Disclaimer: I do not own DGM, if I did Allen probably would have been sold to a whore house by Cross and bought by Kanda the next day…
Warning: generally speaking this would be what G PG? but Kanda curses at the end so it's more like PG-13 the rating will go up at the end of the fic because of violence and of course, the lemon…
Note from Israfel: This is set in Japan, in the mid 1800's where foreigners like Allen are RARE like one in a million… This is something that I have been meaning to make for a while and I figured Kanda's birthday would be a good date to start it OuO Happy Kanda's Birthday everyone!
It is raining and the streets are growing mucky. The air is cool and the sky is a dark grey. Most people are hurrying on their way, choosing to stay home and out of the rain…most but not all…
There are a few who choose to be out in the cool, damp air. They have things that need to be done, have places that they have to be, have a life that can't be put on hold because of the rain.
Except…
…there is one person who has nothing to do that day…
…has no place to go, to be at…
And so he stands atop the bridge underneath a simple umbrella, watching the water flow by…
…When Life was Beautiful…
Allen is dressed in a white kimono, a red obi around his waist. His hair is clipped back on one side and he is staring at the water, at the river. The hem of the kimono is wet and his feet are soaked, rain water is dripping from his umbrella. He is staring down with a blank expression, trying to remember how he has gotten there…
…how he has come to this point in his life…
The boy, the young man who is only sixteen, closes his eyes, listens to the water and feels the sudden gust of wind on his back. He knows he should be sad…yet…he feels…empty… He opens his clear eyes and looks up, at the small food stand off to the side of the river, at the other side of the bridge.
He watches the few people hurry about, watches someone slip on the slick ground and catch themselves. Allen is uncertain of what to do for the day, of what to do with himself. The air shifts suddenly, flowing up underneath his umbrella, yanking it from his hands.
He gasps, hurries along the bridge in his sandals and tries to catch up to the red umbrella. Allen watches, in what feels like slow motion, as his umbrella drops to the ground in front of another person, a man who is on his way into town. He feels nervous suddenly, nervous because of the katana at the man's waist, at the fact that he is clearly a traveling samurai.
The air shifts, the rain increases as the man leans down, picks the umbrella up. He walks up to Allen, hands it to him. His face is stoic, emotionless as the boy thanks him, dazzled by his blue eyes as he passes him by.
"A-Are you heading into town?" The man turns back, stares at him a moment before nodding, a small inclination of the head, almost unnoticeable…
"Would you like me to show you to some place…?"
"To an inn…" Allen blinks, moves forward, his heart pounding as loud as the rain.
"Are you staying for more than one night?" He feels his colorless hair sticking to his face. The man stares at him, his own long black hair held up in a high pony tail.
"No," His eyes are intense and cause Allen to flush lightly while they are on him.
"You can stay at my place…" The man stares at him, his face blank, and for a moment the boy feels like he has said or done something wrong.
"Alright…" Allen can't stop the small smile which graces his face, nor can he stop his happiness from spreading to his eyes, something that he has not felt in a long time.
-
He pulls the door to a small house open, allows the man inside before entering and pulling the door shut. They are both wet, but not soaked. Allen steps out of his sandals and onto a wooden floor, one that would look rather nice if polished. He turns around and gives a small bow to the man before him.
"This is my home, please tell me if you would like anything… and my name is Allen…" The boy looks up, smiles seeing the man nod, step out of his shoes and onto the floor. He looks around the house, the single living room that makes up most of the small building.
"…Kanda…is my name…" Hearing this Allen gives another smile, moves into the living room and pulls out two cushions.
"Kanda-san, would you like something to drink?" He asks setting them down. He kneels at the square hole in the center of the room, makes an attempt at lighting a fire with the wood that is in it.
"Hnn…" Kanda moves to sit on the cushion offered, removes his sword from his hip and places it in his lap. Allen looks up, pausing in his attempts at starting the fire. He frowns lightly, deciding that he'll make some anyway… The samurai watches as the boy finally starts a fire, a small one, as he stands and heads into another room in the small house.
