Ansatsu Kyoushitsu: To Tame a Demon
D/C: I don't own anything from Ansatsu Kyoushitsu, I only own my own OC's.
Chapter 13
Nagisa's pov:
I didn't know how to react at first, and you couldn't blame me about that.
I mean, in front of me stood another Fire Demon who happened to be Karma's older brother and probably decades older than him, meaning that he was a hella strong fellow. He looked exactly like Karma, exception being taller and having darker red hair, but the burning gold eyes were the same. And that arrogant, cold smile on his lips.
What did he say his name was again…?
Kazuo?
Nice, a nice name indeed.
But I really felt like there was something else in him. I swore I had seen his face before, and not only because he looked a lot like Karma (or Karma looked a lot like him), but I had seen that shade of red before, those long legs and maybe even slightly colder eyes than Karma's.
"I've seen you before", was the first thing I then said, before I could even stop myself.
While Karma looked surprised by this, Kazuo merely chuckled, his voice hollow and emotionless, which made me grimace. He seemed so much worse than Karma, who was a good example of someone emotionally frigid.
"Nice of you to realize that, I didn't think you'd even remember it", Karma's older brother replied dryly, before he turned around to face Kris, the strange Ice Demon and Takaoka, the ever so crazy fucker I hated so much already. I stared at Kazuo's broad shoulders and for a moment, feeling Karma's stare on myself at the same time. It was funny how the older Fire Demon so easily ignored my whole existence; obviously Karma learned that from him.
I then turned to look at Karma, who stared right back. He looked okay, although his eyes were wide open with curiosity and something I couldn't understand. Maybe it was slight concern I saw there, but I wasn't sure, so I didn't let my hopes high. I also noted that Karma was being held in place by Kazuo's tight grip on his left wrist and I thought that it was pretty amazing. To hold a demon like Karma in place with just one hand… it was impressive.
But heck, it was scary too.
My train of thought was interrupted by Takaoka's loud boasting and I turned my attention back to him, letting the slight disgust show on my face. I really didn't like him; to be exact, for the first time in my life, I had started to despise someone from the very first meeting. I usually tried to give people new chances, but not with Takaoka. He didn't seem like the person to change.
"So, you're a Fire Demon too! Great, now I can take the both of you!" Takaoka said, somehow seeming excited about Kazuo's appearance, while his Ice Demon looked ready to either cry or laugh.
Yeah, I feel you. I don't know which to do either, I thought and heard Karma chuckle inside my mind. How did I always manage to forget that he could read my mind? Every thought, every feeling; even before I realized it myself.
"Now, now. Don't sound so judging. You're the one who wanted to continue and keep me around", Karma said in my mind, but shut up suddenly. The red head tried to pull his hand away, but Kazuo's grip only got tighter, and Karma couldn't do anything. It was weird to see him struggle to get Kazuo let go, when the older one didn't even flinch. I could literally see Karma trying to fight him in my mind, without an outcome.
"Oh, fuck you", said red head hissed in my mind and now it was my turn to smile, albeit weakly.
"You said that you're Karma-kun's older brother… that's interesting. I can already sense your power, you must be considerably stronger. And Kris must now you too", Takaoka continued, Kazuo eyeing him thoughtfully. Karma's older brother seemed a lot calmer than the red head himself, I noted. "Are you stronger than Kris then?"
"I can assure you, human, that yes, I am", Kazuo calmly answered. He didn't seem the last bit fazed by Takaoka's rude tone towards him and I had to hand it to him. I mean, demons were usually impatient with humans, but Kazuo was completely different. Maybe it was the age; or maybe the experience he had with humans. "Now, I can tell that you're already thinking of how to get both Karma and I to bow our heads in front you, but I'm advising you not to think such idiotic things. You have only one Ice Demon by your side and from what I've seen, you can't even fully control him; even after ten long years."
Takaoka's eyes narrowed. "What are you trying to say?"
"The easiest order for a master to give out to his demon, is the order to kill, which you just gave to Kris. And he reacted", Kazuo explained not caring about the angry glare thrown to his direction. "Not getting it, human? Let me then say it again."
A cold smirk formed on the thin lips of the older Fire Demon. "The easiest order."
Takaoka's eyes widened a bit at the realization, but his surprise was soon replaced by anger. "So you're saying that my work with Kris is incomplete?"
"You're dealing with one of the oldest Ice Demons and one of the strongest demon-kings; mere ten years aren't enough", Kazuo chuckled. "If anything, you should be lucky that Kris is weak in here. You must have hard time sleeping, you poor little human soul." Was it just me or was Kazuo's voice getting deeper and sweeter with every word?
"Always afraid, not ever able to lower your guard. Because once you do… it's over." I could hear the smile in his voice despite the fact that it had disappeared from his face. "Such. A pathetic. Being."
Takaoka didn't answer and even his own demon was surprised about that, because I saw him give his master a wide-eyed glance.
