Regression
A DGM Lucky Fic
By SisterWicked

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Sometimes, Lavi wondered if being a Bookman were really worth the trouble it caused.

This was one of those times.

Looking across the dark material of a suitclad arm currently pressed firmly against his throat, he almost, almost wished he'd never heard of Bookmen, or the Black Order, Exorcists or Akuma..

Or Noah.

He had no illusions about the outcome of this meeting, even with his Innocence still clenched in one hand, bathing the alley with it's supposedly holy light. He knew all too well what happened to the Exorcists who crossed paths with this particular member of the Noah clan, both from experience and recounted tales spun by horrified Finders unlucky enough to 'find' the victims afterward.

Swallowing, he met the other's bright golden eyes squarely, determined to die with at least some sense of dignity.

The man's low chuckle was surprising for all the malice it lacked, but the quick removal of his forearm doubled the redhead's confusion. The number multiplied to the one-hundredth power when the Noah leaned forward sharply, half-parted lips meeting his own as he urged the Exorcist's back away from the stone wall behind him.

Too stunned to resist, he felt his hammer slide through his suddenly numb fingers, the short clack of it's landing on the cobblestones bringing him out of his shortlived stupor. Making a sound that was half anger and half disgust, he shoved the brunette away, wiping his mouth fiercely on his sleeve. "What the fuck are you doing? Christ!"

Turning his head to spit, he glared at the man balefully, retrieving his shrunken Innocence and setting it alight. "You really are something, huh? A murderer, a lunatic and a rapist? How do you fit all that in and still manage to fool people into thinking you're human?" Snorting at the other's wide eyes, he shook his head. "What, you can't fight without completely violating your opponent? Great. Stand right there and I'll be happy to just-"

The Noah blinked in genuine surprise, his skin fading to a clear olive as he stepped forward. "Wait! What's the matter with you? I thought you wanted-" He drew up short as the redhead levelled his hammer threateningly. "You lied, then. I should have known better." Laughing humorlessly, he nodded. "You didn't have to do that, you know.. If you'd simply told me it was finished, I would have let it go at that."

Scowling at the older man, Lavi pushed his back to the wall. "I don't know what you're talking about, but it sounds like bullshit to me. I thought mindgames were your little sister's department, Noah." Taking a breath to continue, he raised an eyebrow at the other's quick flinch. "Go on, tell your story then. I'd love to hear exactly what you've come up with that involves you kissing me before you start rearranging my organs."

The brunette shook his head slowly, stepping backward. "You really don't remember, do you." He eyed the boy's still-wary pose, sighing. "Is this what you meant, when you said the old man was going to change you..? None of what happened means anything because you're a different person."

Lavi blinked in surprise, his grip on the hammer faltering. "How d'you know about that? What the hell am I supposed to be remembering?" He kept his back firmly to the wall, wondering what the man could possibly be planning. "I don't know you. I damn sure haven't told people about being someone else, and Gramps and I are the only ones who could have-" He broke off with a growl of frustration. "He's on a mission. Did that bitch get him? You know because she could see it in his head."

Tyki shook his head again at the boy's furious accusation. "No! You told me yourself, just before the last time." He stepped further away, halting when his back met stone. "I don't know how to explain this to you, but there was something between us. You can choose to believe me or not, but this is definitely not the place for such a discussion.."

The Exorcist laughed harshly, lowering his weapon. "You really thought this out, didn't you? Well, where would you suggest for a chat? I doubt your master would want us cozying it up in the den over tea."

The older man frowned, nodding. "Hardly. There is a place, but I'd have to touch you to take you to it." Seeing the redhead's sceptical look, he sighed. "I can't make you trust my intentions anymore than I can make you believe what I have to say, Lavi. If you really want to know, you'll have to rely on your Order's 'faith'."

Taking in the brunette's slightly pained face, Lavi mentally chided himself for his curiousity. "If you know as much as you say, you should know I'm not all that into the religious side of this." Bracing himself, he dispelled his Innocence. "Don't try anything, Noah. I might die, but I won't make it any easier for you than this." He stretched out a hand, waiting for the man to take action.

