Chapter Text
Day 17 of Kita Being Missing
Reports of “large flying monsters” have come in from a small town near the city of Barcelona, Spain. The monsters are expected to be Akuma, but they haven’t attacked the locals. Some witnesses say that the monsters loom in the sky as if they’re watching over the town, like deities. Members of the clergy in this area have requested that Black Order Exorcists be sent to investigate the phenomenon. Exorcists Lavi Bookman Jr. and Terra Bailey are tasked with uncovering what’s behind the appearances. In light of the disappearance of exorcist Kita Tanaka, it is suspected that this might be a ploy to lure Terra Bailey into Noah hands.
“We are most likely being baited into sending you out in the field. Normally, we would avoid that at all costs, but we don’t think the Noah will act unless you’re present. The members of other recon teams have come up empty-handed on similar missions. This time, we’re sending those closest to Kita to get some answers,” Komui said from behind his desk.
Soon after, Terra and Lavi were sent to pack for the trip and get a night's rest before their early train ride down south. After boarding, the pair took a few moments to review the informational pamphlets prepared by the science department. Lavi frowned at the final line on the page he was reviewing.
Exorcists Lenalee Lee and Yu Kanda will be joining Lavi and Bailey as backup after they’ve completed their mission in France.
Lavi loses a sigh purposefully loud enough to get Terra’s attention. “What?” she asks, peering up from the pages.
“Aren’t you kinda offended that they’re sending backup? We can handle this ourselves,” Lavi crosses his arms in annoyance.
Terra snorts, “Normally, yes, but against the Noah…all support is necessary.”
Lavi stares at the girl as her eyes unfocus. She stares in the man’s direction, but her focus is past Lavi’s head, as if something from her nightmares watches them from behind him.
He clears his throat, getting her to refocus. “Back in Komui’s office, you said that the missing girls and Kita are likely dead. What made you say that?”
“I didn’t want to get your hopes up. Sure, we’re searching now, but it’s been so long. It’s probably too late,” Terra states, devoid of emotion. She rubs her arms as if she had stepped into a snowstorm.
“You’re acting like there’s more to it than that. Like there’s something you’re not saying.” Lavi stares at Terra’s blank expression, patiently waiting for the girl to add more to her claims. For a long while, no one speaks, allowing the rumble of the train to take over the soundscape of the small cabin.
“They nearly killed me,” Terra croaks. At first, Lavi thinks he imagined the words, but he looks up to find Terra meeting his gaze. “The Noah. They had me for a year. Road said I was- No, she made me into her ‘favorite doll,’ whatever that means,” a bitter laugh escapes her throat.
Lavi doesn’t dare speak, fearful that any interruption would stop the flow of information. So, Terra continues. “For a year, Road would set up tea parties and dress me up and braid my hair and corrupt my dreams and use me as a dartboard and-”
Terra squeezes her eyes shut, blocking Lavi from viewing her raw emotions. She takes another stabilizing breath, “-and hurt me to find out how loud I could scream.” Terra swallows down the bile that threatens to come up.
“Terra-”
“They took everything from me. My clothes, my journal, my mother’s necklace that Road said I desperately clung to when Tyki found me. She told me I had gripped the chain so tightly that a print of the links was cut into my palm. I shut down after that. I no longer had anything linking me to the real world. My world. The rest of my memories with them are a blur of pain.” Terra absentmindedly traces her palm, her body swaying with the movements of the train.
“Road brought the necklace back one day while she was making me play dress up. She said it would look nice with the dress she chose for me. As soon as she fastened it around my neck, power surged through my fingertips, and I burned her. She was screaming so loudly, throwing a fit, and I didn’t understand why. But the Earl burst into the room and beat me until I passed out. Next thing I knew, Kita was standing over me, telling me not to wait for help.”
Lavi’s wide eye gazes at Terra, unwavering as he tries to come up with something to say. In his hesitation, Terra smiles.
“I only survived because of Innocence, because of my mother leaving this necklace behind,” she says, gripping the charm. “They didn’t get rid of me because I was strong, but because my Innocence made me trash, something to discard. Never thought being thought to be worthless would save my life.” She shrugs, having briefly recovered from her memories.
