Hehe, I'm back ;)

Gonna to pick up the pace a bit but ngl the upcoming chapters are quite wordy so I can't promise lighting McQueen speed, alas I can try for regular Toyota speed :3

I have no idea what I just said


Two days from now, the assassination would be carried out. The reason was simple - it was the only day class A had a separate program from the 3-E, spending it in an isolated forest far away from the shore. That would assure them the time and space to move freely.

Until then, Karma and his class were free to do whatever they wanted.

To be honest, in between all the anticipation and nervosity, Karma also felt quite troubled about Koro-sensei finding out about his and Gakushuu's... amity, to put it simply. He was scared that the nosy octopus would undertake unnecessary actions which would raise suspicion. No, scratch that, just the very fact that someone knew was enough for paranoia to creep in the back of Karma's mind.

But this was Koro-sensei. He would have found out sooner or later anyway. And Karma, despite all the cheekiness and teasing he subjects his teacher to, trusted that octopus enough to know that he wouldn't spill secrets out to everyone. (Also, Karma blackmailed him to stay silent).

That's why he didn't tell Gakushuu anything.

Though one of Karma's fears does come true – Koro-sensei does undertake a lot of unnecessary actions. For example, he creates a big commotion to misdirect everyone's attention and then kidnaps Karma, sending him straight to Gakushuu (of course he disappears before anyone from A class notices him). Or he manipulates someone and messes with something, fuck if Karma knows who or what to begin with so that the two of them end up in the same groups.

The first such thing happened an hour after they arrived on the island. A bit past seven o'clock and the hotel had finished making their dinner. At the moment, the siblings were standing dumbfounded by the entrance to an empty, spacious dining room with only two chairs, a single table between them and food displayed on top. As for where the others were or why they were the only ones here, only one person knew:

That. Fucking. Octopus.

He assumes.

"The doors are locked," Gakushuu states, pulling on the handle behind them once again for good measure. He looks mildly annoyed at worst, probably thinking the waiters led them to the wrong room out of pure negligence.

Unlike him though, Karma knows what's going on. Just a while ago, they were called for dinner. A formally dressed man, probably a waiter somehow found him on a rooftop (because he loved rooftops and they were quiet) and invited him to join dinner. He proceeded to escort Karma and on the way, they bumped into another waiter walking with Gakushuu. Since then, they stuck together since they both headed to the same place.

Then the waiters shoved them into this place and locked them up.

Yep, definitely that octopus' doing.

"Hey Asano-kun, let's just eat, I'm hungry," Karma complains and sits down. He makes it a point to call him Asano.

The strawberry blond frowns, still trying to pry the door open. Painfully aware of the fact that it's to no avail, Karma adds a small tease: "Or are you being shy in front of me?"

Gakushuu pulls a face full of disgust and disapproval, still wary of any ears listening in on them. It's quite predictable how this act will play out: He will pretend to bitch about the situation, then sit down and eat as well because once Karma himself complained about being hungry, well... Gakushuu's 'stuff-you-like-a-grandma' mode would switch right on.

Truth to his word, the scene of an irritated A-class perfect student being stuck with a despicable E-class delinquent unfolds in front of him in no time. After the theatrics, Gakushuu ends up slumping on the chair, angrily grabbing the silverware and digging into his food.

While Karma doesn't doubt that they were ensured privacy here, he also wouldn't put it behind Koro-sensei if the teacher was hovering nearby, eavesdropping or taking pictures of them. For that reason, he stays quiet and only addresses his brother formally, therefore signalling that this isn't the time to be brothers.

It grew rather tiring, keeping a secret not only from Koro-sensei but also from Gakushuu about Koro-sensei's awareness of them.

"Do you know anything about this, Akabane?" his brother asks out of nowhere, the cold tone piercing the atmosphere.

Karma shrugs. "Not really. Probably some kind of prank," he answers. "Why? Does eating with me disturb you so much?"

"Yes, your very existence is disturbing," Gakushuu declares, his eyes not leaving his plate.

Karma dramatically puts a hand on his chest, faking emotional turmoil: "Why, that deeply hurt me!"

And the conversation dies right then. The missed opportunity of them openly being them stings. The fact that this very much could have been a peaceful and luxurious dinner together, filled with laughter and jokes - but it wasn't, it will never be out of fear of being exposed – left an aching pang in their hearts.

