Another chapter and the first season will be done and over with! Now that I look back, it seemed to pass extremely quickly... Oh well, the story will go up to 53 or 54 chapters, so we've still got some way to go!
Answer: She won't become more reckless, even though it could have happened. However, Ary isn't suicidal either. However, it can lead to some extremely unneeded fatalism...
Enjoy!
We were on a boat, going down the river at... some place in the world. I'm not good with geography...
"I'll be seeing my Master, at last" sighed Allen. "It's a bittersweet feeling"
"Don't worry, I'll hold him down so you can punch him" I assured, patting his head.
"Thanks, Ary" he sweatdropped.
"No problem, Kiddo"
"Stop calling me that!"
I snickered, along with Lavi, and the white haired boy suddenly got up, making the boat shake a little.
"Allen?" wondered Lenalee.
"I… just thought someone was watching us" he frowned, looking around.
"Kiddo, we're in the middle of nowhere, in Wherever-the-hell-knows-Somewhere" I snorted. "Who the hell would watch us here of all places?"
"Maybe it was a panda" he admitted, sitting back.
"Allen, do you think there are pandas all over the place in China?" giggled Lenalee. "There aren't, you know"
"Gahhh!" I yelled suddenly, making them jump.
"There's one right there!" yelled Lavi, going along with my crazy and pointing at Bookman.
"Guys, that's kind of getting old…" Allen sweatdropped once again.
"Bullshit" I sneered at him. "You just can't handle our amazing humor. And seriously, Kiddo, you owe some respect to your elders"
"I'm still taller"
"TAKE THAT BACK!"
Sipping my hot drink, I sighed in bliss. It seemed like an eternity since I had one.
"Hey! Why're you sitting around and drinking tea!?" exclaimed Lavi.
"It's not tea, it's hot chocolate" I retorted. "But you're right about the other two: how the hell can you be crazy enough to drink that?"
"That's not what I'm talking about!" he stomped his foot. "Cross Marshall is-"
"Haste makes waste, as the saying goes" cut Bookman. "Our destination is a mere stone's throw away. Deciding on a plan of action is the most important thing at the moment"
"What he said" I nodded. "Hey, Jumper"
The girl smiled at me.
"You're just being lazy!" Lavi slapped his palms on the table.
"Well, nothing wrong with that" remarked Allen, coming back to us. "There's really no hurry"
"Allen, you don't really want to find the Marshall, do you?" he accused.
"Well…" he looked away sheepishly.
"Bookboy, Cross knocked him out with a hammer before disappearing" I snorted. "Pretty sure finding him is the last thing he wanted to do"
"Well, we're here and all, so let's take a look around the city" proposed Lenalee.
"Sure" I placed down my now empty cup. "I have to buy something to sew back my cloak a little anyway"
"What a busy city!" exclaimed Allen, in awe.
"Guangzhou's the center of trade for the whole province of Canton" answered Lavi. "It's near the ocean too, so people and goods from around the world come into the city"
"Bo-o-o-ring" I yawned.
"Hey!"
"Very good, Mr. future Bookman" smiled Lenalee. "You're quite knowledgeable indeed, Lavi"
"Please, Jumper, any more words and he'll trip over his own ego" I rolled my eyes.
At the same time, my foot caught something, sending me rolling in the dust. I lifted an annoyed glare at Lavi, who whistle innocently while looking away.
"You jerk" I grunted, getting up. "That was petty and childish"
"Coming from you, that's kind of hypocrite, Tenshi" he smirked, flicking my forehead.
"Ow" I rubbed the sore skin.
"You must know a lot about China too, Lenalee" Allen pointed out, by this point too use to our antics to really pay it any mind. "It must be nice being back in your homeland"
"Yeah… sort of" she shrugged.
"Sort of?"
She gazed at the stands on the sides of the street with a small smile.
