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“When speaking to your target who you’re trying to seduce, you need to make sure to use flowery words that come together naturally,” Bitch-sensei said, picking up a piece of chalk and writing on the chalkboard. “I would love to join you in bed. The thought of waking up beside you sounds divine.” She switched to english, before setting the chalk back down and turning to face the class, pointing at the sentence she wrote. “You don’t want to use too many large words, since it would sound too unnatural to the average english-speaker. But if you use one or just a few when you’re trying to get them to trust you, they’ll believe you’re intelligent and exotic, and that can lead to them getting overexcited to get you into bed.”
Nagisa sat in his seat with his lips pressed together tightly in tired exasperation. It was the start of February, and thus, Bitch-sensei moved her curriculum to more intimate seduction than before. Frankly, Nagisa thought they were way too young to be having conversations about bedding people, but it was Bitch-sensei, and she always did whatever she wanted, regardless of their say in the matter.
Well, it was a good lesson, anyway.
“Of course, as assassins, you need to be able to adapt to any and every possibility, which means having your hidden blades at your disposal. For example, if you’re at a lavish party trying to seduce someone into sleeping with you, you might be expected to play an instrument or dance. And dancing would be the golden ticket to intimacy!” Bitch-sensei smirked, crossing her arms proudly. “In fact, while I was at an elite party in France, I was asked to waltz with my target, and we were able to get into bed after just one dance, thanks to my incredible skills not only as a fluent French speaker, but as a wonderful dancer too.” She flipped her golden hair over her shoulder, holding her head up high, as if expecting adoration from her students.
“Ehh. I doubt your dancing is what did your target in,” Karma commented lazily. “Seems pretty cheap.”
“Yeah, the story’s cool and all, but I don’t really get it. It’s just dancing…” Yada raised her hand shyly.
“If your goal is to seduce your target, then dancing definitely isn’t the way to go…especially not ballroom dancing,” Yoshida added.
“You brats!” Bitch-sensei clenched her fist. “Ballroom dancing is an incredibly useful thing to know! Not that you little parasites would know anything, but with the right conversation and the proper steps, you could get your job done that much faster!”
The students all exchanged unsure glances.
Now looking infuriated, Bitch-sensei clapped her hands once. “Okay. You know what, no. I’m not going to let you little brats undermine this. Outside. Now.”
There was a murmur of confusion among the students, but they all listened to her regardless, walking out into the cold winter air. Nagisa shivered a little, tugging at his yellow cardigan slightly to ensure he stayed warm. He never did like the cold. Inside the classroom wasn’t all that better, but it wasn’t a direct exposure to the elements either.
He stood next to Kayano and Sugino outside, somewhere in the middle of the group of his classmates, watching as Bitch-sensei stomped forward, grumbling to herself. She turned, crossing her arms and analyzing each of them, before nodding a little. “Alright. For this, we’ll be partnering up. When I call your names, go pair up and wait for instruction. First is…Yoshida and Hara!”
Both of them jolted in surprise, glancing at each other with a mixture of shock and shyness.
“Come on, come on! Hop to it!” Bitch-sensei clapped loudly, causing the two to rush off to the side together. Once they were situated, Bitch-sensei began calling out names again.
“Chiba and Hayami!”
The two snipers rushed off together without uttering a single word.
“Kayano and Okuda!”
The two girls shared a smile. “We’re partners! How exciting! Let’s do our best, Okuda!” The braided girl nodded quickly in response, before they headed off.
“Sugino and Kanzaki!”
Sugino flinched next to Nagisa, his face turning bright red. He glanced at Nagisa, his blue eyes sparkling. “Nagisa…is this real..? Is…is Kanzaki going to be my…dance partner?” He gasped, covering his mouth as tears filled his eyes. “I owe Bitch-sensei my life.”
“I’m excited to work with you, Sugino,” Kanzaki smiled politely and walked away, with Sugino following after her, face flushed. Nagisa gave a tiny laugh of uncertainty.
“Itona and Hazama!”
The two dead eyed students both looked unimpressed, but walked away together anyway. As they passed by Nagisa, he could hear Itona muttering “if it’s an assassination lesson, I’ll definitely win.”
“Not if I curse you first,” Hazama muttered.
That’s an oddly terrifying duo…
“Isogai and Maehara!” Bitch-sensei continued. Maehara only playfully winked at Isogai, who pushed him away with a friendly roll of the eyes. Okano stared at them with an unreadable expression.
