Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and followed! It means a lot! From now on, I'm going to reply to the reviews involving questions or things I would like to touch up on. Sound good? By the way for those of you that asked, Cross will not be in this story as far as I know, but you guys know how I am about screwing up my own plots!
Yuki Walker-The Kitsune: Klaud has never met Kanda before. Hope that cleared up any confusion!
MaxAngelOfDeath: Yes, I love TFK! "War of Change" and "Be Somebody" are my favorites.
Daft bean: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoy my stories! As for the romance, this story may be labeled "AllenKandaAllen" and under the "Romance" genre, but there really won't be much romance in it due to the topic and trauma. I do agree that Allen is a bit too undamaged, but I'm letting his character remain like that to balance Kanda as well as show that his "family" kept him pure, if that makes sense.
Hisuiryuu: Thanks! Also, if you enjoy the songs, I have a collection of song fanfictions called "Songs" (creative, I know!) if you want to check it out!
Tsukiko K and FionaEve-chan: Maybe Klaud and Komui will be a couple, I don't really know for sure yet myself. And you'll have to read and find out who the boy was!
Chains
Chapter 5: Shower
"She sits in her corner, singing herself to sleep, wrapped in all of the promises that no one seems to keep. She no longer cries to herself, no tears left to wash away. Just diaries of empty pages, feelings gone astray. But she will sing….
"'Til everything burns while everyone screams. Burning their lies. Burning my dreams. All of this hate and all of this pain. I'll burn it all down as my anger reigns. 'Til everything burns!"
―"Everything Burns" by Anastacia
Oo_oO_Oo_oO
Movement wakes me. However, this time, I refuse to let my heater leave like earlier this morning and cling to his tiny waist. There's a grunt. "Moyashi, let go."
"No, and it's Allen," I grumble. "I'm going back to sleep, and so are you."
"You can sleep after you eat."
Then the smell of hot, fresh bread hits me. Klaud asks, "Neither of you are allergic to nuts, are you?"
"I'm not," Kanda says. I sit up. "No."
Chocolate chip scones, blueberry muffins, and banana nut bread. I smile sadly and bite a chunk out of a muffin. "Mana loves blueberries. We used to go blueberry picking on Saturday mornings."
"Where at? I wasn't aware there was a place like that nearby," Klaud says.
I pause, swallowing my bite. "I'm not sure exactly. I think it was on the other side of Charleston."
"Charleston?" Klaud says. "That far?"
"Huh?"
"That's hours away."
"Where are we?" I ask, suddenly confused. Weren't we in South Carolina?
"Knoxville, Tennessee."
My eyes widen.
"What's Tennessee?"
Klaud and I turn to look at a very confused Kanda, who was eating a scone.
"Where are you from?" Klaud asked. Kanda stared at her. After a long moment of silence, he answers, "Sapporo."
"Japan?" she asked.
"Yeah." Kanda's body positioning shifted slightly. It's obvious that he doesn't trust Klaud, but he'd been relaxing a little bit more and more every day. He even told me that in a few more days, we might take her up on the shower offer.
Every day for the past two weeks, Klaud has been bringing us breakfast before work and dinner afterwards. When she brings dinner, she asks if she can stay for little while and talk to us. I'm all about it, though Kanda is constantly on edge. He wouldn't let me tell her anything about how we met, what we were running from, or anything related, but I still talked her ear off. Kanda stayed silent. When Klaud asked him something, he never gave a straight answer, talking in circles or metaphors. Some I understood, but most of the time, they just went over my head.
"You're English is very good," Klaud said. "Who taught you?"
Kanda stared at her for a long another moment. Then he said, "When no one wants the kitten, it goes to the pound. It has to learn what the dogs and other cats are saying, doesn't it?"
Klaud nodded. "Of course. What happened when the kitten got adopted?"
"Who said it got adopted? Maybe it got thrown out. A hungry kitten just wants some love, but there's a reason why most run rather than rub against of the leg of every stranger it meets."
The alertness in the blonde's eyes bumped scales with Kanda's. I simply sat there in confusion, lost in their analogies.
"Did a stranger take the kitten to their house?" Klaud asked.
"The kitten got locked up in a cage."
"Then what happened?"
Kanda shook his head. "The kitten died. Became a dog."
"And when the dog was bad, did they cut him on the shoulder?" Klaud asked.
"You're reading your bedtime story too fast, Nine." Kanda pulled his shirt closer to himself, particularly on his left side, and looked to the side. "May give you nightmares."
She smiled sadly. "You set the pace."
Kanda glanced at me as I nibbled on banana nut bread. After a moment, he says, "We washed off in a river a few weeks ago. I'm sure anything with a sense of smell would be most appreciative if we bathed."
