Countdown

Chapter Four

So… It had been exactly thirty one days since they had come back from Russia. Youko still didn't know what happened with the kiss. But she didn't really want to find out. And it showed by her actions after they returned and even during the trip back. Youko sat as far away from him as possible, didn't make eye contact, and only responded 'yes' or 'no' questions with nods. Lavi had been a good distraction, he always did the talking. Bookman had even talked for a few minutes on the train; mostly complaining on how terrible the ride was. Kanda stared out the window catching a glimpse of Youko's expression a few times. It looked confused, almost pained. But that was a month ago. And for about fifteen days, whenever he would turn a corner there would be a trail of smoke sprinting away from him. Thankfully it had stopped and now they could talk to each other… when ever Kanda talked that is.

"Finally…" Youko sighed as she sat down on the soft grass in the gardens.

It had been rather loud all day. The finders had gotten drunk and were filling up the cafeteria so she didn't get any of her Gyokuro this evening. All she could do was read the same book she had been trying to read all day long. The sun had gone down and she didn't really feel like going back into that hell hole at the moment. She would wait until the intoxicated idiots would fall asleep. She gouged her staff into the ground, letting the white dust fill the air above. Now that there was light, she could read the small, brown, and slightly torn book. The fluffy meadow was pretty comfortable so she rested her back against it. After about five pages a rustling came from the bushes.

"What is it now?!" she groaned turning to see the intruder.

She saw the same person she had spent half a month ignoring pushing back a low tree branch. Kanda made his way over to her looking up at the powdery covering above. He knew that she would be here. She didn't like the noise and she was always there at night. In the exact same spot too. Five feet away from the north end of the lake, sitting next to a patch of daisies. Always the same place and never a hair out of place. A smirk replaced her grimace and she returned to her book. He always came when she was there but he would come later. Almost as if he was seeing if she would show up. Not many people knew this, but Kanda opened up around Youko. But it was only because she never judged him. All she would do was nod and say 'I see' just to prove that she was paying just enough attention but wasn't gawking at every sentence he spoke.

"You seem pissed off…… more so than usual. What's wrong?" she asked marking her place in the book by bending the corner of the page.

"Ch"

"Oh, yeah. I understand what you mean," she laughed at her own sarcasm.

"Lenalee kept trying to talk to me today," he sighed, knowing he would never hear the end of it so he sat down beside her.

"She talks to you all the time. What makes today any more annoying?"

He was just silent. Would she do the same thing that the annoying teen did? There was a possibility. He had known her for over a month and knew her better than anyone else did. She was still a girl and did in fact have her moments where she could easily be mistaken with Komui personality wise. She leaned closer and practically begged without even moving her lips. Kanda had figured out that, with her, eyes told everything. The two puppy eyes bored into his own, telling him that she would cry is he didn't speak. 'Damn it,' he smirked. Youko either mistook it as a smile or just like seeing him respond facially in any way because she beamed at him. She seemed different this time-to him. He shrugged it off thinking that it was just the bright light of her innocence making her appear different. A hand waved in front of his nose fingertips just skimming his line of vision.

"Earth-to-Kanda. So why did you find today more maddening than most?" she giggled.

His ears rang at that noise. It seamed to echo throughout his mind for hours after she laughed. It was a light sound, noticeable but not uncontrolled like most peoples *cough cough-Lavi-cough cough*. It almost made him mad if he didn't hear it at least once a day luckily she laughed easily around the Order… 'I guess I should thank that idiot for that' he grimaced, remembering the red-head whom he despised. Youko had given up a little and was resting on her back again, arms out to her sides with her palms up. Kanda leaned back and was stopped by a rather large tree-which he hadn't even noticed was there. Youko knew what he was doing, and it was starting to upset her a little. He had been staring at her for about five minutes without even telling her about his day. Was it bothering him this much that he would just space off like that?

"Wait… Oh God. It's your birthday isn't it? Why else would Lenalee be twice as peppy?" Youko questioned herself.

"Could you not say it out loud?" Kanda twitched.

"Alright. But I feel bad; I didn't even get you a present. Make a wish~" Youko encouraged as a group of sparkles swarmed around the two.

