Author's Notes: I'm trying to respond to all those who review, so feel free to ask questions. Some I can't guarantee I'll answer all of the questions, don't even ask about the plot, but I'll do my best! :D Also, something funny to talk about; the day after I promised to finish this chapter by the end of the week, my damn notebook goes missing! The notebook that has all of my chapter drafts and plot notes goes missing! Oh, the HUMANITY! In it was the first half of this chapter so I had to completely rewrite it. No worries though, I wrote most of this during my English class, so all is good! ;) Personally I like this version better. One last thing; Allen will be making an appearance soon enough! Not in this chapter but soon. Be patient my furries!
::Lavi and the Beanstalk::
Ch. 3 "Elevator Going Up"
What would've been another peaceful Sunday morning was rudely interrupted by the frantic cries of a certain young red head. Bookman left his place at the kitchen stove to check on his unruly grandson. At first he only peered through the kitchen window but Bookman then darted outside. Even as he stood next to his over excited grandson, Bookman continued to doubt his eyes.
Only a couple of weeks ago, their genetically engineered beanstalks had begun to mutate and grow like crazy. Consequentially driving Lavi as equally crazy with all of the demanding tending. But this was completely insane.
The entire patch of beanstalks had intertwined so that the whole garden housed the base for one massive beanstalk. Bookman's eyes widened as he followed up the length of the stalk. He bent his back and neck back as far as he could without falling over. But even if he lay down on the ground, Bookman wouldn't ever be able to see the entire beanstalk. It towered over everything in the kingdom as it stretched up into the heavens. At its midsection the beanstalks were conjoined into one gigantic stalk. Small branches sprouted out in all directions and curled like monstrous ivy vines. The leafs of these lithe branches blocked out the morning sun, drastically cooling the landscape where the shadows fell.
Bookman was simply dumbstruck as he continued to stare up in awe at their giant beanstalk. Lavi and the other hand, was still shouting about their misfortune and grievances.
"Hey, are you even paying attention? Hey. Hey, panda-gramps!"
THWACK.
Now was a good time to come back to reality, Bookman thought as his fist perfectly collided with the center of Lavi's face. Sending the youth flying back into the dirt.
"Crusty ol' koala." Lavi growled.
Bookman stomped his foot down onto his grandson but Lavi quickly caught it with both his hands. The old man raised an eyebrow in surprise. He was fairly impressed by his grandson's junction.
"Now, if you're quite through with these antics, we should really discuss about what to do with this here plant of ours." He said lowering his foot.
"Chop it down!" Lavi screamed as he stood up.
"That's not a reasonable plan of action. We should discuss the matter with Komui and Prof. Tiedoll." Bookman reasoned.
"How th' hells that discuss'n anything?"
This time Lavi wasn't quick enough to stop his grandfather's foot. Lavi could've sworn that he heard his ribs go "crunch" under the swift and mighty kick of the elderly Bookman. His face scrunched up in a mix of pain and anger as he slowly recovered from the blow. Bookman may have been one of the town's oldest citizens, but he knew how to pack a wallop.
"If you've had enough, I'll be leaving for town this very instant." Bookman further explained with his fists clenched at his sides. "I'll tell our situation to Komui and Prof. Tiedoll, and we'll devise a proper plan of action from there. Don't do anything stupid!" Bookman finished eyeing the red head dangerously.
Lavi would've been intimidated if not for the lingering resentment that churned within him. His nostrils flared as he haughtily replied:
"I got it."
"Good." Bookman nodded as he turned on his heels. "I'll be leaving for town now."
Lavi glared daggers into the back of his grandfather's head as he watched the old man walk away. He continued to sit in the dirt as he nursed the forming bruise on his chest. Even after Bookman disappeared into the horizon, Lavi didn't move from his spot on the ground. Instead he let himself fall onto his back. Next he lifted his tunic up to examine where Bookman had struck him.
It was as bad as he thought it was; there was a definitive yellowing foot print in the center of his chest. Lavi let out a heavy sigh as his arm fell to his side. He found his eyes wandering up to the eyesore of a beanstalk that dominated his family's humble garden. The dark green vine faded into the vast blue sky like the distant mountains of Tiedoll's many paintings. Not even the clouds could reach the height of the beanstalk's peak.
For almost an hour, Lavi would stare up at the monstrosity that plagued his garden and life. Despite being a major pain in the arse the beanstalk had proved useful in the past. It was providing him and his grandfather dinner every night, but Lavi was getting real sick of bean and cabbage soup. Bookman saw no reason to complain about everything. Then again it was Lavi who been doing all of the tending.
The morning sun rose higher into the sky as the time passed by. Soon everyone in town would be awake and no doubt they would all see what had become of his family's infamous beans. Lavi and his grandfather had gained some mock-celebrity status from them. It was nothing serious of course but it was the hot topic on everyone's lips in town. And sure, it broke up the routine just enough for his amusement-but Lavi would've preferred something new and interesting that didn't require manual labor.
"Does it ever end?" Lavi asked aloud to no one in particular. He simply laid there taking in the view of the giant beanstalk that dominated his farm.
Lavi heaved himself up, brushing the dirt off him as he straightened his back. Afterwards he found himself gazing back up at the beanstalk. It really did seem like it would never end-like it would stretch out into the infinite spances of the heavens. Almost like a fantastical bridge of some sorts.