Karma sees it all in Gakushuu's eyes, displayed so plainly, that he decides to meet up with the strawberry blond later and make up for the loss.

After finishing the dinner, both of them head to the main hall where they reunite with their classes, which also means they part ways. Shortly before that, Karma whispers in Latin: "11 p.m., window." And although Gakushu shows no reaction, Karma knows he understood.

His brother walks to his group of classmates, friends, pawns, whatever it is he considers them and his footsteps die out in a matter of few seconds. Not that Karma has time to miss them since they immediately get replaced by different, much lighter ones.

"Karma-kun, what do you want to do tomorrow?" Nagisa-kun appears next to him, his eyes glowing with excitement. He shoves a whole leaflet filled with destinations and programmes available on the island.

"Dunno~ What's there to do?" He wonders, simultaneously reading up on the information in his hands.

Tomorrow is a complete day off - they can go anywhere they want with anyone they want (of course, under the supervision of either staff or teachers). The island is safe, with no wildlife or inhabitants, so if it isn't far or anyhow dangerous, the groups can venture out for a short amount of time on their own too. All the attractions and meals are covered by the school, only extra drinks or snacks require payment. Sweet.

Nakamura and Kayano-chan soon join their conversation, grinning at the wide selection. They suggest hiring a boat – they could sail around the island and the tour guide would show them interesting places or sights such as waterfalls, caves and cliffs. The idea sounds great, so they agree.

Apart from that, so many opportunities offered themselves on this island - from scuba diving to gliding, spa and massage. What, however, at the moment catches Karma's eyes is a small note at the side, mentioning the best place to observe stars: A small hill about seven hundred meters away from the hotel. They even painted a map to get there so Karma commits it into his memory.

But for now, Karma allows himself to sink into the cushioned chair in the lobby and observe. Everyone around him was occupied, mostly talking to each other and some even playing games such as ping pong. For once, the two classes co-existed peacefully, since the A-class was currently busy discussing the program for tomorrow as well. Those who didn't care enough to actually participate in the conversation stayed on their phones or quietly read a book. Some flauntingly played chess (Karma suspects it's just to display their "intelligence" because the moves they made were abysmal) while sipping on their fancy little cocktails.

Gakushuu was currently surrounded by his virtuosos gang, laughing about something Karma couldn't hear. The chuckle didn't seem forced nor fake which surprised him, because Karma genuinely never thought Gakushuu was capable of producing such a hearty laugh in the presence of those arrogant geese, let alone openly show it. Apparently, he was wrong.

"Let's do it," Nakamura whispers into his ear out of the blue, making Karma almost jump out of his skin. He glances at her and her eyes gleam dangerously. "Let's prank them," she says.

Karma snickers. He likes that idea. Even though it's his very own brother about to become a victim, he doesn't particularly mind. Oh, what a bad younger sibling he is.

"What's better? To embarrass or hurt them?" He raises an eyebrow.

She glanced up, thinking about it: "Embarrass. It's funnier that way. Or you know what, both."

An idea pops into his mind and he cracks into a smile a bit too gleeful, borderline creepy. Beckoning Nakamura to come closer, he voices out his first suggestion. After two minutes of explanation, she too wears the exact sinister smile as Karma and they high-five, extremely delighted and eager for tomorrow to come.

Because tomorrow will be really fun.

Before they even realize it, the planning and talking stretches on till the clock hits ten p.m. The teachers hush them into the rooms, the official bedtime being half past ten (which was way too soon for Karma's liking). Since Karma has the polite, conscientious Nagisa-kun as his roommate, he's left with little wiggle room and complies.

On one hand, Nagisa-kun being a goody shoe turns into an advantage. The boy's out cold by 22:45, which allows Karma to sneak out unnoticed and without having to give any excuses. He climbs out of the window, grateful that they're only on the second floor, and stealthily heads to Gakushuu's room. Hopefully, his brother has somehow managed to shake his roommate off or at least make sure he wasn't spotted as well.

Gakushuu's room is on the first floor, four rooms to the right from Karma's. The lights are off and the curtains are drawn, but Karma manages to peak through a narrow slit between the curtains. To his relief, Gakushuu's waiting right there just as agreed. He gently taps on the glass, capturing his attention, and he patiently watches as the strawberry blond opens the window.

"What's going on?" Gakushuu whispers, warily scanning the area.