After a moment of surprise, the brunette smiled faintly, reaching forward to meet him. "You still take foolish risks, even after this change of yours.. Somehow, I wonder how different you really are, Lavi." Brushing against the boy's fingertips, he allowed their hands to intertwine loosely, moving close enough to be sure of the other's safety. "You might want to close your eyes, this always made you dizzy before."

The redhead's eye narrowed challengingly, his grip tightening. "I can handle anything you do. Let's go, before I start thinking about how stupid this is."

Tyki nodded, holding the boy's stare as he drew on his power, shifting them abruptly away from the alley. Feeling him stagger, he caught his waist, holding him steady until he jerked away. "You see? I tried to warn you.. But besides that, take a seat. This isn't a short story."

Looking around, Lavi squinted at the low lighting, his eye adjusting quickly to the near-darkness. "Where is this?"

The brunette shrugged, sitting at one end of a fairly threadbare couch. "My home away from home, if you will. This is where my human counterpart lives. You've been here before, several times." Gesturing to the opposite side, he waited for the Exorcist to join him, humming at his obvious reluctance. "I won't touch you, Lavi. I'd offer you something else, but I never really saw a need for more than basic furnishings."

The boy scowled nervously, sitting as far from the other as possible given the size of the couch. "Or the need for vision, apparently." He muttered, setting his shrunken hammer down in his lap. "I can hear in the dark though, so get on with it. Tell me what we're supposed to be to each other."

Tyki forced himself to relax despite the redhead's mistrustful tone. "We were lovers." He stated simply, wincing at the boy's angry growl. "And I had thought we were something quite beyond just that. You told me that the old man would change you when you left the mansion, but you promised to come back. You asked me to wait, and I have."

The Exorcist's face rivaled his hair as he shook his head rapidly, his hands closing into fists. "That's a fucking lie! We were never anywhere near you, and even if we were, I sure as hell wouldn't have given you the time of day! How could you expect me to believe that I'd actually have stooped that low, to let you-"

Tyki leaned forward swiftly, ignoring his enraged noise as he seized the lapels of his open jacket. "Stooped, Lavi? Knelt would be closer. Right about where your feet are now, and you told me that it took days for the burns on your knees to heal. As for the time of day, I can remember you telling me several times that it was time to stop talking and start undressing."

Hauling him roughly across the worn material, he pointed to a single scorched mark on the armrest, his voice harsh in the Exorcist's ear. "And there? That's where I dropped a cigarette because you were in too much of a hurry to let me put it out before you started licking me. In all fairness, I couldn't have cared less at the moment either.. You told me that you wanted as much of me as you could get, until you found a way to come back for more."

Releasing his grip, he forced down his anger with effort. "I knew where you were going, and I still.. How could it just be gone, Lavi? Days, weeks, months.. There isn't a single part of you that I don't know! And you should be the same, it isn't something one forgets!" He allowed the Exorcist to retreat, shaking his head. "I would have let you go, if it had been physical. There never would have been anything more than that, if you hadn't asked for it directly."

He laughed at himself bleakly, gesturing at the redhead's speechless rage. "You were just as angry when I asked if you really meant what you said, Lavi. The thought that I wouldn't believe you was completely outside of your ability to reason." Regarding the other squarely, he hummed curiously. "Go on, tell me that I'm a liar again. Nothing you say will make it any less real.. You even told me that my heart would be safe with you, because you already knew how to hide your own."

Visibly collecting himself, the Exorcist took a breath. "No part of me you don't know, huh? Then tell me something. How'd I lose this?" He pointed a finger at his eyepatch, smirking at the man's surprised expression. "There's no way you wouldn't know, if we-"

"You didn't."

The brunette's soft response halted his triumphant rant like a brick wall, leaving him stunned as he leaned backward sharply. "What?"

"It's only for show. You never needed it." Tyki slid closer, taking advantage of the boy's shock to lift a hand to the strap that held the thin cloth in place. Slipping the tip of his finger beneath it, he tugged it upward slowly, watching the newly-revealed pupil contract and then expand in the half-light of the room. "You said the old man would be angrier at that than anything.. No one was supposed to know, and you were never supposed to take this off."

Stroking his thumb along the redhead's cheekbone, he smiled. "You showed me, though. Why would you do that, if we were enemies?" Seeing the Exorcist's eyes widen, he shook his head. "You wouldn't have. And there's no other way I could have known." He made to pull his hand back, but the boy latched onto his wrist almost painfully to stop the movement.