I smile. "Really?!"
"However you want to do things," Klaud says, but she can't hide the smile on her face. Kanda rolled his eyes at me and muttered, "Walk me there now. Tomorrow morning, leave your key here and you can pick it back up before you go home."
Oo_oO_Oo_oO
"You definitely made Allen happy," Klaud said as she walked down the sidewalk. Beside her, Kanda scanned the area constantly, taking in every detail for tomorrow's trip as well as to keep watch for the people around him.
"Like bribing a kid with candy," Kanda muttered.
"You don't like candy?" Klaud asked.
"I prefer my kool-aid untainted."
Klaud nods. "However, not every pitcher of kool-aid is poisoned."
"You're less likely to fall for what's poisoned if you assume everything offered is laced with venom," Kanda says while he follows Klaud around a corner. She didn't push; Kanda didn't care. But one question kept bugging him. Now would be a golden opportunity….
"Why do you do it?"
Klaud's eyebrows furrowed. "Do what?"
"Help me and Allen. What's in it for you?"
"Why does there have to be something in it for me?"
"Because at some point in adulthood, you lose your soul. You let go of your humanity like last season's trends, using others to your advantage, thinking you're so much better than a child when that child knows more about the world than you ever will." Kanda eyed a man and woman walking out of a diner. How could they laugh like that? Don't they know someone could pull a gun on them at any time? Are they that naïve or just carefree?
Klaud followed his gaze. She constantly wondered what he was thinking about. He was so young, yet more aware of his surroundings than anyone. "I'm not sure I fully agree. It's not that every adult looses their soul, just most. I think that when a person forgets the child that's still inside them, that's when they let go."
"Adults expect too much from children."
"That I agree with."
Kanda glanced at her, and then back at the sidewalk. "You're unusual for a cop."
"Why do you say that?" Klaud asked.
"You still have a soul."
"So law enforcement can't have souls?"
"For the most part, no."
Klaud paused. "Well, I'm not really a typical police officer. I specialize in sex trafficking cases."
"That's explains it then."
"Explains what?"
"What's in it for you," Kanda growled. "You find two boys in an abandoned building and think, 'Oh, there's my next paycheck.'"
"I found a scared, little boy in an abandoned building and thought, 'My gosh, he needs help. What can I do?'"
Kanda shrugs. "I've heard better excuses."
Klaud sighs, but holds her tongue. She couldn't change his mind about her; that was his responsibility.
oO_Oo_oO_Oo
"This place is really nice," I say as I glance around the small apartment. A table and kitchen to the left and living area and balcony to the right. Then there was a door on the other wall. Kanda closed the main door, locked it, and latched the deadbolt before he darted over to the balcony door, checking the lock and closing the curtains.
Well, now it was dark. Light switch…light switch….
"Don't turn on the lights," Kanda muttered as his silhouette opened the bedroom door. "We have no presence at the moment, and that's how it needs to stay."
I rush to his side and into the bedroom, not fond of being alone in a dark, open space. Not that I haven't been in those situations before, but I prefer company.
After Kanda locked the bedroom door, he walked into the bathroom and pulled me along before I could examine the bedroom in any detail.
"She said we could use whatever we found in here since we don't have lice," Kanda muttered as he inspected the small bathroom. It wasn't anything impressive. To the right of the door was a sink and vanity, then toilet, and the shower and bath was across from the entrance.
I say, "I just want a shower."
"Then start it."
"What are you going to do? Check for bombs?"
"Cameras."
"Seriously?"
"Just take your shower."
While Kanda checked the cabinets and drawers, the toilet and sink, I started to undress. It was warm in the bathroom, especially when Kanda started the shower. The squeal of the showerhead seemed so foreign to my ears it had been so long, but it made the anticipation in my chest become almost unbearable.
"You look far too content," Kanda teased as I ducked my head under the hot water.
"And you aren't? How long has it been since you had a shower?" I ask as I slide past him so he could stand under the water. He tilted his head back into the stream, eyes glued to the ceiling. "Best guess…six years."
"So you were eight when they got you," I whisper.
Kanda exhales. "Road was five when Tyki tossed her in the cage with us. She was the last person to be trapped before you came." After a moment, he moved me under the water again. "Road is related to the Noah family. We call the 'king' of the trafficking the 'Earl'. The 'queen' is Lulubell. Apparently, Lulubell got knocked up and had Road. As soon as they could market Doll, they did."
Shivers crawl up my spine. "To have to deal with something like that so young…."