"Aw, and now you realize it? How truly pathetic of you", Kazuo continued, taking a small but steady step forward and Karma had to do his very best not to be dragged with him. "You humans are fools; you don't even know your own limits. Listen to me well, human."
The golden eyes narrowed at Takaoka, who quietly stared back, submission deep in them. Had the fatso accepted his position below Kazuo? I didn't know and honestly, I didn't want to know. I was suddenly really scared, and I could see that so were everyone else, even Karasuma and Bitch-sensei.
Only Koro-sensei was trying to hold that smile on his face, even though I could see his mouth twitch downwards from time to time.
"There will be a day, when you'll have to lower your guard. And that day, you'll see the true nature of a demon."
I watched as Takaoka fell on his knees, sweat draining down his neck so disgustingly visibly.
"No matter how long you try, demons are not meant to be tied down by humans and their stupid spells. If you say that a demon will break then let me remind you; so will a human. And so, so much more easily than a demon." Kazuo gave Takaoka a one last, cold glance before turning his attention back to me, bravely turning his back on Kris and the fatso teacher.
No one made a move.
"Now to get this done with", the older Fire Demon said, eyeing me coldly and making me want to disappear under the ground. His stare was a lot more intense than Karma's, holding in so much power and authority. "I need to cut the ties you have with Karma. It's not acceptable for a Fire Demon to be chained to a human boy."
"So… you're going to kill me?" I asked with a tiny voice. I expected to get a yes as an answer, but instead Kazuo just laughed.
"Kill you? No, I don't need to kill you cut the contract", he replied, pulling Karma by his wrist towards me, but still not letting go. "I just need you to stand there and look dumb as you humans always do. Stay put and this will hurt less. And Karma, whatever you're thinking right now, you better cut it right there. If you do something, I'll make sure to tell father every little detail of your little sidestep and then we'll see how things turn out."
"Is he that pissed?" Karma nervously asked.
Kazuo raised a brow. "Pissed? No, Karma; he is furious."
The younger red head grimaced. "Why does he have to be such a grumpy ass? I didn't hurt him."
"You disobeyed him", Kazuo pointed out.
"I do that all the time", Karma retorted and I gave the two of them confused looks. Wasn't Kazuo about to cut my contract with Karma? Well, instead of doing that, he was now having an argument with him. "He should stop taking it so personally."
"Say it to his face and we'll see does he take it so personally or not."
"If I say it to his face, then it'll be personal for sure."
"Try it, entertain me. It would spice up the atmosphere in Hell for sure", Kazuo suggested, suddenly seeming like he forgot about the humans surrounding him. He had his shoulders relaxed and his attention was wholly on Karma. I found it strangely cute, because demons never behaved like that. Maybe I saw a little bit of fondness in the elder's eyes as he looked at his younger brother.
"Spice up, my ass. I'll only end up half dead somewhere around the Ice district", Karma answered and Kazuo chuckled.
"True, but you'd deserve that."
"Fuck you."
"Language, you little ungrateful brat."
A cold laughter rang in the air and stopped the two Fire Demons from continuing their argument. The two red heads turned their attention towards the one Ice Demon still sitting on the ground close by his master. The Ice Demon had a strangely peaceful smile on his face and it weirded me out a bit.
"You two haven't changed a bit in the past ten years", Kris commented, eying the Fire Demons with slight amusement glimmering in his eyes.
"For your own sake I hope that you said it as a compliment", Karma answered Kris, a small smile – almost unnoticeable – forming on his lips.
"You can look it whatever way you want", the Ice Demon chuckled, earning an eye roll from Karma.
I found it so funny, seeing him act like that. He was a lot more relaxed around his brother despite the way they talked to each other. He looked to be so at ease when he smiled like that; like it was just a natural thing to do. And maybe between demons, it was. But no, for humans they would never smile, they would never look at us the same way they looked at their own. I couldn't blame them, because we were the same. We even hated demons more than they probably hated us.
Would it always be like this between the two worlds? Would we always act like this – would we always hate each other? Or could we change?
I didn't know. The answer to all those question was simple; maybe.
Maybe we could change, maybe we could learn to live in peace. But it would need will from both sides. Both sides would need to try, and I was pretty sure no human or demon was willing to go that far for peace.
"Kris, I suggest you cut your contract with that human being, he is weak now. This might be the only chance you get – even for a pathetic being, he is pretty strong-willed. It could take some time until he'll lower his guard again", Kazuo said, but said Ice Demon just shrugged it off.
"You know me, Kazuo. I have few reasons why I have kept him around for these ten years", Kris answered, reaching out for his unmoving master, who didn't push him away as the Ice Demon brought his long and thin fingers against his cheek. Takaoka seemed a bit dead, but I knew he was alive – just under some spell made by Kazuo. "Until my mission is fulfilled here, I'll keep him alive. Be his demon. But you're right, it will all end sooner or later. It's the same between all demons and masters. You kids will see it someday." Kris's eyes were looking at me for a moment, before he turned to his master again.