"How long..? How long were we- How long have you been..?" He struggled to form coherant questions, overwhelmed at the impossibility of the man's claim. "Why were you waiting, dammit? If you knew where I was going, why did you even bother? I don't remember anything about you, not a single-"

"Eu te amo, Lavi."

The fact that he shouldn't have been able to understand the obviously foreign statement was overlooked in light of the actual meaning of the words, and he shook his head rapidly in denial. "Don't say that! You don't even know how!" Realizing that he still had hold of the brunette's arm, he snatched his hand away as if the contact had burned his fingers, still refusing to believe that there could be any truth in the older man's story. "You wouldn't have just let me leave, if you meant that! I wouldn't have forgotten it, either!"

Tyki waited patiently for him to finish, his gaze steady. "You told me that you had to go. The only way I could have stopped you was by force." He bent close, following the Exorcist as he leaned back in response. "Would you rather I'd done that? I didn't do it because it would have been too much like owning you.. And I don't think you've forgotten completely, there had to be some part left behind for you to allow even this much."

Ignoring the boy's panicked gasp, he planted one hand beside him on the armrest, effectively hedging him in. "There's nothing familiar to you, nothing at all?" He narrowed his eyes at the other's almost frightened expression, shaking his head. "You never forget what you learn, Lavi. You told me so yourself, once you've seen or heard or felt something, it stays with you forever.. Why would it only be this? How could you not remember-" He growled in frustration, bending to catch the Exorcist's mouth with his own.

Feeling him stiffen, he kept the touch light, using only enough pressure to emphasize the gentle brush and cling of lips as he sighed. Undeterred by the lack of response, he buried his free hand in the boy's thick hair, cradling his head as he licked carefully along the curve of his lower lip. The act drew a choked sound from the redhead, his fingers curling reflexively into the material of the older man's shirt.

The Noah lifted his head slightly, watching the Exorcist's face for any sign of recognition. "That's completely strange to you, Lavi..? Everything started from there, it was the first thing you gave me on your own.." Seeing the boy's mouth move, he bent his head until the sound of breath became words.

"Just from that..?"

He nodded slowly, taking note of the anxious shivers that wracked the other's body. "Only that. Over and over, even when we did nothing else.. I never tired of it, Lavi. For some reason, just kissing you was enough sometimes."

The redhead was silent for a long moment, his hands loosening fractionally as he took a breath. "..then.. could you.. Just one more..?"

The older man inhaled sharply, his own grip tightening in response to the soft question. "That's what you always said.. Because you knew I would never refuse you." He pulled away from the Exorcist's ear to comply, absurdly delighted when the boy tipped his head to meet him halfway with a shaky whimper.

He meant for this kiss to be equally soft and careful, but the Exorcist's response was a factor that he hadn't included in his ideal. Though he was obviously still hesitant, there was no unwillingness in the act, and the almost shy parting of his lips drove a quick bolt of longing through the older man. Remembering those long-ago first kisses, he forced down a surge of bitterness, lifting his head with a sigh.

"Enough," He murmured, closing his eyes. "There's no meaning in it, now." Pushing himself upright, he avoided the redhead's curious stare. "You've never missed it, have you? I was so sure that you really did-" He laughed softly, the sound making the younger boy flinch. "I should tear you to pieces, Exorcist.. You're no longer the person I swore to protect."

Hearing the boy's short breath, he shook his head. "But I won't. I can't. You needn't fear for your safety, Lavi.. Enemy or no, I still love the person you were with me."

Wary of the man's deteriorating mood, Lavi swallowed. "You didn't answer me, before." He took a breath, preparing to be told to mind his own business. "How long were we.. Together?"

Tiki smiled faintly, the expression strained. "Just shy of a year." He dug briefly through his pockets, pulling out a slightly crooked cigarette. Lighting it with a deftly produced match, he inhaled deeply, rubbing absently at the bridge of his nose. "Less time than we've been apart.. I really don't know what I was expecting, after so long."

The boy blinked in surprise, straightening. "I've been with the Order for over two years, Tyki. Why did you wait until now? I've seen you before, and you never said a thing.."

