HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY. I'M GOING TO HOUSTON SO I REALLY HAVEN'T FINISHED BUT OH WELL. AND DON'T JUST READ, REVIEW TO MAKE THIS POOR PERSON HAPPY.
A Ribbon and an Angel: Chapter 2
Stupid swimming lessons how dare you keep me away from writing my precious story! I almost drowned too! I'm sorry for not updating; this really gets in the way. Forgive me. Gomen.
Bimminy: Second chapter, so excited! I forgot to do the disclaimer last chapter. Why didn't you remind me Arisa?
Arisa: I didn't feel like it and you were too full of yourself to notice.
Bimminy: Don't make me write something bad about you! (Evil Smirk)
Arisa: (Shivers) Fine, My endearing friend over here (Glare) doesn't own D. Gray-Man in any way although she does own me. (Laughs Evilly) I am a complete original! Muwahaha!
Explanation of Later: Arisa's mind talks to OC that you will find out in here (snigger);
OC's voice in her head looks like this
Chapter 2: A Ribbon and a Choice~
~Arisa's POV~
Soothing warmth flooded my aching joints with relief as I sighed peacefully. This feeling is absolutely great! What could possibly go wrong with sleeping?
I turned on my side, the soft white linen sheets rustling. As I opened my eyes slightly, I came to the awkward realization that the steady warmth I was feeling was in fact another person and I was holding onto them like a giant stuffed teddy bear.
How embarrassing to display such a weak point! "Ahhh!" I winced at the loud ring of my own voice. The girl I was using as a plush doll roused to my cry of astonishment.
"Huh? What's happening? Where did the warmth go? Did an Akuma get in?" Lenalee rambled as she slowly but surely escaped from her dream-world. "Arisa… What's wrong? Are you okay?" she says as she begins to focus on the current situation.
I stubbornly try to remove myself from the tangling covers. As I get myself smothered, I make one last desperate attempt to escape their grip. In result, I slipped off the edge of the bed tumbling downward head-first onto the floor. "Ughh…" I moan.
Lenalee begins to ask if I need help but, I unconsciously tune out Lenalee's questions, and snatch up the outfit that she had chosen last night off her small black dresser.
I really didn't want to listen to her at that moment because one my weird weak points have been revealed; I'll cuddle up to anything that is warm if fully asleep and unconscious. I hated that it was uncontrollable. My face was painted pink with embarrassment as I stormed towards the bathroom.
The door slams behind me with a loud bang. "What is up with me? Why was it so hard to get out of that bed? Why am I so physically weak that I couldn't even remove myself from a simple situation like that? I am so lifeless right now I could just fall down and go to sleep again." I complain loudly, hurting my ears again that morning.
I stretch comfortably, as my mind wanders to my escape plan.
It all goes blank as I attempt to think. 'Make this torture stop,' I scream inside my head as I ruffle my pink and uncouth, bed-head. When did I fall asleep in Lenalee's bed? "I'm so weak that I don't even remember a thing from last night! Did I find my ribbon? If so, where and when? Was anyone turned into an Akuma? Did I find a capable escape route or not?"
My head was throbbing with searing pain as I try to remember something (anything) from the night before.
The last and only thing I remember after my ever so fuzzy expedition was that I took off my… What the HELL! The ribbon is tied to my foot and is glowing faintly.
I was getting sick of that stupid blood-bonded ribbon! I thought it was fully charged last night… And why is it that I only remember that? Was there something that my brain wanted to clear from my head?
From what I sense, it must have been something pretty embarrassing or painful. (Maybe both)
Another flash of pain suddenly seeped through my head and traveled throughout my body.
I stumble on the tile flooring in surprised reaction. My body was getting weaker by the second. Stupid ribbon! Will it ever stop draining my power day-in and day-out? If I take it off my ankle, it's guaranteed that it will end up finding somewhere else. Good thing it knows when I'm at my limit or I would've been dead by now.
My legs trembled they threatened to give way under my small weight. Wasn't this thing at full capacity last night? It might have healed something whilst I was passed out.
Wait… Did Lenalee get hurt last night? Is she alright? Dam, I'll have to explain why and how she was healed. Am I really ready to let go of that secret? Can't I just 'Beat around the bush' on this one, or will she want a straight answer?
Whatever. If she does want to know, I can probably get away with telling only half the truth. It's not like they need to know everything.
Why am I over-thinking this anyway? Because you want to prepare for the worst.
A long pause passed as I recognized the void filling voice.
What do you know, and why are you back after such a long time? How should I know anything outside of your brain? I'm just a lowly conscience as you've said before.