"A pathetic being he is indeed. He let himself be talked down by another demon, he let you get under his skin, Kazuo. It might take a moment for him to wake up from it – he's never been sweet-talked by a demon before, after all, I don't do it."
"Sweet-talk?" I heard Kayano question.
"Don't you guys know what it is?" Karma piped up, giving me a confused look. I shook my head slightly, turning to look at Koro-sensei. The octopus had never taught us anything about sweet-talk; what was it?
"Sweet-talk is just a one way of naming it", Karasuma-sensei spoke up instead of the yellow octopus I was waiting for to speak. "The simplest, I suppose. It's a way of speaking, as you can guess. Exceptionally sweet, alluring, seductive. With this power, demons can lure people into their hands, or worse, make their masters lower their guards. It's strong and dangerous power despite it being just talking. A demon can control a human this way; but to our luck, only few demon-kings are capable of doing it. You might think that all demons can do it from the way they talk, but that's nowhere close to the real thing. Just now, the older Fire Demon used only a quarter of what sweet-talk truly is." Karasuma-sensei let out a sigh, his shoulders slumping down a bit.
"I honestly didn't want you guys to learn about it just yet; I had it planned for later. Yes, it is an important and dangerous ability demons possibly possess, but I didn't think you'd ever cross it. I don't know if Karma is capable of sweet talking and I'd rather not find out. He could possible turn our class upside down, despite being chained to you, Nagisa-kun, should he do it. Many people don't even know how dangerous it can be, because they haven't seen the real thing."
"It didn't seem so bad just now", Maehara-kun pointed out but Karasuma-sensei only shook his head.
"If I would truly sweet-talk to you – what I weird name by the way – you'd all be down on the ground, begging for me to kill you; or maybe you would've already killed yourselves, depending on what I'd say", Kazuo answered, his tone amused. "And to break it to you, Karma can sweet-talk – but seriously, change that name, it sounds so gross."
"Yeah, the brat is really good at it; I mean, he once talked himself out of trouble. It may not sound so big, but it was Satan-sama he was talking to, so it is big. The creator of 'lure speech' as we demons commonly call it, couldn't hold his ground against someone who had only learned that skill… hundred years ago?" Kris said absently.
"That's a bit exaggerating", Karma muttered. "I didn't exactly sweet-talk to him, I just reasoned."
Kris rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right. Like I could ever take your word seriously."
"This is exactly why I hate you Kris", Karma sighed, waving his hand in defeat. "You're so old and such a grumpy ass. Almost as bad as father."
"Old? I'm not old."
"Oh, but you're about three thousand years-old, so I think you should start accepting the fact that yes Kris, you are old", came the matter-of-fact reply.
"You're hundred years old yourself; for humans that's really old you know", Kris snorted.
"But for a demon, he is about ten", Kazuo pointed out casually.
Karma gave his older brother a pointed look. "Older than ten; at least fifteen."
"From the way you act, five, I'd say."
"Rude, Kazuo. And low", Karma answered.
"Maybe you should accept the fact that no matter how many years pass, I'll always be two thousand years older than you, dear little brother. And you'll look the same for the next hundred years, so don't expect anything to change – especially if you keep behaving so badly", Kazuo said and I had to hold back a chuckle. It was cute for Karma to be scolded like that. And Kazuo had forgotten the real reason he was there, so it was completely fine with me. Keep arguing and two thumbs up from me.
"That is -", Karma started. "- first of all, mean. Secondly, a bit unfair because I didn't decide to be born when I was. Thirdly, don't think I'll ever change." The younger red head grinned mischievously, and Kazuo sighed at the same time with Kris. "I'll make sure to annoy the two of you as long as I live. To spice up the atmosphere in Hell, wasn't that what you wanted? Then I'll make sure to give exactly that to you."
Kazuo shook his head, but I could hear the laughter rising in his chest. "Yeah, I know you will, probably for the next five thousand years, possibly a lot more."
"Yah, wait a second. I don't want to live that long – it would mean the same thing father is doing now. Sit around and control everything; that's boring. Life needs to be full of adventure and unexpected things. I want excitement."
"You've had enough excitement for the next decade. And what do you think I'm here for?" Kazuo asked, leaning towards Karma, an eyebrow slightly raised.
Karma gave him a confused look. "Um… to make sure I know father is angry and will kill me when I return?"
Kazuo smiled coldly. "No, Karma, I'm here to make sure you won't die. And I'll be doing the same thing for the next decade and longer – you know, just to make sure you get to suffer the time you deserve."
If it wouldn't have been for the last part, I would've found Kazuo's words exceptionally endearing.
Karma was about to answer, but Kazuo continued before he could, his head snapping towards me.
"Now, I think we need to return to the first subject in hand", he said slowly. "To cut the contract between you and the human boy." Kazuo's left hand started to glow suddenly, and I swore it disappeared for a moment, before it came back and he was holding a glowing black sword in his hand. He had probably pulled it from Hell through some portal he had opened in the air. The sword was made of some pitch black, hard looking material and I didn't question its power. It radiated hot air and really strong spiritual-aura, combined with Kazuo's already immense power.
