Hidden Artist

Part Seven: Issues


Allen relentlessly played the piano, sticking to brighter themes, staying away from the darker, more melancholy songs that he wanted to play. He even managed to fit in a piece that he had written a few years previous. His arms were already aching from playing his upright piano so furiously, but he refused to take a break for any longer than a few minutes.

He got several comments from passing gallery patrons -some he knew, some he didn't- and even a few more tips than usual. Someone said something about his passionate piano playing being wondrous and refreshing, and they chattered on about a job or some such and left a card for him, which was intriguing, but Allen had been mostly focused on playing, not the person or his words.

He saw Kanda a few times as he patrolled around the gallery, watching people carefully and answering any questions asked of him.

Currently, he could see Kanda leaning up against a wall, looking every bit the 'sex-god of the century' –as Allen had called him earlier that day. He couldn't really tell what Kanda was looking at, but it felt as though the older man was watching him.

God...Did he remember or something?

It wasn't that....It couldn't be. Kanda would be glaring...or something. Likely, he would have pulled Allen off the piano and beat him senseless in front of everyone if he did remember.

Allen sighed. He really had no idea what had happened the previous night. For all he knew Kanda had mobbed him and drug him off to do...something. Whatever it was that they had done. Allen certainly would like to know what would involve him being stripped down of his clothes, but didn't involve sex. A few things came to mind, making him blush furiously again.

He sighed again. Too many things were happening at once. Remembering Mana. Not remembering last night. Falling for Kanda. Hating the stupid bastard for being so proud and arrogant and stubborn and beautiful and unreachable. Hating Master Cross for not sending him any letter, any notion that his teacher was still alive and wasn't dead drunk –or just dead- in some ditch in Europe or Asia or India or Africa.

Stupid Master.

Without realizing it, Allen had begun to play one of those melancholy songs. He had no choice but to finish it off, since it would be unseemly to stop in the middle of it and start something else. He looked up briefly and noticed that Kanda was no longer in his corner. Allen quickly searched the gallery to see if he could find the elusive older man, but no such luck.

The composition finished itself under Allen's expert fingers and as he was about to start another, flipping through his many notes, a voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Hey, Moyashi. Take a freaking break already. You look like you are going to pass out."

Allen started and whipped around in his spot. Oh God, why do you torture me like this?

"Kanda?"

"Yeah, no shit."

Allen sighed again.

"What do you want?" he asked, turning back to his piano notes. He flipped through a book, trying to find something he actually felt like he could play that wasn't sorrowful.

"As I said, stupid, you need to take a break or you're going to pass out." Kanda said, shoving a drink in front of Allen's face. Allen started again and stared at the drink. It smelled like something Lenalee had made.

"Lenalee sent you." Allen said more than asked. It looked good so Allen took it gingerly from Kanda's grasp and took a sip of it.

"Yeah. She noticed that you were being stupid, too."

"You're a jerk." Allen sniffed, not without a tiny bit of venom.

"So you've said before, not that that means anything." Kanda replied. Allen was a little surprised that Kanda hadn't moved on yet, or hadn't said anything infuriating yet. Yeah, he had called Allen stupid, but that was nothing new or surprising. He wasn't being outright vicious or rude...

"So...you have any requests to make?" Allen asked harmlessly, sipping his drink carefully. It was very soothing, but it was still very hot.

"Che. No. Though, I might just beat you senseless if you continue to play those cry-baby songs."

Was that Kanda's way of saying cheer up? Or better yet, cheer up or else?

"They aren't songs, Kanda. They are called compositions or pieces." Allen corrected, handing him the empty cup and smiling up at him. Kanda froze, looked at Allen's smile...then looked at the cup and sniffed.

"Take care of your own damn cup." And walked away. Allen smiled again.

Thanks Kanda. You're a jerk...but thanks.

