Thanks for the reviews. :) This is my first D. Gray Man fic and I was really nervous in posting it, especially since my last genderbent fic in another fandom wasn't well received. I forgot to mention, the song Kanda was dancing to was the 3rd opening song for the anime, Doubt and Trust. It's by ACCESS and not me so I don't own it. Anyway I wrote this fic primarily 'cause I wanted to see awkward Lavi, since Lavi is always so comfortable around Kanda and while that's nice, it's funny when Lavi freaks out or gets nervous since it's such a contrast to his usual laidback nature. Haha. And 'cause I wanted to see a modern AU. Hm, Kanda still looks like Kanda (though maybe more feminine) and sounds like Kanda does in the anime 'cause guy or girl, I can't imagine Kanda any other way. Also, I don't own D. Gray Man. Now on with the story ;).


Allen and Lenalee arrived in a few minutes. The previous song, Doubt and Trust, was over and Kanda was in the middle of a new Japanese song. Lavi caught them out of the corner of his eye and took his gaze away from Kanda to greet them with a smile. "Hey."

"Yo." Allen said, panting slightly. He exhaled and brushed his hair to the side. "It sure is crowded here."

"Yeah. Look who's on stage."

Allen looked. "Bakanda." He said after a while. "Should have known bastard could dance as well."

"You can dance too, Allen-kun." Lenalee said.

"Probably not as well as Kanda." Allen admitted. "But don't tell her I said that." He said quickly.

Lenalee just smiled. "I can dance too, but I'm not sure I could keep up with Kanda either," she said with a sheepish smile. "She's dancing really fast. That's a really hard song."

"You two can dance, Allen, Lenalee?" Lavi asked.

"Kind of. It takes practice." Allen said. He smiled. "Lenalee's really good at dancing."

"I'm in track, so I'm used to moving fast." Lenalee said with a modest smile. "You can dance quite well as well."

"Well, we made it quite far together, didn't we?" Allen smiled at his girlfriend.

"That we did." Lenalee smiled sweetly back.

"You two are really made for each other." Lavi smiled fondly at his two friends. They turned to look at him and he sighed, raising his gaze. "Why is my girlfriend so perfect?" He said.

"Do I really deserve her?"

"Lavi!" Lenalee gasped, and Allen scoffed.

"Kanda's the one who doesn't deserve you, Lavi."

"Allen-"

"Wait. Let me speak my thoughts." Allen held out a hand, and Lavi fell silent. The look in Allen's eyes was serious. "Kanda is gorgeous." Lavi stared. "No, seriously. I hate her, but I can't deny it. Lenalee, I like you. You know you're the only girl for me." Allen's expression softened as he turned to Lenalee. He smiled at her, then turned back to Lavi. "But as a guy, who's not Kanda's boyfriend," Allen gave Lavi a pointed look. "And doesn't want Kanda as his girlfriend," he grimaced at the thought, "If I were to be honest, then yes, I do find Kanda attractive. She's tall, she has long hair, she can dance, she can fight and handle a sword. On top of being pretty. She can be a model with that body. She carries herself like she owns the world. It's inevitable for her to be admired and wanted by guys. To put it simply, Kanda is as badass as a girl can get, and that makes her appealing in the eyes of guys."

"…And?" Lavi said slowly. "Why are you telling me this? I know this already, Allen. I know Yuu's perfect, and I'm-"

"Because you're Kanda's boyfriend." Lenalee smiled at Lavi, who looked surprised, as if he had just forgotten that. Again. "Allen's providing an outside view on Kanda, a view you cannot see."

Allen smiled at Lenalee, who smiled back. "But Lavi, Kanda's a bastard to treat you that way." He said. "No, I'm not saying this just because I hate her. You told her she accepted your confession. So she must have been aware you're going out." He said. "Even if you two weren't going out, you're her best friend. You've stuck with her for years. I don't care how much you love her-" Allen held out his hand as Lavi opened his mouth to protest. He closed it reluctantly. "The fact is, she isn't giving you the respect you deserve. You deserve more than her, Lavi. She's too good for you?" Allen snorted. "Lavi, as a guy to another guy, you're too good for her. Why stick with such a cold girl- such a cold person? Kanda's the one who doesn't deserve you."

