Immunity
A D Gray-Man & Last of Us Crossover
"Yeah, well, my way is the right way, just you watch," Lavi grumbles as they leave his room.
Taking the way out of the apartment—and thankfully not running into Bookman—they head outside to go to the Head Nurse's apartment. It's closer to the wall so that she can have 'unlimited' access to people who get hurt and come inside. It's also cause for the guards to keep a closer eye on the clinic—but thankfully not her apartment.
The streets are far from quiet. Once they go outside and go down one street, the sounds of gunshots fill the air along with screaming. Lavi stops Allen for a moment in confusion, wondering what's going on. He makes them press up against a wall before poking his head forward—only to snap it back with a terrified shocked look on his green eye.
He just heard and saw an Infected clicking as it was gorging itself on a guard.
"T-Turn around…" Lavi says quietly, trying to keep his voice even—as if Allen's situation was a hard-ball, now he's being hit with another one. He doesn't even seem to comprehend that Allen might've heard the clicking, too, since he's right behind him.
Allen followed along quietly, occupying himself with his own thoughts as they went with what they were going to do when the scanner only confirmed what he already knew. By mid-morning he'd probably already start to Turn, and by the next evening… likely he wouldn't be himself anymore. He supposed that if the nurse didn't turn him in to the guards, he could always just go and do it himself. That would be the right thing to do, wouldn't it?
He was snapped out of his thoughts as he likewise heard the gunshots and screaming, jerking his head up and around for the source of the sound, silently mouthing, "What the…?"
He caught Lavi's cue and followed him to the wall, sneaking along it just at Lavi's heels. He thought he heard a faint chattering noise, and something else he thought he knew but couldn't quite identify as Lavi peered around the side just ahead of him.
Allen knew something was wrong when Lavi instantly snapped back, telling him to go back. His silvery eyes reflected confusion and unease. He had a feeling he knew what had Lavi looking at least somewhat scared, but he wanted to be absolutely certain.
"Why? What's going on?"
"Shut up and turn around I said," Lavi hisses.
Normally not one to get even remotely physical—in a bad way—toward Allen, he ends up grabbing the teen's jacket and shoving him back toward the way they just came. And he keeps a hold of Allen's jacket, pushing him along because he doesn't want to risk Allen trying to go back to see what Lavi saw, green eye flickering around and looking everywhere but at his best friend. Watchful and on alert.
That should tip off the white-haired male, shouldn't it?
They somehow manage to get back to the library without running into anything—perhaps they haven't reached this street yet, but gunshots and shouts in the distance can definitely be heard and they're definitely getting more numerous and louder. Lavi's hand shakes a little as he unlocks the library before pulling Allen inside and shutting it, locking the wooden door.
"Okay okay, what to do what to do…" Lavi mutters as he lightly sets his forehead on the door now that it's safely locked. He first tells Allen, "Go find Bookman and see if he's still down here or up in the apartment, and whatever you do DON'T go outside."
Allen was somewhat surprised by the blunt, harsh order from the red-haired teen and the fact that the other literally pushed him along, since he rarely got that way, even when a situation looked bad. Either it was really that serious or he was still reeling pretty badly from what Allen had told him earlier, though he wasn't sure exactly which one it was. Both might have been a suitable answer.
He couldn't help but glance over his shoulder in scrutiny, both at the place Lavi was trying to keep him away from, and at Lavi himself, who was looking more the part of his 'rabbit' nickname at the moment, skittish and alert for some kind of predator to swoop down on top of them at any moment.
He thought about resisting, going to check out for himself what was going on - it wasn't like it really mattered for him at this point if it was dangerous - but thought better of it, at least for the moment. His own safety wasn't much of an issue to him, but unlike him, Lavi wasn't Infected - damn it that was still hard to even put to thought - and he didn't want to be the one responsible for changing that.
