Broken Words
Aiko Aimi, HN Rosethorn, walked through Shiketsu’s faculty office. The office was empty. Most teachers were supervising internships. She should be too. She’d left Tanaka-san to do some data-entry work when she came to this unscheduled meeting.
Aiko knocked on Anzu’s door. “Anzu, it’s Aiko.”
“…”
There was a moment of silence. For a second Aiko feared that Shiketsu’s headmistress wasn’t in. Then, came a resigned sigh. The sigh of someone preparing for death.
“Come in.”
Aiko opened the door and beheld the headmistress’s office. It was a simple office, sparsely furnished with a sturdy well-made desk; upon which was a massive bouquet of roses. Aiko’s eyes widened.
Anzu Nishima, HN Karaburan, stood before a large window beside her desk. She was a petite woman with gray hair and gray eyes. Scars pockmarked her face. Her left sleeve hung limp at her side. She looked at Aiko. Her cheeks flushed as she saw Aiko staring at the bouquet.
Aiko stared at the bouquet. She was fascinated. She hadn’t known Anzu to have a relationship outside of the school.
“What do you need?” Anzu managed evenly.
“Um, I–” Aiko couldn’t keep the grin off her face as she looked at Anzu mischievously.
Anzu looked away, her ears red.
“Who’s the guy?”
Anzu didn’t answer.
“Girl?”
“No, it’s a–he’s not important.”
“Really? Huh, that seems like an excessive blush for someone ‘not important.’”
Anzu tried to hide her ears in her shoulders.
Aiko walked towards the bouquet, grinning like a schoolgirl.
“Don’t–”
“I just want to see the card!”
“Aiko, seriously–”
Too late, Aiko found the card hanging from the stem of a blue hydrangea. The hydrangea was a strange flower to include among a massive bouquet of red roses. Aiko glanced at the bouquet again, there were no other hydrangeas present.
“What’s with the blue flower?”
“…” Anzu didn’t answer. She looked out the window again, her expression… complex.
Aiko flipped the card open. “Ooooo, a phone number.” She teased. “From someone who signs their name ‘-S,’ how mysterious~”
“You’re teasing me.” Anzu pouted.
Aiko smiled. The clock turned back 20 years. She was a student again and Anzu was her favorite teacher.
“Sorry, sensei, you can’t blame me for being curious. I never knew you had anyone.”
“I don’t.” Anzu retorted with more heat than she intended.
Aiko blinked. Her nostalgic illusion shattered. She came back to the present. “Oh… I’m so sorry.” Her mind jumped to all sorts of conclusions. “Is this a stalker?”
Anzu shook her head. “No, he’s an old–Hell if I know what we were.” She seethed.
“…” Aiko frowned. It was always weird to find out your teacher had a life before she met you. She glanced at the hydrangea, it being the one to bear the card meant it wasn’t there on accident.
“What does the blue hydrangea mean?” Aiko asked gently.
“… it’s a ‘sorry.’”
“So…” Aiko studied the bouquet. She knew what red roses meant, passionate, romantic love. So, if the hydrangea meant ‘sorry….’ “‘I’m still in love with you’ and ‘I’m sorry?’”
“That’s what the bouquet says.” Anzu glowered.
“What’d he do?”
“He ghosted me 30 years ago. I thought he’d changed–” Anzu stopped herself, as if saying more would give too much away. Or… perhaps it was just too painful to say outloud. “he left me feeling like a fool.”
“And he’s reaching out now? After 30 years? Why?”
“He probably wants me to reach out and make a fool of myself again.”
“… he sounds like a winner.”
“You have NO idea. Besides, the old fuck–” She glanced at Aiko meaningfully, like she was specifically referring to her. “–prefers younger women.”
“Eh?”
Anzu looked back out the window. “Never mind. What’d you come here for anyway?”
Aiko frowned. She didn’t know why Anzu had looked at her like that… like she was jealous, but it wasn’t important right now. “I need to ask if you still have contacts familiar with the goings on of the underworld.”
“Not really…” Anzu unconsciously glanced at the bouquet. “Most of my old contacts are dead, retired, or alienated. Why?”
“Christopher Cain… he had a red light issued on him.”
“Ah.” Anzu rolled her eyes. “Why am I not surprised this is about him?”
“…”
Anzu frowned at Rosethorn’s silence. Sometimes she felt like she should’ve pushed to expel Cain after the incident in August. Rosethorn practically begged her not to, but still… she sometimes wondered if it was the right decision to give in. Anzu had agreed not to expel him on the spot. She’d only agreed because acknowledging two of her students had been doing vigilante work and that several Shiketsu alumni tried to cover it up would’ve been a horrific scandal.
So, to avoid scandal, Anzu made a deal with Rosethorn. She’d give Cain a month to turn his behavior around. If she didn’t have any trouble with him, she’d drop the issue. If she heard a peep about him, even for sleeping in class, he was gone. Rosethorn had agreed, she didn’t have a choice.
Anzu hadn’t expected Cain to behave himself. He was an obsessed little guy with a massive chip on his shoulder. He’d fuck up in a week, let alone a month. He wouldn’t behave.
He had.
Nowadays, Cain fought Hoge for the top spot academically. His performance in Hero classes was equally impressive. Ever since August, Cain has been a star pupil. Even those teachers who, the trimester prior, had complained ad nauseam about his laziness and lack of respect, had nothing but praise for him.
