After a while, Akame gave up on trying to breach the barrier. Nothing she did could pierce the water, and her few attempts at jumping over had met with failure and bruises. She could only stand and watch as that man did God knows what to Haru. To her Haru. Clenching her hands almost to the point where her nails drew blood, she tried to figure out some way to get in there and help. Murasame is of no use against that girl's weapon she thought, trying to form a plan, and she's too observant to let me out of her sight easily. That boy also has a long-range weapon, although he has to mark me to hit me.
Her only saving grace was that whatever the man was doing appeared to require his full attention. If his weapon was anything like Haru's, then he could easily sweep her aside whenever he wanted to. That still left her with some pretty long odds; two Imperial Arms versus one was a far cry from ideal. Still, she had to do something to stop this. She had heard enough of their conversation to know that the longer they were left alone, the more likely it was that Haru would be reduced to a puppet. And she wasn't prepared to fight him to the death, she wasn't even sure she could.
"Haru, I know you can hear me," she said, hoping to give him some kind of support, "Fight back, Haru! I know you are stronger than this, so fight back!" The man just grimaced as the girl shouted, wishing she would just shut up and accept the inevitable. "17, deal with her," he said without breaking his concentration. With that, the girl Haru had called Aki dropped her barrier before forming the water into several snakes and hurling it at Akame. She just managed to dodge the attack before noticing that the girl had charged her. Akame wasn't quick enough to avoid the kick to her stomach, and she felt the air leave her body as she hit one of the headstones before landing on the ground.
Picking herself back up, she prepared her sword to cut this girl down before remembering Haru's face when he saw her. Whoever this person was, she was important to him, and because of that Akame was hesitant to kill her. And here I thought my feelings wouldn't compromise my ability to fight she thought, smirking at how ridiculous that claim was. However, there was a silver lining to this situation. She realized it when she was forced to dodge another blow; without Aki there to stop her, the only one in her way was the bowman. He would have to mark her to use his weapon successfully, but if she was fast enough then he wouldn't even have the time for that. Now, who do I go for she wondered as she started blocking blows with her scabbard, that man in black, or Haru?
After what felt like an eternity, Haru felt ground under his feet. However, with the continuing barrage of insults and accusations, as well as the debilitating cold, Haru found that he didn't have the strength to remain standing. The moment he put weight on his legs, they gave out and he collapsed to his knees, clutching his head in pain as he tried to ignore those voices. It's not true he kept repeating to himself, I'm not a failure. I may be a mistake, but I'm not weak. I'm not!
It wasn't helping as much as he hoped it would. That bastard had been frighteningly right; the darkness of his own soul was working against him. And after all of the things he had thought, said and done, there was no shortage of ammo for him to use. After a while, it became difficult for Haru to think as the barrage of verbal abuse continued. Closing his eyes, he prayed for it to just stop as he collapsed onto his side, and he didn't care what it would take.
Feeling something tickle his nose, Haru shifted and rolled his head. He saw white all around him, and in the distance were snow covered trees. In fact, there was snow falling now, slow and steady. Sitting up, he looked around in confusion at strangely familiar surroundings. Hearing someone to his left, Haru turned and saw the backside of a house. The windows and open door were lit with the warm glow of a fire, and standing in the door was his sister. She had on her favorite light-blue dress and scarf, and was looking at him with a smile as he sat there. "Hey, you going to stay out there all evening?" she asked, crossing her arms and leaning on the door frame, "Mom has dinner cooking and Natsu is looking for you. Why don't you come back inside before you catch your death of cold?"
For a moment, he was confused. For a moment, he felt like he should have had something that would warm him right up, but he couldn't remember what. In fact, he couldn't remember what he had been doing outside at all. Shaking his head to clear it, he looked at his sister and smiled. "Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," he said as he got up and shook some of the snow off. Returning his smile with a bigger one, she held her hand out as he approached. As he reached the bottom of the stairs, he reached up to accept her hand before stopping. Something doesn't feel right he realized, looking at her closer, my instincts are saying this is wrong. But what is wrong?
"Something wrong, brother?" Aki asked, tilting her head in confusion. Taking a deep breath, he banished those troubling thoughts as he stepped forward. "No, nothing is wrong, Aki," he replied, smiling, "I'm just a little tired, that's all." "Well, if you ask nicely then maybe mother will prepare you something special," she said, smiling as she took his hand. For the briefest of moments, Haru felt better than he had in a long time. He didn't know why, but it felt like he had been freed from a massive burden, and it felt so good.
Then he felt someone crash into him, wrapping their arms around him as they tackled him and put him on his back. Lying on the ground, he stared at the sky in confusion. There's no one on me he thought, looking down to make sure, so what the hell just happened? Aki was just trying not to laugh, assuming it was her brother acting silly again. '… you have to fight this,' he heard suddenly. It was a voice he recognized, and it sounded like it was coming from right next to his head. Who… is that?