They stacked into a small column and others swayed at the top. Kanda glanced at it closely and rolled his eyes at the birthday candle. He closed his eyes after waving his hand through the dust to make it disappear and gave the usual response which Youko became a little furious at. She sat up and sat on her knees in front of him leaning in closer so that he would open his eyes. He did in fact feel her presence closer than normal so his eyes voluntarily eased open. The midnight eyes met his and he smirked. 'I can't believe I didn't realize that they were blue…' If you stared at them long enough, you would feel yourself being pulled into the shadows of her mind. But Kanda tried to avert his gaze somewhere else-like to the grass-but she was so close that he didn't really have any room to move his head.

"Are you telling me that you're too embarrassed to make a wish on your own birthday?"

She took the silence as a yes-as she usually does.

"Fine then. I'll make one with you. Will that be any better?"

"Ch"

"Just look up, you idiot," she hissed.

Whenever she did that, he always followed orders. She could be intimidating when she wanted to be that was for sure. A bright light flashed before his eyes and was heading west. Kanda let out a small 'humph' and rested his hands behind his head.

"Did you make one?" she asked, placing her hands behind her head as well.

"I did. Now what?"

"Well, if you asked for something to happen, then go and attempt it. Everything will turn out like you wanted," she beamed.

'I highly doubt that,' he thought, remembering the reaction to his first move back in Russia. Yes, he was the one that moved and he would never forget her reaction. Truthfully it pained him. He didn't want to go through that again; he couldn't handle the feeling of rejection. She seemed more at ease being around him lately so he didn't want a repeat of any of that. He felt depressed more than usual when she ignored him, and he didn't know why. Speaking with Lavi was definitely out of the question. No way in hell that he would admit something so personal to that red-head. Lenalee would make a bigger deal out of it than what would be necessary and Allen… well Allen didn't seem to know anything more than Kanda. Lenalee would usually talk about how dense he was behind his back. Kanda could still remember what Youko's comment was about that. 'Actually, I think that calling someone dense is a good thing. It means that you have so much information crammed into your mind… but that's just my opinion.' He knew… he knew that he was doing it again.

"So I should… endeavor whatever I wished for?" he asked deciding against everything his mind was screaming at him.

"Yes! So what are you going to do now?"

"Apologize… for what happened in Russia," Kanda sighed.

"Uh-you don't have to do that. I think that it was my fault-I got a little too close," she rushed, standing to grab her staff.

In the back of his mind he knew this would happen. She would always do this when she got nervous. It was like running away came naturally to her. He stood up and followed her through the trees-she was almost running. But he caught up to her, even cut her off. Youko stopped dead in her tracks and stared at the grass. Her eyes darted back and forth to her shoes and then to his. But she could sense him glaring at her like she did something wrong. She knew that she did. It wasn't very polite to run away from someone who's trying to apologize. They were still deep in the garden so she knew that it would be useless to try and run now. 'Damn it… Why does this have to happen to me?' she thought as she fought the urge to look up. The ebony staff was gone now, and she didn't have anything to detain him with. He would stop her before she could reach her choker-so retrieving her weapon wasn't an option. Even she knew that Kanda was physically stronger and she couldn't just punch him out of the blue… if it helped her or not. Today had been like hell but now it was like hell times seven. (Yeah, she felt that bad) None of this was supposed to happen. 'I was just starting to forget about that… I think' but that wasn't true, she had been thinking about the Russia mission since they got back nonstop. That was why she ran away from him for about two weeks. It was embarrassing and she was positive that it put a strain on their relationship.

"It's late. I should get to sleep," she said trying to pass.

"I know you better. People practically have to strap you down just to relax."

'Shit! Why does he know that?!'

"Maybe I'm tired. I don't want to deal with this at the moment."

"… Then you lied," he smirked.

"I never lie! You know that."

"But you said that whatever I wished for would turn out like I wanted. I want you to forgive me."

"There is nothing to forgive. If anything I should be the one apologizing. I know that I was the last person you wanted to kiss so-"

"You need to stop lying. It will become a habit."

"How the hell am I lying? How was what I just said a lie?!" she asked… now extremely pissed off that he cut her off.

