Soul Eater: Offspring, Chapter 3

I checked the registration list again. There was no way. I never expected this to happen. Why would she do this to me? It must just be a different pronunciation, or maybe there was another family with the name Albarn, it wasn’t that uncommon was it? “Lillian…. Is it Albarn?” I asked the class full of students. I tried to keep my voice steady, to not betray the fact that the name had shocked me so much. I willed the girl who was now raising her hand to correct the way I said it. “Sir, I’m registered as Ripper Albarn; no one really calls me Lillian.” I stared at her for a moment. She was probably about sixteen, short-ish, skinny like her Mom had been, and she had light green eyes that also looked exactly like Maka’s. Damn. But her hair was white, as white as mine, and her nametag read, “Ripper Albarn, Weapon.” She was a Weapon. That probably explained the name. I guess that I had been staring for too long, Stein cleared his throat loudly. I took a deep breath. “Ripper…. Alright.” I continued down the list of names. Albarn, Ripper Albarn, Lillian Albarn. Could she really be Maka’s daughter? I finished the list, there was only one student missing, probably late. A Bad Luck Smith. Oh well, the name said it all. I stepped back, careful to keep my eyes on the floor and off of the young lady in the crowd. Stein asked all the Weapons who didn’t need Meisters to go with Sid. I looked up to see if Ripper would be one of them. She wasn’t. She looked nervous, nervous as all the others were. I wondered what they were all thinking, the others in the room who knew the name Albarn, who knew Maka. Stein finished his little speech and dismissed the kids. They left; I kept my eyes on the ground. No one said anything, yet. I knew it was only a matter of time before they did. So I said nothing, and walked out of the room. I made my way down the lesser known hallways of the academy, keeping my thoughts to myself. If she was really Maka Albarn’s daughter, well, that meant that Lillian ‘Ripper’ Albarn was also my daughter. But she could be a different Albarn. The similarities in appearance between Maka and Ripper, and even between Ripper and myself, could just be me being paranoid. Besides, I thought to myself, even if that is Maka’s daughter. She doesn’t know anything about me. Maka made that very clear. I am not that girl’s father. And no one besides she and I know for sure that the child is related to me. Just then I heard a second set of footsteps on the hard hallway floor. I stopped, but didn’t look behind me. “Lord Death wants to see you in the Death Room.” Liz’s voice was uncolored. She must have some idea what this was about, but she wasn’t showing. “Fine.” I answered, “Now?” “Yeah now.” “Alright then.” Liz’s high heeled footsteps walked away. So, the big man himself wanted to see me. I could be over reacting, which wasn’t cool in the least, or it could just be a normal meeting. In any case, I was a Death Scythe; I had to report to Lord Death. I made my way to the Death Room in silence. I passed underneath the hallway of guillotines and recalled all the times that I had been called through this hall by the last Grim Reaper, as a student, usually because of something I had gotten in trouble for. Only then Maka would have been with me. Ah well, that was a long time ago now. I knocked on Death’s door, and it opened slowly. Across the room, looking into his magic mirror was Lord Death. He was still wearing his Reaper robe and mask, which made him look almost exactly like his father had all those years ago. I was reminded of being called into the principal’s office more than ever. “You wanted to see me?” I asked, my tone on the defensive. “Yes.” He answered me in one word, without an explanation. “Well?” I asked, “What’s this about?” “It’s about Ripper Albarn.” Lord Death answered me, he turned away from his mirror and I could see that he was watching her in it. She was being taken on a tour of the school with all the other new students; she looked rather bored, but also nervous. I pressed my lips together in an attempt to keep myself from immediately yelling. I needed to keep my cool. “Well that’s not creepy at all is it, Kid?” I used Lord Death’s name as I knew it. We’re friends, I reminded myself, there’s no reason to get upset just now. “Why don’t you take off the robe and mask? I feel like I’m talking to your father.” “Well that is kind of the idea.” He sarcastically commented, “Tell you what, I’ll take off the robe and mask, if you take the red napkin out of your pocket, it’s frightfully unsymmetrical, seeing as you don’t also have one on your right side.” I chuckled, that was Kid for you. He had gotten much better at handling his neuroticism in the last ten years or so, but things like that still bothered him. I pulled the silk handkerchief out of my suit pocket and put it inside my jacket. Kid did me the courtesy of lowering the hood of the ragged robe he wore, and removing the white bone mask. “So. What about Lillian Albarn?” I played dumb, reminding myself that there was really no proof that she was my daughter. Kid frowned and ran his hand through the white stripes that colored only one side of his black hair. “Soul, really, don’t make this more complicated than it has to be. Normally I wouldn’t even touch the subject, but she’s a student at my academy. And I am Lord Death. I need the truth. Are you going to tell Ripper Albarn that you’re her father?” His brow was somber and serious; the teasing tone of a moment ago was gone. I stared at him, not blinking, not speaking. My strong emotions were bubbling to the surface, but I kept them hidden, I had always been good at that. “Well?” Kid asked again. “You don’t know that I’m in any way connected to that girl. I’m not interested in your speculation, or the rumors that you’ve heard; they can all go to hell.” I snarled. “Oh please, Soul I don’t need proof. Before you became a Death Scythe sixteen years ago you and Maka Albarn were the most promising Meister and Weapon pair at the DWMA. I watched you two bring down Oshura together. You were closer than close. You know as well as I do that people suspected you were sleeping together. Then, out of the blue sixteen years ago you become a Death Scythe, and as far as I know you and Maka haven’t even spoken to each other since. Partners like you don’t just stop talking when the Weapon becomes a Death Scythe. Three weeks later we all find out Maka’s pregnant. Connecting the dots isn’t as hard as all that, Soul.” Kid sighed heavily. “If you want evidence more concrete than all of that, well then Ripper is a Weapon, a scythe no less.” “She could have inherited that from her Grandfather. He was the last true Death Scythe. Doesn’t seem like that much of a coincidence to me.” I looked at the ground though. Kid was more right than he knew, but the situation was far more complicated than he made it sound. There was no way I was just going to out and admit something that I’d been denying for sixteen years. Not once since that day sixteen years ago had I claimed, out loud, that Maka’s child was also my child. Kid groaned in frustration. “Fine then. Obviously you aren’t going to admit to her or me that you’re her father. I will, however, expect you to treat her the same as you do all the other students. Avoiding her will be impossible. So if you really are planning on keeping up this charade then make sure it’s convincing.” Kid replaced his mask and hood and turned back toward the magic mirror. Ripper was now sitting on the bed in her dormitory with a look of true frustration on her face. I tore my eyes away from her face, which truly was such an incredible mix of Maka and me, and strode out the door of the Death Room. The door slammed behind me. As I stalked out of the school and into the town I did my best to smother the guilt that Kid’s accusations had aroused in me. I had no responsibility to this child. Her mother had not permitted that, and now it was too late. She was grown, and I was a Death Scythe. Maka and I were over sixteen years ago. I would not give away my feelings. I would have to keep my cool more than ever around Ripper Albarn. I could do it. I would do it.