Disclaimer – I do not own DGM nor any of the characters
Chapter Two – The Apprentice's Apprentice
After deciding that finding a mentor for the kid was a good idea Komui rounded up one of the Finders that wasn't currently occupied and sent them to track down a certain red haired Exorcist. The man didn't really have any idea where the Junior Bookman may be currently but he decided that his best bet was probably the library given the nature of the redhead and the old man that he was with more often than not.
As luck would have it this guess was a good one.
Lavi was indeed in the library, his red hair loose as his headband hung around his neck currently, his single emerald eye scanning the pages of a book at an almost inhuman speed. It was a skill that he'd been forced to master at an early age since his assigned reading from Bookman usually had a time limit and not one that a normal person could manage.
Despite being focused on his reading Lavi noticed the Finder as he appeared in the library, his single green eye flicking up from the pages as he studied the man. He seemed like a man on a mission from what the redhead could tell and that only served to pique his curiosity.
The Finder was genuinely relieved to have found Lavi so easily since he had anticipated a lengthy search of the castle and he actually heaved a sigh to signify this. "Just the guy I was looking for," he said as he approached the table where the redhead was seated. "Chief Komui sent me to find you…apparently he has a bit of a job for you."
He didn't know the exact details of that job so he couldn't offer up any further info, he was simply the messenger after all.
Lavi blinked once in question but he didn't think that Komui would give the Finder any details of it so he just nodded and closed the book with a slight thunk, already having the page number memorized. That was another skill that he'd been forced to pick up thanks to his mentor and it was a useful little trick. "Alright, thanks," he said, making his way from the room and heading toward the Science Division. He didn't have his uniform on, not really needing it at headquarters most of the time, and just wore a plain black long-sleeved shirt and plain white pants, though Iron Hammer was still strapped to his thigh.
One could never be too careful after all.
Before long he had made it to Komui's office, knocking once before opening the door without waiting for a reply from within. "You wanted to see me Chief?"
More a statement of fact than a question but it was still phrased as such.
As always Komui was seated behind his desk in his rather disorganized office, which was putting it nicely, and his gaze shifted toward the door as the redheaded Exorcist entered. He offered Lavi a smile by way of greeting and nodded his head in confirmation of the question that he realized wasn't really a question. "Ah yes, glad that you're here. I wasn't sure how long it would take the Finder to track you down."
Komui wasn't the only one that was occupying the office currently, Bookman was leaning against one of the walls, his arms in the sleeves of his shirt and his customary look on his face while a boy appearing around the age of eight or nine was sitting on the arm of the couch. The kid was dressed all in black and had chestnut brown hair that was pulled into a low ponytail at the nape of his neck, aside from a few random strands that were shorter than the others. Piercing celestial blue eyes shifted to the new arrival in the room and the scowl that the boy already wore deepened noticeably.
Komui had already said that they were going to find someone to train him so he was assuming that this was the likely suspect.
And he wasn't terribly thrilled with that fact as was evident by the look that was currently on his face.
Lavi wore a customary smile on his face as his gaze shifted to the boy, his book tucked under one arm as he gazed at the kid, taking in little details out of habit of anything and everything he could assess about him. Little nuances that normal people wouldn't notice were immediately caught by his perceptive gaze. "Who's your new little friend?" he questioned, making his way closer to the couch and Komui's desk.
The smile that Komui already wore grew wider as Lavi asked this question. "Actually he's your new little friend," the Chinese man said with a slight chuckle and at the same time managing to look a little bit relieved. "Bookman has kindly consented to let me borrow your services so to speak."
For which he was going to be eternally grateful.
At this point the boy let out a huff of disgust, having remained quiet while Komui spoke with this old geezer that he called Bookman but unable to maintain that silence any longer. The boy rolled his eyes in response to this statement but he was ignored by Komui as the man continued to speak.
"He has been assigned to one of the other branches up until today. Unfortunately he has a shaky control over his Innocence at best so he was transferred here in the hopes that he could better learn to control it. Which is where you come in," Komui explained to the redhead just so that he would know what was going on, or at least the gist of the situation as it had been explained to him.
"I don't know how many times I'm going to have to tell you people before you get it through your thick skulls… I don't want to know how to control the fucking Innocence," the boy snarled, his glare shifting back and forth between the trio.
Bookman was just guilty by association as far as he was concerned.
"So y'want me to help him learn how to use his Innocence?" the redhead questioned curiously, pretty sure he already knew the answer. "Sure thing," he shrugged, not really having an issue with it. If nothing else it would kill some boredom…which he was sure that Yuu-chan would appreciate.