Is that why you remained dormant for such a long time, because I insulted you? Why do you need to know anything from this lowly being inside your mind anyway? Wow, you really are a stuck up guy aren't ya? Can't even admit to your own feelings of betrayal, how lowly of you. I sneer at him. How dare you insult me yet again! I am not a servant and if you really think of me as that then how about I just quit informing you on how long you've got left to find him until YOU KNOW WHAT happens. How'd ya like that?
I take that as the red card knowing that if I don't say something he would really try it and think, Oh please great and powerful conscience, keep helping your lowly servant!
Please won't help you in this case, you have insulted my pride! But… I will continue to assist you if you insist…
Oh please, it works every time. What makes him not realize that I say the exact same things every time he tries to bail on me? Whatever, at least I've got my conscience back. Without him, it felt like there was a large hole in my thoughts that I knew wasn't going to go away with time. Although he is still a butt sometimes!
My thoughts of the conversation ebbed away as I noticed that I still wasn't dressed. Still feeling that ever annoying presence in my head, I began to fiddle with the clothing that I still held in my hands.
I took an intake of what I was supposed to be wearing;
A bright-yellow, dandelion spaghetti-strap shirt (I hate yellow) that was definitely going to be plastered to my figure, judging on how small it looked. I stripped my nightgown away from my body to replace it with the blinding yellow shirt that just screamed, 'Look at me~! I'm colorful!'
After my episode with getting the shirt over my bed-head, I grabbed the skirt that I swear was meant for a kid of about 6!
The skirt was mainly in a vivid plaid of the same insane color of yellow as the top Lenalee gave me and dark auburn orange and white pairs of lines setting across the yellow in perfect, neon light, harmony.
I mean it really just screamed, 'Come on over and look at the suspicious and out of place girl over here~! Kyaa! She looks like a flower!'
I really don't want people to look at me and think that, and to make matters worse, there was a hoodie of the same auburn as the skirt I was wearing (I so desperately wanted to rip it off and chuck it out of a window ((If the bathroom had any)) because the skirt was so intolerably short!). The hoodie did have some good qualities like the fact that it covered my shoulders and arms although I did have to roll up the sleeves since it was a bit too long. The best part was that I could cover up my hair that I have continuously deemed uncouth and messy.
Any normal person here will think that I am the most adorable thing ever if I wear this.
Aren't you forgetting something really important here? He intrudes into my thoughts again. What you dope, I am getting really annoyed with your constant intrusions in my sulking.
Sorry if I'm interrupting but it is important... he says sullenly. Wait… Lucien never apologizes for anything… What's going on? What is it Lucien?
Well, considering the fact that you still have a ribbon that is slowly draining your energy away on your ankle and the fact that you don't remember last night because of that, don't you think you should eat something before you die from exhaustion and memory loss?
He takes up his usual tone again as he says, I mean if you die, I die and it is a foolish way for me to die anyway… so hurry up and stop whining, it's not like you're gonna' die because of a little outfit, but you might die thinking about it! Honestly he is trying to cover up the concern that he was displaying although it doesn't work.
Taking the hint, I slowly shifted my consciousness back to earth and became aware of the weak and feeble me that was struggling to stand up against the waves of fatigue that shattered my focus and made me uneasy.
My head buzzed with pain as I bent over to pick up the pink night gown and shorts off the cold floor. I need to hurry. My body can't take much more of this.
I slowly hobbled out of the bathroom, determined to find the mess hall even if it killed me. It was then that I saw that Lenalee was already dressed in her exorcist outfit but something about her face was completely… wrong. While I was busying myself with stumbling towards the wall for support, Lenalee looked as if a ghost not only appeared but slapped her in the face too.
"Arisa… what did you do? Why are… I mean when did… just gone?" It was obvious that she couldn't form a coherent sentence so I took the liberty to observe the room for clues, forgetting the fact that I knew what was happening.
There was a small pile of bandages next to her on the bed and my mind clicked back into place.
Dam, what do I say? At least I know why my ribbon is trying to kill me. My head spins and squeezes out a nauseous whine from me. "Umm… First food? Please?" I beg with all the might I have left. The floor began to spin as I Dipped halfway into unconsciousness.
~Chapter Time Skip~ (since the other didn't work)
Lenalee escorted my sorry arse to the mess hall where lots of people were sitting and conversing loudly. Almost all of the tables were full of people in uniforms of two separate colors. Light tan populated majority of the people whilst there were fewer people in uniforms similar to Lenalee's silver and black signifying that they were exorcists.
If the ones in black are exorcists then what are the ones in the plain cloaks? Not like I need to know that anyway, I just need nourishment from this place.
We walked forward at an awkward gait with Lenalee partly giving me support and holding me up at the same time.
