The trip to Mt. Fake was, thankfully, uneventful. After they split off into groups, Haru kept an eye open for Danger Beasts, as well as any opportunity to escape. He also took the opportunity to put his blindfold back on while he tried to stay focused, despite his raging thoughts. There was still that part of him that kept saying, "You can make a home here." And as much as he wished it would shut up, it wouldn't. It definitely didn't help that Wave was such a nice guy.
"So, since we're alone now, what happened last night?" he asked as they walked. They were patrolling one of the many paths through the foothills near the mountain, and so far they had yet to find any Danger Beasts. "Let's just say that we weren't moving at the same pace and leave it at that," Haru replied as he scanned the valley below. "What's that supposed to mean?" Wave asked, sounding annoyed. Haru smiled as he imagined the look he was giving him. "If I told you, Wave, you'd never be able to act innocent again," Haru told him before continuing on.
"Well, if you ever need someone to talk to…" he said, trying to change subjects. Turning around, Haru said, "Thanks, I appreciate the off- Move!" In one fluid motion, Haru brought his sword out and cut clean through several roots that were coming at Wave from behind. Hearing a roar, they backed up as a tree of all things sprung from the ground and attacked them. In fact, it was more of a whole group of them, surrounding the two in seconds.
"Well, I can't say I've seen this before," Haru said as he backed into Wave, who just nodded as he brought his own sword out. "What do we even call this?" he asked, sounding a bit nervous, "A herd? A forest?" "We call it practice," Haru answered as he focused on his sword. Springing forward, he cried out, "zündung!" as he cut through several of them at once. The flames covering his sword set them ablaze on contact, quickly turning the air sour with smoke. Determined not to be outdone by him, Wave turned to his own opponents and attacked them with vigor, slashing through several in rapid succession without breaking a sweat. Haru briefly admired this skill before turning his attention back to the fight.
While they were both able to hold their own against these creatures, they quickly got separated as more swarmed them. This was something Haru allowed on purpose. Looking to make sure that a fair number now separated him from Wave, he focused on the area around himself and said, "Thýella." Flames lept to life around him and quickly began feeding off the dead Danger Beasts as well as the live ones. He spent all of three seconds feeding his own energy into the flames to make sure they grew enough before releasing control. With a wall of smoke and fire to cover his movements, he cut through the last of the beasts before making a break for the nearby woods. Sorry, Wave, but I can't stick around Haru thought with regret as he ran.
After he had felt like he had gotten a good distance away, he slowed down to a walk while he tried to get his bearings. He had just been concerned with getting as far from the mountain as he could, but now he would need to find his way back. Would probably be better to wait for nightfall before traveling he thought as he looked around for a good place to stay. Before he could get too far with that, however, he heard someone slamming into the ground nearby really hard. Sticking to the underbrush, he moved to the edge of the tree line and watched as two armored men squared off. One of them was clearly Incursio, and since Bulat was dead then it could only be Tatsumi using it. Way to go, kid he thought, smiling. Bulat had told him a long time ago how much of a strain that armor put on the user, so he was impressed that Tatsumi was able to use it.
The other he didn't know, but he could guess that it was Wave. He was sure to come after Haru instead of taking his chances telling Esdeath that he'd lost him. And since his was the only Imperial Arms Haru hadn't seen up close, it felt like a reasonable guess. Wave seemed about to attack Tatsumi again, and for a second Haru considered coming to his aid. But, at the last second Tatsumi turned and leaped clear. He's not going to stand and fight? That's new. Sticking to the trees, Haru followed them as best as he could while Wave pursued him. Delivering a massive flying kick, Wave sent Tatsumi into a nearby river before landing on one of the banks.
Watching the water, Haru prayed that Tatsumi wasn't about to drown. However, after a few seconds there was still no sigh of someone coming to the surface. "He must have ridden the current downstream," Wave reasoned out loud, turning and taking off, "But that won't work against a man of the sea!" After Wave had disappeared from sight, Haru watched a wet, blurry shape crawl from the water before collapsing onto the bank. It then turned into a cloud of smoke, and when it cleared away Tatsumi was lying there, clearly hurt. He was still conscious, however, and he was struggling to get up when another Danger Beast came out of the bushes near him.