"Well, I don't remember much of the time before I came to the Order" she admitted. "All I really remember about my family back then is my brother. So, you see, even though we're in China… well, everything is new and unfamiliar"
After that, she darted to the first stand she could find –some umbrellas- and opened one, beaming at us.
"Isn't it cute?" she asked, trying to change the subject.
"Lenalee…" tried Allen.
"Drop it, Kiddo" I nudged his side, shaking my head a little.
"It's okay, Ary" she smiled at me. "You see, even if it's my homeland… well, it might sound weird, but the Order really is my only home. My friends at the Order are my family. Being with you guys makes me happier than anything else"
Seeing her eyes water, I instantly wrapped my arms around her in a tight hug.
"Aw, Jumper" I grinned. "You're so cute!"
"And it's not stupid at all" Allen shook his head.
"Agreed" nodded Lavi. "You're just like us, friends until the end"
"Lavi… Allen…"
"Okay, I think we've reached our drama quota of the week" I broke off the ambiance, and making them laugh a little.
"Right, we should probably head back anyway" confirmed Lavi. "If we stick around any longer, that cantankerous old coot might make us out to be the lazy ones"
"Because we are lazy" I pointed out, letting Lenalee go.
"Not the point" he waved his hand as if swatting a fly.
The other two chuckled a little, and Lenalee turned to the shopkeeper.
"Excuse me, I'd like to buy this one" she said, showing her umbrella.
"Why do you need an umbrella?" I tilted my head. "It's not about to rain"
"No, Ary" she smiled. "It's to protect from the sun"
I made a face at that.
"That's just weird. What if-"
"Timcanpy!"
Spinning around, it was just in time to see the two boys darting away after… a cat.
"Damn it!" I sprinted after them and the stupid animal.
"Sorry!" added Lenalee, giving back the umbrella before following me.
We ran for a few minutes, sometimes loosing little devil, until Lenalee spotted it on the roofs.
"Innocence: activate!" she exclaimed, before jumping after it.
"Lavi, Ary, get down" ordered Allen, behind us.
"Uh?"
Turning to him, we were faced with the barrel of his Innocence-canon-arm.
"Holy shit!"
Dropping on the ground while Lavi bended his back in a weird fashion, we managed to avoid the sudden attack. There was an explosion, soon followed by four others.
"One!" he called as the last Akuma jumped out from the water.
"Hiban!" yelled Lavi.
The column of flames came licking the sky, and I watched with sparks in my eyes.
"Uh… Ary?" Allen questionned, inching away somewhat.
"Pretty" I beamed.
"Damn pyromaniac" Lavi shook his head. "And I can't take it anymore! You're a freak, Allen! You're even scarier than the demons and Tenshi, and that's saying something!"
"Hey!"
"Eh? Why's that?" he blinked.
"You can't just shoot at us like that, Kiddo! That's so not cool!" I wailed my arms around, trying to make my point.
"But I had too! These demons would have taken us down!" he defended himself.
"Then you don't care what happens to us?" cried dramatically Lavi. "You don't give a crap if we get shot?"
"I didn't say that!" he protested.
"Bookboy, I can get it, but me?" I pitched in. "I thought we were friends, Kiddo!"
"I-it's not…"
"Move!"
In one movement, we looked up. I jumped away in time to avoid Lenalee as she came crashing down on the little bridge we were in.
"Tadaima!" she grinned. "Oh, what were you three doing?"
They sweatdropped, and I rubbed the back of my head.
"Just some demons and psycho kid there, nothing big" I assured.
"Psycho… kid?" she repeated.
"Oh, you managed to find the cat!" remarked Allen, changing the subject.
At his words, I snarled at the animal on Lenalee's back, and it hissed back, therefore spitting out Timcanpy. The girl Exorcist let it go, and it ran between my legs while hissing louder, and I had to remember that Lenalee was too pure hearted to watch me kick some fur ball around.
"Damn beast" I grunted.
