Walpurgis Night [ An Assassination Classroom fanfiction ]

Transfer Student Time

" He's such a friendly young man ! Do you know Mrs X's daughter was hospitalized recently and when he learnt that, he always brought her a bouquet of flowers every evening without fail ? "

An amiable youth who was more than happy to help out with any odd jobs or requests one may have without a single word of complaint. 

" I hear he's even been giving free tuition to the schoolchildren studying at the coffee shop opposite his temporary store in his free time. You know, he even helped out this first-time job-seeker with calming his nerves and preparing for his interview at this prestigious corporation, and I heard he did land the job with all the help ! "

Happened to be extremely knowledgeable in seemingly every aspect, always willing to lend a listening ear to the troubles of those around him, and always gave great advice which invariably worked out without fail.  

" His offerings are amazing and his floral arrangements are always so beautiful ! He's really generous with his prices too since he said he was still testing things out, I'm looking forward to his opening of an actual store already, I'm sure he'll be so popular ! "

Not to mention, his skills as a florist didn't seem like some side hobby he had taken on for fun or to kill some of his boredom. He was truly talented and took pride in the work that he did as well as the smiles of satisfied customers. 

In all, he seemed like a great guy, a perfect gentleman, and I had heard nothing that would hint otherwise. Everyone I had came across and spoken to was full of praise, everyone spoke about how dependable he was, and everyone felt comfortable in his presence, as though it was a completely natural thing to spill all your secrets and troubles to someone you've met for little over ten minutes at most. And that was why it was strange, this restlessness she felt every time someone sang another praise about him. 

How could someone be so ... likable ? So ... unnaturally perfect ? 

There was this saying that proclaimed there was nobody in this world who could please every single person living on the planet, but before my eyes was a single man who was already succeeding in pleasing almost every single person I had came across in the neighborhood. 

" Haah ... " 

But then again, maybe I was thinking about it too much. Maybe there just was. Either way, looking at the bigger picture, there shouldn't have been much of a reason to blow things up this much since the chances we'd meet again were few and far between, especially since that neighborhood wasn't an area I frequented anyway. 

Just as I thought that, I came to the realization that the leaves I had been sitting among a few moments ago were getting seemingly distant, and the branch I had been seated on had abruptly disappeared. 

It seemed that I was falling. And falling fast. 

For a moment, my mind was thrown into a state of confusion, and time itself seemed to come to a standstill as my thoughts ran wild in my mind. Before I had began practicing, I had made sure the tree I chosen was healthy and sturdy enough to support the weight of continuous practice attempts so accidents, like this one, wouldn't happen. I had made sure to be meticulous, I thought, especially since I was practicing alone and there was nobody to watch my back, so the fact that something like this was happening to me now came to me as a rude shock. 

A quick look at the situation told me there was nothing but air within my reach, meaning that there weren't any handholds I could reach out for to slow down the rate at which I was falling. While I could have adjusted my body to brace the impending impact had I still been a good distance away, the hard ground of the forest floor which was rushing up at me meant that it was too late now, and also that there was nothing in sight which would break my fall.  So, without much of an option, I squeezed my eyes shut, preparing my heart for the incoming impact and hoping, fingers crossed, that my bones would somehow manage to break cleanly. 

The impact never came. 

Instead, a pair of frighteningly cold hands reached out to catch me as I fell. 

" Are you ... a fallen angel ? "

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself looking into a pair of amber eyes framed by spiky white hair. 

" H-Huh ? Who are you ... ? "

" ... "

The boy continued to stare intently, as though searching for some treasure that had been hidden deep within its depths and after a few moments of silence, I quickly turned my head away, feeling my face beginning to heat up as I started feeling embarrassed by the sudden attention I was being given. 

" And ... could you put me down now ? "

As soon as I said that, I found myself falling once more, and landed on the ground with a loud thump. 

" Hey ! What was that for ?! "

" You told me to put you down. "

" I did, but couldn't you have done it in a more gentler way ?! " Furious, I brushed off the dirt that had stained my uniform when I had been ' gently released '. Sure, maybe I should have been more polite with him, considering the fact that he was certainly the one who had saved me from a great deal of pain and trouble, but that was still no reason to excuse him for what he had just done.  

 " Is that so ? I see ... "

Silence reigned once more as the boy continued to watch me intently, with the full mannerisms of a predator stalking its prey, or a lion wondering if the creature that currently stood before it was dangerous or not. 

" Brother ... is he still alive ? "

" Brother ? " 

Frowning, I ran the face of the boy standing before me against that of every other student attending our school, faces I had been forced to remember when the Chairman had insisted that a key factor in determining the stronger of two equally-matched people was the degree of information each person held of the people around them. To be aware of the strengths, weaknesses, personality and character of these people would translate to being better able to manipulate them so that they would inadvertently help in turn the tables back in your favor. Of course, I had never really bought that logic, and only decided to go along cause it was always a good idea to keep him in a somewhat-better mood than the other alternative, and that there wasn't really much for me to lose by doing this. 

" Maybe if you told me your name, I would be better able to give you an answer to that ... ? " I cautiously asked, searching his face for any signs that would betray the emotions he was hiding underneath that expressionless mask, but it remained as clear as wandering around Everest in a snowstorm would be, unreadable and unresponsive. 

" ... Horibe Itona. "  

As the boy, Itona, introduced himself, a single breeze hissed through the forest, silencing everything it touched as even the leaves which had been rustling in the faint breeze from before went completely silent in a matter of seconds. The chattering of the birds high up above, the low buzzing of the crickets hidden within the bushes, all of them had gone quiet, as though at this very moment, the only living beings left on this planet were the two people standing here.

" And I am here to kill my brother. "

At once, his hair extended into a mass of tentacles which whirled imposingly around his self, resembling Medusa's head of snakes which were capable of turning any person who gazed upon her face into stone. And just like the head of snakes from the Greek mythology, as I watched the boy, unable to tear my eyes away, my feet felt as though they were beginning to turn into stone as well and I found myself frozen in place, unable to move even an inch. 

" Now that you've seen my secret, I'll have you keep it that way. " 

The tentacles easily plucked me from the ground and lifted me up in the air, dangling me before Itona like a helpless bait at the end of a fishing hook. 

" W-Wait a moment ! What ... ! "

" You don't have to do anything. Just stay here quietly, I'll come back tomorrow to release you. " 

He continued in a matter-of-fact tone as he pulled out a strip of cloth from his pocket, placing it over my eyes so all I saw was black. 

" Everything will all be over by then, and I will be undefeatable. "