The wind picks up some, creating a bit more of a draft in the place, before the rain becomes heavier. Kanda looks over at another doorway. A small shuffling sound comes from the room and he stands, holds his Katana in the ready position. Allen walks back into the room and stares at the man.
An orange cat pokes its head around the corner, looks up at the dark haired man and yawns, stretching. Allen gives a small laugh at seeing his guest relax and take his seat again.
"That's Timcanpy, nothing to be worried about." The boy kneels and hangs a tea pot over the small fire from a metal rack.
"Che," Kanda stares at the platinum blond, at how calm he seems. "…you are a stupid one…" Allen pauses, leans back and stares at the man, a small frown on his face.
"I'm sorry?" He tilts his head some to the side, tries to remain polite.
"Baka Moyashi," Allen's frown increases some, trying to comprehend what the other means, why he would act in such a manner.
"…did you just call me…?" Kanda stares at him, his face calm though his eyes are annoyed.
"I thought you were making tea…"
The boy shakes his head, his eyes flicking over towards the man's katana.
"Are you here to kill someone?" An assassin is nothing new to Allen, a concept that he knows about and lives with, just as everyone in the town does.
"Hnn…"
"I won't tell anyone, I could probably tell you where they live…"
"Why?" Kanda stares at the child, his expression unchanging, though he is silently curious as to why the other would offer such a thing.
"The people here don't like me…" Allen closes his eyes, unsure why he feels the need to explain his actions to this man. "It is because I am Gaijin…"
"You talk a lot…"
Allen frowns, puffs out his cheeks some in annoyance. "And you don't talk enough."
"You're the one who invited me here."
The tea pot makes a high pitched sound which halts their conversation for the moment. The pale haired boy stands and leaves the room, returning with two tea cups. He removes the tea pot from the small fire using a cloth to shield his hand and pours the light green liquid into the two cups.
"Do you have guests often?" Kanda asks after a moment, his eyes set on the cup set before him.
"Ah-no…" Allen frowns lightly, sets the tea pot off to the side of the fire and picks up his cup. He blows lightly on the liquid, helping it cool some.
"So you live with someone?"
"Not…anymore…" The boy takes a sip of tea, his eyes set on the light colored liquid for a moment.
Kanda picks the cup up, lifts it to his mouth and tastes some. He frowns, cup still in hand. "It's disgusting…"
"Then don't drink it." Allen takes another sip, ignoring the man's comment. He likes it and so did-
He shakes the thoughts from his head.
"Where is the person you used to live with?"
"He's…dead…"
Kanda stares at the boy, takes another drink of his tea despite his words.
"Killed?"
"Yes…"
"Hnn…"
"Thank you so much for your sympathy." Allen says in a mocking tone, his hands holding the cup a little tighter.
"People die, get over it." Kanda looks over at the orange cat as it paces around the room, contemplates on leaving to go to an inn.
"So who are you here for?"
"None of your business."
"I could help."
"You want me to kill the one who killed your friend?"
"Foster father and no, I told you I don't like anyone here." Allen sets his cup down and stands up. "I'm going to prepare dinner, excuse me…"
-
"Your cooking sucks too."
"Then don't eat it." Allen takes a bite of white rice, a small little table set before him with the samurai sitting across.
"You should have been taught better."
"If you don't like it then don't eat it."
"You're a lousy host." Kanda frowns at the rice before him and the curry the boy has made.
"And you are a fabulous person." Allen mocks as he takes another bite of his meal, close to finishing it. "But being that I am your host, would you like a bath after this?"
Kanda looks up, stares at the other, thinking.
"I should cut you for your stupidity…"
"I'm going to take a bath, do you want one as well, being as you are the guest…"
The samurai smirks and takes another bite of his meal, ignoring how Timcanpy is watching him. "Better show me respect…"
Allen sets his empty rice bowl down, his chopsticks flat across the top. "Shall I assume that is a yes?"