His silvery eyes shone with concern as Lavi locked the door to the library, audibly wracking his brain for answers on how to handle… whatever the Hell was going on, though it wasn't hard to guess. Were the others alright? Lenalee, Komui, Krory, Miranda, and the others? And Hell, even Kanda?
He hesitated only a moment when Lavi told him to find Bookman, then nodded his head and moved to do just that, idly reaching up to massage his temple where his headache was starting to return. He had a really bad feeling about all of this.
Lavi rubs his forehead as Allen disappears, now able to think more clearly as he violently shoves the thought of 'Allen is infected' out of his head for the moment. First off was to get to safety, which they did. Next, in order to survive the attack, they would have to fortify where they are. Thing is, though, the library has windows and they can't cover those easily. They could hole up in their apartment, but they'd have to leave eventually.
They'd have to leave eventually…
Lavi decides that it will be best if he left with both Allen and Bookman and try to find the others on their way to the exit—or maybe hole up with someone near the entrance and exit from the base since chances are there would be Infected flooding in and blocking the gates.
"Get out... get safe... look for the others," Lavi mutters to himself, deciding that he'll have to settle for this as his plan.
It didn't take long for Allen to locate Bookman, especially seeing as the building only had two constant inhabitants. He'd quickly relayed, "Lavi told me to come find you. There's something going on outside, though he didn't tell me what yet, but I think it's something really serious," before leading the way back to where the redhead was.
He didn't mention the part about being Infected, not really sure how to bring that up nor wanting to. Maybe he was simply hoping that Lavi had been right that the scanner was simply broken or something, but he couldn't quite bring himself to beleive that. Not yet at least.
"I found him, just like you asked," Allen announced needlessly as they reached Lavi again, looking between them uncertainly.
"What is going on, Lavi?" Bookman asks, giving a severe stare at his grandson who turns around at Allen's words. Lavi rubs his nose in his nervousness as he answers, "The Infected got in somehow so we have to leave now."
"Are you sure that's even a wise—"
"Yes!" Lavi interrupts abruptly. "We gotta grab everything we can right now before they get to this street 'cause it looks like they haven't gotten this far yet, but it won't be long. We're gonna go around the far walls of the compound to get to the door so we can try gettin' out."
And the wider they go, the more space they can spend looking for their friends. Bookman clenches his jaw, staring hard, but mind already going through the same possibilities that Lavi did before he nods and heads upstairs. Lavi runs a hand through his hair, glancing at Allen before going to go and get his own stuff.
Before going upstairs he says without turning around, "You can come and look for stuff with us, or stay right there, but you're going nowhere without us. Got it?"
He doesn't care if Allen's infected. He'll bring him with. It's not like they would take two days to get out. And once they're out, they can better decide on how to deal with Allen.
And that just confirmed his fears.
Allen had been wondering since Lavi snapped at him to go back they way they'd come if it was Infected, though there could have been other just as likely possibilities as well… bandits or fighting breaking out between the remnants of the miliary and the Fireflies group. This, though… this was bad. If the Zone really was compromised, then this was really, really bad.
It was on the tip of his tongue to ask what had happened to the guards on the wall, if the Infected managed to get through, but he didn't get the chance with Lavi running his mouth a mile per minute.
He wondered if the others knew, worried about something happening to them more than himself. He was sure Kanda probably did. Even if he was a compete jackass, he was still very capable and pretty much always alert. Maybe he'd managed to notice what was going on and tell the others?
He was snapped out of his thoughts before they could go any further, watching Bookman disappear and Lavi soon to follow.
The white-haired teen frowned as Lavi basically ordered him to just sit by and do nothing about what was happening outside, even though countless people, some of them immensely important to him, could be dying without help right this second. He didn't hide at all the fact that he wanted to argue. Of course on the other side of things, he'd left his gun and knife in his apartment, so he wasn't exactly armed to take on anything either.
