Chapter 4 is out~ And its my longest chapter so far too! \o/ I hope I've satisfied you with the length so far. The story gets more interesting from now on :D

Thank you to MusicianWish for the favorite and jokerose for editing this chapter! I love you two :3

Disclaimer: I don't own D. Gray-Man

And now on with the show~

Edit: I realized I messed up Snow's name. Derp. It was actually supposed to be Phoenix before I changed it to Snow. My bad XD

Chapter 4: And So It Begins

Flames roared in the town they once called home. Adults, children, the elderly; none were spared from the wrath of the monsters. 'Akuma', he faintly recalled. That's what they were called. After all, he called them that.

Running towards the house that he knew she'd be in, he rounded the corner as he saw it erupt in flames. Evan briefly hesitated at the sight; his instincts were screaming at him to run away from the danger, but his rational mind knew that he was inside, and he was protecting Maria. Throwing all caution aside, Evan ran into the burning building, where he was met with the aftermath of a murder.

Enormous bullet holes lined the walls, showing that whoever had shot continued to miss his mark. Tables and furniture were overturned and picture frames had been knocked off the wall. Evan scanned the vicinity for any movement, any survivors. Spotting a caved in wall, he ran towards it, unearthing a dying Ryou Tsukiyomi. He hadn't been shot but there were shards of glass and wood sticking out of his body in various gruesome directions. He wouldn't last any longer. Evan looked away, afraid to see any more of the damage that had been done to the older boy that was like an older brother to him. "Ryou..." he hoarsely whispered, beginning to gag slightly due to the overwhelming stench of blood in the air.

A hand weakly grabbed his arm as he was about to get up. "…Evan…" Ryou rasped, blood coming out of his mouth. "Swear…to me…that you'll…take care of…Maria…"

Tears brimming in his eyes, Evan looked at the dying boy in the eyes. "I swear…" He grasped Ryou's hand and held onto it in a firm grip, signaling his promise.

"…Thank…you…" Ryou Tsukiyomi closed his eyes for the final time as his barely audible breathing came to a stop.

Evan woke up with tears streaming down his face, crying for the boy in his dream. Why did I remember that today out of all days? He wondered as he got up to get ready for the day.

Looking at the calendar, Evan sighed. Today was Ebony Florence's death anniversary. It had been 2 years since her death, and he wondered how Maria was doing. Ever since then, she had closed herself up from the world, only lowering her barriers to both he and Seph. Evan knew the girl better than she knew herself sometimes. On the inside she was still the same lost and lonely girl from two years ago, and she needed him now to be the brother she lost on that fateful day nine years ago. The day Ryou Tsukiyomi died.

Ever since the day she broke down, Evan felt frustrated. How could he protect her from her own emotions? There was nothing, nothing he could do to help her. He had been training all his life in order to fulfill his promise to Ryou, but every time he thought about Maria, his feelings of frustration came back to him.

Ruffling his hair, he stared at his reflection. Ruby-red eyes stared back at him as he looked into the depth of his eyes. Maria had always told him that his eyes were beautiful and mesmerized the people who looked at them, but he could see nothing but fear in them. He was still the same boy that held the bloody hand back in their hometown. The boy with no memories of his past save for a bloody blade stabbed into his stomach. Even now, after at least 9 years, Evan could still feel the scar that that man had given to him in honor of his 'courage.' He laughed bitterly to himself while thinking of the name that man had given to him before he had passed out. 'Lupin Xenohart'. He clenched his hands as his mind filled with thoughts of revenge. That man gave him this scar; he would know of his past. Evan was sure of that.

Sighing once more, Evan left the room. It was time to get going.

"Maria," Seph gently shook the girl awake. "We're here."

Yawning, Maria stretched before she got off the carriage. And thanked the man who had helped them. The kind farmer that had offered the two a ride waved them goodbye as he turned the carriage towards a city further on.

Looking towards the sky, the girl remembered what had occurred a few days earlier.