"That's right," Komui said, still smiling. "Oh and Lavi, there is one little thing that you should know…Skye here has a habit of trying to escape so if you could make sure that doesn't happen I would be grateful." He kept the happy go lucky look on his face even as he said this, not caring that he was probably managing to further piss off the boy with every word that was coming out of his mouth.
That just seemed like par for the course at this point.
The boy growled low in his throat as he hopped from the arm of the couch, turning so that his back was visible and revealing the fact that he had one of the talismans that were used to seal the power of Innocence placed between his shoulder blades. "You're just wasting your time," he said in a scathing voice, his blue eyes once again narrowed.
"I'll make sure that doesn't happen Chief," Lavi assured, taking note of the seal and thinking to himself that the kid must have caused some real trouble for him to have the seal of a CROW.
Which only served to make him curious about the kid.
"Keep thinking that," Skye said in a sarcastic tone as he made his way toward the door, not even bothering to get leave to do so. "You'll be wrong but keep thinking it."
"Good luck," Komui called out with a wave.
The Branch Chief was pretty sure that this assignment that he had just pawned off on Lavi was going to be far from easy but he had faith that if anyone could pull a miracle out of his hat it was the redhead.
Deciding that it would probably be in everyone's best interest to keep an eye on the kid, Lavi waved farewell to Bookman and Lomui over his shoulder and followed the kid out, catching up easily with his longer stride. "Why don't we start with going to get something to eat?" he asked, hoping to at least reach semi-neutral terms, at this point good terms seemed like it would be too much to ask for.
"Why don't you start by looking the other way while I get the hell out of here?" Skye countered as he turned to glare at the redhead through narrowed eyes. Walking backwards he never faltered as he gazed at Lavi as though sizing up an opponent.
Which should probably be ominous but the redhead didn't really seem to be concerned about it.
"Sorry but it's not going to work out like that," Lavi said calmly, gazing back at the kid levelly. "And even if I were so inclined to, there are a lot worse than me that'll stop you." His words were spoken in a serious, no-nonsense tone, since the Order didn't tolerate deserters and that was something he was well aware of.
The penalty for that was a severe one.
An almost feral sounding growl escaped the boy's throat at this point, his already narrowed blue eyes turning to mere slits. The comment from the redhead had struck a nerve, as well as brought back some rather unpleasant memories. "Do you honestly think that I don't know that already? Doesn't change a damn thing." The boy's voice held a venom that was actually surprising for such a young kid, as was the ferocity with which he spoke.
Lavi sighed under his breath, thinking it really wasn't such a good thing that he got the troublemaker and the fact that he was probably chosen just because of that made it just a little bit more unpleasant. "Well I guess you're just gonna have to deal with it," Lavi stated, since the boy wouldn't be able to do much with the seal in place. He didn't point that out however because he had the feeling it would be like bear baiting or something and it was already apparent that the kid didn't need much provocation in order to fight.
A fact that was a little bit irritating to the redhead but he hid that fact with a well trained ease.
"I know what you're thinking," Skye muttered darkly as he continued to walk backward so that he could maintain eye contact with the redhead. There was a slight gleam in his eyes, which were still narrowed. "But since you're supposed to help with my so called training the seal will have to be removed at some point." Which was what he was biding his time and waiting on. It was true that he couldn't do anything with the seal in place but he knew that they were going to have to eventually remove it if they hoped to accomplish anything with him. Of course the removal of the seal would present its own unique set of issues but he would deal with that when the time came.
No real point in dwelling on it until then.
"I'm well aware of that," Lavi stated calmly. "And I'll have you know I already have several backup plans for if you try and escape, so go ahead and try all you like, you won't get far." He didn't really see any point in telling the kid about the training or most likely higher perception and intelligence where strategy was concerned, mostly because he didn't think it'd matter at all to him.
"You might be surprised at just how far I'm able to get," Skye said with a trace of a smirk. All he needed was to be rid of the damnable seal. The boy paused at this point, turning and gazing around as he reached the end of the hallway. "I…have no idea where it is that I'm going."
A fact that he was loathe to admit and that just grew worse when he saw the reaction of the redhead.
Now it was Lavi's turn to smirk as he looked at the kid. "Oh, so you finally noticed? Yep, looks like we're completely and utterly lost."
"Well I just got here so big fucking surprise there," Skye said with a shrug of his thin shoulders, sarcasm clearly evident in his voice. In fact, this seemed to be his natural tone. "And you…I don't really believe that you're that stupid."