As the number of classmates dwindled, it occurred to Nagisa that someone would be left out. Without Ritsu, who was an AI, there were an odd number of students. He swallowed a heavy lump in his throat as only seven students were left to be called. He didn’t particularly want to dance a ballroom dance with anyone, but being left out was…incredibly embarrassing. He squeezed his eyes shut as his heart pounded against his chest rapidly.
“And our final pair is…Karma and Nagisa!” Bitch-sensei finished.
Nagisa cracked an eye open, unable to help the feeling of relief from washing over him.
“Why didn’t I get paired with anyone?!” Okajima cried out.
“Because you’re a pervert!” Kataoka snapped, paired with Yada, who kept staring at her with a big blush on her face.
“No, wait…” Okajima slowly turned to Bitch-sensei, a wide, perverted smile etching across his face. “You need a partner to show us how to dance, right? Then, as I am the last one…I would be honored to fill that role!”
“Uh, no. Ew.” Bitch-sensei wrinkled her nose.
“Why?!” Okajima cried.
Nagisa smiled awkwardly as Karma approached him, and suddenly, her words fully processed in his mind.
Ah…I’m…partners with Karma for this…
Immediately, Nagisa turned to face Karma, who glanced at him with a large smirk, his mercury eyes flickering in amusement. Pure, evil amusement. Sure, they’d fully reconciled, but…
Wait, wait, wait…isn’t this really bad for my heart? I mean…I’ve always admired Karma!
Of course, the rising blush on his face told a whole different story. He averted his gaze from Karma’s.
…No…I’ve always liked Karma. But…this close proximity…
“Nagisa,” Karma drawled out, both of them effectively ignoring Okajima’s cries. “You don’t look so excited to be dancing with me. Are you afraid that I’ll sweep you off your feet?”
…In a way, yes.
“N-no, it’s just…” Nagisa stammered, internally cursing his stutter. It was always such a dead giveaway when he was anxious, And that anxiety was causing a grin to stretch out widely across Karma’s face. He looked positively delighted in Nagisa’s mortification.
He leaned in, whispering huskily in his ear. “Don’t worry. I’ll go easy on you.”
Nagisa could feel his cheeks heating up. “K-Karma..!”
“Now!” Bitch-sensei, having fully shut Okajima down, turned to the rest of the class. “I want you all to imagine that your partner is your target. You’ve been assigned to assassinate them. So do your best to show me your powers of seduction! But first…when dancing the waltz…” She shifted her stance. “It’s really simple. One, two, three, one, two, three, one two three…” She demonstrated. “Remember, you need to woo your client!”
“Um, Bitch-sensei?” Okano raised her hand. “Some of us have same sex partners…if the goal is to seduce our opponent, then why aren’t we all paired up with the opposite gender?” She peered over at Maehara wistfully, who just folded his arms behind his head in amusement.
“Ha?” Bitch-sensei scowled a little. “Your clients won’t always be straight. It’s important to be able to utilize your own sexuality to your advantage too. Just making everyone dance with the opposite gender would just be arrogant and narrow minded. It wouldn’t teach you much at all.”
“I see…” Okano mumbled unhappily, turning back to Mimura, who was her partner.
“Whipped,” Nakamura whispered to her partner, Sugaya, who snorted softly.
“Ultra lame…” Muramatsu muttered, glancing over at Takebayashi. “Don’t like…step on me, dude.”
Takebayashi piped his glasses up. “Please do not be alarmed. I prefer to be the one stepped on, but only by 2D girls.” His response had Muramatsu blanching in shock.
“I’d rather dance with Karasuma-sensei…” Kurahashi complained. She was partnered up with Terasaka.
“As if that square would know how to dance!” Bitch-sensei dissed, putting a hand to her hip. “Of course…we could always dance the dance of love…” She placed her hands together near her chest, her eyes sparkling as her imagination ran wild. “Ahh…yes, please, Karasuma, take the lead…”
I kind of feel bad for Karasuma-sensei… Nagisa thought idly, staring at his teacher blandly while Karma just kept smirking next to him.
“Anyway,” Bitch-sensei snapped out of it, turning back to face everyone. “I’ll be walking around and correcting anyone who isn’t taking this seriously! In fact, this will be a major part of your final grade!” She announced.
“Ehhh?” The class whined in protest.
“How are we supposed to even catch our partners off guard if they’re our targets?” Isogai asked, raising his hand.