"While I wouldn't agree entirely with Allen-kun," Lenalee said with a wry smile. The crowd was getting noisier and the music blasting louder and she moved closer, raising her voice to be heard, "Lavi, you think too little of yourself. Why would you not deserve Kanda? You're the one who's stayed with her, who knows her best." She inhaled. "You're the one who loves her. And what could be more important than that?"

"Lenalee…"

"But, maybe you're right, Allen. I mean, Kanda seems to be treating Lavi really coldly, even for her," Lenalee murmured, her eyes bright in worry. "Maybe I should talk to her?"

"No, it's okay." Lavi said with a smile. He looked at his two friends. "I- thanks for the encouragement, guys. I really appreciate it. But I think I'll talk to Yuu myself."

"Kanda can talk?" Allen said loudly in disbelief. Really loudly. It seemed the extent of disbelief he was feeling at the notion of Kanda being involved in a conversation was heightening the volume of his words. "The only words she knows are Che and moyashi!"

"I heard that, moyashi!" A familiar voice growled. "I don't talk to moyashi. I talk to people. Like Lenalee."

"How many times do I have to tell you?! It's ALLEN, BAKANDA!" Allen shouted angrily as the crowd looked at them in surprise. "I am not a damn beansprout!"

Kanda turned and smirked. It seemed she had finished the song and was waiting for the next stage. "Once a moyashi, always a moyashi."

"You bastard-!"

"Hey!" One of the guys in the crowd yelled, "That's no way to talk to a lady!"

"While I would agree with you otherwise, that is not a lady." Allen said viciously, pointing at the smirking Kanda. "That's Bakanda. Who is always a bastard. And who doesn't even look or sound like a lady."

"Speak for yourself, moyashi." Kanda retorted. "You weren't much of a man either. And you're still not much of a man now." The Japanese raised a mocking eyebrow. "Lenalee, why did you have to choose him? Of all people?"

"You-"

"Allen-kun!" Lenalee sighed. "Kanda! Don't say such mean things! Apologize to Allen! And Allen, you too!"

Kanda scoffed and turned away. "I will never apologize to a moyashi."

"Kanda!"

"It's fine, Lenalee. I won't apologize to BAKANDA either," Allen glared. "Bakanda! Listen up! I'm only tolerating you for Lavi's sake! I have no idea why he's dati-mph!"

"That's enough, Allen," Lavi said, his hand over Allen's mouth, "Don't make things worse. It's fine."

"But stupid Bakanda-mphf-!"

"Allen. It's fine." Lavi said. "Really."

Allen frowned, but nodded and Lavi released him. He felt a gaze on him, and looked up. The red head gave an awkward smile as he stared at narrowed eyes. "Hey, Yuu." He said. "Nice dancing."

"Of course." Kanda said as if it couldn't be otherwise. "I'm not like you, stupid rabbit. I don't fall easily."

Lavi winced. "That's mean…" he said. "At least I tried, right?"

"You didn't try hard enough." Kanda said simply, and turned away from him.

"Well, I guess that's true…" Lavi sighed, feeling as if he had been rejected. "Honestly. Is Yuu really my girlfriend?" He wondered aloud.

"Seriously? She's your girlfriend?" A male voice said. "You don't look like her boyfriend. At all."

"And you don't act like it either." Another male voice said. "Neither does she."

"Hey. Is she really your girlfriend?"

"That's what I'm wondering too." Lavi thought sarcastically to himself. But he turned to face the other guys, "Yeah well, I confessed and all, so we are dating." He said with a smile. "We're actually on a date. Well, a double date." He gestured to Allen and Lenalee.

"Dude, you really don't look it." The first guy said, staring. "You didn't force her, did you?"

