As Bols stared at Haru, he could see the slight tremble in his hands. He's trying to remain strong Haru realized, even though he knows his life can end right here. Walking forward, Haru kept his face impassive as he reached into one of the pockets in his cloak. "Kurome would have used that explosion as a signal to retreat as well," he said, "By now, she's probably gotten a fair distance away, so there's not much time." Pulling out a slip of folded paper, he held it out for Bols to take while keeping his sword at his side.
"What's this, some special request before you kill me?" Bols asked, sounding skeptical as he looked at the paper. "Do you want me to kill you?" Haru replied. "I… It's what I expected, and it's probably what I deserve," Bols said, his gaze dropping slightly. "If you believed that, then you wouldn't have been so good to your family," Haru said, getting the man's attention, "Real monsters aren't that selective with their malice." Through this entire exchange, Chelsea watched with curiosity and confusion. She had thought that Haru just wanted to end this with his own hand, but clearly there was something else going on.
"I've thought about this for a while now, Bols," Haru continued as he placed the paper in the man's hands, "And the decision that I've come to is this; you don't deserve to die." This caught them both by surprise, and they stared at Haru in shock. "Wh-what are you saying?" Chelsea asked, stepping forward, "Have you lost-" "He's not an evil person," Haru interrupted without breaking eye contact with Bols, "He may have done evil things, but it's not who he is. It's the same for us; we've done some terrible things, but only because they had to be done."
"You…you're sparing me?" Bols asked, sounding like he was out of breath. "I am," Haru replied, pointing towards a side path, "Follow that path for about a half mile and you'll find yourself at a clearing. My guess is that Kurome is there, too. Take her and make your way back to Esdeath." Pointing at the paper, he continued, "When the Revolution comes to the capital; take your family to that address. The man there is a friend, and he will protect you." "Why? Why would you do this for me?" Bols asked, still unable to believe this was happening. "As you said, I met with your family," Haru said, finally letting a smile creep onto his face, "If nothing else, they are good people. I've seen enough families torn apart by the Empire, I won't add to it. Now go and look after them."
Bols only hesitated for a moment before he turned and walked away. Before Chelsea could try to stop him, Haru held an arm out to block her. She stared at him in shock, which quickly turned to anger after Bols was out of sight. "What the hell are you doing?!" she asked, rounding on him and looking pissed, "We were ordered to kill him, and you're just going to let him walk away?" "That's exactly what we're going to do," he said, looking at her, "And before you even suggest it; no, you're not going after them." "Oh, and why not?" "Because you're not a fighter," he said as he grabbed her arm and started back to the others, "And if Kurome is anything like her sister, then there's no way that some sneak attack is going to finish her."
"And just what do you plan on telling Najenda when she asks for an explanation?" Chelsea asked, "I hope you don't expect me to keep this a secret between us." "Well, while it would be easier if you did, I don't expect you to," he replied, "This is my choice, and I'll bear the consequences." "Is it worth letting him go?" she pressed, her anger giving way to concern. She had grown to like Haru, to like all of Night Raid, and here he was making a decision that could ruin him. He just remained silent and refused to look at her. Sighing in frustration, she pulled her arm from his grip and moved up beside him as they walked, saying, "Fine, have it your way. But don't expect me to come to your defense when the boss grills you over this."
"I think I can handle it," Haru replied, projecting a confidence he definitely wasn't feeling. While he felt that he had made the right choice, he wasn't so sure that the others would see it that way. Well, it doesn't matter if they don't understand; I do, and I will stand by it he thought, trying to steady his nerves. While those words sounded nice and noble, in truth there was one person that he hoped would understand. Whether she would or not remained to be seen.
After a few minutes they found themselves at an abandoned hunting cabin. It had been chosen as their meeting point after the battle, and Haru spotted Susanoo coming back with some firewood. He looked pleased to see them unharmed and lead them into the cabin. But when Haru walked through the door, the first thing he noticed was that Leone was sitting in the bed, still in her lion form, and that Lubbock was working to sew her arm back on. "What in the hell happened to you?" Haru asked, trying to keep his voice level. Of all the people he imagined getting injured in that fight; she was one of the last on the list.