He swung the sword around a bit, before turning the blade towards me, the tip of the sword pointed at my throat.
"Let's get this done with, shall we?"
Kazuo's pov:
The blue-haired human boy shivered under the black blade of Hell, making me slightly sorry for putting him in such situation. He was just a kid, after all, and I was soft enough to actually feel bad for a human. Mayu and mother would be proud of me, had they known.
"Where did you get that from?" Karma asked, eyeing the black sword in my hand. "I thought father had hidden it…"
"Well, I reasoned with him and he agreed to let me use it to cut your contract with the human boy", I answered calmly. "You should be thankful for it, at least it won't kill the poor boy. It might damage his soul, but that's… um, an unfortunate side-effect?"
"Damage my soul?" the bluenette asked with his tiny, shivering and annoyingly high-pitched voice.
"A small and unfortunate side-effect of this blade, like I said. You see, this blade was created to cut the spiritual, not the physical. We have a special sword for that too – and you must've seen Karma's weapon once in a while, right?"
"The sword he always carries around but never uses?"
I gave Karma a questioning look. Never uses? Karma just stared back at me, his eyes giving no answer.
"Yeah… well, that's a Hell's sword too. It can burn anything, spiritual and physical altogether."
"Why don't you ever use it then?" the bluenette turned to look at Karma, who scratched the back of his neck nervously.
"How to put it…?" he mumbled. "I don't like using it? It's too easy; I mean, you literally would need just a one swing of it and this whole mountain would be gone. And where's the fun in that?"
I sensed that there was something more in it too, but the human bought it and didn't ask more, so I stayed quiet. If Karma didn't want to talk about it, I wouldn't push it; not now at least. Someday he will need to the tell the truth to someone. All left for me to do, was to wait and see who that someone will be.
"Alright, enough of this useless chit-chat; the faster I get this done, the better. If you want, human boy, I can wipe your memory to make it even less painful. What you can't remember, won't hurt you. Isn't that a policy of some kind you humans live with?" I turned towards the bluenette again,
"No!" the boy was quick to answer me, his words coming off stronger and more confident I thought. He shuts up quickly though, most likely afraid. I can't blame him – I wouldn't like to have a sword pointed at my throat either.
And despite, the boy had every right to be afraid. Right then, there were three demon-kings present, and only one was on his side. Though, I had to wonder, if Karma was even going to pick the human's side. I knew he didn't like to be chained; I could see it from his face. And the way he stayed in my presence easily messaged to me, that he was starting to get cold.
The boy needed to return to Hell, to his home, and I was going to drag him there, even if I would have to knock him out to do it.
"I mean, I guess some people do live with a policy like that", the bluenette continued after a moment of hesitation. "But I don't, and I'm not planning on letting you wipe my memory. And Karma… you can't take him away either!"
My hold on the sword haltered after the human's words – not because I'd actually care about his opinion but because I found it amusing.
Did this human really think he'd have a chance against me?
I let out a soft chuckle, giving Karma a somewhat bored look. My younger brother seemed bothered and a bit torn, but he answered my gaze through the wave of nervousness I could feel radiating from him. It reminded me of Mayu and our mother a little bit – those two always loved humans so dearly and it annoyed me to know, that Karma had unfortunately inherited that useless trait.
He was fond of this human boy, I could tell.
But, he also knew his place. He also wanted me to cut the contract, I could see that deep in his eyes as well.
"Listen, human boy", I said, my tone getting a bit softer. Once again, it was just to show that Karma hadn't been the only one inheriting something from our mother. Unfortunately, I too, did share some of her thoughts and feelings towards the world. And oh, how did I despise that side of me.
"I don't think you exactly get how big of a step you have taken right now. You're- what? Fourteen? That's a bit too young, you know. You're trying to tame a demon-king at such a young age, someone who happens to be a Fire Demon too. It's foolish for you to think that you'll ever be able to complete that task – I mean, look at that man."
I turned to point at Kris and his master, who still lingered on the ground. "It's been ten years since he caught Kris and he's not even past the first point. And for your information, Karma can grow. His powers will grow. One day, soon enough, you won't be able to handle him anymore, kiddo. You'll kill yourself for nothing."
"Karma wouldn't kill me", the bluenette said, somewhat confident but also afraid.
He's not even sure and yet he dares to say it aloud, I thought, both amused and full of pity for this foolish human child.
"Say that with full confidence and I'll consider believing into", I simply told him. "What exactly makes you even say that? You don't know Karma; you don't even know what he is capable of doing right now, yet you think- you want to think, that he wouldn't kill you. Let me remind you, human boy, that you're a human and he's a demon. You live different lives, believe in different things and belong to different worlds."
I could see that my words cut the boy deep and hard, painfully so, but I didn't really care for that. Out of everything in hand, Karma's safety was my number on priority. And in the human world, the red-haired boy was nowhere near being safe.
