Author's Note: So, the Edo Ark begins! Thanks to everyone who's reviewed and followed. Please keep the feedback coming!
She scrambled off the floor and away from the warmth, met with so much cold. She was no longer wearing her uniform, but her tattered dress shirt. She hugged it around her and started walking around the streets of London, in search of something familiar.
This did seem familiar, like it had happened before, like déjà vu.
She heard the gunshot. She heard the screams and gasps, and then another shot, and another. She ran forward and unlatched the door to a basement, pushing it open and running down the stairs. There was nothing but dust on the floor and a group of older men who turned to stare at her. "This is so you'd learn not to steal from us again, little girl,"
"Where are they?" she squeaked; she felt like a mouse. "Where are my- what have you done to them?"
"They're all dead, shot through the head." One man answered.
"But- but, why?" she asked. "Because they stole a few pieces of bread?" she demanded, her voice rising slightly, "are you out of your mind?" she finally shouted.
"Not entirely so," another replied, "we wanted to see how you'd react."
Devina shook her head because this made no sense, it made no sense, it made no sense and she wanted to kill, she wanted to murder and destroy and snap. So she screamed. She screamed so loud, her bones seeping away from every pore in her body.
Before she could direct them at those vicious strangers, before she could attack, the dust recollected, washing over her like a wave, her friends alive once again. It was like a rewind of what had occurred. One minute, they were the ashes on the ground, and then they had limbs and pounding hearts.
"Don't do this, Devi," Thomas begged, blonde and green eyed and angelic, holding back her left arm.
"But they-"
"Don't do it, you're better than this." Irene's violet eyes bore into her dark ones and Devina felt her knees give as Irene hooked them to the ground.
"You promised not to hurt anyone anymore, Devi," young Icarus whispered, and she felt his arms snake around her waist from behind.
"But they killed you!" Devina shrieked. "They murdered you in cold blood, for no reason at all, they killed you!"
"It had to happen," Devon smiled, but it wasn't his gentle, squinted brown-eyed smile; it was twisted and somewhat malicious and something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong.
"Let go of me," Devina tried to move, to break free, but she couldn't. She was completely held in place and she realized the people who shot her friends earlier were now aiming several guns at her.
"Now, it's your turn, Devina," the men's faces twisted and it was suddenly Lavi and Kanda and Komui and Klaud and Allen and she was crying. She wanted this to end.
"Why are you doing this? Let go," she struggled against the tight hold of her friends, but it was unbreakable.
"Don't you want to see us again, Devi?" tears rolled down Juliette's golden eyes, "don't you miss us?"
"I do, I do, I do, I do, I do," Devina repeated, "I do, but they're going to kill me, and you're letting them, and this is wrong,"
"You don't miss us at all," Thomas dropped Devina's hand jerkily and she stumbled forward, "you have new friends now, don't you? You don't even spare a second to think of us,"
Devina couldn't deny it because she did not dwell on her friends, she did not try to remember them or let them live on in her memory because the ache, the ache, the ache would be too much and too open and too wide, and she would dissipate into nothing.
She shut her eyes, "I'm sorry," and then she opened them.
She was greeted by five worried Exorcists and a towering Mahoja. She gasped, and sat up, but realized that only inched her closer to the worried faces and then she shielded herself behind her sheet. "What's going on?" she croaked and realized she could barely speak.
"You- you were screaming, in your sleep, and… saying things," Allen was the first to say something and she was drowning in embarrassment.
"Ahh, it's nothing. Just a silly nightmare," she mumbled, still obscured by the sheet she'd thrown over herself.
"Devina, take off the sheet, it's ridiculous," Lenalee scolded, and it was the first time she'd addressed her so informally and Devina was certain her face was on fire.
"Give me a minute," she breathed in deeply, then exhaled, trying to calm herself. "G'morning," she greeted, faking a smile after she revealed herself.
Lenalee sat down on her futon and took hold of her hand, Devina wanted to pull her hand back because she was just dreaming of her friends crippling her and she didn't want to be touched. She didn't want to feel anyone's skin against hers – but she stayed still. It was just a nightmare.
"Are you okay?" Lenalee asked, concern wrinkling her forehead, somewhat cutely.
Devina chuckled nervously, "of course, I'm okay, yes." She didn't want to look at Lavi… gun-pointing Lavi. "Don't we have to sail today, or something?" she joked, "sorry I woke you guys so early," she was babbling nonstop and it was making everyone more nervous and everything more awkward.
