Chapter 2
And so it Begins
My stomach growled as we got into the lunch line. I placed a hand over it and glanced warily at the distance between us and those at the front of the line— of course we were just in time for the lunch rush. That left us in the back of the line, a line which wrapped around the room's walls and traveled all the way back to the doorway we had just entered.
I groaned in frustration as I glanced at all of the people ahead of us, each looking as hungry as I was. Training for Division D of the Finders must've been intense today, for the consisted of the majority of them and their drowsing faces.
"We're going to be here awhile." I grumbled barely loud enough for Kanda to hear me as I continued to scan the room for anyone dangerous to my health. Such as Komui. Or anyone from the egotistical Division A of the Finders. The guys were cocky at best, saw themselves as the best of anyone in the Black Order, and tended to find themselves bullying the younger of the Exorcists and the rest of the Finders. No one is fond of them. We all kind of just wish they would go away.
Before he or I could say another word, I was ambushed from behind by a pair of long and lanky arms. I felt a body lean across my back and struggled to remain standing as I grunted in effort.
I caught a glimpse of white sleeves— but only he would attack me from behind, everyone else feared what I would do when startled. Even the members of Division A would come at me straight on for fear of the rumors being true. Apparently most of the people here think I was a murderess before I came to the Black Order. It's not all that far from the truth but it's also not even close in its own way— it's not like I'm going actually to tell anyone the whole truth, no one knows and no one ever will. The furthest anyone's knowledge goes is that I came to the Black Order when I was five, dragged here and held against my will. It's early enough in my life that I can play off the my-memory-doesn't-go-that-far-back card.
"Komui. Get off!" I growled, the strain in my voice obvious.
"But you looooovvvee meeee." He whined, his voice going a few octave higher than it should.
"I never said that— it's probably some wild delusion that your head came up with!" I ground out as I managed to shove him off.
I stared un-amused at his tear sparked eyes from my position of hiding behind Kanda. I had said boy's shoulders in my hands and I was leering at Komui from a safe distance, just daring him to try to grab at me again.
He soon realized that I was going to continue to stand my ground and straightened. He adjusted his glasses to the point that they hid his eyes with the glare and adjusted his coat. He sure is bipolar.
"And you must be the new recruit." He said, seriousness dripping from his voice.
"Yeah…" Kanda said rather quietly, yet, somehow, it unnerved me.
Komui held out his hand for Kanda to shake. Said newbie stared at the hand for a few seconds before slowly reaching out.
Komui grasped his hand as soon as it was within reach and shook it wildly, his crazy demeanor returning in mere seconds.
Kanda's eyes were hidden behind his hair and I, being the observer I am, could feel the tightness in the atmosphere. The pressure building to a point that would snap in the next few seconds.
I ground my teeth, anxiously glancing between Kanda's dark expression and Komui's stupid one. I needed to separate these two ASAP. The only reason I could find myself caring enough was because, one, I know the feeling Kanda is experiencing right now, it feels as though you want to rip the guy's head off, and, two, I really don't want to get kicked out of the cafeteria because Kanda started a fight. I'm too hungry for that, and Jerry would surely do it.
"Uh… Not that I want to break up whatever this is, but I'm starving and the line is clear. It won't stay that empty long though, look, there comes the next crowd. They're probably from training." I said sketchily, my finger pointing blandly at the men coming down the hall behind us.
Once again, Komui switched modes. This time, however, he was the "cool guy".
"Yeah, yeah, go eat your fill." And he waved us away as he turned to his dear little sister who had just entered the room with the training crowd. I watched him glomp her and felt my heart go out to the girl as she awkwardly tried to struggle away.
I sighed as I scratched the back of my neck. "Boy, now I'm exhausted and hungry."
Kanda was no longer steamed but his face was rather stolid. I looked at him warily for the next few seconds. Not another bipolar one, I thought carefully, better keep that in mind for future notice.