It was sad to think so, but Karma was literally all I had left to call family. And I knew, that in a way, I was all he had left as well. Sure, we have brothers and our father, we have Rin, but I'm the only one who out of all those people, has ever considered looking at things the way Karma, Mayu and our mother did.
The way humans look at things.
It's all thanks to the woman who created us all next to our father, who lived through decades even after losing her own family, just to stay next to a man, a demon, she loved. If she hadn't shared her love for humanity with Mayu or Karma, I would have never gotten this close to the red headed idiot. I never believed in the good of humans or in the good of demons, but at least I listened. And considered, that maybe she wasn't entirely wrong.
And why did our mother love humans so much?
Well simply, she had once been a one.
Surprising, wasn't it? To know, that our beloved mother, the only love our father ever had, was once a human much like the blue-haired boy in front of me. It was ridiculous, truly, to know, that in our veins, flowed the blood of humans. That in a way, it was only normal for us to be able to relate with these pathetic beings so much.
However, our mother had lost her humanity at some point, so we couldn't exactly be called half-demons either. The part she passed down to us is what makes Fire Demons different from the rest. It's what makes us strong, despite what others may think.
And that's what made me a bit interested in humans. Only a bit though, because from inside and outside, I was still nothing but a demon.
I heaved a quiet sigh before lifting up my sword once again. Karma flinched nearly unnoticeably, and the blue-haired boy took a careful step back. Before I however, got the chance to do anything, that strange yellow octopus thing came in between.
I wasn't all that surprised – after observing it and the rest of the 3E-class, I had quickly picked up on his weird quirks and abilities. Also, linked some missing parts together and now, in a way, it was clear to me.
As in, I thought I figured out why this guy was so weird and what made him lose his humanity. It honestly made me a bit disgusted and pissed off – and I was sure if Karma would know the truth, he would hate this class too.
"I have to apologize, but I cannot let you hurt any of my students", the yellow octopus, whose name apparently was Koro-sensei, said. "That of course, includes Karma as well." It or he, I wasn't sure what to call him, gave a blank look towards the smaller red head who said nothing and didn't even meet the octopus's eyes.
He was doubting his position in the class and it made me smile a little, albeit it wasn't exactly nice. I know being in this world or being in Hell… neither of those places would make Karma happy. I doubt anything could, not anymore, but better at home than in a place full of hate towards his very being.
The humans only wanted to use him and Karma knew it, though he certainly didn't want to admit it.
"Do you consider him to be your student?" I asked quietly, my blade now pointed at the yellow octopus. I was half expecting Karma to come between, but he didn't; the younger red head only continued to follow us with his eyes, in complete silence.
"Of course, I do. He agreed to be a part of this class, since he is Nagisa-kun's demon, and it would make things easier for us", Koro-sensei explained, and I hummed thoughtfully, understanding the teacher's logic. "And as his teacher, I am naturally supposed to take care of him."
"And you don't think I would?"
The yellow octopus shook one of his tentacles, too close to my face for my liking, but I held myself off from attacking him. "No, I actually think the contrary. I'm sure you'd take good care of Karma-kun, since you're his older brother and you two are related by blood."
"Being blood-relatives doesn't matter to demons", Kris pointed out coldly, chuckling to himself.
"I think it depends on the person you're asking from", Koro-sensei said to that, and I knew he specifically meant Karma and me. I do know that for demons, we seem to have a close relationship and we do, at least in some level. It's not like we'd be best buddies though, never that, but out of all my other siblings, I do consider Karma to be closest to me.
"So, if you know that I'll take care of Karma, why won't you just let me take him back to Hell? It would save a lot of trouble from you as well", I tried to reason with the yellow octopus, but my tone had lost the softness apparent before.
I was honestly getting quite bored with the humans and their annoying ways of making everything so problematic. I have patience, I have lots of it, but right then, I was running out of it.
"Because he's still a part of this class; a very important part, too. And he's Nagisa-kun's demon, someone he is supposed to tame. If he doesn't have a one, how could he ever learn the ways of Demon Hunters?" Koro-sensei asks instead of answering me the way I would have liked – which would have been a simple explanation.
"You can always summon a new, weaker one. Someone suitable for a little kid."
"I'm not a little kid", the bluenette, Nagisa, complained but he went silence when I have him a long glare.
"Humans aren't capable of taming Fire Demons – not to even mention killing a one", I continued on, once again lowering my sword. Seeing that, the yellow octopus relaxed a little. He understood that I wasn't there to kill, and I wouldn't kill unless forced so.
I knew this guy knew a lot about the behavior of demon-kings, even Fire Demons. Demon-kings, at least the strongest ones, were usually very sophisticated which surprised humans. We weren't bloodthirsty monsters who acted out of pure instinct, but we were actually capable of rational thinking, and we could usually interact normally with humans.
