I do not own D. Gray-Man

/-/-/

A young lad looked through a terribly long list of expensive items with an ice-pack resting above his head. He looked terribly sick with caramel hair hanging from the sides of his face meeting a short end. His gray eyes gave off a mysterious look on his face.

"And that is the last bill..." He stared while speaking to himself, "I hope... Damn that bastard, disappearing to the depths of that river and leaving all the bills to me..." he sighed holding up a vial, green contents swirled inside like it always did for the past ten years, "and this can't even give me stale bread..." he sighed once again taking his ice-pack off. He was about to throw it away when he noticed something strange, there was a caramel colour at the bottom of the pack.

"CRAP! THE DYE CAME OFF!" he clamped his own mouth before he could scream and make the people outside the old palace wonder if it was haunted or there was a thief inside. He quickly calmed himself down as he touched his wet hair, just as expected, the dye came off... For the sixth time this week, and it was only a Tuesday. White hair now showed at the top until about halfway when the colour changed to caramel. He sighed, this was the worst – wait, no paying debts for another person was the worst, the hair dye came in second, well, at least the makeup didn't give that much problem. Food was the third problem for ten years. He took out a pack of cards.

"Ah my dear lovely cards... you have done so much..." he smiled although he himself thought it was crazy stroking cards like that but indeed it had done a lot. It helped him to pay everything. He went to a basin filled with cold water and washed his face. Face makeup came off revealing a blood-red scar running down his left eye.

Oh yes, now you know, it is Allen Walker.

Allen gasped like always at the cold water touching his skin sending shocks all over. He never got used to the water; even the water last time when he worked in the palace wasn't as bad as this. Even so, he was thankful for it. The last strands of caramel turned back into its original white colour and the makeup was fully washed off. Ignoring the spillage on the floor, he placed a new set of dye (red this time) and his usual makeup just enough to cover the scar on his face. He grinned, Ten years and his two childhood friends had not seen him even though they lived in the same building. That was expected though, the palace was indeed a big place, good enough for you to get lost when one is playing hide and seek and go missing for hours and Allen was living in the secret rooms instead of the grand, royal rooms. He was rather not used to that type of bedding yet and most of them were torn anyway with stuffing coming out. His ears pricked, the two were in the ballroom; and there was another person. A girl. They would just go away but Allen was curious, he sneaked through a passage way leading to the ballroom with the green vial strapped on his waist. He had dared not throw it away least Cross came back and killed him for such a thing. There was a small panel but big enough for Allen to peek through and see what was going on. There was Lavi, Kanda and a girl. But the girl looked sickeningly familiar...

"May I present! The royal Grand Duchess Lenalee..."

His stomach lurched; Lenalee is dead, dead, dead, dead. As dead as a doornail. Just like the rest of her family so how could she be...

Allen jumped and clamped his mouth. A green shadow emerged from the vial resting on his waist, it was like a bat, a green bat but it looked more like a dragon, yes, a little nasty fella. Allen's eyes widened in confusion. What on Earth was IT doing here? Oh great, after all these years this little creep awakens just because blabber mouth claims she's the princess!? This is ridiculous! Allen jumped again as the shadow hissed at him for doubting. Allen cringed. Okay... right... if this thing is here... that means... SHE'S THE PRINCESS!

Suddenly it felt as though gravity increased greatly on him and he yelped as he was pulled through the ground. Electric shocks passed through him at one stage and he nearly lost his head to an ancient dinosaur jaw by an inch. But the worst part was the fiery pit in below the earth's crust and Allen was literally screaming his lungs dry in panic as he was pulled by his waist into the depths of the underworld. The terrifying journey slowed down when he reached an unknown place with small spheres far apart. When he saw that he was about to collide into one of them, he screamed a silent one as he ran out of breath.

"Ow..." Allen groaned. The hair dye was all over his top and his makeup wore off. This was the SEVENTH time this week; and it was only a Tuesday.

"WHO DARES TO INTRUDE ON MY SOLITUDE!?" a voice echoed across the place. Allen frantically looked around for an exit but there was none. A figure came up and grabbed Allen by the collar. Allen wheezed and chocked, squeezing his eyes shut from the tears. He felt the grip loosen, "Allen?" the voice said in surprise. The boy thumped on the ground as the figure let go and he opened his eyes. To his horror, he saw the last person he wanted to see. If he chose between the devil and that person, he would go to the devil.

