Back now, and we're starting a new ark! This one's got more bloodshed, just to let you know. ;)

Disclaimer: I like pie.

Chapter 10: First Mission Ever Part I

"Maka! Wake up!" Soul called, banging on his meister's bedroom door. He heard a groan. A moment later, the door opened and his partner appeared with her bed-hair strewn about her head like a mop.

"WHAT, SOUL?!"

Soul stepped back, surprised, and then regained his composure.

"Come on! Let's go pick a mission!" he said excitedly.

"Maka…"

"What? No, Maka wait-"

"CHOP!"

An explosion of lights danced across his eyes as an equally eruptive pain speared down on the top of his head. Soul fell and curled up in a fetal position on the floor. He clutched his skull and groaned.

"IT'S FIVE AM, SOUL! THE ACADEMY DOESN'T EVEN OPEN AT THIS TIME!"

"I can't believe you actually woke up before me, Soul," Maka said distastefully as she stirred her coffee. "And you just had to interrupt my beauty sleep, too."

"It's payback for all those times that you dragged me out of bed," Soul grinned. "Come on! Let's hurry up and go!"

He was practically bouncing on the edge of his seat. His breakfast was finished, and he had even volunteered to wash the dishes.

"You must really be eager to get that first soul."

"Of course! I've been waiting for a whole week!"

It was true. Soul was hospitalized for seven days from Lord Death's chop. During that time, he wouldn't stop pestering the nurses about when he could finally be released. Every time she visited, Maka found Soul extremely weakened, but insistent that he was fine.

"But you just got out of the infirmary, Soul. We shouldn't rush things like this," Maka stated. She was probably equally as excited as Soul was for their first mission ever, but another emotion overwhelmed that one: Anxiety.

Now that it was feasible, a life-threatening battle situation didn't seem as inviting as she had imagined. Maka recalled all those nights that they had spent together on the rooftop of their apartment complex because their AC was broken. They would lie down with their heads pointed at one another and stargaze dreamily for hours and hours.

And they'd talk, romanticizing what the missions would be like, or how cool it would be to become the world's strongest Death Scythe, or how souls tasted, or how many stars there actually were in the sky, or anything else that came to mind, until sleep took them.

They had always conversed excitedly about achieving their dream, but they had never really considered the dangerous path they would have to take. Their lives would be put on the line. Reality would hit them like a bulldozer, and Maka wanted to be prepared for it. Rushing things would not be a wise move.

"It'll be fine, Maka! Trust me!"

Soul flashed her that shark-toothed smile of his.

He's so excited…

Maka sighed and relented.

"Alright, but let me finish my coffee first."

"So which one should we pick?"

"I'm thinking, Soul. Don't disturb me."

Soul groaned impatiently and watched as his partner psychoanalyzed every single mission posted on the board.

"Can't we just pick one and go?"

"No, Soul. The missions have varying difficulties. They're ranked from A to D, with A being the hardest and D being the easiest. Then there are missions even harder than A-level missions. They're ranked S."

"Alright, then let's pick an S one!"

"No! Absolutely not! Don't you know how dangerous these can be?"

"Of course! But don't worry, we'll be fine! Let's hurry up and pick one!"

"No! I'm going to pick one that I'm sure we can accomplish."

Soul sighed. Maka was being way too cautious. She'd probably end up picking a boring D-leveled mission about looking for a soul that was already taken from its body. That wasn't cool at all.

"Here, let's do this one."

Soul looked at his meister's choice with surprise.

"But that's a B-level mission," he noted, and then smirked. "What happened to being cautious?"

"I am being cautious. You just wouldn't shut up about picking a dangerous one. This is as dangerous as I'm willing to go, for now."

Soul flashed his smile.

"I like it. So what's the mission?"

"Our target is a mass murderer named Horace Malady. He is currently located in the town just down the highway. He's-"

"Sweet! Let's go!"

"I know, I know! Calm down!"

Maka handed the piece of paper to the woman at the desk.

"Horace Malady, huh?" the lady asked. "Is this your first mission?"

"Yes ma'am," Maka answered.

"Well, good luck and be safe!" the woman smiled, stamping the paper. "When you're done, report back to here."

They thanked the lady and headed off to start their first mission ever.

They were walking down the steps of DWMA when it hit her.

"Wait, Soul!" Maka cried. Her weapon stopped, startled.

"What is it?" he asked.

"We don't have a car! How are we supposed to get to the town?"

Soul smirked at her.

"Don't worry. I've got a ride for us," he said. Maka was astounded at this.

A ride? Since when?

Ten minutes later, they were back at their apartment. Maka was curious what kind of car Soul had. She followed her partner to the shabby car lot. But to her surprise, Soul walked right past the lot. He reached a bike rack and grabbed one of the vehicles there.

A motorcycle.

"Soul-"

"Pretty cool, huh?" he smirked. Maka's mouth hung open for a moment.

A motorcycle.

