Hello my lovelies~

So, today marks the first day of the DGM Hallow Countdown over on Tumblr which means only seven days to the new DGM anime!

I'm so excited, I honestly can't wait for it! So to help me channel a bit of my excitement, I decided to go ahead and try my hand at doing a few of the themes. Not sure whether or not I'll actually do all of the themes, but I'm at least gonna try~

Todays themes: Deception / Abilities / Innocence / Illusion
Chosen theme: Illusion

S2 S2 S2 S2 S2

The halls were all but deserted, most of the orders residents having already laid their heads to rest for the night, leaving the corridors in a state of near deafening silence that made even the softest of sounds uncannily eerie. Even to the lone figure that made his way through the long corridors of this so called home, though he remained unperturbed by the echo of his own footsteps.

Darkness had long ago fallen; moonlight casting shadows through the many windows that lined the Headquarters' halls, casting the world within the dark stone walls into a dimension where color was all but non-existent. It had either been bleached from within by the moons ethereal rays or darkened to hues of gray or borderline black by the shadows that ruled over the night.

For most there was little to see aside from dark stone walls within, and grass, trees, and wrought iron gates beyond the windows' panes.

Kanda would have been content if that were the case for him as well, but, unfortunately, it wasn't.

It never had been.

He had never seen things the way others had, at least, not in the artificial life he'd been given. His vision had always been dominated by lotus blossoms and buds, scattered petals and lily pads that always covered every surface his eyes came to rest upon. Even the space between sky and earth wasn't free of the forceful flowers, the petals and blossoms often falling like scattered drops of rain.

Now was no different.

The soft hues of pink and white and even the green of their pads were untouched by either the light or dark, making them seem especially vivid and bright in contrast with the shadows that had claimed the rest of the world. It made it that much harder for Kanda to ignore the flowers he preferred not to acknowledge, despite how good he had become at that.

The heels of his boots clicked against stone as he made his way to the training grounds, the sound and feel not changed even remotely by the illusion of flora.

He should have been sleeping, that much he knew. But tonight was one of those nights that dreams of falling petals plagued each time he closed his eyes, leaving his nerves tingling with tension and adrenaline that he knew he wouldn't be a be able to simply ignore.

Thus the long trek was made, from the area where his room rested in an all but deserted section of the residence wing, to the open space that made up the training grounds. He had learned some time ago that training was one of the best ways for him to calm frazzled nerves.

The training grounds were as empty as the halls, just as he'd expected. There were few other than himself he could think of who would be willing to train at such an ungodly hour if they didn't have to, and he knew that one of those few was already sleeping soundly in Kanda's bed.

He didn't mind that. As much as Kanda may have enjoyed training matches with any idiot foolish enough to challenge him, the quiet solitude that he found when he was the only soul within the large space was something he found almost soothing.

Removing his shirt and drawing Mugen, he set the clothing and sheathe near the doorway, before making his way towards the center of the room before stilling. He closed his eyes as he melded into the position that was all but second nature to him after so many years as he inhaled, slow and deep. Both hands closed on Mugen's hilt as he allowed the breathe the leave him on an equally slow exhale, before opening his eyes, and instantly falling into the familiar motions.

His blade sliced through the air, the sterling sound of the wind parting for the glistening steel the only one that reached Kanda's ears as he sliced and whirled, before bringing his blade down in a lethal arch that sliced right through one of his mind's bright blossoms and stopped a hair's breath from the ground. He leaped back, landing several feet away from his previous position, and instantly Mugen was at the ready once again. Both blade and wielder remained still for but a moment before another sequence was in motion. Kanda moved effortlessly across the ground with the grace and fluidity that rivaled even the most skilled dancer, while his blade sliced through the air in directions that, to anyone else, would appear completely random as they sliced through empty space. And yet they were delivered with perfect precision in Kanda's eyes, for only some of the blade's swings were directed at the empty air anyone else would see.

Many of Mugen's blows, however, were directed at targets that only Kanda could see; the petals and blossoms that fluttered from the ceiling to the earth to join the countless other blossoms that littered the sandy ground.

The blossoms couldn't be manipulated by any outside force, whether it be rain or wind or even Kanda's blade itself. Even when single petals were sliced through with pinpoint accuracy they remained in one piece, freely continuing their leisurely decent. Only occasionally did some petals scatter from their pistils after being pierced, but Kanda knew the reason had nothing to do with his interference.

That didn't stop him from slicing through though, his movements only growing faster and more ferocious as time wore on and he grew more and more engrossed in his imaginary battle, cutting through blossom after blossom, petal after petal.

By they time he finally paused to take a breath, sweat shimmered on his skin, causing sections of hair to stick to his back and face, while beads slid down his face till they landed on the ground beneath his feet. Fe let it last only a few moments before once again tightening his hold on Mugen's hilt. He spun around, blade ascending in an upwards stroke that had Kanda's eyes widening as it was caught by a familiar set of lethal looking talons.

He blinked a couple times, gaze slowly shifting from the clawed hand to the equally familiar face the lay behind it.

"Moyashi?" He said after a moment of simply staring at the younger exorcist. Straightening out of his battle ready stance, he pulled Mugen from Allen's left hand. "I thought you were sleeping. What are you doing here?"

Allen lowered his hand, his innocence deactivating as he did so and returning his hand to its usual state. He offered Kanda a small smile. "I woke up and you weren't there. Figured I should at least make sure you weren't getting into trouble."

Kanda gave an unamused click of his tongue. "I'm not you, Moyashi. I can actually handle myself."

"I can handle myself just fine, BaKanda, and you know it," Allen huffed in reply, arms coming up. There was a moment's pause, and when Allen next spoke there was a softness in his voice that hadn't been there before. "What are you doing here so late? Couldn't sleep?"

Kanda's first instinct was to simply tell Allen that it was none of his business, but that option was soon brushed aside, a part of him already knowing how that would play out. And a fight with Allen wasn't what he wanted, not so close to another assignment.

"Don't worry about it." He said instead a shrug, rolling off his shoulders as he started turning towards the door, only for a flash of color on Allen's form to catch his eye.

A petal had come to rest on Allen's shoulder, the splash of pink oddly out of place on the younger's shirt. Not for the first time, Kanda found himself wishing he could reach out and simply brush the flower petal from the younger's form. More than once he had found himself reaching out to do just that, despite the pointlessness of the gesture, and even know the urge was there. Even now, he found his fingers closing tighter on Mugen's hilt to keep himself from doing just that once again.

"If you say so," Allen finally stated with a small sigh. The younger turned away, and Kanda watched as he moved towards the door, only to pause half way between Kanda and the threshold. Turning back to the dark haired, he offered a small smile, warm in its nature."Come on, Kanda. You should at least try and get some rest."

"If I need rest I can sleep on the train," Kanda responded, almost reflexively.

Despite the negative response though, he still turned to begin walking towards the threshold, causing the younger's smile to widen the smallest fraction.

"I guess that's true." Allen replied as Kanda passed, before moving to follow the dark haired.

He waited patiently as Kanda retrieved Mugen's sheathe and the discarded shirt, the later simply being draped over his shoulder, before they exited the training grounds. The sound of the heavy wooden door closing behind them echoed down the hall, momentarily shattering the quiet of the night as the two began heading back the way they came.

Neither spoke another word as Allen fell into step at Kanda's side; becoming his companion in the endless sea visible to only Kanda's eyes.

S2 S2 S2 S2 S2

And that's it for day one, and my first genuinely new thing in a while. Hopefully I'll have another little thing tomorrow, but if not, then the next day for sure since I already have a plan for that one!

Thank you very much for reading, and I hope you enjoyed!