First of all, if any of you have this story on a story alert and got a notice about a new chapter for chapter 19, it wasn't a new chapter, I found a mistake I made with a name, so I went back and fixed it. Sorry for any confusion, but this really is a new chapter :D
So YAY I got a second chapter out this month, it was supposed to be the third chapter this month, but my sister came and visited last week and I actually got some time to see her, and since I don't get to do that very often, I enjoyed it while it lasted.
On another note, I saw Rise of the Guardians this weekend (first time seeing a movie in theaters in nearly 6 months, or whenever it was that Brave came out) and I completely LOVED it and encourage you all to go see it if you have a chance!
On a quick side note: There will be no new chapters of Pouring Rain for nearly two weeks simply because finals will be occurring that time, and passing those classes are VERY important right now. But after that, I do hope to have things up and running again at a much faster pace.
On a second quick side note: I've reached my lifetime goal! I was hoping to someday write something non-school related that was over 100,000 words and that dream has finally come true! Thanks all to you, my loyal fans who give me the encouragement to keep writing this story. THANK YOU!
To all of those reading this who also have finals soon, I wish you all luck and good grades.
To all of those not getting ready for finals right now, count your blessings.
I hope you all enjoy the new chapter :)
Please remember to leave a review, question, or comment below!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the story line, but the characters are not mine!
Warning: Fast pace, Jasdevi, interrogation, smoke
Chapter 20
When Kanda finally wakes up from his much needed sleep, he dreads actually having to get out of bed and face reality. It means that things will go back to being the way that they have been, that they really are. The Noah will still be after him and his mate, his daughter and her siblings will still be dead, and his mate will still be lost in grief over her death and the residual grief of the others' deaths.
This is something that Kanda wishes for no one to have to wake up to, but for him, it is all too real.
He sighs for a moment, watching his as his breath ruffles his mate's hair, and feeling his mate's back lean further into his chest. For a moment, it seems almost peaceful, but Kanda can feel that his mate's muscles are tense and strained with stress despite him still being asleep.
Kanda reaches a hand over and runs it though the silky mess of his Moyashi's hair. Smoothing it out, letting his fingers trail across his soft, delicate ears, and caressing the bite mark near the tip, his bite mark.
Guilt, and shame fill him for a moment when he thinks back to what he requested of Alma, but despite that, he does not regret it. He will do anything he can to make sure that Allen stays safe, anything at all. After all, they are mates, and that means that they are supposed to look out for each other, no matter what the cost.
He slides his hand through the smooth white hair once more before carefully pulling away from his still overly warm mate, and silently gathers up a set of clothes for the day before leaving the room. He dresses quickly and after pulling his hair back in a ponytail, Kanda picks up a small metallic piece from the counter, and glares at it for a moment.
"For something so small, you have caused us too much trouble. It may not do much good now, but I will make sure that you never hurt my mate ever again."
He closes his fist tightly over the small device before taking one last peak to see if his mate is still sleeping. Seeing the small form of his mate stops him for a moment, forcing him to choose between his head and his heart in that moment. While a part of him wants to stay with his mate, he knows that he needs to make sure that they are rid of that device once and for all. So against his better judgment, he walks over to plant a small kiss on his Moyashi's forehead before leaving to find the one person who should be informed of their situation first.
He strides quickly and purposefully through the fairly deserted hallways. Though not many people are out and about this early in the morning, Kanda knows that this is the best time to get anything done without being distracted or cornered by anyone, especially a certain baka usagi.
Soon the halls gave way to vines, leaves, and grass as he made his way into the forest area. With no searching he made his way to the great redwood and circled its base to the darkest side before knocking loudly on the trunk.
He waits a few seconds with no response before raising his fist to knock again.
"You know, just because you knock, it doesn't mean that he's going to come out."
Kanda looks up into the branches above him, only to catch a glimpse of an orange tail flickering out of sight. "If he's not here, than where is he? I must speak with him quickly."
A sigh is heard rustling through the branches. "He's off with Bookman in the main meeting room. He said something about the Noah making a move that's out of character."
Kanda's eyebrows knit together with this piece of information. With each progressing thought, his tail begins to swish violently behind him. Suddenly he turns on his heal and runs out of the room, hoping that he won't be too late to find Bak.
The halls pass in a blur as Kanda races towards one of the topmost levels of the White Ark, hoping to find the others on their way back, but only to end his journey at the meeting room. When he opens the seemingly innocent black door, he is met with the sounds of Bookman and Bak arguing.