"You get eaten to often, Timcanpy" sighed Allen, picking up the golden ball. "Be more careful"
"Kiddo, you can't blame him" I shook my head. "It's the damn devil's f-f-f- 'tchi!- ARGH!"
Depressed, I sneezed once again as I slumped to the ground in defeat, while the others just laughed.
"Laughing a-a- 'tchi!- at my pain, how c-' tchi!- cruel" I whined. "Bookman, h-h- 'tchi!- help me!"
The old panda was now sitting on Lavi, his arms in his sleeves like the awesome ninja he was.
"Having a nice walk, are we?" he asked. "Ary, take this"
He threw a bottle at me, and my eyes widened when I recognize the anti-allergies.
"You had these the w-w- 'tchi!- the whole damn time!?" I yelled.
He simply shrugged.
"Don't just appear like that, Ji-ji" grunted Lavi. "You surprised me"
"It is more surprising that there are demons here" Krory pointed out.
I popped one of the pills in my mouth, and instantly felt the prickling sensation easing up. I sighed in relief, and gave it back to Bookman.
"Could they have been the presence you felt as we were going down the river, Allen?" asked Lenalee.
"Yeah, I guess it wasn't a panda after all" he nodded.
At that, I exchanged a high five with Lavi, still proud of our joke despite the lack of appropriate answer from the others.
"They've been following us, then?" he asked.
"More like the stupid womanizer…" I mumbled.
There was a moment of silence, and I caught the surprised looks from the others.
"What? Can't I say something brilliant once in while?" I frowned, offended. "I mean, what I say is always brilliant, but…"
"We must make haste" cut the panda.
"That's why I told it was not the time for tea party!" Lavi whined.
As the others walked away, I patted Lavi's back.
"There, there"
"I feel your love" he drawled.
"Piggyback ride?"
"Hell no"
"Why are you on Lavi's back, Ary? Are you injured again?" Krory asked, frowning.
"Wow, we must be a bad influence. You're starting to sound condescending. But, if you really want to know, I bribed him" I shrugged, earning a mumbled curse from the redhead.
"With what?" the vampire-like man asked again, curious.
"Blackmail" I answered rather vaguely. "For example, there was this one time where he decided to-"
"You know, I'm really tempted to drop you, right now" the redhead deadpanned.
"And I'm shutting up" I concluded.
"Good move"
Krory laughed softly at our antics, and Lavi sighed heavily.
"Even after splitting up, there's a lot of ground to cover" he remarked.
"There's a lot of people too" I added.
"Can we really pick out Marshall Cross in all this crowd?" added Krory, gazing around.
"Look for a giant redhead with a stupid look on his face and the words 'DICKHEAD WOMANIZER' written on his forehead" I grunted. "God, I'm going to kick him so hard he won't be able to tell if he's a man anymore…"
Lavi barked out a laugh at that.
"Wouldn't be the first time" he snorted.
"Wouldn't be the last either, I'm pretty sure. Come on, get me down, I want to walk"
"I am not picking you up again" he announced as my feet touched the pavement.
"Come on, I'm not that heavy" I replied, a little offended.
"No, you're not" he agreed, poking my forehead. "And that's something we'll talk about later, by the way"
"Bookboy, I eat as much as Allen" I rolled my eyes. "It's not my fault if I just don't get heavier"
"It's not even physically possible!" he protested.
"Well, obviously, it is" I retorted, crossing my arms. "Why the hell are we even talking about this? We've got to find the damn womanizer!"
"Ary! Krory! Lavi!"
We turned to see Lenalee, Allen and Bookman running to us.
"We've got a lead!" announced the white haired boy.
"That was fast" I lifted an eyebrow.
"So the owner's new boyfriend might be Marshall Cross?" asked Lenalee.
I whistled a little at the impressive building.
"That seems like something he'd do" I confirmed.
"That's intimidating" remarked Lavi, scratching the back of his head.
"They say it's the best hotel in the whole city" added Allen, a little peeved.