This one was a very large cat, and it clearly wanted to have Tatsumi for lunch. Moving quickly, Haru pulled one of his knives from his pocket as he leaped across several of the stones in the river. Before it could even consider attacking, it was suddenly picked up off the ground and sliced into multiple pieces. Haru just caught the glint off several wires as Lubbock walked out of the bushes. "Jeeze, you're still too carele…" Lubbock began before noticing Haru standing on the bank. In fact, both Tatsumi and Lubbock were staring at him in mild shock. "Next time protect yourself better, newbie," Haru said as he walked over and helped Tatsumi to his feet, smiling at their stunned expressions.
"Wow, this was easier than I thought it would be," Lubbock said as he joined them, "I was sure we'd have to take two or three of those guys on before we could get you back." "Take my word for it; that is a very bad idea right now," Haru told them, "But thanks for coming for me." "We never really left you alone," Tatsumi said, "We just kept our distance. We even took shifts." "And you wouldn't believe what it took to keep Mine and Akame from dropping from exhaustion," Lubbock said as they began walking, "They both blame themselves for you getting captured. Speaking of which; what the hell happened?"
Taking a moment to organize his thoughts, Haru proceeded to tell them what had happened since he had 'won' the tournament. To their credit, Tatsumi and Lubbock remained straight faced the entire time. But when Haru finished, it was Lubbock who broke out laughing first. "Hey, it's not funny!" Haru said indignantly. "I'm sorry, man. I'm just having a hard time understanding how you thought you were in danger," Lubbock said as he stopped to breathe. Tatsumi, meanwhile, was laughing softly as well, unable or unwilling to speak.
"The danger was that there is a very real part of me that found her offer tempting," Haru said, looking sad, "It's not something I would expect either of you to understand. But when you've spent a few years being scorned for what you've become, it's very hard not to accept an offer for complete protection." "And I'm sure it had nothing to do with how attractive she is," Lubbock replied before laughing again. He was trying to play off what Haru had just told them, but he could tell that Tatsumi wasn't going to just let it go.
"What do you mean, 'what you've become?'" he asked, looking serious. Sighing, Haru decided that he owed the kid a straight answer after the beating he took. "You know how a number of the Imperial Arms were crafted from parts of Danger Beasts?" he asked, "Mine is an actual part of a Danger Beast. From what I can tell they weren't able to figure out a way to craft it into a weapon, so they preserved it to be implanted into a capable wielder." "Then that means…" "My Imperial Arms is mine. No one can take it from me, and it will die with me," Haru said before stopping, "And since I've told you, I might as well show you. Just try not to freak out."
Reaching up, he pulled his blindfold down around his neck before locking eyes with both Tatsumi and Lubbock. They looked absolutely stunned, with Tatsumi's jaw actually dropping. "That's…not what I was expecting," Lubbock said, recovering first. Walking up to him, Tatsumi examined his eyes closer. Haru just stood there, trying not to break eye contact or show them how much he was struggling over this. He really, desperately, didn't want to hear them reject him now. But he was also expecting it. Maybe not now, but once they got over their shock it would happen. It always did.
"So this is why you've never removed your blindfold," Tatsumi said after a while, "That's…" "Horrible?" Haru offered, figuring he knew where this was going. "That's so cool!" Tatsumi said, his eyes lighting up, "I've never seen something like this before. So, you're physically one with your element?" Haru just looked at him in shock. Cool? Did he just say this is cool? "I, uh, guess that's true," he replied. "Well, crap. You should have just told us," Lubbock said, putting a hand on Haru's shoulder, "You really thought we would freak out over something so trivial?"
Looking between his two friends, Haru felt the same as when this happened with the Jaegers. Better, actually, since he had known these guys longer. "I…" he began before his voice failed him. Looking down and clearing his throat, Haru turned and continued down the path, saying, "Thanks, guys. Really." "Any time, matchstick," Lubbock replied, grinning when Haru flinched at the nickname. That pipsqueak is going to pay for that he vowed as he put his blindfold back on. However, he was still smiling as they continued back towards the hideout.
