Litchi: I now declare my name changed.
Akari: but…why? O_o It…it was fine before…
Litchi: I blame…friends…no…just…people…
Akari: Hmph. Not that I'm complaining. I don't have an "SC" after my name anymore, either. It's like…I had been promoted or something *grins*
Litchi: Kayyyyy~ On with business. The next chapter is here! And I will attempt to keep the length of these chapters somewhat long ^_^ Enjoy~
Chapter 7: Truth and Lies
Sapphire eyes closely scrutinized all the screens set up in front of him, eyes following each of the faces which appeared in live camera feed. Directly above the screens he had clipped pictures of each member of the Noah family.
"Yuu, you really should have some coffee or a sandwich or something. This can't be good for you." Lavi held out a thermos mug Lenalee had prepared for them, along with an uneaten sandwich still sealed tightly in a Ziploc bag. "Eat it, Yuu."
"No." Kanda curtly replied, eyes never leaving the monitor. Occasionally, his eyebrow would twitch. If not for that small, almost unnoticeable movement, Kanda could be considered as either a stone statue, or dead. Like a stone statue.
Lavi blinked, slightly taken aback since the other hadn't snapped back and threatened to castrate him when he called him "Yuu" instead of "Kanda" or "Captain". He quietly withdrew his offerings of food and sank back into his seat. He glanced back over at the screens. Two of the feeds showed constant streams of people moving in and out of the casino entrance, normal civilians indulging themselves in immoral activities. Three others captured the back and side entrances, and the fourth, an abandoned building conveniently located near the casino. He sighed, and pulled out the sandwich he had packed. Lavi had suspected something when Yuu wordlessly stormed out of his office this morning, dragged a very confused Lavi out of the office by the collar, and then tossed him into his car and drove off to the casino. Apparently Lenalee had tipped him off about something that probably had to do with Allen's disappearance. She had to; the normally unshakable Kanda wouldn't have done so otherwise.
He took a bite of the sandwich, lazily chewing. His eyes felt tired; after being threatened at swordpoint to set a few hidden cameras (which Lavi was sure was completely illegal to do on private property) they had done nothing but sit in a black car a few blocks away In a public parking garage, staring at the screens – for Allen, for the Noah family…for anything, really.
Another hour went by, and beyond the tinted windows, Lavi can see the sun beginning to set. He took another huge bite out of the sandwich, pacifying his stomach. Mid-chew, however, he heard the car engine start up. He looked over at the person sitting in the driver's seat. "Yu?!"
"Found 'em" Kanda smirked, pressing down on the accelerator. The car jumped forward, causing Lavi to momentarily choke a bit on the sandwich and give a muffled yelp. Lavi hurriedly swallowed the food, coughing a bit. "Where? I don't see them."
"They just fucking left the casino. Through the front entrance. The fucking twins." Kanda growled through clenched teeth.
"Can't you just…follow them quietly or something?" Lavi suggested, hurriedly attempting to buckle his seatbelt, a task which proved impossible as the car lurched around another corner. "FOR THE LOVE OF GOD YUU, I DON'T WANT TO DIE TODAY" he cried, grabbing on to Kanda's shoulder.
"GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME, STUPID RABBIT!" Kanda tried to shake off Lavi, which resulted in the vehicle careening from side to side, leaving behind a trail of honking cars.
"SLOW DOWN YU-CHANNNNNNNN" cried out a distressed bunny now pale white with terror. He wondered who gave Kanda the authority to drive. He wondered how Kanda had managed to pass his driver's test. He wondered how Kanda was still alive – no, wait, of course – he was a rock. But most of all, he wondered why he had gotten into the car and relaxed knowing full well that Kanda was driving.
Kanda instead continued to press down on the accelerator, glaring straight at two punkish-looking teens strolling on the sidewalk, three blocks down. Jasdero and Devit Noah…the twins…had been arrested and bailed out multiple times for petty theft due to disappearing evidence… Lavi narrowed his eyes in concentration, recalling the information they had collected on the twins. There wasn't much, really. The Noah family had always been a mystery. Nobody knew much of them or their activities, and nobody had been able to convict them of anything either. Lavi hopped into the backseat and drew out his gun.
In the span of a few seconds, Kanda had weaved his way around the traffic surrounding the casino, did a glorious U-turn, and parked his car parallel to the sidewalk next to the twins. Lavi opened the door and pointed the gun at the two teens, a cold glint in his eyes. "Get in the car. Now."
"Who, us? Hihi~" the twin sprouting golden hair and heavy eye makeup asked. He looked over at the other, black-haired one. "This person wants us to follow their orders?" The other replied, grinning. "You can't make us!~" the two then chorused in unison, turning to skip away. Lavi sighed. "Bad decision there, kids…"
The twins thought nothing of the warning until they took a step…and felt the cold touch of a blade at their necks.
The stoic samurai, now overflowing with rage and annoyance, had rolled down the window of the car, giving him enough space to stick out his sword, which he had lovingly named "Mugen". "Car. Now." He growled, glaring daggers at everybody and everything.
"Oh…H-Hi there…C-Chief…hihi" stammered the twins. "We weren't exactly expecting you here…"
"Car." Kanda's tone remained flat, his face unchanging.
