And chapter 10. Enjoy folks!
I do not own Soul eater.
Insanity spreads much like a disease, as it passes to everyone in time. The same is true that some people can withstand it longer than others. Though in time, it seeps into our minds and destroys us from the inside out. That is the nature of the illness, and like many diseases, once it is there, a small part will always remain within. A Kishin is simply the catalyst to speed up the infection, and this was exactly what The DWMA fought to prevent. To Ingrahm, it was a beauty yet to be beheld by the world. Insanity was a natural thing, and he would embrace it. Bringing it to its full potential, Ingrahm would show the entire world the nature of insanity.
He stared out into the snow covered horison, focusing on a black sillouette in the distance as it enlarged in size every few seconds. Reaching out his hand, he waited for his pet to return to him. The giant raven took the invitation and purched itself firmly on his shoulder, crowing loudly as it landed and tried to make itself comfortable. Scratching under the large bird's chin, Ingrahm grinned with a malicious expression before asking his pet for its report.
"So my dear, what news have you brought me of the witch child?" he almost sang his question, as he was looking forward to good news. The raven cawed loudly before looking its master in the eyes and allowing him so see what it had seen.
The image of a thin teenage boy came into view within Ingrahm's mind. He watched as the teen was curled up on a bed, clutching the pillow to his chest tightly. The boy would look up every now and then with a fearfull expression upon his face. Ingrahm knew he could see the bird watching him, and the man only grinned wider. The image faded and changed from the boy's room to outdoors. Ingrahm could see the teen talking with a girl with long red hair, who looked as if she wanted to be anywhere else at that moment. Both teens had their weapons drawn, and the girl seemed to be explaining something.
"Well now, it seems he's found a new companion. Interesting." he spoke in a low menacing tone, as the images faded from his mind. "We'll have to keep our eye's on that one now won't we?" the raven crowed at it's master's words before taking flight once again to spy on the poor young boy.
Ingrahm retreated to the inner chamber of the ruins, the place he had claimed for his personal quarters. He was waiting for a particular two individuals to arrive and bring him his next batch of souls. The two leading members of the Wargs, a group of immortals who neither cared what they did or who it might bring consequences to. Ingrahm was expecting them at any moment. When he heard the footsteps of the little witch Lydia, he knew they had arrived.
"Lord Ingrahm sir, The Wargs are here to see you." her timid voice echoed through the large room.
"Good, send them in. I can't wait to get those lovely souls." the look of hunger in his eyes terrified her, and she nodded curtly as she ran to bring the expected guests.
A large lanky man accompanied by a smaller more agile young woman, entered the room. Each of them carrying a large sac over their shoulder. "Hey old man! Heres your catch of the day!" the girl shouted before grabbing and throwing both of the bags towards the strange alter that Ingrahm was standing beside.
"I thank both of you. Brass, your little group has done well." he took the bags, smiling in a way that sent chills up all their spines. Brass didn't completely trust his employer, but he didn't speak out agianst him either.
Melk on the other hand, was far more vocal than her partner, "You better make good on your half of this old man! Or I might enjoy tearing your ass appart!" she gave a toothy grin, that Lydia swore she was almost as frightenning as her master. Immortals were known to be aggressive, and Melk was only serving to prove that point.
"Lydia, be a good girl and take these to the storage area for me."He motioned for her to come forward, and she did as he asked. "Now then, Melk. I promise you I'll keep my word. Just keep up the work. You and your companions will all be rewarded in due time."
"We damn well better be." she snarled, then turned to leave, "Come on Brass, next hunt is starting."
With a nod as her answer, the larger man followed her out of the ruins and into the cold wastelands surrounding them. Ingrahm was smiling wickedly, as he watched the pair leave. Progress was being made faster than he had expceted, and he was more than pleased with it. As he paced around the altar with a smug expression, a small black bird made its way inside and to his shoulder.
