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Chapter 2: Between the Lines

Prompt: News; Letter

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who left reviews and added this story to their favs/follows! I honestly wasn't expecting the reaction I got and I'm really excited so many of you enjoyed the first chapter =)

I also totally lied about not placing these prompts into any specific timeline for the manga/anime. Since I've been trying to work on an overall plot I, somehow, managed to turn this into an AU twister. You can now assume that this story takes place after they move to Asia and General Cross gets killed or "killed" (whichever side of that debate you're on). Like I mentioned before; around the time they found Timothy; so Allen's got identity issues galore and Levierre is being his evil old self and his schemes.

This will stray far from cannon plot; I can guarantee that. I also might be adding in chapters between prompts if I need to carry plot along, but don't have the means to with the next or current prompt on the list (I am trying to go in the original's order). I am however going to avoid doing this for as long as I can if not the entire challenge because that sort of defeats the idea of a challenge. Again I am really winging this…

Anywho onwards to the next chapter! The prompt for this one is: News; Letter. Enjoy!

Chapter 2: Between the Lines

Allen hadn't seen Kanda in three days. Not necessarily because he didn't want to, but he knew it was wise to give his friend the space he wanted after what he had done in the mess hall.

No regrets.

After he had picked himself of off the floor that morning and looked around at everyone staring open-mouthed at him, he had been embarrassed, yes, but not in a bad way. He thought he would have been more so. In fact, the only thing that he even remotely felt sad about was since he had made such a display in front of everyone. He knew he had to back off from being around Kanda for a little while… for Kanda's sake, not his own. He knew he had more than just embarrassed Kanda; after all he had…kissed him.

Not one-on-one or behind a closed door where it would be easy to do damage control, but in front of everyone.

In the end though, it was worth it— black eye and all. It was apparent that Kanda had to get everything off his chest and that he needed to focus on something else even for just a short while. He just wished he could check to see how the older teen was doing now. It was obvious that Kanda was more upset about why he was feeling the way he was, than about what had happened on the mission. This was not the first time that lots of people died because of akuma or Innocence. That was something that happened. A lot. It was something that all exorcists had to deal with and come to terms with.

That was the one of the hardest things for Allen to struggle with and even after all this time, after training with his master and being a part of the order and working with the other exorcists, he still wasn't okay with it. He never would be; it wasn't right that innocent people were being dragged into a war that no one knew about. A war that had no business involving those who couldn't defend themselves. Not that any war was justifiable, but to be a casualty in a fight you didn't even know was happening? That…was just wrong.

That was why Allen had decided to become an exorcist in the first place, decided to endure his master's training and take the pains that came with his job. His special innocence aside, this was something he wanted to do. That was why, even if he didn't like it, he knew he had to accept the way things were going to be.

People were going to die; he'd be damned if he didn't try to save every last one he could but he was slowly learning he truly couldn't save them all and it hurt, and it sucked.

For Kanda, though? Allen had been on missions with him and he knew that the older exorcist never focused on those kinds of feelings. Kanda knew that people died and he accepted that and never tried to fight against it. It was something that Allen, in a way, actually admired. It made Kanda a better fighter in battle, a quick thinker during hectic moments, and a more solid person after everything was said and done with. Allen knew he could never be like that; it just wasn't in his blood, but it was good that someone could be more reliable in those kinds of situations than he was.

That was often the very reason for their disagreements.

It took Allen a long time to realize that it was simply because they would come at the same problem but in very different ways. They looked at the world contrarily and took different mindsets on jobs. Both of them had their weaknesses and their strengths and those sets of abilities (or lack thereof) were polar opposites, which was why they argued over just about everything.

It was a law of the universe: if there was something that Allen and Kanda could argue over, they probably would.

But now Kanda was struggling with emotions he never had to deal with before, seeing things in himself that he didn't know were there. Allen couldn't imagine what that could be like (well, maybe he had some idea but still, his situation was slightly different…kind of); he really hadn't been an exorcist for very long while Kanda had been for practically his whole life. To be dealing with regret and doubt this far into his life after living that way for so long?

And I thought I was having an identity crisis...

Finally, I can get out here. Kanda thought as he snapped the latches closed on his worn case. He had been using the same decrepit suitcase for years now; the leather was faded and tearing off, the metal latches squeaked from rust and randomly popped open, but until the damn thing disintegrated right out of his hands he was going to keep using it.

It became something he felt empty without when he was on a job. If it wasn't in his hand or hanging off the tip of Mugen as he walked down the road it just felt weird. Most of the time he never even bothered unpacking it at Central; living out of a suitcase had become the normal way of life for him. He's never left it behind and he wasn't about to for this mission either even though he, apparently, wasn't going very far.

