A/N: Thanks for the reviews I received on the last chapter; they were very sweet :)

Chapter 3: Tombstone of Memories

It is a strange sensation.

Perhaps it is merely the milky light of the full moon illuminating the cemetery, but everything seems stark and alarmingly bright.

My senses are electric inside my skull, intensifying everything to its maximum degree. I can feel the adrenaline coursing through my veins as I crouch on the ground beside Jan, my limbs tightening like coiled springs as I prepare myself for what I know comes next.

The Akuma hovers above us, a suspended ball of torment and misery as its creator, the Millennium Earl, stares down Allen Walker.

Allen stands a little in front of Jan and I, the eerie green-white light from his massive arm casts ripples of shadow across his face as he retracts it back to its normal state. I gasp quietly, not even realizing I've been holding my breath.

Jan, on the other hand, is breathing so heavily I think he might start hyperventilating. His small body is shaking like a leaf as he stares at Allen with a mixed expression of apprehension and even slight awe.

"Allen's father? He turned him into an Akuma?"

My nails chaff against the rough ground as I curl my fingers into fists; the Millennium Earl's words echo around inside my head: Aren't you the little brat that wanted me to bring his dead daddy back to life?

Allen closes his eyes. "No, Mana wasn't my real father, Jan," he says to the young boy. "I had been abandoned, for being born with this strange arm; Mana was the one who took me in, my arm didn't bother him, and he helped raise me. I remember, whenever I felt so tired that I fell down in the dirt, whenever I thought I couldn't possibly go on, Mana would say to me: 'Never stop, keeping walking'."

I feel something constrict in my chest and cautiously place a hand over my heart. Was this Allen's feeling?

"You see?" Allen continues. "Mana was the only one who taught me about living, what you need to have to live, and how to take care of myself in the world. But," Allen falters somewhat, "When he disappeared and I was left on my own, I suddenly couldn't do it; I couldn't take care of myself anymore."

Jan gaps at Allen; I wet my dry lips. "Allen."

The Millennium Earl, meanwhile, looks on from beside his tormented weapon, that perpetually gleeful grin gleaming in the moonlight.

"I never really believed that Mana, my father could die," Allen whispers, "It happened so suddenly: the spoke on the wheel of a passing carriage broke, and it spun out of control. I tried to help Mana up, but he told me what he always told me: never stop, keep walking."

A single tear trails a solemn path down the side of my face; I touch my cheek in surprise. How strange, I knew that my abilities were strong, but to this extent…

"Mana was buried at the top of a hill outside of town, I was sitting beside his grave when he showed up," Allen gestures to the Millennium Earl, who simply continues to smile his twisted smile.

I know what comes next, it's always the same: I see you've lost someone you've loved very dearly, Emma. Your poor baby sister was taken from you far too soon, wasn't she? Would you like me to bring her back to life for you?

I close my eyes. As much as I'd begged and pleaded, as much as I'd warned her after Lucy's death, Emma didn't listen.

Can you… Can you really bring, Lucy back?

Would you like me to?

Yes.

Alright. Then I need you to do something for me: all you have to do is call out your sister's name. Call out her name, and she will come back. It's as simple as that…

And the same thing that happened to Emma happened to Allen. The poor boy was deceived by the Count of Time, the Eternal Tempter, and he turned his own father into an Akuma.

"I didn't know what I had done," Allen says. "How could I? But Mana knew, he knew all too well when I pulled him back from the grave into the Akuma's form, and he cursed me for it. He sliced my left eye with his Dark Matter body, and it's been corrupted ever since."

That scar…

"The Earl then ordered Mana to do what all newborn Akuma are ordered to do: to kill the person who had been tricked into reviving them and to wear their skin as a disguise. However, I was spared because of this arm, this arm became my weapon and it acted on instinct, killing Mana of seemingly its own volition. I destroyed him, a second time I destroyed my father's soul without even realizing it. But he wanted me to do it; that was the last thing he asked of me: for me to destroy him. He told me he loved me, and then my arm did just that: erased him from this world forever."