"I didn't-"

"No, Lavi didn't force Kanda. Kanda agreed." Allen interrupted, narrowing his eyes. "Forgive me for being rude, but I don't think you guys have the right to judge whether Lavi is suitable for Kanda. So please don't make such lewd assumptions about my friend."

"Woah. Chill man," the second guy said, blinking. "We were just asking. No big deal."

"Yeah. We thought you were her boyfriend." His companion said. "You know, like those couples who always argue? You were so familiar with her."

"I am not, and will never be, Kanda's boyfriend." Allen gritted his teeth, looking as if he didn't even want to entertain the thought. "I already have a girlfriend I care about deeply. And as my girlfriend Lenalee reminded me when I was badmouthing Kanda, she is Lavi's girlfriend."

"That's right," Lenalee said firmly. "Kanda is already with Lavi. You should know that before you even attempt to make any moves on her."

"Whatever." The guy said. He smirked. "I already have a girlfriend anyway. I just thought she was hot."

"If you have a girlfriend, you shouldn't even be thinking about Kanda." Lenalee frowned, feeling offended for the sake of the unknown girl.

"Yeah. Give your girlfriend the respect she deserves." Allen resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "And maybe she'll actually pay attention to you so you don't have to go out and hit on other girls."

"You little punk! What did you say?!"

The guy threw a fist at Allen, but before Allen could catch it, Lenalee stepped in front of him protectively and the guy barely stopped in time. "Don't." She hissed. "If you want to hurt Allen, you'll have to get through me." She said, eyes flashing. "And I can kick. Hard."

The guy grimaced and stepped back. He looked at Allen. "I won't hit a woman." He said tersely. "You little coward, hiding behind your girlfriend!"

"Don't you dare speak to Allen that way!" Lenalee shouted at him angrily, and people turned to look at the scene. "He was polite and trying to explain the situation to you. He deserves your respect!"

Allen smiled and shrugged his shoulders, but his eyes glinted. "Hiding?" He said. "You're the one hiding from your girlfriend. Since you were so rude when I tried to be polite, don't blame me for being rude."

"Oh by the way, Lenalee can kick your ass anytime. And if you want me to kick your ass, well, then you'll have two people kicking your sorry ass." Allen said casually. "We work together, you know? And let me tell you, we make a good team."

The guy glared. "You-"

"You." An icy cold voice said, and everyone turned to look at Kanda, who was still dancing, eyes on the screen. "I don't see you, but I can fucking hear you." Kanda said loud enough for them to hear. Cold eyes narrowed. "I don't give a fuck about the moyashi, but if you lay one finger on Lenalee, I'll make sure you regret it." The dark haired Japanese said, executing graceful and breathtaking movements so ironically different from the bone-chilling words. "Forget about your girlfriend, when I'm done with you, your own mother might not even recognize you."

"And there you have it. Bakanda said something useful for once." Allen smirked at the surprised guy. "Oh, did I forget to mention that Lenalee and Kanda who you wanted are close friends? Oh and Lavi and Lenalee too." Allen said, looking at the red head who had his fist clenched, scowling at his friends being threatened. "We're close, you know. Closer than you and your gang."

"Allow me to explain. It's like a military alliance," Lavi smiled, a look in his eye people didn't see often. "You know, like NATO? If you know history, that is. Ah, looking at you, you probably don't." he shrugged, "Anyway, it's like a collective security pact." His smile widened. "You threaten one of us, you make an enemy out of the rest."

"And if you think you can hurt us then get away- I already have your face memorized, though it's not like I wanted to. We can track you down anytime. You're probably from around here, aren't you?"

"R-Rick, it's not worth it." The guy's companion said. He actually looked scared. "That girl is hot and really pretty, but she's scary. I have goosebumps from her words." He said. "You don't want to hurt her friends."