"Oh I know exactly where I am. The trouble is you don't and I don't really feel like lending my help to someone who's being intentionally rude and uncooperative…maybe if you were a little nicer to me but I don't see that happening so far," Lavi returned with a little smirk, idly folding his arms behind his head in a bored manner.
"Oh forgive my rudeness," Skye retored, again sarcastically. "But if you were being held against your will by people who only wanted to exploit you for a war that you wanted no part of then I don't really think you'd be all that willing to cooperate either." A trace of something appeared alongside the fire that seemed to snap in his bright blue eyes as he said this but the kid made a move to banish it immediately.
Feeling as he did so as though he had unintentionally given away more than he intended.
"Well I hate to break it to you but you're not the first and you won't be the last to feel that way but it's something that most accommodators have to deal with," Lavi said, taking note of the change in the kid's expression but not drawing attention to it. Lavi himself couldn't exactly say the same thing owing to his involvement in the Bookmen Clan, not as heavily bound to the Order as most accommodators but he understood the issue and why Skye would feel that way. At the same time though it could mean the difference between the salvation or destruction of the entire human race but it was hard to see and agree to that over ones personal nature and life. In the end there were just a lot of people that would choose their own life over the rest of human kind when it came down to it and he had a feeling that Skye didn't give much of a care for the rest of the species over himself if it meant being under someone else's thumb.
Skye was a little bit surprised by the lecture that he gained but he tried not to let that show, just as he tried to hide all of his emotions.
"Well y'know, talking to someone and explaining the situation would have been preferable to…" Skye's voice trailed off at this point, a haunted expression appearing in his eyes as he closed his mouth and refused to say anything further on the subject. It wasn't so much his own situation that he was bitter about but rather the circumstances that had led up to that point. "There's also the small fact that the innocence doesn't work for me and I have the scars to prove it."
"Well then how about this, you be more cooperative and I'll take you to get something to eat first and afterwards you can tell me whatever you want. I'm always willing to lend an ear." Mainly because it was his job but the kid didn't need to know that part, it wasn't relevant to the current conversation. "And assuming you behave and try to work with me instead of against I'll see what I can do to make your situation better. I have a few good connections with some people in higher places but I'll only do it if you keep your end," Lavi proposed. True enough it would make things easier for him but there was a part of him that personally wanted to help as well. Something he wasn't supposed to feel but couldn't help that he did anyways and Bookman did tell him he still had to act frivolous and friendly, regardless of keeping an emotional distance.
The hard look in his eyes softened just the tiniest degree as Skye stared at Lavi in a scrutinizing manner, as though debating whether or not to believe the redhead. "Are you going to be like all of the others? This isn't the first time that I've heard things like that and in the end no one ever keeps their word to me. In fact, for the most part, things just go from bad to worse." It was true that he'd never really given his full trust to anyone and had no plans on changing this anytime in the near future but there had been others who'd promised to help in exchange for his cooperation.
Promises that no one ever made good on.
"Well if I did that I think you'd just try and make things ten times harder for me, which would defeat the purpose and then some," Lavi said with a shrug of his shoulders, shoving his hands in his pockets as he did so.
Skye continued to gaze at Lavi for a moment before sighing. "Lead the way," the boy said, stepping to the side so that his so called mentor could get by him. Of course the thought did go through his mind that he could make a break for it the moment that the redhead took the lead.
Thinking that he had won a small battle Lavi nodded his head.
"I'd be happy to," the Junior Bookman said, taking the lead even as he spoke.
Before almost any time had passed he had them in the dining hall, his gaze shifting around as they entered. "And here we are," he said, noting the absence of both Allen and Kanda. Leading the way to the window he gazed at Skye through his one visible emerald eye. "Order whatever you like, Jerry'll make pretty much anything," he said even as the cook appeared.
"Well another new face. We seem to be getting a lot of them lately!" Jerry exclaimed in his usually chipper and friendly voice. "And what can I cook for you?" He sounded so happy about this as he posed the question, the man really loving his job.
Skye blinked a couple of times as Jerry appeared, seeming mildly shocked by the man. He recovered quickly however, his face becoming expressionless though this was admittedly better than the scowl that had decorated it previously no doubt. Pretty much all of the stubbornness left him at the prospect of food since it had been awhile since he had last eaten. "I'm not really picky…vegetable soup maybe?"
It sounded more like a question than a request.
"Sure thing!" Jerry happily said. "Would that be all?"