"Hmm, what have you brought for me little one?" touching the birds forhead he searched its mind to find what he was looking for. He devious smile only widened when he saw what the crow had to show him. "This could be interesting."
Ayelis was more excited than she had been in a long time. The girl was finally allowed to return to classes, and she was making the most of it. She had been up before her alarm even had a chance to go off, and had all of her things ready to go. Vizy and Lyall were groggily sitting at the kitchen table, watching their meister nearly bouncing all over the appartment. Both boys were happy for her of course, but they wished she would be a little more subtle about it all. Before they could even finish their breakfast, Ayelis was out the door and heading up the street. She took her time to enjoy the walk, and was more than happy to see the familliar building at the center of Death City. After nearly three weeks of being useless, Ayelis was never happier to see the DWMA.
"I suppose I really did miss being here." she smiled to herself as she climbed the steps of the academy.
She was early, but she didn't care. She had actually wanted to pay a quick visit to someone she hadn't seen since before her hospitalization, and now was a good time to do it. Making her way down the quiet halls of the school Ayelis found the room she was looking for. She knocked four times and waited for a response. The door opened slowly, and the teenage boy that had answered was a little surprised to see her.
"Ayelis? Why are you here? It's... too early for class yet isn't it?"
"Well I wanted to come visit you. And congradulate you on your new resonance partner too." she smiled at the nervous boy in front of her, "I heard Augusty Ward is hard to get along with, but I hope she doen't give you a hard time Crona. I've seen her in class before."
"She's nice, but I don't think she likes me very much." his eyes drifted to the floor as he kicked his toe into the ground. Crona hadn't had a chance really to visit with Ayelis for a while, so he was glad in a way that she came to see him.
"Of course she doesn't like you you moron! Who would?" Ayelis jumped at the scratchy little voice, but soon remembered who it belomged to as Ragnarock appeared above Crona's head. She ignorred the little black demon and kept her attention on Crona.
"I'm sure everything will be okay."she tried her best to stay positive, knowing that Crona had a hard enough time doing so on his own. "Why don't I wait here with you until class starts? I don't really have anywhere else to go untill then."
Crona's eyes shot up at her suggestion, then he glanced around the room almost as if he was looking for something. He shifted nervously before speaking, and Ayelis was a little worried that she had said something to make him upset. "Lets go somewhere else okay? To...to wait for class to start."
Ayelis nodded, not wanting to make him uncomfortable. The two made their way down the halls of the school in silence untill students started to show up. Ayelis was happy to be back, but something was off about Crona. He was more fidgety than usual it seemed, like he was afraid someone was going to jump out of nowhere and attack him. Even Ragnarock was quiet, which made her uneasy. Her worries were calmed and shoved aside for the moment though when she saw her partners heading to the classroom. Lyall seemed more awake now, but Vizy was still in a groggy mood. With Crona close behind her Ayelis stepped inside the familiar room, and almost imediately she felt uncomfortable. Several pairs of eyes were on her the instant she stepped through the door. All of them surprised to see her after her long absence.
Maka and Tsubaki had spotted their friends, and waves eagerly for them to take their seats. Crona sat to Maka's left next to a red haired girl with stern eyes, as Ayelis took the seat behind them in the next row beside Lyall. The scythmeister was glad to have her back in class. Ayelis smiled at all of them, before handing a notebook to each Maka and Tsubaki.
"Your notes. Thank you again for lending them to me. At least I can still keep up with whats been happening in class thanks to you two." she said with a rare tone of confidence, as both girls nodded in response.
"So Ayelis, whatever happened to your parents that day? Did they come back later or something?" the pigtailed girl questioned her, wondering how things had gone with the Quinn family.
Ayelis's face dropped a little, and she didn't answer. The truth was she didn't know where her parents had gotten to, and when it came to her mother she didn't exactly care either. Her father however, she did worry about. He hadn't called or anything since their encounter a couple of days before. As the students filed into the classroom, and Marie took her place at the front. Class had begun, and Ayelis was grateful for the distraction. The topic of her parents always hit a hard nerve, and she didn't like to discuss it much. Maka could tell she wasn't in a talking mood any longer, and chose to leave her alone.