He had received word that General Tiedoll wanted him to travel to a small city in the central south (and slightly west-ish) area of China to help him on his current job. Words cannot descive the relief he felt when he got that news. Not only because it meant he could leave, but it meant that the general might have forgiven him.

There was definitely Innocence involved on the job; when it rained upwards there really couldn't be any other explanation, but the fact that General Tiedoll had asked for help was almost troubling. The experiences exorcist was more than capable of handling anything on his own. Kanda had seen him countless times in the past fix every unfixable situation and solve every unsolvable problem that could possibly come up. If he was asking for help, then…

Help? Or just an excuse to torture me?

In any other case Kanda would have suspected the latter. It was no secret that General Tiedoll loved rubbing his apprentices the wrong way whenever he could just for giggles; whether it was with silly nicknames or unneeded tears in ridiculous situations, but this time Kanda knew better. General Tiedoll had used the word help when he called. If he just wanted Kanda to join him for his own merry amusement (which had definitely happened more than once in the past) than he would have said something like "accompany me on" or "join along in" or anything other than the "help me".

Either way, Kanda was just glad to be leaving and he was glad that his last epic failure hadn't completely crushed the general's faith in him. He wouldn't have blamed his teacher if it had; he had failed, plain and simple (and terribly). When you failed there were no excuses for it; it was your mistake and its on your head. There was no bouncing that mission off on someone else and even if there was Kanda wouldn't do that. He knew when to admit he was wrong.

Maybe that beansprout was…

Not thinking about him. Not thinking about him. Not thinking— damn it!

It was futile, he knew. Ever since…that… every time a doubt started to creep into his mind he'd just hear Allen's words. It was so stupid. He'd never listened to Allen before; why should he now? The younger teen hadn't been a part of the order as long as he had…he was naïve and newer and… probably dealing with his own issues after everything that happened.

Kanda knew he wasn't the only one that had been changing since the arc incident and the level four attack on Central Headquarters, he just felt like he was the only one digressing instead of progressing. Even Lavi was slightly more mature than he had been before. Slightly.

These stupid emotions running through his mind were what he saw new exorcists deal with -Walker was a prime example of that- but here he was twenty years into his life, almost fifteen into his life as an exorcist, and he was feeling guilty. It was childish and Kanda hadn't been a child in a very, very long time.

Shaking his head, he picked up his case and opened his door only pausing briefly to turn and look at the empty room behind him before stepping into the hall to lock up. As the key slid into the small lock beneath his doorknob, Kanda wondered what exactly he was trying to protect. He never kept anything in his room aside from a low bowl with a single lotus flower lily and that would most likely be dead when he returned… like they always were. He'd have to get a new one from the river that ran underneath the branch.

Halfway through turning the key in the lock, Kanda froze, flipped it back around and put his suitcase down against the wall. He wasn't sure why, but he didn't want that flower to die. Not this time. His last lotus hadn't died from neglect but from when the level four akuma attacked the explosions in the building had knocked it's container off the table it sat on. Crossing his room in a couple of long strides, Kanda snatched the simple glass bowl off of the tiny table that was under an even tinier barred window and exited again just as quickly.

Now what?

Hadn't thought that far. I can't ask anyone to keep it.

He really couldn't ask anyone, they would never let him live it down. He wasn't supposed to be the sentimental kind. He wasn't the sentimental kind. He just… didn't want to clean up the dead petals when he got back.

Or something.

Sighing Kanda picked up his case again and began down the hall, carefully cradling the bowl against his chest to keep the water from splashing out of the top. He could give the flower to Lenalee, she'd take care of it and wouldn't make too big of a deal, but she was leaving tomorrow to go to the American branch.

Down the stairs from the living quarters he turned right into an empty hall.

The rabbit was going to be around for a while, but he would either forget about it or he'd fall asleep on it or put fish in the bowl. Not to mention he would never stop antagonizing him…yeah, that just wasn't going to happen. Ever.

A quick left and another short set of stairs.

Anyone in the science division would probably manage to mutate it into some kind of leaf monster.

Two rights, a left, and into an open door. That meant the only one left was…

"Kanda?"

Oh, hell.

Allen cocked his head to the side and put the paper in his hands down onto the table he sat at just as Kanda strode into the reading room he was in. Suitcase, Mugen, new jacket…

"You're leaving."

"Obviously."

Allen looked around the room he was in. Weird, he was the only one there aside from Tim Campy, who had decided the best place to land for the moment was in the middle of the note he was reading. So, if he was alone then was Kanda actually looking for him? Maybe he just took a wrong turn or needed something from one of the books in the room.

"Er…" This is awkward.