"I tell you, something is wrong here. They are pulling together a small force, they must be preparing for something."
"As much as I appreciate your opinion, Bookman. I highly doubt that it is anything to concern ourselves with at this time. This has happened before and we never saw they come anywhere close to this place. What makes you think that this time is any different than the rest?"
"Che." The sound of Kanda's annoyance draws the attention of the other two in the room. The turn to look at him with a mixture of surprise and uncertainty. "If they're gathering their forces, it's probably because of this." He holds out the hand holding the tracker. "Apparently Neah never got around to deactivating it, so this thing has been sending them our location ever since the rescue mission."
Bak's ears go back as he reaches for the small device. "Are you sure? But if that were true, then why would they wait until now to do anything? Wouldn't they have launched some sort of counterattack as soon as they realized that the signal wasn't moving?"
Bookman takes the device from Bak and begins to examine it closer. Kanda responds with a tight and annoyed voice. "They probably assumed that that thing is still in Moyashi's ear. They want him back, I'm sure of that, and this little thing is what is leading them straight to him. They knew that he was carrying a litter, and that it was not going to be an easy birth, so they probably wanted to wait until it was over with before they came to get him. They knew that we wouldn't do anything to harm him, so they probably assumed that we would take care of him through all of that too." He pauses for a second before lowering his voice. "And that we did, and now they have come to take him back. We need to get that thing and Moyashi out of here and away from each other as soon as possible, and probably ever other neko that's here too for a while, just to be safe."
"Kanda, do you know what you are suggesting? That we uproot people and have them leave just because of your assumption? Do you know just how many of us there are? And what about some of the families that are here? You want them to move as well, even though some of them have young children? Or even mates such as Miranda and Krory, who are in the middle of carrying their first litters? And just what are we supposed to tell them? That –"
"He's quite right Bak. This device is still active and his assumptions fit with what the Noah have done in the past. It will be safer if we evacuate everyone as soon as we can, even if this just proves to be a false alarm, then no harm will have come to any of us, instead of us ignoring this and possibly having to suffer severe consequences as a result." Bookman places the tracking device in one of his many pockets. "The sooner we get everyone out of here and on the move, the better." He walks over to the door and places his hand on the handle. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'll go find my idiot apprentice so that we can help get everyone informed of the situation and out of the White Ark as soon as possible."
With that, Bookman exits the room, closing the door softly behind him, and leaving the two nekos behind. Bak lets out a weary sigh before slumping down in a nearby chair. "Is this really what it has come down to? That even the one place we always thought would be safe will never truly be that safe again?"
Kanda sighs before taking a seat next to Bak. "This isn't something that any of us could have expected, nor wanted to happen, now or at any other time. But let's face it; they were bound to find out about this place sooner or later. No matter what we did, they were going to find this place eventually. After all, nothing this good can remain hidden for long can it? Not when it's practically right under their nose."
"I guess you're right. But I guess that I never expected for it to happen now, or even years from now. I had hoped that there could have at least been some improvements out there for our kind before it came to this. Maybe even some little Baks running around." He gives a small smile at that thought.
Kanda gives a small laugh. "Great, just what the world needs. Mini versions of you. Komui will be terrorized for ages."
Bak joins in his laughing. "You think so? I sure hope that that they give that sister complex some harassment. It'll prove that they really are mine. After all, Fou does have a tendency to -"
Suddenly, a rather loud and high-pitched alarm sounds throughout the White Ark. The sound causes Bak and Kanda's ears to go back with the harshness, but it also brings them back onto their feet. They give each other a knowing look before bolting out the door and though the halls for the alarms mean only one thing.
The Noah have arrived.
….
Allen woke up alone in his and Kanda's bedroom. Though his heart still feels heavy, he physically, and mentally feels lighter than before. He smiles a bit at that realization. Maybe today won't be as bad as the others have been recently.
He turns so that he is facing Kanda's side of the bed, running a hand over the slightly warm sheets for a moment. Then he moves to sit up, but winces a bit when he realizes that his backside is rather sore. Confused for a moment, he thinks back to what may have caused this, and turns bright red when he remembers the heat of Kanda and the shower surrounding him and in him the night before.
With this realization, he takes extra care in easing himself from the bed, and making his way about the room, gathering clothes for the day. It takes a bit longer than normal for him to dress himself, but he figures that he can take as long as he wants since Kanda isn't there to distract him.