Kanda doesn't reply, but I knew what he was thinking. That vacant, dead look in his eyes…I saw it constantly now. Snow White had been sold in combo packs with Raven Dancer, Bunny Love, Ecstasy, and Lioness Pride, so I knew that most of the other kids got that expression during their "service". Kanda never did. His eyes would blaze with a fighting vengeance. He would take anything that was thrown at him because he would survive. Survive and protect his family. Always.
But so far away from them, Kanda couldn't protect his family anymore. Not directly. He couldn't be a best-seller and take as much of it as he could so the others wouldn't have to. His fighting spirit never died, not even diminished, but his eyes showed the hurt he was feeling now.
While Kanda wet his hair, I ask, "Can I wash your hair?"
He nodded blankly, turning his back to me.
Oo_oO_Oo_oO
When Klaud got home after stopping by Kanda and Allen's "residence", she noticed all the closed doors and drawn curtains. Not surprising.
However, a note on the counter caught her eye. She set her purse on the couch before she walked over to the counter, picking up the paper with sloppy handwriting on it.
Nine's Bedtime Story: Chapter 2
Hidden in the bushes lay an abyss,
An endless pit of despair and darkness,
Waiting for Alice, weak and defenseless.
At eight, Raven Dancer fell in first.
A concept he understood, but a hope he lacked.
Alone, he couldn't give any slack.
Dehydration; love to quench his thirst.
At eight, Black Beauty fell in second.
A family he wished; a tyranny he found.
Blood, agony, and screams were the only sound.
Corruption; unwilling to give as the Devil beckoned.
Klaud stared at the note for a long time. How long? Enough time to reread the poem at least a dozen times and then some.
She grabbed the pen left on the counter and the notepad she kept on the coffee table. Kanda called himself 'Raven Dancer' when we first met so he must be referring to himself. Black Beauty must be another child. As she wrote down the names and possibilities, she added the mentioned ages. Kanda was eight. He had to be at least thirteen now, if not older.
She took her findings and notes into her bedroom, where she kept a folder in her nightstand for this particular case. Descriptions of Allen and Kanda, as well as what she had learned about them like where they were from, their interests, level of trauma, and so on. She didn't have too much, but if Kanda was opening up….
Klaud let out a slow breath, closed her eyes, and nodded to herself. Progress. This is progress. There are others out there waiting for help. The faster, the better.
oO_Oo_oO_Oo
"Lavi…?" a feminine voice whispered.
The older boy turned his head in her direction. "Lenalee, you should sleep. Tomorrow will be even busier since it's warming up."
Lenalee reached out a hand, gently stroking Lavi's face. It was so hard to look. Sure, she couldn't see the healing flesh under the cloth, but she'd seen what happened to him. When Tyki threw him back into the cage, the left side of his face bloody like the right side had been when he tried to escape the first time.
Lavi tried not to flinch as the girl's hand touched his face. His eye…well, his eye socket constantly throbbed, so it wasn't as much painful as it was surprising. He couldn't see when someone was going to touch him, but his senses were sharpening a little more each day.
"Do you think they're safe?" Lenalee murmured.
"You ask every night," Lavi replied, one arm curled around her and the other around Road. "And I always tell you the same thing: Kanda won't die before we're safe, and Allen will keep his paranoia in check at least a little bit."
"Though, paranoia isn't such a bad thing, especially when you cross the wall," Fou muttered somewhere above Lavi's head.
"Point of no return," Marie added, one of his arms also wrapped around Road.
Miranda lay with her back against Marie's side with Daisya asleep in her arms. "Crossing the wall is just a fancy term for seeing the world under the glamour. It's not a bad thing depending on where you stand."
"We stand in an unpleasant area," Lenalee said.
"But say you're a cop. You see the world and all its crap, but you're not in a horrible position," Miranda said.
Fou scoffed. "I've definitely been in worse positions, as have we all."
"Amazing the flexibility you acquire," Lavi said.
"If the other option is broken bones or strains, I gladly choose flexibility," Marie replied.
"Agreed."
oO_Oo_oO_Oo
"It's systematic, living in this haze, sleeping on a live grenade. Blacked out, facedown, no sound, we're blowing up this place. How long can we endure when we've tainted all that's pure? Selfish, high-risk, death wish, what if no one finds a cure? Time is running out, it's running out, it's running….
"I feel weak! I feel numb! Had enough of this poison we've injected. Living in this world infected. Out! Let me out! Tell me how we all got so disconnected. Sick of living in this world infected."
―"Infected" by 12 Stones
Author Note: Sorry it took so long to update! I feel like I should count how many times I've said this and start keeping track. Maybe that will remind my inspiration to check in more often. Short chapter, I know, but I wanted to end the chapter with the kids rather than going back to Allen and Kanda. I want to know what you think, so please, Please, PLEASE REVIEW!