-o- Turned Tail –o- Chapter Seven –o-
The day was a muggy one. Trails of mist, high humidity and temperature developed compacting oxygen, making it heavy around every area of the Order. Slightly damp grass and trees went along with it. A tiny rain drop slipped down the green leaves of nature, forming a small pond beautifully sparkling off the sun's rays peeking through the clouds. As the daffodils purred, the crickets sang along softly with the morning.
Most were just waking up, disturbed by the bright sunlight. Stretching and yawning off the remaining weight of sleep, they groggily assembled themselves to take on the day.
"We have a mission?" Lavi inquired.
Komui yawned like a lion. Clearly, he had been up all night. His Lenalee was an angel, delivering him his morning coffee. "Yes. You and my dear, sweet, wonderful, gorgeous, most beautiful Lenalee, will be taking the Ark to western Asia. Your mission is to scope the Arabian Desert for a possible Innocence fragment. It has been reported that there have been "giant sand monsters-" Komui quoted dramatically with his fingers. "-walking around. The finders have already confirmed that they aren't Akuma, so it is possible that they are caused by Innocence. Pack your things and be ready to leave by noon."
Lenalee hugged her brother. "Thanks, brother. Take care of Allen for us while we're gone, okay?"
Lavi scratched his chin nonchalantly. He wasn't sure if he liked the idea of leaving Allen behind so close to his due date; it was his fourth and final month. Not only because he wanted to record it, but because he honestly didn't want to miss it. Like that one crucial moment in history that the bookmen craved to record, he had to be there. And they were his children. It was concrete that he didn't act out on his emotions, not just for his sake, but also for theirs. He wasn't allowed to be their father, but he could be their guardian from the shadows.
Komui squeezed her with all his might. "He's fine. Be careful on your mission."
"Let's go pack and grab some breakfast before we go, Lenalee." Lavi smiled.
"Komui," Reever entered the room, brows stitched nervously. "Leverrier's here. He wants to see you."
-o- Turned Tail –o-
Allen laid on his side, careful not to add any unnecessary pressure on his abdomen. It was drastically sensitive; easily sending uncomfortable sensations whenever it was touched. When the days turned into months, his bundle was easily noticeable with the swell of his belly. He wasn't massive. Being so close to term he only looked 4-6 months.
Besides the bundle he was carrying, he rarely had any other company. The war was very demanding. The others tried to visit him when they could, but sometimes he'd be left isolated for days. He did his best to focus away from the reality that he was standing still, not walking; just sitting on the sidelines of the war. He felt like he had failed the others by being trapped in this situation. They were risking everything while he swam in his fish bowl. It was depressing. His left hand would sometimes throb in excitement throughout the day, Crown Clown was impatient to return to the battlefield. Thankfully behind all the negatives, there were some positives. He never thought he'd live long enough or be presented with the chance to start a family of his own. The thought of being somebody else's Mana excited him.
Now leaning up, he inspected his 'room' in his half asleep state, images appearing somewhat hazy. He yawned, faintly noticing a fuzzy, white silhouette dancing on the barrier of the water. Curious, he uncoiled his tail from around his form and glided through the water to greet his visitor.
"Komui?" It was a relief to see somebody after so much time. The older man was kneeling on the deck when he broke the surface. Folded clothes rested on his lap and a distinct and faintly glowing vile was exposed on his palm, being offered to him. Allen almost choked on his breath.
"I-Is that the antidote?" He questioned, astonished.
"Yes…" Komui started. "Well, I was going to wait until after the labour to give it to you, but we're in a bind, Allen. Leverrier is enraged with your absence. He isn't accepting any more of our excuses."
Allen sighed, his eyebrows knitted in uncertainty. "Will it harm the little ones?" He subconsciously placed a hand on his middle.
"I can't promise anything, Allen. That's why I wanted to wait. I'm sorry for forcing this upon you." Komui felt defeated. There wasn't anything else he could do. There were no doors left to open that could help any of them. This was a dangerous game they were playing and Allen knew that too well. It wasn't just his head that was on the line, everyone that was involved with him were walking on glass just as much as he.
"Guess I don't have a choice, do I?" Allen whispered hopelessly. How could he properly care for baby sirens if he was human? His silver eyes glared at the vile, but his hand rose reluctantly to take it.