When he finishes getting dressed, he goes to head out of the master bedroom and grab a bite to eat while he waits for Kanda, but he stops when he goes to pass the second bedroom. The door to the bedroom is open a crack, reveling the blanketless, and empty crib inside.
He reaches out a hand to touch the doorknob, but something stops him. The knowledge that there is no one waiting for him on the other side of the door makes him drop his hand back to his side, and his heart ache even stronger.
Suddenly, he is overwhelmed by the desire to not be alone any longer. So he runs out of the apartment, heading for the dinning hall. Hoping to find someone there, someone who will help to keep him from falling apart again.
As he runs though the halls, tears flood his eyes, blinding him from everything and everyone around him. Suddenly, a hand grabs his arm and spins him around to face its owner, but the tears are coming too fast to see who it is.
"Allen. Hey Allen? What's wrong? Are you ok?" Lavi gently holds the sides of Allen's head so that he can see his friend better. When he sees the tears and ache behind them he releases Allen's head and pulls him into a soothing hug. As the young neko in his arms begins to sob, Lavi holds him closer, gently running his hand through Allen's hair, hoping that the simple gesture will help him to calm down some.
He knows that there is nothing more that he can do for his friend at that moment than for him to simply be there. To give Allen something solid and real to hold onto while his heart lets its pain be known. He gently guides Allen closer to one of the walls so that they are no longer standing in the middle of the hallway, and hopefully for a small bit of privacy.
He holds Allen for what seems like only mere seconds before the alarm begins to sound. Knowing that the old Panda had left earlier for a meeting with Bak Chan because of something like this, he acts immediately.
Pulling Allen so that he is facing him, Lavi looks him in the eye. "Allen, we need to leave. The Noah are here looking for you, and we need to get you out of here now. Kanda knew that this might happen so we have a meeting place set up to meet up with him again. Ok?" Seeing a look of fear flash across Allen's face with his words, he knows that the young neko understands all too well what is happening. "Now, I'm going to take you to where you are going to meet with Kanda, from there the two of you are going to go somewhere else until it's safe to come back. But for now I need you to keep up with me. Think you can do that?"
Allen slowly nods his head as the situation fully begins to sink in. "Ok," Lavi grabs hold of Allen's wrist, "Let's go." The two race off through the halls, with Lavi leading the way to their escape.
However, they don't get very far before they are stopped by a figure with familiar gray toned skin and dark eyes. Fear roots Allen to the floor as the figure in front of them grins like a predator that has cornered its prey.
Lavi quickly yanks Allen away from the Noah and turns back the way they came; only to stop again as that way is now blocked by another Noah. Leaving them effectively stuck between the two with nowhere else to run.
The dark haired Noah before them now grins the same grin as the one behind them. "Seems the Earl was right about this one. He does look a bit different than the others." He takes a step closer to Allen and Lavi. "But I don't remember the Earl mentioning anything about wanting a red haired human. Did he Jasdero?"
A cackle comes from the blond Noah behind them. "I don't remember him saying that." Another cackle. "That must mean that he's expendable."
This time Devitto laughs. "More like useless to us. But who cares. We found what we were sent to get so let's grab it and go."
"You think it'll be that easy?" Lavi glares between the twins. "The way I see it, there are two of you and two of us. Fairly even odds if I do say so myself."
The twins just laugh. "Who ever said anything about fighting you? The Earl wants it back in one piece and as unharmed as possible, and that's what he's going to get."
While Jasdero was busy distracting Lavi with his statements, Devitto has sent a small canister rolling towards Lavi and Allen. Smoke erupts from the canister, surrounding Lavi and Allen, and causing them to cough as it is inhaled.
The twins stand back away from the smoke so that they aren't affected by it and wait for it to dissipate. And after a minute the smoke disappears revealing the unconscious forms of Lavi and Allen.
The twins laugh and grin at their success before striding up to the unconscious pair and dragging Allen away from Lavi. They bind his wrists and feet incase the effects smoke runs out too quickly, and then have a brief argument on who has to carry Allen. In the end Devitto is left with the job and the two of them leave Lavi behind and head back through the halls of the White Ark with Allen.
….
After a few floors, Kanda and Bak part ways and each go to their own destinations. Fearing that his mate won't know what is going on or where to meet him, Kanda heads back towards the apartment, hoping that either he is still there, or that someone came to help him find the right escape route.
As he gets closer to his destination the crowds of people running in their own direction become thinner and fewer between. And it is not too long before he is alone running through the halls.