Skye nodded once curtly, resisting the urge to order more. Stepping to the side he waited for the man to return with his food, muttering a barely audible thanks when he did before quickly moving to one of the tables. He completely ignored the other people who were in the room, they may as well not have even been there for all the attention that he paid them.
Lavi had eaten earlier so he just ordered a small amount of food, a snack really, and followed the kid to the table. Partially wishing that Kanda were here so he'd have someone to antagonize. Because boredom really just did not agree with him.
"This is irritating," Skye muttered to himself as he fidgeted with his spoon for a moment before he started to eat. He wasn't keen on being followed around but was pretty sure that there wasn't much he could do about it. They had already been warned not to trust him so he couldn't even play the part of the innocent kid long enough to get away.
A fact that frustrated him to no end.
"You'll get used to it," Lavi said even as he ate. "At least I'm the pleasant kind of assigned stalker." He couldn't help but smirk at his own choice of words even if he doubted that the kid was going to be as amused by it as he was.
Skye arched one brow as he heard those words, snorting. "I never even said what was annoying," he felt the need to point out and yet he didn't dispute the fact that Lavi had accurately guessed it. "So are we 'training' after this?" Skye was still undecided about his level of cooperation but wasn't going to let the redhead know that fact.
"Seems like, if that's what you want to do. Honestly I'm in no rush," Lavi said with a shrug of his shoulders. It wasn't as if he was going to force the kid but he wasn't going to just totally put it off either. Instead he wanted to find some happy medium where he wasn't going to have to completely fight the kid every step of the way.
"Well if that's the case make sure that you keep the first aid supplies handy," Skye said somewhat bitterly, shaking his head. "Because this never turns out well for me." Of course Skye didn't really want to train, he absolutely hated doing so with almost unrivaled passion, but what he did want was to be rid of the seal between his shoulder blades.
"Might be a good idea," Lavi mused, having already finished eating and now he was just waiting for Skye to finish so that the two of them could get on with it.
"The matter of fact way you just said that annoys me," Skye commented as he finished his meal and got to his feet. There was a detached look in his eyes as he stepped back and waited for Lavi to lead the way since, as was proven earlier, he had no idea where he was going.
Lavi got up and lead the way toward the Training Facility, only to come across Kanda. He wasn't entirely sure where the temperamental samurai was headed but a grin crossed his face and he couldn't help but call out to him.
In the most annoying way possible.
"Hey Yuu-chan!"
The reaction was immediate.
"Do not call me that you fucking rabbit!" Kanda snarled as he glared at the redhead, resisting the urge to draw his blade.
Skye whistled as he witnessed this rather harsh exchanged between the two of them. "You have a real winning personality," he quipped dryly as he gazed at the redhead.
"Aww don't be like that Yuu-chan," Lavi teased, simultaneously taking a step back as though he knew the dangers that he was facing. Which he really did since calling Kanda by his first name was akin to poking a bear with a stick, destined to end badly.
"I'm going to murder you," Kanda growled.
"And on that note," Skye muttered under his breath. "I'm going to take the opportunity to go somewhere else."
Lavi managed to snag the younger boy's arm before he could leave while simultaneously preparing to dodge any attacks that Kanda sent his way. "Not gonna get away that easy," he told the boy, giving him a knowing look while at the same time still making sure that he at least partially paid attention to Kanda.
Because to not do so was suicide.
Skye attempted to pull his arm free at the same moment that Kanda drew his blade. "I'd rather not die alongside you over something like this if it's all the same to you," Skye said, again attempting to extricate his arm from the teen's grasp.
"In case you've forgotten we're not exactly on very strong trust terms just yet for you not running off," Lavi reminded the boy before looking to Kanda as the swordsman drew his blade, releasing Skye and holding his hands up in a placating manner even as he backed up a little. "Aw, come on Yuu-chan, can't we resolve this peacefully?"
"Can't imagine why you wouldn't trust me," Skye said sarcastically, moving to stand against a wall the moment that he was released. "I haven't actually done anything."
He actually had to resist the urge to tack the word 'yet' onto that statement.
But he managed.
The blade was up in the blink of an eye, Kanda snarling out, "You're pushing your luck rabbit."
"But I didn't do anything, Yuu," Lavi defended, feigning innocence.
"Damn it," Kanda growled, holding Mugen in one hand and using the other to grab Lavi by the collar of his shirt. "You really do have a death wish."
Skye watched as this scenario unfolded for a moment before he turned and moved to walk away. "Have fun with that," the kid called out over his shoulder.