His lips met the crown of the vile. He held it there for a minute before finally tipped it, drinking the scorching liquid. Komui blinked when he suddenly stopped, only consuming half the vile. Allen didn't look sorry when he crushed the glass container with his left hand. Tiny shards showered into the water along with the rest of the antidote.
"Well then..." The supervisor said, perplexed.
-o- Turned Tail –o-
"Lenalee! There's another one over there!"
The Chinese girl abruptly turned in the air like a butterfly. To the eye, you could barely catch her swift and agile movements in the horizon. Charging forward, the female exorcist overpowered the tottering sand beast with a powerful blow. Time partially stopped as the sand crocodile exploding into a cloud of sand before raining down onto the desert biome and the two exorcists below. Lavi shook his head like a wet dog to shake off the sand in his hair. It was irritably everywhere, even in his pants. He was starting to look like one of those sand beasts himself.
"This is going nowhere." The redhead growled, exhausted. He'd die for a cold drink. His skin was uncomfortably tender and dry, starting to peel and flake off from the harsh and unforgivable sun.
"Let me see the Innocence again…" Lenalee carefully passed him a small wooden box. They had apprehended the ancient artifact from a sandstone temple located not too far from their whereabouts. The finder's had pinpointed that the temple was where the sand beasts were spawning from and inside the Exorcist's found the Innocence sealed within an old wooden box. It wasn't foolish to assume that the box was thousands of years old. Lavi expertly recognized the ancient inscriptions carved into the box and was familiar with the period of origin. The golden instrumental decorations and the intricate designs engraved into it were breathtakingly beautiful and prompted the redhead's passion for history. The only problem with the box was that the Innocence made it impossible to open. Trying to break it didn't work either. Through their entire 3 weeks of being here, the raw Innocence fragment never quit summoning the sand beasts, forcing the exorcists to clean them up every few hours. They barely got any sleep. Some Akuma would occasionally show up as well, making the situation a lot more frustrating. The only luck they did have was being spared the unpleasant grace of a Noah.
The redhead's vibrant emerald eye greedily scanned over the inscriptions on the box again, translating for any clues he might've missed that could unlock the box. But he already knew he hadn't. One glance at the box and every distinct detail of it was carved into his memory. Reviewing it was fruitless, but he was out of ideas.
"Maybe we should just bring it back to the Order? Have the science nerds take a crack at it?" He thought out loud. Lenalee shook her head.
"I don't think the Order would appreciate having sand beasts running around." She said.
"But what about Hevlaska? Maybe she can pull it through?" He suddenly went giddy, grinning at his brilliance. That could work!
"And if she can't?" Lenalee questioned, unsure.
"Lenalady, what else can we do? We have to try. We're getting nowhere by staying here anyway." Lavi begged her to see eye to eye with him on this. He really, really didn't want to spend another night in this desert.
The girl smiled and Lavi wanted to kiss the lord with gratitude when she spoke. "You're right, Lavi. Let's go."
Right then, the box glowed a luminescent green and 5 sand beasts of different variations of animals rose from the sand.
"Gahh!" Lavi screamed, eye twitching. He activated his Innocence with displeasure. "Why are these things so obsessed with me?! All I wanted was a drink!" He jumped at a cat beast, hammer raised. Lenalee sighed and joined in after him.
…
Gate 26 was their gate home. Finally, they could go home. Submersing their passcodes to the priest appointed at the church, they gladly passed through it.
Reever was there, sent to greet them after their arrival was announced through the golem. He greeted them each with a welcome home.
"How much time do we have till the Innocence goes off?" He eyed the wooden box rescinding in Lavi's hand cautiously.
"Mmm… bout' 5 minutes." Lavi grinned. Reever's face became panicked when the redhead suddenly threw the box at him as if it were a hot potatoe.
"Imma go take a bath and then grab some grub. I smell like dead mummies." Lavi yawned, lazily waving farewell to the Australian. Lenalee smacked her forehead and dragged it slowly down her image. She gently reassured Reever that she would make sure no that no hard would come to him and escorted his nervous form to Hevlaska.
-o- Turned Tail –o-
Wow. A good meal was a lot more satisfying and appreciated after a tiresome mission. Most of all though, he was relieved to be free of all that aggravating sand. That stuff itched like no tomorrow, eating annoyingly at his skin. Lavi took the exit out of the cafeteria, treading his way towards the room he and Bookman shared. He wished he could avoid the old panda and relax a little longer before returning to his studies. He wanted to pay Allen a visit too. He stuffed his hands sullenly into his pockets at his thoughts and continued on his way.