When he is just a few halls down from the apartment he finds Lavi collapsed on the floor. He runs up to his annoying friend to see if he is alright, he very surprised to find him limp and unresponsive. Kanda tries to wake his friend, but nothing works.
Suddenly, Lavi takes a sharp intake of breath before cracking open his eyes to see Kanda holding him up. "K – Kanda? What are – you doing here? Shouldn't you be looking – for him?"
Kanda looks at him sharply. "Him? Which him? What happened?"
Lavi coughs. "Noah. Two of them. Some type of gas. Here for Allen." Lavi opens his mouth to say more, but the gas regains its hold on him and he is forced back into unconsciousness.
Kanda's eyes widen and harden with his words. So the Noah really are here, and they've come for his mate. Setting Lavi gently back on the floor, Kanda races though the halls, praying that he find those who desire to take his Moyashi away from him.
As he races through the halls, he catches whispers from unfamiliar voices drifting through an upcoming hall, and turns to see if those voices will lead him to his mate.
Instead he finds Alma holding a man by his throat against the wall, demanding to know where he and Allen are. When the man refuses to answer, Alma resorts to yelling at him and applying pressure to his windpipe.
"Alma." Kanda says as evenly as he can.
Alma turns to see Kanda smile and relief flashes across his face. "There you are, I was looking for you. Now, where's Allen, or did you come back for me?"
Kanda's eyes grow dark as he shakes his head. "I found you by chance. I found Lavi earlier and he said that two Noah have him. I was looking for them when I found you instead."
Alma's smile disappears. "Well in that case, why don't you help me finish up here and we can find him together?"
Kanda gives him no response, except for pulling Mugen out of its sheath, after all, he always carries it with him when he leaves the apartment, and now is the perfect time for it to be put to good use.
As He approaches the man that is still being held by Alma, Kanda stares the man down. Rage, desperation, and overall annoyance boring into the unsuspecting man. Kanda raises Mugen to the man's throat, just above Alma's hand and asks in a quite but commanding and powerful voice, "Where is Allen Walker?"
The man tires to avert his gaze, but finds himself desperate to give the deadly neko before him the desired answer, in hopes that he might be spared from that intense glare. "The twins Jasdero and Devitto have him. They're supposed to bring him to the Breeding Center."
The man tries once again to tear his gaze away, but Alma grabs a fist full of his hair to hold him still. The man begins to shake under the neko's interrogation. "They'll leave the same way we got it. A door about six halls down and to the right from here."
That was all that Alma and Kanda needed to here. They let the man fall to the ground and run off in the direction indicated.
They are less than two hallways away from their destination when the twin Noah emerge from a different hallway with an unconscious Allen draped across the shoulder of the dark haired one.
The Noah turn when they hear the two nekos approach, and matching grins cross their faces. "So there were others here. And look they even spared us the work of searching for them by coming to us."
The blond twin grins even more. "I don't think that it's us they're looking for. It's probably the small one in your arms they want."
The dark haired one holds Allen even closer to himself. "Well, if that's what they want, then they'll have to take it from us first."
That is all the incentive that Alma and Kanda need before they launch themselves at the Noah. The Noah are light and nimble on their feet, quickly dodging all of Kanda and Alma's blows, but managing to make none of their own either.
Realizing that this fight will take far to long to decide a winner, the twins decide to take things into their own hands.
Devitto throws Allen between the two nekos while quickly backing away with Jasdero. And while the two nekos move to catch the smaller one, Jasdero releases his own small can of smoke towards them.
Alma hears the sound the metal hitting the ground and moves to push Kanda and Allen out of range, but does not make it in time as the gas spreads quickly and heavily over them. The two older nekos try to pull themselves and Allen out of the smoke, but the effects come too fast, and soon the three of them are lying unconscious on the ground.
This time, when the smoke clears, the grins of Jasdevi are even larger than before. "It's not quite what the Millennium Earl asked for. But considering we did do what he asked and have the white one, he'll probably be even more pleased when he sees that we brought him two more."
The twins walk over to their prizes, they make sure to bind the wrists and feet of the two new nekos and after much thought, call for backup to come and move the neko so that they can head back to the Earl.
As they watch the nekos being carried out of the White Ark, Jasdevi turn to look at each other. Pride matching their features. "Let's see Tyki do that well next time he gets sent out by the Earl."
Yay we all survived another chapter!
Now as I said, finals are coming up so it will be a little while before the next chapter, but it is in the works as I type this!
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