So- Another chapter is complete! Definatly a bit shorter than my others, but I feel like that was a good stopping point. Krory will be here next chapter~
On another note- please go read D Gray Man chapter 31 pages 1-12; its hilarious- love you Hoshino3
Which is a wonderful segway inot: I do not own any of D. Gray Man- it belongs to Katsura Hoshino. I DO own Jane and possibly Kanda's sentimental side- That's right folks, he has one, so keep your attention on the story because you never know when it will appear~
Kanda: Bitch, I don't have a sentimental side.
It's there Kanda, you just keep it trapped in an iron wrought cage
Kanda: Che, Whatever.
I'll take that as an agreement- Please enjoy the story!
"Hold on tight!" Lavi called as we sailed through the air on his hammer. Allen was yelling, but I was laughing. I never thought I would be able to fly- leave it to Lavi to use his innocence's 'growing' ability to send us flying through the air. "Having fun Lacey-chan?"
"'O course- tis is da most fun I've 'ad in mont's!" I cried back. My accent slipped, but that was okay. I took it as a sign that I was recovering emotionally from the last mission. I was happy to be flying through the air with Lavi and Allen.
"L-lavi? Don't you think we're getting too close?" I heard Allen call out. I looked to see the clinic we were headed towards- he was right, we weren't slowing down.
"Lavi! Slow down!" I commanded. Lets not play the 'crash-through-the-building' game, it just doesn't seem as fun as the 'lets-land–without-collateral-damage' game.
"Hold on tight, guys!" Lavi called. Allen and I both screamed as we went crashing through the building.
"Lavi, you idiot." I coughed. "What do ya tink your doin'?"
"Jane?" I looked up to see Komui and Lenalee standing above me. "What happened?"
"Blame Jr. ov'r there! 'e can't even drive 'is own innocence." I complained, brushing the rumble off my lap.
"You used that to fly again, Lavi…" Komui muttered, surveying the damage he would have to compensate for.
"'e makes a 'abit of tis?" I asked, dramatically pointing at the goofy idiot himself.
"Good to see you too, Jane." Lenalee giggled. I smiled as she gave me a quick hug- Komui sent me an envious look.
"Ahahahaha- my bad! This thing is really convenient, but its damn hard to brake." Lavi laughed, finally standing out of the crater he made, rubbing the back of his head.
"Is he referring to his innocence?" Komui whispered to me.
"'fraid so." I whispered back with a disproving shake of my head- Komui followed suit and Lavi just continued to grin at us.
"It felt good though, right Allen?" Lavi looked around for his white-haired companion. "Allen? I didn't think we lost him during the landing…."
"You damn brats…" The Bookman growled- clearly ticked that Allen had landed on him. Lavi whimpered, and I hid behind Komui- note to self, don't tick off the Bookman.
The horse drawn carriage thundered through the silent night- racing to the train station in the next town. Due to the akuma attack at the train yard, we had to reroute our travels to the next closest train station. I was riding in the cabin with the exorcists, Komui believed that I needed to be just as informed as the exorcists about the current situation.
"Are you guys okay?" Komui asked, obviously not all that concerned with our pained expressions. Another reason I was riding in the carriage was so that the Bookman to punish me along with Allen and Lavi for crashing into the clinic. The three of us were currently sitting in senzai.
"Yes…" the three of us groaned at the same time- not like we could complain infront of the Bookman.
"Then let's talk about the mission." Komui began, "A few days ago a general was murdered." The atmosphere in the carriage became tense, I held my breath. A general? Killed? It was unheard of- they were supposed to be the strongest of the strong. "The one assassinated was General Kevin Yeager. Even though he was the eldest general, he was always the type to serve on the front lines."
"What happened to him…?" Lenalee muttered. I grabbed her hand, she squeezed back.
"He was found in Belgium, nailed to a cross backwards. The words 'God Hunt' was carved into his back." Komui continued the solem news.
"God hunt?" Allen questioned.
"Komui, does that mean the innocence-?" Lavi began, leaving off the end to have Komui fill in the blank.
"Looks like it. The General was involved in a search for people who are compatible with the innocence. He carried a variety of innocence with him. General Yeager had eight of them in his possession. Including the one powering the General's own anti-akuma weapon, nine were stolen."
