Disclaimer: I own nothing yaddy yaddy yada. Sorry (well, not really) for the lateness of this…I don't really feel like putting an excuse, so I won't. But, read and review (that would probably help get faster updates *shrugs* up to you) and yeah.

Chapter Five: Deepening Mystery

Kanda silently pushed himself forward using his elbows, slowly inching his way down the vent, pausing every now and then to listen for any signs of activity, human or otherwise.

He was currently crawling through the Red Line Hospital air vents, following the directions that Allen had given him. The previous day's events had left the school in an uproar. Rumors and speculations were flying left and right, and many of the students had become quite apprehensive. Due to all the commotion that was going on, the schools board of directors had decided to call the rest of the week off, giving the students five days off of school.

The exorcists had used most of that time up talking to the students and continuing their investigation, slow as it was. They now knew, however, that something was definitely going on. The school board was staying very hush-hush about it, simply telling the students that it was an "accident in the classroom."

That was not what was going on, this they knew.

After convening in the boy's dorm one night, they had come to the decision to investigate the hospital, or break into, as that was what they were currently doing, hoping to find something that could give them a lead.

{:Flashback:}

"What could have happened to him?" Lenalee had asked Lavi a night ago, as she looked at the pictures that had been laid out on the floor next to them. Other sheets of paper, filled with diagrams and notes lay there as well, ideas or suspicions were being written down in a notebook.

"There was an event Bookman and I recorded not long ago," Lavi said, shifting into a comfortable position. "We were at a convention, for what I can't say, but while we were there, something like this happened."

"You mean you found the charred remains of a body?" Allen asked, resting his head on his hand.

Lavi nodded. "Not quite to this degree though. We later learned that a science experiment had gone horribly wrong."

"What were they trying to do?" Kanda asked. His eyes held a dangerous glint, and something else that the others couldn't place.

"The idea to the experiment was to bring someone back to life, using only scientifical means."

"What?" Lenalee asked. shock evident on her face.

Lavi nodded grimly. "Obviously, it didn't work. The dead body on which they were trying to accomplish that was left looking similar to what we saw two days ago. The scientist, well. That's the mystery. We don't know what happened to him."

Allen frowned. "You mean he died unexplainably?"

Lavi shrugged. "Either that, or something else. He was never seen again."

They looked at each other, an unspoken agreement filled the air.

We need to solve this. Fast.

{:End Flashback:}

Kanda continued his slow paced crawl, taking a right turn and pushing forward for a little while until he came to his designated exit. Quietly opening the air vent, he lowered himself down, jumping the last few inches to the floor, landing in a crouch, Mugen strapped securely to his back.

As his eyes adjusted to the dark room, he started to make out the outlines of furniture, several desks, chairs and tables, and cabinets and shelves that lined the walls.

He stood up, and started to slowly move around the room. Reaching into his pant pocket, he took out a small flashlight, and turned it on, shining it around the room for a better visual.

He walked over to one of the filing cabinets, and pulled open a drawer. Placing the flashlight in his mouth, he quickly started shuffling through the papers.

Medicine prescriptions, appointments, clients…nothing out of the ordinary seemed to be there.

-Beep- "Kanda, are you in?" Allen's voice came on the communicator in Kanda's ear.

"Yes," Kanda replied.

"Anything?"

Kanda shook his head, although Allen couldn't see. "No, just the usual that you would find in a hospital." He heard Allen sigh on the other end.

"Alright, Lenalee says to keep looking, but to watch out for the security."

Kanda nodded. "Alright." He cut the line, and closed the drawer. Walking over to the other end of the room, he opened the back door and stepped out, closing it softly behind him.

The dark hallway was empty, the silence giving an eerie effect.

Kanda continued exploring the hospital, placing anything and everything he touched exactly how he found it.

An hour and a half later, the search had still yielded nothing. Allen had told Kanda that Lavi, who had been sneaking around in the school office, hadn't discovered anything except that the secretary and one of the teachers were secretly seeing each other.

Kanda was just about to start heading back to the dorm, when he spotted the steel door. Normally, that wouldn't have caused him to pause, as there was tons of doors in the hospital. However, it was the fact that this particular door had no handle, and that it seemed to blend in perfectly with wall. The only reason Kanda had spotted it in the first place was because he was actively searching for strange things like that. Anyone who had just walked down the hallway wouldn't have noticed.

Frowning, he walked closer to it, running his fingers down the edge of it, looking for something that would open it.

There wasn't any.

Kanda glared at the door, and felt like kicking it, although he knew that that would do nothing.

"I mean, honestly, what should I do?"

Kanda whirled around, hearing the voices and footsteps drawing echoing down the hall. The previously dark hallway was now being lit up by beams from flashlights.

Crap. Kanda thought, security guards. Of course Kanda could have taken them out within five seconds, but that would definitely cause a scene later on. And tip off the person they were looking for. Or thing.

"Man, you've got the worst of luck. Did you try talking to her?"

The voices were getting louder as the guards drew nearer.

Kanda quickly looked around, trying to find a place to duck into, but there wasn't any. And it was all by chance that his elbow came to knock itself against the wall, hitting an invisible notch placed in it.

There small whish of air as the door slid open.

"Well, yeah, but she won't-wait, did you hear that?"

Wasting no time, Kanda quickly stepped inside, the door sliding shut and locking behind him.

XxXx

Lavi gave the room one last glance, before stepping out of it, and quickly walking down the corridor.

Man, this place gives me the creeps, Lavi thought to himself.

The school building all locked up, empty and after dark wasn't the place Lavi was very keen on snooping around in. But it sure beats that hospital¸ he consoled himself.

He actually didn't know where he was exactly in the school. Some place deep, though. The air was cold, well, colder, and it was impossible to make out anything more than three feet away.

Lavi sighed. Well, time to start heading back. He could feel the mounting frustration for not finding anything, and hoped that Kanda had better luck.

Lavi turned around and practically had a heart attack.

There, standing right in front of him, was a glowing little girl. Her skin was pasty white, and her black hair looked to be floating around her. She wore a plain white dress, her shoulders and feet bare. There was an unearthly blue glow around her, and her veins seemed to be filled with it.

Akuma! Lavi thought to himself, his hand going for the hammer strapped to his thigh.

"Pl…se…I…ared."

Her face was brutally scared; the left side of it seemed to have been horribly burned. Her left eye was missing. She looked like she was in agony.

"Ep…e…"

"Wh-what?" Lavi asked, his eye wide. His first reaction was to think she was a ghost, but he could tell that she was alive. Or partially alive. Lavi had certainly seen many horrible events, things, and people throughout the eighteen years of his life. But this…? The girl looked no more than five years old, and what had they done to her?

"He…p…ee," The girl tried to say again, her voice dead.

Lavi took a cautious step forward, hoping it wouldn't frighten her.

"Help…me." Help me. Please. I'm dying.

UP NEXT: Uh….well. You'll be surprised! Because I'm still working that out…so yeah.

A/N: Okay, I know it's been, like, a month, or even longer, but…Life you know, decided to place itself first. So yeah. Also I really don't know if you guys are liking this (because you know…review?) but I'm determined to continue it, as slow as it is, because. Anywho, things are going to pick up now, I promise (er, I think they will?) but yeah. Okay, I know there are so many improbable things and lacking explanations…but I'm too tiered to really work that out right now, so just pretend, kay?

Also, I had to delete chap 4 because it didn't come out the way I wanted it, so for those who noticed, heehee, that's why.

Well, review (please…?) and all that jazz. :)