Chapter 1: The Noah of Truth

~Maeko~

I walked down the busy streets of the town, taking in my surroundings. I loved being surrounded by life, and the best place to do that was in towns. There were so many people and they were all living their own lives. I passed by the baker who was yelling out to people and offering them croissants. I inhaled deeply as I walked past the flower shop, enjoying the smell of flowers that drifted gently towards me. I closed my eyes and walked, clasping my hands behind my back. My boots tapped gently on the cobbles of the street.

"Oi!" a man yelled. My eyes snapped open as I broke free from my flower-induced trance. I bumped directly into a giant man…well, he was more like a wall than a man.

"I am so sorry!" I squeaked, staring up at him and taking a few steps backwards.

"Watch it," he growled and then went on his way. I straightened up, pretending that I hadn't just been cowering from the giant.

"Watch it!" I growled under my breath, doing my best to sound exactly like the huge man had. People gave me some weird looks. I shrugged and went on my way.

"Allen, we should contact the order before we eat. We were supposed to right after we finished collecting the innocence. You need to put your duties before your stomach!" a man shouted. I glanced around, trying to find the source of the voice. I wasn't sure what it was, but something about that voice stood out to me.

"Sorry, Lavi! I can't help it. If you were a parasite type, then you might understand," a boy yelled back. I caught sight of the boy. He had snow-white hair, which struck me as odd. Who was I to judge, though? His hair was only one of the strange features he possessed. A strange design stretched across the right side of his face, a pentacle-like symbol at the top. I followed after him, trying to get a closer look. I muttered a few words and the world around me lit up. I didn't like to use this ability, but my curiosity got the best of me.

When I used it, I could sense the emotions and thoughts of every person that I touched. It honestly intimidated me, but my ever-present sense of curiosity trumped the intimidation. Individual people lit up different colors, showing me their moods. Red meant angry, blue meant sad, yellow meant excited… It was strange, though. When I looked at the boy he lit up a brilliant pink. It was the color of kindness and love. He must have been very caring. I smiled. I'd never seen anyone that bright, and to discover it in such a young boy was even more surprising.

That's when I saw it. His right eye lit up a bright red. It stood out angrily against his rosy pink tone. I wasn't sure of the secret behind it, but my curiosity was going crazy. I strode towards him, wading through the crowd to get even closer. I burst from the crowd and slammed into him. He yelled out.

I gasped as his emotions and thoughts flooded into me. Unfortunately, his thoughts were mostly about food. There was one, though, that stood out to me. He was thinking about the innocence he and his partner, Lavi, had just collected. That's when I sensed it. He had innocence. It was in his left hand. I shut off my vision and stared at him.

"Are you alright?" he asked, concern in his eyes. I smiled and nodded. I turned to leave, almost merging with the crowd again before he grabbed my wrist. "Hey, what's your name?" he asked.

I stared at him, determined to keep my mouth shut. No good would come from making friends with an exorcist. I guess that was just an excuse, though. I was just afraid. I broke free from his grasp and plunged back into the crowd that was buzzing around us. I disappeared easily. I looked back and saw him searching for me. Suddenly, his friend joined him. I presumed this was the Lavi that he was thinking about. Lavi had an eye patch and reddish hair. He smiled widely at the presence of his friend. I noticed that he also possessed innocence. I could sense it. I stared at Lavi. He was handsome. I found myself unable to look away for reasons that I didn't understand. "What are you looking for?" Lavi asked.

The boy, Allen Walker, looked to his friend, "There was a girl." He turned back to the crowd. I ducked down, afraid that he was going to see me.

Lavi patted Allen on the shoulder, "Isn't there always?"

Allen frowned, "No, that's not what I meant. There was something strange about her."

"Was she an akuma?" Lavi asked. I raised a brow. How would that boy know if I was an akuma just by looking at me? Sure, I had that ability, but I didn't know of any human that possessed it.

"No. My eye didn't pick anything up…but still…" he said, looking confused and inquisitive. His eye? That must be why it's so strange? Is it a curse?

"Then it's not our problem, right?" Lavi said, "Let's go contact the order and then get something to eat. Notice the fact that I said contact the order and then get something to eat?"

Allen nodded and followed after his friend. I watched them disappear into the diner on the side of Main Street. I decided to wait for them to come out. My curiosity wasn't yet quenched. I waited there for a long time, standing and watching the people pass by. Watching places like this always made me feel like I could fit in with them. I knew I was different, but when I merged with the crowds I felt normal. No one stared at me or wondered what I was. Of course, right now I had hidden myself, my normally dark skin covered with a milky façade.

I snapped to attention as the two exorcists walked back out of the diner. Allen patted his stomach, smiling, "That was nice."

"Glad I could pay for your feast. Next time, you're paying for your own meal," Lavi said harshly even though he was grinning. He struck me as the kind of person that smiled often. I watched them from a distance.

"I guess we should get back to the order, then," Allen said, yawning.

"Yeah, we need to deliver the innocence," Lavi replied, stretching his arms above his head. Allen led the way, slowly making his way to the edge of the street. Lavi followed a little ways behind him. I watched them as they plowed through the thick crowd. I followed them. Something about the two intrigued me. I'd seen plenty of exorcists before, but these two were different. They stood out to me. It kept me interested. My eyes were glued to them as if I'd miss something should I look away.