Looking at him, she just smiled and said, "Well, I slipped up and Kurome took advantage of it. Don't worry, my regenerative powers and Lubbock's wires can do wonders." "I just wish I didn't have to do this again," Lubbock muttered as he worked. Before Haru could press for details, Chelsea brushed past him and pulled Najenda off to one side. She was at least courteous enough not to tell everyone at once, but Haru could practically feel Najenda's glare as she learned what had happened.
"Haru, can I talk to you outside?" she said, walking towards the door. Her tone and demeanor told him that it wasn't the request it sounded like, and he braced himself as he walked back outside and shut the door. Taking a deep breath, he met her gaze as he waited for the inevitable explosion. "Would you care to explain why you let both of our targets slip away?" she asked, her eye practically boring a hole through his head. "Kurome was already long gone," he replied, "Chelsea wouldn't have stood much of a chance against her alone, whether she still had any of her puppets or not. And after the fight I had just gone through, I would have been just as useless."
"And what about what happened with Bols?" she asked, just barely managing to keep her voice level. "His Imperial Arms is gone," Haru said, trying not to answer the question they both knew she was really asking, "In addition, I know enough about his family to find them, and he knows that I do. That alone guarantees that he won't pose any threat to us or the Revolution." "Cut the crap," she growled, her patience wearing thin, "We both know that's not what we were told to do. You were ordered to kill him-" "With respect, it was requested that we kill them," Haru interrupted, remaining impassive.
"Damnit, Haru! Do you know the position you've put me in?" Najenda said, taking a step forward, "The position you've put yourself in?" "Then drop me from the team if you don't think I can be trusted, or have me killed for being a traitor," he replied, tired of playing games, "I honestly don't care which, but I'm not apologizing for sparing the life of a good man." "That's all you have to say?" Najenda asked as she stepped forward, "You would be willing to throw this all away to save one person's life?" "What is our mission if it's not to save lives?" Haru fired back, "We're doing this to stop the Empire from destroying the lives of good people. I will not become like them to beat them, and as long as I'm on this team I won't allow us to kill good people that found themselves working for our enemy."
Glaring at him one more time, she gave an explosive sigh before turning away and pulling out a cigarette. Lighting it, she took one long drag, held the smoke in for a few seconds and then let it out in one big cloud. "I don't suppose I can hope that this is a one-time thing, can I?" she asked, sounding calmer. "I wish I could say that it was," Haru replied, glad the argument was over, "All I can promise is to continue to live and act in the manor I deem right." "Then I guess that will be good enough," Najenda said, parking the cigarette in the corner of her mouth, "I'm going to have to deal some form of punishment, so how about this? You get to sleep outside for the night."
"I think I can live with that," he replied, smiling weakly as she walked past him. After she had gone back into the cabin, Haru walked off to find a good tree to sit under. He was still exhausted from that fight, and he could feel the exhaustion setting in as he sat down. Not too long after that, Susanoo came outside with a small plate of food for him. It was some kind of roast and a small potato, and while it wasn't exactly gourmet, Haru's growling stomach couldn't have cared less. The big man just waited patiently for him to finish before taking the plate and turning to head back inside. But he hesitated, and after a moment he turned back.
"Why would you take such a risk, Haru?" he asked, looking confused. Najenda had explained what had happened to them, and they were all attempting to understand his decision in their own way. For Susanoo, this was especially hard since he had only ever regarded himself as an Imperial Arms until recently. "There comes a point in every person's life where their convictions are tested," Haru replied, smiling up at him, "When that happens, all you can do is choose what you think is right and stick with it." "You sound like you've done this before," Susanoo commented. "Yeah, I have," Haru replied, looking sad as he looked away, "I can tell you from experience that it doesn't get easier."
Nodding in understanding, Susanoo returned to the cabin. Taking a breath to rein in a few memories that struggled to surface from the corners of his mind, Haru pulled his cloak tighter as the sun began to set. They may have traveled to the southern territories, but it still got cold at night. He briefly considered using his powers to warm himself up when he heard someone approaching in the gloom. He must have been more tired than he thought, since he hadn't heard the door to the cabin open or their approach until just now.