"Let's go out, I want to show you something," Karma answers enthusiastically. His gaze wanders inside the room to find Sakakibara Ren (his brother's number one lackey, gross) sleeping on the other bed. Weird how soon those idiots went to sleep.

Gakushuu frowns slightly, considering that proposal: "We could get into trouble."

"Trouble is my second name. Come on, this is a once-in-lifetime chance. Please, Gakushuu," he tugs at his sleeve, pursing his lips and mustering up the most disarming puppy eyes. He knows that Gakushuu rarely actually to resists that combination.

And indeed, his brother buckles. Reluctantly, he nods and runs off to stuff something under his bed sheets (Karma didn't even think of that, he hoped Nagisa-kun would just assume Karma went to the bathroom or something). Gakushuu then follows him out and both of them climb a bit lower till they can safely jump to the ground.

"If someone sees us," Gakushuu starts seriously, the threat unfinished. Despite the sharp tone, there's hidden glee in his voice.

"Then we gouge their eyes. Or hit them hard enough to give them memory loss. Easy peasy."

Karma doesn't actually intend for it to be a joke but his brother chuckles and gladly takes it.

They carefully made their way from the hotel, sneaking around and running like ninjas (Karma's immature mind was doing flips) until they were completely out of sight. After seven minutes of walking through a dark forest, Gakushuu finally questions their destination: "So? Where are we going?"

"Stargazing, obviously," Karma proclaims cheerfully all the while turning his head in all directions to take the surroundings in and orientate himself. Almost there, he notes, they just need to turn right and then-

"We're here," he exhales excitedly, the scene in front of him an exact copy of the picture he saw in the leaflet. He turns to Gakushuu and shows him the place. In front of them stood a vast meadow on significantly higher ground, petite white flowers covering it whole. And right above that beautiful bed of snow-white petals, the whole vast sky with thousands of stars shone brightly in the absence of any artificial lighting. The moon was barely to be seen, just a dark blue sky painted with all shades of blue until they all melted into a rich indigo, so surreal and strange it resembled a painting.

The two of them tread softly till they find a spot to sit. Karma is unable to tear his eyes from the sky the entire time so instead of straining his neck any longer, he lays down and Gakushuu follows his lead. For ten minutes, gazing is all they do.

"That's Sagittarius," raising his finger, Karma connects the dots, forming a constellation. "And that, Hercules. Do you see them?"

Gakushuu's lips curl up at the enthusiasm. "Of course I do," he retorts, sans any ridicule. Then he raises his hand too, joining Karma in the search: "And there - the Great triangle. Deneb, Vega, Altair."

"It's so easy to see them. From Deneb - the Swan. From Vega - Lyra and from Altair the Eagle. It's so beautiful."

Gakushuu turns at Karma with a curious look: "I never knew you were so into astronomy."

Karma shrugs innocently. It's not like astronomy particularly interests him but he read a few articles here and there and saw the pictures which mostly stuck because they struck him as stunning. He did learn some basics for the scenario where he gets lost in the wild with no directions or compass but that was about it.

"Not really. Just random things I remembered. But you have to admit this is beautiful," he settles on in the end.

And Gakushuu did admit it by ruffling his hair: "Also, I never knew you could look this passionate about something."

Trying to look offended, Karma stares into his eyes: "Excuse me? I have lots of things I'm passionate about. I'm the most passionate person in this world."

Both of them know it's a big fat lie, which results in them bursting into laughter. Which lasts longer than Karma's pride could withstand.

"Come on, I do have some passions!" he objects, but Gakushuu's still doubled in amusement.

Finally, he stops. They fall into a silence and Karma finds himself at peace like rarely before. He deeply inhales the gentle smell of flowers all around, locking his gaze on the sky: "You know, Gakushuu," he starts, feeling the violet eyes on him. "Truth to be told, If I didn't have to worry about anything and could just stay with you, It'd be so easy to be passionate about anything."

Gakushuu doesn't comment on it. The words are left hanging in the air for the rest of the evening and it's fine this way too, Karma muses. He doesn't need to hear anything in return because he knows Gakushuu feels the same. All Karma wanted was to give those feelings a form and free them, let them dance among the flowers and whirl into the starry night where his brother could always see them.

Gakushuu says nothing but he squeezes Karma's hand, a soft smile on his lips. And in that moment, nothing bothers them anymore. Not the fact that someone could find them. Not that they were breaking rules. There were no rules that mattered right now.

Nothing mattered.

Only them.