"Cross?" Allen squeaked, "You're alive!" (You mean after all this years you're STILL not dead!?) Cross chuckled "As a matter of speaking!" and his eyeball popped out of his socket. Literally and it landed on Allen's hand. At that moment he felt like squashing it so that his master would go half-blind but according to the contract, the servant is not allowed to do anything to the master... Why did he take the contract? Oh yes, he loved magic when he was a boy. End of story.

"Something's happened..." Cross hissed as he took the mucky solid back into its original socket and popped it back into place by tapping the side of his head with his palm. "I knew it," he continued, "I could feel the Dark Forces stirring!" Allen opened his mouth before he could think, "That's because I saw her, Lenalee!" Cross's jaw dropped, literally. It now hit the ground with a soft thud. "Alive?" Allen cringed in disgust, it was still speaking!? "Err... Sir, your lips..." "That Lee brat!" Cross hissed. "Yeah ain't that the kick in the head, I guess a curse just ain't what it used to be huh sir?" Cross snapped his jaw into place earning another cringe from Allen. "THAT'S why I'm stuck here in void, the curse is unfulfilled!" Cross threw his hands in the air unconsciously and his left hand detached itself, flying to a pillar. Allen clamped his mouth from barfing but for Cross, that was the last straw.

He broke down.

And cried.

As for Allen, he wished he could have had taped it and used it against him so that he could get the hell out of here and be free of the contract. "Look at me! I'm falling apart!" Cross moaned, "I'M A WRECK!" Well at least you don't have to pay someone else's debt! Allen screamed inside his head. But at the same time, he felt sorry for Cross as he lay on the floor. He picked up his hand and went to his master, "You know, considering all this years, you still look pretty good!" His master continued moaning waving his attached arm in the air. "Sir you do, you do!" Allen forced a smile out of pity. "Really?" Cross asked, "Sir does this face look like it would lie to you?" Allen pulled out his Innocent-face-while-playing-poker look. Then Allen said the truth, "Come on! For a minute you had your old spark back!"

"Before, I had lost the gift from the dark forces!" Cross hissed back to his sour mood, "And the key to my powers!" "What you mean this vial?" Allen held up the container to Cross.

"Where did you get that!?" Cross looked at Allen with terrifying glee. "Oh, I found it." Allen put flatly, "GIVE IT TO MEEEEEEE!!!" Cross cried like a child receiving his first Christmas gift and snatched the item from Allen's hand. "Alright! Alright! Don't get so grabby!" Cross snatched his detached hand as well and popped it back into place, "My old friend, together again!" he placed the vial softly against his cheek and started laughing evilly, "Now my dark purpose will be fulfilled and the last of the Lee family will DIE!" the vial shot out a green lightning, Allen backed against the wall.

"In the dark of the night I was tossing and turning
And the nightmare I had was as bad as can be –
It scared me out of my wits --
A corpse falling to bits!" and Cross broke apart and started going all over the place.
"Then I opened my eyes
And the nightmare was...me!!" Now Allen agreed with that, Cross was a nightmare enough to scare himself out of his wits. Cross placed himself back in a flash.

"I was once the most mystical man in all Russia.
When the royals betrayed me they mad a mistake!"
To be honest, Allen thought the royals did a very wise thing by firing a crazy idiot. It was just that little Allen was wayyyy to naive to figure that out.
"My curse made each of them pay
But one little girl got away!
Little Lee, beware,
Cross is awake!"
Bugs started to crawl out of the walls and seemed to be joining in. Allen wondered, did he actually practice this song?

"In the dark of the night evil will find her" HOLY CRAP! SINGING BUGS! Allen could have made a fortune out of this!
"In the dark of the night just before dawn!
Aah..."

"Revenge will be sweet
when the curse is complete!"

"In the dark of the night!"

"She'll be gone!" Allen wondered, Cross must have been REALLY BORED to train bugs to sing and place the disco lights, the whole place was lighted up!


"I can feel that my powers are slowly returning!"
A small bug tried to bite Allen's shoe, he simply threatened to squash it if it didn't go away by putting his feet right above it with his evil poker face.


"Tie my sash and a dash of cologne for that smell!"


"As the pieces fall into place"
Cross took a black wigand placed it on his head combing in front of a mirror, from the reflection, what everyone saw was Lenalee...


"I'll see her crawl into place!"
He turned around and scared the living hell out of everyone.


"Dasvidanya, Lenalee, your grace, farewell!"