“You didn’t have to tell me all that,” Lavi murmurs, looking at his lap.
“No, but I wanted you to understand exactly why I said what I did.” He looks up at Terra’s sad smile and returns it with a frown. “Kita’s like my sister. I’d love to find her, but I also don’t want to experience the heartbreak if she’s-”
“She’s alive,” Lavi interrupts. “And she’d be pissed if you heard that you gave up on her even if you want to spare yourself some pain. Don’t write her off so quickly.”
Terra blinks at the redhead, annoyed and uncharacteristically ashamed. She wasn’t expecting to be scolded for telling what she believed was the truth. She regards Lavi’s firm facial expression and tense shoulders, remembering that he had fallen for her friend. Maybe she shouldn’t go around insinuating that she’s already dead.
Terra takes a breath and nods. “You’re right. This stays between you and me. I prefer that our reunion is joyful rather than her beating me up because I thought she was dead,” Terra giggles. Lavi stretches out his arm so they can lock in the spoken agreement, and Terra clasps his hand.
“Deal,” he beams.
~~~~~~~~~~
Day 18 of Kita Being Missing
Kita sits cross-legged on the roof of a shop looking out over the quaint Spanish town as the sun sets behind a small orange grove. She briefly closes her eyes and lets the remaining sunlight warm her skin, and she skims through the thoughts of the people nearby.
Most of it is nonsense about jealousy, exhaustion, or needing to use the toilet urgently, but one train of thought catches her attention.
“ If we hurry, we can still look for her.”
Kita’s eyes shoot open, and she scans the street below her for Terra’s signature afro-puffs. With no luck, she decides to search on foot, abandoning her hiding spot. Kita hops off the roof into the alley along its side and makes her way toward one of the two inns on the main road. As she walks toward the first inn, Terra’s thoughts quiet, so she turns around to search the other.
“ Can’t believe Kita likes this guy. He’s so odd,” Terra’s thoughts make their way into Kita’s mind loud and clear. She chuckles and mumbles to herself, “It was for the mission…mostly.”
Arriving at the inn, Kita squats underneath a window and peers inside, hoping to catch a glimpse of her friends. She scans the foyer, but it’s empty, so she ducks and rounds the corner to another window that looks into the dining room. There, she sees Terra devouring roast chicken and some sort of tomato salad. Initially, she doesn’t see Lavi, but he walks over, his golem floating behind him.
“Lenalee said she and Kanda will be here before dawn. They’re already on their way. They had no luck in France,” he says, taking a seat in front of his meal.
“Good! This will be over with quickly,” Terra says between bites of food.
Kita contemplates using her powers to tell Terra to come outside telepathically, but that risks alarming Terra to the point that she might choke on her dinner. While it might be funny to watch, making Terra suffocate was not part of the mission.
Kita slumps beneath the window and suppresses a scream when a shadowed figure suddenly sits right next to her.
“Tyki, what the fuck ,” she hisses, trying to calm her racing heart.
Snickering, Tyki answers, “Oh, just checking on how things are going.”
“I’m not even behind schedule, so why are you here?” Kita says with a glare.
“Ah, you caught me. I simply wanted to take another look at Terra. I’ve missed her,” Tyki peers into the window for a moment, then returns to the shadows. “She looks well.”
“Mhmm, she does. Now let’s leave,” Kita grabs Tyki’s arm and tries to drag him away from the inn, but he slips out of her grasp.
“Oh? Aren’t you going to return her to the Earl?”
“Not right now, they’re too alert. I’m waiting until they begin searching for me. Knowing Terra, she’ll use her powers for high ground. I’ll knock her out then,” Kita grumbles.
“What a nice plan,” Tyki says without enthusiasm. “Fine, we’ll return to the Ark..come now.”
He fades into the shadows without a second look at Kita. She peers through the window again, but all that remains are Lavi and Terra’s empty dishes.