It had been a calculated risk, but Akame had decided that her best bet was to try and break the man's hold over Haru. She didn't know the true nature of his powers, and for all she knew the effects would linger on even after his death. Blocking another blow from Aki with her scabbard, Akame used this opening and brought the end of Murasame's handle into her stomach. This knocked the wind from the girl and bought her enough time to break away. The boy was ready for this, and he raised his bow to mark her while drawing one of his explosive arrows. Anticipating where he would try to hit, Akame bent down to grab a piece of broken headstone before continuing her charge.
He tried to mark her and shoot at the same time, and that would be his undoing. As he fired the beam of light, with the arrow just a second behind it, Akame hurled her rock into its path. The beam hit it, and the arrow turned to track its target before hitting it and exploding. The boy seemed unprepared for this, and hesitated before trying to draw another arrow. He wasn't quick enough, though, and Akame's scabbard hit him square in the chest, sending him flying into a headstone. Looking over his shoulder, the man grit his teeth in frustration as she rushed him. Breaking off his connection, he leaped to the side and turned to face her. Raising a hand, he created a pure black barrier to stop her sword.
However, she hadn't been trying to kill him just yet. Instead, she used the rebound from the blow to propel herself at Haru. Released from his control, Haru's body had started to fall back to the ground. Crashing into his chest, she wrapped her arms around him and carried him a few feet before tripping up and falling. He landed on his back, and she landed on him. Getting up, she grabbed his shoulders and said, "Wake up, Haru! Don't give in; you have to fight this!" He stirred slightly in his trance, and she felt hope at his reaction. That is, until she felt something wrap around her midsection and hurl her into another headstone.
It turns out that the man hadn't just been standing back and watching. He had summoned a tendril of darkness to attack her, and even after the first one disappeared there were several more forming around him. "He must be someone special for you to take a risk like that," the man said, walking forward, "I guess I should start with you next, sine he's going to be unconscious for the next few hours." Reaching out, he sent the tendrils forward to surround her. Lashing out with Murasame, she tried to hold them back only to have one wrap around her right wrist. With a twist it broke her grip on the sword, and before she could try to recover it her other hand had been pinned. Lifting her up, the man prepared to begin on her as he brought a knife out of one of his inner pockets. It possessed a black blade and practically dripped with dark energy.
Sitting up in the snow, Haru tried to figure out just what the hell had happened to him. Hearing laughter, he looked up to see Aki clutching her stomach with tears coming to her eyes. "Haha! Wow, I knew you could be a klutz, but this takes the cake," she managed as she tried to steady her breathing. Smiling at her, he had to admit that he had probably slipped. It was cold outside, after all, and it wasn't too far-fetched to think there was ice. But he remembered that voice from somewhere, and it took him all of three seconds to realize why. "…Akame," he muttered, his memory returning to him.
Looking up, he realized this wasn't real; that bastard had created an illusion to trick him. Odds are that had he entered that house he would have given up to his control. Standing up, Haru felt the cold attack him in response to his resistance. He would yield to its power, as all others previously had. However, Haru's powers had just been introduced to a new fuel source; anger. That man had used his family against him, his very memories, all in an attempt to break him. You can't even comprehend how badly you fucked up here, buddy Haru thought as he watched the illusion dissipate.
He could feel something besides his inner flame flaring up in response to this anger, but it still wasn't enough to push him over the edge. Returning to the real world, Haru managed to roll over and get up onto his knees. But when he heard a cry, he looked up and felt his heart stop. That man had Akame restrained with several tendrils and a black knife out in his hand. She had tried to kick the blade away, but he had responded by wrapping one tendril around her throat and squeezing. That did it.
"Verbrennen."
They all felt an intense heat coming off from his direction, and they turned to see Haru standing up with a burning aura around him. It wasn't nearly as unnerving as the look in his eyes; it was as if they were staring into the heart of the sun. Even Aki and Natsu stepped back out of reflex, in spite of the shadows coursing through their veins. "H-How are you doing that?" the man asked, turning to face him fully, "I filled you with so much darkness… I felt the dark in your soul! There's no way a person like you should even be awake, much less standing!"
"It's funny," Haru replied, smiling darkly, "I never thought to use my trump card like this before." Lifting his hand up, he looked at it and felt the raw power flowing through him. "I know from using this technique previously that it's a fire that can consume anything. I just didn't realize what it truly was," he said, clenching his hand into a fist, "It's not just physical destruction; my trump can burn away anything, including your little shadows. I just used it on myself, and now I will end you." Looking up at the man, Haru could tell that he had shaken him. Stepping forward, Haru prepared his last few attacks. He had a minute, maybe two, left before his booster wore off and this power-up with it.