"Nine?" I muttered to myself. Nine innocence were now in the hands of the enemy.
"He was crucified and suffered from multiple fatal wounds, but he kept singing until his last breath- 'the Millennium count…is searching….searching for the precious heart…it wasn't me…who'll be next…?'"
"The Millenium Count?" Lavi questioned.
"Its appears to be the Earl's nickname." Komui curtly replied. "The Noah that Allen and Lenalee encountered called him that too."
"Um, what's the 'precious heart'?" Allen asked, unfamiliar with the term.
"One of the 109 innocence that we are searching for. The core of all innocence is called 'the heart'. It is the root of all the power of innocence, and can return all innocence to nothingness. If we have it in our possession, it will be the first time that we can gain the power to stop the end. The heart is the Earl's target."
"Where is that innocence- the heart, I mean?" I asked.
"Dunno." Komui responded with a defeated sigh- the entire carriage deadpanned.
"Huh?" We all responded.
"Actually its very annoying. The cube had nothing noted in it about what kind o innocence it is, nothing about signs or distinctions, nothing~~~ You know we even had Hebra look into our innocence in possession, but there is just no way to tell which is the heart. It may be that we've already collected it, or maybe someone might have been its apostle already…No matter how brilliant I am, there just aren't many clues! It's a real problem, you know. I'm very busy too- these ancients should consider that and at least write a hint in there, they're so stingy…" Komui rambled.
"Komui, calm down. We're not blaming you for not finding the heart." I said, trying to give the man some mild comfort. "But considering what you've just told us, the General is only the first victim. The Earl probably thinks that of all the innocence compatible people there are, there is a good chance that 'the heart' resides in people with the most power. The appearance of the akuma and now Noah's family and the heightened military strength are all probably because of the 'God Hunt'."
"You're correct, Jane." Komui said regaining his serious composure. " The exorcist General's have become their new targets. That is probably the meaning of the message as well. It is very likely that the same message was sent to other exorcists too."
"At any rate, the apostle for that innocence would almost certainly have as much strength as a general." Lavi commented.
"Still, a simultaneous attack by both Noah's family and the akuma would be too much, even for a General. Exorcists from all over are being recalled and divided into four groups. The mission this time is to guard the Generals. Your team will guard General Cross."
"But we aren't aware of the General's position at any given time." I said, pointing out the obvious problem in the whole 'guarding' plan.
"That's because the Generals don't take orders from me, it's the commander-in-chief who gives out their orders. The Generals are assigned multiple orders at once and may carry them out according to their own judgment. Then again, three of the remaining four generals regularly contact headquarters once a month- so we know approximately where they are… the problem is one! General Cross Marian!" Komui dramatically exclaimed, holding up one finger for emphasis. " According to our information, there has been no word from General Cross in almost four years. Therefore we can conclude 1) 'He's dead' or 2) 'He's ignoring us and just playing around'. –For your information my bets are on option #2- BUT! Then appeared Allen!" Komui then pointed to Allen dramatically with his pinky finger. Sometimes I was embarrassed to call this man my boss, but I suppose he could be worse. "As Cross' disciple, you've been traveling with him for three years…" Komui's eyes glinted dangerously as he gripped Allen's shoulders.
"I-It's no good, I have no idea where the master is." Allen stuttered, mildly freaked out by Komui's sudden intrusion into his personal space.
"Komui, how do we go about locating a missing person?" Lavi asked, distracting Komui from his death grip on Allen.
"The other teams will depend on the disciples of various Generals. But in our case we'll use Tim to guide us." Komui explained.
"Tim? You mean Allen's golem?" I asked, referring to the yellow golem who was currently attempting to eat the curtains inside the carriage. Also a renowned scientist, Cross was the maker of this little golem, and should as such, he should be able to tell us where Cross is. After that, since Allen is familiar with his movements patterns, locating Cross be like drowning a trapped rat!" Komui said before erupting in laughter.
"Brother… that's a bit…" Lenalee began, but stopped when she failed to find a word to describe her brother's excentric behavior.
"Morbid? Insane? Corrupted?" I offered.
"I'd go with insane." Lavi concluded as we continued to watch Komui cackle at the thought of capturing Cross. "Definatly insane."
"Allen! The train is here!" Lenalee called from the doorway of the train station.