I didn't, however, miss the smirk on his face as I began to walk to the line. This kid is going to worry me, isn't he? I sighed as I arrived at Jerry's window, who needed little words from me considering I got the same thing every day.
We ordered and Kanda blinked in surprise at the amount of food on my plate.
"What? I gotta eat don't I?" I asked as I snorted in amusement.
I chose my table with little thought and placed my tray on the table before taking a seat. Kanda sat across me, slightly surprising me that he was still sticking so close. This corner's light had burned out long ago and nobody had ever bothered to change it. It was dark.
It was also my favorite spot.
"Okay. Will you quit staring at me?" I finally asked as I looked at him.
Kanda took a leisure bite of whatever was in his bowl.
"I'm waiting." He answered curtly after a long pause.
"Well, what is there to explain?" I sighed and scratched the back of my head, deciding what was alright to tell him. "I'm an Alloy-Accommodator, meaning my whole being is based off of Innocence. Don't ask how, because that's all I really know myself." I sighed and scratched my head, determining what else there was to be said. "I've spent most, if not all, of my life here. I've been put through Hell because of this damn Order. I may only be ten, but I've seen more than most adults." I paused, curiosity sparking my eyes and my next question, "speaking of which, how old are you?"
He took a moment to study my face— I was seriously contemplating if he was about to call me a liar. I wasn't lying, but I wasn't telling him even half of the real story. "Ten," he said as he went back to his food. "And your story sounds similar to mine." He took another bite of his food.
I followed his words far more carefully than either of us expected. "Care to explain?"
"Not in particular." He said monotonously. He put his spoon in his mouth and looked up at me.
I glared at him.
He smirked. "Fine fine." And he put his silverware down. "I was born in the Asian Branch surrounded by the scientists there." He paused, and I realized that his story was indeed like mine, but something about the way he said it unsettled me. His face looked rather pained as compared to his usual stoic expression. "With another, who is now dead… We were exploited because, apparently, we both have some kind of ability to regenerate—"
My eyes widened as he said this and I ended up lunging across the table to cover his mouth. I looked around suspiciously from our dark corner. "Shut up, right now."
Kanda looked at me in confusion as I removed my hand and sat back down with a tired sigh.
"You shouldn't tell anyone that. Don't even finish the thought for me. I don't want to know." I looked in his eyes, showing him my concern and how serious I found this very situation. "If anybody finds out about this ability, it will be exploited again." I rubbed my head awkwardly, suddenly realizing how I had overreacted. "This is the Black Order, no one is safe."
"Will you?" Kanda asked after a moment of solemn silence on my end, his eyebrows scrunched together in a strange look of determination.
I was taken aback. "What?"
"Will you exploit it?"
"Of course." I quipped with a grin. He seemed surprised. "I'm not exactly a good person," I laughed. "But I also hate the Head of the organization more than I want to do my own thing, so I won't tell." I stared at him. "It just means when we spar I won't hold back."
Kanda looked at me in disbelief. But I also saw him relax.
"Welcome to the Black Order, Yuu." And we shook on it.
"Hey, Liz!" I turned from my perch to see a little girl running at me. Her skirt and pigtails flying behind her as she raced down the hall in only a way she could. She enchanted each person she passed, every single one of them taking a second to watch her go with a peaceful smile. The young girl was without a doubt the cutest and most friendly out of everyone in the entire building.
And yeah, she's the same age as me. She takes a different approach on the whole ten-year-old outlook on life.
I nodded coolly at her. "LenaLee."
"What are you doing here?" She asked gesturing to my being in the hall on the bench.
"Waiting." I said turning back to look at the door. Waiting for that damn Yuu to get his measurements done already, I thought bitterly, I've already been here a good hour.
"For what?" She pried, leaning down to my level. Anything.
I held up one finger, asking her to wait a second.
Then we heard a bang.
"That." I said as I stood up and strolled towards the door.
She followed curiously.
When I opened the door, LenaLee nearly fainted at the sight.
