Gray Silence

Disclaimer – Don't own it, never will.

Note: I won't be surprised if she kills him, I really won't…

SPOILERS FOR LATER CHAPTERS

SORRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE. I WAS HAVING ISSUES UPLOADING THE DOCUMENT!

I Don't Care

Fall Out Boy

-

"Would you shut the fuck up?!" An irate wolf was stalking down the hallway in all her dark pride with a man following her like a fanboy. He shut up on request but continued to follow. Cat rolled her eyes and tugged on the collar of her black and red Exorcist jacket. When Leverrier and the Science Department had informed them they had to wear the new tan over-the-side jacket with a cross on it, Cat had a word of prayer with the man. Now that anyone was allowed to choose between the two, the two styles clashed constantly and caused confusion.

After 100 years of the same damn uniform and they change it over five times since a year ago? How much sense did that make?

"Cat!" Relieved to hear Lenalee's voice for once, the wolf quickened her pace leaving Pierre behind. Once she reached the other female's side, she directed both herself and the girl through the clumps of people that mingled in the hallways.

Assured she was rid of Pierre for the time being, she sighed and looked up with apologetic eyes. "Yes Lenalee? What do you want?"

Now the other girl shifted nervously, a slight color rising to her cheeks. "Would you help me train a bit? After my last mission I kind of feel like a failure…"

Cat rolled her eyes at her comrade's statement. "You're not a failure; you're just as strong as the rest of us. But yes, I will help you train for a bit if you'd like. Maybe Pierre will leave me the hell alone." Lenalee giggled as they began their journey to the training rooms. "What?" Cat asked, a hint of irritation coloring her voice.

"Nothing…It's just that he's so cute following you around. Maybe you should give him a chance." Cat snorted arrogantly.

"Not a snowball's chance in Hell." Her brown eyes swept to the floor as they walked and her face grew soft. "He's not the one I want."

"Oh, so you like someone else?" Lenalee had bumped into Cat's shoulder and the girl looked up, surprised. "Who is he?" After muttering a few incoherent phrases that consisted of a few curse words and the like, Lenalee laughed and gave up. "Never mind; you don't have to tell me."

The she-wolf turned several colors of red and suddenly felt guilty. I know she likes Allen too, it's painfully obvious, but I could never tell her. As they reached their destination the two girls came upon Allen and Kanda already sparring. Marie, Lavi, Bookman, Chaoji and even Johnny were watching but it wasn't long before Kanda sent Allen flying into the wall right below where the spectators sat watching.

"Hey Lenalee!" Allen huffed merrily, having noticing her instead of Cat who was standing farther back. She felt a flash of jealous as green as a serpent strike like lightning through her mind but quickly shook it away. Why should I be jealous? I'm not a self-centered bitch. Should Allen ever decide to change his mind and pick her or anyone else, I should be able to let go of him quite easily. But even in her own head it sounded like a lie.

Humans were rather selfish creatures after all.

"What are you doing here?" Cat was knocked back into the present as she heard Allen continue to speak to Lenalee. Kanda had jumped onto the ledge and was wiping himself down with a towel, shirtless and dripping in sweat. He noticed her eyes on him and he growled slightly. She stared back with the look 'I don't give a damn if you are shirtless' and he merely grunted and sat down to listen to the other morons talking to one another.

"Cat and I were going to train a little bit." The girl responded pleasantly. Allen peered around her and finally saw the brown-haired girl standing awkwardly away from the rest of the group. He grinned and waved at her but she merely stared back, suddenly rather depressed. Tilting his head and about to ask what was wrong, he flinched as a black canine went flying over his head and landing in the sandy floors behind him. She gave a pointed look to Lenalee who also jumped down and so began a dance of death between the two females.

As the males watched with wide eyes they saw both able to hold their own against the other. 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned' came to many of their minds as Lenalee kicked Cat sharply with her Innocence-laden boots and sent her tumbling before the wolf regained her composure and jumped right onto her opponent's back. Biting softly on Lenalee's shoulder, Cat suddenly recalled a memory of the past and was easily flung off as she lost herself. Landing on her side Cat panted for a moment as Lenalee studied her with alert purple eyes. "Is something wrong Cat?"

Shocked that she had been read so easily, the wolf growled as she stood slowly but surely. "I'm fine. I was reminded of something, that's all." Her voice was hoarse and wavered slightly, signaling the grief that the memory had caused. Lenalee was about to press her for details when a loud voice entered the silence of the room.

