Ankhesenamun2: Yeah, all that should be explained in this chapter. If you want to read more on it afterwards, you can look up "Mead Moon" on Google. The first option is where I got my information.
Firediva0: Thanks! You'll learn about which names belong to whom in this chapter!
Hanashi o suru: Thank you!
Guest: Thanks for your review! Mixed feelings on what?
Akkira Nala: I nearly fainted writing it! And I had to twice! *nosebleed* Yes, but there's also a little bit in his past that contributes to that. Hehe, you never know what twists and turns I may add!
MayR9: Thank you! I'm so glad you like it! Alma's story will come along later, as well as the Noah. I don't think Neah will be in this story, and if he is, he'll have a normal body and be like the other Noah. I think you might be on to something with the element thing….
Cana99: Okay, that makes sense. I'm not a fan of Alma, either, but for the reasons of this fanfiction, it works. I mean, who else would be Kanda's mate and have a birthday in December like Allen? Thank you for your review!
CrescentMoonTenshi: Thanks!
Rebellious Lover: Thank you for reading, and I'm glad you're excited! You'll find out about his eyes, hair, and scar in this chapter.
Flufficat: Thank you!
Lassenri: Thanks for your review!
Child4-ever: Thank you! No one wants to wait for a hot kiss scene!
Dcdc123: Thanks!
AliceXxX: Light and Light lycanthrope are the same thing. You'll learn all about that in this chapter. Yeah, I just needed Alma or else he and his akuma butt can blow up. Thank you for your review!
Author Note: I should mention that the stuff on moons does involve witchcraft. Not in this fanfiction, but it will come up if you research it, especially on the website I found my information on. I am a very devoted Christian! I learned about the moons mostly through Wicked by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguié.
Lycanthrope
Chapter 3: Apprentice
As we walk through the tunnel, light flickers at the end of it, and soon, we're walking through what looks like a modern living room, not counting the stone walls, floors, and ceiling. I don't have time to really look at it before the four of us are in a forest.
"Look, Mila, a new one!"
I turn around, glancing back at the undergrowth and tree trunks. Weird. I thought I heard a girl giggling.
"Allen?"
Taking one last look, I continue to walk next to Lavi. He asks, "What was that?"
"Nothing," I mutter. "Just thought someone was watching me."
Smiling, the redhead replies, "There probably was, but nothing more than a fairy or Earth lin-lin."
Nodding like that made perfect sense, I say, "You're probably right."
Fairies? And what the heck is a yin-pin or whatever?!
Deciding that there would be plenty of time to ask later, I ask, "So what's this whole apprenticeship thing about?"
"I think Kanda could explain that better," Lavi says, "but there's a small chance that he would, so it's best for you to ask your mentor."
"I still have no clue what you're talking about," I say, hopelessly lost and still stuck on the yin-pins.
"Then get up here if it will shut you up, Moyashi," Kanda growls from ahead.
"Moyashi?" I ask. Obviously not in the mood for explaining, Kanda says, "One chance. Take it or leave it."
Even though I feel awkward around Kanda after what had happened, I quickly jog past Lavi and Lenalee to the bluenette's side, falling into step next to him. Part of me can't help but notice that his footsteps are completely silent, not even a crunch, and yet, he's walking on the same dead leaves and twigs as I am. Glancing at me, he says, "You better listen well because I'm only explaining this once."
After I nod, Kanda continues, "Now that you're a lycanthrope, you need to learn our ways and how to use your new abilities to their fullest potential. That's why you'll have a mentor to teach you. You will also share a room with your mentor until he has decided that you're ready to get your own."
"What do you mean by 'ready to get my own'?"
"If there happened to be an attack on the Order, your mentor would protect you, but once he thinks you would be able to protect yourself, you'll be able to live in your own room. After you've graduated from being an apprentice, you'll be eligible to be a mentor."
"So my mentor is like a teacher?"
Looking at me for the first time since he'd begun talking, Kanda says, "Of sorts. I would consider it more of a master and student relationship, but it depends on how your mentor trains you."
"Like what?" I ask curiously. From behind me, I hear Lavi say, "I train my apprentices like they're my best friend. It's almost like we're just hanging out."
"I hide my lessons in fun things, like swimming and climbing trees," Lenalee pipes.
"And my apprentices think that they're in the underworld," Kanda growls, smirking sadistically.
"Don't pull that! I had fun being your apprentice!" Lavi protests. "Besides, you haven't taken in an apprentice in years."
As much as I wanted to gape, I refrain, shocked that Kanda had trained someone like Lavi. The bluenette doesn't reply, stopping.
Halting my steps, I look at my surroundings. We are standing in a clearing, and a rock juts out of the ground, shooting up nearly vertically with moss clinging to it except for the flat surface at the top about seven feet off the ground. The afternoon sun lights up the area, giving it an almost angelic glow, and the wind makes the plants hanging from the rock sway slightly.
Not uttering a word, Kanda runs toward the rock, seeming like an acrobat as he jumps from his hands and feet on the ground to the top of the stone, straightening.