Allen stepped away from the piano, shut the cover, and carried the cup back to the café. Lenalee was serving a group of three teenagers –just a few years younger than Allen himself- who frequented the Hidden Artist and not just for the art. Three local males who hadn't seen a foreign girl before Lenalee came. They were infatuated, which was....cute, Allen guessed. They didn't have a chance, though. Lenalee was very proper and wouldn't even consider seeing someone under age. Allen was fairly sure that Komui would murder any man who tried to make an advance towards Lenalee.

Allen could only remember one time that Komui had even brought up dating. The ensuing conversation had been disturbing, to say the least.


"Lenalee....my dearest, most beautiful sister....?" Komui had asked innocently.

"Yes, brother? And I am your only sister, you can't call me your "most" anything." Lenalee had replied.

"You...you aren't....dating anyone...are you?"

"What? No, of course not. Why do you ask?"

"Please don't ever date!!"

"Brother!"

"But-boys-are-icky-and-only-want-one-thing-and-they-can't-have-that-because-I will-castrate-them-with-a-broken-fork-but-you-don't-know-what-castration-is-how-could-you-when-you're-so-innocent-and-boys-can't-have-you-because-you-are-so-innocent-DON'T-EVER-LEAVE-ME-PLEASE!!!"

"Brother!"

"W-well....I...guess you can date....Or get married. But promise me!!"

Lenalee couldn't even say anything due to her horror.

"Marry Allen! Date Allen!"

"W-What?!" Allen had gaped at the Chinese man, his previous silence having been broken by the absurd notion.

"What??!" Lenalee had demanded, looking utterly confused and slightly disgusted. Allen felt much the same. He and Lenalee were like brother and sister. There was no way-! And Allen was gay in any case!

"Yes! Date and marry Allen!"

"You're only saying that because he's gay and wouldn't try anything!" Lenalee had exclaimed in exasperation.


He reached the counter after the infatuated boys had wandered off to see Daisya standing at his station, behind Lenalee, holding at butcher's knife and glaring dangerously at the boys. Allen laughed nervously and thanked all the gods he could think of that he was gay. The look on Daisya's face said that he desperately wanted to cut up any male in the building that so much as looked at Lenalee in a questionable manner. Gods in Heaven, he was every bit as bad as Komui.

Lenalee didn't look phased in the least, instead she was whipping up the orders of the boys in a few minutes as she chattered at Daisya and then Allen –as soon as she realized that Allen was there. She took Allen's cup, but then stopped.

"Daisya. Didn't I hand this cup to Kanda a few minutes ago?" she asked, cocking her head to the side curiously.

"Uhh...Yeah, I think so."

"Did Kanda make you take his cup back for him??" Lenalee demanded, turning on Allen.

Okay. This was...odd. Kanda had said that Lenalee had made Kanda take it to...him. OH! Allen felt the floor fall out from underneath him as he realized that Kanda had lied in an attempt to be nice –at least, it seemed that way. His head swam crazily for a few moments.

"No....He didn't. He gave that to me....and told me to take a break from playing the piano." Allen said almost breathlessly. Lenalee watched Allen quietly and then slowly grinned. Women's intuition. Allen nearly groaned.

"That's so cute..." she said quietly, still grinning. Allen blushed a little, pursing his lips in embarrassment.

"You should do something in return for him!" Lenalee exclaimed, looking brightly at Allen. He looked at her incredulously.

"What would he not give me a tongue lashing for? Chocolates?" he sniffed, his tone fairly sarcastic. Lenalee frowned at his lack of enthusiasm.

"Well...I don't know." she admitted after a moment's thought.

"I have yet to be able to do anything that did not earn a scowl or a glare or an insult from him." Allen sighed.

"Well, for one who should be grateful for his concern, you are awfully unenthusiastic. Poor Kanda...You're not even trying at all." Lenalee said, sounding sad. Allen looked guilty under the presence of that tone.

"I know, Allen! How about I have you send Kanda a message for me!" Daisya offered, looking up from the sandwich he was constructing.

"Err...Okay. But how is that being nice to him?"

"Tell him that, since I am so busy, I couldn't come to tell you myself, otherwise I would have. Tell him that Marie, Tiedoll and I are all leaving for Europe tomorrow and we will be gone for a few days, but we won't miss his birthday. It was a spur of the moment thing decided by Tiedoll." The health-fanatic explained, smiling at Allen, ignoring the younger man's question.

