Wee...break-day is tomorrow... why is it, that even when Saya decides "you will take a day off after every LTI chapter" she always ends up working on some other writing project, and therefore defeating the purpose of a break day? At least she's got dedication.. Or something.

Saya owns the play but not the actors, they belong to Hoshino-ka.

Rated T... Because a kiss doesn't call for an M rating. Rating will get higher with the chapters.

14. Blindfolds and Scarfs

Kanda was hyper-aware of the fact that Lavi was back the next morning, when he was no longer tired, and now capable of comprehensible thought. He was mildly embarrassed too, he'd been caught sleeping in the library. He felt like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar or something, with no clue as to why. It wasn't like it was against some rule for him to sleep there, and he had convinced himself that he was just there because his room caused nightmares, so what was there to be embarrassed about?

"I betcha missed me buggin' you at breakfast, Yuu-chan." Right. That's why he was embarrassed, because that stupid, idiot red head had decided that the reason Kanda had been there was obviously because he just missed the kid so terribly. Lavi wouldn't shut up about it either, he just kept going and going, until it was decided that Kanda had missed every little thing he did. Which wasn't true. And of course, Lavi was loud enough for half the dining hall to hear, too.

I want my silence back!

"Yes, I missed you so damned much and I feel like playing a game. It's called the quiet game."

"Can we play a different game? One of my choosing?"

"Hell no."

Lavi sighed, Yuu was being as pissy as ever. The denial was utterly adorable though, in it's own special way. Maybe Lavi just had a weird idea of what "adorable" was. But, looking over to Kanda, watching him huff and pout even as he ate his morning soba, Lavi felt positive that anyone would think that was cute, that it really couldn't just be him. Which is exactly why he was so happy that he had Yuu all to himself, in a sense. No one else had the balls to go anywhere near the kid, so they'd never get to see how cute he could be. What wonderful self-indulgence this was.

"So unfair Yuu, you get mad at me when I'm quiet and mad at me when I talk. I can never please you, how tragic."

Kanda didn't bother to make sense of why it was so tragic. Of course Lavi couldn't please him, no one could, he took pleasure in being displeased, it's how he was. The only things that made him even the slightest bit happy were good soba (or tempura), and his family, and he'd only admit to liking one of those.

"It's a crying shame," Kanda threw in sarcastically between mouthfuls of his breakfast.

"Oooooooh, does it make you sad that I can't make you happy? I'll just have to try harder then, can't have my Yuu-chan crying!"

Ugh... The way Lavi could twist everything to suit his own purposes was so... troublesome. Kanda was out of his seat the moment he finished his meal, making sure to hit Lavi over the head with his tray as he left. Lavi figured that might be a good time to start eating his own neglected breakfast.

000

Kanda was, yet again, training because he was angry with himself, it seemed he was spiraling into a never-ending state of annoyance, thanks to the idiot rabbit. He was slowly realizing that he was setting himself up, he wasn't sure what he was setting up for, but it couldn't be good. This was a premonition that was sure to last a long time, for as long as he was around Lavi, until something broke, shattered and rejoined to form something new.

After a while, Kanda got the feeling he was being watched. He'd never admit it, but it was almost reassuring to know that he wasn't really alone, despite how he said he wanted to be. But that was exactly the cause of his annoyance, he was supposed to hate the fact that Lavi was watching him, that he was around, he was supposed to hate anyone who tried to force themselves closer to him. He was supposed to do that, right? Because human beings can't be trusted after only a few months, right? Hell, one could be known for years and still not be trustworthy. A lifetime wasn't always enough.

With all his mental fighting, it wasn't hard to see why he'd forgotten to alert Lavi to the fact that he knew the other was there. Lavi didn't think Kanda knew he was there, the older boy looked so intent on something and that didn't seem to be training. He wasn't going to pull a foolish move like revealing himself just yet either, Kanda was practicing with Mugen, after all, he wouldn't even have to unsheathe his sword before he struck, and Lavi didn't know if he was up for trying to dodge a swing that had a new timing.

The sky was starting to look stormy, Lavi realized, as a cold wind brought his mind new focus. The clouds were a grayish-purple color, with maybe a hint of yellow that made them look sickly, bruised. It was getting nippy, Lavi wondered how Kanda could stand training without a shirt on in the cold. Lavi himself was pulling his bandanna down to cover his ears more, and pulling the rim of his coat up enough to cover his nose. It was the last day of March, and the cold had not left London.

