Forgetting You

-Flashback-

Two years ago, the Exorcist Allen Walker had woken up one morning, but it hadn't been him. The Fourteenth had taken over his body much more quickly than anyone had thought it would have.

The Fourteenth had then escaped headquarters, and killed the Millenium Earl. He was about to resume the Earl's position when Kanda, whom had gone on a mission with all the other Exorcists to go find Allen, located the Fourteenth and stabbed him through the heart.

Everyone rejoiced, as this signified that the Clan of Noah had no leader. But at the same time, the celebrations seemed to be less than half-hearted because Allen hadn't been there.

Ever since Allen's death, Kanda had retreated further and further back into himself. People blamed this on the fact that he had been forced to kill another Exorcist, and a friend.

Not soon after Allen's death and the fall of the Noah, a new Clan had begun to form, led by Tyki Mikk. The Black Order quickly devoted itself to defeating this new Clan, as well as continuing to fight Akuma and find Innocences, and things continued, the same as before.

With one small difference.

-End Flashback-

Lavi was on a mission with Kanda. Yuu was an admirable partner, although he took offence easily and had... violent tendencies, to say the very least. They were currently sitting in a nearly empty compartment of a train headed for a small town. There had been numerous strange killings recently, and although the villagers thought it was punishment for their sins, the Black Order had guessed otherwise.

Lavi peeked out the window. It was a dull day, with tiny snowflakes flying past as the train sped on. He saw several small farms and homes fly by. Fields of sleeping cows and grazing horses could be seen behind them, stretching out for acres and acres.

Lavi continued watching as they pulled into a station. It wasn't their stop, so he said nothing.

He looked at a figure in blankets, sitting in an alleyway. It gave Lavi an uneasy feeling. He'd never been comfortable around homeless people. They were living in a world so different from his own that the whole concept of poverty was hard for him to imagine, and whenever they asked him for spare change he never had any.

Lavi continued watching, and saw the homeless person raise their head. The train began to pull out of the station. It was not a dirty old man, but a teenager. He was looking directly at Lavi. Lavi raised an eyebrow, and looked intently back at the boy. That face... it felt so reminiscent of... but no, it couldn't have been him.

The train picked up speed, and chugged quickly away.

Kanda said, "What's up?"

Lavi said, "I thought I just... just saw... Never mind..."

The rest of the trip continued in relative silence.

Lavi looked around the decrepit train station. There were a few lone people walking around.

He went up to an old man. "Hey Panda- ah, erm, um, sir, do you know where the town hall is?"

The old man grunted, and pointed to an old building.

Lavi smiled. "Thanks! Come on, Yuu!"

Kanda che-ed. "It's Kanda, BakaUsagi." He hadn't been as angry about anything anymore since the end of the First War, as it was called.

Kanda followed the rabbit over to the town hall.

"And who exactly has been disappearing?"

Lavi and Kanda were sitting in comfortable armchairs in the mayor's office.

"First, my secretary, and other important people within our political system. But now, it's begun to terrorize the villagers! This is terrible! My dear voters are disappearing!"

Lavi said, "Well, why didn't you call us beforehand?"

The old mayor scratched his forehead, and a shower of dandruff fell onto the carpet. "Well, we didn't know who or what was doing this at first. But then, people started talking about a light of some sort."

Lavi said cautiously, "A light?"

"Yes, a strange light that appeared whenever someone was killed. It was a glowing green light that lingered around for a bit where they were last seen, and then vanished just like the bodies..."

Lavi exchanged a look with Kanda.

Kanda said tersely, "In the mission report, it mentioned that people thought that the light was some form of evil deity punishing them for their sins. Where did they get this idea?"

"Oh, from some crazy lady. We sent her to the loony bin."

Lavi looked at Kanda.

"Could we see her?"

The "loony bin" was dank, dark, and all the things a basement/ dungeon/ horrible abandoned post-apocalyptic asylum was supposed to be. Lavi sweatdropped as screams echoed out from all around them as the mayor led them through the corridors.

"So, where is this chick?" inquired Kanda rudely.

"Right here. Carol, you've got visitors..."

The mayor opened the door to a cell, and Kanda and Lavi entered uncertainly.