"Oh! And bring him this!" Lenalee said, handing Allen a tall paper cup. Inside steamed a green-ish yellow liquid that smelled...bitter, but in a good way.

"Tell him that it is something I concocted just for him and I wanted his approval or disapproval." she said, moving off to deal with more customers. Allen stood there dumbly for a moment, surprised by the sudden onslaught of ideas and then sudden abandonment. He felt like a baby bird suddenly pushed out of the nest a week too soon.

He turned around and hurried back to the main gallery, looking for Kanda, who was supposed to be on patrol. However, the tall, beautiful man was nowhere to be found.

Allen questioned Miranda, who said that Kanda had headed into the back storage room for a ten minute break. Allen thanked her and then went to the door at the opposite end of the gallery, where the back storage room was. He opened the door and let himself inside.

"Kanda? Kanda, are you in here?" he called, shutting the door with his foot.

No response.

Allen noticed that the exit on the other side of the room was slightly ajar. He walked over to it silently and poked it open with his finger.

The smell of cigarette smoke assaulted his nose. An image of his Master flashed to the top of Allen's mind. Cross always had a cigarette sticking out of his mouth. Repulsive.

"Kanda?" Allen asked, looking around the door. He saw Kanda's back first, but then the man turned to face Allen.

"What do you want, Moyashi?"

Allen ignored him, looking past him at the owner of the cigarette.

"M-Master?!!"

"Hey, idiot apprentice. I was wondering when I would find you." the tall, red-haired man smoking the cigarette said, waving lazily at Allen.

"Wh-What are you doing here! Last I saw you, you left me in Belgium with five thousand dollars in debt on my head, two years ago!" Allen cried indignantly.

"Duty called, Allen."

"Duty, my arse! I know that Anita called you the night before! You went off to China and left me to those gangsters who you owed money to!" Allen exclaimed, fists clenching, slightly crushing the cup that Lenalee had given to him. Allen noticed the cup and relaxed his grip.

"Oh. Kanda, Lenalee told me to give this to you to test. She made it just for you." Allen explained briefly, before turning back to Cross.

"What are you doing here, Master Cross?"

"What? I can't visit my dear, stupid apprentice?"

"Not if your 'apprentice' had been living on his own for the past two years, being self-sufficient when not even an adult."

"It's not like your method of being 'self-sufficient' was ever legal. Really. What would Mana Walker say?"

Allen froze. He glared at Cross, his eyes ice cold and hating, surprising both Kanda and Cross.

"So you're still caught up about that. Well....Idiot apprentice, I just came into town on business. I have work to do with that dear friend of yours, Lenalee's older brother, Komui Lee. Behave yourself." With that, Cross walked off down the alley and disappeared.

"Stupid Master." Allen sniffed angrily. He finally turned back to Kanda, his lips pursed in thought.

"What did he say to you?" he asked somewhat sharply. Kanda finished the drink in his hands slowly.

"He asked me about you. Where you were. If you were here at the moment. How you were doing. Nosy bastard." Kanda said shortly. The briefness of his responses sounded as if Kanda was irritated, but his tone did nothing to betray as much. He just sounded bored.

"Oh. I see," Allen said after a moment, "Well, Daisya asked me to deliver you a message. He said that he, Marie, and Tiedoll are leaving for Europe tomorrow." Kanda looked faintly alarmed for a moment, but said nothing.

"He also said that they would be gone for a few days, but wouldn't miss your birthday. It was a spur of the moment choice made by Tiedoll, he said." Allen finished.

"Che. Foolish old man." Kanda sighed, but there was no malice in his tone. Allen

"So...When is your birthday?" Allen asked, leaning against the wall by the exit door.

"June sixth." the older man muttered.

"Oh. Mine's December twenty-fourth." Allen responded, smiling a little. His eyes were distant though, as if thinking about something else.

"Che."

With that enlightening word, Kanda went back into the building, leaving Allen in the failing light.