Moonlight showering on snow was Esdeath's favorite sight. It surrounded the group on their way, the wagon shaking with every stone the wheels bumped over. Her legs uncrossed and she gazed out the window, playing with the idea of stopping for the night.
"Tatsumi, what time is it?"
Her subordinate checked Wave's watch.
"6:30."
"Thank you."
She glanced to him and back out the window, wondering if he would take the initiative and speak to her. When it was obvious her wait would be in vain, she made her move.
"Is something on your mind Tatsu-bunny?"
"No."
"You can tell me anything."
"...I know."
The way the moonlight bounced from his clenched cheeks aroused her.
"You know..."
Her hand traced patterns on his thigh.
"...we haven't done anything fun in a while..."
She smirked as his lips parted slightly; whatever barrier he was holding was beginning to crumble.
"Wave is right next to me" stated Tatsumi.
"Wave is asleep."
His head cocked to the side, weighing out the risk and reward. Leaning forward he placed his head on her lap.
"You'll have to make do with this" he said, staring straight ahead.
"Fine..."
Her lips chewed his ear.
"...just don't be surprised if you wake up in the middle of the night to me sucking your dick."
She had won this one; his breathing got heavier and his legs crossed.
An especially large rocking woke up Wave; the image of a humongous green moon in his head told him he'd been dreaming. Groaning, stretching his neck and limbs he watched shadows dance across the figures in front of him as the wagon entered a forest.
Something about Tatsumi's face on Esdeath's lap irked him.
"What stupid little reason is he using to convince himself to keep loving her?" he asked silently.
As if she heard him, Esdeath looked at him.
"How do you sleep so well in a wagon?" she asked smiling.
He couldn't stop studying the moonlight dancing on the curvature of her neck.
"...runs in the family I guess" he replied.
The General made a sound in acknowledgement, but it was obvious she was beginning to think of something else.
...
"...we should talk more."
Koro strolled across the snow, head and tail bobbing with every step.
"But we do" replied Tatsumi.
"No-yes, we do" Seyru continued. "But I want us to talk more like, well, comrades."
Tatsumi pretended to study a tree and rolled his eyes. He found Seyru awkward to be around.
"That kind of thing takes time, Seyru."
"I-I know..."
Koro stopped sniffing a tree and stared back at them, waiting.
"...I get told that a lot..."
Tatsumi followed her towards the dog, waiting for her to finish.
"...I really hate that though...why can't, you know, why can't we just talk like real friends right off the bat? Cut straight to the chase, I mean."
Koro stooped to crawl under a log, paused to sniff a dead bush, then crawled and waited at the other side.
"I have to get to know you first before anything" Tatsumi answered in his head.
They vaulted over the log before brushing the snow from their hands.
"So, uh, how are you and Esdeath?" she asked.
"She's fine."
"I wanna be like her, you know. I admire the General so much."
Tatsumi just stared at her, taking this as a warning sign.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing."
Despite the trees the moon made everything visible, the pair was able to avoid every thorn, step over every branch, and leap every log in the way.
"What do you like about the General, Tatsumi?"
He stared at Koro, thinking. What did he like about her? He had thought about this before, but among the dark, dead trees and bright moon-dipped snow he finally found an answer.
She was to be his conquest.
To find an end to her extreme sadism, to change the more negative parts of her personality, would be a rewarding endeavor indeed. He needed to do so fast, before more Mines happened.
"She's very beautiful..." he said, completely honest. "Slightly controlling, but I can't say I hate that."
Seyru giggled.
"Oh..." she started, still chuckling; "you're one of those people, are you?"
As weird she was, Tatsumi didn't want her having the wrong impression of him.
"N-no! It's just...refreshing to not have to take the initiative all the time!"
"So you've been with someone else before?"
"N-no..."
Seyru didn't seem awkward anymore, she suddenly reminded him of Esdeath when she was on one of her teasing rampages.
"Don't be embarrassed; it's fine to be single for a long time. It's more fun."
Koro froze, hair on end and tail raised. Both of them were silent, and Tatsumi spotted a white form bouncing away, snapping some twigs and crunching snow. Seyru cocked her crossbow and chased after it, joining Koro.
"I think that's it!" she whooped.
It wasn't long before he caught up to them, Koro's teeth embedded in the deer's neck and an arrow in its head.
"Nice shot!" he praised, genuinely amazed.
He looked back at Koro and shivered; the way the dog's mouth enlarged around prey creeped him out.
"Thanks!" she replied, lifting the deer over her shoulders. "Carry the bow, will ya?"
...
Compared to the camp Tatsumi shared with Esdeath their first night together, this one was humble. All of the tents were normal; nothing was made of ice, and there was no huge dragon. As the imperial soldiers sat around the campfire, Tatsumi realized that maybe the first camp was made to simply impress any new recruits made in Fisher Village.