Marie took attendance, noting that a few of her students were still missing, but she continued. "All right class, lets get started. And seeing as we have a student rejoining us today I think it would be a good idea to go over some of the things we've covered these past two weeks." Marie smiled as she addressed the class, seeing Ayelis as well as Crona had both made themselves present. She wondered though, just how long it would last.
Lord Death was doing everything her could not to cover his ears, as the shrill voice continued to rattle his brain. The woman speaking had insisted on a meeting with him, and now he was regretting it. Devilda Quinn hade found her way to the DWMA and had demanded that she be allowed to see Lord Death. She was determined to get what she wanted, and despite Angello's attempts to stop her, she had finally gotten her wish.
"I want you to explain to me how you think those filthy little nosepickers are a suitable group for MY daughter!" she was raging, "She is a much higher class than any of them, and I want you to find her proper teammates imediately! And I suggest you try to controll that son of yours! The nerve of that boy talking down to me the way he did, I was appauled!"
The Grim Reaper had been listening to her bash away at Maka and the others, and was keeping his cool pretty well despite how he wanted to lash out at her. Until she mentioned Kid. Lord Death was not easily angered, but in this case he was ready to fly off the handle. "My son was stating the truth Mrs. Quinn. He explained it all to me the night you arrived in town, and if you say another word about my son or ANY of my students, I can have you permanently removed from Death City." the reaper glared at her, a warning not to push the issue, "Now I see no reason to change Ayelis' group, and I suggest you leave them alone. I am the founder of this academy, and I take pride in all of my students. That includes Ayelis and her partners."
Devilda was speachless once more. Not only had she failed to accomplish her goal, but she was once again shot down. This time by the Grim Reaper himself. Her husband sat quietly, waiting for the heated discussion to come to an end. When he saw that his wife had no words left, he took that as his cue. Angello stood up and approched his wife, taking her by the arm and began to lead her to the exit. He knew Lord Death was angry, and he would be too if someone came in talking trash about his child. He only hoped that Devilda would see she was wrong from this, and start to rethink her ways. Not only for their daughter's sake, but for her own as well.
Lord Death let out a heavy sigh, as he watch the couple leave the Death Room. He had only met Angello when Ayelis first came to the DWMA, and now he understood why the poor man hadn't brought his wife the first time. Spirit had been in the room through the entire thing, and Lord Death was amazed that he hadn't burst into the conversation to defend Maka. He had asked that Spirit remain calm and quiet, as he knew it was going to be a rather intense meeting. Kid had already warned his father about the woman's hot temper. The reaper could tell though, that his deathscyth wanted nothing more than to slap the fowl hag of a woman for everything she had said about Maka and the others. If Maka's mother had been there, no doubt she would have hit Devilda full force for her insults.
"Well, now that thats over. How about some tea?" Lord Death's cheery composure had returned, and he was back to being his bubbly self. Though it still bothered him to know that Ayelis' mother was such a hateful woman. He had to wonder, if it was her that had caused the irregular pattern of the girl's soul to begin with. He would have to get Stein to look into it further. For the moment though, Lord Death would keep an eye on Devilda while she was still in town.
Death the Kid stood thinking quietly to himself. The young reaper had a nagging suspicion that his father had done the same as him and put Devilda Quinn in her place. Kid was waiting outside of the death room, as he had just finished talking with Lord Death about the woman before she stormed in. As she passed the boy, she merely glared at him as if she were certain she would prove him wrong by talking with his father. From how she came stomping out, Kid guessed that things hadn't gone in her favor. Angello spared him an wave and a nod, letting him know that he had nothing to worry about. This was a relief, and Kid decided to make his way back to class. Liz and Patty knew where he had gone and were waiting for their meister to bring them the news. By the time everything had taken place and Kid returned to class, it was noon. He spotted both his weapons waiting for him just outside the classroom.