"Lavi, what are you doing?" I asked, observing the apprentice doodle on Allen's sleeping face.
"Idiot apprentice." The Bookman grumbled, smacking the back of Lavi's head. Allen was twitching and mumbling in his sleep.
"Hey Allen, are you okay?" I asked, shaking his shoulder a bit.
"Guaaaa…Master's not….not human." He grumbled.
"Haha, he's dreaming about General Cross again." Lavi laughed before receiving another blow to the head from the Bookman.
"Everyone, Hurry and get on! If we miss this one, there won't be another train until tomorrow!" Lenalee called again.
"You guys go on, I'll help Allen clean off in the bathroom." I said, pulling the still half sleeping boy to the bathroom in order to wash of his face. I heard Lavi snicker, but I grinned when I heard the Bookman give him another sharp whack on his head. "C'mon Allen, ya look ridiculous." I said, wetting a towel before beginning to clean off Lavi's graffiti from his face.
"Geez that's cold." He flinched away from the wet wash cloth.
"Sorry, but da train is 'ere and we don't 'ave time ta wait fer da water ta warm up….Allen, what's wrong?" I asked, observing his uncharacteristically disgruntled expression.
"Hm? Oh, it's nothing." He looked away, almost embarrassed to be caught with such a look on his face.
"Spit it out, Allen- we're not getting on da train until ya tell me." I said, putting down the cloth I was cleaning his face with. "Is it about da Noah Family?"
"No- I mean, that still bothers me- but that isn't what I'm thinking about." He mumbled, absently stroking Tim.
"Is it Cross?" I took his silence as an affirmative. "Allen, don't worry, we'll find 'im."
"That's what I'm worried about." He muttered offhandedly.
"Allen, 'e can't be tat bad."
"You say that now…." I smiled and ruffled his hair.
"Don't worry about it now- from what Komui said it'll be a while until ya find 'im."
"You're right- I'll be there in a minute- go ahead and get on the train." He said, lightly swatting away my hand that had been on his head. I nodded before heading back out to the train. I walked out to see Lenalee.
"Lenalee, are you waiting for someone?" I asked- she was just leaning against the wall, obviously waiting for someone.
"Nope." She said sweetly- I sweat dropped. She's a bit of an obvious liar.
"What's wrong, Lenalee- its not like you to lie to me." I asked, giving her a serious look.
"Its honestly nothing, Jane."
"It's Allen." I said- she looked away. "Lenalee, we're on a mission."
"I know!" She countered quickly. I raised my hands in mock defense.
"Hey, whatever it is- fix it soon. You need a level head for this mission." I said before lightly bonking her on the head with my fist. "He's a good kid Lenalee- make up soon."
"Kay." She muttered, lowering her head. I continued making my way to the train.
"Nice job, referee." Lavi commented when I boarded the train. I scowled at him- nicknames were getting old.
"It's Jane, Lavi." He smiled like a kid who got pleasure out of grinding on people's nerves- probably because he was a kid who got pleasure out of grinding on people's nerves.
"I know~" He sang. "So Lacey-chan, is referee in your job description?"
"Might as well be- someone has to keep their raging hormones in check." I sighed before sitting.
"So who keeps your hormones in check?" He asked, scooting closer.
"Creep." I muttered- he laughed. "Is everything a game to you Lavi?" I asked.
"Yep~" He grinned- I poked him in his cheek, but he just kept on grinning.
"Jane, where are you going?" Lenalee asked once the train had departed.
"Setting up a perimeter." I said, continuing my surveillance.
"People are looking at you funny." She persisted.
"People might be akuma." I reminded her- she crossed her arms and pouted. "Listen, you guys can have your little exorcist powwow- I'll do my job as a finder." I said before walking down the train car. I liked hanging out with Lenalee, Lavi and Allen- but the look the Bookman sent me reminded me that I was on the mission. I was the second oldest in our group and needed to be responsible. I needed to do my job.