“This isn’t a sparring match, you’re just trying to get into the heat of the moment. If you can successfully do that, then strike. I recommend those who are leading the dance to act as a charming gentleman, and the one doing the following act as though you’re going along with it. Both positions would work in an assassination plot. Begin! One, two, three, one, two, three…” Bitch-sensei clapped her hands as she chanted, watching as the students quickly, albeit awkwardly, grappled at each other to try to get into proper position and dance.
Nagisa watched with an unsure smile.
You definitely can’t tell a bunch of fifteen year olds to act like ballroom dancing is normal…everyone is completely stiff…
“Nagisa.” Karma’s voice startled him out of his thoughts, causing his shoulders to bounce slightly. He glanced back at Karma, who was giving him a deep, mock bow. He glanced up at Nagisa with a playful gaze.
“May I have this dance?”
“O-oh…y-yeah,” Nagisa muttered, gingerly accepting Karma’s hand. The moment their hands touched, his heart leaped into his throat. He let out a loud noise of surprise when Karma used his hesitancy to pull him close, his other hand slipping around Nagisa’s waist.
“That hesitancy is cute,” Karma said quietly in english, “if I didn’t know any better, I would assume it was part of your scheme.”
Nagisa gulped slightly, his own free hand resting on Karma’s shoulder. Before he was fully in the proper position, Karma took a step forward. It was definitely way too quick, and most definitely on purpose to throw Nagisa off balance. He yelped, and Karma chuckled.
Of course Karma assumed the role of the leader…
Suddenly, he felt a spike of indignation. Why did he have to automatically play the role of the follower? Why did Karma assume that the female role was his? He was a man too! He could lead!
He took his own step forward, just Karma took another. The end result was them stepping on each other’s feet, and Nagisa’s face bumping against Karma’s chest.
“Careful, Nagisa,” Karma laughed in amusement. “You’re doing the steps wrong.” He took a step to the side, and promptly swung Nagisa in a spin that had him stumbling to catch up. The spin was way too fast- definitely not the correct rhythm for the dance.
“Nagisa! Karma! You two look more like a puppet and his puppet master! Dance!” Bitch-sensei scolded.
“It’s not my fault Nagisa can’t keep up,” Karma cackled, looking highly entertained. “I guess I’m just that much better.”
Nagisa frowned. “I can match pace with you. Let’s try it again.” He fixed his gaze onto Karma, who only smirked in response for a moment, before leading him into the dance once more. This time, with Nagisa carefully studying Karma’s facial expression, he was able to properly deduce how exactly he was planning on moving. He followed along carefully, only looking down at his feet when he wasn’t entirely sure if the steps he was doing were right.
Back, follow, side, turn… Nagisa chanted in his mind.
Karma hummed a little. “You’re doing pretty good, Nagisa…however, your confidence is dwindling the longer we keep at it.” He then switched to english, his voice sultry. “Why don’t I give you a little push?”
Nagisa braced himself to be swung around again.
To his shock and mortification, however, Karma took an aggressive step forward and suddenly lowered Nagisa into a dip, leaning over him with an almost predatory grin. He continued to speak in english. “That blush really suits you, Nagisa.” His tone was mocking. He was having way too much fun at Nagisa’s expense.
Of course he would, Nagisa chided himself. This is just the perfect situation for Karma to tease me as much as he wants. It can’t get much better than this for him.
He turned his head slightly to the side, just as Kanzaki spun close to Sugino, smiling sweetly at him. He was so flustered that Nagisa started to feel bad for him.
There’s no way that Sugino will be able to complete this assassination if he stays so flustered…
His own thoughts gave him a pause.
Wait. This assassination?
He slowly turned his attention back to Karma.
…Now I see. Karma knows this sort of thing would embarrass me. And he’s using that to his full advantage. He’s not just trying to mess with me- he’s trying to win. Nagisa’s eyes narrowed a little.
He was Karma’s target, after all, just like he was Nagisa’s target. He’d been so caught up in his own feelings about Karma and the fact that he had to be so close to his long-time crush that assassination, the whole point of the lesson, fell to the back of Nagisa’s mind. He was almost ashamed to call himself an assassin for letting his feelings get in the way of this.
I feel like I have a more clear head now… He shut his eyes and stood upright with Karma’s help, taking a deep breath. He could feel Karma’s cocky smirk on him, as if goading him into trying to continue the dance. He opened his eyes, focused more on Karma than before.