. . . . .

"Komui? What is it?" The girl asked through Snow. She and Seph had just completed a mission in Germany and had relaxed in a cafe before receiving a call from headquarters.

"Maria? Where are you?" Komui asked through the phone.

"We're in Germany. What's the matter?" Maria knew something was going on. Komui never called her during a mission - or after - unless there was an urgent task she had to do.

"Perfect. You heard about the Rewinding Town in Germany haven't you? Could you meet me at the hospital there? It's about your next mission." The man was all business right now, but she could practically see him piled underneath all those papers that were waiting to be signed.

"Alright," she replied before terminating the connection. Germany huh...

. . . . .

Smirking a little from the memory, she hurried towards the hospital only to see that two exorcists were having trouble dealing with some low level Akuma. Thats kind of…sad. She sighed before signaling Seph to head to the hospital before her.

She would have to take care of these pesky Akuma that the boys were struggling to defeat.

Allen and Lavi were surrounded by the hordes of Akuma. Completely exhausted, they stood back to back, ready to face the oncoming Akuma till the very end.

"…You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you...?" Suddenly shapes rose from the shadows underneath the Akuma, forming into a pack of jet black dogs with yellow eyes. They let out ferocious growls and faced the Akuma, ready to tear them apart. The dogs and Akuma stared at each other until every being in the vicinity heard a voice.

"Go."

Acting on the order, the dogs ripped through the Akuma as if they were made of butter. The beings screamed in pain, but Lavi's calculating mind was reeling as the animals easily defeated them. Akuma couldn't be destroyed by anything other than Innocence. Then that would mean that…

These dogs…are they made of…Innocence? Both boys stared shocked at the sight of the dark beings that seemed to melt into the shadows before their very eyes. Lavi's eyes shifted around, scanning for more Akuma that seemed to appear from every direction in the junkyard they were in. When he spotted nothing, both exorcists collapsed on the ground, gasping in relief.

All too soon, Lavi felt something rumble underground. Emerging from behind Allen was a small pistol connected to an Akuma. Eyes wide open, Lavi could only watch as the Akuma prepared to shoot. "Allen! Watch out!"

"Innocence…activate!"

A shadow appeared behind Allen at that moment. Pulling out her scythe, Maria attacked the Akuma that was about to kill Allen, saving his life. The underground Akuma exploded then, blowing Allen and Lavi away from the source of the toxic gas. When the gas cleared, from it emerged a girl.

The girl looked to be slightly older than him, around 16 years old. She wasn't very tall either, maybe a few inches shorter than he was. She had pale blonde medium length hair and stunning ice-blue eyes that seemed to see through him. He then noticed her clothes. She was wearing a slightly tattered exorcist uniform that consisted of a black mini jacket, a plain white V-neck and a slightly frilly black skirt. She wore black, fingerless gloves and black combat boots. Around her neck was a silver chain from which hung a silver cross underneath it. Perched on her shoulder was a golem similar to Timcanpy, except white like snow.

Allen didn't know why, but he was mesmerized by those eyes of hers. They seemed to bring forth an emotion he didn't know he had from deep within him. His heart wrenched as he saw her walk towards them. He clutched his chest. Just what is this strange feeling...?

"Ne-Are you alright?" The girl asked them, observing them calmly as she offered her hand to Allen.

Lavi was the first to speak up. "S-STRIKE!" He shouted, hearts forming in his eyes as he stood up, running towards her like a rabbit in heat and taking her outstretched hand.

Allen sighed. Kanda was right. Lavi was an idiot rabbit in so many ways. Although when Lavi took her hand, Allen felt a pang of jealousy well up from within him. He had never met her before, but he was already starting to feel something for this stranger that had saved his life? Shaking his head, he got up and brushed the dirt off of his uniform.

"Um… Thank you for saving us. My name is Allen Walker, and my friend here is Lavi."