~~~~~~~~~~
A Bit Earlier
“Lenalee said she and Kanda will be here before dawn. They’re already on their way. They had no luck in France,” Lavi says, returning to his meal.
“Good! This will be over with quickly,” Terra says between bites of food.
“Y’know, you’re kinda gross when you eat.”
Terra glares at the redhead, swallowing. “I haven’t eaten much lately. And there’s no way I’m as gross as Allen!”
“That’s very true, that guy’s-” Lavi stutters to a halt when Terra abruptly lifts her hand in the air, requesting silence.
Lavi reads the tension in Terra’s body and follows her gaze to the window overlooking the side street. He doesn’t see anything but hears a whisper coming from that direction.
“Do you think it’s akuma? Did they already find us?” he whispers, attempting to be quieter than whoever is standing outside.
Terra shakes her head and slowly stands from the table. She walks around her chair and takes one step toward the window when a face slides into view. Tyki Mikk’s shadowed features crowd the bottom corner of the window. His yellow eyes lock onto Terra, and a menacing grin contorts his expression before he disappears from view.
Lavi clambers out of his seat and grabs Terra’s arm, “Let’s go after him!”
“N-no. No. He’s too strong,” Terra mumbles, fear coating her bones.
“What are you saying? He could have Kita! Let’s go!” Lavi yanks Terra out of her stupor, and they rush out of the inn and to the alley.
Rounding the corner, Terra prepares to come face to face with one of her tormentors and instead trips over a crouched form. A memory of tripping over Kanda at the start of this mission pops into her head. Terra groans in embarrassment and rolls onto her knees to right herself. Before she can stand, she looks up to see yellow eyes staring back at her.
“Terra! Watch where you’re going!” a familiar voice chides her. Terra startles and blinks; when her vision refocuses, what used to be yellow is now red, staring back at her. Disbelief takes over Terra’s thoughts as she stares at her very alive friend sitting in front of her. Before she can utter another word, Lavi scoops Kita into his arms with a tight squeeze.
“Thank God,” he mutters into Kita’s hair, eyes shut firmly against tears. Kita chuckles and rubs his back, burrowing into his embrace.
“How? What? Tyki-” Terra’s heartbeat evens as she realizes they’re not in imminent danger. Relief spreads over her now that Tyki is seemingly not around and Kita is safe. Finally.
“Tyki was with me, but he suddenly just…left me here,” Kita says, attempting to look confused. She technically didn’t lie to them, so no harm done.
“That doesn’t sound like Tyki…” Terra trails off, not wanting to ruin the celebratory mood, but needing to express her concern. Lavi beams down at Kita, who is torn between consoling her best friend and covering her boyfriend in kisses.
“Let’s report to Komui that Kita’s back. We can wrap this up now and head back early.” Lavi takes Kita’s hand and begins to tug her back to the inn. But this isn’t the mission, and Kita can’t disappear on the Noah again. Kita stops walking and loosens her hold on Lavi’s hand. He turns around as Terra makes a horrified gasping sound.
The lovers spin around, and their eyes land on Terra’s stiff form, which has a gloved fist jutting out of her chest. Tyki peeks around Terra’s body and smirks.
“Good evening,” Tyki yanks his hand back through Terra’s chest, freeing her from his hold. She stumbles to the ground, heaving and gagging.
Lavi rushes to Terra and hauls her up onto her feet. The girl's eyes are unfocused, and she puts her whole weight on Lavi’s shoulders.
“Terra? Terra, are you alright?” Lavi waves his hand in front of her eyes, but they don’t react. Terra’s breaths quicken and strain as if she carries the world on her chest. Lavi gently lays Terra on the ground, checking her slowing pulse and rapidly dropping body temperature.
“What the fuck did you do?” Lavi wheels on Tyki, but he’s not there. He’s vanished, and so has Kita.
Cursing the situation, Lavi checks Terra’s vitals and finds her heart rate rapidly decreasing and her skin going pale. “Shit, shit, shit,” he mutters, beginning chest compressions on the girl. “Stay with me, Terra. C’mon. You can’t go like this.”