Brain Damage
Part Four

The cool wind blew through the trees in a soothing wave over the small garden. It wasn't something spectacular, just an ordinary garden. Despite the blandness of this small haven, it was comforting to the bodies that took to occupying it during the afternoons. Flowers edged the whole area and framed the stalks and other assorted plants that were commonly used when the chef prepared meals with the home raised vegetables.

Leaves began to slip from the trees with each gust of wind that threatened to carry them all away. Allen picked the leaves from his hair with amusement. It wasn't annoying or anything. It was peaceful. He looked down at the head resting against his bent knee. A week ago, he'd been looking at the same image, only strikingly more horrifying.

Kanda rolled to his side and pressed his ear against that knee, his dark eyes blinking and watching the wind tumble through the tall grasses. In the time since he'd regained some degree of self awareness, the dark haired man had refused any sort of affiliation with anyone other than Allen, Lenalee and to some extent, Lavi. When Komui made an attempt to check up on him, he was met with resistance that made him retreat quickly.

Despite the thrashing and strangled attempts at whining protests, Komui was extremely happy at this. This was progress.

Allen wasn't thinking about "progress" and Kanda's "current state". He was just thinking about moving forward and trying to help the man as best they could. He didn't want to stress anyone and he didn't want to push Kanda. That could end up in stirring up things that could harm him more than good.

From what he could tell, Kanda recognized some faces, places, and he was coherent enough to catch on to some word meanings or at least the tone at which they were spoken. His memories had to be leaking back in slowly, but in what sequence, they couldn't be sure. He was convinced fully that he knew who Marie was. That much had been apparent in the way Kanda acceptingly received a hug when the large man had come in to check on his current state.

It was quick, but it was full of affection like a big brother's care for a younger sibling. Marie had a history with Kanda that the others weren't exactly sure of, but there was deep respect between them It brought forth another small tear to Allen's eye when he saw how deeply affected the man was over the accident that hadn't been quite an accident, but Tyki torturing Allen by targeting the people he cared for.

He subconsciously found himself running his good hand through Kanda's soft hair. There was no sound of protest, but a gentle shifting as the man made himself more comfortable. He'd made previous indications that his head was giving him pain, which had brought them out to relax there in the first place. It wasn't a surprise that having your brain destroyed, then regenerated might leave a bit of a headache.

"How's he doin?"

"He's doing better, I think. What'd Komui have to say, Lavi?"

A green eye peered down at him with a mirth that spread deep across his face, "He says he's gonna have to split us up later on, but he'll let us keep this up for at least the next five days. Lenalee will be back from town soon too. She says we should try taking him to the cafeteria. Maybe he'll jog some memories in there?"

A sigh left Allen's lips, "I guess that means we need to get him in the bath now then, before she comes back?"

"Well, I some how don't think she's gonna wanna join the fun, ya get me?"

"Women can be just as perverted as say…you, Lavi."

"Hey now, be nice, beansprout."

"My name is All-"

His words fell half way when he felt the body rested against his knee move. Kanda's long hair trailed down his shoulder—spilling on to Allen's leg—as those dark eyes looked up at him like he had been jolted awake by something. Both pairs of eyes locked for a moment, a single instant of recognition passed before it settled back into a state of somber questioning. It was like a memory that was there, fresh at the surface, but yet draped by a veil that cut into the clarity.

"Hey, do you think he recognized-"

"Shh, don't, Lavi. He has to remember some stuff fully on his own, remember? Komui told us to be careful not to teach him memories. Otherwise, he may just learn how to act like himself and not actually be himself."

"I know, I know. Let's get him moving, kay?"

A nod followed and Allen sat forward a bit. He took Kanda's hand in the least offensive way he could in order to help him get to a standing position. He knew that the man wouldn't exactly have the capacity to really be offended at that point; but at some point, those memories would come back and then he'd have to face the wrath of Kanda. Wrapping his fingers around the more elegant ones, he pulled and encouraged his fellow exorcist to push himself up more. Without making it obvious, he'd slowly begun to put less effort into helping, making him work harder and push himself to rekindle his relationship with his nerves.

Walking was still something of a task. Moving wasn't impossible, but his coordination by himself was awful and usually reduced him to annoyed crawling and eventually giving up in frustration.

In all this, he still had yet to speak a single word.

And that disturbed Allen Walker the most.

"You got this, Yuu." Lavi's voice broke his quiet thinking and he held Kanda's shoulder and advanced step by step, eventually falling into their three person lineup, where he and Lavi would be on each side of him.

He recalled the first time they'd set about this particular task, thanking all the gods that they had mixed nationalities and thus, a communal bath. It didn't make it awkward to cram three people into a small wash room, because they simply used the big bathhouse when it was fairly empty.

Just like every night before, they stepped in and gathered the necessary items to get this fun experience over with. He couldn't deny that he still felt a little awkward when they had to strip Kanda down. It made his face a little hot and he usually was able to blame it on the heat caused by the spring.

No one would be lying to say that Kanda was a good looking man. He had a handsome strong face, framed by perfect hair—clean and kept neat—with eyes that angled in just a way to make his features appear angular, not too masculine…but masculine enough. Even with his hair splayed out, he maintained a gentle masculinity that Allen somewhat envied. He was beautiful, but dangerous.