"Ever had venison?" he heard someone ask.
"No...But it smells really good."
Seyru was at the bonfire, and cut into the meat hanging above the fire.
"It's not ready" she warned.
Wave and Tatsumi sat on the other side of the road in front of the camp at their guard post. Ahead were a large plain, moonlight and snow stretching across their vision. The only thing to interrupt the milky landscape was the dark walls of the abandoned Rook Castle. Above, stars twinkled anywhere the moon couldn't reach. Behind them lay the forest and camp.
"There's a reason I love my job I haven't told you about" Wave stated.
Tatsumi looked at him, waiting. Wave saw this and stretched out his arms as if to let the moon know that snow wasn't the only thing lying below.
"'Cus you get to see stuff like this! Any other job in the Empire is shit, know why? Because they all stick you in either a soggy tropical wasteland or a desk creaking under the weight of papers. With a force like ours, we can stay relatively close to home, but still go outside and see parts of the land that no one else sees!"
Tatsumi grinned and applauded.
"You should be a recruiter; Esdeath isn't exactly a good one."
"I'm not surprised; she scares the living hell out everybody, and anyone that isn't scared wants to get whipped by her."
Tatsumi thought back to the piles of mail Esdeath would get, some of it letters from secret masochistic admirers.
Tatsumi sighed, watching his breath rise toward the sky as it faded.
"There's something I want to show you" he proclaimed.
Wave's eyes widened as the moonlight glimmered off the metal in Tatsumi's right hand. He grinned.
"I remember...you got some secret weapon."
"Not really secret...but I want to show you."
"You've never shot it before?"
"Nope. Only been told how."
"Ever fired a real gun?"
"Never even seen one before this."
"Show me what they taught you."
Tatsumi could feel Wave's eager gaze as he held up a magazine. He held the open end toward Wave, making a ding noise.
"Now that I have ice in it..."
He slid it inside the grip, a brisk click snapping through their ears. He pulled than pushed the slide that made up the top, doing this cut a small piece of ice from the clip and chambered it.
"...when I pull the trigger, it's supposed to activate some gunpowder in a separate chamber in the back to shoot the ice. The chamber holds enough powder to last about two mags before it needs a refill."
Tatsumi was startled by Wave's energy; but he realized all the gun talk may have brought him back to the better parts of his navy days.
"How many shots can you shoot before you need to make more ice?" asked Wave.
"Don't know yet."
"What? You gotta know that before we get ambushed! Find that out right now!"
"Can't."
Tatsumi released the mag and pocketed it.
"Apparently this thing makes noise; I won't fire yet. I don't want to bring any attention to camp."
"Tatsumi! Wave, too!" called a voice.
They turned to see Seyru moving toward them, carrying two wooden stakes of meat.
"Have some dinner. Eat fast if you want seconds."
They smiled and thanked her.
...
"So running around with Seyru wasn't enough?" teased Esdeath, though her tone hinted at disappointment.
"I want to hang out with Wave a bit. You know, guy time."
"No."
"Why not? It's not like I'd run from you."
He breathed in and added; "I like you too much."
That did it. As much as she wanted his warmth beside her, she realized Tatsumi needed some distance before letting her do what she said she planned for tonight.
"Still so bashful" she observed, smiling.
She hung her cap on a bedpost made of ice.
"What am I, your mother? Go ahead if you want."
"I'm sorry...I'll make it up to you."
"Whatever."
After watching him strap the tent shut and leave she unbuttoned her uniform. Draping it on the bed she lay down and opened a box next to her, sighing. Her hands clasped the golden artifact.
"I don't think we'll get interrupted here" Wave said.
Tatsumi agreed; they were at least a ten minutes walk through the forest, and with so many trees it was impossible they'd be heard. Nearby was a frozen lake, the ice pock-marked with dark and light shades. No trees grew near the water, allowing plenty of room to practice shooting. They both stuck large sticks and branches in the ground as targets: on some of them Wave had carved a smiley face.
"Operation is a go" proclaimed Tatsumi.
The magazine went in with an authoritative click and he pulled the trigger. He pulled it again and again as his thrill increased.
"Stylish was right" claimed Tatsumi; "...new tech is fun."
The way the slide moved back after every shot amazed Wave; he had never seen anything like it.
"I've got mixed feelings about that guy, but he's definitely a genius!" Wave praised.
What surprised them the most was the sound of it; while it was definitely loud, it sounded nothing like the firearms Wave was accustomed to. The combination of the clack of metal, the small amount of gunpowder, and the cutting of ice let out a noise Wave likened to a heavy, hollowed-out stapler. Adding to his excitement was the barrel; this one was rectangular. Tatsumi laughed, noticing Wave's stunned expression.