"I can't ride that!" she cried.

"Why not?"

"It's… it's…"

"You're scared, aren't you?"

"I'm not scared! It's just…"

"Just what?"

"Can't we call for a taxicab?"

"A taxicab… in Death City."

"Or maybe a limo?"

"You want to waste all that money?"

Maka frowned uncomfortably. Soul was toying with her. She knew it. He had that evil smirk plastered on his face.

"Yes."

"Maka-"

"A-anything but that!"

"We could walk."

Maka bit her lip.

"Or I could carry you."

"Absolutely not!"

Soul laughed.

"You're scared," he said. Maka blushed with embarrassment. While the motorcycle would save them money from having to call a limousine and it was definitely the most gas-efficient vehicle on the roads, it was also dangerous and offered zero protection.

"Come on. It'll be fine, Maka."

She continued to stand there with a worried frown on her face. Soul sighed.

"Don't be unreasonable now, Maka. If you can't even handle this, then how are we going to defeat a kishin egg?"

Maka groaned.

"Alright, we'll ride your stupid motorcycle!"

Soul smirked and wheeled his cycle out onto the street. Maka followed reluctantly.

She had seen the flashy vehicle before, but had never really wondered who it belonged to. Now that she observed it close up, she could see that it was plainly Soul's. It was painted orange and black, with jagged teeth patterns decorating its outline. Even the license plate was labeled SOUL. A big waste of money, in her opinion.

Soul mounted the motorcycle and turned the ignition. The vehicle roared to life and Maka let out an involuntary yelp. Soul grinned and patted the small space behind him.

"Get on," he invited.

Maka approached the growling creature cautiously, immediately having second thoughts about getting on the death machine. How had Soul managed to convince her to do this again?

"Come on, don't worry," Soul said with a smile.

Maka hesitated. Soul sighed.

"Do you trust me, Maka?"

Maka groaned in resignation and proceeded to get on the demonic metal contraption. She gingerly seated herself behind her partner, taking care not to touch his back.

"That's not safe, Maka. You're going to have to hold on to me."

"O-okay…"

She carefully placed her hands on his shoulders.

"No, not like that. Wrap your arms around my waist."

Maka blushed profusely.

"Soul-"

He revved the engine and the monster let out a ferocious growl. Maka yelped and before she knew it, she had her arms wrapped around his waist and her chest pressed tightly against his back. Soul burst into laughter. Maka's blush deepened.

"Soul! That wasn't funny-"

He released the breaks and the motorcycle took off. Maka screamed and held on for dear life.

"Sooouuul you bastaaaaaaaard!"

She could barely hear her own voice over the roar of the wind. The temperature dropped from burning Nevada heat to cold freezing in just a couple seconds. She was suddenly very grateful for her black trench coat.

"Slow dooooooown!"

Soul laughed and revved the accelerator harder. The wind roared even louder in her ears. Maka let out a wail and buried her face into her partner's back, wishing it would all end.

"I'm going to kill you when we get off, Soul Eater!" she cried. Soul only laughed at this.

"Nope. You're going to thank me if we get off at all."

The very thought ran her blood cold. She screwed her eyes shut and held onto her partner with a death grip, hoping that they would survive.

She was never listening to Soul ever again.

"Hey Maka, do we stop at this town?" Soul called out.

No reply.

"Maka!"

She was still silent.

Soul cursed. They had reached a small town at the end of the highway, but he wasn't sure if it was the right one.

"Maka!" he called again. He felt the pressure on his back lift slightly. His meister's answer came out soft and barely audible.

"Yeah, it's this one."

Soul pulled up at a car lot and parked the cycle. Even after they had stopped, Maka still had a death grip around his waist. Soul turned and regarded his meister with raised eyebrows.

"Do you want to let go of me now?" Soul asked. Maka blushed and immediately let go. Soul laughed.

"So how was the ride, bookworm?" He asked.

"It was NOT COOL!" she shouted. The infamous chop followed right after, leaving an aching pain on the top of Soul's head as his meister stormed off.

But Soul chuckled nonetheless. His language was rubbing off on her.

"Stop laughing, Soul! It wasn't funny!"

"Alright, alright."

Maka turned and glared at him. Soul smirked again. Maka turned back around, making an exasperated noise, and headed off.

"Wait, Maka. Where are we going?" Soul called, hurrying to catch up.

"We've got to scout out the town."

"Scout out the town?"

"We need to familiarize ourselves with our surroundings so that we can fight better tonight."

"Tonight?"

"Of course! Kishin eggs usually hunt at night!"

Soul did not know this. He had expected them to beat the crap out of Malady and then be back home for lunch.

"What? I thought we'd be home by noon!"

"No, we won't! We'll be staying here the whole day! Now hurry up, Soul!"

Soul sighed and followed after his meister.

This was going to be harder than he expected.

Oh god, you guys are catching up fast. I'm such a slow writer. -.-