It is dead silent in the graveyard, almost as though the whole world has stopped what it is doing and begun listening to Allen, the small boy's voice echoing across the dark scape.

"And then my Master came to me, and he explained everything that had happened that day. Everything: what made up an Akuma, the evil of the Millennium Earl, and even what had happened to me: the mark that Mana had given me, this scar over my left eye, is the curse of the devil. This eye allows me to see the souls trapped inside the Akuma. It is what led my Master to me, and it is what has allowed me to become an Exorcist." As he speaks, Allen's left hand curls into a fist. "At first, I thought Mana was cursing me out of anger, so I tried to become an Exorcist so that I could atone what I had done to him, but as I encountered more Akuma, I realized something. They don't shed tears out of hatred, but out of the deepest love they feel towards those that turn them into Akuma. They weep knowing that we can never bear the pain!"

The Earl hasn't said a word during Allen's story; he just continues to stand there with his sickening smile unreadable.

"I knew that my fate was to be an Exorcist," Allen declares, "Not to atone for sin, but to live true to my calling here on this Earth. And this cursed weapon has been a faithful guide!"

At this, Allen's left arm is once again consumed in the same strange light green glow as it grows and elongates out to its full armored shape once more, pearly white claws glinting out of the darkness. "Akuma are tragic creatures," Allen says to the Earl, "They shouldn't have to suffer in this existence; therefore, I destroy them."

Finally the Earl speaks: "Allen Walker, I should have destroyed you long ago!"

He then jumps backward at a far greater speed than I would have thought his bulky frame would be able to muster; the Leo Akuma rushes to his master's aid, and the Earl perches himself on top of his twisted creation like some kind of ugly angel on top of a dilapidated Christmas tree.

"You can see the souls inside Akuma? You want to save them?" the Earl leers. "Go ahead, Exorcist. I want to see you try!" As he speaks, the Akuma's guns reload their deadly fluid and train straight at Allen and Jan and I huddled on the ground. "Take your best shot! But let me go first!" the Earl jeers just as the Akuma opens fire.

"Allen!" Jan screams as the bullets pepper the ground where the older boy stands.

I jump to my feet as dust and ash rain around me, temporarily obscuring Allen from view.

"Kid, you alright?" I call into the smoke.

"I'm fine," Allen replies as the clouds disperse. "I only took the bullets earlier because I was protecting Jan. This level of attack can't hurt me." He stands with his monstrous arm held in front of him, obscuring his entire form and blocking the deadly bullets.

The Earl growls in annoyance, seeing his target remains unharmed.

"The bullets didn't harm me before, so you think you can just shoot me to death? Don't underestimate me," Allen whispers as his arm flashes once more with that same strange glow. "You see once the Anti-Akuma weapon within me is activated, it exhibits superhuman strength and incredible speed; the Akuma's bullets and hard exteriors are no match for this arm: it is God's weapon, and it exists for the soul purpose of destroying yours!"

"What conceit," the Earl snarls, "Well then…" He holds aloft a frilly pink umbrella topped with a jack o' lantern.

"Lero! Lero! Lero!" screeches the umbrella's pumpkin tip as a plume of violet light bursts from its top and a freezing wind slices through the cemetery, seemingly to cut through my body as I glance nervously around: something is coming.

"Do you know the old Eastern proverb?" the Earl jeers, "'He who fires in the end shall hit the mark'." There is a flash of blinding light, consuming even the moon itself and then a faint rumbling sound rising up from the silence, steadily growing louder.

I can feel my insides twist into knots as the great moon before us is suddenly eclipsed by dozens of dark shapes: it is the largest swarm of Akuma I have ever seen. "And with bullets like these, how can I miss? Akuma canons, fire!" the Earl cackles as the air is suddenly filled with the sounds of Akuma firing their guns directly at Allen, Jan, and me.