"So we've finally found him…"
"It's been a long road…"
"I'm exhausted…"
"I'm glad we finally found him…"
At that, I cracked my knuckles rather loudly, my mood turning darker.
"Let's go give him the beating of his li- I mean, let's go retrieve him and bring him back safely to the Headquarters" I said, heading for the doors.
However, as soon as I stepped on the stairs, the doors opened and a gigantic woman appeared in the doorway.
"Oi, stop right here! We don't serve kids or first timers! Get out of here!" she boomed.
"H-he's huge…" stuttered Allen.
"Hey, wait, he's got breasts!" added Lavi.
"Morons" I whacked their heads. "I apologize for their rudeness, ma'am. You see…"
I pointed at the emblem on my chest, and her eyes widened slightly in understanding. Then, she roughly grabbed me by the front of my coat and leveled me up so that our eyes could meet. I kicked my feet a little.
"H-hey!"
"I'm sorry" she said quietly. "I'll take you to the Master's room. Please, go around to the back entrance. We're supporters of the Black Order, but we have to keep up appearances…"
"Understood" I nodded briefly. "LET ME GO, DAMN IT!"
She let me fall back on the ground, and I stumbled in Lenalee's arms.
"Get lost" she spat, before slamming the doors behind her.
"What a-"
"Let's go" I cut off Lavi. "Back entrance"
"… uh?"
Once inside, I quickly explained the situation, before the huge bodyguard lead us to meet her Master. Once there, we were faced by a beautiful woman that made my jaw drop. I mean, I'm straight and all –not that I have anything against homosexuals, thank you very much- but damn.
"Welcome, honored Exorcists" she greeted smoothly. "I am this inn's owner, Anita. It's a pleasure"
"No wonder the stupid womanizer sticks around…" I mumbled.
"She's gorgeous" whispered Lenalee.
"S-strike!"
I swatted his head.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but Lord Cross is no longer here"
Silence.
Processing the information.
Processing the information.
Processing the inform- WHAT!?
"He left on a ship" she pursued. "Furthermore, that ship was destroyed at sea"
"W-what?"
"I said that the ship carrying Lord Cross was lost at sea eight days ago" she repeated.
"Were there any witnesses?" asked Bookman, keeping his cool.
"A nearby ship saw it's distressed flare and went to its aid. They found neither the ship nor the passengers. All that remained was an unpleasant aura and poisoned water"
"Akumas" my fist clenched.
"Where… where was my Master going?" asked Allen. "Where was the ship headed?"
At that, she frowned a little, and I snorted, drawing attention.
"Ma'am, Lady, or whatever" I said, crossing my arms. "The stupid womanizer isn't dead. It'd take way more than that for kill him and honestly? He's probably drinking 'til unconsciousness right now, wherever the hell he was supposed to go so don't worry too much about it, I'm sure he's as fine as he can be"
Her eyes widened a little and, suddenly, tears rolled on her cheeks.
"You… really think so?"
"Ary is right" nodded Allen. "My Master is way to resilient to just die like that. He's alive"
She nodded, and quickly wiped away her tears.
"Mahoja, ready my ship for departure" she ordered to the huge woman.
"Yes, ma'am" she bowed.
"M-miss Anita?" questioned Lenalee.
"I have always supported the Black Order from the shadows, as my mother did" she announced ceremoniously. "If you wish to find Lord Cross, we will guide you to him. His destination was Japan, where he was headed for Edo"
"Argh, damn it! I swear, I'm going to gouge his eyes out once we find him and I'll drag his stupid ass back by force if I have too" I stomped my foot, annoyed. "Après ça, je vais arracher ses cheveux un à un et le couper avec une feuille de papier partout sur le corps, avant de l'envoyer se baigner dans une piscine de jus de citron…"
The two woman stared at me with what seemed surprise to my unusual language and apparent disdain for the man, while the others simply chuckled nervously.