Another voice spoke up at this point and Skye realized that there was someone else in the corridor with them that he hadn't even noticed until the moment that he spoke. "The rabbit really never learns," he muttered before his gaze sought out Skye and he chose to follow. He wasn't exactly worried about Kanda actually killing the redhead after all, maybe hurt but it wasn't likely that he'd kill him. "Are you new?" he asked as he came up alongside the other boy, offering him a smile.
"Not technically speaking," Skye said as he continued to walk away, ignoring the stream of obscenities that came out of the dark haired teen's mouth. "I've been with the Order for several years but I just got here today." The tone of his voice was one of extreme bitterness as Skye answered the question.
"Doesn't sound like that was very pleasant," the other boy, Noel, said as he gazed at Skye sympathetically. He had always been incredibly perceptive to people's feelings, even when some certain other people weren't the same.
"Not really," Skye said before he stopped and turned toward the boy, a strange expression in his blue eyes. He managed to keep the sarcasm that his voice always contained to a minimum, which he considered quite an accomplishment. "Could you point me toward the nearest exit?" He almost had to fight back a hopeful tone as he made this request of the other boy.
"You won't get far even if Noel did," Noel said seriously, gazing at him knowingly.
"Why does everyone have to be so damn difficult?" Skye growled in irritation, having hoped that maybe this would work. Since his current companion knew nothing of his circumstances nor of the fact that he was being held hostage by the Order more or less.
"The same could probably be said about you from other people," Noel said thoughtfully.
"Could be, has been, doesn't really matter," Skye stated in a matter of fact and yet at the same time sarcastic tone. "I didn't ask to be here and I'm beyond useless for their purposes so I really don't get why they're so damn persistent."
It didn't make sense to him and it never had.
"Maybe not as much as you think," Noel murmured.
"I don't just think, I know," Skye returned, actually wincing as he recalled his previous 'training' sessions. "It's too painful to even watch, never mind actually being the one that's involved."
That was a special kind of hell.
"Maybe you just didn't go about it the right way," Noel suggested.
To Skye's confusion.
Skye tilted his head to the side quizzically as he asked, "There's a right and a wrong way?" A fact that was news to him and something that he was feeling as though he should have been told about if it were actually the truth.
"Well everyone's Innocence works differently, so trying to go about it the same way for everyone doesn't mean that you'll get results," Noel stated. "Learning how to use it and get it to work can be as different as the abilities each Innocence has and the people who use them. Noel knows one can influence time but isn't really a fighting type, others are straight forward weapons, or in Noel's case, so far as he knows he can be anything," he said. To demonstrate this he shifted to his canine form first and dragonfly before back again after a couple of seconds.
"No one ever bothered to tell me that," Skye said, his interest slightly piqued as he watched Noel change forms though he hid this fact well. "But it doesn't matter, the Innocence still doesn't work for me." He gave a derisive snort at this point. "And there's also the small matter of the fact that my powers are sealed."
"Do you believe your Innocence would work if you tried?" Noel questioned, tilting his head.
"I don't give a damn whether it works or not," Skye replied without hesitation.
"Then maybe it won't work because of that. If you don't care enough that it works or have a reason to use it then perhaps the Innocence isn't willing to provide you with its powers, "Noel guessed.
"Possibility," Skye said with a slight shrug of his shoulders. At this point the teen slumped slightly, leaning against the wall and looking thoughtful, a slightly haunted look appearing unbidden in his blue eyes. "I'm just so tired of being tortured." The boy didn't know what made him say this, blinking a couple of times as he heard the wrods escape his lips. There was just something about his current companion that somehow made it easier to talk. It was weird since Skye didn't really get along with anyone.
Of course he'd also never really had the opportunity to talk to someone who was close to his own age.
So maybe that helped.
"No one here's going to do that," Noel said, casting a glance over his shoulder before looking back to Skye with a smile. "Yuu likes to act like he's mean enough to do that but he's just in denial. Just don't tell him Noel said that," he said quietly with a giggle.
"They will," Skye said, his voice filled with certainty. "The moment that whatever they try doesn't work it'll begin all over again."
That was just the way that his life worked.
"If you can't use your Innocence very well then Komui probably paired you up with someone right?" Noel guessed before looking over his shoulder to where Lavi was dodging away from Kanda's attacks and simultaneously managing to enrage him by calling him by his given name again. "Was it the rabbit?"
