Her Past

I still don't own Soul Eater, I am just writing the fanfic :)

Chapter Six

The Trip

Soul and Maka stood outside of the apartment building the next morning waiting on their friends. They got up early, not wanting to have the others wait on them seeing as Maka is the reason everyone is going on the trip. Soul looked over at his friend thinking that she was being abnormally quiet.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked her.

Maka looked at her best friend and then looked ahead of her. "I was wondering if we'll even find her. It would be wasted effort if we never find her and waste all of Lord Death's money."

Soul raised an eyebrow still watching Maka. "It's not a waste Maka. Anything that helps protect you would never be a waste. And finding your mother might make you feel better. I mean you haven't seen her in a while and I would say it would be nice to see my mother if I admired her as much as you do yours. So, no Maka, it wouldn't be a waste."

Maka looked at Soul with wide eyes. That was one of the kindest things Soul has said to her. He's always watched out for her and helped take care of her, but hearing him actually voicing it was a rather rare occurrence. "Soul," Maka said softly, feeling a warmth fill her inside. She honestly couldn't imagine her life without Soul in it.

He smiled at her. A smile the girl cherished every time she was given the chance to see it.

"What are you two smiling at?" Liz asked with an amused smile tugging her at her lips.

Maka felt her cheeks warm. She didn't even know that she was smiling. Dammit Soul. You always do something that gets me caught by the others and embarrasses me. Soul looked down at her seeing her blushing and his smile got bigger. The blond rolled her eyes and saw that everyone had finally arrived.

"So, we're going to London?" Kid asked. Maka nodded. "Where exactly are we starting when we get there?"

Maka paused. She had been contemplating that all night. She wasn't sure at all what to do or where to start. Her only clue was a damn postcard probably sent from a public mailbox. "Umm, I was wanting to check out the apartments in the area of place this postcard came from," she said pulling it out and showing them the wrinkled card with a picture of the Thames on it. "That's all I have going for it so far."

"All right then we'll go check it out," Tsubaki said with a smile.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Maka promised herself, after the plane ride home, that she is NEVER riding on a plane with Black Star ever again. She always thought that he was loud in a room, but in a small plane, he was a nightmare. He was louder in the small spaced and he couldn't stay still for the life of him. He was regularly scolded by the staff and I'm pretty sure that by the end of the ride they wanted to tie him up and shoot him. They were afraid to do too much since technically he's a minor, but I'm sure if the ride was much longer they would have done something.

Arriving in London was a relief, but it was also stressful because none of the group knew their surroundings. With Maka being the leader of this, she felt even more stressed out. On her way out of the London City Airport, she grabbed a map. On it, she saw that they weren't that far from the Thames. The river was huge though, how was she supposed to know where to start.

"Need help?" Soul asked watching her switch between looking at the map and the postcard.

"I have no idea where to start looking."

"Hmm, well what about starting near the giant Ferris wheel?" he suggested grabbing the card.

"Huh? What Ferris wheel?" Maka said snatching the card back from the boy. She had looked at the wrinkled postcard a hundred times and somehow had overlooked the giant ride.

"The London Eye?" Tsubaki asked.

"The what?" both Soul and Maka asked at the same time.

"The London Eye. It's the Ferris wheel that sits on the banks of the River Thames. It's a pretty popular tourist attraction," the dark hair girl elaborated.

"Well, it's as good as place as any to start," Maka stated.

They hitched a ride on a double decker bus down to the London Eye. The group found it thoroughly amusing. They had never actually seen a bus like this in person. Taking in the sights, Maka found herself relaxing a little. The place was different than Death City. The buildings were mixed with old stone buildings to new sky scrapers and there wasn't sand surrounding the city. While Death City was circular and built together, London was vast.

They all jumped off the bus at the London Eye. They looked around the area at the store and restaurants hoping to find any with postcards. The blond knew that all this effort was probably going to be in vain. The River Thames and the London Eye were London trademarks. Postcards with them on it could probably be found everywhere, and her mom might never have stepped foot in this area.

They searched and asked for hours. The most progress made was two people remembered Kami, but never spoke to her and that happened over a month ago. Also, Liz managed to buy several new outfits. It was dark when they gave up and regrouped in front of the Ferris wheel.

"What are we going to do now?" Liz asked.

"I guess rent a couple of room and leave in the morning. There's no clues here of where she went," Maka answered.

Tsubaki looked at Maka with a sympathetic expression. "I'm sorry we couldn't find anything, Maka."

Maka smiled at her. "It's alright Tsubaki."

"Can we ride the giant wheel?!" Patty asked loudly and excitedly. "Please, please, please!"

"Umm," Maka started looking at Soul.

He shrugged. "This is your trip. I'm following your lead."

She looked at the rest of the group and they mimicked Soul's gesture. "Sure, we can take a ride."

"WHOOOOOO!" the girl shouted and took off running for the line.

Maka smiled. They can at least make a good memory together on this failure of a trip. Their groups broke up as usual with Kid and the Thompsons, Tsubaki and Black Star, and lastly, Soul and Maka. It was a beautiful night and the London setting was magnificent.

"How are you?" Soul asked looking at her.

"I'm fine," Maka answered quickly.

One of Soul's eyebrows rose in question of her statement. "You sure?"

"Yeah," she said waving her hand at him in dismissal.

He caught her hand and held on to it. Maka looked at him curiously. "I know you're disappointed. So, don't just blow me off. Tell me what you're thinking."

The girl sighed. "I hate thinking that I brought all of them here and wasted Lord Death's money for nothing."

Soul let go of Maka's hand and grabbed both sides of her face making her focus on him. "Dammit Maka, I told you before we left that it is not a waste to come look for her. No, we didn't find her here. We know that she was in this area, that's something at least. And we'll keep looking for her. I'm not going to give up on anything that would save you. As your weapon partner, my job is to protect you."

The girl's cheeks warmed up a little bit. "Soul…" she whispered.

"We can't give up. She's your mother and you need her help. I'm sure the others believe the same thing. We're your friends. Friends help each other when they need it. I'm not going to let anything happen to you either."

A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Soul was the best thing that Maka could ever have asked for.

"YAAAHHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOO! YOUR GOD IS HERE IN LONDON!"

Maka let out a sigh. Should have expected that to come. Suddenly, Maka was laughing and not knowing why. She just felt so much lighter inside. Soul smiled tenderly at her. It was about time to see that side of her again.