J is for Jabberwocky
After a week in the train they finally met with the first Finders who were tracking the escaping Innocence. They passed on all their knowledge quickly and gave directions to reach the next group on the trail.
Some days and increasingly more Akuma later they found out that their prey seemed to slow down, probably haunted by the demons. The further East they went, the more frequent their fights were, to the point of having to exterminate a few creatures in every village.
As the travel progressed both exorcists became more and more anxious and explosive, due to tiredness and adrenaline. As often as they fought Akuma, they jumped to each other's throats. However, they both felt that they were getting closer.
After yet another village extermination they were sitting on the ground, panting heavily and trying to gather the last of their strength. It was a deep, dark night, somewhere in the wilderness, since their prey strayed from the beaten track. An almost-full moon was illuminating the blood red surroundings.
"How's your arm?" Lavi asked as quietly as he could to not disturb the night too much.
"Would be better if I didn't have to save you" answered Kanda, but not as angry or annoyed as he'd normally be, if he wasn't so tired. Junior smiled widely to that.
"Well, it's not like you HAD to save me, you know?" he turned to the Japanese. "You just WANTED to save me, no?" Annoyed, cold dark eyes looked at him.
"What the hell was that supposed to mean?" he asked but Lavi only laughed and fell back onto the grass. The sky glimmered with countless stars, now that the Akuma fumes cleared out.
"I do promise never to rush into the fight as carelessly. Ever again" the redhead said with a smile as sweet and nauseous as a chocolate mousse.
"Yeah, right." With that silence fell between them. Gentle wind started and Kanda closed his eyes to feel it better on his skin. It helped him calm his breathing and his nerves. He sat up straight and relaxed into meditation. He concentrated his will and strength on healing his wound. He'd need to be fully operative as soon as possible, he knew that in his guts. One breath after another he could feel the tissue joining back together and the blood flowing inside the veins.
"I wonder why people chase the stars" came a quiet and a bit sad whisper on the wind. "Well, they are bright and shiny, and beautiful when reflected in deep eyes, but they're nothing more than illusion. They're already dead. Nothing more than an echo of an empty existence and a loud explosion. Twinkle, twinkle and die. Gone. Shimmering dust in the space. Memory to fade. Or to hide behind stormy clouds. Millions of them fighting for glorious attention but disappearing in silence and oblivion. Like ghosts they dissolve flickeringly into nothingness. There's no point chasing after ghosts. There's no point running to the stars." There was a moment of silence. "Say, Yuu, what do you run to?"
"Death."
A heavy and silky rain started falling from the sky.