It wasn't a good thing, however, like many would think. Because it gave us demons a chance to learn more about humans, hide ourselves amongst them and cause even more damage. It scared the humans, but they could do nothing to stop us – because you never knew. You could never tell if the person standing next to you was an actual demon or not.
"Now, let me do my job and cut the contract off. I say we do it the easy way, so no one will have to get hurt in the process", I suggested to the yellow octopus. "With all respect, humans, I'm starting to run out of patience and I would like to finish this quickly." My increasing annoyance could be seen from my eyes, I was sure of it and couple of the human kids took a step back, hiding behind their teachers' backs.
Once again, I couldn't blame them. I suppose no one wants to be alone with a pissed of Fire Demon.
"I assure you, demon, I'm starting to run out of patience too", the yellow octopus surprisingly said instead of backing down. "You're threatening my students and I do not like that."
The way the teacher spoke – it sounded awfully a lot like he was starting to talk down on me. And even though I consider myself to be pretty nice for a demon, it pissed me off. How could this thing, that I couldn't even consider human, try and talk to me like I was some lowlife?
Anger spiked up deep inside of me. "I haven't really threatened anyone here. And may I remind you, Karma wouldn't get hurt with me. If anything, he'll get hurt here."
"Hurt? He's a Fire Demon – I thought you guys were supposed to be invincible."
Okay, I got what this guy was trying to do. He was purposely trying to get me all worked out, and although I knew this, I still couldn't help but feel angry. Yes, Fire Demons were especially strong and nearly invincible, Karma was a kid. A child, to me at least. And someone I needed to take care of because obviously the brat couldn't do that himself.
I took couple of brave steps forward until I stood directly in front of the yellow octopus. He was taller than I (of course I could've made myself grow but that would look foolish) but he didn't scare me. I knew he was strong, but his powers didn't match mine, not yet anyway.
"A piece of advice to you, sensei, but I wouldn't say picking a fight with me is the wisest thing to do right now", I growled at him, the air getting warmer around us. The sudden show of my fire made Karma's flames flicker too and I could sense how the younger's flames tried to reach out for mine, albeit against their owner's will.
Surely, Karma would hate to admit that he's dependent on me.
When the yellow octopus didn't answer, I continued, my voice dropping lower so only Koro-sensei could hear it. "Karma is a child, very much like the kids you teach. And he's my responsibility so keep your tentacles off him."
"He's my student though, so it makes him my responsibility as well", the yellow octopus argued back and I was so close to turning him into ash, right there and then.
But Kris's managed to stop me from doing that, just in time. "Kazuo", the ice demon suddenly called out and hearing the serious tone, I turned my attention on him. "He's stirring awake, you might want to dodge. He might actually still try to attack you."
With him, Kris meant his master who really was starting to wake up to reality. I couldn't help the snort when the man's eyes met mine as life seeped back into his face.
"You!" He right away pointed his finger at me. "You little shit! How dare you-" Angry, the man cut himself off and turned towards Kris instead. "Kill him, you idiot!"
Kris gave me a pointed look, shrugged his shoulders and got up.
"You've got to be kidding with me", I whispered but I knew Kris really didn't have a choice. After all, like I said before, the order to kill is the easiest of all, since it was so simple and woke up the want to destroy inside of demons. And I felt a lot like Kris wanted to test his powers on me; see whether he has grown weaker or not.
"Listen, if we fight here, everything is going to end up destroyed. And these little kids will die", I said, trying to make a point obvious enough for the stupid human to see as well.
"You'll also die in the process, and then your demon will be free, all your effort completely gone", Karma added, taking my side. "I think you should consider again what you're doing… and like maybe, just calm down?"
"Both of you – shut up!" Takaoka just screamed, obviously not in the mood to listen anyone. "You think so highly of yourselves, as if you'd be better than the rest of us. Well! I'm going to prove you all wrong, I've had enough of you – now Kris, kill them both!"
Stupid human, I thought, swinging the black blade in my hand before it disappeared and instead, a longer weapon, a spear appeared in my hand. It was my own weapon, made just for me to use and that if anything signaled that this was about to get serious. Kris is a considerably strong opponent and I knew not to underestimate him; I just hoped that the humans around us wouldn't do it either, because I'd rather not see a slaughter today.
Karma returned to his human's side, somewhere behind the yellow octopus and far enough from Kris, so he wasn't my first concern anymore.
The white-haired Ice Demon moved fast despite his weakened state and charged directly at me, two icy blades growing in his hands. I could sense that the humans were starting to create magical barriers and walls to protect them, the yellow octopus using his own body to protect both Karma and Nagisa.
The first hit was strong, Kris's swords meeting with my spear, creating a strong wave of pure aura to flare around. But boy, it was just the beginning and it already seemed like it was too much for all the humans around.
Karma's pov:
I didn't know whether to be happy or terrified of the fact that Kazuo and Kris thought it was a great idea to start a fight.
I should be happy for Kazuo wasn't going to cut my contract with Nagisa (for now at least) but him fighting with Kris was worse. Those two could literally just destroy this whole place, this whole city and no one would be able to stop them.