Waiting next to what would be our boat in a few hours, I turned around when I heard the crew approaching. Allen ahead of us, we walked to face them, and the white haired boy faced who seemed to be the leader.
"Are you mister Jan?" asked Allen.
"And it would seem you're the Exorcists" he retorted, looking weirdly smug.
"Well, obviously" I muttered.
Lavi elbowed me, and I glared at him.
"Right. I am Allen Walker"
"Lavi"
"Arystar Krory the Third"
"Sheesh, so much ceremonials" I rolled eyes, before extending my hand to the leader. "I'm Aryane Darkelston, if you really want to know. Just Ary for short. Nice to meet you"
He shook my hand and I bite back a smirk when he tightened harder than necessary the hold. Without hesitation, I shook with the same strength, not loosing my smile. He finally let go with what seemed an approving glint in his eyes.
"I'd like to thank you for helming Lady Anita's ship" added Allen.
"Thank me?" he repeated. "All I'm doing is following her orders. There's no need to thank me"
"But the trip may be rife with danger" Allen insisted. "Eight days ago, a ship carrying my Master was sunk. I'm certain it was the work of Akumas. We're sending you into treacherous seas"
"Shouldn't we say sorry, then?" I remarked, before wincing, glaring at the redhead who hit me again. "Damn it, Bookboy, stop hitting me!"
"Well, Lady Anita's coming with us. She's stubborn, you know. Once she decides on something, she'll follow through, no matter what. So, don't worry! We'll protect Lady Anita! But you… you're a different story"
I narrowed my eyes slightly at his tone, and crossed my arms over my chest.
"Just make sure you don't get in our way" he concluded.
"Please, we know how to handle ourselves, thank you very much" I huffed, annoyed. "We didn't became Exorcist to be wallflowers"
"We'll protect all of you as well" assured Allen.
I fully turned to him, waving my hands in protest.
"Kiddo, you can't-"
"What was that?" Jan asked, narrowing his eyes.
"We are Exorcists" declared proudly Allen. "It is our duty to fight the Akumas. If we failed to protect your lives, we would fail as servants of God as well"
"And there we go" I pinched the bridge of my nose.
"You're going to protect us?" asked the leader, clearly mocking us.
He then grabbed one of Allen's arms.
"What're you gonna do with these little beanstalk arms of yours?"
"I will protect you all!" promised my friend, freeing himself.
"Tche, can't trust that" retorted the man. "Oi!"
Next thing I knew, the white haired teen and the older man were facing each other into a arm wrestling contest.
"Guess we can't help it" sighed Allen.
"Why does this always happen?" asked Lavi.
"What will happen if you loose? Will we be sent to the brig as soon as we board?" questioned Krory.
"Or whipped into submission?" added the redhead.
They both shuddered, and I whacked the back of both heads.
"You two are being utterly ridiculous" I seethed through my teeth.
The scratched the sore bumps with a sheepish look, and the arm wrestling contest began. I watched, not overly interested and already knowing who'd win. The other crew members started cheering their captain, while Lavi and Krory encouraged our friend, making me shook my head.
And guess what? It ended exactly as I predicted.
"Now that that's settled" I piped in, drawing the attention of everyone present. "Why don't we-"
"I'll take him on!"
"Seriously?" I whined as all heads turned to Mahoja.
"I will be accompanying you on your voyage" she announced, sitting at the box used sooner. "I'd like to see if you'll be able to protect Lady Anita"
After a second, he accepted, and sat in front of her. Sighing, and already knowing how'd that end too, I walked to the water and stared into the dark abyss. Then, I frowned. Something was moving under. What…
"HOLY HELL!"
My scream alerted everyone as a Level Two suddenly jumped out from the water. Lenalee instantly grabbed Anita and jumped high enough to avoid the attack, and Allen shot at it, making it back down a little. It than raised it's hand, and a bunch of Level Ones joined the party.
"Stay back everyone" ordered Allen. "I won't let them lay a finger on you"
"This is as far a you go!" cackled the weapon. "I'll kill every last one of you!"