"I-I'm not scared of you!" The guy called Rick glared at Lavi, who had already noted he had wild yellow hair sticking up from his head, most likely dyed, green contacts and a mole on his upper cheekbone, hidden mostly by his hairline. He would have looked further but he didn't want to remember the face of such a bastard unless necessary. Previously, Lavi had been feeling insecure over his relationship with Kanda but now he was just bored, seeing that the guy was just a stereotypical gangster. But he managed to keep his smile.

"I never said you were."

"And I ain't scared of your girlfriend either!" Rick sneered, then turned to Lenalee.

"Actually," Lavi said, "My girlfriend is Kanda Yuu, not Lenalee." He smiled. "For the benefit of your short term memory."

"Shut up! And what's with this Kanda You? I'm Rick! My name ain't Kanda or whatever and how dare you call me a girl?!"

"Kanda Yuu." Lavi pronounced succinctly with a Japanese accent. "Y-U-U. She's Japanese." He said. "And what are you talking about? I wasn't talking about you." He made a disgusted expression. "Ugh. No thanks. Not even if you were a girl." Lavi shuddered.

"You're disgusting! I'm not gay!" Rick's face was red with fury, "Whatever! Kanda or whatever, she's just a girl!"

"That's Lenalee." Lavi deadpanned as Rick glared at Lenalee. "Dude. Can't you even remember people's names? That's basic respect."

"Rick, is it?" Lenalee said, looking at him with narrowed eyes. "I pity your girlfriend." She said. "I'm sure she deserves someone more faithful to her than you."

"Ah," Allen said, "You got Lenalee mad." He blinked. "You're in trouble, Rick."

"THAT'S IT!" Rick bellowed. "Girl or not, you're going to meet my fist! Looking down on me like that!"

"Rick!" His friend cried out, "Don't! You can't hit a girl!"

Before Lavi could even move as Rick actually dared to throw a punch towards Lenalee, Lenalee had moved first and blocked his fist with her leg, a fierce look in her eyes. Lavi blinked, waiting for Lenalee to kick the guy so hard he would crash through the crowd.

But she didn't have the opportunity to, as she was blocked by a tall, imposing figure that brought a strangled gasp with them. The gasp came from the now captive Rick, who was clawing at the hand on his throat. "Can't…breathe…"

"Didn't I tell you?" The low voice was cold, even colder than before. Lavi could see Rick's friends actually shivering. "And you still dared to lay your dirty hands on her."

It wasn't even a question. Kanda was too furious to even add a question mark at the end of the sentence. If Lavi hadn't known Kanda, he would have been terrified. Like everyone else around them. Except Lenalee and Allen of course. Allen looked bored, and Lenalee looked surprised.

"You," Rick choked as the deathly grip on his throat tightened even further. Kanda held him up with a single hand, and his legs were dangling, struggling to reach the floor. "Count yourself lucky I don't have Mugen with me. If I had my sword, you would be in fucking pieces." Those eyes seemed to get even colder, and a dangerous growl escaped Kanda's throat. "You pathetic excuse of a man."

"I-I'm sorry," Rick gasped out, fear having entered the colored contacts which were his eyes. His face was red- and it was clear the breath was leaving him and it would soon turn another color. The eyes staring into his were so cold and a sense of dread crept over him at the murderous aura emerging from the dancer. "I-I won't touch your girl-I mean, your friend ever again! P-Please! Let me go!"

Kanda looked at him coldly, and let him go- only to swing a hard fist into the man's face. The man's nose got the brunt of the impact, and Lavi averted his gaze, not wanting to imprint such a disgusting and bloody scene into his mind.

He heard Rick howl in pain, and a sound which indicated he had collapsed onto the floor. "MY NOSE!" He screamed. "My-UGH!"

"Yuu's merciless as usual." Lavi thought. He wondered if he should stop Kanda, but he didn't want to be the new target of Kanda's rage. He doubted being Kanda's boyfriend would excuse him from injury.

"Kanda!" Fortunately, they had Lenalee, Kanda's childhood friend, even before him. Lavi looked to see Lenalee gripping Kanda's wrist firmly. "Stop! That's enough! You've already broken his nose! You don't have to go so far!"