"What the hell is going on here?" They all turned to see Pierre jump into the sand and stalk towards the two women. "Women shouldn't be fighting! It's a man's job after all!" Not only did Lenalee look as angry as she could be, Cat looked murderous. And of course the fool had to dig himself deeper. "All women are good for are having children and being housewives. Fighting is just not your forte." He opened his mouth to continue after a moment's pause but couldn't when Cat transformed and kicked him right in the face. Gasping he fell down and the same foot planted firmly on the base of his throat. Cat towered over him, her brown eyes blazing with red hot fury.

"Is that what you think?" She snarled, increasing the pressure of the weight on his neck. He clawed at her leg in a futile attempt to get air into his lungs but it only made her step down even harder. "Women are more useful than you men will ever be! Who's taken care of all of your crap when you fuck up? Who protects, who cares for the injured, who does everything and more than you male ingrates do? Don't ever think all we're good for is mothers and wives! You will regret saying that one day because you will either loose the love of your life or you will be castrated right then and there! Go to fucking hell!" Kicking him one last time for good measure, she brushed her fallen hair back behind her ears and stalked away. Leaping up neatly onto the ledge where the other males sat, she shot them an icy look and kept walking. As her back disappeared down the hallway, a heavy cloud settled upon all of them.

Cat was much more dangerous than they originally thought.

And that was about to be proven to be true…

-

"Not again!" Once more a Level Four had appeared nearby and was heading in the direction of the Order and the town, much to everyone's fear. One group of Exorcists had already tried to attack it but where easily knocked to the side and the Akuma continued on its merry path of destruction. Now the remaining Exorcists stood in the forest in front of the large cathedral and ready to defend their home.

Allen stood next to Lenalee and Lavi, his Innocence activated and ready to fight. A ripple of pleasure passed through him; it had been awhile since he had fought seriously and now looked forward to using Edge End or the Blade of Exorcism to carve into the flesh of an Akuma. But he knew the reason was mostly because he wanted to save the souls that had gone into manufacturing the damned creation. All of them were extremely quiet and were waiting for the enemy to appear with baited breaths. They had defeated a few before and now it was time to prove that they could do it again. Allen allowed his storm-gray eyes to sweep around, taking in their environment and the people that were with him. When his steel eyes landed on Cat he noticed the wolf had a strange expression on her face. He was about to break the silence and ask what was wrong when suddenly foliage, trees and rocks exploded as the Level Four finally appeared. The Exorcist crouched slightly, a fire lit in his eyes, ready to go and fight.

That was when Cat surprised him.

"Stop; let me take care of it." Her voice was so light the others almost didn't hear her but as they took a double take there was a slight shift in her physical appearance. Her claws began to grow slightly as did the rest of her body, one eye began turning a violet color and a red aura seemed to roll off of her in waves. "And if you get in my way," she warned, "I can't guarantee I won't kill you."

"What on earth?" Lavi piqued. "You can't fight it by yourself!" The red-head froze and his one green eye widened visibly as the wolf turned her head slightly. She smiled lightly, one blood red eye gazing calmly back at him.

"You can't, but I can." Before anyone could even blink the wolf had disappeared and reappeared behind the surprised Akuma. "This is what real power looks like," she said as if demonstrating a move to an apprentice. One paw whipped out and sent the monster flying several yards away from the direction of her comrades.

"Cat, look out! Behind you!" Lenalee cried as the Akuma came shooting back. Cat shot her a withering look and held out one paw without ever looking away from the three. A blast of energy sent the Akuma flying backwards once again in a flash of dull gold waves. Allen felt a sense of déjà vu and recalled the gold eyes every Noah possessed. He quivered in realization; Cat was very much like her father, the 14th. Inwardly, said Noah offered his perpetual grin.

Why would she not be like me? Pay attention boy, for this is only half of her true powers as the offspring between a Noah and an Exorcist who is also a wolf. If you let down your guard for one moment she could quite easily rip you apart. She's done it before and in a quite bloody way.

As if trying to prove his point, the fallen Noah let unwanted images of a wolf being slaughtered by Cat. Both of her eyes were blood red and using her claws and fangs she tore into the grey wolf's flesh until nothing remained but a pool of blood and bits of flesh and bone. "Stop it!" Allen screamed out loud, gripping his head. Lenalee and Lavi stopped watching the battle to ask Allen what was wrong but he couldn't hear anything. All of a sudden it seemed as if all of his senses were washed away like sand on the shore. He shook before vomiting, trying to get rid of the image of Cat – his Cat – doing such a cruel thing to one of her own pack mates. Why…? Why!

You're such a naïve fool! The 14th goaded as he continued to send the boy the same image over and over again. This will be your fate and the fate of all those who dare to challenge her! Even the Earl fears her! He saw her kill the other wolf and knows that one day she can kill him! He paused, as if to allow the image to imprint itself on the young boy's mind when he suddenly spoke again. Yet she won't kill the Earl. She knows it isn't her place…it isn't her destiny. Actually, she leaves the deed to YOU. Allen stopped shaking only to freeze in horror.

