When he'd finally returned to their room, the sun was rising. Kanda had received the closet-like room by default, while Lenalee was sitting in the other bed with her knees against her chest. According to her, Red had left soon after Lavi had. No amount of talking could change the kid's mind, and, a deal was a deal. To him, they were just a group of strangers who'd abducted him from the circus. His place of business and residence apparently.
It was for the best. They had more pressing matters to address anyways.
"If Miranda really isn't here as well..." Lenalee mumbled into her arms.
Lavi watched for a moment, then plopped into the chair by the headrest. "Nothing we can do about it." He answered, twirling big hammer, little hammer. "I have a theory, though."
When she flashed him a curious look, he elaborated.
"What if, in the present, her innocence is still going out of control?"
Her eyes widened. "But, it's already been a day, Lavi!"
"Maybe not over there. As much as I hate to admit it, we don't know what's going on or have anything concrete to go off of. A day here could be a minute over there–you know, in the future."
She lowered her head again. "Miranda.. I hope she's okay..."
"Relax," Lavi replied heartily. "Allen and your insa- b-brother, are there with her, she'll be fine!"
Lenalee didn't seem convinced.
"They're probably figuring out some way to reverse the effects of Komui's potion as we speak!"
She nodded, "Right, and when that happens.." The worry in her gaze vanished like clouds on a sunny day. "Her innocence will deactivate! We'll be sent back to the present!"
Lavi mirrored her expression, an index finger raised. "Exactly!"
The cheeriness only lasted a minute before the gloominess dragged them back.
"What're we going to do until then? If you're right, we could be here for weeks at best."
His lips pulled into a tight line. "Yuu's not exactly rich either, is he?"
"Normally, the Order pays for everything." She went on, more for herself than him. She knew that was his favorite part of cooperating with the Order-she'd been the one dragging him out of every store during his first month. "They give us extra money to keep just in case, but never too much. There was never a need."
He wasn't sure how to respond. At this rate, they'd have to get jobs. "I guess if worst comes to worst, we can always sell Yuu's hair or something."
CRACK!
Metal smacked the back of his head, sending him faceplanting onto the floorboards. On a positive note, the stinging of his nose distracted from his fractured skull.
"Y-Yuu, good morning.." He offered with a meek wave.
Kanda ignored him, lowering Mugen. He held up a flyer to Lenalee, who gasped.
"That's right!"
He pushed himself up and sat crisscross. "What?"
She turned to him, eyes shining. "The circus, Lavi!"
"Oh, right! Little Red is there too, so he could put in a good word for us!" He said that, but he doubted the kid would do any such thing. Not without a lot of encouragement, and by that, he meant pestering him until he caved.
"Right!" Lenalee agreed, a little too eagerly. "I wonder how he's doing?"
"Guess we'll found out." Lavi hummed.
Surprisingly, Kanda didn't say anything. Just crossed his arms, and stared at the door. Odd. Upon recollection, his strange behavior had started after meeting Red. Lavi wanted to know why that was.
"I say we head over there as soon as possible!" He paused, then gave a devious grin. "Now that I think about it, Allen said his foster parent was a clown, maybe he'll be there. If that's the case..." He could get a lot of information about him. The old panda would love that, seeing as Allen's past life was shrouded in mystery. He rubbed his palms together at the prospect.
Lenalee brightened and tilted her head. "I wonder what Allen was like as a kid?"
Kanda didn't dignify them with a response–still scowling at the door like it had insulted his ancestors.
"What if him and little Red are friends!?"
He and Lenalee burst out laughing.
"No way," She replied, wiping a stray tear from her cheek. "Allen is too polite! They wouldn't get along at all!"
He shrugged good-naturedly. "Hey, you never know! He gets along with Yuu just fine!"
A low growl and he stormed out of the room.
They exchanged frowns.
"We should go after him," He suggested.
She nodded and hopped off the bed.
By the time they'd reached the bar downstairs, Kanda had left. Which meant all of their money had left. They ended up tracking him down to a small café across the block, and he seemed less than pleased by their presence. Well, by his presence, but Lavi didn't mind. It made messing with him more fulfilling. He was clearly stuck on something. Eventually, he'd get it out of him.
After they'd eaten, they backtracked to the circus. Kanda had brought the flyer, but Lavi didn't need it. Didn't take long before they were standing in front of the familiar layout of tents.
"Man, this place is bigger when it's bright out!" He chuckled.