Get ready, Karma. You’re my target.
Karma’s eyes suddenly widened a little, his cocky smirk faltering into a more serious, though no less excited, grin. Their grips both tightened on each other, and Karma suddenly began to lead again, his golden gaze hyper focused on Nagisa.
Nagisa met his eyes, matching up with him.
If I was trying to assassinate someone, then it’s important to be able to keep up with them. Trying to fight Karma here would only get me exposed and leave me open for an attack. But if I follow through and match him…
Karma suddenly spun him out- much too wide and quickly.
Nagisa spun out, just as quickly, keeping his hand in Karma’s, before spinning back into his arms and snaking his arm around Karma’s neck.
Then he’s mine.
Reaching his hand out, Nagisa cupped Karma’s face, running his fingers idly though Karma’s red hair and giving him a sweet smile.
Karma’s face no longer displayed any amusement. His face was sharp and focused now. He grabbed Nagisa’s hand as they moved in sync- with Karma leading and Nagisa following, both stepping to the side and holding their arms out in an almost impromptu tango, their other hands, which had initially been the ones they’d held together, shifted to grapple at their backs. Karma was trying to throw Nagisa off kilter, taking multiple steps to the side and stepping forward, but Nagisa was focused on his eyes, taking it all in and following through perfectly without his legs getting entangled with his.
Nagisa can practically see what Karma was thinking as he moved swiftly in response to his unpredictable moves. He stopped moving, continuing to smile at Karma as he took a few steps back, their fingers barely interlaced together.
This time, Karma matched him, as if he too were able to read Nagisa’s thoughts. They released their hands and spun to the side in sync, before taking long strides to meet each other in the middle, each with one hand clasping onto the other and their other arms interlaced. Their steps were no longer soft, small, and nimble. Now, their waltz was large, with Karma practically spinning Nagisa in a large circle with every step.
Neither noticed the other students stopping their dances and staring at them. Even Bitch-sensei had gone silent.
They stopped their long strides, with Karma lifting one leg to hook around Nagisa’s as they spun briefly in place for a few twirls, before launching back into their wide strides.
I’ll prove once and for all who the best assassin really is… Karma’s eyes seemed to say.
Try me. Nagisa mentally responded back.
When it came to assassination, Nagisa had his full focus on his target, and a waltz wasn’t going to change that.
Karma’s eyes blazed with the challenge, and he stepped back, releasing Nagisa and lifting his arm with his hand. Nagisa immediately took cue, spinning as much as Karma so dared to please.
Once, twice, again, and again…
He kept going until Karma moved, finally stopping and lifting a leg high up in the air, before both fell back into routine.
It was almost funny, how their dance felt like a fight to the death in itself. Neither willing to concede. It was as if every step by precarious step they were on a tightrope, dangling over death’s door. As if one small mishap would shatter it all. It wouldn’t be inaccurate to say that Nagisa felt the metaphorical blade of Karma’s knife against his throat as they danced.
But likewise, he had a gun pointed at Karma’s temple too. And Karma knew it.
As they stepped to the nonexistent music, they kept perfect rhythm together, despite never once looking away from each other’s eyes; almost as if they were too busy trying to be three steps ahead of the other.
They spun, and Karma stopped, leaning his weight on one foot while his hand and Nagisa’s hand, still conjoined together, lowered to Nagisa’s knee.
A challenge.
Well, Nagisa wasn’t going to back down. From his kneecap to mid-thigh, their hands trailed up, before Karma abruptly began the aggressive waltz again.
And without missing a beat, Nagisa followed. His target wasn’t going to gain the upper hand in this dance of death.
Karma spun Nagisa out. His face was serious, eyebrows ever so slightly drawn. He was mapping out his next course of action to catch Nagisa off guard. To fluster him. Because both boys knew that at this point, the first one who faltered was going to be the one who got killed. And despite the fact Nagisa was able to keep up quite well so far, Karma was still his greatest adversary. He needed to stay vigilant.
When Nagisa spun back in, he felt Karma’s hands fully release him, before moving his hands to his waist and lifting him up, spinning once, twice, again, and again…
Nagisa held onto Karma's shoulders without fail as a feeling of exhilaration coursed through his veins. His twin tails flew out as he leaned his head back, relishing in the rush he was feeling. Though, whether the feeling was because of Karma or the excitement of coming so close to dying…he wasn’t sure. Not that it mattered.