"Allen!" Jan screams as the air is consumed with dust and the ground breaks beneath us, smoke rises up from the explosions, once more obscuring Allen from view.

At the young boy's scream, the Earl rounds on him. "And you…you will die!" The Leo Akuma turns his gun on his former friend, and I can hear the click of the gun being loaded as loudly as a thunder clap.

"Kid, look out!" I scream, shoving Jan out of the way just as a swarm of bullets ricochet around us. Jan screams as I snatch him and hold him against my chest. I squeeze my eyes shut as I dash away from the shattering onslaught and haul Jan over to the safe shadows of the graveyard's far wall.

"Wha-What?" I open my eyes at Jan's confused whimpers. I glance down at him, but he isn't looking at me. Rather, he is looking at the large scarlet wing-like device that is curled around both our bodies, shielding us from the Akuma's attack. The crimson blade glints in the moonlight as Jan traces its path of origin to the large tear in my shoulder blade, and his mouth drops open when he realizes that the weapon has come from me, from within my skin.

"Stay here," I say to him, setting him down under a tree, "And keep your head down," I add before whirling around and leaping back into the fray.

My blood is a thunderous roar pounding in my ears as I rush headlong towards the Earl and the Akuma.

A flash of light seeps out from under my skin as the single scarlet wing elongates and curls around my shoulder, sharpening into a spiked spear, a second bursts out from the other shoulder blade and two smaller one grow from my forearms.

An Akuma spots me and turns to fire an attack, I leap out of the way just as a swarm of crimson burst from my shoes, tearing the leather but giving me the thrust I need to leap into the air towards the Akuma. It tries to fire at me again, but I twist out of the way and my right shoulder spear slices through the Akuma's tough shell causing it to explode in a burst of smoke.

As I flip through the air, I spot Allen gaping at me below. "No way, she has an Anti-Akuma weapon too?!"

I smile slightly in spite of myself as I slice through a second Akuma with the blade from my right arm and spin around just in time to alight on the top of the wrought iron gates of the graveyard.

"Ah, so another insect has appeared in the sky," the Earl exclaims, grinning his monstrous grin down at me. "No matter, soon you will be dead as well, girl."

The Akuma all turn the guns on me. "Oh shit!" I exclaim as I dive out of the way, twisting my body as the spear on my right shoulder blade stretches longer and stabs through the nearest Akuma.

I do a back flip and bring my foot down on a second Akuma, the red on my foot having hardened into another blade, and this one is also destroyed.

An explosion next to my head tells me that Allen has rejoined the fight as his arm shreds the Akuma to rivets.

The cemetery is no longer silent, it is alive with the sounds of chains being broken, the relieved screams of the souls as they are released from their torment. Life always seems to begin and end with so much pain.

"Look at them hopping all over the place," the Earl jeers, "Make them disappear!" he commands his Akuma, and they increase their fire power.

I jump to avoid a bullet, twisting my body at an awkward angle. Nearby, I hear a shout and the blunt sound of impact. In my peripheral view, I see Allen get knocked backwards and sent hurtling into the roof the cemetery's chapel where he lands with a crash and a shower of shrapnel.

"Allen, no!" Blindly, I drop to the ground and dash towards the chapel. As I do so, the spears of red protruding from my back liquefy and trickle to the ground behind me. I hold out my hand and a thin ribbon of more crimson springs from my finger tips and curls upward to latch to the chapel's ornately carved roof. I use it as a rope to pull myself up to the roof where I alight not very gracefully and spend a few precious seconds wobbling around for my lost balance.

Once I regain my composure, I rush over to where Allen is lying spread-eagle on his back with his monstrous arm still activated beside him.

"Allen! Allen, are you alright?" I cry as I kneel down beside him.

Allen's eyes flutter open. "Huh? Yeah, I'm okay."