He had never thought about what he would say when he actually saw Kanda again and Kanda was obviously just as uncomfortable. His eyes darted around the room, looking for anything to settle on that wasn't Allen. So he wasn't looking for a book and-

Is that a flower?

He hadn't noticed the tightly-closed fat bud sticking up out of the glass bowl in Kanda's hand that he held close to his body. Eyeing it he stood up from his seat slowly and put his hands behind his back as he walked over and bent over slightly to look at the flower. "Where did you get that? Did Lenalee give it to you?"

Allen tried to make the question sound as not awkward as possible. Kanda never seemed like the flower kind of guy. It would make sense if someone gave it to him and Lenalee was probably the only person that would give Kanda a gift.

"No, it's from the water." Kanda rolled his eyes when Allen raised an eyebrow at him in question. "Outside. It's a lotus. They…they grow in the river that runs under the building."

"It hasn't bloomed yet?" Allen put an arm up to touch the top of the bud, but the bowl jerked out of his reach as Kanda took a step back. The water in the bowl splashed dangerously close to spilling out and he had to counter his balance quickly, dropping his suit case to cradle the bowl in both hands.

"They only bloom at night." The older teen glared down Allen for making him almost spill the water.

Impressed, Allen nodded and smiled playfully up at his friend. "You know a lot about it; I didn't think you were the kind to like flowers. That seems like a very General Tiedoll thing though. Has he rubbed off on you?"

"No. I don't… like flowers." Kanda bit out as if it hurt and looked away, his cheeks going a distinct pinkish hue. With short, quick strides he crossed the distance to the table and placed the bowl down next to Tim and turned back, still not entirely looking at Allen. "Just…lotuses."

If he was being honest, Allen would have burst out laughing. It wasn't that Kanda's obvious discomfort was funny (even though it really was), but he had put the older exorcist in enough awkward situations recently. Besides Allen always liked to think he was honest to a fault, but right now his honesty would probably just get him another black eye. The one he received in the mess hall was only just starting clear up, after all. So he didn't laugh, but instead bit his lips together until the urge passed.

But this is such a perfect...

"So, do you need someone to look after it while you're gone?" Allen pressed and allowed the mischievous smile to curl his lips upward.

Silence. Dark eyes stared up at the ceiling.

Forget it. It's all or nothing now.

"Or…is this a gift for me?" Allen grinned and returned to the table and bent down, putting a hand delicately around the back of the flower. It was soft and oddly silky. "No one's ever given me a flower before. I didn't think I made that much of an impact on you but if I did, I'm touched. It—"

Whap!

Ow…

Allen rubbed the back of his head and scowled as he sat down in his chair, a couple of stars dancing between his eyes. Tim shifted on the paper, a giant grin already spreading across his golden face. Jerk. "What're you smirking at?" Allen glared at the little golem before looking up at Kanda. "You know, you're going to give me a concussion one day if you keep aiming for my head."

But Kanda wasn't listening. His eyes had fallen to the paper on the table where Tim was sitting. Wide, brown orbs were slowly reading the few words that were scribbled down in sloppy hand writing across the page under Tim's tiny feet.

"I never asked you, but do you like Tim?"

Those were the only words Kanda was able to make out through Tim Campy's shadow before Allen laid his left hand on the paper to cover up the rest of the writing. His eyes were shadowed as he looked down at the table, all the laughter gone from his face.

What the hell?

Sure, Allen's had his serious moments in the past (as well as whiny, angry, crazy, and downright weird moments), but this one-eighty was completely out of nowhere.

"It's the last thing Master said to me," Allen whispered.

Or maybe it was not so out of place.

Black fingernails curled, ripping paper as they slid around into a shaking fist. "Well, not to me, exactly. It was a recording I found in Tim. He asked me if I liked Tim or not and told me to take care of him. I wrote it down because it was weird… hearing his voice."

Tim's grin vanished as he slowly unfurled his wings and took to the air and settled onto Allen's closed hand. He circled a couple times before plopping down solidly to stare up at his own master.

Crap. Kanda wasn't good with this kind of situation. He never had the right words; hell, usually he just made things worse which was why he never tried to get himself involved in stuff like this. He didn't know how to make someone feel better or encourage them and whenever he tried it, just felt uncomfortable.

Granted he rarely ever tried. Trying meant getting emotionally invested in someone or something and that always ended ugly. Always.

"It's strange…" Allen suddenly continued, his voice still barely audible. "I've been assigned to go through all the paper work around here involving him. Messages, letters, news updates, mission reports, money requests…everything and I'm almost finished. I'm almost at the end and I can tell… he knew something was going to happen. I know he planned a lot of things; a lot of things that happened he pulled the strings on, but I think something went wrong."