I don't even have time to think about how amazing the stunt was before his eyes go from sapphire to ice blue. Watching closely, I stare as Kanda grows two canines, tilting his head back, and a piercing howl slices through the air. The sound is as clear as spring water, resonating through the forest loudly, and it takes less than a second for answering calls to respond.
Branches crunch, the sound startling me, and I inch back, hiding behind Lavi discreetly. Chuckling, the redhead murmurs, "No need to be scared; it's just the rest of the pack."
"Rest of the…?" I trail off, jumping several feet off the ground in fright as a huge, lion-sized and –colored cat bursts into the clearing, followed by more felines and wolves.
"Don't scare him. Transform into anthros," Kanda orders loudly, his appearance now normal. That's when I realize that the beasts crashing through the woods and into the clearing are lycanthropes. Well, they're still beasts anyways, but I doubt they're going to kill me, so no worries…I hope.
Once there are close to a dozen lycanthropes in the clearing, not counting Kanda, Lenalee, Lavi, and I, Kanda motions for me to get on the rock beside him. Of course, I know there's no way on this outrageously supernatural Earth that I can scale a stone two feet tall than I am. How does he expect me to jump like he did?
Sensing my hesitation, Lavi pushes me forward slightly, flashing a reassuring smile at me, and I slowly walk towards the rock, feeling the gazes of the other hybrids on my back. When I get to the base, I raise my eyes to the alpha's, trying to ask what I was supposed to do.
Rolling his eyes, Kanda looks at the lycanthropes and announces, "As most of you know, I recently bit Oak, though I'm beginning to regret it. Since he's too incompetent to jump up here with me, he will stay at the base of the rock. State your name."
Chuckles and giggles erupt from the crowd, and I look down embarrassedly, loudly saying, "A-Allen Walker."
Kanda nods to me before continuing, "We do not have another male cat other than Daisya, and having discussed this with Marie, I believe that he is still too young to take in an apprentice."
A guy my age with spiky purple hair and matching cat ears objected, "I graduated a month ago! I could take in an apprentice!"
"You also weren't paying attention last week and stepped on a lin-lin that had to stay in the infirmary for several days to heal. I was the one that had to explain your idiocy to Queen Celestia, and she was not happy."
The boy, who I assume is Daisya, looked down, ears laid back in sadness while Kanda continues, "Having said that, I therefore appoint myself as the Moyashi's mentor."
Gasps are released around the clearing. Lavi had said it's rare for Kanda to take in an apprentice, but is it really that surprising?
"You are dismissed," the bluenette says indifferently, leaping down from the rock and landing silently and effortlessly beside me. Awkwardly, I shift my weight and ask, "Um…so what are we doing first?"
Glancing at me, Kanda begins walking towards the way we had come. "First, shut up. I'll show you around the Order."
"Order?"
"You're seriously irritating me with the questions," he growls. "The Black Order is the cave complex we live in."
We are the last ones to leave the clearing, and as we walk through the forest, I say, "You're my mentor. Aren't I supposed to learn by asking questions?"
Shaking his head, Kanda replied, "You learn by observation. Are you going to ask a waterfall why it's wet, or are you going to assume it's wet because it's made of water?"
"So I'm supposed to assume you're an ill-tempered jerk who forces himself on people and has too much power?" I ask sweetly, earning a glare.
"You're supposed to learn to think before you speak instead of smarting off. If I hadn't healed you, you would be on the ground and screaming in pain by now," he says lowly. I don't reply, a cliff coming into view.
Even if Kanda is a jerk, he does have a point, and that's probably what got him to the point he is now. He obviously knows more about this world than anyone else.
Moss hangs over the cliff, but I can make out the entrance to the cave as Kanda and I approach it. Brushing aside the covering, the lycanthrope leads me down a short tunnel that slopes downward, and I can see light at the end of it. When the tunnel finally opens up, I stare in amazement at the cave I hadn't been able to notice earlier.
Directly across from me, there are five more tunnels, the one to the far right covered by a dark blue, satin cloth, and it's the same on the far left, only the fabric was magenta. A flat-screen television hangs on the right wall, three large couches and a coffee table surrounding it. On the left, there are counters and islands dotting the area, and the biggest refrigerator I've ever seen is in the near left corner. Cabinets and drawers are built into the wall, a ceiling fan lighting the large room.
"Wow," I murmur in awe, glancing around. Quickly crossing the room with me on his heels, Kanda stands in front of the five tunnels, pointing to the one covered by the pink cloth. "This is the girls' rooms, and you obviously shouldn't go in there."
Gesturing to the blue fabric, he continues, "Same thing except for the boys'.
"That's where dinner and meetings are held." Kanda points to the middle left, obviously annoyed by explaining this.
"The middle goes to the infirmary, as you know."
With that, the bluenette walks down the right middle tunnel, or hallway for all I knew, and I follow closely behind him, slightly afraid of getting lost in the winding tunnel.
"And this is my room, where you will be staying for the next however many weeks or months," he says, moving to the bed.