"Yeah," Allen said. He still sounded bored. And looked bored too. "Listen to Lenalee, Bakanda. She doesn't want you to fight, even if it's for her sake." He turned his head, his gaze sharp on the whimpering man, "A guy like that isn't even worth your fist anyway. He can't even dodge. You want to fight, fight me. I'll take you on anytime."

Kanda shifted cold eyes, "Is that a challenge, moyashi?"

Allen smirked, "You bet it is." He said.

"Allen!" Lenalee said disapprovingly as Allen and Kanda exchanged heated sparks between their eyes and Lavi sighed at the familiar scene. She frowned. "Now's not the time!"

"I know, I know. I was just trying to convince Bakanda to not waste energy on that guy," Allen said, shrugging, "It's overkill. Look, she just hit him a few times and there's blood on the floor already." He pointed.

Lenalee's eyes widened and she turned to Kanda, "Please stop, Kanda!" She said pleadingly, "I'm alright, really!"

"You're not hurt?" Kanda said tersely, fist clenched.

"No, not at all!" Lenalee insisted. She lifted her leg. "See, he didn't even injure me!"

"His punch was too weak." Allen said. "Lenalee blocked it easily."

"…Fine." Kanda said grudgingly.

"I told you." Lavi said, removing his headband and letting it slide down to rest on his neck as Kanda shot Rick one of Kanda Yuu's famous death glares. Lavi smiled easily down at the whimpering guy who was clutching his nose. "It's like a military alliance. You tried to hurt Lenalee so Yuu hurt you. Allen would have hurt you too but Yuu was faster. Actually, Lenalee herself would have kicked you quite hard but Yuu was faster." He nodded. "Even faster than me."

"Ah. I still kind of want to hurt you though. You tried to hurt Lenalee after all." Lavi said idly as he stooped and smiled at the frightened man, reaching out to grip his wrist tightly. He lowered his voice as if whispering a secret. "But Yuu wouldn't find it fair if I could hurt you and she can't. Then she would hurt me. And Lenalee doesn't want us to fight for her, so," he shrugged. "Man, you're lucky our princess has such a kind heart."

One green eye glinted. "I'm not as kind though." Lavi smiled and reached forward contemplatively. "Let's see, it should be around here…"

"Wha-AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The man screamed in pure pain, a sound so sudden even Allen and Kanda, who had been glaring at each other, looked surprised.

"Bullseye!" Lavi grinned, his face hidden by his hair. His moved his fingers, "And another one should be…here!"

Rick released another tortured sound of pain, tears forming in his eyes. Lavi smiled as if he was playing one of the arcade games. Well, not the dancing game that he sucked at. And it was kind of a game, wasn't it? "Hey, you're here so you're probably good at games, aren't you?" Lavi said. "Don't look so scared, I'm just playing a game. It's called "Locate the Pressure Points of the Bastard Who Hurt Lenalee And Made My Yuu Angry" His voice dropped, but he was still smiling. Lavi moved his hand. "And the next one-"

"Stop!" Surprisingly, it wasn't Lenalee who had shouted, but a guy whose face Lavi recognized as the friend of the guy he was torturing. Lavi blinked. "Please stop! He's really in pain! My name is Dean and I apologize on behalf of Rick, so just please stop!"

Lavi turned, and looked the guy in the eye. "Why should I?" He said. "Your friend needs to learn a lesson. And I'm teaching it to him." He smiled again. "A lesson on pressure points. Your friend's lucky, you know? It's not easy to locate pressure points on the human body. A memory like mine helps a lot though," he pointed to his head with a sly smile, lowering his voice to a murmur so only the two of them could hear. "Photographic memory, that is."

