Word count : 1349
Disclaimer: I do not own the Dgrayman characters, never did and never will, no matter how much I like them. This is just a fan work, it is not for commercial use and is done solely for the sake of fan-girlism.
Forewords: A page in the Bookman's latest journal... lost, because Komui Lee torn it out and burnt it.
Thanks for enjoying this story! Feedbacks are always welcomed and appreciated!
You May (Not!) Kiss The Bride
By Sceaduw
{Part III}
With the sun setting and the moon rising, the girl began to feel unsettled by the emerging darkness. She sat alone by the window, staring blankly at her own reflection. It all happened so fast. Too fast.
There was a gentle knock on the door. "I've brought you dinner, Lenalee. It's a bit early, but I thought you might be hungry," said Howard Link as he entered the room. He carried with him in a small tray the finest food prepared by top chefs in the Vatican. His superiors didn't want Lenalee to fall ill before the deed was done. For Howard, he just wanted to do his best to make the girl feel better. Lenalee turned and thanked the man softly. But she was not hungry. She wanted to see her brother. Rouvelier had promised her that her brother would be here tonight. Brother would never be late for her.
"Don't worry, everything will be over very soon," said Howard as he left the tray on a small table at the center of her room, "What you are doing is very brave and noble, Lenalee. Think of the countless lives you will save!" He bowed slightly in respect and then left. Lenalee was not so sure now, although she did sign up willingly for this after Rouvelier told her about the Earl's proposal. It was all for a better future. She could and would do it. But somehow, she felt... sad.
"Pull yourself together Lenalee!" she whispered at the reflection. If she had discussed this with her brother... no, there would be no discussion at all. That was the reason she left in silence. Rouvelier assured her all her friends and family would be there at her wedding. What if... Rouvelier lied? What if... no one came to see her away? What if... this was a trap from the Earl? What if... it was in fact one from the Vatican? What if... what if... what if... Lenalee shook her head and buried her face in her palms.
What if... he showed up?
She wept. Too confused to think of anything but him. He would bound to show up if Rouvelier kept his promise. He was her friend, her secretly desired prince.
Two more days and she would have to spend the rest of her days with a Noah. The long bloody war would end and everyone would be rejoicing. She shouldn't be thinking of being rescued.
It was time to let go of her unrequited love.
"How is she, Howard?" asked Rouvelier when his subordinate came back to report, "I hope she is not trying to back out. She did look troubled an hour ago when I delivered her wedding gown to her personally."
Howard knitted his brows. Receiving the wedding dress to be worn while marrying a demon was depressing, let alone it came together with her most feared authority. That was called torment. "She's fine at the moment, sir!" he replied. He felt sorry for the girl. "Why did you especially persuade Lenalee, sir? I don't understand. We've got some other female exorcists in HQ too," asked Howard. Or even male exorcists, considering the other side had female Noahs.
Displeased at Howard querying about the Vatican's decsion, Rouvelier flatly replied, "first of all, she met some of the Noahs before, so it won't be so awkward. Second, she is a close friend of Allen Walker, who we all know is actually Noah number 14 himself. So she won't have troubles being close to the clan. Third..." Howard drifted off spiritually. He refused to hear anymore 'advantages' of Lenalee as the bride. Why couldn't the reason simply be her heart of pure compassion and sincerity? He left Rouvelier's office as soon as his superior had done with his babbling.
It was after a while before Howard was informed that Rouvelier's office was trespassed by five exorcists. With the door sliced apart by an irritate, office furniture rearranged by two agitates, and master of the office to be brutally mauled by two extremely pissed offs. Strangely, Howard felt refreshed. He prayed the best for Lenalee as he headed back to check on the vitality of his superior.
Rouvelier had carelessly forgotten Walker had control over the old ark portal. The young exorcist could theoretically travel anywhere swiftly. "She came on her own free will! No one forced her!" he shouted, unexpecting Lenalee's fellow comrades would arrive this soon, "You will only see Lenalee Lee at the wedding! No one shall interfere with this peace treaty! NO ONE!" Allen and Lavi, with eyes gleaming like a pair of lynx, cracked their knuckles as they advanced towards the man on the floor.
"Oh, really?" they snorted.
Innocence could not be activated on human scumbags, but fists could.
What happened then was too much for Miranda to witness. So she, following Kanda and Krory, went to search for Lenalee at other parts of the Vatican City.
The Vatican didn't keep the girl at their HQ as Kanda had suggested. Rouvelier would rather die than to confess where they hid Lenalee. Krory suggested the cathedral where the wedding was to be held. They went there and only to find night-time workers, delicately decorating the place before the deadline. The bride would not be there yet. Miranda thought for a moment. She came up with nothing and wailed desperately, "What are we going to do?" The trio stood in the middle of the night, clueless.
An unkempt man, probably homeless, moved stealthily through the shadows. Kanda noticed and glared at him but the stranger was in a hurry. The man ran and nearly bumped into Allen and Lavi. The duo had finally caught up with the team. The stranger was startled by the exorcists but they took no notice of him. Miranda caught sight of the blood smears on Allen and Lavi's hands and uniforms. It would be wise not to ask, she advised herself silently. She hoped they didn't frighten the poor disheveled man. Exorcists were highly respected but also very much feared. She looked around but the man was gone.
"We are lost. There's no sign of her any where," sighed Krory, blinking at the moon above. Kanda hissed at the cold air. He never liked hide and seeks.
"We can't just give up! Lenalee might be in danger!" exclaimed Lavi, "Hey, what are you looking at?" Lavi noticed Allen was staring into a dark alley. There was nothing there.
"No, nothing," he mumbled. That man looked oddly familiar but Allen couldn't recollect anything. He could be mistaken since it was quite dark now.
"Right, what shall we do now?" asked Krory in frustration.
Allen had an idea. It sounded absurd but it might work.
"If the keeper of the bride won't tell us anything, then let's ask the groom!" suggested Allen.
"Beansprout! We don't know who is the groom!" scowled Kanda. If he had known, there wouldn't be a groom in the first place! Lavi also doubted whether the groom-to-be would be willing to give them information on his future wife, if he knew they were going to take her away. Krory shrugged but he had no alternative ideas. Miranda hesitated on the thought of entering the new ark, which was currently inhabited by a dozen of Noahs. However, she had no objection to any possible ways of rescuing Lenalee.
"We don't. But I am sure the Earl does!" smiled Allen slyly.
-to be continued-
