Chapter Seven –
Along the way, a pair of girls had come up to the group of four Exorcists and asked Lavi and Allen to dance. The males had no choice but to comply, having no good excuse for not doing so. Allen shifted some of his hair so that it covered his activated eye, and whispered to the female Exorcists before he left to dance.
"I can't tell who the Akuma is. I can't see its soul, though I know it's still here. Be careful you two – we've got a Level Four on our hands."
The girls nodded and headed towards where the prince was last seen. It seemed that God was not with them today though, since a guy came up to ask Lenalee to dance. Nadeshiko had hid behind a nearby stone pillar so that he didn't stall her as well.
Lenalee glanced back at her friend as she started to follow the man, worry evident in her eyes.
"I'll be fine. I'll keep the prince safe, don't worry." The brunette whispered so only Lenalee could here. The emerald-haired girl nodded before she disappeared in the crowd of dancing people.
Coming out of hiding, Nadeshiko glanced around and noticed the prince was leaving the ballroom. Quickly following the dark-haired eighteen year old, she came across a garden. Even though it was midnight and very dark out, the garden had several oil laps placed strategically around the large area, providing enough light for people to see where they were going.
Suddenly, a tap on her shoulder made the brunette turn around, instantly alert and ready to fight. In front of her stood a man with tan skin, dark unruly curls, and dark brown eyes. He looked sort of familiar, as if she had seen him in the ballroom earlier. Nadeshiko probably had.
"Excuse me," The mystery man started. "But what is a lady such as yourself doing out alone late at night?"
"This is a private party." Nadeshiko replied strongly. "I'm not afraid, if that's what you mean."
The man gave a low chuckle. "Yes, I suppose there is nothing for the guests here to fear."
"Milord, are you a part of the royal family by any chance?"
"No, no, I am merely a guest that had come to give my support at the young prince's coming of age ceremony."
"I see…" The brunette murmured, glancing around. "Have you seen the prince out here? I saw him leave the ball to come to this garden."
"Hm, are you looking for a dance with him?" Before Nadeshiko could reply, the man wrapped an arm around her waist and grabbed her hand, pulling them into a dancing frame. "You could dance with me – such a beautiful lady shouldn't go without a partner."
"S-Sir…-!" The brunette was cut off by three voices calling her name – or rather, her fake name.
"Klara, where are you?"
Nadeshiko recognized the voices were those of Allen, Lenalee and Lavi. Said Exorcists came into view, and stared wide-eyed at the man with their comrade.
"Nadeshiko!" Lavi shouted, dropping the façade and not using the brunette's nickname for once. "Get away from him! He's a Noah!" The brunette tried to pull her hands away from the man, only to be twirled around to fully face her comrades. The Noah wrapped his hands around her neck, brutally choking her, and smirked at the other three Exorcists.
"Tyki Mikk…" Allen hissed.
"So, shounen, what will you and your Exorcist friends do now?" Tyki questioned smugly. While he wasn't looking, Nadeshiko's hand crept towards her necklace and grasped one of the keys.
"Innocence… activate!" Nadeshiko whispered, voice hoarse because of the Noah's tight grip on her throat. The brunette's necklace started to glow a faint green colour, and the key she was holding – the fourth one from the left – phased through the ring attaching the keys to the rest of the necklace. The key glowed even brighter than the rest of the necklace, causing Tyki to glance down, only to jump back when a sword went flying at his head.
Nadeshiko stumbled forward and away from Tyki, holding her sword in front of her. "Sword of the Heavens : Fire!" She shouted and swung the sword in the Noah's direction. A fireball came out of the sword, but Tyki dodged so the flames only dealt damage to the plants behind him.
"Nade!" Lenalee cried as she, Allen, and Lavi ran up to her. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Lenalee."
"Oh? It seems there are two beautiful ladies on this mission…" Tyki mused.
Allen stepped in front of Lenalee, and Lavi in front of Nadeshiko. "Stay away from them!"
"Tsk, so overprotective of your comrades..." Tyki suddenly grinned sadistically. "How about the rest of the guests though?" The Noah snapped his fingers and several Level One Akuma appeared all around the castle. They started to shoot, and screams echoed throughout the night.
"You bastard!" Nadeshiko yelled, and ran towards the castle.
"Nade! Wait!" Lavi called after her, but the girl ignored him. He looked at his other two comrades.
"We'll be fine Lavi." Allen said. "Go make sure she doesn't get killed." The red-head nodded and set out after his comrade, leaving Lenalee and the white-haired teen to deal with the Noah.
-:-
When Nadeshiko ran into the castle, everyone was in a panic. People lay dead or injured on the ground, and some were running for the nearest exit screaming. The brunette glanced around and noticed black hair from underneath a pile of rubble. She hurried removed the debris and pulled the woman out into the open.
Nadeshiko gasped. "Vera!" Said black-haired woman opened her eyes weakly, her face covered with black pentacles from the Akuma blood virus.
"K-Klara…?"
"I'm here, don't worry." The brunette replied, but Vera shook her head.
"No… Don't w-worry about m-me…" The young woman let her eyes flutter closed. "I can feel it... K-Klara… I'm d-dying…"
"No! I will save you!" Nadeshiko dropped her Sword of Fire to the ground beside her and unclipped another key from her necklace. "Sword of the Heavens : Healing!" A different sword appeared in her hands and Vera snapped her eyes opened.
"K-Klara…? How d-did you…-?" She was cut off when the female Exorcist placed the tip of her Sword of Healing on the woman's forehead. A faint green glow surrounded the sword and Vera's body, and the pentacles slowly started to disappear.
"Vera, I'm sorry I had to lie to you."
"L-Lie…?"
"The truth is, I'm not your cousin – and neither is Alina. My real name is Nadeshiko Yuzuki, and I'm an Exorcist of the Black Order. Alina, Alexander, and Leo all are too. Their names are Lenalee Lee, Allen Walker, and Lavi." Nadeshiko explained.
"Then… w-why…?" The healing procedure was complete, and the brunette helped Vera to sit up; the woman was gaining her regular colour back.
"Akuma may be targeting your brother, and it's our job as Exorcists to destroy them before they kill too many."
"It's too late for that, Exorcist."
A voice from behind Nadeshiko made the brunette's eyes widen. Why hadn't she sensed the person approaching? She twisted her head around to look straight into the grinning face of Prince Yuri Dolgorukiy.
AN/
CLIFFIE! ^.^