Still absorbed in his false calm, Tyki shrugged. "Wouldn't it have been dangerous? You had already risked everything once, and that was when we were much closer in habitation, if nothing else. How would you have managed the same feat from within the Order? I couldn't have approached you until you were by yourself." He retrieved an ashtray from the table beside him, flicking his ashes carelessly. "I should have been able to see that you didn't recognize me, but I suppose I simply didn't wish to."

Lavi made to question him further, but the brunette cut him off with a short wave. "This has no bearing on history, Lavi. There's no need to drag the whole pitiable tale to light, is there? Your curiosity is understandable, but it's more than empty facts for me."

Refusing to be deterred, the Exorcist clenched his hands. "Then why did you bring me here at all? If I told you I'd be changed, I would have told you that it's a complete change! I stop being someone when it happens, I might not have even had the same personality! The person I was must have been a selfish bastard to tell you to wait-"

The older man rounded on him fiercely, his eyes narrowed in anger. "I wouldn't have changed! You don't simply stop loving someone, Lavi!" Stubbing out his cigarette, he leaned forward with a growl. "I would have gone with you, even if it had meant my destruction! For all I know, you told me that to stop me from following you!" He took a breath to calm himself, shaking his head. "You could have done this to yourself, to keep us both safe. Like I said, you told me that you never forget something that's happened.. How else could your memories of me simply cease to be? You made yourself forget."

Lavi shook his head, suddenly angry. "I don't know of any way to do that! I've seen things as this person that I'd forget if I could, there's just no way to do it! I couldn't just make myself forget something, and then forget that I knew how!" He met the man's dark gaze squarely, ignoring the potential for danger. "I'm not a Bookman yet, it'll be years before I know how to do things like-" He faltered, his eyes wide. "I'd have to learn something like that from a full Bookman.. And he hasn't taught me that yet."

He swallowed thickly, shaking his head. "He wouldn't have done that to me. He would have found a new apprentice and left me behind, he wouldn't have taken something like that away from me."

Confused, Tyki moved closer, watching the boy with growing unease. "Lavi? What do you mean?" Frowning at the redhead's mounting panic, he reached for his shoulder, shaking him gently. "Lavi, answer me. What does the old man have to do with this?"

Raising his head, the Exorcist cleared his throat. "I don't remember my family." He muttered, breathing quickly. "He took me in because he was the one that found me.. Something awful happened to them, and I was there-" He shuddered faintly, closing his eyes. "He made it go away. Whatever I saw messed me up, made me crazy or something. He got rid of that, and then he started training me as his successor. He could have.. But he wouldn't! He only did that to make me better!"

Blinking rapidly, he shook his head. "He wouldn't have taken away a whole year. If I really.. He wouldn't have made me forget you." Listening to his own frightened voice, he wondered exactly who he was tring to convince, himself or the surprised Noah. The idea that his mentor could have coldly and completely erased something as vital as what the brunette claimed to be real was staggering. "It's not perfect, either. Sometimes I get a feeling from a place or a person, like it's familiar. He said it's because there's something too similar to what he made me forget, and it just feels like deja'vu. There's nothing like that now, I don't feel-"

The older man tightened his grip, stilling the boy's rant with a firm squeeze. "Have you tried? You've been denying the possibility from the start, couldn't you make an honest attempt?" The intensity of his words startled the Exorcist, his voice bordering on what might have been desperation.

"I wouldn't even know where to start, Tyki! I've been listening, but I don't sense anything from it, it's only words to..!"

The brunette jerked him forward, wrapping him in a crushing embrace. Burying his face against the boy's hair, he closed his eyes. "I could tell you anything you wanted to know, if it would make you remember.. This house, it was the place we went, that very first time.. We were at it for hours, Lavi." He shuddered at the memory, his arms loosening slightly. "I never took so much time with a person before that, I just couldn't stand the thought that I might hurt you.. You practically had to demand that I take you."

Lavi flushed hotly, the utter sincerity in the other's voice striking him like a blow. Recalling the cautious press of the man's body from before, he realised with a start that this seemingly vicious person could be gentle, when it suited him. "Was.. Was it during the day..?" He swallowed nervously, mildly alarmed at the strength of his hold. "Or did we stay the night..?"