When he looked back towards Yuu, he found that the older boy had sat down, his back to one of the trees that surrounded the forest area where he trained. The ground was almost entirely made up of gnarled roots of the old trees, it was a wonder that anyone could keep their footing on the wet, mossy, uneven surface. Never mind the fact that he was blindfolded. A fact that made Lavi all the more sure that Kanda was unaware of his presence.

"You can come out now, I'm too tired to kill you, baka usagi."

Damn, ya just can't get by this guy!

Lavi stepped out from where he was hiding. "Damn, Yuu-chan, do you have some built-in radar that tells you when anyone's around?"

"Yes. The best way to avoid what you don't like it to know where it is."

"Ouch. If you don't like me, then why call me out?"

"'Cause I'm cold and intent on stealing your scarf."

Hah! So he is cold! I knew he couldn't be warm like that!

As soon as Lavi was within arm's distance, Kanda made good on his words and yanked the orange scarf from around his neck, consequently choking Lavi and pulling him down to his knees. "Geez, Yuu, you could at least be a little gentle...and how'd you know where my scarf would be? You've still got a blindfold on! You coulda grabbed somethin' completely different!"

"Che. Like I'd make such a mistake."

"Do you have x-ray vision or something?"

"Shut up and sit down, unless you plan to kneel like that the rest of the day."

This is startin' to freak me out...Could he at least take off the blindfold before he acts like he can actually see me!?

Lavi moved over to Kanda on his knees, leaning over him slightly as he took the blindfold off the other before he could make some other observation that he shouldn't be able to. "Seriously, do you have x-ray vision? Do you know all the awesome stuff you could do with that!?" Lavi could think of quite a few things that could be done, like looking into the women's bath, peeking under certain people's clothes without their big brothers killing him...

"What the heck are you talking about?!"

It took a minute for it to occur to Lavi that Kanda really might have no idea what he was talking about. After all, he'd only knew so much English, and Lavi could think of no reason why Tiedoll would bother to teach Kanda about random things like x-ray vision, or x-rays themselves for that matter.

On a separate note, why was Kanda wearing bandages around his chest? Wouldn't a shirt keep the cold away better? Or had he gotten injured on a recent mission?

Kanda stared at Lavi, who didn't seem to realize he was staring back; why the heck was he just kneeling over him? He already got the blindfold off him, he could move away now, mission accomplished, he didn't have to go home, but he had to get the hell off of Kanda.

"You can get off anytime now," Kanda said, in a way that made it obvious he was really saying "You really should get off before I have enough energy to kill you."

Lavi stopped thinking about pointless things and stole a quick kiss before getting off of Kanda; suddenly his mind was flooded with all sorts of fun ways to use the blindfold that was still in his hand, and reasons why he should've left it on the other boy, as ineffective as it seemed to be. Now that he had the space to move without hitting Lavi, Kanda wrapped the pilfered scarf around his neck and lower face.

"Wow, you're being oddly calm Yuu, in a good mood?"

Kanda wasn't exactly in a good mood, it was more like he was coming off some adrenaline-fueled high that he always went on after training, fighting, anything that involved using his innocence really. Not like he would bother explaining all the to Lavi. "Hn, tired," was all he said, which would just have to be enough, because he didn't feel like saying anything more, and if Kanda Yuu doesn't want to do something, he doesn't.

"Right, you just-"

"Missed you? Yeah right, I think you should go on long missions more often, the silence was nice."

'A lie...' An inner voice chided him; an inner voice that was quickly stabbed to death with Kanda's mental Mugen. It wasn't a lie, he liked quiet, he liked peacefulness, he liked time to himself. 'Lying...' Apparently, inner voices don't die.

"Yeah, it'd be great to go on a long mission together, huh?" Once again, Lavi's ability to warp everything Kanda said came into play. "It'd be better if the Panda didn't come, but then I'd have more work to do on the mission...So maybe it wouldn't be."

"You should show more respect to your elders," Kanda said, mentally adding that Lavi should show more respect to everyone, himself included. Technically, he was Lavi's elder... Lavi could start by not using his first name, and not invading his personal space every chance he gets.