"I was already on my way to wake you, when I heard… the screams," Mahoja informed, which therefore explained her presence in the room.
"Ahh, well, we've wasted enough time. We have a ship to catch," Bookman said, finally, moving away from Devina's bed and the crowd began to disperse. Devina never felt more grateful towards the Old Panda.
At the dock, Lavi and Krory stood side by side, almost moping from the little sleep they managed to get; the redhead glanced behind him to see Allen carrying a box into the ship. He swore he just saw Devina right behind him when he saw a figure struggling with two boxes that were veiling their face from him. He sighed and went over to her, gripping the upper box and picking it up off her.
"Thank y-" she stopped when she realized it was Lavi and decided not to. "I was managing just fine on my own,"
"Yes, it was very visible to me how well you were managing," he retorted, and the two climbed aboard the ship and set the boxes down.
Devina huffed, growing extremely tired of arguing with him. She nodded her head, "okay, Lavi, thanks for giving me a hand."
"See? A little gratitude won't kill ya," Lavi pointed, grinning as he scratched the back of his head.
"Nope, not at all, won't kill me one bit, no, sir." She approached him, leaning closer. "Would you like another grateful hug, Lavi?"
Lavi gulped, his face burning. He hadn't realized he was being so obvious and he hadn't realized she had read him so well. He felt so bare and naked and exposed and he wanted to shatter the smug look on her face.
"Ya kiddin' me? Nothing would please me more," Lavi grinned, nothing too earnest, a grin that didn't really reach his eye. Devina saw through it and she felt dirty for playing these games, but she wanted to break him and she wanted him to get over himself.
She leaned closer and wrapped her arms around him but this time it was not one-sided; this time, Lavi's arms wound around her in return and she crumbled because he felt so good. He felt so soft and comfortable and warm. She was being squished into his hard chest and she loved it.
He smelt like grass and musk and something… something so entirely him. And she had to pull away, she had to pull away because a second too long and this would turn into something else and he was Lavi and they were Exorcists; they were friends, and she was out of control and he's probably a heartless Bookman who's in love with Lenalee. So, she did. She dropped her arms and he followed suite and they drew back.
Lavi's mouth opened but Devina yelled, "I'll go check on Lenalee!"
Lavi's mouth remained slightly open, staring after her refusing to look at him, running as far away from him as her short legs allowed her. He could feel his hands shaking, his heart rattling and his throat dry, so dry.
"Is Devina okay?" Allen's question broke him out of his reverie.
"I hope so," Lavi answered, not meeting Allen's worried gaze.
The crew and Exorcists all finally boarded the ship, Lenalee and Devina making it last. "I can't believe that you knew he was asleep," Devina shook her head at Lenalee. "Are you psychic or something, Lenalee? Unbelievable, did you know she could guess when Komui's asleep and when he isn't?" she directed her gaze towards Allen.
The young lady Exorcist giggled, "you know, Reever said the same thing."
"Oh, I miss the Science Division boys so much." Devina admitted, leaning her arms on the ship's railing, her face in her hands.
"I know," Lenalee agreed.
"You do realize we are right here?" Lavi asked, feigning hurt. Lenalee looked at him, confused, while Devina didn't even turn around to face his direction.
"What are you talking about Lavi?" Lenalee asked.
"Well, you're missing those you can't see instead of hanging out with us, the awesome boys you have here with you."
Lenalee giggled, and Devina rolled her eyes at her friend's oblivious act.
Was she really so unaware of how Lavi felt about her? How he ogled her and was so overly protective of her? Has she really not noticed how she's been encouraging his affections by being all adorable and kind and just perfect?
Devina watched the two interact and she fought a lump that kept forming in her throat no matter how many times she swallowed. She cleared her throat, "I'm going to get some sleep,"
A sense of foreboding fell over the group as they looked from each other to Devina. She smiled, "I'll be fine," she realized they were afraid she'd have a nightmare again and they were worried. It was sweet, really, but she was tired of thinking of every single detail and sparing everyone's feelings.
She headed to Anita and asked her whether she had to share a room with someone, but Anita told her that each Exorcist had a cabin, and hers was bellow deck, five doors to the right from the entrance.
Devina headed to her cabin, unlocked the door and plopped on the bed, placing her arms behind her head. What the hell is wrong with me?