Lavi watched as the guy's eyes widened, but before he could speak, Rick groaned. "F-Fuck, my nose really hurts…my whole body hurts…" He said. "Ugh, that guy really did a number on me…shit I was tricked because of his pretty face, no girl can punch that hard…and his fucking gay boyfriend even-"

Lavi's green eye narrowed at Rick but his friend blocked him, "I'm sorry. Please ignore what he said about you and your girlfriend." Dean said. "And I'm sorry he punched your friend, the girl, Lenalee, and threatened her boyfriend, Allen. He's just frustrated, he's having a tough time with his own girlfriend…" he said quickly.

Lavi looked at him. He smiled. "You're a good guy." He said. "And a good friend."

"Hey, stupid rabbit!" He heard Kanda's voice, "What the hell do you think you're doing? Why are you fighting that guy when I can't?"

Lavi sighed. "Ah, I knew Yuu would be angry with me…" he said. He smiled at Dean, standing up. "Well. It was nice meeting you Dean, though I can't say the same for your friend Rick. Take care of him. But remember," his green eye glinted. "I remember his face. And if he's in a gang and he's gonna come after us, well, things aren't going to be pretty. Got it?" He turned and waved. "I'll let him off this time."

With those words, Lavi turned and walked back towards his friends. He offered Kanda a smile. "Hey, Yuu. Don't worry. I wasn't fighting him." He said. "I was just hurting him."

"Lavi-"

"Eheh. Sorry Lenalee! My hand slipped!" Lavi grinned brightly at the girl, who looked worried, "That guy's just more sensitive to pain than I thought."

"If…If you say so." Lenalee said softly. "I just don't want you or Kanda or Allen to fight-"

"Relax, Lenalee. I wasn't fighting him at all!" Lavi said, holding up his hands with a reassuring smile. "Honest. Really!"

"W-What the hell?!" The annoying voice bellowed, "I can't move-ARGHHHHH!"

"Rick! Don't move! You're injured!"

"Yeah leader, keep still! Your nose is broken!"

"THAT FUCKING BASTARD-"

"See? I just made sure he wouldn't be able to move." Lavi nodded with a satisfied smile as Allen, Lenalee and Kanda stared. "It's not fighting. It's just so he can lie down on that nice cold floor and reflect on his actions." He said. "And about the pain, well, it'll fade. It was kind of inevitable."

"Okay…" Lenalee said slowly. Lavi wondered if he had gone too far. Probably…not. The bastard had badmouthed all three of his only friends. He would have done more had the girls not been there. Lenalee clearly wanted him to stop, and Kanda would be pissed to have her prey taken away from her. And he wasn't exactly in Yuu-chan's good graces at the moment due to his horrible dancing skills. Allen, well, he could convince his deceptively innocent friend to join him. Allen was known as the resident bad boy of their school after all. Lavi tried not to muse on this matter for the thought was already tempting. And the noisy bastard was still there.

"Arghhh! It HURTSSSSSSSS!"

Yeah he was twisting and turning and writhing, as if trying to get away from the pain, as if it was a snake on the floor. It wasn't. It was a snake of red hot pain inside his body and he couldn't get away. But he was still trying to anyway. Lavi scoffed inwardly. If he was a man, he should just bear and endure the pain he deserved. For threatening a boy, hitting his girlfriend and making his girlfriend angry. But he couldn't even do that, could he?

Hell, Lenalee had gritted her teeth and endured the pain in her legs when she fell down from a tall tree she had climbed in order to retrieve something important which belonged to Allen. And she had been only nine years old. Lavi remembered the scene as clearly as if it was a moving picture.

"Anyway," Lavi smiled at his friends. He raised a hand to run through his messy hair which was loose from his headband. "Sorry guys, but I'm gonna go play my favourite game for a while." He said. "I haven't played it for quite some time. I'll see you guys later, yeah?"

"Yeah." Lenalee smiled. "See you later, Lavi."

"And Kanda will too." Allen said. "Right, Bakanda?"

"Tch," Kanda scoffed, but looked at Lavi. "Don't get lost, stupid rabbit."

Lavi smiled. "I won't." He said simply. Then he turned and walked through the crowd who parted for him as if in fear. It didn't matter to him. He didn't know these people.