"Che…"
The boy stands, clears his dishes from the table and leaves the room. Kanda turns and glares at the cat, watches as the animal hisses at him, fangs looking more than deadly.
"Tim, come here it's time for your meal!" The cat hisses once more before exiting the room and heading into the small kitchen, tail standing straight up as if mocking the samurai. Kanda glares after the animal for a moment before deciding that it isn't worth staining his katana on.
For a moment the room is silent, the only sound coming from a shuffling in the kitchen and the strong winds outside. Allen appears once more, gives a smile that seems too polished and perfect to be real before slipping into the small room where the bathtub is.
Kanda finishes his meal in silence and when the boy returns again, he looks tired.
"The bath is ready…"
"Hnnn…." Kanda stands and heads into the other room, sliding the door shut behind him. Allen waits a moment before picking the dishes up and returning to the kitchen to set them in a bucket of water to soak. He glances up, at the window and watches the rain and wind mix, the water falling in uneven waves.
"Ah-Kanda-san…" The boy turns and calls softly into the other room. "I have a yukata for you to sleep in when you are done…"
"…"
Despite the man's silence, the pale haired boy knows he has been heard.
Allen heads over to a large closet and opens the door softly, pulls out a futon and lays it on the floor before yanking a second one out. He proceeds to make both beds, setting them up next to one another.
The boy walks over to where their clothes are kept and pulls out a clean yukata for the samurai to wear. He sits down next to the bathroom door, clothes sitting on his lap as he pulls his knees up to his chest.
The house grows eerily silent and he can feel his chest tightening.
The sound of Kanda rinsing off before climbing in the tub is soft but there and it makes Allen feel like he needs to talk, to break the silence.
"Have…you traveled far…to get here?"
Kanda pauses inside the other room, half in the tub. He moves to sit down all the way before responding.
"Yes."
"…been traveling for a while?"
The man frowns, relaxes just a little into the water and closes his eyes, his katana within reach. "I am always traveling."
"For…your job?"
"I'm looking for someone."
"Oh…" Allen stares down at the floor, frowning into the darkening room. What little sunlight there is, is fading and it's growing dark out, becoming night.
He hates the night…
"So, um…"
"Why do you feel the need to talk?" Kanda's voice does not sound mad but it holds the almost constant irritation in it.
"…sorry…"
"If you're sorry then don't talk."
Allen looks over at Tim as he walks across the floor, heading back into the room he has been sleeping in earlier. A good couple of minutes pass before anything more is said.
"I don't like it at night."
"…"
"It reminds me of how different my home is now."
"…"
"It's quiet here, and no one stops by anymore…"
"…"
"People used to come and see Mana all the time…"
"…"
"Mana was my foster father who died…"
"Why are you telling me this?" Kanda can't help but look over at the door, exhaustion seeping onto his face.
"I'm sorry, I just don't like being here by myself at night…"
Kanda snorts in response, shifts his body in the bathtub and stands up. "I'm getting out." He reaches for the towel that has been set out for him before drying his body off. The door is slid open and Allen sits kneeling on the floor, he sets the yukata and sash inside the door before sliding it shut again.
"I'm sorry if I offended you…"
"Baka Moyashi." Kanda mutters as he rubs his hair dry, leaving the bathroom once dressed. He ignores Allen as the boy stands outside the door, eyes blank and staring down at the floor, a clean yukata in his arms, one of a light blue shade whereas Kanda's is black.
The man exits the bathroom and Allen enters, slides the door shut behind himself.
Kanda stares at the futons that have been laid out, how one is made with the up most care while the other seems to have been flopped down. He moves over and sits on the one that has been made nicely, stares at the white one next to him.
"How long ago did he die?"
Allen pauses in undressing himself, looks over at the door and swallows. "Two weeks…" He says softly before wetting his body and beginning to clean himself.
"The stuff you are letting me use belonged to him?"