Tyki nodded faintly, his grip more cradling than restrictive. "It was night time, near the end of summer." He hummed curiously, shifting his head to rest atop the boy's shoulder. "I never thought to ask, but does your birthday change when you do..? If not, you'll be having one soon, your 19th.." He laughed quietly, the sound infinitely more expressive than before. "There's something to be said for youth, but perhaps it was too soon for what we did.. At my age, I should have known better."

The Exorcist shook his head, relaxing at the other's improved disposition. "You aren't that much older than me.. And it's always the same day. You're right about the year though. Was it my birthday?"

Tyki sighed, releasing the boy entirely. "No, it was after that. I don't really know why I allowed it to happen at all, you were barely sixteen.." He leaned back, his eyes roaming over the redhead's familiar features. "I wouldn't have changed it, though. Even if I'd known this was coming, I still would have let myself fall."

Moving away, he smiled at the redhead's obvious surprise. "It was worth it, Lavi. I don't think I've ever been quite that happy to just be with someone." Rising to his feet, he turned toward the far wall, gesturing at the few pictures scattered over it. "Anything like this can be forged, but.." He walked to a place near the center, carefully unhooking one of the frames. Returning to the seated redhead, he turned the picture to face him. "This is the only one I have, but you can't deny that it's you."

Lavi took the frame gingerly, blinking at the unmistakeable image of himself. The clothes he wore were casual, a simple pullover shirt with dark pants, and as always he wore the useless eyepatch over one side of his face, but what caught his attention was the expression on this boy's face. He was smiling brightly at whoever had taken the picture, his visible eye alight with a mischievous glint that belied the severity of his assumed pose.

Glancing back at the bare patch of wall, he inhaled shakily at the difference in coloration, something that suggested the picture had been there for some time. Noting the odd positioning, he cleared his throat. "It's off-center."

The older man smiled, reaching to take the frame. "Indeed. I put it there because I wanted to be able to see it-"

"From anywhere in the room." Lavi whispered, his hands closing so tightly that the glass and wooden pictureframe creaked ominously. "You wanted to be able to look at it when you came home, and when you were anywhere here, all you needed to do was turn your head.." He closed his eyes, pushing down a sharp lurch of disorientation. "You took this." It wasn't a question, but the older man hummed an affirmative.

"Not too long before you left. There was one of me, but that's most likely long gone by now." He carefully removed the picture from the boy's shaking hands, setting it on the sidetable. "Are you all right, Lavi..? You're very pale.."

The Exorcist nodded, shook his head, then nodded again. "I don't know." He said, finally. "If this is a trick, it's the best one I've ever seen, but if it's not.." He shuddered, his arms wrapping around himself defensively. "I don't want it to be true. I don't want to think that I had something like that, and then had it just be taken away." He stared up at the brunette pleadingly, his voice almost too soft to be understood. "Tell me the truth. Even if you're a Noah, some things are just too cruel to do.. Tell me if this is real or not, Tyki."

The older man sank down to sit beside him, his face serious. "If I could give you my own memories, I would, Lavi. I'm sorry that I brought you here, now.. All I've done was cause you pain." He lifted a hand to the boy's face, his palm warm against the shock-cool skin of the other's cheek. "Forgive me, for not knowing when to let go?"

Lavi turned his face into the touch, his eyes closed tight. "I'll fix it." He said, his hands clenching atop his lap. "I'll make him give me back what he stole from me. Every second of it." Taking a rough breath, he met the older man's eyes. "I'll keep that promise, Tyki. If you can wait just a little longer, I'll find my way back." With that said, he leaned forward, pausing only centimeters from the brunette's surprised face. "Will you wait, Tyki? It won't be nearly so long this time.."

The Noah nodded faintly, his hand moving to cup the back of the redhead's neck. "As long as it takes, Lavi. Forever, if I have to." He moved closer purposefully, allowing the boy ample time to pull away if he so wished.

His caution was completely unwarranted, the Exorcist's eyes closing as he accepted the man's gentle kiss. Feeling the slow stroke of the other's tongue on his lip, he shivered, his mouth opening to grant him access.

Tyki growled softly, his free hand wrapping around the boy's waist to move him closer. Relishing the velvety wetness of his tongue, he urged him to respond with a questioning hum, the sound dropping into a moan when the redhead pressed a hand to his thigh for support.