"Hello, Carol..." said Lavi hesitantly.

The woman smiled. Lavi was taken aback. She didn't look crazy, she looked beautiful. And not in that flirtatious, gorgeous kind of way. Carol was one of those people who were just honestly beautiful. Lavi looked into her blue eyes, and could see straight through to the pure soul surrounded by those soft, honey-golden locks.

He turned back to the mayor.

"Are you sure this is the one?"

The mayor smiled. "Quite sure. Don't be fooled by looks."

Lavi looked back at Carol, and thought that it would be extremely easy to be fooled by her looks.

Kanda said, "Lavi, get on with it."

Carol smiled. "Lavi?" Her voice was as melodic as her eyes. "What a cute name! And what would your friend's name be, Lavi?"

Lavi smiled at her. "This is Yu Kanda."

Carol stayed smiling for a moment more, and then her whole being shuddered. Lavi took a step back as her eyes turned from blue to green to yellow to orange to red. Her irises became infused with streaks of scarlet.

The mayor shrugged. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Her hair started to pale, wither, and turn into a dry mop of grey strings. Then, it began to darken until it was black.

She spoke, and it sounded as though her voice was strained, as if it was a great effort to talk even a little bit.

"Yu Kanda... Kanda... Kanda! That name hast been spoken before me once before, but not by you, fair redhead!"

She shuddered again. "Omens... Terrible, terrible omens... He who all thought gone shall return... Gone... Gone... No! Not gone! All the dead... Shall rise..."

She tilted her head towards the now terrified redhead.

"He's waiting, Lavi."

With this, Carol turned back to normal in an instant, and slumped over, passed out. The mayor came back into the jail cell, and said to Lavi concernedly, "Are you all right?"

Lavi whispered back, trembling, "Gone..."

The mayor replied, "What did you say?"

Lavi tried to reassert control over himself. "Yes, I'm okay. Just a little shaken, is all. That is one scary lady. Will Carol be all right?"

The mayor nodded. "She'll wake up in about a minute or two. Anyway, you can guess why the townspeople were afraid of whatever was taking their kinsfolk away, right? After just one encounter with Carol..."

Kanda spoke up. "Lavi, could I have a word with you?"

Lavi nodded, and Kanda dragged him down the hall, away from where the mayor was locking up Carol again.

Lavi said, "What's up?"

Kanda replied, "When her eyes began to change colour, did you notice anything?"

Lavi shrugged. "No."

Kanda che-ed. "I heard a tiny scream from somewhere outside. I bet you that if we went up there right now, another person would have vanished."

Lavi went pale. "What are you saying? Carol's not- not an Akuma, is she?"

Kanda said, "It's hard to tell, but I don't think so. I think somehow, an Innocence was put into her body. She's not an Akuma or an Exorcist, more like a... container. But the Innocence has started to have strange effects on her, changing her, giving her spasms..."

Lavi nodded. It seemed to make some sense. "But how do you know that there's an Innocence inside her?"

"Her eyes, when they changed colour... During the part when they were green, that was when I heard the scream. And what colour is Innocence?"

"And how would it kill other people?"

Kanda snorted. "Kill them? Not likely. Make them disappear, more like. Send them to another dimension."

The redhead muttered, "Kamui... Uh, so how do we get them back?"

"By capturing the Innocence."

"And how do we do that?"

Kanda drew Mugen.

Lavi grabbed his arm. "No, Kanda! You can't kill her... It's not her fault! It's the Innocence... Please, Kanda! There's got to be another way..."

Kanda looked amusedly at Lavi. "Attached to her already?"

Lavi shook his head. "No, but why should anyone have to die?"

The Japanese Exorcist shot Lavi a look, and then his eyes flicked away. Lavi's jaw slowly dropped as he realized that he knew exactly what words Kanda was biting back. Don't say that, you sound just like him.

He growled a little, and then said, "Fine. But if she gets in our way, no mercy."

Lavi nodded, and then asked, "Then how do we get the Innocence out of her?"

"Let's take her back to Komui. Between him and Hevlaska, they should be able to extract the Innocence successfully."