"Perfect! You can die together," the Millennium Earl's voice booms over our heads just as another round of Akuma bullets flies directly at us.

"Hold on, kid," I mutter, throwing Allen haphazardly over my shoulder and jumping from the roof. Debris ran down all around us as we plummet to the ground; at the last minute, another ribbon of red springs from my free arm and winds around a lamp post, slowing our descent and giving me to time I need to lightly land by the cemetery gate as the remains of the chapel crash down around us.

I glance around. "Jan! Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I hear the small boy whisper from his hiding place behind the tree. I can see his huge blue eyes glinting at me out of the shadows like twin lamplights.

Behind me, Allen begins to stir, seemingly to get a grip on himself again.
"You gonna be okay, kid?" I ask him.

"I'll live," Allen replies with a groan, sliding off my back.

"We need to destroy these Akuma ASAP," I murmur through gritted teeth. "If we don't, the whole town will be at risk."

Beside me, I see Jan's eyes widen, tears brimming in them as they turn towards the Akuma that I assume to have once been his friend Leo, although I have lost track of him in the fray.

Meanwhile, Allen jumps back into the fight, and I make a move a to follow, but Jan suddenly grips my coat sleeve, holding me back.
"I-I thought we knew what we were doing," he whispers, tears pouring thickly down his face. "I thought that Akuma were just a fun thing to talk about; I never gave any thought to what they really are. I was the one that told Leo about Akuma, and I made him go on patrol with me." Jan pauses to sniff heavily. "He knew the Millennium Earl was evil; he knew it! So, how could-how could he? Was he so shocked by his mother's death that he forgot? Was the pain too hard for him?" Jan grinds his teeth as he coils his hands tightly around my wrist. "Leo!" he suddenly cries, raising his head to the Akuma drifting in the sky, "Did you miss her so much that you had to do this to her?!" he drops his eyes, "I don't have Allen's eye," he whispers, "So I don't know if Leo's mother is really suffering. I can't see, but it's awful. I-I'm sorry, Leo. I never thought about Akuma has once being real people who are made to suffer, who become the Millennium Earl's toys…forever."

His grip is so tight on my arm now I think he might cut off my circulation, which, in my case, would be impressive. "Please!" the intensity in Jan's voice catches me off guard as he looks up at me with his wide, flooded eyes, "Please, destroy him. Destroy Leo. Release him from his suffering. Please!"

I don't respond to his pleas, I simply pry my arm from his grip and turn around to rejoin the fight. As I do so, my entire arm becomes coated in that same red substance until it has become an armored monstrosity not unlike Allen's own weapon. I focus my attention solely on the Akuma Jan had indicated, the one the Earl is perched atop of.

"I'm sorry, kid," I whisper, "I'm so sorry."

I slowly raise my arm and then propel myself forward; with a cry, I leap into the air and slice through the Leo Akuma; the creature shatters after the single hit, and the Earl is unseated so that he has to unfold his pink umbrella in order to remain airborne.

"It's done," I whisper as the remains of the Akuma evaporate into smoke. However, I barely have time to reflect before a blinding pain ignites in my shoulder as a stray Akuma bullet strikes me in the back. My red-armored arm disintegrates into a scarlet puddle as I fall from the sky and collapse on top of a tomb. Alarm bells are going on in my head as my vision is consumed with fireworks. My whole body aches, but my shoulder especially, and I can feel the fire of the poison slowly creeping along under my skin.

"Agh, fuck," I snarl as I slowly shift into a sitting position. I can feel my blood begin to war with the venom, the twisted battle for my body as the fire and water clash inside my skin. I grit my teeth as an acidic feeling rises up in my throat before I open my mouth and wretch. A black inky substance pours from my lips and splatters across the top of the tomb, burning familiar black pentacle markings into the worn stone. Who's ever grave this is, I'm so sorry.