Bringing his hand up, he commanded, "Thýella!" Flames lept from his hand, and the man responded by bringing up a barrier to defend against it. "17, 18, delay him!" he commanded as he started to retreat. In response, Aki and Natsu moved to stop him, even though it would probably cost them their lives. And he doesn't care Haru thought, feeling his energy flare up even further. Bracing himself, he dashed forward and felt his powers augment his speed. He was between them faster than they could react, and he hit them both at once; his right knee into Aki's stomach and his left hand at the base of Natsu's neck.
They went down without a sound, and Haru moved after the man that had done all this. He was going to pay; he was going to pay dearly. He was in the man's way in a flash, lashing out with another blast of fire while he tried to fight back with his shadows. "Sorry," Haru said, though he didn't look anywhere near it, "But an Imperial Arms used for stealth and brainwashing isn't going to save you from my flames! Zündung!"
His fire came down in a wide slash, eating through the man's barrier and burning a trail down one side. To his credit, it didn't knock him down, although he did stumble back a few steps. "Any last wor-" Haru began before he felt the drug wear off. Damnit he thought as his legs buckled. Dropping to one knee, he tried to stay upright and manifest more fire. He had to finish this, he had to. But it was no use; he couldn't light a match, much less burn a man alive. The man seemed to realize this as he grinned. "So, all that power was just for show, huh?" he asked, walking forward and pulling his knife back out, "It's such a shame to kill someone like you, but I guess it can't be helped. You're too much of a pain to let liv-"
He was cut short with a grunt. Looking down, he saw the end of Murasame sticking out of his chest. Dropping his knife, he clutched at the wound as he tried to figure out what the hell just happened. He could already feel the poison working its way through his body as he looked behind him. Akame stood there with her own furious look. If Haru was all burning heat, she was cold assurance. Removing the blade, she continued to stare at him as she said, "This settles it. Now die, and take your cursed weapon with you." "D-damn you…" he managed as he collapsed.
Akame waited a few seconds to make sure that the poison had actually killed him. She had pierced one of his lungs, so it should have spread fairly quickly. But his Imperial Arms was organic in nature, so there was no way of knowing just what kind of abilities it had. The second she was sure, however, her sword was back in its scabbard and she was at Haru's side to keep him steady. Breathing heavily, Haru tried to fight off the exhaustion that was threatening to consume him. "He's dead, right?" he asked, looking up at her. She just nodded while looking concerned. She had seen the kind of damage his trump card could inflict, and she didn't even want to guess what it had cost him to internalize that kind of fire.
Looking over at Aki and Natsu, who were still unconscious, he asked, "Are they still…?" "I think they're alright," she replied, giving him a small smile, "I avoided cutting them, and you didn't hit anything vital." Sighing in relief, Haru shifted so he was sitting down and just focused on recovering his strength. "Thank you, Akame," he said after a while, "I'm sure this is all going to hit me like a ton of bricks later, so in case I forget to say it; thank you." "So, who are they?" she asked, grateful that he at least appeared to be alright, "You seemed to know them."
Without saying a word, he reached into one of his pockets and pulled out his family photo. Handing it to her, he just let her connect the dots as she examined the faces. After a few seconds, it all clicked and she looked at them in concern. "…Your family?" she asked finally. She wasn't just stunned at this, she was angry. That man had almost made Haru kill his own siblings earlier, something that would have utterly destroyed him had he done it. "Yeah," Haru replied, "I can't imagine how they survived, but it looks like they did."
Finally able to stand again, Haru got back onto his feet before walking over to them. "We can't just leave them here," he said, kneeling down and picking Natsu's weapon up. Nodding in agreement, Akame got Aki onto her back with Haru's help. Then, with Haru carrying his brother, they made their way back to their meeting point with the others. It was a long walk, and a few times Haru felt like he was going to pass out. But he grit his teeth and powered through it, determined to see his brother and sister safely to their hideout nearby.
By the time they got to the meeting point, the others had been waiting for a little over two hours. Mine looked pissed that they had been made to wait so long, but the second they saw Akame and Haru carrying people, their anger turned into concern. "What the heck happened to you two?" Mine asked. Ignoring her, Tatsumi walked over and helped Haru with his brother, since it looked like he was about to pass out. "It's a long story," Haru replied, sighing in relief as Tatsumi took Natsu, "We just need to get them to our hideout. They won't be a problem, trust me." "Who are they?" Lubbock asked, looking at Aki with interest.
Had Haru been in a better condition, he would have probably taken issue with it. Instead, he just gave a tired growl as he replied, "They're my siblings." Lubbock took the implied meaning and took a step back, smiling and raising his hands. With the five of them, it didn't take long to get to their hideout. Najenda had managed to secure a rather large house from one of their supporters. She didn't ask any questions about their guests when she saw the state Haru was in. She knew he was about to drop, so she decided to leave it until later. Setting them up in a room together, Haru breathed a sigh of relief as he dropped onto the room's couch. He was out the moment he hit its surface, and was thankfully too drained to even dream.