A dark figured entered his field of vision, turning onto his hallway. He was rather small and his short white hair stood out like a beacon against his dark clothing. Wait…
"Allen?!"
Allen jumped, slowly spinning to face the redhead. Amazement decorated his pale face.
"Lavi, you're back! Welcome home." That smile. It had been too long since he had last seen that smile.
Lavi's jaw felt nailed to the floorboard. "You have legs." Was his intelligent reply.
Silver eyes darted around the room apprehensively.
"Come with me." Allen stole his shirt sleeve and pulled him along without giving him a chance to reply. Lavi didn't stop him. He could only hope the panda wouldn't be too angry with his prolonged procrastination.
-o- Turned Tail –o-
It was in the middle of the day. The sun shined brilliantly, but the room was quite dark, shrouding the space in an ominous aura. The closed curtains and half broken lights produced that effect. They were in Allen's room, idly sitting on his bed.
"Does Leverrier know?" Lavi asked, concerned.
"Thankfully, he's still doesn't... "Allen muttered. "This heavy sweater that Johnny made for me has been a blessing. It hides my stomach well."
It really did, Lavi admitted. In the hallway, if he hadn't already known he wouldn't have considered anything unusual about the boy's form. The large and thick sweater concealed his stomach curves well. The black colour created an illusion, effectively making him look thinner.
Without thinking, he groped the white-haired boy's stomach. Allen immediately recoiled and slapped his hand away as if he had been stung.
"Ah…" Allen blushed, embarrassed. "Sorry. It's a habit…"
Lavi searched his eyes with his own, asking for permission. It was miniscule, but he could read the shy confirmation from those silver irises. Carefully, being more thoughtful, Lavi drifted his hand under the sweater, embracing the treasure it hid. The skin was so soft and warm. To some extent, he had expected a circus to kick at his hand. Instead, the response he received was phenomenal. He could feel pulsing under his palm, similar to the feeling of your heartbeat when you placed your hand over your chest. It was alien and it was fascinating. Life existed and was growing, breathing under his hand. It was still unbelievable to comprehend that he was the father. All his compressed emotions combusted.
"Lavi?" Allen gasped, suddenly supporting half of the redhead's s weight, almost causing him to fall off the bed were it not for the arms that were secured around him. Tears were mixing in with his white hair, some completely missing the strands in their descent and dripped down his scarred cheek instead. Lavi face was buried in his hair, his being quivering with his faint cries. Allen's heart was open for him, letting him flush out his frustrations. Lavi's right hand was still rubbing his abdomen in light strokes.
"S-sorry…" Lavi grinned weakly. He brushed away any clinging tears. "Didn't mean to cry on ya, Al…"
Allen shook his head, smiling. "Please, don't think of your troubles as a burden to me. I'll be your friend as long as you want me to be, Lavi."
The older exorcist sighed, playfully ruffling the younger's hair.
"That's why," Allen continued, before Lavi could speak. "For whoever you choose to be, I won't condemn you for it."
The emerald eye softened. "You're something else, Sprout." The redhead cooed.
"Stop calling me that!" Allen growled.
Lavi stuck his tongue out immaturely, unfazed by the boy's intimidating. Allen huffed and laid back against a pillow, sprawling his limps everywhere across the bed in a stretch.
"I'm still a siren, you know." The boy muttered drowsily. "I can revert if I wanted to, but I can't transform back into a human until after 3 hours."
"So, you're both now?" Interesting. Lavi mentally set that information in a record log.
"Basically." Allen replied, yawning softly. "I'm ready for bed." He then announced flatly.
"But it's only noon…" Lavi indicated. He watched the younger exorcist nuzzle into his pillow.
"I know. But these little ones really drain my energy. I'd sleep all day if I could."
"One more week, 1 day and 12 hours…" Lavi said. "You ready for the fireworks?"
Allen smiled, eyes closed. His left hand rested protectively across his round abdomen.
"Like you have no idea…"
-o- Turned Tail –o- Chapter End –o-
Here's the monthly update! Hope you enjoyed it. If you have any questions or concerns please message me or leave a review (I always reply to my reviewers!) Love you all and thanks for reading!
Depending on reviews I will try to update sooner. I have a little free time for the next few weeks, so a sooner chapter is maybe possible.
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-Glassy