I glance up just in time to see Allen standing on top of a mausoleum, holding his clawed arm aloft. "I'll finish this off in one blow!" he announces to the Earl. He then rushes forward and leaps into the air, the aura of light around his weapon shining in the moonlight as it seems to grow even larger. "I will be your salvation!" he yells to the Akuma as he brings his arm down in the middle of the swarm.

There is a sound like a lot of glass being shattered at once as a series of glowing, cross-like imprints sear into all of the Akuma's bodies before they all explode like a series of ash-colored fireworks.

I jump up from the tomb and rush over to Jan, who is huddled on the ground gawking up at the display above our heads.

"This is not good, Lero!" the Earl's pick umbrella chirps, "Level One Akuma are no match for this one, Lero!"

"We'll take our leave, for now," the Earl calls down to Allen and me, "But, make no mistake, we'll be back."

Allen rushes forward, "Earl!"

"Oh yes, these exciting exercises have merely been a prelude, my boy. As we speak, Akuma are continuing to evolve all over the world, and the ground work is being laid for an end of the world spectacular. Behold, I am the Millennium Earl, the maker of Akuma; the one who will defeat your disgraced and powerless God and destroy this pathetic world with my weapons! No matter how hard you Exorcists writhe and struggle, you will never be able to save yourselves. Never! Ha ha ha!"

I grit my teeth, "We'll just see who gets the last laugh in the end, you twat!"

Cackling madly, the Earl's shadowy form is slowly swallowed up into the moon, leaving nothing but silence in his wake.

"We'll see, next time," Allen whispers before he suddenly keels over.

"Allen!" Jan screams.

"Shit, not again," I add as we both rush over to him.

"Allen! Say something," Jan sobs as we drop to our knees beside his motionless form, "Open your eyes!"

"It's okay," I say to him, "He's alright, just a little bruised and over-exhausted. He'll be fine."

"Oh, Allen," Jan sobs, burying his face in the other boy's chest. "I'm so sorry."

"Hey," I call to him. Jan slowly raises his head to look at me with a perplexed, tear-stained expression. "It's okay."

Jan's eyes widen before he quickly wipes his nose on his shirt sleeve. "What-What do we do now?"

"C'mon, help me with him," I say of Allen as I throw one arm over my shoulder and instruct Jan to do the same. "Let's get him to hospital. We need to get out of her before the police arrive. We've probably made a lot of noise."

"Who are you anyways?" Jan inquires as we quickly haul Allen out of the cemetery. "Are you a friend of Allen's?"

"My name's Cas," I reply simply, "and, yeah, I guess you could say that."

This isn't weird, right? I'm just making sure he's alright. It's not weird. It…Yeah, it's weird.
However, I'm not given much time to ponder whether sitting beside Allen while he sleeps in his hospital bed is creepy or not because at that moment the boy wakes up.

"Hey kid, glad to see you're awake," I say to him. Allen looks up at me, and his grey eyes widen in surprise. "Gotta admit, you had me worried there for a second," I add.

"It's-It's you," Allen exclaims, trying to sit up, but suddenly gripping his head, seemingly dizzy.

"Hey, take it easy," I urge him; "You had a nasty bump to the head, and the doctor said not to do anything rash until it's healed properly."

Allen looks at me. "You…Who are you?"

I smile slightly in spite of myself. "Sorry, I don't believe we've been properly introduced," I stick out a gloved hand to him. "Cassandra Williams, but you can call me Cas."

Allen stares at my hand for a second before gingerly shaking it. "Nice to meet you, I'm Allen Walker."

"Yes, you are."

Allen blinks at me, surprised. "You…You know my name," he whispers, "In the graveyard, you said my name even though we've never meet before. Who are you?"

"Hey, easy, kid," I exclaim, holding up my hands in mock surrender. "You're right, we haven't met before, at least not in person, but I do know your name because, truth be told, I've been dreaming about you every night for the past six weeks."

Judging from Allen looking at me like I had three heads, I'm guessing I probably could have explained that a little better.