"Would you mind letting us…"
"Car."
"I suggest you listen" sighed Lavi, waving the pistol around.
"Car." Kanda repeated, his voice lower than before.
The twins looked at each other then slowly climbed into the backseat of the car, not wanting to try their luck with Mugen any longer. Lavi handcuffed them in turn, then sat next to them with the pistol still aimed at their heads. Devit shut the car door, making sure to slam it harder than needed, in hopes of damaging the car. Lavi remember to click in his seatbelt before Kanda decided to press down on the accelerator again, and braced himself for the sudden burst of speed. The Noah twins, on the other hand, fell back against their seats with a large thud, and unable to use their hands to aid in their balance, became a jumbled pile of limbs while Kanda navigated the car to bring them out of the maze of streets, and into the outskirts of the city.
Night had fallen by the time they found an empty children's playground to park at.
Kanda turned around, grabbing Mugen and unsheathing it. "Talk."
The twins looked at each other and then looked up at Kanda. "About…what? We can tell you about how to put on makeup, hihi~" they joked, wavering smiles on their faces. "Just don't…kill us?" Jasdero's voice elevated to a slightly higher pitch when he found Mugen aimed at his throat again.
"Where's Allen Walker?" the samurai-like police chief growled, glaring at the teens. Mugen's blade seemed to glow under the light of the streetlamp.
"What Allen Walker? We don't know anything~" Devit nervously giggled.
"Nothing, hihi~" echoed Jasdero, attempting to smile.
"Nothing, hmmm?" Kanda smirked. "Then does it not matter how I dispose of you two worthless brats?" Lavi shrunk as far back as he could go.
"Old Milennie will come after you if you harm us" they warned, straightening their backs.
"Who cares about that old fart" spat Kanda, pressing the tip of his blade against Jasdero's neck, applying enough pressure so as to not break the skin. "You obviously know. Where. Is. Allen. Walker."
Jasdero and Devitt shrunk back, sweat breaking down on their foreheads. "Don't you…err…police officers have laws against this kind of interrogation?"
Lavi smiled. "Nice to know you have been attending school like good children. However, Yuu-chan here cares not about such laws." Kanda offered a grunt of affirmation to his partner's taunt, glaring menacingly down at the twins, no hint of mercy given.
Jasdero nudged Devitt with his shoulder, a worried look in his eyes. Should they tell Kanda and face the Earl's wrath, or stay silent and gamble with their lives? He clenched his fist. No; they couldn't die just yet. He grinned deviously. "I'll tell you if you let us go" he proclaimed loudly, glaring straight at Kanda.
"Hmph." The answer Kanda provided was indistinguishable between a "yes" and a "no", but Jasdero supposed that they would only get the samurai robot to acknowledge whatever demands they came up with.
Jasdero took a deep breath, then nodded at Devitt, who nodded back. Devitt also looked up at Kanda, and grinned. Jasdero then began to speak in a calm tone, as if reciting a play from memory:
"Deep in the forest, A pretty butterfly, Trapped in metal webs."
Then, as if satisfied with his latest poetic masterpiece, he sat back, the devious smile still present on his face. Devitt giggled a bit, shoulder-bumping Jasdero as if he meant to high-five his twin. Kanda just frowned. "What fuckery is this….are you mocking me? Che." He pressed the tip of his blade against Devitt's neck, almost to the point of drawing blood.
"W-We can't tell you anything else, hihi~" Devitt declared, sticking out his tongue at them childishly. Lavi sighed. "Knowing them, that's all you might get out of them." He shrugged to emphasize his point. "So, Yuu, let's just….not kill them….'kay?"
Kanda thought for a few seconds, then nodded an affirmative. Lavi peeked out the car window to make sure there weren't any passerbys, then opened the passenger car door and glanced down at the twins. "Go. Get out before Yuu-chan here murders us all, alright?" The twins nodded, and then leapt out the car, sprinting back towards the safety of the city. That done, Lavi hopped back into the front seat of the car, closing the car door behind him. "So…where to now, Yuu?" he asked, putting away his gun. Kanda said nothing in response as he buckled his seatbelt.
"Yuu?"
Kanda started the car engine.
"Yuu-chan…you can't be…"
The emergency brake was released, and the gears shifted.
"I don't think that's a good idea…"
Kanda slammed down on the accelerator as he turned the car to face the woods, the only large forested area in the region, the car shooting off into the unpaved wilderness.
"YUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU"
Litchi: OKAY. Well. That's done. Yuu's an angry samurai Asian robotic police officer with a sharp blade and limited communication skills, a blinding love for dear Allen, and a giant stick up his ass.
Akari: Yes, and you, Litchi, need to work on relearning the English language. Sorry about the delay~ Y'know, college and stuffs.
Litchi: Yeps~ Please read, review, favorite, follow, whatever it is you deem I deserve. My writing skills feel rather rusty, and cookies go to everybody who reviews and provides me with feedback!~ I really hope my writing skills don't make you want to claw your eyes out _
Akari: I got the cookies!~
Litchi: Alright! Now…there's that box at the bottom of the page, and those buttons, sitting there, rather conveniently. And cookies. Oh they smell so good~ 3
Till next time!~
Ja-ne!~