But it was hard when Lenalee liked to hook arms with me and talk about gossip. It was hard when Lavi liked teased me and I liked to react childishly. It was hard when Allen liked my accent and I felt at home with him. It was hard to be a finder surrounded by exorcists who didn't understand how easy it was to die to battle. I didn't want anyone to suffer if I died- yet I know Jonny and Tapp would cry and Reever would bury himself in work. Komui would pretend to be okay, but he would really be blaming himself. Lenalee would cry and lock herself in her room. Allen would clench his fist. Lavi might even be serious for a change. Arduino would stop playing his violin…I wonder what Kanda would do…
I was pulled from my thoughts when the train stopped at the next station- and the parasitic exorcist left to get food, big surprise there. I saw Lenalee confront him- maybe they would resolve whatever happened on their last mission. I looked over to see Lavi watching them too with a small smile on his face- the Bookman was still looking at the map. I went over an he explained that we were traveling east, and that that was the only lead we had right now on Cross' position.
"Bookman, what do you know of Japan?" I asked- that seemed to even draw in Lavi's attention.
"Depends, what do you know of Japan?" He coolly countered.
"Just rumors, finder's haven't been sent there in over a decade. I know its inhabited my high level akuma, and its my theory that it is where the Earl is. It only makes sense he would live in the Akuma's nest. Cross is also East- it would make sense that he would be moving toward Japan."
"Your theory is correct." The Bookman said. "Jane, what do you know of the Noah Family?"
"They are marked by their grey skin and cross markings across their forehead, wrists, and ankles. They are human, yet their abilities would suggest otherwise."
"Correct again, these rumors carry an abnormally high level of validity." The Bookman narrowed his eyes at me.
"You forget that I am a higher ranking finder- it is my job to know more than common field workers."
"And where did you learn of this information?" the Bookman questioned me.
"In America I was sent to a church to investigate odd activity with the clergy. During my investigation, I witnessed the birth of a Noah. He went my the name of Bolic." I said.
"So you have seen a Noah?" Lavi asked, eyes widened.
"Two, the Noah Road Camelot was also there- along with the Earl."
"You've seen the Millenium Count!?" The Bookamn earnestly questioned.
"Yes…they did not see me…Though I had met the Earl before…"
"What do you mean 'before'?" Lavi asked, but before I would refuse to answer him, Lenalee came onto the train car. She began chatting with the two other exorcists, but I focused on the scenery out the window. I didn't want to think about my encounter with the Earl- it did not bring up fond memories. I heard the train whistle to signal its departure- it reminded me of a scream.
We lurched forward. "Hey, guys, where's Allen?" Lavi asked. I looked up to see the dumbfounded look on all of the surrounding exorcists.
"I'll start looking." I said before getting up to search the train cars. I was glad to get away from the Bookman's inquisitive stare.
"Why me?" Lavi asked, unamused that we were kicking him off the train to search for Allen.
"Lavi, you have too, we can't find Allen anywhere." Lenalee pleaded.
"Shouldn't we send the finder, because according to her name she should be able to, you know, find things?" Lavi asked. "Ow, Lacey-chan, please remove your foot from my stomach- you'll push me over the railing."
"That would be the point- now get your lazy bum out of here and bring back Allen." I commanded.
"Fine." He grumbled before jumping off the train and, using his hammer, sailed through the sky.
"If he's not back in 24 hours I'll go after them- you two will continue to go after the General." I said, holding my hair out of my face as it whipped around in the wind. Lenalee looked at me with concern, but the Bookman nodded his head in agreement with my decision. We re-entered the train car and waited.
I missed Kanda. Not because of his bitchiness, nor because of any miniscual endearing qualities that might be under said bitchiness. I missed him because of his silence. His silence was natural, and even in his worst moods- it wasn't tense. It was just silence with no baggage. Just being quiet. If he wanted to know something he would ask. If he wanted to be angry, he would be angry. If he wanted to bitch, he would bitch. And when he wasn't doing one of those three things, he was quiet.
Honestly the Bookman could take a few notes from the wannabe samurai. I feel as if the tension between the Bookman and myself was tangible. Maybe I just never noticed it before because Lavi was there to be an idiot and lighten the mood. I squirmed under his gaze, so I tried to distract myself by picking at my split ends
I was twirling my hair and found my thoughts again drifting to the sword-wielding exorcist. I thought of his hair- how brittle it was. Dumbass used soap- I still couldn't believe he admitted to that. Though in his eyes it probably wasn't such a big deal.
I had been on three missions with him- I had only been on two with Lenalee. The only person who topped his mission number was Suman- I had been on five missions with Suman during the past year. I didn't consider us close though, I had been new to the order when I worked with him and was reluctant to mix personal relationships with missions.