The demons started shooting at us, and Allen instantly shot back.
"Sorry, don't really have time to waste" I smirked. "Feathered Blades!"
Three of them exploded, and Lenalee took care of three others. Than, Lavi joined in the fun and got rid of four, leaving two for Krory and the last three for Bookman. Barely a minute later, the Level Two was the only one left.
"Die!" It snarled, running towards the crew.
However, I sliced through it before it could reach them, and I deactivated Angel as it exploded.
"And that's done" I popped my shoulders a little.
"Great job, Allen, Exorcists!" grinned Jan, talking to the white haired boy not far behind me. "You kept us safe, just like you said"
"Mister Jan…"
"Looks like we'll have a safe trip with you aboard"
Then, they shook hands. I frowned a little, and looked away as the sun rose on the ocean.
"Ary…" frowned Lavi, placing an hand on m shoulder.
"Don't" I shook him off. "Let's just go"
He didn't say a thing, but I could still feel his worried gaze on my back.
"Right, we'll set off as soon as the ship is fully charged" I nodded. "But I don't think we'll be able to initiate contact after now. It's an island nation, after all. We'll contact when we get back"
"Alright, but are you sure you don't want Supe?"
"One hundred sure, Reese" I cringed a little. "I wouldn't have called you if I did"
"True enough. Still, I'm surprised you knew he was having a nap. Developing some psychic powers here?"
"As if" I snorted. "Anyway, don't overwork yourselves either. Wouldn't want to come back and find all of you dead because of the lack of rest"
"How thoughtful. But don't worry, we'll be fine. We're all pretty tough, despite the appearances. Just make sure everyone on your end gets home safe and sound, okay?"
"Sure thing. See you later, Reese"
"Later"
The communication was stopped, and I instantly tried another number. However, no one answered. Sighing, I went back to the ship, which was about to sail.
I'd call Summan later.
"Ary!"
Ignoring the white haired teen, I made my way through the crew members and climbed at the top of the mast.
"Ary?"
Still ignoring him, I let my gaze wander on the ocean extending at my feet. He climbed and arrived behind me, but I kept silent.
"Ary? Did I do-"
"You can't always do this!" I snapped, unable to stop myself anymore.
He took a step back, surprised.
"W-what?"
"You swear to protect and save… everyone" I clenched my fists. "But you can't do that! You can't make promises you won't be able to keep!"
"I will be able to!" he protested.
"And what if you won't?" I challenged angrily. "What if you can't keep that promise? What'll happen to you, then? You'll blame yourself, your failures will destroy you from the inside, and you will hurt!"
"Ary…"
"This isn't a game, Allen!" I cut, shaking a little. "You're my friend, and I don't want to see you hurt because you made stupid promises you can't keep! Because what kind of friend would I be if I let you in pain!? J'aurais beau essayer, je ne pourrais jamais t'aider complètement! Ça va te ronger de l'intérieur et je pourrais seulement te regarder souffrir en silence et-"
His eyes widened at my outburst, before a small smile graced his lips. Next thing I knew, I was caught up in his embrace. I hugged back, unable to think of anything else to do or say.
"I might not be able to save everyone…" he admitted. "But it won't stop me from trying"
I nodded, but didn't pull away. I really needed a hug as of now.
"Prepare to cast off!" yelled Anita down there.
"All right maggots, cast off!" repeated Jan.
And there we go again.
Stupid womanizer.
So, here's the new chapter! If I remember correctly, this is the last one of the first season, right? Geez...
French traduction: "After that, I'm going to rip his hair one by one, then will cut his body with a paper sheet, before sending him to swim in a pool of lemon juice..."
"I can try all I want, I'll never be able to help you completely! It's going to eat you from the inside, and all I'll be able to do is watch as you suffer in silence and-
Question: What do you think of Ary and Lavi's interactions? No idea if I asked before, but anyway.
Reviews!