"Sorry, but what are you talking about?"

I sigh, "Right. Sorry, I'm not good at explaining stuff like this, but do you know what an empath is?"

Allen slowly shakes his head. "No."

"Okay, look, an empath is what I am: I possess the ability to connect with people's minds, usually through my dreams and often with complete strangers. These dreams I have," I stare down at my hands as though I'd suddenly found something very interesting about them, "They allow me to glimpse images of a person's past, present, and sometimes eve their future."

Allen stares at me, "And you've been having these dreams about me?"

"Yep."

"Why?"

"How should I know? I'm empathic, not psychic."

"What are they about?"

My whole body goes rigid, "What do you mean?"

"The dreams, what are they about?"

I close my eyes, "Nothing really," I quickly explain, "I just see you; I see your face and hear your name, that's it."

Allen looks perplexed, but he doesn't press further. "So, is this a part of your Anti-Akuma weapon then?" Allen inquires, pointing at my arm. "I saw that you have one."

I shrug. "I guess, I mean I suppose there's a correlation between the two, but I don't suppose that arm of yours can make you see through walls or something," I glance down at Allen's shriveled left limb lying on the bedspread, "By the way, yuck."

"So what is your weapon exactly?"

I smile. "It's this." I hold out my arm and a thin ribbon of red suddenly slithers out from under my sleeve and waves itself in Allen's face. The kid pales, "Is that…"

"The average human being produces about two thousand gallons of blood per day," I calmly explain, "I produce about fifty times that amount, which enables me to use the extra blood and harness it as a weapon. I can manipulate every drop in my veins, shape it into blades or spears, make it cold enough to freeze substances, or hot enough to make something melt. Basically, my blood can do anything and everything I want."

Allen shrinks back against the pillow. "That's disgusting!"

I blink, "Yeah, I guess it kind of is." I quickly snatch a paper cup from the bedside table and feather the blood thread into the cup where it softens to liquid once more.

"But what are you doing here anyways?" Allen continues.

"Same as you," I reply, setting the cup back on the table. "I'm heading to the Black Order to become a proper Exorcist."

At that moment, the candy stripper nurse enters, wheeling a trolley laden with food.

"And, on that note, I'll leave you to it," I declare, getting to my feet as the nurse pushes the cart of food up to Allen's bed. "The doctor said that you'll be able to be released tomorrow morning and then you can be on your way. So, uh, see ya, kid."

"Wait!" Allen calls as I turn to leave, "Since you're here, why don't we just head to the Black Order together?"

I pause in the doorway. "Sure, why not." I reply, turning around to face the boy with a smile. "I suppose I can wait around a little while longer."

Allen grins, "Great."

I try to make my smile as much of a mask for my nervousness as possible as I quickly slip out of the room.
In the hall, I pause to lean against the door, cycling the events of the night over in my mind.
I glance back at the door to Allen's room, "I hope you're as important as these dreams imply, kid. I had to sell my underwear to pay for your hospital bill."

"Now, Jan, I don't want to hear about you stirring up any more trouble, alright?" I demand of the young boy. I'm sitting on a bench outside the hospital, top hat on and lit pipe in teeth. Jan is slumped beside me, his skinny legs swinging as he scowls up at me.

"I know. You don't have to keep reminding me." He pauses when he sees my expression soften.

"Good luck to you, kid," I say, clapping him on the shoulder.

Jan grins, "Thanks." He suddenly jumps up from the bench, snatching up the satchel on the seat beside him.

"Where are you off to?" I inquire.

"I'm going to school, of course," Jan exclaims. "I need to study hard if I'm going to go work with my dad someday at the Black Order. I've still got a long way to go."

I grin. "Good on ya, kid."

"Oh, here," Jan fishes around in his satchel before producing a small, crudely wrapped parcel. "When you get to the Order, give this to my dad, and tell him to wait for me. Okay?"

