-Chapter 11-
How would you feel, being thrown into a river? The ice cold pierces through your skin, leaving you cold without warmth.
The blood was warm, but it slowly turned cold. Allen stared at his hands. He screamed.
He didn't know what he was screaming, but he realized his throat hurt. It hurt so much. The blood on his hands felt cold, everywhere was cold. Was he dead? Dead people feels cold, right? He choked, struggling for breath. Constantly in his mind, he was shouting "no". No no no no no.
How could this be? How could he lose control so easily?
Bathed in his own friend's blood and tears.
No longer he could feel warmth.
Allen stared at the two boys, his hair all damp and body soaked. It was freezing, utterly freezing.
Cold water slammed against him, he couldn't help but shiver in cold. His teeth chattered, he stared at them. The small Allen grinned, Yu made a hmph sound.
They pushed him into a river.
A few hours ago, things were not really going that well. No one offered them a place to stay, simply because the older Allen was practically filth (Yu said that he smelled like thick iron). Though somehow, they managed to get new clothes for him, and additional bandages for unknown reasons (older Allen requested). Because they couldn't find the proper place for Allen to clean up, Yu and small Allen turned to older Allen, expecting something from him (since he's a person from the outside). Hesitantly, he led him to a forest.
It was the forest where he stayed before paying a visit to the orphanage, before the small Allen found him.
"...?!"
Small Allen grinned, "There you go! Now you can take a bath!" In an ice old river?!
Yu crossed his arms, "hurry up already." What's with his attitude?!
Quickly, Allen tried motioning something as he panicked, his mouth opening and closing without a sound. He couldn't speak after all, he had no "voice". Small Allen noticed his quick movements and actions and observed quietly. Yu glanced at the small Allen, "What did he say?"
"Mm... 'Go... To... Different place... Uh... Priva...cy?' Hey Yu, what does 'privacy' mean?"
"How the hell would I know?!"
Allen felt like crying.
"Uh... Ah! Allen wants us to go somewhere else... First? Uh... Um... You don't want us to stay here staring at you...? Uh... No... Peeking...?" Small Allen blinked, Allen quickly nodded. "Ah! Okay then! Come on, Yu!" Small Allen quickly tugged Yu with him to the bushes and trees a little away from the river, "Allen wants us to stay right over... Here!" He jumped, standing behind the bushes. "He doesn't want us to peek!" Small Allen said.
Yu blinked, "hah? Not like he's a girl, what the heck."
Allen "laughed" weakly, suffering in the cold river. Quickly though, the heads of the kids vanished behind the bushes. Allen sighed, trying to pull himself out of the river.
His soaked clothes dragged him down, they were a bit heavy after all. Allen managed to pull himself out, dragging his legs along. Huffing, he sat down. The sky was blue, he stared at it.
He's already soaked now, there wasn't any other choice left, right? It's cold, soaked like this.
The kids tried to respect his 'privacy' in the end, though. Although, it didn't last long. Curiosity was simply just too strong, they were only kids. Even though small Allen knew that it was wrong, he just couldn't help. The two boys peeked from the bushes, wondering what Allen was hiding from them. Yu didn't thought too much, though...
What they saw was something they definitely didn't expect.
Slowly, Allen took off the soaked black coat, under it was dirty bandages wrapped all over him, all the way to his neck. The black coat was tattered, it was already wearing out either way. What was scary and gross though was his left arm. Just as his right, it was wrapped in bandages; he looked like a mummy without his head being wrapped up. The only difference though was that his left arm was disgustingly deformed. The bandages were brownish red, stinking of iron, twisted and turned. Anyone would puke or get an upset stomach just by seeing it.
Allen sighed, staring at his right hand. Glancing to the bushes, the kids quickly hid away before he could notice. The kids weren't looking, right? Allen bit his lips. Hopefully not. The bandages were soaked all through, too. If he doesn't change them, it might gather bacteria and germs... Even though it's pretty much is already. Slowly, he peeled off the bandages off from his left arm, wincing at pain when the bandage leaves the red flesh. It was pain all over.
Struggling not to drop a tear, he finished taking it all off, leaving bloody bandages on the grassy ground. Small Allen stared at his arm.
It looked hurt.
Then he went to the next arm, that was when small Allen and Yu thought something was weird. Across his shoulder, was scars. No, not scars... It looked like scars, but it was grey, like a discoloration of the skin in the shape of a scar. They noticed that his hand had them too, small grey cuts marring his ghostly pale skin. His right shoulder too, was the same. Then it was his torso, an enormous grey scar was seen, along with many others covering his body, his legs . And finally, his neck.
Allen slowly took off the bandages on his neck, leaving them at the floor as he approached the cold water. His neck looked normal, at least the back of his next was. But Yu saw something that he couldn't forget. There was this huge scar right at the front of the neck, like a stab mark.
What was that?
"Yu... I realized something..." Small Allen whispered, Yu's eyes widened. Did he noticed, too?
"We..." Small Allen narrowed his eyes, Yu stared at the boy silently.
"We forgot to get some towels for him."
.
.
.
"..." Yu punched small Allen across the face, mercilessly.
"I think they were trying to do some kind of test of courage," Emilia explained, looking down, "I just don't understand those kids... They know that the forest is dangerous! Especially during night..."
"So... The monster appeared in that forest, where Timothy disappeared?" Lavi raised an eyebrow.
Emilia nodded, "Yes... It's just the forest across the city, with a river crossing it..."
"When specifically did that happen?"
"..." Emilia stared at the floor.
"Um..."
"What's wrong?"
"It happened, some time ago..." She started, "Yu wasn't there that time, he came later on, but Allen was there. Um..."
"When, exactly...?"
"... I don't remember." Her hands dropped to her side, Emilia's grey eyes stared at the wooden floor.
"It just happened...! That's all!"
Lavi stared at the woman for a bit, "..." She didn't know?
"... In this photo," he took out the group photo, "Timothy showed up, even though it was only two days ago..."
"I don't know, I don't know," she shook her head.
"... I see."
"Allen...?" He looked up quickly, his body shivering cold.
"L-lavi..." His lips were quivering, he was trembling. Lavi stared at him.
"Lena..." He gasped.
"Moyashi... What..." Kanda said, his sword in his hands.
"No, don't come here, don't come... Close!" Allen stepped backwards.
Lavi closed his eye.
"... Don't worry... We'll stop him..."
Kanda shut his eyes, breathing.
Allen realized something.
They didn't said "we will help stop him", they didn't said 'help'.
They didn't trust his ability to stop that Noah...?
Hah...
He guessed so, too.
Only Lenalee's eyes were opened, everyone else's was closed.
But shortly, the others will open their eyes too.
Only Allen... Only Allen, though.
very tired right now, doesn't even know why I actually wrote today ahaha-
hope you enjoyed (?) this chapter...?