I wonder if Kanda would consider me close, certainly closer than the average finder. He did growl at me a lot though- but I'm sure he did that to everyone. He had saved me on more than one occasion- which had to mean something in Kanda's weird way of expressing himself. I'm sure no one can be 100% bitchy all the way through. He had to have things that he cared about, like Mugen, and Soba, and his samurai pride. I knew he got along with Lenalee. That didn't bother me. That can't bother me.
I turned my thoughts to the boy that was with him- little Arduino. I hoped Kanda was treating him well. I hadn't called yet, so I decided to the end of the train car and hook my finder box up to a transceiver line- if I did it right then I should be able to get a connection with my phone.
"Black Order Field System- Activated. How may I help you Finder 19372?" The receiver line asked. I was in the back of the car, so hopefully I wasn't disturbing too many people
"Request connection to Exorcist: Kanda Yuu."
"Request confirmed…connecting…" The line went fuzzy, then I heard the line which over to the golem.
"Kanda?" I asked.
"Finder? Why are you calling?" He asked, gruff as ever.
"Is Arduino there?"
"Yeah, he's sleeping. It's the middle of the night."
"Oh, I'm sorry- I didn't even realize." I said, flustered from my mistake- how did I not realize it was the middle of the night? The line was quiet. "Kanda?"
"What is it, woman?" He sighed.
"'Woman'? Is that an upgrade from 'finder'?" I asked, looking for something to talk about.
"No." He flatly stated. "You're still just a useless underling."
"Why you-" And to think I actually wanted to talk to this prick. "-you prick!"
"Took you a second to think of a comeback- you're slower than I thought, Lacey." I could feel him smirking through the phone.
"Wipe that damn smirk off you're face, you inconsiderate bastard!" I yelled into the phone.
"Bitch, don't call me if you're just going to insult me. This line is for missions, not personal chit-chat."
"I was calling for Arduino."
"Well he's not awake- you can call the brat when he gets to headquarters."
"Don't call him a brat-"
"I can call him whatever I want- I'm the one hauling his ass around." Again, silence.
"How's he doing?" I eventually asked.
"He's not cut to be an exorcist." At least Kanda was honest.
"How do you know?"
"Gets nightmares too easy- least he has the decency not to cry all the time."
"You treat him well, do you hear me?" I was gripping the phone tightly, curled up, leaning against my transceiver box in the back of the train. "You can't let anything happen to him."
"You made your point before- now are you going to keep yapping all night long, or can I get back to my mission?"
"What mission? You're just keeping watch." I heard him growl.
"Whatever- at least I'm doing something."
"Hey! I am too- I'm on the Cross unit, we're looking for the General."
"What are you going to do? Seduce him out of hiding?" Did he just call me a whore?
"I can take a lot of things- but bein' called a whore is not one of 'em!"
"My bad- I forgot, you're just a country bumpkin, no one would fall for you."
"You ass!" I clicked the line off.
Maybe what Lenalee had with him did bother me. But I didn't know why.
I held onto the fact he had saved my life, but even then a few tears slid down my face.
"Must be that time of the month- don't go getting all emotional on me." I muttered to myself, furiously rubbing my eyes.
I dont think Kanda would do anything if I died- and that bothered me too.
Goal Time
1) Work through Komui's long informative monologues- I was not looking forward to writing those out.
2) Work more on Lavi's superficiality
3) Build tension between Jane and Bookman- because it would be weird if everyone loved her 24/7
4) Have Jane show more emotions- Yes she is spunky, strong willed, and tends to show a motherly side to those who are younger than her (or act younger, in Komui's case). But I want her to be a dynamic character, which means she shows more than just happy and strong. She can be sad (aka- from last mission), or can be upset from people (aka- Kanda).
I know I ramble about Jane a lot- my friends know this. But I want her to have defining characteristics AND I want her to be normal girl (with normal girl emotions). Does that make sense? She's not a superhero, she's just a girl who is doing her best to defend the planet…. So maybe that does sound a bit like a superhero, but you hopefully get the drift.
Anyways, thank you for reading, it means a lot to me3
PS- All Irish readers, if I am not spot on with all things concerning Ireland that pop up in the story- PLEASE correct me. It is not my intent to offend anyone.