"It's only temporary, you know. Once I'm done with this and feel ready to use my teigu for real I'll be able to get rid of it."
He looked at Wave.
"When that happens, you wanna keep it?"
"Sure!"
"Good. I'm not so sure if guns are my thing, anyway. Still, it's very fun to use."
Wave ran to the targets and laughed.
"What?"
"You didn't hit anything!" he snickered. "Guess you can't aim for crap!"
"Shut up!"
Her alertness told her she hadn't been asleep for long; and a thin shadow was outside the entry flap.
"Come in Kurome."
The swordswoman stepped in, holding her katana by the sheath.
"Tatsumi and Wave seem to have left, Captain."
"It's okay" replied Esdeath, sitting up. "I gave them permission, but thank you for telling me."
"I haven't seen them for hours."
Esdeath stared at Kurome, mind racing.
"What?" Kurome asked.
"-it's nothing. Ready up, I want someone fast to come with me. Tell Bols he's in charge than wait for me behind this tent."
"I will, Captain."
...
He wondered why Stylish never gave him any real training with the weapon; perhaps guns were so common in the military that the doctor thought it was common knowledge. However, he'd been traveling with a small group of soldiers and they all had either swords or crossbows. The only person in the convoy other than him with a gun was Seyru.
Tatsumi had just unloaded another mag into the direction of the logs but only two shots hit, making distinct think noises as the ice jammed into the wood. He pulled the slide back and released the clip into his right hand, imagining it full of ice. He put it back in and pushed the slide forward, giving it a good shove so the blade inside could cut and chamber the ice.
"You're lining up the aperture and front sight, right?" questioned Wave.
"Yeah."
"You'll get better."
"I know."
This time almost all thirty rounds hit their mark, causing the branch to splinter and collapse.
"Whoa!" Wave whooped. "Told you so!"
Tatsumi shared in his excitement, but found a sickening thought arise in the corner of his mind. He was supposed to take this thing that destroyed a log and point it at somebody? Than shoot? He could imagine the damage this could do, and the guilt that would come with it.
"Wave..."
"What?"
"The guilt after killing somebody...how do you deal with that?"
Wave didn't say anything for some moments, staring blankly at the lake.
"How did you do it before?" he finally said.
"I-I don't know."
Tatsumi pulled back the slide, released the mag, and fished around for any ice left.
"No, wait" he corrected; "no, I told myself it was okay, that he was trying to kill me and I was just doing my job."
"Exactly."
A hand planted onto Tatsumi's shoulder.
"That's what everyone does" explained Wave. "Besides, with a gun you'll give 'em a cleaner death than last time."
Tatsumi twisted open a small porthole behind the handle and poured some gunpowder from a leather pouch.
"You're very right."
He looked at Wave.
"I promise you, and all the Jaegers; everybody. I promise all of you that when any of your lives are threatened, I won't let any hesitation get in the way."
Wave nodded, taking his hand off the shoulder.
"Good."
A shape darted from the tree line, toward them.
"Wave look-"
Warmth splashed on his chin and neck, and the blade protruding from Wave's chest retracted.
Shplock
Suddenly he couldn't see Wave's face anymore, and something dropped behind the body.
As what was left fell out of the way, Tatsumi instinctively held up his hand, the clash of metal reverberating throughout his arm. The only thing keeping the blade from cutting his hand was the gun's curved trigger guard.
The assailant back flipped from his kick and charged again; there was no ammo in the gun so he dropped it and drew his short blade.
The swordsperson had skill; the shape's movements were calculated and purposeful, and every down strike was filled with killing intent. The chop-centered motions of the enemy sword reminded him of the way Esdeath sparred with him. Every second reminded him to get on the offensive; quickly. He was losing ground and the frozen lake was close behind, where he would surely lose his footing. However, the enemy's attacks were relentless and unstoppable.
"There's no opening!" his mind screamed.
Briefly he wondered if Scar would save him from a cut again, before the lack of friction told him he had made it to the lake.
His stance grew wider and he concentrated not to fall.
An especially forceful cut toward his neck knocked him down, making him slip. When he was on his back and thinking death was upon him he noticed the enemy was on its stomach; they had fallen too.
He reached for his sword, ignoring the cracking below him. He got to his feet but the ice caved in, and water forced up his nose.
The water wasn't as cold as he thought it would be.
When he realized that was because of Scar, he could've laughed. But he was underwater and the dark shape above was peering into the hole and Wave had lost his head.