Lenalee murmured her agreement, gazing up at the main tent with round eyes. "I've never been to a circus performance.."
Guess not, with her having been at the Order for most of her life.
"We'll have to catch the show this time!" He surveyed the area, taking note of the clowns, some sitting on the ground, others practicing their act. One of which was a beautiful lady. He would've yelled 'strike,' if she hadn't been juggling knives.
"Hey, isn't that–?"
At the end of Lenalee's finger, a ruddy-haired kid was shuffling out of a tent.
When he saw them, the indifference on his face dissolved into an amount of disgust he'd never been privy too. Not even woman he hit on looked at him like that. Heck, the old panda had never conjured that amount of disgust towards him–not even when he was ditching his responsibilities to hit on said woman.
He felt like a walking, grinning germ.
That didn't stop him from giving an enthusiastic greeting. "Hey, Red! Long time no–"
Red speed-walked in the opposite direction.
"He doesn't seem to like us.." Lenalee said, sounding a bit dejected.
Lavi didn't reply, as he was already on Red's heels. "Whatcha doing!? Lenalee said you work here! That's pretty cool! Child labor legal here? Where're your parents?"
Red stopped so abruptly Lavi nearly tripped over him. That would've been awkward.
"Yer irritatin'."
"Uh?"
He inclined his head, eyes narrowed in nothing short of sheer annoyance. "Stop followin' me."
He watched Red stomp off, vanishing into a decent-sized tent.
Huh, wonder which question set him off?
"So much for a recommendation," Kanda remarked as he walked past. "Let's get on with it."
He looked at the white tent, then shrugged. "Alright~"
"This way," Lenalee called. She was standing beside the woman he'd seen on the way in. The woman's gaze flickered over them in disinterest, then, she turned and lead them to large tent off to the side.
She knocked on the flap. "Ringmaster, some folks are 'ere to see ya."
A muffled voice answered, but he couldn't make out the words.
The girl nodded as though that settled everything, then wandered off. By the time she'd left their sight, the Ringmaster had entered it.
He was a short man with a round belly. His peppery hair was hidden beneath a top hat, and he used a cane to steady himself. "Yes? Is there something you lot want?"
Lenalee seemed bothered, so Lavi did the honors. He gave him the stranded story, with a few alterations. Couldn't exactly tell him they'd been blasted back in time because a mad scientist (who also happened to be Lenalee's brother) dropped a potion onto their friend's head, thus sending her innocence out of control. He'd have them sent to a loony house before he could even get to the part about the Holy War.
Instead, he told him they were a couple of traveling performers, who sadly, had their wallets stolen. Wasn't a total lie. He took it hook line and sinker, the greedy man he was. The moment he heard, 'free help,' his entire demeanor shifted.
"Ah, I see, I see! Well, we can't have ya lads sleepin' on the streets now can we? Ya can sleep here, rest assured. Of course, we won't be coverin' yer meals and whatnot, as our budget is ratha' tight." He pinched his index finger and thumb together, in a way that screamed he was lying. "But, we can make some room for ya."
Lavi clapped his hands together as though he were praying. "Ah, thank you! You're a real lifesaver–isn't he!? Yuu? Lenalee?"
Kanda refused to acknowledge him, while Lenalee took a step closer. "We'll do our best to earn our keep, sir!"
"Yes, yes, I 'ppreciate the sentiment! I can see me and you lads are gonna get along just fine."
I wouldn't be too sure of that, Lavi thought.
He waved his hands dismissively. "Now, run along. Red'll show ya where ta sleep."
And that was it. He didn't bother to explain who Red was or make sure they found him, just strolled inside his tent, singing an old folks song beneath his breath.
Lavi spun on his heel and scanned the area for Red with comical theatrics. "Well, you heard him! Where'd he go?"
Maybe still inside the tent?
He started for it but stopped when Red scurried out of a smaller tent to the side, shirts, and empty bottles being chucked his way. Lavi expected him to bolt out of sight, but the kid actually crouched and began to collect the assortment of items. As if it weren't strange enough, he was only using his right arm.
Lenalee knelt in front of Red, gathering several shirts. He knew without her saying anything that she wanted him to do the same. So, he joined them, taking the bottles Red had cradled against his chest.
He stared up at them distrustfully. "What do ya people want now?"
"The Ringmaster said you could show us where to sleep." She replied, trying to be reassuring despite her unease, but Lenalee had never been good at hiding her emotions.