However, as the figure moved closer he saw that it was Akame. She smiled softly at him and held out the spare blanket she had taken for him. "I thought you might need this," she said, "I know it can get cold out here." "Thank you," Haru replied, returning the smile as he reached out to take it. Doing so opened his cloak up, and while it wasn't exactly thick it had been holding in enough heat to be somewhat comfortable. Now exposed to the cooling air, he felt himself shiver slightly as he reached for the blanket.
Akame noticed this, and in that moment she made up her mind on something she had thought about doing. Rather than just hand the blanket over, she draped it around her shoulders before walking over and sitting down next to him. Before Haru could say anything, she took the extra length and wrapped it around his shoulders as well before moving closer until their shoulders touched. "There, that should be better," she said, looking away and feeling her cheeks warming up a bit. "I…well, thank you," Haru said, surprised at her boldness, "But, you don't have to stay out here with me." "I don't mind," she replied, "Besides, it should be warmer now, shouldn't it?"
"You do remember that I'm a fire-wielder, right?" Haru asked, cracking a smile as her face got a bit darker. "W-well, I thought you could use some company," she mumbled, trying not to get too flustered. Why her calm demeanor was crumbling now, she had no idea. But it was, and she felt exposed and embarrassed. And yet, when she saw him just smiling warmly at her, she felt…better. He wasn't going to scold her for being unprofessional, wasn't going to judge her on her current loss of control.
Giving him a small smile, Akame leaned her head back against the tree as she savored this moment. But after a while, a question that had been plaguing her mind demanded to be addressed. "Why did you spare Bols?" she asked. She could feel Haru tense up at that, and while she regretted making him feel uncomfortable, she needed to know why. "Because he wasn't a bad person," he said finally, "I could tell when I met his family; no one loves someone that much if they're a monster. He may work for monsters, but he didn't allow it to turn him into one."
"You really believe that?" Akame asked, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice. "I wouldn't have spared his life if I didn't," Haru replied, confused as to what she was asking. "No, I mean about the monster part," she said, looking away so as to not betray her feelings, "You really think that someone couldn't love a…monster?" Since she wasn't looking at him, she didn't see the sad smile on his face. He hated what he was about to say next, but he felt that it had to be said; for both their sakes. "Honestly?" he said, looking away, "I think it's possible for people to feel sorry for them, even sympathize with them. But love them, truly? No, I don't think that's possible."
He didn't need to be looking at her to know how deeply those words cut. He could feel her flinch, and he hated himself more in that moment than he had since becoming what he was. But he couldn't afford to let her get too attached to him, no matter how much that hurt. He found himself remembering what he had told Leone, that it would have been better if Akame fell in love with someone else. Now that he thought about it, he realized that was closer to the truth than he had known at the time.
He loved her; that was a fact that he couldn't deny. He loved her with more intensity than he had thought possible. However, he also remained painfully aware of what he had become. He saw it every time he saw his reflection. He was a monster, a half-breed between Human and Danger Beast. And while it was true that he loved her, he wasn't so selfish as to put his wants ahead of her needs. She deserved someone better, someone human; someone that wouldn't draw the attention and scorn of everyone they met.
And so, rather than apologizing and trying to ease her concerns, Haru just sat their quietly and drifted off to sleep. He may have hated himself for what he had said, but he told himself again and again that he needed to say it, to put some kind of distance between them before they reached a point of no return. Consumed in their own troubled thoughts, the two assassins fell into a somewhat restless sleep.
The next morning, Akame was the first one to wake up. Feeling an unfamiliar weight leaning on her, she shifted and looked to her left. Sure enough, she saw that they had moved to lean against each other in their sleep. Glancing up at Haru's sleeping face, Akame felt her emotions rushing up to the surface and demand that she stop ignoring them. In that moment, she had an almost irresistible urge to lean up and kiss him; to say 'to hell with the excuses' and tell him how she felt. This was further strengthened by what he had said the other night. There were no words to describe how much it pained her to listen to him talk about himself like he was just some thing. That he had allowed those thoughts to reject her feelings for him just added to the pain. She may have expressed those feelings in an indirect fashion, but the fact remained; he didn't consider himself worthy of her.