When they finally made it back the sun was starting to set, casting the hideout partially in shadow. For some reason, Haru found returning to this place comforting. That comfort was lost when he walked through the door and was immediately crushed by Leone in a hug. "Welcome back, matchstick!" she said as he struggled to breathe. When he finally got free, it was only to have Sheele hug him next, although she wasn't trying to crack his ribs. "I'm so glad you're okay," she said, smiling. Even Mine looked pleased. "I was beginning to wonder if we were going to have to drag your lazy butt out of there," she said, smiling.
Before he could even think of slinking off to bed, since he was exhausted, Leone dragged him into the main room where they had set up a kind of welcome back party. And it just so happened to have a bunch of different types of liquor. Probably Leone's idea he thought as he was made to sit down. It wasn't that bad, actually. They all enjoyed good food and drink, laughing and talking well into the night. Haru learned that Tatsumi had been training his butt off to be able to use Incursio like Bulat used to, and that even Lubbock had been pushing himself harder lately. He also learned that Sheele and Mine had been training together and had become 'incredibly powerful', as Mine put it.
The only damper, at least as far as Haru saw it, was that Akame seemed to be brooding over something. She remained quiet for most of the evening and only spoke when she was asked a direct question. It also seemed that she was glaring at Haru whenever she thought no one was looking. Finally, after he had a fairly pleasant buzz, he decided it was time to stop avoiding something he had been putting off for a while now.
"Okay, since I'm tired of waking up to kitty over there standing over me," he said, ducking as Leone tossed a lump of bread at him, "I guess it's time I actually showed you what I've been hiding." Steeling himself for mixed reactions, Haru removed his blindfold before sitting there expectantly. While Akame, Lubbock and Tatsumi seemed fine with it, since they had already seen it, everyone else was quiet for a few seconds.
"Well, I can't say I'm a fan of the color," Mine said finally, crossing her arms, "But I think they suit you, matchstick." "Thank you, half-pint," Haru replied, smiling as she glared at him. "I'm trying to give you a compliment, jerk!" Before he could respond, Leone sat down next to him and put an arm around his shoulders. "Really, this is what you've been so ashamed about?" she asked, smiling, "You didn't trust your big sis?" "It wasn't that…" Haru replied, "It's just… I've had a bad run where everyone would judge me based off it. When everyone you meet sees you as a monster, it starts to…rub off on you."
He didn't mean to kill the mood, not when they had all seemed so happy. But he needed to face this. Sighing, Leone reached up and smacked the back of Haru's head. "You can be too serious sometimes, you know?" she said, laughing when he glared at her, "After everything you've done, how in the hell are we going to view you as a monster?" "I…" "Oh, for crying out loud, just accept the compliment and move on!" Mine said, her cheeks a little red from the wine, "I think it's high time you stopped beating yourself up over something stupid." "Says the twerp that can barely handle a few cups of wine," Lubbock replied, snickering.
He received said wine in his hair when Mine upended the cup on him, causing him to freak out and everyone else to laugh. Even Akame smiled, although it was for different reasons. She was glad that Haru had finally started to face that he was indeed human. Although, this didn't quell any of the other emotions battling for dominance in her head and heart. Deciding she needed someplace quiet to try and sort this out, she quietly slipped from the room. While almost no one else noticed her leave, Haru did, and he felt sad to see her go.
Seeing the look on his face, Mine walked up behind his couch and whispered in his ear, "If you want to slip away for some alone time, I can cover you." Rather than waste time arguing with her over it, Haru just nodded before getting up. Before Leone, who was rather far gone by this point, could try to make him stay, Mine grabbed her from behind, saying, "Hey, why don't you show us that drinking game you've always been bragging about?"
