Noah's Bookman Extra: Formal

Noah's Bookman, Side Story: A Formal Noah Occasion

Rhode spun around in her dress. It was a new one Cyril had bought for her, sporting a multi-tiered skirt and many ruffles.

“Oh~~! You're so cute!” Cyril squealed in absolute delight.

Rhode simply giggled then she spotted the redhead across the room. She leapt forward, clinging to his waist. “You're so cute, Lavi!”

“I feel ridiculous,” Lavi retorted.  The Bookman had never worn anything quite like this. A black formal jacket with notched tails over a white collared shirt and black pants and formal shoes. His hair was down for once, falling in his face. His eyepatch and earrings contrasted the entire formal appearance, as well as his lack of a bow tie, since he had no idea how to actually tie one.

Cyril blinked, almost gaping at Lavi with his rather gaunt face. “Have you never worn something like that before?”

Lavi shook his head. “I'm a Bookman, not nobility. We travel all over the place. How do I tie this?” He held out the bow tie at Cyril.

Cyril gaped and nearly fainted.

“Here,” Tyki stepped forward and tied the bow tie with ease.

“Tyki!” Rhode exclaimed, now clinging to his waist. “You came!”

“You know how the Earl likes us all to be there as a family,” Tyki replied, no enthusiasm in his words, quite opposite of Rhode. She seemed to really enjoy the idea of a formal occasion. For Lavi, this was a chance to observe the Noah family in a more human situation. He found it a bit strange that the Earl would host such a thing, given his apparent distrust for humanity.

Lavi shifted uncomfortably in his shoes. He was so accustomed to wearing boots, but these noble shoes were incredibly uncomfortable. It was very fortunate that this sort of thing wasn't common. “I'm not sure how I'd fit into this. I don't exactly look like I'm related.” Lavi wasn't officially part of the family. He'd been with the Noah over a year now, slowly making his way into their hearts, first as a means to get information from them, but Lavi began to lose himself, his heart slowly warming up to the family. Most of the Noah accepted him as a human sibling. In fact, Tyki was the closest to him, almost possessive of Lavi at times. Rhode was no better.

“No, you look so different,” Rhode agreed. The entire family had black hair and dark eyes. Lavi, on the other hand, had bright red hair and emerald green eyes. Well, eye, since only one was ever active.

“The Earl has given you a guise,” Tyki offered, “a distant cousin from the Orient.”

“Oh that sounds exotic!” Cyril exclaimed.

“I don't exactly look like I'm from the Orient,” Lavi frowned.

“They don't know that,” Tyki smirked.

The company didn't seem very smart, but then again, Lavi didn't have high hopes for nobility. However, this alias would be simple. Lavi knew several East Asian languages. “Yasashi sugiru na.”

The trio gaped at him.

“I'm multi-lingual,” Lavi explained with a shrug. It was common among Bookman. In fact, Lavi knew about 20 different languages, although English was the one he commonly spoke. Languages were simple for someone who could simply pick up a few dictionaries and grammar books and memorize them all quickly and easily.





Lavi leaned against the wall, watching the people spin and twirl about in an organized fashion. He had never attended anything of this sort, so he simply kept to himself. It was better this way. He was an observer, after all. And that worked for him, until Rhode bound over to him and dragged him out into the crowd.

“Dance with me,” she demanded.

Lavi simply stared in return.

“Lemme show you~” she said. Reaching up, she touched his forehead, planting the images of dancing into his mind. Normally he would simply pull back before she had a chance, but she was so quick that he simply gave in. Besides, she wasn't pushing around in his mind. He knew only vaguely what she was capable of and wasn't about to subject himself to her power just to understand it.

“Easy, right?” she grinned innocently back at him.

Well if he was going to keep up the guise of being related, he would certainly have to blend in. It was only a few measures before the song ended and the crowd began to disperse a little. Thank goodness.

Several girls closer to his age approached Rhode.

“Who's this? I've never seen him before.”

Lavi attempted to escape but was quickly yanked back. Rhode wasn't about to let him leave. He was hers for the time being.

“This is my cousin from Edo!” Rhode said excitedly. “Say hi, Lavi~”

Plastering on a sweet smile, Lavi began to play the part. “Yoroshiku,” he said with a bow. “Nice t' meet you all.” Lavi was an excellent actor. He'd had years of experience playing various different roles and identities, 49 to be exact, some of which he enjoyed, some of which he did not. It was whatever the Clan had given him to become. They gave him the masks and identities and he simply molded himself to them.

The girls fanned themselves. “So exotic!” they exclaimed. Tyki was right. It was easy to sway them into believing he was a foreigner. They didn't seem to bright. “Say something else!”

“Soto ni chiizu ga furimasu yo~♥” Lavi said, continuing the guise of a cultured Japanese nobleman. The girls fawned over him. He smiled then excused himself for a drink. Thankfully, Rhode allowed him to go.

“Enjoying yourself, are you?” Tyki asked, smirking, taking a sip of wine.

“Not really,” Lavi said flatly, picking up a glass of water in an ornate wine glass.

“What did you tell them?” Tyki asked, somewhat curious. “You had them swooning over you.”

“It's raining cheese outside,” Lavi replied nonchalantly.

Tyki nearly choked on his wine. “Did you really?”

“They don't understand a word'a Japanese,” Lavi smirked. “I could say anything t' them really.”

Tyki was amazed. Lavi had a strangely twisted side to him he'd never seen before, and Tyki really enjoyed seeing it. But Tyki also had his own twisted side. He pushed Lavi unsuspectingly at a young girl dressed in orange, her blond hair up in curls. “Miss Laura, why not take my cousin for a dance?”

“L-lord Tyki!” she stammered. “I-if he'll have me as his dance partner...” She blushed profusely.

Lavi glanced over his shoulder at Tyki with a rather displeased look. Tyki simply smirked back. Like Rhode, Tyki liked to tell Lavi what to do, but in return Lavi got Tyki to tell him pretty much anything.

Lavi turned back around, plastering a friendly smile across his face. “Shall we?” he offered his hand for her to take. Thankfully the images Rhode had placed in his mind helped him get through a song without tripping on his own feet.





Lavi leaned up against the wall, escaping the fawning ladies. Tyki leaned against the wall next to him, sipping on wine once again.

“Ya owe me for that one, Tyki,” Lavi stated sourly.

Tyki laughed. “It seems I do.”

“Where the fuck is the hard stuff?”

That line could only mean one thing: the twins were here. Lavi had never seen either of the twins in their white forms, not to mention even dressed nicely. They usually had a sloppier style than himself. And as usual, they were making quite the commotion.

“Great, why are they here?” Tyki sighed. “They should be out on a mission.”

Lavi simply stared. He still didn't quite understand them.

Rhode angrily grabbed the collar of Debitt's shirt, pulling him down to her height. “If you mess up the party, I will make your life a living hell.” She glared at him intently.

Debitt blinked then surrendered quickly, dragging Jasdero, who was busy gnawing on finger food, out of the room.

“This is why they're never invited to these things,” Tyki sighed.