For the most part, the room is completely barren of emotion. In the far left corner, there's a king-size bed, clad all in black, and several drawers are built into the wall. A closed door is on the right wall, and I assume it's the bathroom.
Snapping out of my inspection, I look at Kanda as he hands me a blanket, pillow, and pillowcase, and he says, "The first part of your training is sleeping on the floor with only these things to keep you warm. You can do anything with them."
"Um, okay," I say hesitantly, taking the items from him, and I set them in the near left corner.
"Now," he says, sitting on the bed and leaning back against the headboard, "you may ask as many questions as you like."
Cautiously, I move to the bed, taking a seat on the edge. "What does 'Moyashi' mean?"
Smirking, he mutters, "It means 'bean sprout' in Japanese."
"I'm not a bean sprout!" I protest.
"Lenalee is taller than you, so, yes, you are."
"I'm not short! Maybe I'm not freakishly tall like you, but that doesn't mean I'm short!"
Rolling his cobalt eyes, Kanda continues, "Ask your questions. This is the only time I won't smack you for it."
A slew of inquiries popped up in my head. "What's a yin-pin…or sin-tin…din-kin…?"
"It's a lin-lin."
"Yeah, that."
"A lin-lin is a small elf-like creature. Just like a fairy or pixie, it represents an element."
"Element? Is that what Lavi and Lenalee were talking about it? Lavi said he wanted me to be a Fire."
Nodding, Kanda answered, "There are six elements: Earth, Air, Water, Fire, Light, and Shadows. The ruler of the lin-lins, Queen Celestia, is what some would consider the seventh element: Celestial. But a lycanthrope has never received the Celestial element."
"Does this have something to do with people calling me Oak all the time?"
"Not really. You were born into the sign of Oak. You will receive your element when you bond with your spirit beast."
Trying to keep my mind on the Oak thing instead of a spirit beast, I continue, "What is Oak?"
"There is a name for each full moon in each month. Going from January to December, the names are Wolf, Storm, Chaste, Seed, Hare, Dyad, Mead, Wort, Barley, Blood, Snow, and Oak."
"So I'm Oak because I was born in December?" I ask. Kanda nods and says, "And before you freak out about how we found out your birthday is in December, one of our Waters has the ability to sense which people are born under which sign."
After a moment, I continue, "What sign and element are you?"
Eyeing me, he answers after a pause, "Shadows and Wine."
"Which moon is that? I don't remember it."
"It's the blue moon. I was born in a blue moon June."
Maybe I'm trying to test my memory skills. Maybe I'm trying to impress Kanda. But either way, I ask, "So you're Wine and…Mead…?"
"Dyad."
Disappointed slightly, I ask, "What's a spirit beast?"
"A spirit beast is a spirit that takes the form of an animal. In a few days, you'll bond with yours, and you'll be able to begin learn to using your weapon."
"Weapon?"
"Your spirit beast will be able to morph into a particular weapon."
"What's yours?"
Rolling his eyes, Kanda mutters, "This is not 'Ask Kanda about his powers' time. Just wake me up if a python tries to suffocate you in your sleep."
Eyes widening, I glance around frantically, "WHAT?!"
"Ask your questions or shut it."
Still on high alert, I ask, "Why do you keep referring to me as a cat?"
"You are a cat," Kanda says as if it's the most normal thing in the world. "Lycanthropes can be either a cat or wolf. Cats have, other than the obvious, yellow eyes and the natural ability to heal others of less severe wounds through saliva. Wolves have ice blue eyes and the ability to take away pain through the same process."
My mind flashes back to what happened in the infirmary before my eyes, and I hesitantly ask, "Is that why you kissed me? Because you're a wolf?"
He closes his eyes for a moment, seeming to be concentrating. When he opens them again, one eye is azure blue and the other is a glowing yellow with a slit for a pupil.
I gasp, "You're both?!"
He blinks, both orbs returning to their original cobalt blue. "Yes. As you know, I was born into lycanthropy, and this was one of the 'perks' of being born under a blue moon."
"What happened to my hair and face?"
"Sometimes a person's hair or eye color change when they turn. Lenalee's eyes used to be green, and Lavi originally had brown hair. As for your scar, every lycanthrope is marked. It can be very obvious like yours and Lavi's or it can be easy to cover or pass off as a tattoo like mine and Lenalee's."
"What are their marks like?" I question curiously. Kanda says, "If they want you to know, they'll show you."
"What about you?"
"You'll see it at some point. It's hard to miss."
"What about the electricity?" I ask.
"Hacked the power company, and the same for plumbing. Anything else?"
I shake my head, deciding not to ask or comment on the power, and Kanda continues, "You have clothes in the bottom drawer, and anything else you'll need is in the large drawer beside the shower. You're getting up at dawn in the morning, so after you shower, it'd be wise to sleep."
Not saying anything else, he walks out, leaving me alone in the room.
Author Note: I hope I answered most of the questions I was asked! By the way, I made up lin-lins, so you won't find anything if you look it up. Well, you might, but I have no clue what. Anyways, please, Please, PLEASE REVIEW!