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"Chitaru-san, do you believe in karma?"
Chitaru looks up from her book, giving Hitsugi a puzzled glance. "I believe in justice. Why do you ask?"
"Oh... no particular reason." A pause. "But karma and justice could be considered almost the same thing, right?"
Maybe. Maybe they could. But one is a belief and the other is law. Chitaru says nothing and merely smiles, closing her book and standing up. This isn't a topic she'd like to get further into even if she's normally open with Hitsugi. Justice is a sort of karma, in a sense. Criminals get the punishments they deserve. Chitaru assassinates those who deserve death. That's what separates her from other assassins who are driven by rewards or even pleasure.
Angel Trumpet deserves death for what they had done. That is their karma. And that is the justice that Chitaru intends to deliver.
"Do you want to take a bath now, Kirigaya?"
---
Maybe it's just the shock messing with her head, but Hitsugi's body already feels cold in her arms.
"She wanted to leave with you, once everything was over. You were her most desired one."
Nio's words seem to echo louder than they should, but then Chitaru remembers that they're on a stage in front of an audience that's completely unaware of what just happened. Why did Romeo enter when he wasn't supposed to? Is this how the story went? Did the Black Class add an impromptu plot twist just for this performance? What's that thing Romeo just picked up off the ground near Juliet? Wow, that dagger sticking from Juliet's chest sure looks convincing! They really went all out!
She stares at the vial of poison that was intended for Haru Ichinose, still leaning over Hitsugi's still body. A million thoughts and feelings strain to burst through the numb barrier that set itself on its own when it... happened, and Chitaru wills herself to wake up.
Wake up. It's morning. Hitsugi will be smiling at her with a towel wrapped around her hair, having just taken a shower. They'll walk to class together. Breakfast. What shall they have for breakfast?
The vial slips from her palm and rolls away. Nio stops it with her foot, picks it up, and slowly steps over to Chitaru, a full theater of eyes following her every movement.
"What will you do now?"
---
The memories of what came next still come back in short snippets now and then, even after all this time. The curtains close to thunderous applause and cheers, and the other assassins are on the stage before Chitaru can even muster the will to stand.
"Namatame-san." Suzu gently takes one of Chitaru's arms to steady her, her voice soft. It's only then that Chitaru realizes she's swaying on the spot like she's about to fall over.
"Sheesh, talk about dramatics~ I'm not helping clean up that mess." Isuke's drawl slices through the heavy air like a knife, but no one pays her any mind. They don't, because even though Isuke acts as though she isn't shaken by any of it, they can all hear the slight waver in her voice. She doesn't say anything else after that.
Funny how even a class of killers knows to show their respects.
The puddle of blood and Hitsugi's body are both gone without a trace by the time curtain call comes around. Everybody asks where Romeo and Juliet are afterward, and nobody gets a proper answer.
---
The sun is on the verge of rising when Chitaru leaves the dorms for the last time, holding her suitcase in one hand and a bag of Hitsugi's belongings in the other. The events of last night seem so far away, yet as much as Chitaru doesn't want to think about it they keep replaying in her mind like a broken tape.
She stops before she reaches the curb. Two silhouettes are standing there, one clearly shivering in the chill of the morning. A moment of hesitation passes before Chitaru continues onward, her pace considerably slower than before.
"Chitaru-san...!" It's Haru Ichinose and Tokaku Azuma. Haru looks like she's on the verge of tears, just as she was the previous night. "Chitaru-san, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." Tokaku makes a sound of protest and starts forward when Haru suddenly rushes to embrace Chitaru, freely sobbing now.
This is why Chitaru left before morning came.
She doesn't want to be pitied. A real live love story turned into a tragedy, a girl who had stupidly fallen in love with her enemy, a play gone horribly wrong- it's all too easy to feel sorry for her, especially when all the girls in Black Class had seen the way Chitaru held that vial of poison before she dropped it. It's likely at least most of them could tell she was different all along. Chitaru wasn't here for a prize. She was here for justice, a ridiculous notion for someone of her profession. How much more pathetic could an assassin like her be?
Chitaru forces a pained smile and sets down one of her bags (her own, not Hitsugi's) and pats Haru's shoulder once.
"Can you promise me something?"
Still crying, Haru looks up at Chitaru and nods through her tears. Tokaku stands close by but doesn't intervene.
"... Don't die." She gently pries Haru's arms away from her, now looking straight at Tokaku. Tokaku says nothing, but her stare isn't nearly as icy as it usually is.
"I wish both of you the best of luck."
---
Coming home is a quiet and lackluster event. Chitaru spends the whole day distracting herself with unpacking her things, one item at a time, delaying the moment when she'll have to open the suitcase of Hitsugi's belongings.
It feels like a part of her heart had been cut away. She sits on the edge of her bed and looks down at the pink teddy bear Hitsugi had always carried. It's still wearing the bee pin Chitaru had won for Hitsugi at the school fair.
She wonders if Hitsugi had any real sentimental attachment to the teddy bear, or if it was just a convenient way of hiding her weapon.
Only then does it occur to her all over again that she knew practically nothing about Hitsugi. About Angel Trumpet.
Chitaru suddenly winces, hot tears spilling down her face, and she hugs the toy close to her aching chest.
---
Sensei smiles when Chitaru delivers the news that her daughter's spirit may rest in peace now, but the smile is as sad as much as it's serene.
"Something is hurting you, Chitaru."
Chitaru is silent for a long moment as she slowly brushes the woman's hair. Nothing ever gets past her teacher.
"... Angel Trumpet killed a girl I came to love."
---
Maybe it was some odd attempt to ease that heavy ache in her chest. Maybe she needed some extra closure. Whatever the case was, Chitaru found herself digging around until she found out what hospital Shiena Kenmochi had been admitted to.
"You." Shiena spits venomous rage and tries (and fails) to sit up when Chitaru quietly enters the room, all sorts of tubes and wires hooked to her body like strings on a puppet. A monitor beeps away beside her hospital bed. "What do you want?! Here to laugh at my failure? Huh?! I won't forgive you! I'll never forgive you or Kirigaya...!"
"Kirigaya is dead."
Shiena freezes, her anger slipping away for a moment to be overwritten with confusion and shock, but she manages to gather herself back together and muster a forced sneer.
"That's what she gets for playing dirty! I know there wasn't a rule about not attacking other assassins, but... but..." Shiena falters when she sees the look of remorse on Chitaru's face. "She... this is her karma! People like that always get what they deserve! That girl had it coming!"
"I know."
Shiena swallows, unsure what to say next.
---
The vial of poison that was intended for Haru Ichinose sits on a shelf beside Hitsugi's teddy bear, still sealed and gathering dust. Chitaru has no choice but to continue on with her life, always carrying that unbearable weight in her chest that won't seem to go away no matter what she does. Sometimes she imagines the weight is merely a part of Hitsugi's spirit that will always be with her, but that's only wistful thinking.
Chitaru accomplished her mission, but at the price of what?
Is this her own karma?