I nod, tucking the parcel into my coat. "Of course."

"Thanks. See ya!" Jan calls, waving as he turns and scampers off.

"Bye, Jan. Good luck," I call after him.

At that moment, Allen exits the hospital. "About time," I exclaim, dousing my pipe, picking up my periwinkle suitcase, and getting up from the bench. "I was just about to leave without you." I pause, seeing Allen is staring at me rather intently. "What?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing," Allen mentally shakes himself. "It's just, you remind me of someone I know."

"Do I?" I quirk a brow. However, before I can ask him who it was I remind him of, a flash of gold and feathers suddenly explodes in front of my face. "Gah! Oh my God, is that a bug!" I shriek, staggering backward and flailing my arms wildly.

Allen laughs, "No. It's Timcampy." He holds out his hand and a small creature alights on his fist. It's about the size of a tennis ball, bright gold with a pair of tiny feathered wings and a little tail. A cross symbol is emblazoned on the creature's front.

I stare at it "Timcampy?"

"Yeah, he's my golem," Allen explains.

"So, this is a golem?" I exclaim, leaning closer to get a better look.

"Yeah. Have you never seen golems before?" Allen inquires.

"Just sketches," I reply simply before shrinking back as a row of rather sharp teeth suddenly unfolds around the golem's middle like a set of huge jaws.

Allen chuckles. "It's okay. It just means he likes you," he explains as the golem lifts from his hand and flies up to tenderly rub against my cheek.

I laugh nervously, "Uh, good boy, Timcampy." I turn back to Allen. "We should probably get going. We don't want to miss our train."

"Oh, right," Allen agrees.

"Well," I reach into the pocket of my coat and pull out a sleek, gold-topped cane from its dark recesses, "Let's be off."

Allen gaps. "How did you?"

"Another one of the perks of my blood is, if you sew it into clothes, you have virtually bottomless pockets," I explain as I slap my cane against the ground and turn to stride towards the gate. "Now, come on, let's get going, creampuff!"

Allen hangs back a moment. "Creampuff?"

"Hey, Cas, can I ask you something?" Allen pipes up as we sidle down the aisle to our seat on the train.

"Sure, what do you need, kid?" I ask as I attempt to squeeze past a particularly crowded spot. Allen follows with ease; as he's about four inches shorter than me; he's a lot more nimble.

"I was just wondering how old you are," Allen replies.

I pause to give him a sharp smirk over my shoulder, "Don't you know it's impolite to ask a woman her age?"

Allen goes beet red. "I'm sorry," he quickly stammers.

"Nah, its fine. I'm seventeen."

"Oh. I'm fifteen," Allen replies.

I pause, causing Allen to nearly walk into me. "Really?"

"Yeah. Why? Do I look older?"

"No. I thought you were like twelve," I reply as we finally reach our seats, and I collapse into the spot by the window, setting my suitcase down on the spot next to me.

Allen, looking noticeably wilted, sits down across from me. I lean my elbow against the window sill, resting my chin on my hand as I study him thoroughly.

He's not all that bad looking really, now that I'm seeing him in person. He's got a full face, the scar doesn't retract from the more handsome of his features, and his eyes are kinda pretty; I can't say much of his body under all those clothes, however, and the hair is a little off-putting.

"So tell me," I pipe up. "Is there a reason you look like a powdered doughnut? I mean, is it a birth defect or are you trying to make a statement?"

Allen stares at me. "What?"

"I'm talking about your hair, kid."

"Oh." Allen runs his fingers through his messy locks. "I don't really know; I mean, it used to be red when I was little, but then it turned white not long after I destroyed Mana." He falters slightly, "My Master thinks it's a side effect of the curse."

I tap my chin thoughtfully, "That's right. You mentioned this Master of yours before; he's the one who taught you how to fight Akuma. Who is he exactly?"

"Oh, he's name's Cross Marian," Allen explains, "He's one of the Generals of the Black Order."

