Chapter Text
He knows he’s not the only human guinea pig in that lab. He hears the screams when they think he’s asleep, he knows they’re a child.
He doesn’t ask about his fellow captive. They can do whatever they like to him, but he doesn’t want to risk making the kid’s situation worse.
He hears hissing in the vents sometimes. He’s not sure if it’s another one of their experiments or if there’s just something wrong with the airflow, it doesn’t bother him enough to comment.
He listens to Aguri talk about her students, feels himself becoming attached to children he’s never even met.
The boy’s screams get progressively quieter.
The screams fall completely silent a few days before he makes his escape.
*-* *-* *-*
He eyes the damaged lab from the woods, waiting for the chaos to die down before slinking away. His tentacles – that was going to take some getting used to – tighten around the sleeping child, he’d had to leave Aguri, but he couldn’t leave the boy.
There’s an old building on top of the mountain, he doesn’t know if it’s still in use but it was a decent enough place to shelter for the night.
The boy shivers when he places him on the battered couch, the clothes from the lab doing little to keep him warm.
It’s going to be a long night.
*-* *-* *-*
He returns to the lab in the morning.
It wasn’t something that he’d planned on, but it was something he had to do.
The bodies are already gone, not that he’d expected them to still be there. The blood remains, it’s as red and dark as it always is, there’s a lot of it in that one hallway. He carefully avoids looking at it as he searches the rooms.
Almost everything has been cleared out. Any normal person would’ve found it remarkable how quickly the place had been emptied, he didn’t, he’d seen his fair share of hasty clean-ups when people realised they weren’t as safe as previously thought.
He doesn’t care about the loose pieces of paperwork, he doesn’t care about the smashed vials and spilled chemicals. He grabs the few clean blankets he can find, tears open lockers for clothes that may have been left behind.
The boy is awake when he returns, blue eyes staring warily at him from where he’s curled up in the corner.
“I’m not going to hurt you.” The boy doesn’t seem to believe him, not that the former-assassin could blame him. “Here.” He places the bundle of clothes beside him, watching as the boy inspects it before deeming it safe. Progress.
“That should be warmer than what you’re currently wearing, I’ll turn around if you want to get changed?” The boy nods and he does.
He feels a hand hesitantly tap one of his tentacles and swivels back around. The clothes are massive on him but they’ll have to do. He grabs one of the blankets, wrapping it around the child’s shoulders once he’s certain the boy won’t flinch away from him.
“You’re like me?” The former assassin nods. The boy relaxes, shoulders slumping as he clings to the blanket.
“What’s your name?” He asks. The child stares at him in shock, had no one cared to ask him his name? The thought sends a pang through his heart.
“Nagisa.” Nagisa doesn’t ask for his name in return, he doesn’t really say anything.
“It’s nice to meet you, Nagisa.” The boy’s smile is hesitant, but it’s something. “I know you probably don’t trust me right now, but we need to leave.” He almost slumps in relief when the boy clings to one of his tentacles, he should probably be concerned that Nagisa is so quick to trust him, but he decides not to question it too much.
*-* *-* *-*
He doesn’t get a proper look at what those monsters did to Nagisa until they’re safely hidden away in an apartment that’s set to be demolished in a few months.
It was clear his eyes had been modified. They were mostly normal, but he could see the way they narrowed into slits when the boy felt threatened, they weren’t completely snake-like yet but he has no doubts that things would be different had he left him to his fate.
It had taken him longer to notice the fangs. They weren’t big enough to impact the boy’s speech, but there was no denying what they were when his mouth opened wide with a yawn. He wasn’t sure if they were able to inject venom, but neither of them were in a hurry to find out.
The most obvious change was the scales. They didn’t completely cover him, but there were a few noticeable patches of blue-green. He wonders if they hurt, but he doesn’t bother asking. He trusts that Nagisa would come to him if they did.
*-* *-* *-*
He remembers his promise to Aguri. He wants to teach those kids, not just because they were hers first, but because it sounded like they need people in their corner. He runs a tentacle through blue hair, watching as the boy nuzzles deeper into his blanket. Someone in their corner? Yes, that was something he could provide.
He waits until he’s certain Nagisa won’t wake up before hastily scribbling a note and leaving. He needs to get the government’s attention somehow and, while he doesn’t care what they do to him, he’s not going to give them the chance to harm his boy.
*-* *-* *-*
“One more thing.” The government agent pauses, turning his head to show he’s still listening. “My son, If any harm comes to him, the deal’s off.” The agent nods once before leaving.
*-* *-* *-*
Finding out the boy’s surname was easy enough. He’d been hesitant to share it at first, but the promise of returning to school – returning to some sense of normalcy – had apparently been too tempting for him to ignore.
He looks into Nagisa’s family after that, he needs to know what kind of environment the boy came from, and if it’s wise to send him back – not that he would – he needs to see if he would be safe.
Hiromi Shiota was dead, she had been for a few months so it seemed. It was unfortunate, but at least he wouldn’t have to deal with someone who intentionally allowed her son to be experimented on. The boy’s father suffered the same fate. He doesn’t have any other family, not that the former assassin can find.
Getting him enrolled in the class he’d be teaching was easy enough, apparently the boy had been a student at the school before he was taken. He wasn’t one to put much stock in concepts revolving around destiny, but as he cradled the small child after a nightmare, he found himself hesitant to mark their meeting as a simple coincidence.
*-* *-* *-*
They introduce themselves to the class. Well, he introduces them, Nagisa doesn’t seem keen on talking to any of them yet. It was understandable after what those monsters put him through, he just hoped the boy would warm up to his classmates soon.
“Let’s get started, shall we?”