To Be An Exorcist (Kanda Fanfiction)

22nd Chapter- Fallen

Naomi tumbled off her bed, landing on her back. She yelped in pain from the fall, though was okay for the most part.

"So that's how long they usually last then?" Kanda's voice injected. He was sitting in the corner of the dark room, the most visible things Naomi could see of him were his dark eyes and evident frown. "The dreams I mean."

Naomi, choosing to ignore Kanda, ran her hands through her hair, nervously tapping her fingers against her forehead. She turned sharply to Kanda. "What are you doing in here?"

"What are you thinking about?" Kanda asked, not answering Naomi's question.

Naomi whispered something incoherent. She was probably mumbling to herself.

"I can't hear what you're saying."

"I don't have a father! Or a mother! It's an illusion, it has to be!" Naomi yelled at Kanda, revealing just how unstable she herself was.

"What's an illusion?" he pressed.

Naomi began muttering to herself, quickly jumping to the bookshelf she had placed in her room, filled completely with study on sleep and dream theory. She pulled out a thick volume, one she had skimmed through many times.

"Hey, are you even listening to me?!" Kanda scowled, getting up and making his way to Naomi who wasn't even registering him as existent currently.

Naomi took her pencil that had been sharpened from where it rested atop the bookshelf. She circled keywords. "Trauma. Severe injury. Coma. These are all scientifically logical explanations, but..."

She was cut off by Kanda, who did the unexpected, but perhaps that should've been expected of him. "Would you stop this...? You're going mad. Stop..please." Kanda held her face with both his hands, one hand on either side. He was using every ounce of his willpower not to let a tear show, not that he'd ever admit that. Naomi reached a hand out to touch his pale face, giving him a fake but assuring smile.

"You worry this much and you'll be the one going mad."

Subconsciously, Kanda leaned into her touch, closing his eyes in content. "Can you please just take your mind off it? For a little bit? Please?"

She frowned. "Kanda.." Naomi averted her gaze from him, her hand slowly falling down as well. Kanda's eyes opened again, and he mentally berated himself for missing her touch. "I'm so close to a breakthrough here. Not just with the dreams, but I think...my actual parents."

Kanda's eyes narrowed the smallest bit. "What do you mean? I thought Tomison the outcast exorcist was your father..?"

Naomi shook her head. "No. Adoptive. Why does everyone say he's an outcast?"

Kanda shrugged. "That's what he was. He was kind of like Cross, going anywhere but the Order. I suppose that explains why the two could get along so easily though."

"And how did you know all this?" Naomi pressed, raising an eyebrow. "You're not that old."

Kanda let out a short, but exceedingly rare laugh. "No. I'm not. Though I have learned things over the years. Some I wished I hadn't learned." Kanda's expression became serious again. "So, what are your leads on your actual parents then?"

"Here's how it went. It was this dream, a man, probably around Marshall Cross's age or maybe younger, was the father of a young girl. From what I heard and saw, I believe the father killed her mother, and then the girl ran, but not too far. She fell off a cliff. Probably died. Though this man, with unruly dark hair, the father, he slowly made his way to her, as if nothing had even happened, and said something about her coming back to him one day."

Kanda was confused for once. "And what does this have to do with your parents?"

"Well the thing is," Naomi elaborated. "He kept calling her Naomi. His features even resemble some of mine, and the little girl had some of the same characteristics as mine as well."

"Such as..?"

"Her hair color, my hair color, and his all match. Same on our facial structure, though the key difference between myself and the girl was the eye color." Naomi pointed to her own storm grey eyes. "The little girl had these scared blue eyes, the man..no, my father, had the same color as mine however."

Kanda thought about this. "Would that make you dead...? Or reincarnated?"

Naomi shrugged. "I don't know," she yawned, rubbing her temples. "I need some coffee." She carefully stood up, grabbing a blanket and tossing it over her shoulders as the weather was still cold and all she had on was Matt's purple shirt that seemed to be getting larger on her small frame, and a pair of loose shorts. She liked this, it made it easier to move around, the main con being that she was constantly cold.

"You're actually leaving your room?" Kanda asked in disbelief.

Naomi nodded sleepily, opening her door. "So you'll shut up about me being holed up in my room." Naomi walked leisurely to the cafeteria, Kanda walking alongside her. She raised an eyebrow. "I thought you were anti-people. Yet you're around me. A lot."

Kanda rubbed his neck, turning away, whether in irritation or embarrassment Naomi couldn't tell. "I just don't want to regret not saying anything about your..condition."

Naomi didn't respond, and the two entered the kitchen. At this hour, nearly closing time for the chef Jeryy, it was nearly empty, save a few souls who were eating. Allen was one of those few people, at a table by himself. Usually, that made sense with all the food he had, but today, all he had with him was a slice of pie.

"I'm going to see what's wrong with him," Naomi said to Kanda. "Go on ahead." Kanda looked at the beansprout uneasily, but nodded. Naomi made her way to where Allen was, sitting beside him. "Allen, why are you so depressed?"

The young exorcist cut a tiny piece of pie with his fork, raising it to his mouth. "..Suman..Dark.." he whispered, his words muffled by the food in his mouth.

Suman? I think I played a game of chess with him once in the cafeteria, though I lost.

"What do you mean?"

"Suman..is dead," Allen let out the last part quickly, dropping his fork. The fork landed back onto the plate, making a clatter sound come off of it. "I tried to save him but...Suman was a Fallen One. There was no saving Suman." Allen retold her the whole story, his heart wrenching.

<~~~~>

"Fallen?" Allen asked Lenalee.

She nodded. "His Innocence believes he has betrayed him. So now he will die."

Allen had managed to save Suman momentarily though, bringing his nearly dead being back onto the boat. In the midst of it though, his body exploded in butterflies as Allen fell over in horror. Suman died right in front of him, in only a few harsh seconds.

Lavi and Lenalee attempted to soothe him, but to no avail. Allen ended up heading to isolate himself in his cabin, where the shock finally blew over as he cried out for the Fallen One.

<~~~~>

Naomi wiped the tear that had formed away. She didn't know Suman well, but knew he seemed like such a kind man. Only a few weeks ago he had played a game with her, and now he wasn't even existent.

Allen had broken down to sobs again, furiously wiping at his tears until the older exorcist wrapped her arms around him, securing him in a hug. "This is what friends do..right? They hug you when you cry..right? I know you Allen. I know what you're thinking. This wasn't your fault. I promise."