My Heart
Disclaimer/Warning: D Gray-Man does not belong to me. It belongs to Hoshino Katsura-sensei, and it shouldn't be any other way. I don't claim to own any of the characters, places, or names stated in this fan fiction. ((I just like making the characters do crazy stuff.^_^))
Yullen Week!!
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Chapter Twelve: Journey to Return Home
"Cloud Nyne, here."
"Hello, General Cloud. How are things going down there?"
"We are outnumbered, sir. Still fifty to one."
"Losing three exorcists isn't easy, I know. Forgive me."
"Why did you have me send Kanda back with Lenalee and Marie, sir?"
"You know of how stubborn Kanda is. If he did not have a good reason to carry out his duty, then he would have just stayed and fought."
"Why is that a bad thing? We desperately need every exorcist, sir. You know this."
"I know, I know. Forgive me, Cloud. But it is very important that Kanda come back to the Order. Lenalee and Marie will be sent back as soon as they are better, and with a new shipment of improved shield talismans. These talismans are stronger, with better battery power than previous models. I think that they will work great. There are eight hundred made, with a few hundred more being made right-"
"Sir. What is so important that you took one of the best exorcists off the battlefield, at such a crucial time?"
"I cannot tell you. Surely there can't be that many Akuma there?"
"Komui, sir, I think there is another Akuma factory here. And from what reports I have read, another in India, Hungary, and somewhere on the United States' eastern coast. Regardless of how many Akuma are or are not here, this is a losing battle. We need every exorcist on the field. Hungary is the closest to Headquarters, but South Africa was the most imminent threat. You must realize that that means there are more here than anywhere else. Already the casualties are up to two hundred and eighty, and we have only been here two weeks."
"I'm sorry. There is another contingent of Finders headed for you, with the first batch of the new talismans. Niko is with them as well, so that makes up for some of your loss."
"Yes.....sir."
A week later in Portugal, Kanda was still irritated at General Cloud Nyne for sending him off. He was the best exorcist that the Dark Order had, and yet he had been sent back?! It was ridiculous. It was insulting.
Looking over the water from his position, avoiding the sight of land, seeming chaotic to his eyes, for the calming effects of the Atlantic Ocean, Kanda leaned against the railing, shutting out all sounds from the men managing the ship Lenalee and Marie were below deck, Lenalee resting before they departed for the docks and Marie watching over her.
In the past week, they had been lucky and had not encountered any Akuma outside of South Africa. They had not been able to board a ship from the coast, as those coast cities were in control of the Akuma forces, so their only choice had been to travel north fifteen miles to a city with a train, and then take the train as far as it would go, walk to the next town with a train and take it north, etc etc. It had been exhausting for all of them, but worst of all for Lenalee. The medics under General Nyne's command had told Lenalee that she could not walk for three days, or more, while her legs healed.
Lenalee was stubborn, though, and tried walking for a while, in spite of Marie's (verbal) and Kanda's (threatening) protests. This had caused her legs to cease in healing, if it hadn't made them worse. Finally Kanda had demanded, after seeing Lenalee's consistently bruised legs, when they should have been healed, he demanded that she be carried for the rest of the journey, only to be allowed to walk when he himself approved.
Carrying Lenalee, under normal situations, would have been easy, except that Marie was injured as well, with the acid burn on his chest and his disabled arm. Kanda was strong, but Lenalee weighed nearly as much as he did, if not more so. His slight figure could not bear hers very easily. And so, this presented them with a bit of a problem. Kanda's solution had been to just trade off; he would carry Lenalee as far as he could before giving up (or having Marie demand that he give Lenalee over before he killed himself, and as it would happen, that did occur several times), and then Marie would carry her. Luckily, they did not have to walk for very long in between towns, as it only took them a few hours to reach their destination.
An especially high wave hit the boat, slightly knocking Kanda off balance. As he shifted his weight to regain his stance, he discovered just how wound up he was.
He didn't want to go back home; home where Allen should be.
The realization was startling, though no shocking. Thinking of the Dark Order Headquarters without Allen was hard and hurt like no physical wound could, and so Kanda figured, if not consciously, that that would be true. Nevertheless, it only made it more difficult to actually make his way back to headquarters, orders or no orders.
"Komui....is he coming?"
"Err...Yes. But how did you-"
"Do you really have to ask?"
"I...guess not."
"He is likely to be upset at being taken away from the battlefield."
"Haha. Is Kanda ever not upset?"
"Very good point."
"How is the battle down there going?"