Akame walked into the room a short time later, hoping they were all alright. Seeing the three of them sleeping, especially Haru passed out on the couch, brought a smile to her face. Walking over, she picked up his discarded cloak and draped it over him. She then sat down next to the end of the couch, by his head, and closed her eyes to rest. She was also beat from their battle, although sleep didn't come easy to her. Leone had made it a point to tell her that, in a way, Haru owed her one for helping to save his siblings. "You know, you could ask him for almost anything," she had said, giving Akame an evil-looking smile.
She knew full well what her friend had been implying, but it wasn't something she felt good about. She may love him, but she wasn't about to guilt him into returning those feelings. Right now, she was content just to be with him as friends. At least, that's what she tried to tell herself as she slipped into slumber. When the sun finally peaked over the horizon, Akame was the first to wake up. Yawning, she turned her head before freezing in place. Haru had shifted onto his side in his sleep, and right now their faces were centimeters apart. Looking at his peaceful features, she felt her emotions, her love, rushing to the surface. She wanted to steal a kiss from him badly at that moment, so much so that she had started to move before she even realized it.
But she was stopped short when she heard someone clearing their throat. Realizing what she had been about to do, she leaned back with a face the color of a tomato. Looking to her left, she saw the girl, Aki, sitting up in her bed and looking at her. Her face was an impassive mask, and she just brought one hand up and motioned Akame over. Not knowing what else she could do, Akame came over and sat on the chair next to her. "So," Aki began, looking serious, "How long has that been going on?" "I-uh, well… I'm not…" Akame replied, completely flustered.
Unable to stand anymore, Aki broke out into a wide grin and started laughing silently. Concerned that she might hurt herself, Akame was about to lean in when she just waved her off. "I'm sorry," Aki said, wiping her eyes, "I couldn't resist. The second I saw those puppy dog eyes, it was too good to pass up." "Ah, that's what that was," Akame said, smiling back. This was Haru's sister, after all. It would make sense that they had similar senses of humor. "But, I do have two serious questions for you," Aki said after she had collected herself, "How has my brother been doing?"
"Doing?" Akame asked, unsure what she meant. "How much trouble has he caused?" Aki clarified, "How many times has he put himself at risk for others? He is my brother, so I have a pretty good idea what he tends to do." "Well, that might take a while to explain." "I'm not going anywhere anytime soon," Aki said, bringing her knees up and resting her chin on them. Taking a deep breath, Akame told her what they had all been through. Aki didn't seem too pleased with the idea of her brother joining a group of assassins, but she remained silent as Akame talked. Hearing about the different opponents he had faced and beaten was impressive; she still remembered when her darling little brother had barely been able to beat anyone with training swords, much less a real one.
"Well, that's one heck of a life," Aki said after Akame had finished, "But now to my second question. Has he answered you?" Tilting her head, Akame tried to act confused at her question, but Aki saw right through her and sighed. "Don't tell me he's had someone like you crushing on him and done nothing about it," she said, pinching the bridge of her nose. "It's… a little more complicated than that," Akame said, looking down and clasping her hands, "We're both assassins; either one of us could die at any time, and neither of us wants to break the other's heart. We're fine with remaining as…friends."
"Don't give me that shit," Aki replied, looking pissed, "He's not that stupid. I refuse to believe my brother would turn down someone's feelings out of fear." "It's not just that," Akame said, trying to keep her voice neutral, "I don't know all of the details, since he refuses to talk about it. But… he doesn't consider himself human anymore." Aki just looked at her in shock. Could Haru have changed that much in just a few years? No, there's no way Aki thought, whatever may have happened, I know that's just not possible.
Placing a hand on Akame's shoulder, she said, "Don't worry, sister, I'll talk to him." Smiling at her, Akame nodded in thanks. Before they could talk further, Haru yawned from where he was lying and sat up. Looking around in confusion, it took him a moment to remember where the heck he was. Turning to look at the two girls, his gaze lingered on Akame briefly, and he smiled when he saw she was alright. Then he looked over at his sister, and it was part shock and part disbelief.
Getting up, he walked over to her bedside and sat down, at a complete loss for words. "Ar-Are you…?" he began, trying to find some way to quell his raging mind. Smiling at him, Aki reached out and took one of his hands in both of hers. "I'm fine. A little tired and hungry, but fine," she said, giving his hand a squeeze. At this point, tears started to form in her eyes as she smiled wider, saying, "Hello, brother. It's been a while, huh?" Bringing her hand up, Haru kissed her knuckle as tears started to dust his own eyes. "Thank you…" he said as he leaned forward and hugged his sister, "Thank you…." Through all of this, Akame just sat and watched with a smile, feeling a warmth she hadn't felt in a long time.