Lavi smiled, and hugged Kanda. Kanda pushed him away. "You think I'm doing this for you? I only want that Innocence for the Black Order. That's all that matters, Lavi. Sentimentality is useless for Exorcists."

Lavi was about to reply, "Allen didn't think so", but then he pictured the look that would appear on Kanda's face. "Thanks anyway, Kanda."

Kanda che-ed.

The mayor said, "All right, Carol, I give you my permission. You may go. But only if you promise to be good. No more killing."

Carol nodded, clearly in shock. "T-thank you, sir."

"Don't thank me, thank them. They're the ones who made up some crazy theory about some... Uh, what'd you boys call it again? Virtue?"

Lavi said, "Innocence."

"Right. Anyway, it's thanks to them you're free, Carol."

Carol hugged Lavi, and then tried to hug Kanda. He pushed her away, but, undaunted, she ignored him and hugged Lavi again.

Lavi reflected to himself that the position felt awkward, as if she had forgotten how to embrace another human.

"Ok, well, let's go. The sooner we get back to the Order, the better."

Carol hugged him again, and then ran in the direction of the train station. Lavi and Kanda followed her.

They got on the train, and the conductor came around asking for tickets. He walked by the Exorcists with a smile.

Soon, the train began chugging out of the station. It didn't take them long to reach the next station. The conductor walked down the carriage. "I'm sorry, but there'll be a slight delay... We'll be in this station for an extra half-hour."

Lavi said to Kanda, "Can we get off here, Yuu?"

Kanda said, "Why?"

Lavi shrugged. "I just need a walk."

Kanda nodded. "Sure, whatever."

They got off the train, Carol first. Carol shivered. Lavi took off his coat, and threw it around Carol's shoulders. She said in an odd voice, "I'm not cold... But I've got a feeling..."

Lavi eyed Carol anxiously. "A seance-ish feeling?"

Carol shook her head, her brow knit. "No, like something's about to happen..."

Kanda got off the train, followed by Lavi. Lavi recognized the same homeless guy from before. "Spare change? Change, anyone?"

Lavi didn't want to go over to the guy, knowing whom his face resembled. But Carol went over to the hobo, and dropped a coin in his cup. He looked up, surprised, and Carol squawked in recognition, and staggered over to Lavi, breathing heavily in shock.

Lavi dashed over. There was no way it was actually him- that was impossible- Carol's words rang out in Lavi's mind- He who all thought gone- return-

Lavi knelt down in front of the man. "Allen?"

Kanda ran over. It was impossible. Allen was dead. He had told himself so many times that the boy was dead, to forget Mugen plunging into Allen's chest, forget the droplets of blood flying everywhere as the Fourteenth/ Allen collapsed on the ground.

The young man gasped. "Lavi!" He pulled the Bookman into a fierce hug. "I missed you all so much! I- oh, God-"

Allen began crying into Lavi's shoulder. Kanda noticed how scarred his face was, more than before. How dirty he looked. How scraggly and ripped his robe was. How much more matured he looked. Kanda wasn't exactly sure whether he liked it or not.

Allen looked up. "K-KANDA!" He stood up, and threw his arms around Kanda, his grimy hands pulling at Kanda's indigo ponytail. Allen cried shamelessly into Kanda's shoulder, while Kanda stood there, feeling awkward. He eventually patted Allen on the back, and said, "Hey, sprout... Where the fuck've you been?"

Allen let go of Kanda. "It's a long story. Can we go to a hotel, or somewhere?"

Lavi said, "Let's go to the Order! Everyone's missed you! We all thought you were dead, Allen..."

Allen sighed. "No, I'd rather just go to a café or somewhere... Please?"

Kanda nodded. "Okay, but then you tell me everything."

Allen nodded, attempting a smile. "Hi, Carol."

Lavi exchanged a glance with Kanda. "C'mon, Allen. Let's go."

Gaarin: To be continued! Anyway, this is a really really old story from back when I used to stay up till 6:00 a.m. writing stuff for you guys. I still like it, actually, and with a lot of tweaking (and line breaks, did you notice?) I think it worked out to be fairly okay.

Mizuhara: *points finger at Gaarin* OC!

Gaarin: Yes, fine, I used an OC. Sorry guys. Anyway, read and review?