"Yes…"
Kanda leans back on the futon, eyes looking up at the window, out at the night sky. Allen returns to cleaning his body; he climbs in the bathtub once he's rinsed off. After fully submerging himself he closes his eyes and listens to the silence of the small house.
"When Mana died… everyone felt sorry for me… but now they just shout at me…"
"People give out false appearances." Kanda closes his eyes, curses himself for having responded to the boy.
"It's why I hate everyone in town, they talk about me behind my back…"
"Pay me and I'll remove a few of them."
"It's…it doesn't matter." Allen gives a soft sigh, sinks lower into the hot bathwater. He listens to the wind outside, to the storm that is slowly passing through.
"Is it someone important you're…removing…tomorrow…?"
Kanda stares up at the ceiling, eyes fixed on a single dark spot, contemplates how much he should say, or if anything should be said at all. "Yes."
Allen looks down at the water, tilts his head to the side and exhales lightly. "Did they do something to deserve it?"
"It doesn't matter."
"…I'll be quiet now…"
Silence settles in after that, not broken by anything but the rain and the wind from outside. It doesn't take long for Kanda to fall asleep and by the time Allen is done with his bath the man is asleep.
The boy sits on his futon, pulls the blankets up over his legs. He looks over at the window, at how the wind seems to die down and how the rain is becoming more of a drizzle. He looks over at Timcanpy as the cat pads over to lie at the foot of his bed.
The small orange creature scoots up to his side, eyes large and content as Allen reaches to pet him.
"You'll be okay right?"
The cat stares up at him, the purr growing just loud enough to be heard. The boy gives another glance at the moon before leaning back onto the futon, closing his eyes and muttering a silent prayer to himself.
He lies there for a while, his mind alert and his body numb.
Allen is scared of what will happen. He is silently praying that the man lying next to him will kill him before he wakes the next day.
-
The morning air is cool and damp, a light breeze rolling in through the windows. The house is strangely still when the boy wakes. He sits up and rubs his eyes some, runs his hand through his hair. He stands and heads over to the closet, to pull out a kimono for him to wear that day.
There is a knock on the door.
Allen turns, stares for a moment before walking over and sliding it open.
"Good morning…" He says in a low tone, standing so that the man inside cannot be seen.
"Get ready…"
-
Kanda awakes close to an hour later, stares up at the ceiling before reaching over to make sure his katana is still there. His hand grasps the cold handle as he sits up and looks over at where the white futon has been previously.
The bed has been picked up and put away.
The samurai looks around the small home, his eyes landing on the orange cat that is sitting by the door.
Timcanpy opens his mouth, lets out a loud meow before looking over at the door.
Kanda stands and spots his clothes folded next to where his katana had been lying. He heads over to the kitchen, looks in, his frown increasing as he sees that it is empty. Timcanpy meows loudly behind him again, looks over at the door once more as the man runs his fingers though his hair.
"Moyashi?"
Silence…
The orange cat turns and walks over to the futon that is still on the floor, lies down near the man's clothes.
Kanda walks over and picks up the crumpled piece of paper that is lying on the floor, unfolds it. The boys hand writing is crude but legible, something that resembles an uneducated child's, or an adult's that has very little time on their hands.
"I'm not using this place anymore,
Feel free to live here as long as you are in town.
Thank you for keeping me company on my last free night.
Allen"
Kanda tosses the note to the ground and reaches for his clothes, moves to dress himself and puts the futon away. He straps his katana to his waist and heads over to the door, slips his shoes on and leaves the house.
Timcanpy meows loudly in the background, causing the man to turn and glare at the animal.
"It's not my fucking fault your owner ditched you." He growls before pulling the door shut.
-Part I end-
Hmm I hope this has the feel that I want it to, and it's only the first part, like I said there are two more to come, though the next update won't be that fast as I would kind of like to take a momentary break from typing… .// I hope all of you have liked this part and will come back for the second and the third~ Till then
Au Revoir,
~Israfel~