"Went wrong?" Kanda raised an eyebrow, he was honestly curious. If they could get any semblance of an explanation for what the Noah were up to…

"I don't know. I can't explain it."

Damn.

Reaching into his pocket with his free hand, Allen took out another piece of paper that was folded up and wrinkled. It had obviously been unfolded and refolded multiple times and he held it up in front of his face. "I have more questions than I started with, honestly. I wanted to talk to General Tiedoll about some things I found before he left because he obviously knew my master, but I never got the chance."

Paper crinkled and Kanda found the little white square in his face between two fingers. He jerked back from Allen's hand, his mouth falling to a frown. "So you want me to ask him for you? I don't even know how long we're going to be gone for."

Allen shook his head. "Anything is better than me sitting here wishing I could ask. It'll be better than me stalling."

"Stall-?"

Oh. If he didn't have any dignity Kanda probably would have hit himself. It made sense that Allen wouldn't want to be told there weren't any more answers after that's all he had found out since Cross was killed. No answers and more questions. Why had Levierre assigned him to be in charge of the investigation on all of Marian's past tracks anyway? It was a little more than cruel, but in a way it did make sense, since Allen knew the wayward general better than anyone else. Except maybe Marshal Tiedoll who had been around the longest at this point.

Sighing Kanda took the paper from Allen's extended arm. "Fine, but no promises."

"No. No promises." Allen's voice was quiet, hollow almost. Nothing like it had been just a minute before.

For as annoying as he was Kanda preferred happy-go-lucky Allen to... this. This was just weird and a little creepy. Allen wasn't supposed to be the dark brooding one. He was supposed to be the smiley overly optimistic one; the one that went through hell in the Arc and defeated a level four and still managed to smile afterwards. At least, that's what everyone said.

But Allen had been through hell in the Arc after nearly dying and losing his Innocence and he had defeated a level four and he had smiled afterwards, but the truth of it all was that his master was dead, the Noah were after him, the order doubted his loyalty (and what a bunch of bullshit that was) and after all that… it was impossible for Allen to be Allen anymore.

He's changed.

Whether for the better or worse Kanda couldn't tell just yet. Maybe being a little more hardened against the world around him would do Allen some good… then again not having the old Allen around would more than likely not be good for a lot of people around. He was some kind of lifeline to the others and for as much as he hated to admit it; Kanda almost understood why.

Almost. Not entirely because that would mean understanding Allen and where he came from and that was just something Kanda could not do. Even if he wanted to (which he really didn't). It would be like fire trying to understand ice or visa versa. It just didn't make sense; the way Allen handled things.

But here the idiot was acting in a manner that he was totally justified in, but no one would expect him to be in and if they did see him like this they'd just—

Think he was acting weird. If I have to be the one that doesn't care than he has to be the one that does. If I can't smile than he can't not smile.

It was the same. In a way; different, but not.

Kanda reached out and placed a hand lightly on Allen's shoulder who tensed in surprise at the contact. He obviously wasn't expecting the gesture. How could he when Kanda was a little more surprised at himself? Since when did he show sympathy for anyone let alone Allen? But if Allen could be raw in this reading room than maybe Kanda could act a little strange himself.

It was better than trying to talk. At least a hand to the shoulder couldn't sound insensitive.

Tim fluttered into the air as Allen drew his left hand up and placed it over Kanda's, mechanical fingers grabbing tightly.

Cold! Kanda had never touched Allen's Innocence imbedded hand before; it was like ice. He could feel every movement the red hand made as if there were metal joints with gears and latches instead of muscle and ligaments.

He had to take a step forward as Allen pulled his hand down a little and held it against his cheek. Stuck between Allen's freezing fingers and his warm face Kanda had to fight the urge to pull back. This was wrong and weird and everything he wasn't good at and why did he even make the gesture in the first place?

Allen turned his head a little and let out a small, surprised 'huh'.

"Your hand's warm."

Turning a little more he pressed his lips against Kanda's fingers in a small, quick kiss before letting go and turning away again. "Thanks, Kan—"

"Just—" Kanda's voice cut through Allen's, sharp and terse as he turned and picked up his earlier discarded case and made his way to the door. Pausing, his eyes flicked to the table for a second to the lotus and Tim flapping in circles above it. "Just…don't let it die."

A/N 2: Herm, both kisses were at the end of these chapters, but they won't all be! Some might be in the beginning and others in the middle. This was actually pretty difficult to work in because no matter how soft and squishy Kanda can be at this point in time he's not going to show it or admit to it himself. He's just not the kind of guy who would be good at empathy or sympathy.

Feedback is always welcome and thanks again to all of you for reading!