He glanced at the guy still twisting and turning on the floor. The more he moved, the more painful it would get. Not that it was any of his business. Let the bastard suffer. He deserved it.

Lavi let out a scoff he had to restrain earlier on and turned his gaze away.

What an idiotic human.


Silence followed when Lavi left. Finally, Allen spoke. "Am I the only one thinking Lavi is scary?" He said hesitantly.

"…You're not." Lenalee said, her eyes wide. "I didn't know…"

"We hardly know anything about him." Kanda said. "Besides the fact that he's a cheerful idiot and smart."

"Oh?" Allen said, a sly smile spreading across his face. "You want to know more about Lavi, Kanda? You can just ask him you know." He said. "He practically lives for you. Though I have no idea why."

"He does not live for me. He's a man who lives for himself." Kanda said, voice tense as if in remembrance of an unwanted memory. "No matter how he acts."

"Why do you say that, Kanda?" Lenalee asked anxiously. "Lavi really cares about you! If- If you're unsure about your relationship or anything, you can-"

"I am not unsure." Kanda's voice was low. It would have been threatening had the words not been directed to Lenalee. "I am merely telling the truth. That man, Lavi Junior, lives for himself. He always has, and he always will." The dark haired Japanese turned, "You were his childhood friend, weren't you, moyashi? Before you moved."

"What do you know about him?"

"Huh?" Allen said. He frowned. "Lavi? We were really young then. Uh, he was the same as always. He didn't really act any different from now. He protected me from bullies- like you," he said and Kanda merely raised a mocking eyebrow. Allen clenched his teeth. "He liked to read. A lot. When we talked about future dreams and all he'd have many. He said he wanted to be an astronaut so he can see and remember what space is like." Allen mused. "But then he also said he'd be a pilot, but they probably wouldn't let him because he can only see with one eye. Pilots have to have perfect vision in both eyes. Then he said he wanted to be a scientist because he liked experimenting and reading up on theories…"

"So you see, we do know about Lavi. In the end he said he wanted to be a detective 'cause he saw the things normal people wouldn't see." Allen blinked. "I have no idea what he meant by that."

"I see." Lenalee said quietly. Allen turned to look at her and she smiled at him, then turned to Kanda. "Allen is right, Kanda. We do know things about Lavi. What do you think he is hiding from you?" She said. "I'm sure if you talk to Lavi about it, he'll tell you. He really likes you, Kanda."

Allen kept silent. He couldn't really imagine Kanda talking to Lavi. It was always Lavi talking to her and her scoffing or giving short replies. But he didn't want to dash Lenalee's hopes and desire to help her friends, so he didn't voice his thoughts.

"Kanda?"

"I get it." Kanda muttered in annoyance. Seriously, with that gruff voice and permanent frown, Allen couldn't see what Lavi saw in her. He couldn't even believe she was a girl. There was nothing to indicate she was female, except her pretty face. And long hair. Both of which Lenalee also had. Oh, he was so lucky to have Lenalee…

"Really?"

"Yeah, yeah. No promises though." Kanda said as Allen observed silently. Kanda always seemed to have a soft spot for Lenalee. The Japanese's reaction earlier just showed how protective she was over the other girl. He decided it was because they were childhood friends. Like him and Lavi had been. Only, Kanda had not had to move away from Lenalee like he had to from Lavi. So they were probably close. Well, it wasn't as if he and Lavi weren't close, but they probably weren't as close as Kanda and Lenalee, who had known each other and stayed with each other before either of them had known him and Lavi.

Though, when he had met Kanda, he hadn't known she was a girl. He had thought she was a boy. A boy who thought himself superior and bullied others. His first meeting with her only gave existence to two things. That damned nickname, or rather, insult, 'moyashi', and the beginning of his hatred for her. When he had met Lenalee, he couldn't believe that shy, sweet girl was the boyish Kanda's friend.

And then he had to move. And when he came back, there was Lavi, Lenalee, and a new girl he didn't recognize.

Allen sighed. Even after years, he still remembered that day...