…
The faculty’s drastic shift in attitude towards Cain implied that he was actively manipulating them. He was probably acting like what he thought their ideal student would be. That was not exactly heroic behavior and made Anzu even more skeptical about his continued presence in her school.
Ironically, only Rosethorn, his stalwart defender, still had anything negative to say about him. Was it because she was just that good at seeing through his bull shit? Or because he had an actual connection with her and refused to manipulate her like the others?
A connection like Anzu had had with Rosethorn when she was in school… dammit.
“What do you know?” Anzu finally relented.
Aiko relaxed. “Not much. The Shie Hassakai put out the Red Light, but Cain doesn’t seem to have a connection to them.”
“…” Anzu frowned. She glanced at the bouquet. She knew someone who was connected to both the Shie Hassakai and Cain. And now he sends her flowers? That couldn’t be a coincidence.
“Anzu?”
“I’ll look into it.”
Aiko’s shoulders slumped. This went better than she’d thought. She’d been worried she was in for a lecture from Anzu about how they should’ve expelled Christopher in August; how he was too obsessive and wrapped up in his head to be a hero anyway.
Maybe she should’ve been more optimistic. Christopher had turned everything around after that last stay in the Hospital. He was doing well in class. He was getting along with his peers. The only complaint Aiko had was that he’d gotten in the habit of lying and didn’t seem to take it seriously anymore.
“Thank you, Anzu...”
“No problem… but, I’ll have to make a call.” She glanced at her bouquet.
Aiko raised an eyebrow. “Is that my cue to leave?”
“Unfortunately, I’ll get back to you as soon as I hear from my contact.”
Aiko smiled. “No problem, thanks again sensei~”
“I’m not your–”
Aiko left before Anzu could finish her sentence.
Anzu looked at the bouquet as Rosethorn left. She had wanted to throw away that bouquet. She’d sworn to herself she’d never talk to him again. Not after he left her on the hook for an apartment she couldn’t afford. Not after he went back to killing when he swore he was a changed man. Not after he fled his job at the HA and Japan without so much as a WORD!
Not after he made her fall in love.
She didn’t want to pick up the phone and call him, but she would. Her favorite student had come to her because she was scared. She could face that son of a bitch again… for Rosethorn… for her school.
Anzu pulled out her phone and dialed the number on the card. She didn’t bother mentally preparing herself. She knew the number would be to a pager. He always gave a pager out. He’d only given her his phone number when–
The receiver clicked and a familiar yet strange voice came from the other end. “Hello, Anzu.”
Anzu froze. She hadn’t expected him to give her phone number. She'd been expecting a pager. She wasn’t ready to hear that voice yet. A voice she remembered whispering–
“Anzu?” The voice repeated, something like concern creeping into his tone.
“You have some balls.” Anzu found herself saying. “Using my given name after ghosting me.”
“…”
“What? Not gonna say anything? No ‘sorry?’ Even now?”
“… you got my flowers.”
Anzu looked at the bouquet. Her eyes fell on the blue hydrangea lost in a sea of red—the regret in a lifetime of sin.
“I want to hear it.”
“I–”
She wouldn’t hear it. He never apologized.
“Is that why you called?” He tried to sound indignant, but his tone was… resigned. “Just to hear an apology?”
Anzu wanted to say yes. It’d be something approaching vindication if she heard him say, ‘I’m sorry.’ He could at least say he wished things hadn’t gone how they did.
But that wasn’t why she called. She called to find out who was after her student.
“The Shie Hassaikai–” Anzu began quickly.
“Not over the phone.” The voice interrupted, almost like he’d started speaking before she did.
Anzu frowned, was this the point of the bouquet? Because he knew she’d hear about the Red Light on Cain? Because he knew she’d meet him to protect her students? “Where?”
“The Sennyuji Temple. 8 am. Tomorrow. Come alone.”
“Alright.”
“… I look forward to seeing you again Anzu.”
“I wish I could say the same,” She took a deep breath. She called him what she’d once promised she'd never call him. But, after everything he did, he didn’t deserve to be Sam. “Desolator.”
Desolator sighed bitterly. “I’ll see you soon Anzu.” He hung up. As he hung up, before he had time to regret the call, a knock came at the door.
“Come.”
Maddox entered. “She go for it?”
“Yeah, I’ll meet her tomorrow morning.”
Desolator stared at the phone. He should dispose of this now before Anzu thought to call in the number so the HA could ping it–
“Cool. Do you think this will work?”
Desolator nodded. “So long as Shiketsu knows who muscled the Shie Hassakai into issuing the redlight, Inigo and thus the Dai-Ichi will find out too. Once that leaks… the underworld will know and the Dai-Ichi will be able to back off Cain while saving face.”
–But if he got rid of this cellphone… Anzu would have no way of contacting him again.
“And with war averted we’ll be able to keep working for both the Dai-Ichi and the Shie Hassakai.” Maddox smiled, from her perspective everything was fine and uncomplicated.
Desolator nodded. He snapped the phone in half. She wouldn’t call again.
“And if things go awry, we always have the Inigo option…. Absolute worst-case scenario, we’re back where we started.”
Maddox nodded. It was a decent enough plan. One that could see them keep pulling two paychecks in a myriad of situations. All it cost… was hurting Anzu.
He threw the phone in the bin.
“The number you are trying to reach has been disconnected.”