"Rabbit?" Skye repeated as his gaze shifted over to the spot where the two older boys were still going at it. "If you mean the redheaded annoyance then yes, he's the one playing guard dog."
"He'd never do anything like that. It's the higher ups that you have to worry about but so long as it's in Komui's power he wouldn't even allow it or anyone else here either," Noel told him, seeming to be trying to reassure the other boy.
A shadow passed across Skye's blue eyes as he heard those words. "I've had more than enough dealings with the higher ups and am well familiar with what they're capable of… as for the guy named Komui, I don't trust him." Not really surprising given the fact that the kid didn't trust anyone, especially not those that were in a position of power in the Order.
"Why don't you just give it a chance? Not everyone has to be an enemy," Noel said, gazing at him thoughtfully.
"I haven't met anyone yet who wasn't but we'll see," Skye returned with a sigh as the angry shouts from the dark haired teen once again assaulted his eardrums. From the sounds of it he was really pissed which caused Skye to turn his gaze back to Noel. "Should we intervene before someone dies? Cause I could be wrong but that doesn't really sound promising."
"Well Yuu won't kill the rabbit but no guarantee he won't hurt him," Noel said, handing idly clasped behind his back as he gazed over at the two older boys. "The rabbit pretty much goes out of his way to piss Yuu off though so he really has it coming."
"Seems to me like he probably has that affect on a lot of people," Skye said as he watched the pair. Lavi was doing a pretty good job of dodging Kanda's attacks but Skye wasn't sure exactly how much longer his luck would hold out. Seemed to the kid that it would have to fail him at some point. Leaning against the wall and resisting the urge to make a break for it Skye muttered, "Is this likely to take very long?"
He was itching to be rid of the damnable seal of the CROW and the only way that was going to happen was if he and the annoying redhead went to train. And even in his thoughts he used the word with the full sarcasm included.
"Probably unless one of them gets bored or tired," Noel said before sauntering over and hugging his mentor around the waist. "C'mon Yuu, it's not even worth it. He's just gonna keep dodging you anyway," he said with a slight pout and not giving much thought to the hug despite most people didn't even like to come within feet of the pissy Exorcist.
Kanda ceased in his efforts to slice the annoying redhead in half as he was suddenly grabbed around the waist. Glancing at his own tag-along the samurai growled, "Don't call me that." Though his tone was just a tiny bit different when he said this to Noel.
"Everyone here is insane," Skye muttered to himself.
"So where ya headed Yuu-chan?" Lavi asked with a smirk, folding his arms behind his head again.
Kanda instantly turned glaring dark eyes back toward the redhead. "That's none of your damn business!"
"That's it," Skye huffed as he sensed that the fight was about to break out once again. Seemed to the boy that his guard dog was a little one the suicidal side of the spectrum and he didn't want to deal with that. "I'm leaving." This said the kid turned to walk away down the hall, even though he didn't have the slightest idea of where it even led.
"Whatever you say," Lavi said with a shrug, turning to follow his little charge. Normally he would have continued to antagonize Kanda but he had a duty to keep an eye on Skye after all and the kid didn't seem to be enjoying this game as much as he was.
"I'm going to kill him later," Kanda snarled as he watched the Junior Bookman retreat.
"Stop following me," Skye grumbled as he noticed that Lavi was now following him again. He mentally kicked himself for having announced the fact that he was leaving; should have just slipped off without a word.
That would have been the smart thing to do.
"Well that would really defeat the purpose, wouldn't it? I was tasked with keeping an eye on you and keeping you from running away," he said casually.
Skye came to a halt at this point, twitching slightly. "That, in and of itself, annoys me. I wasn't aware that this was a prison."
"Well I could give you a whole day's worth of lectures on why that's important and how many people you could be endangering but somehow I don't think that you'd care either way," Lavi said in a conversational voice.
"I'm sure I've heard it before," Skye muttered, for the briefest of moments looking slightly like a scolded child. "But it doesn't matter…I can't use the Innocence. C-A-N-T… I'm not sure how much plainer I can be but no one seems to get it."
"Maybe you just haven't had the right teacher," Lavi stated.
"If you think you can do better then by all means feel free to try," Skye muttered, sounding as though he didn't believe it was going to make a difference. And of course this statement was going to be null and void the moment that he got an opportunity to make an attempt at freedom, which he still hadn't given up on by any means.
A/N: End of the second chapter and now Skye-Skye has been saddled with his new mentor. He's not terribly happy about it. Also as stated before this was originally a roleplay between myself and Bamboofoxfireproductions, to whom Noel belongs.