Pulling back, he laughed breathlessly. "My apologies, Lavi.. I let myself get carried away." Realizing that the Exorcist was leaning at an extremely awkward angle, he laughed again, pressing carefully against his chest. "Very carried away."

Lavi resisted the movement, shaking his head. "Don't apologize, I wanted you to let go.. I still want you to." Biting his lip, he swallowed. "You said that it was enough, sometimes.. Was it, really..?" He sighed at the man's slow nod, his hand moving higher as he shifted his weight. "Show me? I'd like see what was so good about it.."

For a moment he thought the brunette would refuse, his eyes wide as he searched the Exorcist's flushed face for something known only to him. Then, the hand against the boy's chest moved back to his waist, it's mate pushing firmly against the small of his back as the Noah pulled him forward to half-sprawl across his lap.

"The best part was having you so close, Lavi.. That's something else that hasn't changed." He pressed their mouths together firmly, sucking at the boy's lower lip as he drew him up to straddle his legs. Hissing at his soft whine, he curled his fingers around the Exorcist's hip, his teeth closing gently on the swollen skin of his mouth. "You taste the same," He whispered, his opposite hand sliding up to rest between his shoulderblades. "Just as sweet as I remember.."

Lavi gasped in surprise at the instant leap of his pulse, the quick beat leaving him faintly dizzy. "I.. Thank you?" He flushed at the pitch of his voice, shaking his head. "Did we do this a lot? It.. I shouldn't know how, I haven't.." Biting his lip in embarassment, he laughed. "I don't really have time to run around kissing people, you know? I didn't do it when I was younger, either.." He tapered off, his breath catching at the older man's intent gaze.

"There's been no one else, Lavi? You could tell me, I wouldn't be angry under these circumstances.." His hands tightened at the boy's silent negative, his voice rough as he chuckled quietly. "If not that, then certainly nothing beyond it, yes? Even now, you're still mine." He didn't wait for a response, pulling the Exorcist down for another kiss. This one was nothing like it's predecessors, the hard press of his mouth hungry in a way that made the younger boy shudder in mixed anxiety and arousal.

Lifting his hands to the man's chest, he clutched shakily at the material of his shirt, whimpering at the insistant movements of his lips and tongue. His lingering fear dissolved at the Noah's broken moan, his fingers relaxing to splay over the soft cotton in a hesitant caress. Feeling the brunette shift into the touch, he stroked upward, his fingers curling loosely around the back of his neck in soundless encouragement.

The effect on the other was startling, his back moving away from the couch as he pulled the Exorcist flush against him with a low growl. Lifting his head, he took a quick breath, then buried his face into the junction of the boy's throat and jaw. Speaking between careful nips and kisses against the skin, he traced idle designs on the redhead's back, his words sending a rush of heat up the Exorcist's spine.

"We'll have to be careful, Lavi.. You don't remember where the limit is, when it stops being enough." He sucked at a place just below the redhead's ear, licking over the faint mark. "It's almost past that now.."

Lavi slipped his arms behind the man's shoulders, clinging to him desperately as he panted for breath. "That's all right.. Don't stop if you need-"

The brunette jerked back quickly, his eyes wide. "What? No!" He shook his head rapidly, ignoring the giddy surge of lust at the boy's offer. "Not yet, not until you've regained your memories.. It wasn't this that I waited for." Seeing the Exorcist's surprise, he smiled. "It isn't your body that I need, Lavi.. Once you remember, you'll understand." Pressing a kiss to the redhead's cheek, he hummed quietly. "I promise to make up for it then.. This is the first and only 'no' you'll ever hear from me."

Nodding faintly, Lavi relaxed his hold. "I'm sorry, I just thought you might.. It's been a long time, so.." He blinked, stiffening. "It has, hasn't it? You haven't.. Have you?" His tone was almost fearful, and the older man's chest tightened at the half-terrified look on his face.

"Never. Not since, and not now, Lavi." He shook his head firmly, arms wrapping around the boy's waist. "I've never believed in substitution, and anyone I touched would have had to compete with you." Urging the Exorcist to lean into him, he stroked his hair soothingly. "I have to take you back.. If you're gone too long, they'll think you've deserted or some such."