That was when another realization hit him and he smacked a hand into his forehead with a groan, which didn't help his returning headache any. His apartment! More importantly than the place itself was what he'd left in it. It wasn't terribly far, but it wasn't exactly anywhere near the wall or outskirts of town either.
"Lavi, I left Timcanpy at home when I left."
The gun, knife, and many other things, he could entirely overlook. He could always get another gun or knife elsewhere - though he personally liked his own since they were easy for him to use - but his cockatiel companion wasn't simply replaceable. He would never say it out-loud, mainly for the fact that it was rude, but he considered that little bird to be his best friend and loved it absolutely to death, more than any person. He considered Lavi like a brother, about as close as he could ever be to another person, but he had an extra special soft spot for Tim that couldn't be filled by anything or anyone else.
Lavi stops on the stairs when Allen declares he left Timcanpy. Again, his mind runs and what he considers lightning speed before he comes up with a decision. He backs up a few steps and peeks around the corner as he says, "We'll go get Tim then, Allen. He's a smart little guy so he can be useful. We'll be down in about ten minutes if you're stayin' right there."
With that said, Lavi heads upstairs where Bookman is waiting with a severe look on his face. Lavi throws him an apologetic, and yet apathetic, glance. It's more of a "I know you said not to care too much but seems I did anyway…" kind of stare that Bookman can actually hear in his head.
The two were prepared, though. They open their closet and pull out a bag that they had especially made for a moment like this. While being here forever made them believe that it was unnecessary, the calculating common-sense part of their brains demanded they have these bags. Lavi gathers a few other important things that he neglected to put in his backpack over the years and goes downstairs with Bookman soon to follow.
"When we reach your apartment you can grab SOME stuff, Allen. Grab whatever you can in five minutes at most. That's all the time you'll get. We'll have to check on Timothy's and Emilia's place on the way there, though."
Because the kid and his 'caretaker' lived just two roads down from Allen and it's on their way.
Allen nodded his head, though he was reluctant to wait for any span of time. If he was quick he might be able to even get there and be back in the ten minutes Lavi said it would take them to get their own things in order… but then again, there was no telling if he'd really be able to do that so quickly. He hadn't the slightest idea of what might happen outside.
He was relieved that Lavi agreed they go back to his place briefly though, nodding his head and conceding defeat for the moment and taking a seat near the door, though every minute that passed made him a little more anxiously restless.
Timcanpy was the most pressing concern in regards to things he needed to retrieve, but he'd also be able to retrieve his weapons, and whatever else he had. Packing everything up would be easy, seeing as he was a person of few possessions to begin with. In his early life he'd had basically nothing but the clothes on his back, and only a little more than that afterwards with Mana, when they were mostly vagrant travelers. The last couple years were the only ones where he'd settled in one place for very long at all, but he still retained the habit of owning mostly the bare necessities. Basically if he couldn't carry it, he didn't keep it.
He sprung to his feet when the two Bookmen appeared, shifting his weight from one foot to the other with barely suppressed impatience, glad to finally hear that they were going to be checking up on some of the others and hopefully be keeping them safe. He nodded agreement, more than ready to get going after having to sit still for so long doing nothing.
"Let's go."
Lavi nods in agreement and they go to the door. Lavi is the one to crack it open and peer out slowly, looking back and forth. The screams and gunshots are definitely closer—maybe two streets down?—but they have yet to reach this place just yet although that might change in the next few seconds.
Turning and waving a hand as the door is opened further, Lavi says, "Alright let's go."
The three come out of the doorway and Bookman closes it, making sure to lock it just in case they ever do get the chance to come back and the lock actually means something and leaves the inner contents alone without being touched. They start by going to the left and down the street. Lavi peeks around a corner of the building at the corner of the block. He spots an Infected lumbering by but limping after someone crawling along the ground—thankfully no one he knows so Lavi pays no mind, as cruel as it is.
"Come on," he whispers as they cross the street as quickly as they can to get to the other side.