She did not leave her room for a little while, and to pass the time, she pulled out the fairytale book she had gotten from Thomas. She held it in her arms for a while and stared at it in silence. The cover was completely wiped off; the letters receded from old age.
She didn't realize tears were falling down her eyes until her lips quivered and she gasped for air. She lifted a hand to wipe at her eyes furiously, "I do miss you," she mumbled, "stupid, stupid, stupid idiots. And that stupid dream," she whimpered, "what the hell was that all about?" She bit her lower lip to stop from wailing. She shook her head several times as if to shake off her thoughts.
She realized her nightmare didn't have everything to do with her crying either. She hated seeing Lenalee and Lavi together. She hated feeling this way and not being able to explain it. She also wanted to know why she couldn't tolerate two of her favorite people at the Order, hanging out together. She wanted to know why she felt like she was set on fire every time Lavi joked or attempted to flirt with Lenalee. It was probably because Lenalee did not reciprocate his feelings and seemed to be disregarding them without realizing it. Yes, that was mostly it. Lavi was her friend, too, and she didn't like seeing him hurt. Of course, that was it. Absolutely!
Devina registered that everyone was probably busy working and she was here moping and rolling in self-pity, so she decided to head on deck and help, rather than stay here. She could read later, before she went to sleep.
She climbed back on deck and found her friends surrounding Allen while Lenalee held onto his brown cursed arm. "Allen-kun, let me see your left arm for a moment," she pulled back the sleeves of his uniform and the group jolted at the sight; his left arm, as if sizzled, had chunks missing out of it. Little pieces of flesh floated around the arm, detached from his arm, yet not disappearing completely nor falling off.
"Oh, Allen," Devina whispered and they jumped, only seeming to notice her then.
Allen's face paled and he smiled nervously, retracting his arm, "ehh, it's really nothing to worry about. It's probably because we've been fighting so many Akuma lately and my Innocence has grown a bit tired,"
"I have never heard of an Innocence getting tired of battling Akuma before," Lavi challenged, unconvinced.
"Maybe because I'm Parasitic!" Devina caught on then to what Allen was doing. He was doing what she did best, trying to divert their worries and questions away, trying to make them disappear. It was an unpleasant feeling, but Devina held her tongue because she understood Allen's situation.
"Aren't you just making this up as you go?" Lavi asked.
Bookman interjected, "it's true, you have been fighting twice as much as the rest of us since your left eye has healed."
Devina followed the flow of the conversation but felt the need to interrupt, "what's wrong with Allen's eye?" she asked but no one seemed to hear her except for Krory, who replied in a whisper, "he can see the souls of the Akuma's contractor, the person who had been brought back to live in the Akuma's shell."
Devina nodded, understanding, "that's both fascinating and horrifying,"
She then heard Lenalee say, "Allen, your left arm is actually really fragile, isn't it?" Lenalee's head dropped and Devina could see her lips shake as she fought her tears.
"You made Lenalee cry, Allen," Lavi accused and Devina wanted to smack him across the face. Allen flinched at Lavi's comment, who hasn't made the situation any better by pointing out Lenalee was crying.
Devina wanted to give her a hug but she hesitated then jumped as the ship's whistle sounded and smoke rose from its funnel.
The brawny blonde captain yelled at the crew to set sail, and the ship bustled with life; its white sails flung, cascading with the wind. The crew withdrew the anchor and the ship was moving, its wheels steered by the gracious Anita.
Allen left the group afterward and headed to climb up the mast into the crow's nest, while Lavi, Bookman and Krory gave Lenalee a bit of space. Devina stared at the girl who became an Exorcist too soon. She approached her carefully.
"Lenalee, what's wrong?" Devina asked.
Lenalee was startled, and she turned to Devina. "I don't know what to do about Allen-kun, Devina. He acts so tough… but he's suffering a lot more than he lets on." Lenalee blurted, as if the words have been hanging at the tip of her tongue and Devina's question allowed them the release they'd longed for. "I keep having these dreams, I keep having these dreams where everyone I love is dead and then Allen-kun, he-" and she doesn't finish because Devina embraced her. Lenalee sobbed as Devina's wrapped around her tightly. She told her that dreams were often only dreams, that her dream was only a figment of her imagination and that it probably meant nothing because she was living proof of that.
The two were distracted when Allen shouted something from the crow's nest, but they couldn't hear. Lavi asked him what he was saying, and so, Allen climbed down from the crow's nest to the mast to shout, "The Akuma are coming!"