She wasn't like Lavi, who could still wear a carefree expression after witnessing such a display of cruelty. He couldn't decide if that was a good or bad thing.
A shadow passed over Red's face as she explained they'd be staying here for awhile.
"What are ya folks, a bunch of blooming stalkers?" He finally said, causing Lavi to snort.
"Somethin' like that." He choked out in between his laughs.
Red's face scrunched up like he wasn't sure whether he should be offended. Then, he seemed to sense Kanda scowling at him from the sidelines and gave him a pointed glare. Lavi sobered up at the sight. Seeing the two at a squaring off hit him with an odd sense of deja vu. That shouldn't be possible, unless, Red really was someone they know. His face was still bruised, but now that the swelling had eased, he did seem familiar.
He didn't have much time to dwell on it, as Lenalee stood, clearly struggling to maintain a smile. "Kanda, that's enough."
Somehow, her attempt to not come off as agitated made her a hundred times more scary. Red's steely eyes went round for a second, before hardening into their usual scowl, and Kanda's glare had snapped away, redirected at who-knows-what.
Lavi took that as his cue. "We should put these away, right?"
Red nodded, slowly, then lead them off without a word.
Lavi made sure to aim a glare inside the tent as they passed. He caught a glimpse of a man hunched over on a stool, but he was facing the opposite direction, so he didn't notice him.
Red stopped in front of a wooden bucket. "Jus' set 'em down here."
"And the bottles?"
He turned his nose up. "Whatever ya want."
Lavi had a couple good ideas of what he could do with these, like, smashing them over the jerk who'd been chucking them's head. People who hurt children were scum in his book. But, speaking of books, as the Bookman's apprentice such emotions were out of the question.
We're just observers, He repeated to himself. We don't alter events, in the past or present. We only observe and record.
"The trash then." Lenalee murmured, giving the glass bottles a disdainful look.
After they'd finished that, they left the clothing in a heap beside the bucket.
Red trudged along, taking them to a row of small white tents. "The last two have been empty as of yesterday. Yers for the pickin'."
Lavi blinked, "What happened to the performers?"
"Kicked out. Ringmaster doesn't like those who bring in no profit."
Did Lavi imagine it, or had his voice shaken a little?
Lenalee gasped, "That's horrible."
Rather than acknowledge her, Red turned and sauntered the way they'd come. "I showed ya yer place to sleep, I gotta get back to work."
Lenalee pursed her lips but didn't try to stop him.
Lavi took that time to size up each tent. They were big enough to walk full circles in, but he couldn't imagine staying in there for too long. Too cramped for his tastes.
Rays of sunlight easily broke through the thin fabric, and a single mat lay strewn in the center.
Compared to the last circus he'd stayed at, wherein he'd been left to sleep in the straw they fed the horses with, this was somewhat of an improvement. Their situation hadn't changed much, though, as someone was getting the ground tonight. He had a hunch who that person would be.
"What should we do now?" Lenalee asked, brow furrowed.
"Guess we should introduce ourselves." He suggested with a shit-eating grin.
Kanda didn't seem big on the idea, but Lenalee clapped her hands together, practically beaming. "Right! And we can see if Allen is here!"
"Who cares where that beansprout is," Kanda muttered, oddly enough, scowling in the direction Red had scampered off in.
Lavi narrowed his eye. Very un-Kanda like, unless, he was holding a grudge about the wallet incident. That would make sense if he didn't look almost... contemplative.
"Lavi?"
He jumped a bit. "Y-Yes?"
She frowned. "Something wrong?"
Now they were directing their attention to him. 'Lavi' loves being the center of attention, but he didn't fancy it that much.
"Just thinking of all the pranks me and little Allen could play on Kanda!"
They took it hook line and sinker. Kanda ground his teeth, thumb sliding Mugen out of its sheath, while Lenalee giggled into her palm.
Lavi took the chance to hurry off, under the guise of 'introducing himself'. His skull was still aching from earlier, and quite frankly, he didn't want to be impaled so early in the morning. The performers weren't the friendliest bunch, he learned that rather fast. Sadly for them, you were friends with 'Lavi' whether you liked it or not. He could tell they weren't satisfied with the way this circus was run, so he appealed to that. People loved to complain, and he loved to get information. He took mental notes of what they said to write in his notebook later. Asked if they knew a kid named Allen, and deflated a little when they shook their heads. There was a dog named Allen, but no kid.