I saw a familiar face standing at the open compartment where a man with braids and a pair of sun-shades was laughing merrily at the boy with silver hair.
As I came closer I hear that the boy is ordering a multitude of things that I could barely name let alone keep track of. The guy in the kitchen was smiling the entire time whilst he memorized the loaded order. "Will that be all for today Allen?" So that was his name, I completely forgot.
A piece of my memory snapped into place as I remembered when I awoke from the infirmary. Allen could barely speak when he was locked into my depthless eyes. It was so adorable to look at when he blushed shamefully that I gave him a sly grin.
A few minutes later, after we were standing in line behind Allen, the cook came back with a mountain of food that would have fed an army!
"Thanks Jerry," Allen says as he turns to walk away toward a table. He sits next to a meekly attractive redheaded guy with a mischievous grin and sparkling emerald eyes.
Lenalee is running out of strength from holding me up so I suggest that she sit me down somewhere. With all traces of confusion gone she leads me to the table where Allen sat down.
She gently placed me on the seat, my arms draped over the table; paralyzed and unmoving due to exhaustion.
Lenalee has apparently gotten over the things from earlier as she asks me what I want to eat. "Plain soba would be fine… and some pudding if they have any." I mumble through my uneven breaths knowing that I'll end up asking for more food. My country's origins show in the foods I eat, but I like to combine other foods for the fun of it.
I greeted Allen with a weak smile and meekly said 'Hello' to the guy sitting next to him from under my hoodie that covered most of my hair. For some strange and unknown reason, the red headed guy yelled 'STRIKE' at the top of his lungs. This obnoxiously common action got on my nerves instantly as I began to comprehend what he meant.
I am so sick of people thinking so simply! Can they not tell how not cute I am on the inside? Curse this body I was born into! People don't take me seriously! They even took me in without knowing my background! Again, so simple minded.
I snapped out at him releasing my bottled anger, "What the heck is wrong with you?! Can you keep your voice down! You people are so… just ugh!" I gave him a dark and frightening glare that allowed me to ease some of the dark tension pent up inside myself.
My patience was running low, was it because of the lack of energy that I couldn't control my inner self?
Man… sometimes you really creep me out Arisa. Oh shut your mouth Lucien! I'm sick of you too!
Lenalee was coming back to us and almost dropped the tray of food she was holding when she saw us. The best part was that Allen was just plain flabbergasted as he took in the sight of such a beautiful girl making an incredibly crude link of eye-contact with his friend in the next seat over.
He had his mouth hanging wide open as the scene continued to pass over.
The sight was so laughable that I began a crescendo of giggling that I couldn't control. Mr. Redhead guy wasn't expecting it either and stood there frozen whilst I had a laughing fit. These people are really funny. Looks are very deceiving when it comes to me and they obviously haven't learned that life lesson yet. I could get used to this if it wasn't for the redemption mission I was on.
It won't allow attachments of any kind.
Lenalee looked completely lost as I laughed until my stomach hurt. My cheeks were a flaming red as I beckoned her to the table and my laughter subsided. She flumped onto the seat next to mine and handed me my food.
"I'm not going to kill you. I just wanted to scare you out of your pants." I tried to lighten the mood. Lavi responded first with a wary smile, "Well I didn't think I'd get that kind of reaction from a girl like you. You're a bit scarier than Yuu-chan!" "You were a bit annoying with the yelling and as you can see I'm very weak and irritable at the moment and would have liked to have been spoken to like a normal person." I took my chop-sticks and began to poke at the soba in my bowl. "Allen, would you like to add into this conversation? I would appreciate it!" My voice began to turn bubbly and cute.
Allen blushed and Lavi laughed a little. "Having problems speaking now are we? Should I have to threaten you in order to get the appropriate response?" I let my dark side flow out again for the sake of my own amusement. By now I'm pretty sure they think I'm some kind of by-polar chick with major issues.
Better than thinking I'm adorable.
~Chapter Time Skip~
My mood swings were getting some weird reactions from the three of them; Allen being the most susceptible to the cute voice changes. Who knew these people had such stupid weak spots? All the while I was eating and ordering food slowly so that no one would realize how much food I was capable of consuming. Man that would be embarrassing to see me eat as much as Allen did in front of all these people.
As I toned down my obvious enjoyment of the mood swings, mild conversations sprung up about where I'm from, how long I had been living alone, and did I have any family. I had my stories strait so I answered with practiced ease. "I lived alone ever since mother died and father abandoned me," which was partly true but not completely, "I have no family or relatives that I know of; I was born in Japan but I've traveled throughout the world and learned almost all the languages this world has to offer."
I began to smile at the trio before me.