She won't kill the Earl because she thinks it's up to me…?

The 14th practically rolled his eyes. Of course fool. She doesn't the burden and the blood of that creature on her hands…or her paws, per say.

Allen looked up only to be sick to his stomach again as he realized Cat was tearing apart the Akuma in a fashion similar to how that wolf had met his fate. He heard the others gasp in disgust as they also saw what had made Allen sick and together all three of them shut their eyes tight, trying to block out the sight and the sound. When everything finally went quiet, Allen risked opening his eyes to see a bloody wolf sitting in front of her kill, trying to hide its gruesome form from his line of sight. Her eye that had turned red was now violet and slowly fading back into the blue color he had come to think of as beautiful.

But how could one stare at a vicious murderer and not be disgusted?

"Are you scared of me now…Pierre?" Allen turned in shock to see the Frenchman come out from behind a tree, gripping his own mouth and stomach. It was painfully obvious he too had been sick to his stomach by the very sight. Cat looked perfectly calm, albeit covered with blood – none of which was hers.

Pierre swallowed the bile in his throat and spoke, his voice shaking. "How could you do that, even to an enemy? All you are is a cold-blooded murderer!"

Cat continued to keep her calm façade up, something that annoyed all four people standing in front of her. "I will protect the people I care about. Call me what you'd like; I don't really give a damn." Her voice was devoid of emotion and she yawned, showing she was bored. "Go back to France, Pierre. You don't belong here." With that said, she stood and whisked past them, her tail waving in the wind. Instead of walking towards the Order she strode straight into the deeper part of the woods and towards the mountains, opposite of the ocean. Disappearing into the green shadows of mid-afternoon, she would not be seen until later that night.

-

"I heard you killed that Level Four." Sora remarked casually. She had joined the Exorcists for dinner out of curiosity. Pierre had stormed into the Club, demanding a boat out of there and when asked why, all he said was that he couldn't handle being among murderers. Now she was sitting in front of Cat and waiting for her to answer. She was sitting away from the other Exorcists who all seemed to be regarding her coldly.

Actually, the entire Cafeteria was as silent as a grave and the temperature felt much chillier than normal.

"Hn," Cat said around taking a swig of water. Displeased by the lack of a real answer, Sora narrowed her light blue eyes.

"You used that side of you, didn't you?" When Cat paused for the briefest of moments Sora knew it was a yes and hissed at her. "In front of the others? Are you crazy?!"

Cat shot her a cold look as other people began glaring their way and for once the silver she-wolf shut up. "It's none of your business or concern." She stood suddenly and walked away, her black and red Exorcist coat flowing out behind her. For once she wore the black pants and boots the others wore and looked much more regal and dangerous than normal. It was hard to look away from her figure as she exited the room, and for several heartbeats Sora stared at the door after she had gone. Slowly she rose though and meandered over to the table where the other teens were sitting.

"Can I speak to all of you for a moment?" They looked at her in surprise but once they agreed, Sora began to weave them a tale of a wolf and a girl who had been betrayed by the world too many times to count.

"She lost both of her apprentices, her mentor, her parents, so many friends and so many others. When you suffer through that many losses you begin to drift away from humanity and create your own separate plane of existence. It's one that makes you feel like you have even the tiniest sliver of sanity left. Even if you think you have good reason to fear and distrust her, she has a reason to do the same to all of you. I'm surprised that she's been so open with you all up to this point and I really thought that she was making good progress, but if you continue to treat her coldly she'll merely become the same wolf as she once was." Sora's eyes glittered with real tears. "Every time I saw her during that time I wished I could do something to help make her life better. I hate seeing people in such pain." She paused again and looked directly at Allen. "You remind me of her, Allen. You sometimes carry that same cold look that I see in her eyes all of the time. You've been broken and put back together too many times to properly function. I pity you and the life you must have had, I really do."

Allen was taken by surprise by Sora's words and now that he had a better picture of what made Cat, Cat, he felt guilty for mistrusting her.

But much like her, it was hard for him to trust someone, especially for a second time.

"Give her another chance when the rest of the world hasn't," Sora begged, "and you might be able to change the person she's become."

Cat stood outside the heavy wooden doors in her wolf form, listening to everything her pack mate said. After that last statement she sighed quietly and began her slow walk down the long, winding corridors.

"I used up my second chance up a long time ago…"

-

And that's only part of what Cat can do!

Next Chapter: During a mission it's obvious that Allen barely trusts Cat anymore.

When she has to save his life, will that bridge the gap that was created?

Thanks for all the hits and reviews! Don't forget that there's a 'thank you' video up on Youtube.

Go to my FF profile for the link!

-PA