The two were in their own little pitch black world, with a spotlight shining on them. Karma, a deceptive man in a mask and a black suit, and Nagisa, the unassuming one in a white suit stained red.
Slowly, Karma began to lower him towards the ground, his arms wrapped almost protectively around Nagisa’s back as he continued to spin him, until he safely reached the ground. He took a step back, with Nagisa immediately mirroring him.
He did a half twist, stepping to the side, and again. Nagisa mimicked him, as if they’d practiced a dozen times. They both spun the same direction in sync, before Karma grabbed Nagisa’s hand and pulled him forward, their chests lightly touching, and their weapons touching each other’s throats.
Letting go, the two stepped back to a more respectable distance, one hand on their own hips as they continued their steps, each scanning the other’s face for a sign of weakness.
They released their hands, with Karma grasping onto his black coat, while Nagisa rested his hands on his hips, both side stepping the other in a more combat style dance than anything. Two predators eyeing each other up like prey.
They both pounced simultaneously, their hands joining together in a fervor as they resumed their previous waltz, taking large circular steps around, before finally settling. Karma lowered Nagisa down into a very deep dip, with Nagisa arching his back to the best of his abilities. His head was upside down, his bangs flipped and his twin tails dangling. It would have been a painful dip for anyone else.
But Nagisa didn’t give in.
And neither did Karma. The two held it, both panting heavily in exertion.
“Holy…shit.” Maehara was the first to speak when he realized the two had seemed to finally finish.
“I couldn’t have said that better myself…” Okano muttered, wide eyed.
“They’re really on a whole ‘nother level, aren’t they?” Terasaka grumbled, a little stumped as he struggled to process what he’d witnessed.
“Nagisa…Karma…” Kayano whispered while Nakamura grinned a cheshire grin.
“Wh- wha…just…just what was that, you brats?!” Bitch-sensei shouted, “it was so…emotionally charged and…and it was..!”
“A splendid dance, Karma, Nagisa! Full marks!” Korosensei cried out, interrupting Irina and startling everyone.
Nagisa blinked, his focus slowly waning as he looked up at Karma. He realized then just how close the two of them actually were, despite the low dip, and his face turned bright red. He scrambled to step away from Karma, slapping his hands over his cheeks while Karma looked away, shoving his hands into his pocket.
“When did you get here, damn octopus?!” Bitch-sensei screeched, pointing at him.
“I was here the whole time! The moment I heard my students were going to be dancing, I just couldn’t resist!” Korosensei said, his face pink with delight. At once, he got his notebook out and began scribbling in it. “So Nagisa and Karma, huh…I see, I see…this is definitely a development I didn’t expect! But I’m not complaining! Nuruhuhuhu!”
Nagisa squeezed his eyes shut, taking a few steps back as his classmates all began to yell at him. He couldn’t believe that…he’d just danced with Karma. And kept up with him. Sure, it was much easier to focus when he considered it to be an assassination rather than a romantic dance, but still. He had done that. He stayed perfectly on Karma’s level. He wasn’t even aware of what movements he was doing anymore, he just knew he needed to keep up with Karma.
He jumped slightly when suddenly, the class was trying to attack Korosensei, who screamed and dodged everyone at Mach 20, holding his notebook up safely.
Karma approached him silently for a moment, his own face eerily calm. “You know, Nagisa…” he said quietly.
“Huh?” Nagisa glanced over at him.
“If I was really your target one day,” Karma began, his gaze on Korosensei and the others. His cheeks were twinged a light pink. Only faintly, but it was still there. “I think I wouldn’t have had any complaints if that was my last dance.”
“You…wouldn’t?” Nagisa felt his own cheeks, already hot, burn even brighter.
“Just for the record, this doesn’t mean you’ve won,” Karma finally turned his attention back to him, his regular smirk finally returning to his face. “I was just impressed that someone as small and precious as you could keep up with me. I doubt anyone else would have been able to.” His face softened slightly. “You never cease to amaze me. Really.”
Nagisa turned away from him, embarrassed. “...You were really good too, though. It was all I could do to try to guess what you’d do next.”
“I aim to please,” Karma bowed mockingly, before standing upright and jabbing a thumb towards everyone else. “Let’s put our skills to the test.”
Nagisa’s face melted to a warm smile as he nodded, reaching into his pocket for his anti-sensei knife. Karma did the same, and the two rushed to join their classmates, feeling a little more in sync than before.