"WHAT?!" I cry so loudly that Allen flattens himself against his seat in surprise. "Cross Marian is your Master? That bastard is seriously still alive?" I cross my arms with a huff. "Huh, who would have thought?"

"I take it you know him?" Allen asks cautiously.

"Well, not exactly," I admit, "I mean, I met him once, but I was just a little kid then. You see, my grandmother, Audrey Williams, was one of the Order's Generals too, but that was a long time ago and she's been retired for about fifteen years. However, when she was in her prime, she had an apprentice and that kid was Cross Marian."

Allen gaps at me. "Are you serious? So, your grandmother is my Master's Master?"

"Seems like it," I muse. "Huh, small world."

"So then it must have been your grandmother that taught you how to kill Akuma," Allen infers.

I wince, "Not exactly. I mean, don't get me wrong, I had heard about Akuma for as long as I can remember; my grandmother made certain that I had as much knowledge of them as possible. However, about three years ago, I encountered an Akuma for the first time in my hometown, and my Anti-Akuma weapon activated on instinct and killed…it. After that, my grandmother kicked me out of the house and told me not to come back until I'd become a full-fledged Exorcist of the Black Order."

Allen looks unnerved, "That's kinda harsh."

I shrug, "She's a firm believer in tough love, that and percussive maintenance."

"So, what did you do?"

"My grandmother instructed me to go to the home of a Theodore Hermenshire; he was a former Black Order Science Division operative who is now too blind and lame to work. Even though he didn't hunt Akuma, he knew loads about them and taught me everything I know. He trained me up until a few weeks ago when he wrote a letter to my grandmother saying my training was complete. Immediately, she wrote back and told me to go to the Black Order, enclosing a letter of recommendation for me to give the Chief Officer." As I talk, I untwist the handle on my cane, and it pops off to reveal a hollow inside where a worn and weather-beaten slip of paper is neatly rolled up inside.

Allen nods, "I see. My Master wrote a similar letter to the Black Order European Branch Headquarters and sent it ahead of me."

"Where is your Master now anyways?" I inquire, twisting the top back on to my cane.

Allen shrugs, looking rather uncomfortable. "I don't know," he mutters, "A few months ago, we were in India, and he suddenly told me that it was high time I went to the Order and became a proper Exorcist. When I asked if he was coming with me, he said 'I'd rather lose my thumb than go back there'," Here Allen makes his voice sound gruff and slurred as though the person speaking was drunk. "Then he knocked me over the head with a wine bottle and disappeared. I haven't seen him since."

I stare at Allen, unnerved at the offhand way he put that last statement. "Um, right."

"I suppose you and I are in a very similar situation," Allen adds.

"Yeah, I guess," I reply, leaning back against the chair.

At that moment a huge clap of thunder suddenly knocks against the train, rattling the window panes and shaking it on the tracks.

Allen and I both jump to our feet and whip around; seeing no threat, we glance at each other and immediately break into peals of nervous laughter.

"I guess we're a little tense," Allen observes.

"Can't say I blame us," I reply, settling back down into my seat and propping my feet up on the spot beside me. "All the same, I think I'm going to get some shut eye," I lean back against the window just as the rain begins to splatter the glass, pulling the brim of my hat down over my eyes, "We won't be arriving at the Order for a while yet."

I glance at Allen under my brim to see he is still standing rigid, his gaze fixed outside at the soaking sky.
"Hey, get some sleep, kid. Lord knows, we've got a big day tomorrow."

Allen glances at me and scowls. "Would you stop calling me 'kid'? I'm only two years younger than you."

My only response is to press a finger to my lips, "Shhh."

Grumbling under his breath, Allen settles down in his seat, and , not long after that, we are both sound asleep.

A/N: Allen and Cas have finally officially met, and we now know more about Cas's Anti-Akuma weapon. However, there is more to her Innocence than she is willing to let on.