The redhead's laugh was muffled, his arms flexing briefly. "Haven't I though? I won't be able to stay, I'll be lucky if someone doesn't try to kill me before I can leave." Sitting up, he smiled darkly. "I don't really want to fight a friend, but I'm not going to let that stop me if I have to. Will I be able to find you again, Tyki..? I don't know how long it'll take me to get back, but I'm going to need a place to stay until I find somewhere for myself."

The man frowned thoughtfully, shaking his head. "You'll stay here, obviously. Do you really think I'd let you out of my sight after this?" Under his light tone, there was a completely serious question, one that made the Exorcist's breath catch sharply.

"I'll stay here if you want me to, Tyki.. I just didn't want to assume." He smiled crookedly, his hands moving to the other's shoulders as he prepared to rise. "I've got to take care of this first, though. Is there somewhere I could look for you? I'll have to make sure no one follows me, so I might have to take a little side trip first, just in case.."

The brunette nodded, allowing him to stand. "You'd be leaving from England, yes? I doubt they'd send you off with good graces, so close distance would be best.." Rising to his feet, he sighed. "The Guardsman's Watch. It's a tavern in west London, I've stayed there before on.. business. Come there, and ask for Theydon Hart." Seeing the boy's questioning look, he smiled. "That was the name of the man I was after. A contractor who thought he could outrun the Earl."

Retrieving the Exorcist's eyepatch from the far end of the couch, he handed it to him, waiting patiently while he slipped it into place. "You needn't worry about being trailed, Lavi. We would meet and be gone before they had time to do more than blink." Indicating the redhead's almost forgotten Innocence, he allowed him to retrieve that for himself, stepping forward to embrace the boy with a soft laugh. "I'll wait for you, but I'd rather it was as soon as humanly possible.. It's in my nature to be impatient."

Lavi returned his tight hold eagerly, nodding against the front of his shirt. "As long as it's safe, Tyki. I won't go directly to you if there's a screaming horde behind me, but I won't take any longer than I absolutely have to.. Just wait. I promised, and no matter who I am, I don't lie when it matters." Leaning back reluctantly, he forced himself to smile up at the older man. "Do I get a goodbye kiss, Tyki..? You could consider it incentive, if-"

He got no further, the Noah's mouth stilling the words with a kiss too rough to be anything but frightened. Pressing as close as their differing heights allowed, Lavi returned the touch with equal fervor, his hands fisted tightly against the man's back. Pulling away with a gasp, he inclined his head, drawing the other's face down to his throat.

"Leave a mark," He panted, fingers winding into the brunette's hair. "Something I can see, so I won't.. Please, Tyki. I need something real.." He cried out at the sharp sting of the other's teeth, his hands tightening in encouragement as the man sucked hard at the smarting skin. Allowing him to pull away, he shivered at the feeling of cool air on the sensitive flesh, his smile less dishonest than before. "Thank you.. Let's go before I try to convince you to do that somewhere else."

The older man laughed, shaking his head. "And you say your personality may have changed.. But yes. The sooner you leave, the sooner you'll return." Closing his eyes, he willed them back into the alley, holding the redhead steady when he lurched. "I wish I could make that easier for you, Lavi. Perhaps we could work on that after you return."

The Exorcist nodded, stepping backward. "Anything you want, Tyki. I'm going to the train station now, if I'm lucky they'll let me change my ticket to something a little sooner." Biting his lip, he half extended his hand toward the other, letting it fall with a sigh. "I'll never get anywhere like this.. Goodbye, Tyki." Turning around, he forced himself to walk away, clenching his hands as he reached the street. Glancing back, he smiled faintly at the man's silent presence, closing his eye tightly when he vanished.

Steeling his resolve, he strode out onto the sidewalk, his pace quickening as he spotted the station building in the distance. 'Soon,' He thought, 'I'll be back soon, it's only a day's travel.. And I'll never have to leave again. No more hurting and fighting.. There's nothing but happiness after this.'

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And then, attracted by his flaming yaoi thoughts, lightning struck, frying his bunny ass. Ha, just kidding.. But I wonder, should I even bother finishing this? It'd be 1-2 more chapters at most.. Tell me what you think, and DO NOT fave/alert list me without commenting, I'll send you a rude PM if you do. Thanks for reading!