Lavi took the chance to hurry off, under the guise of 'introducing himself'. His skull was still aching from earlier, and quite frankly, he didn't want to be impaled so early in the morning. The performers weren't the friendliest bunch, he learned that rather fast. Sadly for them, you were friends with 'Lavi' whether you liked it or not. He could tell they weren't satisfied with the way this circus was run, so he appealed to that. People loved to complain, and he loved to get information. He took mental notes of what they said to write in his notebook later. Asked if they knew a kid named Allen, and deflated a little when they shook their heads. There was a dog named Allen, but no kid.
When he was satisfied he'd weaseled his way in, he searched for Lenalee and Kanda. Lenalee was chatting with the knife lady again–who'd introduced herself as Maria. Fitting name for a total hottie.
Kanda was sitting by himself near the props, looking like he'd slice off anyone's head if they went near him. Which he would. Lavi's glad he made it clear, he'd hate to be thrown in jail because Kanda murdered a clown.
Then, he spotted Red, who was polishing the props a couple feet away from him. Funny how like minded people tended to gravitate to each other. They must've decided to share the empty corner on the terms neither bothered to the other. He considered joining them, then, got a better idea.
"So, what's up with that kid over there?" He asked, turning back to the cluster of clowns.
"Ah? Ya mean Red?" A man with a funky green wig inquired. "Don' go near that 'un, he's a freak I tell ya!"
"Not good for much eitha,'" The trapeze lady put in. "Jus' does the odd jobs no one else wants ta'. Ringmasta' paid quite a hefty price for 'em, so he hasn't been kicked out yet."
"I see." Lavi feigned disinterest, glancing at Red again. Still wasn't using his left arm. He was about to ask about it when applause cut through the thin curtain.
"Shows about ta' start." She explained. "Wish us luck!"
He did, and they left, snatching the props from Red as they passed. Not so much as a thank you. Guess they wouldn't thank a slave. No wonder Red preferred to stick to himself. Probably thought all adults were the same.
He used to be that way. With the exception of the old panda and a few others, his outlook hadn't changed much.
Lavi saw Kanda mutter something, and Red's head lowered. Interest piqued, he hovered over to them.
"–grown up, I'll be outta here."
Kanda snorted in response.
"I will!"
"What's going on?" He greeted them warmly.
They flashed him cold glares.
He cringed for a heartbeat, wondering what he'd just walked in on. He recovered fast, though, sweeping a hand through his hair. "So, you do the odd jobs, huh? You're a pretty hard worker!"
"Like ya care." Red retorted. "Ya act friendly, but yer eye is empty. It jus' reflects me."
He froze, fingers still wedged in his spiky hair. An image of a dark haired guy seared into his mind, defiance showing in his knitted brows and tense stance. "Your eye is like glass. It reflects me, but that's all. Nothing reaches inside."
Doug.
Stop thinking about it.
His pulse wouldn't slow down.
Stop.
It was getting hard to breathe.
FOCUS!
Lavi was jarred back to reality, wherein Kanda was observing him quietly, and Red had stomped off.
Lavi forced a laugh. "That was pretty uncalled for! How mean! Yuu, you've been a bad influence on his delicate mind!"
Kanda clucked his tongue and jerked his head away.
He lingered, refusing to let on how much Red had gotten to him. Make a couple jokes, smile, no one would suspect a thing. Just act like 'Lavi', a nice guy with impenetrable confidence. A powerful exorcist that gets along with everyone, happy, bright, a guy who-
Who couldn't save his friend.
"Now that I think about it," He went on steadily. "Where did Lenalee go?"
Kanda nodded to the stage's entrance.
Lavi's mouth fell. "She went on stage!?"
He gave him an annoyed look. "With another girl."
Maria. Well, as long as she wasn't alone.
He knew nothing would be able to keep 'Lavi' from watching Lenalee perform, but he'd have to get over it. He was too tired.
Hadn't slept in twenty-four hours, and it was showing in the way his legs dragged across the ground like lead. Yeah, that was why his body felt heavy. The reason he just wanted to curl up and sleep all day.
Not leaving room for argument, he laid on the ground a couple feet from the mat. He was fine. Just fine.
A/N: Maria is just a random name I picked xD sorry, it has nothing to do with Cross's Maria (I'd actually forgotten all about her when I was writing this)