I just read the manga chapters after the Hallow episodes, and WTF? I love it, really, but it seriously fucked up my plans.
Anyway.
Answer: Even though no one answered -like all the others- the nickname 'Buffy' was chosen for the irony of it all due to the TV Show 'Buffy: Vampire Slayer'
Enjoy!
"Hey, Jumper!"
"Ary!"
I hugged her before she could move, then pulled away.
"Don't scare me like that! Going unconscious for so long, what were you thinking?"
"Sorry, forgot to warn you about my subscription for the Instant Black Out Club" she rolled her eyes.
"You're not allowed to join, I'm the only one who is" I shook my head.
"Of course"
We stared at each other for a moment, before bursting into a fit of laughter.
"It's good to have you back" I finally said.
"Did nii-san gave you an earful for going MIA?" she asked.
We started walking towards the cafeteria.
"Yeah, but I managed to get out with only a week of forced-resting" I answered. "Now come on, I'm starving!"
She simply laughed again, but followed anyway.
A day later, Allen and Lenalee got sent away on a mission, leaving me alone at the Headquarters with Krory, Lavi and Bookman. We were in the training grounds now, trying to get our new friend to control his abilities.
"Controlling your Innocence is good" I nodded. "But knowing how to actually use it in battle is better. If you don't know how to fight, than you're as good as dead because trust me, just swinging your Innocence around is no way to win against these monsters"
"However, you actually gain your abilities from demon blood, so you'll have to be fast enough to get on one, drain it, and escape their attacks while you're at it" added Lavi.
"Which is why you're going to learn how to dodge first" I activated Angel. "Try not to get caught by my blades. They hurt like a bitch"
"W…"
"Feathered Blades!"
He jumped away, but one managed to scratch his shoulder, earning a hiss.
"Too slow" I grinned.
That was going to be fun.
Lavi, Bookman and Krory had left two days later for Buffy's first mission, and I still had four days before being allowed on missions again.
Which were a lot for someone who just had to go outside.
"Ugh, I can't stand this!" I finally yelled, getting off my bed.
I ran to Komui's office, and slammed the doors open. Everyone stared as I made my way to the Boss, and I slammed my hands on the desk.
"Give me a mission!" I asked.
There was a moment of silent, until Reever chuckled.
"You own me ten bucks, Supe" he said.
"Yeah, yeah" groaned Komui. "Honestly, Ary, I'm surprised. I thought you'd last less than three days"
"I don't care! Please, I have to…"
"Urgent report from the Emergency Unit! We found Kevin Marshall. He's… not well. We're bringing him back to the Headquarters right now"
I stared at the Golem for a moment, surprised, then turned to Komui.
"What happened to General Yeegar?" I frowned, worried.
He sighed.
"He was attacked sooner. We believe it is the Noah Clan" he admitted. "Until we have more information, you won't go on solo missions. It's too dangerous. Lenalee and Allen are coming back with the Emergency Unit, we'll wait for them and see what to do after that"
I nodded stiffly, and left the office, deep in thoughts. Kevin Yeegar was a nice man, and was my favorite Marshall along with Tiedoll. He was kind, and strong too. Him being attacked, and actually taken down so easily… the powers of the Noah Clan were more frightening than I thought they'd be.
Too troubled to think about missions anymore, I went back to the meditation room to clear my thoughts before their arrival, dread already settling in the pit of my stomach. I wanted to believe he'd be alright, I really wanted too.
The bad feeling growing in my heart told me otherwise, though.
I pushed the door open, and saw Allen and Lenalee along with Komui and a few scientists around a mummified General. I clenched my fist around my necklace, but didn't say a thing. I had already prepared for the worst.
"He's just a shell" finally said Komui. "His mind has been destroyed. So has been all the Innocence he had on him"
The shell's lips moved, and I listened closely.
"The Thousand Year Duke is looking… He's looking for the great Heart… I didn't have it… who will be next?"
"The Heart?" I repeated quietly.
"It's the legendary piece of Innocence, the strongest of them all" answered Komui. "Destroying it would destroy all other Innocence, which is why the Earl is searching for it. We've been searching for years, too, in vain"
"Him attacking directly a Marshall like that… it means war" remarked Reever darkly.
"It's already war, Reese" I snapped his way coldly. "This only means that the Earl is stepping up his game, and we'll have to do the same if we want to keep up and win"
"The other Generals will most probably be targeted" sighed Komui.
He thought for a moment.
"No Exorcist will take solo missions anymore" he suddenly announced. "The Marshalls are to be protected. Lenalee, Allen, Aryane, you three are to find Cross Marian and bring him back here as fast as you can for his protection"
"He wouldn't die even if we killed him" I pointed out in a flat tone.
"This is your new mission" retorted Komui seriously. "This mission is your top priority. You are to leave immediately to find him as fast as you can"
"Hai!" we saluted, serious for once, then left the room.
Lenalee placed an hand on my shoulder.
"I'm sorry, Ary. I know what the General meant to you, but when we got there…"
"It's okay, Jumper" I shook my head. "We are Exorcists. We know the risks of the job. You don't have to blame yourself for him. He wouldn't have wanted that"
"Okay" she bit her lower lip.
A little annoyed a their dark faces, I whacked the back of both of their heads, earning annoyed cries.
"Stop sulking" I scolded. "He's dead, we can't do a thing about it, okay? Next time, we simply won't miss. Sulking on the past will only hold you back, and if we are to chase after the filthy womanizer, than we can't afford to loose our head over something we were powerless about, got it?"