Let me describe: Kanda, half naked, hair down, and squatting on the table in a ready-to-run position; Johnny in the position as though he was chasing Kanda, which he probably was; Reever on the ground; and everybody else just looking like a fine mess.
I sighed, grabbed Kanda's arm, and pulled him off the table to my side. "What's going on here?" I addressed the now standing Reever. He brushed himself off and, much like everyone else did at the same time, pointed to the hulking figure in the corner.
Did I mention we were in the Science workroom? This place is an accident waiting to happen.
Everyone was silently watching me as I moved to peer around the desk carefully. The tension in the air was painfully obvious as it seemed that everyone was going to hold their breath until whatever they were expecting to happen, happen. Maybe I'll get attacked by something leaping out of the corner, I thought idly, it wouldn't be the first time. I sweatdropped at my thoughts.
I peeked over the stack of books on the desk and saw Komui huddled around a big metal object. His back was to me and his large form was covering something about the size of a large dog— so about my size. I growled bitterly at the thought. Once I grew up I'd show them! People think I'm scary now? Imagine what it'll be like when I become an adult!
I saw him slowly, as if mechanically, turn his head and a dangerous glint flicker in his visible eye. I felt myself shudder but I held my ground.
"Komui?" I asked cautiously, almost worriedly.
"Yes?" He nearly growled.
"What's that?" I squeaked at his tone and pointed to the metal object I could now see that he was holding.
He leapt away from it and presented it with wide arms of appreciation and pride. "It's Sir Komlin the First!"
I jumped back in surprise at the beast in front of me. I landed on my tail and scrambled backwards as the beast's eye lit red and he began scuttling across the carpeted floor towards me.
I saw Kanda draw his katana out of the corner of my eye, ready to attack if it came his and Lenalee's way.
Sir Komlin I neared further, even taking the liberty to continue past my feet and to straddle me with his eight spider-like legs. I leaned back as his flexible neck bent and his screen of a face appeared in my vision, blocking out everything except the lights that were his eyes.
"What's it doing, Chief?" I heard Reever ask precariously.
"Storing her Innocent's information away so that he doesn't go hunt its traces later when it's in the field." He answered, upturning his nose in pride.
It neared further, I leaned back even more. It grabbed my wrists, holding me still as it continued to stare at me.
"Why is it staring at me like that?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly.
"Chief, it didn't even go this far with Kanda." Another scientist chirped, his voice trembling just as much as mine, if not more so.
Komui hummed in acknowledgement and I could imagine the glint in his eye as he placed his hand to his chin. "Maybe his sensor is having a hard time reading her Alloy."
"Maybe—" I was about to say something along the lines that it was broken when its other claw snapped out, latching itself to my throat. I let out a kind of hack as it seemed to punch my throat and then lock around it squeezing ever slightly. All sounds, breathing, and distracted thoughts stopped and stared in shock at what this thing was doing to me.
I scrambled, my fingers prying at its mechanical shackle, but its other set of hands pinned me to the ground, slamming the back of my head to the floor.
No one was helping me.
I assume they were all frozen in shock and still processing what exactly was happening.
Having no other choice, I decided to do the only thing that could possibly save me. "Inno-cence…" I ground my teeth as my wheezes burned my chest. "Activate!"
The seal ripped itself from my face and speared through the head of the thing, sending shrapnel flying through the air. I saw the horror cross Komui's face: be it either because I had activated my Innocence, I had destroyed his machine, or both. I'm not all that sure.
I felt myself slipping and quickly deactivated, but then I felt my body lose control of itself. I felt it sag and I lost my fight suddenly, as if I had been drugged.
"Chief!"
"Brother!"
I don't really know what was happening, but I turned my head to see Komui pointing some sort of gun at me. I looked down to the source of pain and noticed that there was this comically large dart embedded in my thigh. I wrapped my fingers around it and ripped it from my person a bit aggressively.