"What're you talkin' about?! I'm a rebellious teen! I've gotta use this precious time to be as irresponsible, unruly, and disrespectful as possible while I still have an excuse! Geez Yuu-chan, with that mentality, you're gonna waste away your youth!"

"Well that explains it..."

"What explains what?"

"Your thought process explains why you're such an idiot."

"You never give me a break..."

000

It was dark out now, and far too cold for Kanda, who could no longer hide his shivering and refused to let Lavi cuddle with him for warmth. Lavi himself was hungry, he wanted to eat something warm and filling, and pickin' on Yuu-chan wasn't worth missing dinner. Besides, he could just as easily do that inside. With his scarf back around his neck.

Hm...actually, I wanna see if he remembers to give it back.

The duo cut through the training room, Kanda stopping by the changing rooms to get his uniform and shirt, which he usually left there because it was convenient. While he put on layer after layer and enjoyed the heat each one brought, he didn't bother to remove the scarf he's stolen, though it was obvious he was aware of it being there. He liked the feel of the soft material around his neck, rather than the usual cloth of his uniform, which was less than comfortable at times. Lavi wondered if Kanda really did intend to actually steal his scarf, rather than just borrowing it. He allowed Kanda to keep his scarf on during dinner, and waited until they were safely out of the dining hall before asking about it.

"So, you ever gonna give my scarf back?" Lavi asked, being as casual as he could be. He kinda wanted his scarf back, and he'd do just about anything to get it back; quite a few interesting ideas came to mind on how he could go about getting it back, and all the fun he could have in the process. Maybe he was more interested in getting the scarf back, rather than actually having it.

Kanda smirked slightly; no, he had intentions of giving the scarf back. "Why? Want it back?"

Lavi raised his visible eyebrow, he didn't take Kanda's question as a "yes" or "no", he took it as a challenge, which worked just fine for him. Maybe Yuu-chan was in a better mood than he first thought?

"Of course, so hand it over." Lavi, of course, knew by now that he wouldn't get his scarf back by just asking.

"Take it back yourself," Kanda said, taking the end of the scarf and throwing it over his shoulder as he turned to leave. Swishing, that's what he was doing, swishing down the hall; That's how his long exorcist coat made it look anyway. Lavi followed after, the game had only just begun, but he was already enjoying it. He faintly wondered why Kanda would suddenly start something like this, maybe absence could make even Kanda's heart grow fonder? Or maybe he'd somehow gotten drunk? Was he made delusional by a cold? He had been outside in the biting cold half-naked, it wouldn't be much of a surprise to Lavi if he had.

Lavi grabbed the end of the scarf that Kanda had thrown over his shoulder, using it to twirl Kanda so that he was facing Lavi. He used said scarf to yank Kanda into a kiss which was supposed to distract him long enough for Lavi to get his scarf back. Kanda didn't push him away, but he didn't respond either. Lavi, not believing that Kanda would be the type to give into anyone after only a few months, was now convinced that Kanda was sick, and by kissing him he was taking in thousands of germs that were going to give him a killer cold.

"Lavi...WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING!?"

shiiiiiiiit...

Lavi would recognize the anger-laden voice of his mentor any day, no matter what he was doing. "I've told you a million times not to mess around! And with another exorcist no less! How dare you take advantage of another boy like that! You've stunned the kid!"

Yuu ... You bastard...

Lavi got the distinct feeling he'd been set up, though logic said that Kanda couldn't possibly have known that Bookman was going to come when he did. The ranting continued. "Something so...Well, let go of the child idiot! Do I need to spank you!?"

"Aaaaah...Pandaaaaaaa, don't say embarrassing things like that! Besides you cant do that to me anymore! I'm too old for that!"

"Fine, if I can't smack some sense into you, maybe I should kick some into that thick skull of yours!?" Bookman raged, then sent himself in a flying kick towards Lavi's head. Thus, a new habit was born, and Kanda found that he had a possible ally in Bookman.

And I got the scarf... Kanda mentally bragged as he walked away, leaving Lavi to get the crap kicked out of him by Bookman.

Hehe...Kanda's rather ooc in this chapter, but it was so worth it. Well, maybe you don't think he was all that much, 'cause Saya could somehow see Kanda doing that...then again, she's read so many doujin/fanfics that she's probably confusing canon Kanda and fanfic Kanda...eheh.