-------Alice speaks------

First off, here is a well made chocolate ice-cream cake from me to Karoomy-chan! For guessing right, :D.

Oh and, a huge vanilla cake to plasticfries for trying and reviewing!

Not to forget, micro-chan (can I call you that?) too! So a strawberry cake to ya! ^^

------------------------Chapter start-----------------------

He was always selfish. He thinks about others but at the same time he doesn't.

Does that even make sense to you?

Red stained White bird

Chapter 3: When we start anew

--------------------------At a not so distant future-------------------------

Damn it. Damn it all, why the hell was he always so… so selfish?!? He was always so damn selfish! He's too self-centered in thinking that others matters most!! Why can't he just let me, no, let us, his family help in?! He is so damn selfish I tell you!! We could have helped. We could have walked out of this problem together, hand by hand, by one another side. Even if we were harmed, we would all still survive… together. Those physical pains could have healed up by time.

But he decided to take it all to himself.

"Oi, Baka-usagi!" a sharp growl from the samurai in front of me snapped me out of my thoughts and I released the tightened grip of my own fist that I didn't realize I was even holding.

Jerking my head upwards to gaze him, I froze. No wonder he did not meet my eye earlier on. If it wasn't for the prove staring directly at me right now, I wouldn't have believe anyone who says that the Third heir of the Lotus Family, Yuu Kanda can feel immense worry and pain for someone other than his own well being.

I must have been staring at the raven haired Japanese for too long since he averted his gaze away towards something at the middle of the sea. Or maybe not. He was pin-pointing at an object seemingly being pushed into the water before floating back up again and again as strong tidal waves of the storm hit it repeatedly.

"I can't leave this boat, so you have to retrieve him, you hear me rabbit?!" Kanda added irritatingly when I didn't move or acknowledge whatever he was referring to.

After a few seconds of me not moving, still a bit dumbstruck, the Japanese in front of me lost his patience, grabbed hold of my collar and threw me straight into the ocean at the direction of said object.

------------------------------The present----------------------------

Instantaneously, the girl – Lenalee Lee – groaned when the man that yelled in disagreement pulled her closely to his chest.

"Oh shit, was he planning to take the girl hostage!?!" Lavi inwardly cursed when that thought crossed his mind. He can also feel others tensed around him but none took action. For a second, Lavi wondered why but when the girl opened her mouth to speak and the next scene unfolded, the red-head had mixed feelings.

"Brother!! What do you think are you doing??" the Chinese teen crossly yelled as she tried to squirm out of her proclaimed brother's tight grip.

"No, Lenalee!! I can't have them making you do such awful things and put your life in danger!! Never!!!" the violet-haired man shouted back in denial as he pulled out a syringe-like thing from his white lab coat and forced the contents into his so-called sister's blood system.

"Brother! No! You'll… be-" whatever drugs the older Lee sibling had put in was taking effect as the pig-tailed girl's eyes started to droop shut, "pu…ni…sh…" With that last word, her body went limp in the current head of the Black Order Family's arm.

"Komui Lee. It'd be advisable if you refrain yourself from-" A Portuguese man with curly hair started but his sentence was left hanging when the now crazed man summoned a huge machine into the room, making all the Mafia leaders and to-be-leaders in the room raise their guards.

"KOMURIN!!! Bring my sister to safety!" the older Lee sibling commanded to the gigantic piece of metal.

Immediately, Lavi took out the revolver strapped to his waist while the senior bookman held the sharp needle-like weapon in between his fingers. Kanda, the third heir to the Third Lotus family, sheathed his trusty sword and the trio began to attack the huge Komurin.

"What the!" the red-head widened his eyes when his bullet reflected off the metal, same goes for the old panda, when his needles bounced off it.

"Mwahaha. Do you think the leader for the Black Order family is that weak?" the bespectacled man laughed.

"That guy is the seventh leader of the Black Order?!?" the forty ninth Bookman gaped, but according to the records, Komui Lee was a strict man with an organized personality and staff!! Well, that shows you can't believe everything you read.