Pulling the cloth from his upper body, silver eyes laid out over the strange tattoo mark on his chest. He'd looked at it each and every time, and he couldn't explain why it gave him shivers. He couldn't explain why he seemed to think it had grown since that first time he saw it. Well, he knew it did. He couldn't be going that crazy. It was spread further out to his shoulder and he wondered constantly why that was, but he didn't ask anyone. The only person who he was willing to hear that answer from wasn't talking at the moment. So he'd wait.

"Okay, Yuu, you know the drill. Let's get them pretty locks o' yours all nice and clean."

"You sound creepy, Lavi."

A cunning eye turned on him and he didn't like the way it gave off an aura of mischief. "Look whose talking, Mr. Blushy face."

"I am not blushing! It's hot in here!"

"Yeah, 'cause we took Yuu's clothes off." That grin reached toothy levels that made Allen feel extremely vulnerable and yet filled him with the desire to choke Lavi.

"I know you get all hot and bothered by him, Lavi, but don't project that on me."

"Oh Allen, I know you want all up on him. I mean look at him. He's pretty good looking~" Lavi eyed him up and down, at least being decent enough to act this silliness while the man was at least still wearing pants.

"Lavi, please, no matter how much you eye him longingly, I think he'd probably drop kick you, before you got anywhere," Allen rolled his eyes, swatting Timcanpy away, who chose to divert from Allen to sit on Kanda's head. The owner of that head simply blinked languidly, raising one hand slowly up to touch Timcanpy and tiredly pluck it off his head, holding the small gold golem in his hand. He involuntarily twitched when Tim opened his toothy mouth and licked him.

"So, you think he'd choose you if we were the last two people on earth."

Without skipping a beat, "Yes."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I don't call him by his first name."

"That's not a good reason," Lavi frowned.

"We're seriously discussing this?" A towel was draped around Kanda's shoulders, when Allen decided to ignore Lavi's intentional taunting. He could clearly see what the redhead was doing now. Kanda may have been mentally shattered, but he wasn't deaf or blind. This discussion could end up imprinting in his memory later and Allen didn't wish to have to explain why they would even go there to begin with, Lavi's taunting or not.

"Yuu, why don't you tell us," Lavi straight up ignored him and he ground his teeth a little. "If we were the last two people ever in the world, who would you rather take care of you?"

Allen groaned at the very concept of asking that to a person who would probably kill them both and live in an empty world contently. He watched Timcanpy fly up off Kanda's hand and back to his head, where Kanda plucked him off again. It was clearly going to be a repeating cycle. But for a moment, the Japanese man stared at Lavi, inspecting his features and despondently shifting his weight from foot to foot, his eyes showcasing how hard his mind was flittering thoughts; trying to figure out what was being expressed and how to return it.

"Are you done annoying, Kanda?"

"He's not annoyed, he's thinking! So how about it Yuu~?"

A twitch at Kanda's lip pulled it down into a frown that almost resembled the many frowns he'd worn before. His fingers wrapped around Timcanpy to keep in him his hand for the moment, and the other hand brushed against Allen's sleeve, catching it in a light grasp. He turned his head from Lavi and set to ignore the redhead.

"Ouch, Yuu. Just, Ouch."

"Now that you've been thoroughly denied, can we get back to important stuff? Lenalee will be back soon, right?"

"Yeah yeah, yeesh, you're mean when you're grouchy, Allen."

"I am not. You're making this uncomfortable," he retorted, throwing him a towel and assisting Kanda in removing the rest of his clothing; wrapping his waist in a towel.

Timcanpy squeezed out of Kanda's grasp and floated around Allen's head once before going back to Kanda, flitting about landing on his shoulder while Allen was stripping down for the bath as well. Timcanpy opened his mouth to lick the man again when Allen cut in, "Timcanpy, stop that. You're annoying Kanda too."

Kanda poked it.

Timcanpy licked him.

Kanda flicked it.

Timcanpy flitted behind his neck and perched under his hair.

"Hmmmn, iie."

Allen turned, wide eyed. It wasn't much of a sound, but he'd heard that word slip from the Japanese man's mouth before. He was pretty sure "iie" stood for "no" in his native language.

"Holy hell," Lavi blurted with the same expression Allen had. "He said something, Allen!"

"I know, I heard it too."

Kanda looked at both of them with half lidded eyes. He closed them and leaned his head, wanting his bath and less interaction. He turned his gaze and tried to let them know that with just his eyes alone. Timcanpy came out from under his hair and flittered over to Allen and opened his jaws wide to bite his hair and pull.

"Tim! What are you doing?" He frowned at the golden ball, watching it pull his hair. "What? You want us to go to the bath? Okay, okay, we're going." He huffed and swatted Tim, who went right back to sitting on Kanda's head.

"It's like he's protecting, Yuu." Lavi chuckled.

Allen had somewhat taken note of that himself. Lavi may have thought it was a joke, but Timcanpy really never had any other interactions with Kanda that would lead to fondness…was Timcanpy picking up on his affections for Kanda? While they helped Kanda into the warm water, letting him dissolve into it, he wondered if he was actually that obvious.

To Be Continued…

A/N: New OTP KandaxTimcanpy.

…

What, can't see it?

Spoil sports.

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