That's not true she wanted to say, you're a human, too, and I love you. But she couldn't, not without risking a wound that would never truly heal. She still carried a scar from her separation from Kurome, one that had reopened the other day during their fight. She had put up a brave front at the time, but on the inside she had been screaming at her sister to stop fighting them. In truth, she didn't want to kill her any more than Haru did. But she knew that it would have to be done; Kurome was just too dangerous an enemy to be left alive. And because of this knowledge, Akame had decided that she should be the one to do it. It was her family that was the threat, so it should be that same family that decided it.
Akame was shaken from these thoughts when Haru stirred in his sleep. Her focus coming back to the here and now, she realized how close they were to each other and felt her face go red. Looking away quickly, she tried to sit up a bit straighter without disturbing his rest. She didn't succeed. Blinking the sleep from his eyes, Haru sat up and looked at Akame, taking notice of her red cheeks. It only took him a moment to realize what was making her so flustered, and in an effort to ease it he sat up and leaned away while trying to keep his own reaction in check.
Getting up first, he stretched and yawned, trying to work out the kinks from sleeping sitting down. Akame, meanwhile, stayed where she was with the blanket around her shoulders, trying to get herself back under control. He gave her a few moments to collect herself before turning back and offering her a hand. "Come on," he said, smiling slightly, "We should see if they saved us any food." Nodding, since she didn't trust her voice, Akame accepted his hand and pulled herself up. When they walked back into the cabin, Haru made a special effort to ignore the looks from Lubbock, Mine and Leone.
After enjoying a nice, if somewhat basic breakfast, they collected their belongings and started on their way to Kyoroch. The next few days were spent traveling cross-country while avoiding Imperial patrols. Haru made it a point to take the lead and scout when he could, if for no other reason than to prove that he wasn't a traitor. He also wanted to put some kind of distance between himself and Akame. He didn't feel any better about what he had told her that night, but he stood by what he had meant; he didn't deserve her, and they needed to keep their distance to avoid what would inevitably become something bad.
It took them four days at a cautious pace, but they eventually found themselves camping in the mountains overlooking the city itself. After they had set up camp, Haru found his way to a nearby clearing to try and summon his trump card again. He had made it a point to try and harness it ever since he had first discovered what it was, but he had made little progress. As he sat down lotus style and focused, he could feel the power flickering inside of him. It was like he was standing before a great bonfire; the heat was almost overwhelming in its intensity, and he could tell immediately that his usual fire paled into insignificance in comparison.
This wasn't fire in the conventional sense; this was destruction incarnate. This was a raw force of nature, an unstoppable juggernaut of destruction that would destroy everything in its path. Nothing could stop it, nothing could endure it, and left unchecked it would reduce everything into ashes. How he would be able to harness this power, he had absolutely no idea. It wasn't for lack of trying; he had been trying everything from exhausting himself to meditation to try to trigger it, but so far nothing had worked.
And so, instead of trying to force it, Haru was trying to retrace his steps during the first time he had used it. He remembered going out to the small river and thinking about his place in Night Raid. He remembered feeling frustrated as he felt himself getting pulled in two directions and using that frustration to feed into his attacks. Finally, he came to the point where he remembered feeling some indescribable, blind rage. The moment he touched on that memory he felt that bonfire stir slightly, causing him to feel both surprised and accomplished. So, it's triggered by intense emotions he thought with a smile, now it's just a matter of figuring out how to trigger it at will.
But even after spending the next hour dwelling on several different things that pissed him off, he was still unable to actually summon his new fire. Returning to the camp, he tried not to let the frustration of yet another failure get to him. We're getting closer to the end-game he thought as he sat down with his food for the night, I need to be better than this, or I won't be of use. What the hell is holding me back? He went to sleep still troubled by his lack of progress, and unfortunately for him this troubled mindset jogged loose memories that he had worked hard to bury.