Allen waited for the carriages to pass by before making his way across the busy street. Lavi followed on his heels. That's when the thought hit me like a brick chucked at my face. My head snapped to the side, my long, dark hair flying as I looked to my left. 'Shit! The horses are going crazy!' Important or desperate thoughts usually made themselves known to me without my consent.

I saw the owner of the thought. He was struggling with the reigns, his horses squealing and bucking. My eyes went wide as I saw where they were heading, running full-speed.

"Lavi!" I screamed. His head snapped up and he whirled around, meeting my eyes. He stood still, not realizing what was flying towards him. He stared at me and cocked his head. I growled and sprinted towards him. I body slammed him to the side. He cried out as we collapsed against the cobbles. The horses slammed past us, their hooves pounding against the street. I let my head droop and let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank God," I breathed.

"Whoa," Lavi murmured, his shock showing in his voice. My head snapped up and my eyes went wide. I was lying on top of him, our bodies pressed against each other. I rolled off of him immediately and sat up, brushing my hair away from my face and tucking it behind my ear. I felt blood rush to my cheeks.

"Lavi! Are you alright?" Allen asked, pulling him to his feet. Lavi nodded, still not having broken free of his shock. He shook his head a few times as if to ward of his stunned silence. He turned his head and looked down at me. He offered me his hand. I took it thankfully and he hauled me to my feet. The three of us made our way to the other side of the street and stopped once we got there.

"I guess I should say thanks," Lavi said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

I smiled, "It was nothing."

He stared at me indignantly, "What are you talking about? You just saved my life!"

"I guess I did, huh?" I said, my voice wavering a bit. I squeaked and flinched as he patted my shoulder, "I have to repay you somehow."

I shook my head vigorously, "No…you really don't. I'll be on my way now." I turned to leave.

"Hey, wait a second!" Allen said, "You're her aren't you?"

I froze up, crap! "This is the girl you saw earlier?" Lavi asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure of it," Allen stated, grabbing my wrist again. It was his left hand that grabbed me. His innocence was strong there. I felt an urge to reach out and destroy it. It would be so easy. I could just snap his arm and…I shook my head to clear my mind of those thoughts. I yanked my hand back, trying not to look at him. I was sure that the crosses on my forehead had shown up and that was something I didn't want these two to see. I tried to hide them with my hair until I felt them fade again.

"Hey, are you alright?" Lavi asked. I lifted my head and met his eyes. He was looking at me with concerned and caring eyes. I smiled, "You're a nice guy, huh?"

"I'd like to think so," he said with a grin.

"Can…"I began, but let my voice drift off. I was about to ask him for something impossible. I'd thought about it for a long time, but always found a reason not to do it. The obvious reason would be because I'm a member of the Noah Clan. It would be impossible for me to do it. I was also a little scared. I nervously ran my fingers along the cold metal of my bow. Right now it was collapsed in on itself, folded up tightly until it was about the size of a pen. If I were to use it, it would unfold to the size of a normal bow and I'd direct my power to create arrows. I suppose touching it gave me comfort.

"Can…what?" he asked, cocking his head again.

"Nothing. I have to go. Bye," I said quickly, turning again. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close to him, "Where do you think you're going?"

I squirmed, but didn't want to use my full strength. I could easily shrug him off, but he would figure out that there was something strange about me. I gave up, slumping against his chest, "No where."

"What were you going to ask?" he questioned, releasing me. I looked up at him and shrunk back a little. I tended to do that when I was unsettled.

"I-I want to join," I whispered under my breath.

"Would you mind saying that a bit louder?" Allen asked gently.

I glanced at him and took a deep breath. Did I really want to ask them this? Did I really want to join the Black Order? Did I really want to become an exorcist? It would mean living with a secret…a secret that would most likely get me killed if the Black Order found out about it. But what was I doing with my life anyway? I wandered the streets every day, trying to fit in and disappear. Honestly, I hated myself. Maybe joining others who stood out from a crowd would make me feel at home. I'd never felt at home before. It sounded nice.

I took another deep breath and looked Lavi in the eye, "I want to join the Black Order. Can you take me there?"

His mouth dropped open, "You're an innocence accommodator?"

Well, he didn't need to know that I didn't necessarily use innocence per say… I nodded my head, "I want to become an exorcist."

"Are you sure? It's a dangerous job," Allen said, his worry lacing his voice. I grinned a little. I doubted that any akuma could kill me. Actually, I knew that no akuma could kill me. I was more worried about what the Earl would say if he found out about it. The only thing that could kill me was my own family. They'd exiled me all those years ago for being weak, for caring. If they'd wanted to kill me they already would have. I could see the Earl being furious, though. He'd despite me even more for strengthening their side, even though he said I wasn't strong to begin with.

"Stop worrying, Allen. I'm sure she knows what she's getting into," Lavi protested. I totally had no idea, but that's ok. "It'll be nice having another female exorcist around," he said, winking. I blushed a little.

"So, what's your name?" Allen asked.

"Oh yeah, you haven't told us that yet," Lavi said, only just now realizing it.

I was silent for a moment before I said, "Maeko."

"That's a nice name," Allen said with a strangely calming smile. I couldn't help but smile back, "Thanks."

"Well, let's get going. We were just on our way back to the order. It's not too far. Just a train ride away," Lavi said. I nodded.

God, what am I doing?

Thanks for reading my first chapter. I'll be updating soon, so look forward to it! :) Don't forget to leave a review.