Lavi's eye lit up as a crazy idea sparked in his mind. Bookman told him not to do anything stupid but he never really said what *not* to do. He sped off towards the barn, kicking up dust as he went. After grabbing some old tools, rope, and other miscellaneous equipment, Lavi returned to the garden.
He quickly got to work fashioning himself some homemade climbing gear. First he took some old fan belts and used them to strap spikes to the bottom of his boots. Next he took two crane hooks, tied tight knots around their link holes, which he then attached to some more belts that were strapped around his torso. This he used as an impromptu safety harness. Lastly Lavi brought out two small hand-held sickles that had chains on their handles. He tied some more rope around the sickles' chain links and secured them to his harness. If his grip failed him for whatever reason then he'd need the ropes to pull everything back up.
Before Lavi set out for his not-so-little adventure, he said a quick and sincere prayer for his safety. He was prepared for when he'd drop anything but god forbid he'd fall off of the beanstalk itself. The damn thing was thick and sturdy enough to fully support his weight. But in terms of luck, Lavi may've been running a little low.
Taking some extra precautions, Lavi ran into the house and filled his satchel with a few extra items. He decided to pack light for the arduous climb and only brought the necessities. Which were mostly sweet bread, some cheese, and a few apples for food. Not to mention two bottles of well water, a first aid kit, a heavy coat and scarf, and a small throwable axe for self defense (it had been a present from Kanda a few years back).
He stuffed the scarf and coat into his satchel then closed it tight. Next he threw it over his shoulder and strapped his climbing harness on as he prepared to make the ascension up the giant beanstalk. Lavi swallowed hard as he swung the small sickles into the beanstalk's leafy flesh. Then he dug the spikes on boots into the over grown plant. His makeshift climbing gear was actually working! Slowly but surely Lavi was making his way up the beanstalk.
Lavi's heart raced as he climbed up the length of the mutant stalk. Every few steps he took, he would turn back to see just how high he was. At first he only saw the top of his homely house, then he saw past the hills, next he could see the outlines of the town, and soon he could see past the skyline of the town itself. After that looking back just made him nervous. Seeing nothing but vast open plains and the now tiny speck that was his home town wasn't the most encouraging sight for the youth.
No longer looking back, let alone down, Lavi wondered just how high he really had gotten. It didn't look like he was anywhere close to the beanstalk's peak and yet he could just as easily stretch his hands out and touch the clouds. Lavi had long since lost track of time but the sun was still beating down on his back. He slouched against his climbing rig wondering if he really needed to bring the coat and scarf at all.
His head hung back as he stared up the length of the beanstalk. It still looked no different than it had back on the earth; dark green faded away into the clear blue sky. Lavi's chest heaved as he rested to catch his breath. He wondered if it really would ever end. After coming so far he figured he might as well go all the way. If he could actually reach the end that is.
After what felt like days to Lavi, he came to an unexpected road block. The clouds had gathered around the beanstalk so thick that Lavi couldn't see past them. He reached his into the fluffy mass and was surprised to feel some resistance. It wasn't like he couldn't get past them but the clouds were putting up a fight.
Lavi easily pushed the clouds away as he climbed further up the stalk. But as he continued upward the clouds got thicker and denser. Soon he was forced to hack at them with his sickles and till the clouds like he would with the earth back on his farm. He couldn't help but laugh as dug his way up and through the clouds. It was almost like he was trying to dig his way through the soil he worked his whole life on. Actually, he'd had nightmares like this before. Only they didn't involve fluffy white clouds.
Now the clouds were becoming something like a nightmare, they were hardening despite their fluffy appearance. Lavi was forced to work harder as he continued to dig his way through the clouds. He chipped away at the clouds slowly securing his freedom. His heart leapt when a ray of light struck his face. He quickened the pace as more light covered his face while he worked. Slowly the clouds crumbled away like a wall of rocks. Soon the ceiling of hardened clouds cracked and tumbled away.
Lavi winced as pieces of clouds tumbled down his weary form. He was shocked that they felt just like rocks as they bashed against him. They even sounded like rocks-crashing and clacking against themselves and the tunnel Lavi had dug out-Lavi watched the pieces fall away into the sky below him. He gulped realizing just how high he had climbed. Lavi couldn't see the land below him anymore only the beanstalk with the gashes he made and the endless blue of the sky.
Feeling nervous and light headed, Lavi made the final ascension through the whole in the clouds. As he climbed out Lavi threw down the small sickles onto the ground, err, clouds. Next he collapsed next to the sickles. Exhausted he let his feet dangle down the hole he dug while his upper body rested on the cloudy ground. He noticed when he fell onto the clouds they felt just like the hard earth back on his farm. There was even some white of the cloud that wafted away like how dirt would get kicked up.
He turned his attention away from the cloudy ground and look back up. Lavi grimaced when he only saw more sky stretching across his field of vision. He rolled over on his side again and pushed himself up. Still slightly out of breath Lavi rested with his head hanging low while his arms held him up. Next he pulled his legs out of the tunnel's hole and kicked them up onto the clouds.
Lavi was still out of breath from the climb up but what he saw next made him forget how to breathe all together...
Author's Notes: I'm just curious, does Bookman actually sound like Bookman? I know everyone thinks that I nailed Lavi's character, but Bookman has me wondering. I've been taking influence from my own grandpa for Bookman's lines so hopefully it all works.