I wasn't going to go between them, that's for sure. They both possess powers greater than I do and I'm not entirely suicidal; I knew if I'd step in and try to do something, I'd just end up wounded. And that isn't my ideal idea of how to spend your day.
My day though, was ruined already. And maybe, if I would step in, maybe Kazuo would stop. Maybe Kris would come to his senses and kill his master, despite the whatever mission he has yet to complete.
"Karma… is there anything we can do?" Nagisa asked from me, grabbing my shoulder weakly. Any other day, I would have moved away from his touch but this time, I just let him hold onto me in the hopes of driving away my own fears.
"Other than stay out of the way? No, I don't think there is", I mumbled back, grimacing as another blast of energy nearly threw Koro-sensei on me. Seriously, he did handle the pressuring auras pretty well, but he was no demon. For me, who was used to being around demons like Kazuo, it was easy to continue standing, unfazed but…
I cut my thoughts off as I heard Kayano's scream when an especially strong wave made her fly back alongside with few others. Luckily, Karasuma-sensei was able to save them from hitting anything dangerous.
"There has to be something we should be able to do!" Nagisa screamed through the commotion. "If this goes on… the whole school could be in danger!"
I think you should be more worried about yourself, I nearly screamed back but I held myself off. "Okay, there is a one way to stop them without actually stepping into the fight. We have to get to Takaoka and make him pull Kris back. Then Kazuo will stop too."
Nagisa gave my shoulder a firm squeeze, his eyes full of fear. "But Takaoka is behind them. How can we even-"
"I don't know, you figure that out", I interrupted him. "But I suggest you do that fast."
Nagisa went silent, still hiding behind me but at least now I knew he was thinking. His thoughts were seriously running around wildly and so fast even I had some trouble keeping up with all of it. But he did make some pretty good points; first, we could never go straight through Kazuo and Kris, second, Kris would most likely try to protect Takaoka and third, the literal and only choice we had, was to go around them.
Which wasn't going to be easy, either.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked from Nagisa when his blue eyes turned back to me.
"You're the only one here who has remotely a chance against them", he said, biting his lip nervously and looking a bit torn. "I don't want to put you in danger but no one else can do it either. I'll come with you though…"
I was slightly taken aback by his concern over me but then again, Nagisa had been a worrywart the whole time I had spent with him.
I was kind of thankful for he thought me too. But seriously, the kid should be more worried about himself.
I never voiced out my gratitude, however, I just shook his hand off my shoulder and nodded. "Then, let's go. And no matter what, don't stop; go to Takaoka and stop him. If needed, I got your back."
I could feel relief wash over Nagisa's whole being and he smiled, big and bright like usually. It was a pretty amazing trait in humans – they could continue on smiling no matter the situation. It was very brave of them, I admitted.
He took the lead, making sure to pass Kazuo and Kris as far as he could. Koro-sensei nearly stopped us but only a one look from the bluenette was enough to make him reconsider. It was obvious the yellow octopus had no other choice but to rely on us for now.
I'm not sure if Kazuo realized what we were doing or not, but he still protected us from Kris, I noted. When Kris noticed us, and tried to come at me, Kazuo went straight between, pushing the Ice Demon further away. Seriously, older brothers could be useful from time to time, especially if they were overprotective like Kazuo.
I was kind of thankful to him too, for he tried to understand, even if he fully couldn't. At least he was trying.
"Nagisa, move faster", I told the boy in front of me. He was trying to stay as low and unnoticeable as possible, but honestly it was only slowing us down. "We have to hurry."
I could see that Kris's attacks had become more aggressive after the white-haired demon could sense his master was in danger. I knew that personally, Kris didn't give a damn about Takaoka's life but the mission he had been doing for ten years was in danger. I'd be pretty pissed too if someone would try to mess it up.
Suddenly a dark cloud appeared directly above the 3E-class building and before I even knew, hundreds of icy blades were raining down on us.
Shit! I cursed, knowing that those things were no joke. Koro-sensei immediately went to protect the rest of the students and teachers, Kazuo had to continue his fight with Kris and crap- I had to protect Nagisa.
Quickly, just as the first ice blades hit the ground, I grabbed Nagisa by his wrist and pushed him down, throwing myself on the line. I didn't even know what hit me – why I did such a thing, but I couldn't let Kris's icy blades kill Nagisa just like that; those things hurt.
My body radiated enough warmth to melt each and every blade coming at us and with Nagisa's body under mine, he wasn't hit either. The rain of ice blades stopped soon enough, in his situation Kris of course wasn't able to keep it up for long, but a lot of damage had been done. Karasuma-sensei had an ice blade sticking up from his leg and Koro-sensei was full of them and down on the ground, although I doubted he was hurt.
Kazuo was unfazed by all this, of course, and so was Kris.
"Karma, are you okay?" Nagisa's quiet voice asked from me and I tore my eyes away from my older brother to glance at the bluenette still lying under me. He seemed confused and there was something pink on his cheeks and the longer I stared, the deeper shade it took. Was he blushing? Did that mean he's embarrassed? About what, exactly?