He was running down a familiar street that had been turned into a hellscape. The buildings were all burning, turning the evening sky into a collection of reds and oranges pierced by pillars of thick smoke. The local Danger Beasts, a brood of Dragon Lizards, had descended onto their small town a little after the sun dropped below the horizon and had reduced their meager defenses to smoldering ruin within half an hour. Now the things were running rampant, driven into a blood-frenzy and burning or eating everything they ran into.
Haru had just come from where he had been helping at one of the barricades, but he was now running down the street as if there was a devil on his heels. Wiping his eye again to try and clear some of the blood from his vision, Haru rounded a corner and continued down the street. He tried hard to tune out the sounds of screaming as people were burned and eaten alive, to ignore the cries from the lizards as they tore the town apart. He had to get to his house, he had to. If he could get that far, then he could get his family out of there. Their house was on the edge of town, so they could easily escape into the hills nearby. I just need to get to the house he thought as he ran, and then everything will be fine.
But as he made the last turn, he saw the state his house was in and his spirits plummeted. The entire upper floor was belching fire, with the workshop off to the side already a pile of burning metal and wood. While he was exhausted from his flight to the building, he felt his adrenaline spike again as he rushed forward and crashed through the front door.
The smoke was almost overwhelming as he stumbled into the common area. "Mother! Father!" Haru called out between coughs, "Aki! Natsu! Where are you?!" As he called out, he realized there was something moving just around the corner. Stumbling down the hall, he spotted the all too familiar tail of a Dragon Lizard. It was steadfastly ignoring Haru, instead focusing on tearing apart the corpse it was standing over. It was his own father, fallen as he tried to defend his home and family against these beasts. Watching as the Lizard tore another strip out of his body, Haru fought down his gag reflex as he stepped back.
His boot hit something hard, and he looked down to see the hilt of a broken longsword. Seeing the weapon stirred up an unbelievable anger in him, anger that immediately banished his previous fears and concerns from his mind. Picking the sword up, he gave a primal cry as he charged the monster that dared to enter his home. The Lizard was too slow on the uptake, and Haru caught it in the side. The blade split its flesh, slid between its ribs, ripping one of its lungs open and nicking its heart. Rearing up in pain, the Lizard flung Haru up and over its back. He hit the wall on the far end of the kitchen, slumping to the ground and struggling to stay conscious as he tried to breathe again.
Looking up, he saw the Lizard's head swing around, its eyes locking onto him as it hissed. It didn't even charge him, it just walked over slowly with the sword still buried in its side. This is it Haru thought as he struggled to sit up. He didn't want to die, didn't want to be eaten. It can't end like this. Squeezing his eyes shut, he prepared for the Lizard to roast him alive. Then, he heard a wheezing and a gurgle. Opening his eyes, he saw the Lizard had bloody foam coming up out of its mouth. Coughing, the creature tried to clear its airway only to make the damage worse. Collapsing on its side, it continued to wheeze as it tried to keep breathing.
Haru didn't have much time to savor victory as he heard the entire building creaking. Picking himself up, he stumbled to the back door and just managed to get out before the building came down. He didn't remember stumbling up into the hills, didn't remember collapsing under the trees in exhaustion and slipping into unconsciousness. The next thing he knew, he was looking up at sunlight streaming through a green canopy. Feeling like he had a bad sunburn, Haru sat up slowly as he tried to not let the pain get to him. But the second he remembered the previous night, he shot to his feet with his pain forgotten.
Rushing through the trees, he burst through the brush to see the smoldering remains of his home. The buildings were all ruins, with a few of the Lizards still nosing around in the wreckage. He couldn't even tell which of the smoking piles used to be his house. Aki, Natsu, Mother… Haru couldn't speak, could barely breathe as he dropped to his knees. It was like his heart had been ripped out as he felt tears streaming down his cheeks. Clutching himself, Haru doubled over and cried out in pain. They were gone, they were all gone.