She took in their appearances before curtly replying, "Maria Tsukiyomi, and I wouldn't have saved you if I hadn't seen how pitiful the both of you were when you struggled to take care of a few level one and two Akuma." With that said she promptly turned away towards the hospital, leaving both boys behind to stare at her in shock.

"Psst! Allen!" Lavi whispered to the white haired boy.

"Yeah Lavi?" Allen nervously whispered back, sweat drops starting to appear.

"Isn't she like a female version of Yu? What if she has some sort of super secret move that she'll only use if she gets mad?" Lavi shuddered as he said that, imagining what would happen if he teased her too much. Teasing Yu was fun enough, but at least Yu had a katana that was fun to dodge. If Maria's secret power had something to do with shadows, that wasn't going to be fun at all; in fact, it was probably going to be very painful. Lavi wasn't going to risk teasing her until he got to know her better, or to be more specific, her pet peeves.

Allen's blood chilled at the thought. Having one of those shadow dogs bite through him as if he was butter was a scary thought, but that was a walk in the park compared to Cross's debts. Instead of replying, Allen turned as white as his hair. That demon of a master…

Staring at his friend that now lay weeping, Lavi wondered what kind of life Allen led while apprenticing underneath Cross Marian. He shivered at the thought.

Maria slowly walked towards the hospital. Why did that boy Allen Walker seem so familiar to her? Had she seen him when she was traveling with Ebony? Shaking her head, Maria scoffed at the thought. She would have remembered his white hair. It stood out that much.

When she saw him on the ground, her eyes had widened in shock. Maria knew she met this kid somewhere before; he just seemed that familiar to her. Unconsciously, she had almost said "Neah" before she realized she had opened her mouth to talk. Panicking, she asked them if they were ok, hoping that her blunder wasn't realized. She quietly stared at the darkening sky.

Neah... Just who are you…?

Inside the carriage, it was quite cramped, especially with the boys taking up so much room. Allen and Lavi were sitting in seiza because of the damage they did when they arrived at the hospital, and Lenalee sat next to Allen. Seph sat next to Lavi while Maria sat on Seph's lap, not that she minded. She just hoped she wasn't too heavy. Zoning out, she absentmindedly petted Snow while staring outside the window as Komui explained their long-term mission.

"You lot will guard General Cross." Maria nearly hit Seph's chin with the back of her head when Komui said that. Guard Cross? That womanizer? What was he? Nuts!?

"What!? Cross Marian!? Why should I guard that pedophile? He'll just try to get in my pants!" Outraged, Maria spoke up for the first time since the start of the carriage ride. She remembered the last time Cross tried to hit on her, and that didn't end so well for him.

Allen started to turn white again as he remembered everything that happened during his apprenticeship underneath Cross. "Master's not human…" He cried, holding onto the curtain. 'All those debts,' he thought, becoming whiter than his hair if that was even possible.

"Now, now Maria, I'm sure Cross remembers what happened the last time he tried to hit on you, and I'm quite positive it won't happen again," Komui sweated nervously as he remembered the time Maria came back from a mission in a dangerous mood. Curious, he had looked through Snow's memories and found out what had happened earlier that day. The temperature in the carriage fell in a matter of seconds. Both Seph and Maria were now glaring daggers at Komui.

"You looked through Snow's memories, didn't you?" Maria's glare was enough to scar Komui for eternity. He paled at the shadows that were starting to grow on the bottom of the carriage.

"That bastard did what?" Behind her, Seph was smiling very dangerously. No one had told him what happened between Cross and Maria, fearing his wrath. At times Seph could be even scarier than Evan when it came to Maria; no one knew what he would do when he got angry. Komui shrank even further in his seat, cowering behind Bookman. There was no telling when a dagger would bury itself inside his throat.

Everyone else in the carriage paled at the sight of Seph's menacing smile. 'Well that's one guy I don't want to become enemies with,' they all thought simultaneously.