The robot's hand clamped around my throat once again, seemingly still able to function even without a head. If it squeezed, I'm not sure, all I knew is that I was out cold in seconds and there was lots of screaming in my dream.
When I woke up a couple hours later, Lenalee, Komui, Reever, and Kanda were all my side milling about. I laughed at their expressions of mixed guilt and anger.
They looked alarmed at my laughter, I wasn't one much for joy and rarely even took to smiling, much less laughing.
"Komui, if you ever shoot me with a tranquilizer again I'll be the one strangling you." I said after a moment longer, sitting up and throwing my legs over the bed and standing coolly.
I noticed Komui swallowing nervously and Lenalee and Reever looked at him scornfully.
"Who's the one who destroyed the thing?" I asked them curiously.
"How can you tell it was destroyed?" Lenalee asked me curiously.
"Obviously, if it weren't absolutely destroyed Komui would be in the lab repairing it right now and not right here, none of you would have been able to stop him."
"True enough."
"It was Kanda." Reever pointed to the boy.
I smiled at him. "Thanks." I clapped my hands solidly, startling nearly everyone in the room. "Alright. Let me get out of here before the Head Nurse appears."
"Excuse me, Liz?"
I felt myself shudder as that familiar voice struck home.
"Hey Ms. V-Veena," I couldn't help but stutter as the Head Nurse appeared behind me.
"You'd better lie down before I make you, dearie."
I cried comically and climbed back into the hospital wing bed. "But it was just a tranquilizer dart!" I complained. "I should be fine now, right?"
Lenalee handed me the little handheld mirror and I took it out of confusion. "Woah. I look like crap."
My hair was not only in disarray, but my seal had shifted itself to an awkward twist on my cheek, and I had a nasty bruise encircling my throat. I reached over and hit Komui upside the back of his head with the mirror.
"Don't hit mee!" He screeched. "I'm sorry!" He lunged and wrapped his arms around the space I had previously occupied in an attempted glomp but I had launched myself out of the bed and was at the door before the Head Nurse had a chance to grab be herself.
Success!
Then I realized that I had left my charge. I stopped, looked back to the door. Lenalee would help Kanda get the rest of his stuff done, right?
I shrugged. Someone would.
I was free!
I sighed as I thought back to that time. When we were all ten.
That was seven years ago.
Turns out, in seven years, not all that much has changed. Somewhere along the way Kanda and I discovered that we get along quite well. Even as he developed that hostile approach on pretty much everything, he and I managed to pick at each other and talk rather freely. To some degree.
A mutual understanding helps. We both hate the organization and we seem to be the only ones in the entire world that do. We also both have secrets that only the other knows, for we've let things slip out—on accident and purpose— over the years.
Don't get me wrong though, we still find ourselves at each other's throats in a heartbeat. If I say something wrong or call him Yuu when he's in a bad mood, his sword's at my throat. And if he says something wrong or calls me one of his stupid little nicknames when I'm just not feeling it, I attack him both verbally and physically.
But when we are alone, both in good spirits, and there is nobody around to judge what we say, we talk. I sometimes crack a good joke that earns a small laugh, and vice versa with me laughing. One day I realized that he really just doesn't care if I'm around.
And I came to realize that without each other here we would be alone, not that either of us will admit that to the other.
He has taken my advice over the years, and hasn't spouted anything of his ability to others. He actually hasn't really 'spouted' much of anything to anyone actually. We have gotten the chance to slowly see the other change, grow up even in personality— however, if you ask him he'll just say that I've gotten more immature as the years have gone along. It frustrates me to no end to hear him belittle me.
Kanda has some vicious rumors surrounding him as well. Some of them are my fault, be it because I said something and someone over heard in the wrong context, or because he hangs about me. We spend enough time together that people have come to associate us as friends in their minds. And it's so forbidden for me to have friends that they assume that we've known each other even longer than we've been in the order. Me being a murderess turning him into an accomplice murderer. Unlike me, however, he seems out of the loop and I find him chuckling at the rumors that I inform him of. He doesn't care what anyone else thinks and I admire him for that.