Her head bolted up and she slid her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. To her disbelief Kanda was still blank. She truthfully knew that it would be that way, but for some reason she thought that just maybe he would at least look surprised. He turned around so that his back was facing her. And of course that made her-if even possible-more pissed off. She grabbed his shoulder and twirled him around and looked over her eyeglasses, giving him an awful glare. In Kanda's opinion you could cut the tension with a knife, but he refused to let his uncomfortable expression break through. All Youko could think was, 'How cold is this man? Ah hell! I only have… One year, three months, and twenty four days left! I don't need to waste it on one man!... No matter how much I want to,' she scolded herself for trying so hard. She did wasn't to keep her promise to her father… that damn vow that she took when she was young. It was harder to find a suitor than she thought it would be. Of course having Innocence without knowing it and training every night since she left her home was a bit of a turn off to most men.

"It doesn't matter right now. I'm asking Komui for a transfer. Maybe the Asian branch will be more helpful to me," she muttered.

"How will the Asian branch be helpful? Do you have your own personal quest?" he asked, showing his hatred for her plan.

"Yes, and at first I thought that you could help me. But I see now that that was a stupid assumption," she scoffed.

"Usually people just ask when they need help."

"Well this isn't something I could just ask you. Besides I'm running out of time," she told, making her way around him and toward the tall building.

The drunks were probably passed out by now and that meant she could walk by the cafeteria without getting whistled at. Kanda followed her pressuring her to tell him what she needed help with. At the moment she was wondering if she even wanted any help. Surely her other option was perfectly fine. 'This world is turning into hell anyway.' All the while the other exorcist was by her side trying to meet her gaze which was impossible because she looked as if she would trample anything in her path. Kanda couldn't understand why she couldn't just ask him for help. She would ask Lavi and Allen for everything… and Lenalee too. But he was more concerned about the other two. He stopped in front of her deciding to take his chances. He was standing in a doorway that he assumed was hers. She huffed and crossed her arms at his movement. But on the inside she was beaming.

"I want you to tell me what you need me to do," he ordered.

"You want to help me? Alright then! Will you marry me?!"

He froze at the question. Was this what she needed to do for her quest? 'That doesn't seem like her at all.'

"I didn't think so. Now, good night."

She closed the door between them. 'Wait, isn't this her room?' Kanda asked looking around. He saw his bed in the corner and the lotus flower encased in an hourglass sitting in the moonlight that shown through the window. He was in his room but he was positive that he had stopped her from walking into her room.

"Damn it, she's good," he grinned as he made his way over to the lotus flower.

In the month that he had known her, not one petal had fallen off of the flower. And usually he would just wait in his room after missions and watch for it to wilt. He had even felt-dare he say it-happier with her in the Order. But at the moment he felt like shit. Would Youko really leave for Asia? That didn't sound like her at all. In fact tonight was like she wasn't even Youko. But the thing that was keeping Kanda guessing was why would Youko need to marry to fulfill her personal quest? The new exorcist did seem serious when she told him so why was it so hard to believe. Kanda knew her better than anyone. Lavi would spend a few hours with her a day, but he would mostly flirt and Youko told him that it annoyed the hell out of her most of the time. Allen and her would joke around in the cafeteria and they even went on small missions together and each one they would come back smiling. Kanda would know since he waited for her at the gates when they did leave somewhere together. Every time he would feel something in the pit of his stomach but he was too stubborn to admit it was jealousy.

"I would have said yes," he told himself as he sat down on his bed, but was unable to sleep that entire night.

It was about four in the morning when Kanda heard her door swing open. He had been waiting for about two hours; he honestly thought that she would be up earlier. Or maybe she wasn't serious about what she said last night. Kanda sure as hell wasn't about to take any chances. So he followed her to Komui's office and waited around the corner to listen to conversation.

"A transfer?"

"Yes, I think I would be of more use in the Asian Branch," the sentence seemed like an arrow through his chest.

Komui saw Kanda's cloak in the doorway and-like everyone else in the Order- had known about their relationship. And of course neither of them would admit it. Komui was a nice guy but the next thing he said would make Youko hate him for a-long-while.