"Y-yes ma'am!" they nodded.
"Good. Now go pack as light as you can, but take anything necessary. We'll probably be gone for a while" I ordered.
"But didn't you meet him when you were in the village?" asked Allen.
"Yeah, but he left the day after and… crap! I forgot! Go on, I'll catch up!"
Not waiting for them to reply, I ran to my room before looking in the pockets of my coat. After a few minutes, I finally found the paper Cross had given me days ago, and ran back to the room where Komui was still examining the General.
"Komui!" I called, waving the paper. "I'm sorry, I completely forgot about this! The Marshall told me to give it to you"
He took it and read what was written. He frowned a little, but said nothing about it.
"Okay. Thanks, Ary. And about your mission…"
"I'll watch over Lenalee and Allen, don't worry about it" I winked his way.
"Watch over yourself too" he retorted. "I don't want you coming back as a corpse, Ary. I'm serious"
"Stop acting like a mother hen, you won't get rid of me that easily" I assured. "See you all later"
I waved, then walked away and went back to my room. Packing everything in a flash, I finally joined my two companions at the secret deck.
"Ready to go find an idiot?" I asked.
"I can't wait" drawled Allen, depressed.
"Is he that bad?" asked Lenalee, worried.
We simply shuddered as the boat slid silently on the dark water.
Now on a boat in direction of what we hoped was the Marshall's location, I closed my eyes as I felt the wind gently unfold my hair. Lenalee and Allen were inside, the later telling about his three years of apprenticeship with the stupid womanizer, but I didn't feel like staying in place. I had the feeling something was going to happen, something big. I just couldn't tell what.
After a few more minutes of playing with my necklace, I've had enough and went back to the cabin I shared with the other girl. There, I sat on my bed before activating my Golem. After a few seconds of buzzing, a familiar voice echoed on the other side.
"Who's it?"
"No need to be so rude, Summan" I smiled a little.
"Ary? Glad to hear from you. Are you okay?"
I shrugged.
"Just a bad feeling, that's all. We're going after Cross. You heard about Yeegar-sensei?"
"Yeah. We know who did this?"
"People from the Noah Clan. I'm not sure about what they are either, but they're crazy strong" I frowned. "Don't act reckless if you face one, okay?"
"Please, I'm one of the strongest Exorcist" he scoffed.
I rolled my eyes at that.
"The one with the biggest ego too" I retorted. "Care about a chess game?"
"I guess I have some time to spare. Prepare to go down"
"Big words, Old Man" I mocked, taking out my chessboard from under the bed. "I'm gonna wipe the floor with you"
"As if. You want to start?"
"Age before beauty" I smirked.
He groaned in annoyance, making me laugh.
"Fine, fine. Pawn: B, 4"
"Pawn: D, 4"
"Pawn: C, 3"
"Bishop…"
"Checkmate"
"Damn it" I grunted. "You just have to show off, don't you. Where did you learn that move anyway?"
"Johnny taught me. I have to go now, though. You'll be alright?"
"Don't worry about me too much, your old heart won't be able to take it" I teased, smiling a little.
"We're talking about the womanizer here, of course I'd worry about you. Hell, I'd worry about any woman in his vicinity"
"True, true. But he knows what'll happen if he tries anything funny. Thanks for the game, Old Man. It eased my mind"
"Glad I could help. Contact if you need anything else, okay?"
"Sure thing, Old Man. Don't die"
"You too"
And with that, we cut the connection. Sighing happily, I put away the chess game and laid on my bed. Summan was, to put it simply, an arrogant asshole. Or, that's what everyone thought when they met him for the first time.
He never wanted to be an Exorcist. He had a wife and a daughter, and a happy life, before he became an Accommodator. He's not allowed to see his family, forced to risk his life each and every day for a cause he despises. And me? Well, I couldn't really blame him.
When we first met, I was twelve. Apparently, I looked a lot like his daughter and with time, he just kind of became my surrogate father. So, when I had these moments, we just played chess to get our mind of of our troubles and forget for some time. It worked, and we were both happy about our weird relationship.
"You played chess with Summan?"
I opened an eye to greet Lenalee, who entered the room with a smile.
"I'll never understand how you can stand each other" she shook her head. "But it's nice to know that Summan isn't always a jerk"
"Now, now, don't be jealous, Jumper" I teased. "You have your big brother with a sister complex and I have a surrogate father with an ego complex. I don't think you'd want both"
She chuckled, and sat on her own bed.
"Who won?"
"He did" I grunted. "What did you think of Allen's backstory?"
"It's horrible" she shuddered. "What he had to go through… I understand better why you took pity on him that day"
"No matter what I say or do, or how much I want do deny it, Cross is a good teacher, and a good man when he wants to be" I admitted. "Allen wouldn't have grown as strong with someone else, and the Marshall is doing his part in this war, even if his methods aren't always approved"
"Tell me about it" she scoffed. "Nii-san is always complaining about how much gray hair the man's giving him"
"Yeah" I chuckled. "He's still a stupid womanizer and a pervert, though"
I still had that weird feeling, and I could tell from my friend's shifting gaze that she thought the same. However, none of us brought it up, simply chatting the time away on pointless little things.
Things were starting to move faster. The Earl was making his move. We're in a war to save humanity. Who knew when we'd have the chance to talk so freely again?
So, for anyone who asks: the paper is not important. It's just him informing about the mission in better details or whatever.
Question: What do you think about Aryane so far?
Reviews, pretty please with a poisonned c- I mean, sugared cherry on top?