as she opened her eyes.

"I-It was?" he asked, temporarily forgetting about his embarrassment to say something to Akame.

Akame buried her face into his brown locks, internally taking in the scent of his scalp, and finding it to be calming. "I know that a promise cannot be easily kept through words and it can be broken anytime, but I have faith in you."

"Akame…" Tatsumi really had no idea what to say right now.

"You've become important to me Tatsumi, more than you could ever know." Akame continued to confess, her blush being hidden through his hair. "That's why I believe in you… I believe that you can keep your promise to me… not because you keep on training to reach your full potential, but because you've grown to be important to me."

"I… I really don't know what to say, Akame… I'm… I'm blown away…" Tatsumi said in complete disbelief, his tears already dried up as he thought about her words.

He had never thought that Akame felt this way about him, and hearing her admit all of it in front of him, was something he never dreamed of happening. She was normally quiet and would rather keep her feelings to herself, but hearing her say all these things made him feel both special and shocked at the same time.

"If you're going to keep your promise, then let's make sure that this won't happen again to our family. We won't be broken up another time, not while we're still alive." Akame told him, letting her head lay on top of his as she slowly enjoyed the warm feeling that was provided to her by his hair. "You shouldn't shoulder the burden all alone, Tatsumi. Let me help you… let Night Raid help you. We'll keep each other alive to see the Empire fall and the new country to be born."

Tatsumi was simply quiet for the next few moments, too taken aback with Akame's sudden words that he didn't know what to do or how to respond. First it was the hug she surprisingly pulled him into, and then she began to breathe out words of comfort that struck his very soul, making him think of every single thing she said.

Finally, Tatsumi's lips curled up into a smile as he relaxed into Akame's embrace, accepting it wholeheartedly before he began to speak after what seemed like forever.

He nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, you're right, Akame. I can prevent this from happening again… as long as we watch each other's backs and keep one another safe… we can win this war without having to say goodbye to another one of our friends…" As he finished his words, Tatsumi chuckled lightly while his blush got reduced to a small one. "T-Thanks, Akame… I guess I needed that… your words totally helped me."

Akame smiled. "I'm glad… remember what I said, Tatsumi. You're important to me, and I don't want to see you hurting like this."

He chuckled again and this time, he couldn't help but feel like this hug that Akame was giving him, it helped him to feel better and Tatsumi felt like he wasn't ready to let go just yet. Her touch felt warm and soft, and her overall emotion only showed how kind and caring she could be. However, he also knew that his head was just between the girl's breasts but she wasn't even complaining about it like Leone. And so, as embarrassing as it may sound, he steeled himself for what he was about to say next.

"Say, Akame?" he asked, glancing up at her.

"What is it?"

"Uhm… d-do you think… do you think we could s-stay like this… just… just for a little while longer?" he struggled to say, his face growing as red as a tomato.

"Sure, Tatsumi." Akame smiled genuinely and nodded, hugging him a bit tighter than before, but enough to still let him breathe freely.

Tatsumi chuckled one last time, letting himself be pulled further into her chest as he moved his arms to loosely wrap around her back in a hug of his own, just to follow what Akame did to him but he did not aim to take it too far, slightly afraid that she might take it the wrong way and overreact.

"Thank you, Akame. You're… really important to me too, you know." Tatsumi grinned, and he could've sworn that he heard the girl start to giggle for a few moments before things eventually calmed down between the two of them.

Throughout most of the night, both assassins stayed where they were, comforting one another with their touch as they enjoyed each other's company.

It was a memory delightful enough for them to remember, even in their dreams as they slept many hours later.

Fuhahahahaha! Well, I figured I could switch things up with this one and have Akame be the one to comfort Tatsumi instead of the other way around. How was it? Good or not?

Requirements for next chapter (I made a deal with a few bros): At least 5 paragraph reviews. That's all I ask. For the rest, you can review however you want, as long as there is no flames.

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Goodbye... and good night! BANG! *too sweet gesture*

-Lance