Precautions like these are taken throughout that might make it five minutes longer to get near Timothy's and Emilia's house, but they get there without running into big trouble nonetheless. Lavi, Allen, and Bookman go up to the porch of the somewhat small house only to see a note hanging on the front.
Left the house
Going to the safe haven 2 towns to the west
Hope to see you there
~Emilia and Timothy
"Shit they're already gone," Lavi mutters. Really… there's nothing they can do but move on since the two are no longer there. Maybe they'll meet them at the wall since they're also planning on leaving. Lavi turns to the other two and says, "Alright, on to Allen's house."
Allen was glad to be moving again, only having to wait for Lavi to give the all-clear before they were off. He heard Lavi indicate to follow, but faltered slightly as he saw the Infected going after someone. It didn't feel entirely right to just… not do anything. He didn't get the chance though when Bookman gave his shoulders a push, just enough to get him going at Lavi's heels again.
He didn't like it, but he followed, more concerned about his immediate friends. When they found Emilia's place, he wasn't sure whether to be releived or disappointed that they were already gone. Hopefully they were safe and hadn't hit any trouble.
When Lavi indicated his place was next, he nodded, eager to get there and retrieve both Tim and his weapons. Maybe then he could actually do something, instead of merely slinking around. It didn't take long to reach it, the shadows being quite useful to keep them concealed, and the Infected didn't seem to have reached his place yet. How long that would last though, he wasn't sure.
He unlocked his apartment and all but flung the door open, glancing around.
"Tim?" His voice was immediately greeted with shrill chirping, the bird flying to land on his head. He smiled and pet the bird with two fingers, even as he moved to retrieve his things. He had to do this quickly.
"Just keep an eye and an ear out for trouble. I'll be done in a moment," he tossed over his shoulder as he moved to sit on his bed, yanking out the drawer of his bedside table and retrieving his weapons from them.
Lavi and Bookman can hear Tim's chirping when Allen calls out for the bird. They both nod in agreement that they would stay and keep watch—which is ACTUALLY needed because they're pretty sure the Infected can come to this street at any time now, and probably already arrived and passed the bookstore's street.
The redhead is the one poking his head over the small ledge that boxes in the 'porch' to the apartment building. The sounds aren't as loud as when they left the bookstore which is good news, but they're still there and still sounding like they're approaching.
"Who else are we going to go after?" Bookman asks Lavi.
The redhead shrugs as he answers, "I know that Lenalee and Komui will be near the wall so we'll try to find them. Uh... we'll probably find Krory there, too. We might have to keep an eye peeled for Kanda, though. He might be out-of-the-way to go and find, but I don't think he'd stay at his apartment so we might see him on the way."
Lavi looks at his watch and decides he'd give Allen two more minutes.
Allen made it a point to load his gun, figuring he'd probably need it before the night was done, and count his remaining clips. Three total… that was a decent amount, but they'd go quickly if a conflict broke out. He'd have to be careful to use them sparingly, if at all, or else he'd be out of bullets, and ammunition was hard to find much of the time.
He pocketed those and quickly packed up his spare clothes into a backpack, already folded and ready to go, and went to retrieve a few more things; a comb, some things to wash with, his first-aid kits and medicine bottles, Timcanpy's feed bag, a few cans of food from his stores(that he often squirrelled away unopened or eaten for just such instances). There was more tucked away, but he only had so much room, and he figured they might always be able to come back for it if it became important enough.
He paused a moment in his packing, pacing lightly. What else was he missing…? Think, think… batteries!
He quickly made his way around the place to find a pack of batteries he knew had to be lying around, finding them before long. Batteries were too useful to leave behind, especially when it came to flashlights. He packed those up, along with a few eating utencils and a blanket, before zipping it all up and slinging it onto his back.
Allen tugged his hood back over his head and tucked Tim into hiding in there close to his ear.
"You stay in here, Tim. 'don't want anything happening to you," he smiled, before nodding to Lavi.
"Alright, let's go."