"So how did it go?" Liz was the first one to speak.
"I don't think we have to worry about Mrs. Quinn. My father handled it well I think." he replied with a satified smirk, but it quickly changed to a concerned frown.
Liz watched her meister, and wondered what made him change his mood this time. She followed his gaze inside the classroom and towards a lone figure still sitting at her seat. Liz frowned, as she realized who it was. Ayelis was sitting alone again, and looking as though she was a lost little puppy. Patty caught on to what they both were starring at, and imediately she went inside and waltzed right up to the gloomy little axe meister. She plopped herself down in frot of the ashen haired teen, and stared strait at her. Ayelis was confused by Patty's actions.
"Um... what are you starring at?" she shifted nervously, but Patty's eyes stayed glued to her face.
"How come you're by yourself?" Ayelis only blinked at the simple question. Not entirely sure how she should answer, but Patty continued, "You can come hang out with us, right sis?" she waved to Liz, motioning for her sister and Kid to come sit with them.
Liz took the seat on the right side of Ayelis, and smiled brightly, "Yeah, we don't mind. Where's that doofus partner of yours anyway?" she looked around, seeing absolutley nobody else beside the four of them in the room.
"Oh... Vizy and Lyall had something to do." came the simple reply, as Ayelis only gave them a weak smile. "I said I would wait here."
"Look, if this is about what your crazy mom said, then don't worry. you're stuck with all of us." Liz grinned, but it didn't seem to help much. Kid shushed her, knowing that the topic wasn't a good one to bring up.
"Hey I know!"
All three stared at Patty as she jumped up from her seat and bolted for the door. Confused once again by the younger sister's motives, they all waited for her to return. It only took a moment for Patty to come racing back to the classroom, panting heavily as she sat back down in front of Ayelis. The blonde gave the biggest smile she could muster, and held out something to the female meister. Liz laughed at the expression on the girl's face as her sister held up the item.
"I bet this will cheer you up!" Patty beamed happily.
"Is that..." Ayelis stared at the item as her eyes widened, recognizing her edible weakness.
"Yup! It's cookies and cream!" Patty giggled as Ayelis took the chocolate bar from her hand, looking at the younger Thompson sister as if to ask her permission.
Patty nodded, still laughing st the other girl's expression as she quickly tore open the wrapper. Ayelis was soon drifting off into happy land as she enjoyed the sweet treat. Liz could only laugh, as she watched and Kid couldn't help letting out a snicker. The bell had rang, signalling that it was time for the students to return from their lunch break. Ayelis completely ignorred it, as she was happily munching away on the chocolate bar Patty had so graciously given her.
As the rest of the group made their way back to class, they all looked at their friends who were already sitting and laughing away. Maka stopped to take in the amusing scene, and Soul just shook his head, trying not to laugh himself. Tsubaki giggled as she watched the picture, and Black Star howled out, falling to the ground in hysterics. Ayelis was blissfully unaware of them all, and she was more thankful than ever for whoever it was that ever invented chocolate treats. When Vizy and Lyall entered the room, both boys deadpanned, as they caught sight of their meister. Once again, she had fallen victim to the pleasure a simple treat could bring, but they didn't mind. At least she was smiling again. The events of the past few days on hold and forgotten for the moment. Even as Crona returned to his seat, the boy couldn't help but smile at the group. The red head next to him from before, only watched. Her eyes betraying her expression as she observed the group. She saw the smile on Crona's face, and decided that she would give her best, since the boy was her new resonance partner. A genuine smile finally broke through her stone composure, as she watched.
Marie called for them all to take their seats and calm down, though she was glad to see that her students were in better spirits since the morning. "All right, lets pick up where we left off this morning."
And there you have it. Not only did Kid tell off Ayelis' mom, but Lord Death did too. Gave some insight into my villains ^_^ I like Melk cuz she's feisty and yay for cookies and cream!
R&R please ~.~