This served as a wonderful distraction as Leone grabbed several cups and began setting it up, a goofy grin on her face the entire time. Meanwhile, Haru had slipped out into the halls before wondering where Akame would go. Playing on a hunch, he walked up a few flights of stairs and found himself at the balcony that he and Lubbock frequented. And sure enough, there she was, standing at the railing and silhouetted in the moonlight. She seemed to be staring off into the forest with her head resting on the rail, and for a moment Haru wondered if she was asleep.
Walking up next to her, he said, "Nice view isn't it?" This caused her to bolt upright and turn to him, surprised and with a slight blush. I've never seen her blush, now that I think about it he realized as he smiled. "Something on your mind?" he asked, trying not to let silence rein. "It's nothing," she replied, turning and looking back out at the trees, "I just needed some fresh air."
"So, I heard that you and Mine blamed yourselves for my 'situation,'" he said as he looked out at the trees, too. "Mine thinks that if she hadn't been so careless and gotten hurt before, she could have kept you from being taken," Akame told him, looking down. "And what about you?" She didn't reply to that one, mainly because she didn't trust herself at that moment. She knew that if they'd tried to stop Esdeath it would have become a battle. And despite how good they all were, Akame still wasn't completely convinced that they could have won without serious casualties.
Seeing her look turning darker by the second, Haru turned and acted on instinct, putting one of his hands on hers. When she looked at him, he said, "There's nothing you could have done without risking your lives and blowing your cover. Let's just agree to be glad that I'm still okay, alright?" "But are you?" she asked. She had a pretty good idea of the kind of pain Haru had gone through recently, and after hearing him talk about what Esdeath had offered him to stay she wasn't so sure that he had come out of that 100% okay. "Really, I'm okay, Akame," he said, smiling and squeezing her hand a bit, "I can't say it wasn't tempting to stay with them. But this is my home now."
She smiled at that, albeit with a little sadness in it. "I'm glad you're back, Haru," she said, leaning her head on his chest. She had missed this more than she was willing to admit. Forget the blush on her cheeks at this moment; she enjoyed it when it was just the two of them. Smiling, Haru wrapped his free hand around her and pulled her in closer. Or, at least he tried to. Instead, she pulled back slightly and locked eyes with him. He felt something stirring at that, and he slowly leaned forward, feeling her breath on his cheeks. Akame, meanwhile, was doing the same, unable to deny her emotions much longer.
However, at the last second, just as their lips brushed each other, she turned away while looking sad. "I'm sorry, but I can't," she said, ashamed that it had gone so far, "We're assassins, Haru. We can't let something compromise our ability to fight." "I..," he said, shocked, "I understand, Akame." Releasing her, he took a step back, saying, "I'm sorry if I overstepped."
Watching him turn and leave was one of the hardest things she had ever done. This new feeling was screaming at her to call out to him, to make him come back, to do what she had wanted to do for a while now. But she was a professional, damnit, and she couldn't compromise herself now. On top of that, she had also drunk a bit more than she normally did and couldn't be sure if this was her real feelings or the alcohol. And so, instead of calling him back, she waited until he was gone before returning to her room to try and sleep this off.
Haru, meanwhile, returned to his room before flopping onto his bed, his mind a raging mess. That moment had been freaking perfect, and he had wanted to say what he had finally started to realize for himself. But, at the same time he could understand Akame's reasoning. They were both in a position where they could die tomorrow, easily. Neither of them wanted to create something that would just cause pain in the end. It was in following this line of thought that he realized something. She had almost, almost, returned those same feelings. So it's not one-sided he thought, stunned and yet happy at the same time.
Lost in these thoughts, he drifted off to sleep. A few hours later, however, he was awakened by a loud crash two floors down. For a moment, he thought it was just someone that had run into something and broken it. Several more in rapid succession, followed by the unmistakable sound of Pumpkin, served to bring him fully awake and out of his room, sword in hand. We've been discovered? How? he thought as he rushed towards the sounds. Before he could even make it to the next floor, Haru found himself facing off with several men wearing porcelain masks and rather disturbing outfits.
