12 years later…
The wind picked up the scent of iron and rust that wafted from the blood smeared all over the tall grass. It swayed in the breeze, the red glinting off of the setting sun. He crouched there clutching his akuma arm, a warm trickle oozing through his fingers.
In the distance a cry. Allen Walker stands, his eyes searching the blood streaked field. His shaggy white hair sways in the breeze. His silver eyes can be spotted for miles away as the sunlight hits them.
"Allen! Allen!" He turns quickly. Lavi. He is jumping up and down in the air waving his arms.
It'd been awhile since Allen had seen Lavi without his familiar grin, but as he led Allen down the side of the grassy mountain, he wore an almost nervous frown.
"He's taken a pretty bad blow to the chest, their waiting for Lenalee to finish gathering the rest of the wounded, so she can take a look at him," he said, finishing just as they were ducking through the mouth of the cave where a bunch of people crammed around the middle, leaving only a small circle open near the back of the cave. Suddenly Allen felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, Allen, I'm glad you're here. You should come with me. You too, Lavi." It was Lenalee, in her arms she carried a bundle of bandages and a few bottles. She began pushing through the crowd, Allen and Lavi following behind. As they neared Allen spotted his master, Cross. He hid in a corner, his long red hair covering his face as he took a drag of his cigarette, his arms and chest were covered in blood, though he looked uninjured. Just as Allen was pondering crossing over to him to ask if he was injured, a scream broke out from the center circle.
Allen pushed through the thin line of people left in front of him until he reached the open circle where Lenalee crouched before Kanda who lay unconscious, his shirt unbuttoned and left open. He almost missed it, for the blood was thick and congealing all over Kanda's chest, but then he noticed them, and a blush of embarrassment mixed with sheer surprise crossed his cheeks. No one spoke, no one stirred, they just starred openly at the two round mounds of skin on Kanda's chest. Lenalee fell, sitting on her bottom now with her hand over her mouth, not knowing what to do next. Allen looked up at Cross, who's face was completely visible now, starring not at Kanda's chest, but at his face with an expression Allen had never seen before. Suddenly Allen blew into action, springing forward and closing Kanda's jacket, blood covering his hands.
"I think anyone who isn't injured should leave, now," he said staring around at the faces who stared down at him now, still shocked. Slowly, people began to file out of the cave, leaving only Lavi, Lenalee, Allen, Kanda, and Cross. Allen stood slowly, crossing over to Cross, who looked away from the entire scene, looking away instead as he finished his cigarette.
"You knew about this?" Allen asked, pointing down at Kanda. Cross looked down into Allen's face, then pushed past him, limping out of the cave. Allen noticed a deep gash running across his calve before he disappeared into the darkness.
Her head was pounding. She almost rolled over and went back to sleep, if it wasn't for the sound of pills shaking around in their bottle, which in her state sounded as if they had been put in front of a mega phone.
First one eye popped open, then the other. She had the urge to groan as her head pounded more fiercely every moment she acknowledged she was awake, but suppressed it.
Sitting up she kept her eyes closed for fear that her head would spin. When she opened them, a hand with two pills hovered in front of her, in the other hand, a glass of water. She swallowed the pills with a swiftness only compared to the movements of a bird, followed by the few gulps of water she took to wash them down. Handing back the glass, she went to lay back down, only to be stopped by the cup being shoved forcefully back into her hand.
"Drink the whole glass," came a gruff voice.
She looked up, and was blinded by a main of crimson hair.
"Cross," she breathed, relieved it wasn't an order nurse. But only for a moment, because as she watched Cross's eyes skim her body, she looked down too, finding fresh bandages across her chest.
"Who did this?" she asked looking up, her eyes boring into his.
"Lenalee. Everyone was there, they all saw you, Yukari." He moved away from the bed, picking up a wine glass and taking a huge gulp and avoiding her eyes. Kanda gripped her blanket tight, a lump rising in her throat. She smothered it with anger as she turned on Cross and snapped.
"You didn't stop them? Pick me up, start a scene, anything?"
"Yes, I should have started a scene. What do you think the outcome of that would have been?"
She was silent a moment, hoping he wouldn't answer. He did.
"They would have dismissed me on the spot! And I really think you need me more here than somewhere else, right?"
She didn't answer, turning her face away from him. There was the sound of a scraping chair as Cross sat, lit a cigarette and drank from his wine glass. The room fell silent, a chill wafting through the air. Kanda swung her legs over the side of the bed, and stood slowly, her headache beginning to recede.
"So, what now?" she said still looking away from him.
Her hair was loose, the blue strands falling straight down her back. Her face turned to the side, her eyes staring intently ahead. She hated that she was wearing pink sleeping pants.
Cross stood.
"Komui's office."