The light of the moon shone on a sleeping city as a lone Akuma floated in the sky, patrolling the city. Scattered around the city, four exorcists lay in hiding, taking a break from killing the hordes of Akuma earlier. The Earl was very insistent in attacking this city tonight, it seemed.

"Hey—what—?" Daisya's voice could be heard from their golems, but the quality could've been a lot better.

"Huh? What did you just say?" Evan asked Daisya through his golem, catching his breath. Killing Akuma for an extended period of time was draining, but he had dealt with worse conditions when Sokaro trained him.

"The sound quality sucks Daisya," Marie remarked, listening for any Akuma that might be wandering around looking for the exorcists.

"Ah, hell, my wireless golem hasn't been doing too well lately. I think it might've been hit when I was out on that mission earlier." Daisya sighed. If his golem stopped working it'd be extremely hard to track each other down, even with Marie's excellent hearing.

"Where are you guys right now?" Kanda asked, panting slightly.

"Around 3 kilometers east of that weird looking tower?" Daisya answered even though it was more like a question than an answer.

"I'm about 5 kilometers west of it," Marie replied.

"I'm 6 kilometers north of it, I think," Evan stated. He unsheathed his sword Oblivion; they were here.

"I'm to the south," Kanda grunted, already annoyed due to the massive amount of Akuma that were beginning to gather again. Why can't they just die already?

"Wah! It's gonna be a long night," Daisya sighed, picking up Charity Bell.

"Let's regroup. If we're within a 10 kilometer radius, our golems should be able to locate each other," Kanda ordered. "Daisya, Evan and I will meet up at your location Marie."

"When?" Marie questioned, calmly listening to the Akumas' mutterings.

"Daybreak," Kanda stated, unsheathing Mugen and activating his Innocence.

"Sounds like a plan," Evan smirked, activating his own Innocence. His red eyes seemed to burn with flames as his sword glowed with power. Brandishing it as if it weighed nothing at all, Evan charged at the approaching Akuma. "Die!"

. . . . .

At last, the sun's rays peaked over the buildings, and the last of the Akuma were taken care of. The three of them stood at the designated meeting ground, but Daisya was nowhere to be seen. Hearing the sound of wings flapping, Marie led them towards the area where Daisya's golem was. The exorcist was nowhere to be seen.

Walking out of the archway, Evan eyes widened in shock as he stared at the horrifying sight before him. Daisya Barry was impaled and hung upside-down on a pole. Exactly the same way General Yeegar was found. Tearing his eyes away from the body, Evan focused on the details on the ground; dead bodies brought back too many painful memories. Kanda and Marie did the same as well. Both couldn't bear to look at their fallen comrade and they had more urgent things to do.

"We have to go now," Marie interrupted the silence. "Protecting General Tiedoll is of utmost importance; we have to find him before the Noah do."

Glancing back at his fellow exorcist, Evan slowly walked away with bitter thoughts on his mind.

Daisya… I will avenge you.

Poor Daisya :'(

Note: The person that Evan referred to as 'he' is actually Ryou, Maria's brother. Also, seiza is a form of puninshment where you sit with yours legs bent underneath you for a long time.

If you haven't guessed by now, Evan's innocence is fire. It's an equipment type and he uses a one-handed sword in order to attack. Seph's innocence is wind and he uses daggers and carries knives around with him. Don't get on his bad side c: Maria's innocence would be a parasitic shadow type. She can pull out practically anything from her shadow, but she usually prefers a scythe or twin swords depending on the situation. She can also create dogs from any shadow she desires, as long as it is big enough.

Anyways, please leave a review! :3

Mini Omake:

Lavi: Ne Maria-chan?

Maria: Yes, Idiot Lavi?

Lavi: What exactly happened between you and Cross?

Maria: Well if you want to know that badly...*kicks*

Lavi: Urgh... I shouldn't have...asked that... *cries*

Everyone: Note to self: Do not mess with Maria.

Sumi: Try to guess where Maria kicked both Cross and Lavi-kun! ;D