The violet-haired man's laugh was only short-lived unfortunately when his precious creation was cut in half cleanly.

"NoooOOOOooOOOo!!! Komurin!!!" the tall man wailed when those two pieces exploded lightly.

"Che, pathetic." And the sheathing of a sword can be heard.

"Great job, Yuu!" the red-head gave a thumbs-up at his self-proclaimed best friend who he had been staying with for years during the Bookman's family stay at Japan.

At the mention of the name, the dark-haired samurai gave a morbid glare at the forty ninth Bookman but did not have the time to do anything more to the red-head when a clapping sound was heard.

"Well, that was just a spectacular show," the sing-song voice of the Earl complimented as he turned to Kanda, "You have quite the skills." The Japanese merely growled back.

"So, what are you going to do to him as punishment, Earl~" a childish voice chuckled as a girl with dark blue spiky hair jumped on the Millennium Earl's shoulder and clung herself onto him. "Can I play with him??" That next sentence sent chills down the spines of the people outside of the Noah family.

"Ohohoho, I'm afraid you can't Rho-"

"Dreams. We are supposed to use codenames here, Earl." The earlier Portuguese man reminded as he lighted his cigarette.

"Ah, thanks for reminding me Pleasure." The Earl nodded his head at the man's direction before continuing, "As I was saying Dream, you can't. Since your way of punishment is too-"

"Aww!!! That's not fair!!" the spiky haired girl pouted but relented anyway.

"Don't worry Dreamy, Black Order the seventh is suffering quite well as we speak," the fourteenth Noah member assured his senior.

Lavi turned his attention towards the masked boy earlier and the self proclaimed able-to-fly boy was pointing towards the seventh Black Order who was sobbing over the destruction of his precious creation. Then to make matter worse for the older Lee sibling, his sister had recovered from the sleeping drug and was now off to lecture her brother with a very pissed off look on her face.

"But Lenalee!!! I did it for your safe-" the rest of his words were unheard as a resounding crash indicating he had fell out and through the window was heard.

The pigtailed Chinese girl huffed and sighed before turning her attention back to the rest of the ones who are present.

"I apologize on behalf of my brother," she deeply bowed to the Noah Family specifically.

"Ohoho, that's fine. But you seemed fine kicking your brother like that. Aren't you worried about his injuries or so?" the Earl inquired more out of curiosity rather than worry.

"He's a Mafia leader. I'm certain he is capable to survive something as minor as a fall," came the straight answer.

The Earl chuckled, quite pleased at the answer he heard.

Seeing those events unfolding before him, Lavi realized something. These other heirs, they were far more capable and ready in succeeding as the leader of their family compared to him. Lenalee Lee, she was punished her brother without any doubts whatsoever and during the short battle –well, it can't exactly be called a battle but yeah, the fight with Komurin earlier, Kanda proved his strength in front of the Earl. While he, Lavi, did nothing but tried and fail and watch the entire show. His impression towards the Noah and other families were not looking good.

Bookman the forty-eighth must have sensed his heir's concerns thoughts for he replied, "You are not yet trained for this. You were given the privilege to learn information networks first before learning how to battle. Whilst they were trained in reverse."

To be honest, Lavi was surprised when the old panda said that but it made him feel better nonetheless.

"Okay~ Enough of this chit-chatting. It is time to end this gathering," the Earl called the attention back towards him, "As I said, the government are onto us but they will not suspect our heirs yet and I assume most of you have not finished your training to be a leader, correct?"

Lavi nodded in acceptance of his own limit of knowledge, from the corner of his eye, he was sure that Lenalee too nodded her head while the ever scowling Kanda just che-d reluctantly. However, none of the three Noah family successor's that were present, made a move to acknowledge what the Earl said.

"Could they have finished their training already?" Lavi thought to himself, skeptical. Especially towards the white-haired boy and the spiky-haired girl, even though she is the first-said successor.

"Ah… Then, this plan would be perfect." The earl nodded happily as he pulled out several papers from inside his coat and handed them to the three successors in the room.