"You are a dumb ass~," he smiled.

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. But I really don't think I can accomplish what I need to here," she smirked.

That wasn't really the reaction that Komui thought he would get form her. But she seemed as though this was the most serious thing in her life at the moment. 'What the hell did he say to her to make her act like this?' he asked himself while looking back at the doorway. Kanda was clenching his fists, hard enough to almost bring blood. 'So she was serious…' He peered around the door and met Komui's gaze. It was almost like a silent plea-even if he never admitted it. He got the message and looked back at Youko before she could see who she was looking at.

"I'm sorry Youko, but I have several missions that I would like you to finish. I'm afraid it will take months to finish them all," he grinned.

The air around Youko turned dark and you could almost see the heat coming off of her. '~OH SHIT~!' and then the next thing you could here was screaming and Komui asking her to stop throwing things at him. It wasn't hard to find a pile of papers that weighed about seventy pounds in his office. Maybe now he'll clean up a little. She stormed out of the room and Kanda had long walked to the cafeteria as an alibi and an excuse for not helping Komui. He sat at his normal table and was eating his breakfast by the time she sat down with her usual tea glass. Jerry had even given her, her own customized glass since she would only drink tea. He had never actually seen her eat anything except for an orange that she had for breakfast on the train on the Russia mission. Every time he'd bring up that mission he would flash back to the kiss. It was his fault but he felt guilty that she wouldn't believe it. He read the glass like he did every morning. He would inwardly smile at the message saying that it fit her personality perfectly.

'Delightfully Bitchy…'

"Oi! Youko-chan~, I heard that you wanted to transfer," Lavi whined as he came up from behind her and rested his head on her shoulder.

"I'm not leaving. I am staying right here. Isn't that right Yu," she scowled.

'I'm in deep shit now,' he told himself. She only said his name when she was angry and that night she would probably have ripped his throat out if she had gotten the chance. He simply nodded in her direction and silently hissed over at the red-head that was now sitting a little too close to her for his liking. Allen had joined the table with Lenalee by his side. Allen had everything Jerry had to offer as usual and Lenalee seemed especially clingy today. Youko raised her eyebrow at his façade-that he didn't even know that he let slip through. 'Jealousy? No, I need to stop thinking that he's jealous every single time he lets something slip!' she yelled at herself, pushing Lavi away a few centimeters for breathing room.

"After breakfast, Komui needs to see you two," Lenalee told Kanda and Youko-who seemed to burst into flames at the sound of his name.

Youko slammed her cup on the table and rose from her seat, causing the entire cafeteria to clear a way for her. Even Buzz, the biggest person there, cowered in her presence at the time. Kanda sighed and followed a good five feet behind her. Everything was perfectly fine until she opened the doors to his office….

"Komui? What the hell is going on?!" she asked seeing that his office was completely spotless.

The floors were a dark blue carpet and his desk looked like it was sparkling. Kanda's jaw almost dropped to the floor at the scene. Let's just say that Komui learned a lesson from Youko's earlier visit. He motioned for them to take a seat on the sofa-which no one had ever seen before. She walked slowly, half expecting that a large man eating bug would pop out of the ground. Kanda walked beside her thinking almost the same thing, but that Komui would turn into the bug.

"I'm sending you two to Italy. You depart immediately," he said tipping back the last of his coffee.

Youko grabbed the folder off of his desk and read the details and it seemed normal enough. Strange events happening in a small town and creatures coming out at night. At least one level two akuma like the last mission… in Russia. Youko had been doing the same thing Kanda had been. She thought of it often and she was convinced that she had leaned in first. But him saying that it was him didn't really help her any. She had kissed her comrade and-no matter how much she liked it-… 'Stop it Youko damn it!' she smacked herself in the head hoping to pound the thoughts away. Kanda snickered at her and followed her out of the room. So it was the two of them on a train for about a week… alone… with no one else there… ALONE… 'SHIT!' the exorcist with one year, three months, and twenty three days left before her worst nightmare thought.

A/N: Good guess, but no Savage Kill. There is no arranged marriage. ;P Still good try. Holy Shit! Komui and a clean office!? Not likely... but I guess that's why they call it fiction.