I smiled partly because of their curiosity and partly because they didn't know any better not to ask.
It was then that I realized that I wasn't doing the fake smiles I give to everyone who tries to befriend me, I was genuinely smiling that smile that I had locked away ever since I had my heart torn to pieces.
My barriers melted away like ice as time flew by and we shared thoughts on this topic or another. I had never felt soothing calm such as this. Why do I feel this after three years of solitude and confinement? It feels like I'm back where I should be and not an exile that no one wants to see.
When my nerves had fully relaxed I began to notice that I was sticking out like a random brightly colored sore thumb and it was attracting lots of awkward attention from the people called finders. Some of the Exorcists knew better than to stare and minded their own business though.
The looks on their faces, I've seen it before. Many times over. That look always tells me that I don't belong; that I'm an outsider that needs to leave. Why is it always that look they give me? My face drops from its earlier expression. I was tired of being a loner; a disgrace. All I ever wanted was people who needed me as much as I needed them. That's all!
I knew that the melting of the wall around my heart was going to weaken me and yet… This isn't going to last. This isn't going to last. This isn't going to last… But why do I feel so regretful? Maybe I shouldn't have said anything.
It's too late to take back something you've already done; I learned that the hard way. I want to enjoy this moment and cherish it for all eternity but it'll hold me back from achieving my promised fate.
I can't falter; I must find him no matter who gets hurt in the process. Even if it's me who has to carry that pain. I need to live and make him proud to call me a disciple. No more running.
While I was spacing out inside my head on my escape plan, the bright and sunny conversation to a turn for the worst as Allen asked one of the very questions I was trying to avoid.
"Arisa-san. If you are a normal person, how did your body fight off that poison from that Akuma bullet? And…" Allen hesitated as if he shouldn't bring it up, "And how is it that the wound on my shoulder disappeared without getting any treatment and left no scars behind?"
He noticed? Lavi froze in his seat at he absorbed the information then laughed it off and said, "She seems perfectly harmless to me!"
His cocky smile disappeared as Lenalee interrupted him. "That doesn't mean that she isn't capable of doing anything! She startled us all with that really scary looking glare she gave you about an hour ago." Lenalee stated firmly from behind me with my… let's see… five, six… Oh yes, my sixty-seventh plate of soba and pudding.
Lenalee sat the plate in front of me with a knowing smile. Well, at least it's a girl who knows how much I eat. My energy was finally being replenished.
I chuckled and looked at Allen sternly with my crystal like eyes. I searched his face to see if he knew something besides what I told him. He talked about his and the other's innocence powers so I put pieces together to figure out that the hand he picked my ribbon up with was the cursed one therefore he wasn't turned, but did he already know that? His face held nothing except curiosity and determination. Clear.
They have no idea what's up with me and I intend to keep it that way.
I'll only come clean with part of the truth. It's not like they need to know every aspect of my upside-down life. They don't need to know anything about my past either. If they did know, they would call me a traitor. I'm sure of it.
I just obtained friends; I don't want to lose them so soon.
The hood over my hair was becoming troublesome because it wasn't staying in place so I decided to take it off all together, letting my hair flow down my back and across my shoulders.
I was going to do it. I really was going to show them my power. I never trusted people much enough to let them close to me so this is a new feeling. What if I'm being rash with this? Maybe I shouldn't.
My ribbon shuddered as if it sensed my troubles. My unease was displaying on my face as I reached down reluctantly to my ankle where my one true treasure awaited my touch.
As if the universe was against me, I saw a vaguely familiar flash of dark violet and felt an aura that was much denser than mine. I turned my head, long cherry-blossom colored hair moving with me. I was stunned to see a boy of about my age (maybe older, I couldn't tell at first glance) sitting at the empty table across from our place.
I felt deja-voo creep upon me as that one last memory of last night shifted into the correct spot.
My hazy memories transported me to the scene from that night and those few but effectual minuets of insane and embarrassing bliss.
My face became the exact shade of the reddest strawberry as I recalled him in all his shirtless glor- No I am not to be thinking like that! I have someone to find and it definitely cannot be that guy. He's so dense looking!
My face was now a deeper shade of red as I noticed that my new comrades were looking in the same direction and knew what I was looking at. An awkward silence crept over us as we tried to guess what to do know to change the subject.
Allen's curiosity got the best of him as he said, "Why are you staring at Kanda-san?"
So that's what his name is?
"Oi, Yuu! The new girl is checkin' you out!" Lavi shouts over his shoulder. I shoot him another icy glare and he shuts his mouth obediently, but not before the guy he was yelling at unsheathes his katana and starts to furiously swing it at him. The first swipe almost hit my face hadn't I been fast enough to move.