There was nothing Tatsumi could do but wait. He swam downward to keep from floating up, and watched the shape stab into surrounding ice, probably because it thought it saw his body floating. When the ice began to crack, it realized this was a bad idea and retreated. Despite the moonlight the water was dark; he couldn't see how far the enemy had gone. However, his whole body was shaking so he quickly surfaced and exhaled. He quickly climbed up where the ice was thick and scrambled toward the trees, where the gun was. Breathing was difficult; he wondered how apish he must have sounded grunting and moving so loudly. Not that he cared about stealth anymore; he just wanted that bitch dead. If the person that killed Wave was dead, he could die happy.
Keeping the corpse far to the left, he grabbed the gun and readied it. He forgot to push the slide but that didn't matter; when he pointed it towards the lake the shadow was gone.
No one was there to die and make him feel like this trip into the woods wasn't for nothing.
The gun fell to the ground; snow getting into it didn't matter. On his feet and whipping his head around like a mad man he bellowed for the shape.
"Where the fuck are you! WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU!"
He collapsed to his knees and let out a scream that made an owl fly away.
...
Tatsumi wished Wave's body was whole, if it was he would be able to carry it back. There was too much horror to having the head, the body, or both at the same time.
He had no idea how long he lay in the snow, hating himself and his weakness. It was while the wind blew snow down from the trees that a realization formed in him: that no matter where one came from, no matter who one was, all their suffering came from weakness. Wave died because of the weakness of being unaware, the boy Tatsumi killed suffered from the weakness of being unprepared, and Tatsumi's tears steamed in the snow because of his weakness of inexperience.
"Or is it just general, all-round weakness when it comes to me?" he thought.
It didn't matter, anyway. If it was his inexperience that bothered him, than he would just have to act more experienced, and experienced soldiers don't lose their shit when comrades died.
He stood up; shaking as much snow he could from the gun and holstering it. Wave's body would stay where it was; bodies don't mean a thing to the strong.
"No, there's one thing-"
He turned and stared at the corpse, a black river still running from the stump. His eyes swallowed the sight, so he would never forget it. Then he squatted down and removed the boots and dagger.
"We'll need these."
As he stalked back to camp, he realized Grand Chariot wasn't on Wave's body. This meant the assailant took his teigu, which also meant they were Night Raid.
To his surprise, Esdeath wasn't in the tent. Everyone seemed to be asleep, so where was she?
Outside the tent flap he ran into Kurome.
"T-Tatsumi! General, he's here!"
Something swelled in him when he saw her, that beautiful thing that made his heart ache even when he didn't want it to. Esdeath strode toward him and slapped him. Grabbing his collar, she kissed him.
"Why is there blood on your face" she asked, though it sounded more like a statement than a question.
"Wave's gone. Night Raid killed him."
"How many were there."
"Esdeath...I love you so much..."
"How many!"
"One. It must have been Akame."
Tatsumi's eyes were focused on the cross on her chest, but he knew Esdeath and Kurome exchanged a look. Esdeath let go to tell the guard to be extra careful tonight.
Tatsumi knew there would be no escaping Kurome.
"Tatsumi" she started. "Fill me in. What happened."
He wished he could look her in the eye.
"I was weak...couldn't stop her. I'm a total dumbass..."
"Where is he?"
"The body is- you don't want to see it, Kurome."
"Tell me where he is!"
He looked up. There were tears on her face and the shape of her lips told him she was angry.
"Keep walking straight through the woods 'till you get to a really thick evergreen. Turn right and eventually you'll get to a lake. That's where Wave is, and he's dead."
Pain erupted in his molars when she punched him.
"You say it like it's nothing!" she growled, before she began move toward the trees. She cursed when a wall of ice erupted in front of her. Her head whipped behind her to find Esdeath standing behind Tatsumi.
"No one leaves" said the General. The wall's sides expanded until they surrounded the camp. "No one leaves until our minds are settled."
The swordswoman glared at her, but nodded her head and stomped toward her tent.
"I'll have to check on her in the morning" she confided, grabbing Tatsumi's arm. "You won't be leaving my sight for a while. Change your clothes, they're damp. Bedtime."
He followed her into their tent and did as she ordered. When he turned around he was surprised with a rich, passionate kiss. Her lips pushed against his and he pushed back.
"I almost lost you again" she lamented after some moments.
Tatsumi didn't say anything.
"Let's go to bed."
"Esdeath."
She stopped tugging his hand, waiting.
"...I want nothing more than to have sex with you, right now."
They way she smiled almost brought tears to his eyes.
"I know how you feel" she answered. "You may think otherwise but now's not a good time for you. You're face is blank and wants to burst into tears."
He realized she was right; sleeping the night away in her arms sounded more favorable to sex.
"...but thank you" she added.
As she snored behind him, he could have sworn he heard Kurome laughing.