"General Cloud is having a difficult time. There are reportedly a thousand Akuma in South Africa, at least, there were three weeks ago, when General Cloud's forces arrived. But, it has been three weeks of fighting, from minor skirmishes to full-out battles."
"And....The losses?"
"Due to a particularly...difficult battle, the death rate is four hundred. ...Are you sure you want to know all this?"
"It is my duty to serve the Dark Order. I do need to know these things, Komui."
"If you think so."
The train ride that took them through the northern range of mountains in Spain and north through France was long and uneventful, except for the minor arguments that Lenalee started when she was "feeling strong enough" to try to walk. Kanda denied her, even threatening to tie her to the bench. Lenalee was a little flustered for a while, but eventually calmed down and relaxed in her seat.
The train ride ended in a city called Dijon, upon where Kanda and Marie carried Lenalee to another train and began another journey onboard a slightly more comfortable train, in a westerly direction to Rennes, near the north-western coast. An idle, but restful, day was spent in the small city, waiting for the time that a carriage (Kanda had cringed at the thought, but there was no other way to the port town of St. Malo, and he had no intention of walking) could leave the city.
Kanda finally allowed Lenalee to walk a little and she seemed to be able to do so just fine, though it tired her out considerably. Her recuperation would take longer than necessary especially since she had been stubborn and hurt her legs. But it seemed that, after some exercise, the strength in her legs would improve.
As for Marie's injuries, he was healing just fine, though Kanda had had to help him change the bandages on his chest. The acid burn would leave a wicked-looking scar for years to come, but the damage was nothing to bad. As for his arm, Marie had control over it and could move it well enough, but not without causing pain to the blind man.
Kanda himself was just tired, though he said nothing about it, and did his best to keep him energy up. It hardly seemed to matter, though. However much sleep he got and as much nutritious and energizing food he ate, Kanda was always fatigued.
At dusk, Kanda roused Marie and Lenalee from their naps and told them to get ready for catching the carriage. They left their temporary hotel room, earning a skeptical look from the man at the desk (as if asking, why pay for a whole night when you only stay a few hours?), and began a slow walk (for Lenalee's sake) towards the disembark station.
Carriages were uncomfortable things, Kanda thought in irritation. The contraptions jostled its passengers violently at best, and were always cramped with other people. And those other people were...touching him. Accidental or not, controlled or not, this woman was rubbing against him and it was revolting.
Kanda pressed himself further against the side of the carriage, what little good it did him. The woman seemed to think that he was being generous and giving her more room, so she merely moved closer to Kanda.
Finally, the agonizing ride was over and Kanda climbed out to the strong scent of salt and fish. It sounded odd, but it was a soothing scent to Kanda for some reason. He was far from liking being out on the ocean, a sea, a lake, whatever, with all the rocking motions, he quickly got sickened, but seeing the ocean and smelling it was nice.
He helped Lenalee out of the carriage as carefully as he could, knowing that in spite of her protests that she was still in pain. Marie followed silently and Kanda shifted his sharp eyes towards the blind man.
"Anything?" Kanda asked quickly. Marie was silent for a moment.
"I don't hear any Akuma, though the sound of the ocean does not help my hearing." Marie said. Kanda sniffed, but said nothing more. He lead the way into the city, headed for the docks to find the next ship to England.
As it turned out, the next ship was due to depart in an hour and a half, to Kanda's relief. The one language he hated the most was French, though it was similar to English and Spanish in several ways, and therefore easy for him to understand, he hated the way it sounded with his Japanese accent, or with any accent. It sounded weak and feminine, superfluous at best.
"Kanda." Marie said suddenly, right hand pressed against his ear.
"Akuma?"
"Yes. They are just outside the city. They are planning to attack the disembarking carriage. That carriage has...four children and three adults, plus the drivers. It will only take five minutes to reach them if we run."
"If we run...." Kanda repeated thoughtfully. "Marie, you and Lenalee stay here. I will deal with them," he ordered before rushing off in the direction that Marie had indicated.
Indeed it only took Kanda five minutes to get there. He arrived at the side of the road, hiding in the shadow of a few trees. He could see the carriage bumping along, making a racket. Good, that would block most of his noises. He could not, however, see the Akuma. He supposed that they were hiding, just as he was, waiting for the carriage to come close enough to attack.
So, then, he would wait as well.
I'm sorry for the delayed update. But, same reasons as always. This isn't a very interesting chapter...But I think if you look hard enough, something might hit you...
I don't know. I can't really tell what is and is not obvious..^_^ I am the master-mind after all.
Review, please? And don't forget about Yullen Week!! ^_^
With lots of love,
-Maze Puppet