"What the hell are you supposed to be?" he asked, bringing his sword up. "Enemy," the lead one said, taking a step forward, "Kill!" At this, all five of them charged. Haru briefly noticed that they had metal gloves with claws on the fingers before he lashed out. "Thýella!" he cried as he swung his sword, creating a wall of fire between him and them. Three of them cleared it before it was fully formed, but two were caught in it and ignited, screaming in agony. The remaining three were on him too fast, and Haru tried to jump clear before a purple blur rushed past him.
In two quick strikes, Sheele cut down the one right in front of Haru as well as the one to his left. Reversing his retreat into a charge, Haru ducked under the swipe at his head as he stabbed the third man through the chest. Much to his surprise, the guy was practically fine as he withdrew his sword, and Haru received a swipe to the arm in return for dropping his guard. Her gaze hardening, Sheele moved before Haru could and took the third man's head off in one clean swipe.
"Thanks for the help," he said as he checked the cut on his arm. It wasn't too deep, but it would hurt like hell for the next few days. "We should find the others," she said as she looked out the window, "There are more coming." "Then let's stop them at the source," Haru replied, smiling coldly. Nodding, Sheele followed him as he made his way down to the second floor before he found a suitably large window. Without breaking stride, he grabbed a chair and threw it through the window before following it out. Rather than trying to land squarely, he turned his landing into a roll and came up with a charged knife that he threw at the nearest target. Said target exploded in a cloud of blood, flames and smoke that took out the two other guys near him as well.
Sheele landed next to him and brought her scissors up, stopping another one of them cold before cutting him in half at the waste. Before they could take any more of them out, Incursio landed in the middle of a large group across from them. This caused every one of the enemies near him to turn and attack at once, and Haru quickly moved to try and help. However, Tatsumi took them all out in rapid succession before summoning Incursio's spear and cutting through several more of them. Between the three of them, they were able to take the remaining enemies fairly well, at least until a new enemy showed up. This guy was bigger, thicker, and had metal arms. Figuring the kid could take him alone; Haru turned his attention to the remaining small fry.
Focusing on maintaining his foot, since he had used a fair amount of fire already, Haru was so focused on his own fight that he didn't realize that the larger man was giving Tatsumi trouble until he heard Mine's Pumpkin going off behind him. He turned just in time to see the guy getting vaporized. He also saw a rather creepy guy coming up behind her with a knife. Before he could move, the guy received a flying kick to the side from Leone, who looked really pissed off. He was proven right when she proceeded to beat the ever living shit out of the guy, and Haru could only imagine what he had done.
It was at that point that Lubbock and Akame joined them, looking a little tired but still in one piece. "The hideout is clear," Lubbock reported as he checked one of his gloves, "Although there are still a lot of them setting the wires off." "How many is a lot?" Haru asked. Before Lubbock could answer, a large number of the masked men dashed out of the trees and quickly surrounded them. "That many," Lubbock said, bringing his hands up, "But this is the last of them. The wires aren't being triggered anywhere else." "Then I think it's time we took care of these guys," Haru said as he started focusing on his sword.
His concentration was broken when he started to feel heavy and stiff. What is this he wondered as he looked around and realized he wasn't the only one feeling it. Lubbock was already out cold, and virtually everyone else was on the ground and struggling to stay upright. Except for Tatsumi, who, judging from his body language, was confused about what was happening. Damnit, they're using poison Haru realized as he dropped to one knee. Reaching into the pouch just above his sheath, he pulled one of those shots out before popping the cap off. "Tatsumi, we have a problem," he said as he stuck himself in the leg and hit the button.
The drug was much more potent than he thought it was going to be, and he felt like fire was coursing through his veins as he stood back up. But despite this advantage, he knew that the odds of him and Tatsumi being able to defend their friends from what were easily 20 enemies were extremely remote. Damnit, now what he wondered as he looked around, trying to find something he could use. "What the heck is that?" Tatsumi asked, drawing Haru's attention to the sky. Seeing a giant flying Manta, he felt his spirits soar. Only one group used them as mounts, and only one person would have this kind of timing.
"About time you decided to show up, Boss!" Haru shouted.