"An academy?" Lenalee was the one who voiced her confusion upon setting her eyes on the piece of catalogue of a certain academy.

The head of the Noah family nodded as if it was natural, "Yes. That academy is placed at a non-fighting land. The ruler of that country is very strict on peace and won't tolerate any wars or battles. Even so, there is an academy there that trains youths to be hitmen, assassins, spies and the likes." Okay, Lavi had to admit, that kind of contradicts the ruler's aim for a non-battle land, "Basically, it is an academy for people who wants to involve themselves in this kind of business, either for the government, self-interest or even the Mafia. They don't care where you go, they just train you to do what you want to do."

"And I suppose the ruler built this academy to gather all possible threats in his land and when they graduate he can make sure they are out of the country? Making his country stay peaceful as people with such skills are out of the country by then, quite smart." Lavi did not realize he was thinking out loud, not until most of the occupants were staring at him. "Ah! Sorry! I was just thinking out loud!!" Lavi held up his hands in front of him, blushing in embarrassment, and not daring to look at his gramps for the red-head had a feeling the old panda's stare would pierce straight through his heart.

"That is quite fine, forty ninth Bookman," the Earl grinned, "As expected from you, you are the only one successor here who already finished his information network training." He gave a wink at Lavi and the red-head's blush deepened a bit. "Even Dream is not as good as you." Now that was a real shocker.

"Earl!! You weren't supposed to say things like that!!" the dark haired girl pouted again but she didn't seem to care at the statement.

"hahaha. Okay, let me continue." The earl flashed another grin at Lavi and the red head had to look away and oh lucky, his eyes landed on the old panda beside him. However, instead of the angry face the junior bookman was expecting, the old man seems to be satisfied…

"So, due to these convenient circumstances, the three successors here can go there for a year in maximum. There they can learn new things while staying in touch with one another. I expect you to be ready if any unexpected or expected things were to present themselves." In other words, the Earl was implying them to be ready to take over the family if the current leaders were to be found out by the government. "Are we clear on that?" satisfied with the nods, the Earl clapped his hands together, "righty then. You three are going to that academy in less than a week!"

"Wait, three? What about them?" Surprisingly, Kanda was the one who asked as he directed his gaze at the white-haired boy and the spiky-haired girl.

"Ohohoho. No worries on the Noah Family." The earl chuckled, "Some of my successors will be present there but we are not certain about that yet."

"Don't worry, feminine-faced sir," at that nickname, Lavi had to suppress a laugh as he looked away from the white-haired masked boy who had spoken, "All I need to perfect is how to fly! So I don't think I will be going to that academy!" Following this sentence, the fourteenth Noah member gave a toothy grin at the Third successor for the Third Lotus family.

The dark-haired Japanese was very much pissed at the nick name, before anyone can bat an eyelid, the man had already dashed towards the masked boy and then the sound of two matals hitting one another ranged through the hall.

"Urusai, moyashi!!" Wow. Kanda made a nickname at that spot and time. He was so pissed off too that he accidentally let his native tongue slip.

"Mo-ya-shi? Is that a kind of food?" the fourteenth replied casually. Even though the samurai ahd his sword drawned and that same sword was now clashing wiht several metal claws like fingers.

"There. There. Now~" the Earl snapped his fingers and the boy released the Japanese man's sword from his claws. Now that Lavi looked closely, the claws were protuding out from the boy's left hand like it was his own fingers.

"Eheh. It wasn't my fault. The guy just got scared I can fly that he attacked me."

"what the hell?" Kanda blurted out, "Fuck, what are you say-"

"Musician." That took back the white haired boy's attention. The earl sighed, "you are not finished with training yourself you know."

"I know but I can fly now! and that is an improvement, earl!!" the boy replied enthusiatically.

"Seriously, what is with this kid and flying?!" the red-head screamed in his head, "Is it like a mental side effect of becoming a Noah through that experiment thing??"

--------------------------End of chapter two-------------------------