Impressed
(Kanda knows what Lavi's like. It doesn't take a genius to see.)
Warning: Little bit o' language.
Kanda knows what Lavi's like.
Even when Kanda was the beansprout's age, even when he'd just met Lavi, he knew. It didn't take a genius to see that Lavi was hiding something, and Kanda was no genius. The way that Lavi had the same smile for everyone; the way that he listened to others talk, as if he was curious and disinterested at the same time; the way that for an instant, he would seem utterly unimpressed by Kanda's threats, and then suddenly and comically terrified- there was something absurd about it, and something unsettling too.
Kanda confronted him about it once, when he was in a particularly bad mood after having fouled up a mission that should have gone smoothly. He and his company had been cornered by a large number of Level Twos lurking in a church basement, and three Finders had been badly wounded in the battle -not that Kanda cared about that. It was that he'd never even been able to retrieve the Innocence that bothered him.
Kanda had been heading towards the science division to find Komui and hand in his mission report when he was accosted by Lavi in the halls.
"Hey, Yu-chan!" Lavi chirped cheerily, a large tome tucked underneath his arm. "Just got back from that mission, huh? Wow, how do you manage to keep your hair looking so pretty all the time? Doesn't it get messed up in battle?" He swept his hand through Kanda's hair, mussing it. "Sure is shiny, huh? Girly, too."
Kanda slowly unsheathed Mugen, shooting Lavi a murderous glare. "I'll kill you. I swear I'll kill you."
Lavi looked at him for a moment, and there it was again: that flash of unimpressed contempt at Kanda's threats, instantly replaced by a nervous grin.
Kanda snapped. "Stop DOING that!" he roared, aiming a kick at Lavi's shins, which Lavi easily evaded.
"Doing what?" asked Lavi, an expression of clueless confusion now plastered on his face. Kanda slammed him into the wall, gripping Lavi's collar with white knuckles. Lavi's book slid out of his grasp and hit the floor with a thud, pages splayed.
"You know what," Kanda seethed, outraged. "Don't you fucking lie to me."
"But your hair really is pretty, Yu-chan," Lavi said cheekily.
"I'm not talking about my hair," spat Kanda, tightening his hold on Lavi's collar. "You think you're better than us. But you don't know a fucking thing. You're the one who's pathetic."
Lavi looked surprised for an instant, but his expression quickly smoothed out into a grin. "You've got me all figured out, haven't ya?" he mocked. "I'm real proud of ya, Yu-chan." Then he wrenched himself from Kanda's grasp, ruffled Kanda's hair again just to prove that he could, and bent down to retrieve his book, carefully smoothing back its pages.
Kanda had taken one look at Lavi on the ground, tending to his book, and had stormed away, disgusted.
-
Kanda hasn't thought about that for a long time. He thinks about it idly now, trying to keep himself awake as he travels back to headquarters with Lavi, who's sitting across from him in the train compartment. He's had some experience with falling asleep in Lavi's presence, after all, and he knows it's not the best idea.
But the ride is a long one, and the rhythm of the wheels on the railroad tracks lulls him to sleep before he knows it. He jerks awake just as the train rolls to a stop, and Lavi's putting the finishing touches on Kanda's new hairstyle.
"Oh, Yu-chan," says Lavi, grinning nervously. "You're awake, huh."
Kanda glares at him, wants to say something for once. He wants to say, "Your grin is pathetic." He wants to say, "You're bad at keeping secrets." He wants to say, "You can trust us."
He also wants to say, "Get your fucking hands out of my hair."
So he does. Say the last one, anyway.
Lavi tilts his head to the side and peers up at Kanda through his red bangs. "Don't you like it?" he asks pertly, still grinning.
Kanda unsheathes Mugen and points it threateningly at Lavi. "Guess."
Lavi's grin wavers. "Easy with that sword, Yu. You could cut me with that, ya know."
Kanda narrows his eyes and slides his sword next to Lavi's neck. "I know," says Kanda darkly. Lavi pales.
Kanda flicks his sword upwards, and a lock of red hair falls gently to the floor of the compartment. He smirks, and Lavi looks at him, afraid and amused. Maybe even impressed.
A/N: Thanks for the reviews, Pika, Kiarra and Cubwub! They make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. :D
By the way, this will probably turn out to be a series of unconnected shorts focused on Lavi. I gotta add in some humor for him too, or else he'll be getting too emo!