"Ah… I'm fine", I answered just as quiet, slowly getting off him. It's true that none of Kris's icy blades hit me but I did lose some energy, thanks to being tied to Nagisa.
"Are you sure?" the bluenette continued to question and I just nodded my head.
"Completely fine. Now, keep moving."
I wasn't exactly fine for long though, as just when we were about to reach Takaoka who was watching everything with excited eyes, Kris managed to slip past Kazuo and suddenly appeared behind Nagisa and I.
One of his swords came down at Nagisa so fast I nearly didn't have any time to react but in the last second, I roughly pushed Nagisa forward on the ground once again and instead of piercing Nagisa's chest, Kris's blade ended up piercing my shoulder.
The coldness of it surprised me and made my senses go crazy, my whole body trying to reject the cold radiating from Kris's blade. The sword wasn't inside of my shoulder for long, as Kazuo pulled the owner of it back and as soon as Kris wasn't holding the sword anymore, I reached over and took it out. They say that you should leave such things inside to keep the bleeding as small as possible, but I couldn't take having such cold thing inside of my arm any longer.
I could already feel the affect it had on me – ice always did the same, even if it wasn't going to kill me. My movements would get slower and thinking harder, and my body would be send into overdrive, desperately trying to increase my lowering body heat. It was scary to even think that my normal body heat, which was usually around forty degrees or higher, would drop any lower. It was bad for Fire Demons, though normal for humans.
"Karma!" Nagisa was all over me in a second, his blown wide eyes filled with guilt and worry. "Shit- you're bleeding so much! Are you okay? How do you feel? C-can you keep moving?"
"Shut up", I hissed out, smacking the bluenette on the head. My next words came out rushed and gritted right through my teeth, as I tried to keep the pain at bay. "Takaoka, remember? We have to stop him."
"I'll do it, I've got this", Nagisa reassured me, his hand coming up to my other shoulder, the better one. "Stay here and don't do anything reckless. I'll handle Takaoka, you try to stop the bleeding."
I was too numb to argue back and soon enough, Nagisa's hand left my shoulder and I could faintly see him hurrying off towards the man kneeling on the ground. A tired sigh left my lips as I pressed a hand over my bleeding wound, cursing the damned ice creeping up my body. Kris's ice wasn't normal – it would keep on expanding; growing and moving, and now I had some of it inside of me. And I wasn't able to stop it from growing, the ice making its way towards my heart and my flame.
God, I need to get it out, get it out, get it out-
I don't know whether I passed out or not, but it felt a lot like it because I didn't even notice how the fight ended and how suddenly Kazuo was next to me.
"Karma", he called out, voice softer than probably ever before. I could feel his warm hand rest on my chest, right above my heart. "Reach out for my fire. It'll melt the ice."
I could feel myself automatically starting to cling onto the fire Kazuo was radiating, letting his warmth cover mine and make the icy burn go away. Blinking my eyes couple of times, I leaned my head on Kazuo's shoulder, seeking for his familiar warmth. He smelled like faint smoke but the longer I stayed there, the more it started to remind me of… home.
When I closed my eyes, I could practically see it all. My mother, who had lived in the human world most of the time, always had a fire blazing in her hearth. In cold winter nights, it had smelled like this – like faint smoke and pine, and something sweeter that I thought every demon carries with them to lure humans in. But Kazuo's scent was sweeter than that… maybe even akin close to flowers.
Roses, like mother loved to have around, all the time.
I let the older Fire Demon wrap his arm around my shoulders, his fingers gracing over my wound, tickling but not hurting. Right away, the ice under started to melt and Kazuo hummed, seemingly satisfied by his actions.
It was getting quite hard to stay awake and I couldn't even remember the last time I felt this warm. It was one of the worst effects leaving Hell had on me – I would start missing its warmth over everything else. Not the other demons, but the warmth of home.
Kazuo brought it back.
And for now, I also wanted it back.
End of chapter 13
a/n; I don't know whether this is the last time I update or if I actually get inspiration again, but I still hope you guys will enjoy this. I know a lot of those people who were here when this was still up and going won't read this, but yeah, um- I'm alive, I guess?XD And doing well, if anyone's concerned. I hope you guys are doing well too^^
Now, even though I updated this story, I won't make any promises about it ever being completed. I'm currently quite busy with other stuff but today I had the needed time and inspiration to finish this chapter. I've had it lying around for months, half-finished - I think it will look a bit different from the rest, since my writing style has changed a bit (for the better, hopefully).
I want to say thank you to those who have favorited and followed this story even though I haven't updated this year at all. I know this story is pretty much full of mistakes and doesn't look all that good, but it's nice to know that there are still people who find it interesting:) I myself, have different interests nowadays and I rarely even think of anime in general, but never forget Assassination Classroom, right?;)
But enough of me ranting here, thank you for reading and have a nice day^^