I've always found myself thinking too much about what other people are saying— even if I don't stress and worry over it, I still think about it.
Unlike me, he's taken no interest in the Finders. He won't even read each division leader's file. Sometimes I can get him to ask questions about the other Generals and Exorcists, but that's usually as far as his interests go in the Black Order. He's distanced himself enough from most and is considered cruel, harsh, and unapproachable in the rumors that I've heard.
Once I burst out laughing at the expression Christian Welt, the second in command of Division A, shot us when we walked passed him. He had simply sneered at Kanda, but when my eyes and Kanda's eyes had met his at the same time his expression dropped and he scrambled away.
Kanda finds the Finders just as much of a disappointment as I do.
I've seen him avoid and ignore most of the visiting Exorcists, but he seems to not mind Lenalee. He stays rather calm around her and keeps his temper masterfully when she talks to him. It might possibly be because he's known her so long, but I suspect a sense of respect he holds for her considering how she seems to be the one who has to fix everything her brother messes up and is his main victim of affection. Plus, I've noticed that she knows when to back off of him, giving him his space when he needs it. He's not once gotten angry with her. And that's saying something.
He's never really gotten angry with me. But he's gotten annoyed enough to resort to violent methods of getting rid of me or making me shut my mouth.
But the one he gets the angriest at the most frequently is Lavi. Kanda can't stand Lavi. He beats the crap out of him, is constantly rude, glaring, or ignoring him. I've never seen the two in the same room without Kanda glaring or acting aggressive towards him.
To be completely honest though, Lavi brings most of it upon himself. If he would just leave Kanda alone they could probably have peace. But then again, I've seek Kanda attack Lavi or just scorn him when he hasn't even done anything. I don't quite understand those two's interactions.
Lavi arrived with Bookman about a year after Kanda did. I know the history of the Bookmen, and I know that Lavi is in training. He is, after all, Bookman Jr. Lavi isn't even really his name. It took me a while to make the connection to the Bookman customs and Lavi considering how he acts. He doesn't have a real name. None of the Bookmen ever have. And I wonder why that is. Why that has to be. They are human and have hearts. So why can't they have that sense of self?
The more I think of it, the sadder I get. He's not supposed to love and therefore shouldn't have a name. He shouldn't get attached to others, and that's exactly what he's done. He is the complete opposite of Kanda and I, he loves the Order. He's supposed to restart himself with each name. He's supposed to stay distant enough to be able to that. But I see him laughing and joking, and I think 'It's too late for him. He's already in too deep.' He did a good job of staying distant the first year or so, but the prying of myself and Lenalee and just his general surroundings defeated that goal far faster that he'd care to admit. He's a poor child that is going to have his heart shattered as his means of death.
He's also the same age as us. This drives Kanda mad.
Why? Even I have no clue. But it does and I find it hysterical.
Lavi loves to pick at people and has a big heart, so I treat him kindly for the most part. But he grates on Kanda's nerves and sometimes my own. He calls him Yuu and is constantly picking, teasing, and joking at and not at Kanda's expense. He chooses the sorest subject to our pride and prods at it, annoying not only Kanda and I, but the Finders as well. I've fished him out of a fair about of fights caused by his mouth.
I'm currently 17 and, get this… I've still never gone on a mission!
It makes my blood boil just thinking about it.
Throughout the years, Kanda has been sent on mini ones, just to build his synchronization rate. And I have to say, it's gotten pretty high. LenaLee and Lavi have also been sent on a few of their own for the same reason. And I've been stuck in this tower, studying and practicing holding even a little of my Innocent's power.
It's grown. Again. And it's beginning to exceed the Seal's ability to hold it. It's not much, and on the bright side it's actually helped with my practicing. I can now use my Innocence without having the full burden on my body. I just use the amount that is free.
Want to know what worries me though?
I noticed it when I looked in the mirror the other day.
The seal is fading.