"In the dark of the night terror will strike her!"

"Terror's the least I can do!"

"In the dark of the night evil will brew.
Ooh!"

"Soon she will feel that her nightmares are real." Forget about HER nightmares; just get me out of here! Allen's head screamed while he looked totally cool watching a free show on the outside.

"In the dark of the night"

"She'll be through!"

"In the dark of the night
Evil will find her
Find her!
Ooh!
In the dark of the night terror comes true.
Doom her!"
DOOM ME!

"My dear, here's a sign –"

"It's the end of the line!"

"In the dark of the night...
In the dark of the night...
In the dark of the night..."
Cross placed his vial on a stand; the green shadows emerged and flew around him.

"Come my minions,
Rise for your master,
Let your evil shine!
Find her now,
Yes, fly ever faster"

"In the dark of the night...
In the dark of the night...
In the dark of the night..."

"She'll be mine!"

/-/-/

A large black train passed on its tracks emitting smoke almost blacker than the vehicle it self, inside one of those black carriages, two idio- (ahem) con men and a girl were inside. Lavi was sitting inside a compartment filling up the contents of their fake papers which were marked down in blue ink. He was grinning like an idiot; Kanda went out of the cramped place for a moment while Lin was just slouching on the other side of the same compartment. The door, opened, it was Kanda, he went in and was about to sit opposite Lin but he heard a strange small rumbling. It was Timcanpy, baring its teeth showing 'back-off-I-came-here-first!' expression. Kanda growled and moved next to Lin, as far as he could from her though. Lin started fiddling with her necklace, "Stop fiddling with that thing! God, you annoy me! You're supposed to be Grand Duchess and yet you're not acting like one!" Kanda snapped. Typical, annoyed with everything. Lin only slouched even more down her seat. "How is it that you know about what Grand Duchess do or don't do?" Lin muttered, "We make it our business to know! Now sit up straight!" Kanda snapped back. He sighed, "Look, we're just trying to help." Lavi looked up from the travel papers with an eyebrow raised. Yeah right, Kanda DOES want the money as well so that he could go home to Japan. Lin sighed, "Kanda so you really think I'm royalty?" "What? You backing out from Paris?" Kanda hissed. "He means yes." Lavi said from behind the papers still. Kanda shot a glare at him, "THE STOP BOSSING ME AROUND!" Lin shouted loud enough so that the people in the next carriage could hear.

"That girl has a mind of her own..." Lavi chuckled, "Shut up, I hate women..." Kanda muttered under his breath, Lenalee shot a glare and looked in the opposite direction. Lavi grinned, that's 10 to none.

/-/-/

"Che, I'm not going in you idiot!"Kanda hissed at Lavi who was urging him to apologise, again. "Just go!" and Lavi shoved him into the carriage, Lin looked at them puzzled, "Kanda wants to say something to you!" "Baka Usagi!" and the door slammed shut. Silence filled the air. "If you have something to say, say it, if not then you can just go away." Lin said breaking the silence only to be filled with even more silence.

"Look, I think we both got off on the wrong foot..." Kanda muttered with the most insincere tone one could ever find in their lifetime, "Yes and I think so to;" Lin said still reading a book, "But I appreciate your apology." "Since when did I say anything about an apology?" "Look, don't talk anymore okay; it's going to make me even more upset!" Lin snapped back and looked at the window.

"You think you'll miss it?" Lin asked. "Miss what? Your talking?" Kanda said annoyingly, "No!" Lin shot back, "Russia."

"Nope."

"But it was your home."

"It was a place I once lived, end of discussion." Kanda said remembering Japan.

"Then you must intend on making Paris your true home,"

"What is it with you and homes?" Kanda stood up almost shouting.

"Well, for one thing, it's something that every normal person wants and you know-"

"What?"

"Oh just forget it!" Lin seethed as she headed to the door, "Bunch of idiots..." Lavi entered by chance, "Oh good it's you, could you please remove him from my sight!" Lin begged in a high manner of fact. "What did you do to her!" Lavi shot at Kanda, "Me! It's her!" "Hah!" Lin scoffed and walked off. For Timcanpy, he started to take a liking to Lavi and an annoyance to Kanda from all the fights and was now toying in Lavi's palm.

"Oh, an unspoken attraction!" Lavi teased rubbing Tim's head.

"Che, bunch of goons..." and Kanda walked off in the opposite direction. "Ridiculous."