-Chapter 9-

Betrayal.

That was his first thought.

Betrayal, that bitter taste that was left in his mouth.

"... What?" Yu scowled in his mind, this feeling like glass dropping on to the ground within his heart. This can't be, right?

Both of them wanted to go outside. It's not like Allen was Alma's replacement, right? No one can replace Alma. He have to find Alma. This... This boy, though... He just suddenly say "he doesn't want to go outside anymore"? Bull! What makes him think that he can just go like: Oh, I want to go outside, and then suddenly: Nah, not anymore?! A feeling of frustration was built inside of his chest. How frustrating.

Why not just let everything go?

Yu turned away, his back facing the brown haired boy. Allen's eyes widened, staring at his friend's back. "Yu...?" He slowly sat up on the bed, staring at the boy. Yu did not reply.

"Y...u?" His voice was cracking, but Yu did not care. He didn't care anymore.

"You went outside, didn't you?" He said bitterly. Allen flinched a little bit, but Yu could tell he was trembling.

"... Damn it all."

Let the world fall apart.

For the first time, Allen felt so sad. He's sad not because of those people outside, but that Yu was ignoring him. That he hurt Yu. They were good friends, at least in Allen's point of view. He's frustrated and sad because he doesn't know why. The urge to go outside was... No longer there.

Unlike in the past, where both of them just wanted to go outside.

Now it was just Yu. Allen wondered why.

Hesitantly, he glanced to the side, where Yu ate breakfast. Allen gulped nervously, "Um... Yu?"

Silence was the response. Allen looked down, panicking slightly. Yu continued eating his breakfast, completely ignoring the boy with an expressionless face.

Emilia sighed, standing beside the dining table, "Yu, don't ignore Allen like that, alright?"

Yu munched on his bread, fully ignoring the woman.

"Yu!" She said again, this time sterner.

Yu stilled ignored them.

"So," The redhaired exorcist, Lavi, said, waltzing around in the orphanaged, "the boy cried again, huh."

Allen bit the inside of his cheeks, staring at Lavi with those threatening to cry eyes.

The man, who's name is also 'Allen', stared at the black haired boy with wide eyes, as if startled by the boy's appearance. Yu raised an eyebrow, staring back at the suspicious man.

"What."

The older Allen quickly looked away, his eyes still wide.

Yu narrowed his dark blue eyes, his eyes practically piercing through the man's soul. There's something on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't place his finger on this particular feeling bugging his mind. What was it? He gripped the spoon in his eyes, almost to the point of bending it (he is just that strong). What was it?

Why did this man makes him think about Allen?!

He is a weird man.

Yu grumbled, jumping off of his chair and walking towards the man. He stared at him, the man shrank back, looking as if he was muttering something, panicking over something.

"Oi. You're from the 'outside', aren't you," Yu said, the man blinked.

He did not reply. A boiling anger started building up inside of him.

"Answer me!" Little that he knew that this man here was mute. The man was panicking as Allen tried to say something about him.

"Oh f***ing god DAMMIT ALREADY!" Yu snapped, his hands in little fists, "ANSWER ME YOU STUPID MOYASHI!"

Before Emilia could comment on his attitude, suddenly, the man stood up abruptly, stomping angrily with his face scarred with anger. He was like a child throwing a tantrum, trying to yell out words with no wound, but quickly he realized his actions and quickly quieted down, his hands over his mouth, his eyes wide.

"Hmph, moyashi!" Yu said again, enjoying this taste as the man growled again, though growling without any sound, that is.

"Moyashi!" He liked it, making fun of that guy. After all, it's his own fault for not answering him!

Allen started crying again, tugging on Yu's shirt as he begged him to stop. Yu though ignored him completely, continuing to call that man a 'moyashi' until they were all tired from being angry at each other.

"Hey... Woman..." Yu huffed, Emilia glared at the boy ("Don't call me like that!").

"What's a 'moyashi'...?"

"Oh my god, you were saying that term over and over again, and yet you don't even know what you were talking about?!" Emilia yelled, nearly ripping her hair off.

Yu made a hmph sound, turning away, his dark blue eyes like the color of the sea... The man stared at the boy, his silver and gold eye holding this emotion called: "grief" and "relief". He wasn't sure why...

But he was glad that the boy remembered that insulting nickname, for the very least.

To begin with, the world is strange either way, that was what Yu begin to think.

Lavi looked around the shelves, observing each and one title of the books and folders. Earlier he acquired permission from the director to look at certain files, so looking through these documents should be fine. Then he noticed a few photo albums. Blinking, he took one of them and flipped through it, looking at each and one of the photos in it. They were the orphans from this orphanage, he realized. Lavi smiled slightly, seeing the children in the pictures smiling so happily, crying, angry, pouting, their expressions are very refreshing. Unlike him, they can have something called "emotions".

Lavi blinked, staring at the pictures. Emotions, huh. Why couldn't he have them? He shook his head, continuing looking through the pictures. He noticed a particular boy in own of them, who had a headband around his head -like lavi- and brown hair, his face all grumpy. Lavi didn't remember seeing that boy around here, maybe he already got adopted? He shrugged, placing the album back and taking the next one out.

"Hm~ Ah, this one's nice," He laughed, seeing a picture of a group of kids together. A group photo, he supposed. At the bottom he read the date. Ah, that was quite recent, no? He looked at each of the children's faces, laughing at himself. These little kids sure looks so bright... If they -the exorcists- could just get rid of the Last Noah, they wouldn't have to worry about that threat to their futures...

"... Hm?" He blinked. Lavi scanned through the picture again, looking at one and every face of the children.

"Twenty two, twenty three, twenty four... Thirty, thirty one..." He counted again and again, his finger running over the faces of the kids.

"Thirty five... Thirty six..." He hand ran to the boy with the headbanf, "thirty... No wait..." This picture was took two days ago, so that boy was adopted two days ago? Maybe he should ask later.

"... And that's it?" He stared at the photo.

What happened to the brown haired silver eyed boy, Allen... Also that boy Yu who he's friends (?) with...? It didn't seem like that they just came recently... Right?

"LAVI! LAVI!" Lavi jumped, startled by Lenalee's panicking voice as she barged into the study room, sweat rolling down her face.

"L-lenalee, what's wrong?!" Lavi quickly said as she caught her breath.

"It's that man, that man just ran away..." That man? Was he implying that man with the white hair and dirty clothes?

"And the kids! Allen and Yu, went with him!"

"..." Lavi blinked.

"HAH?!"

Excuse me with this long delay ;w; My computer just like broke and stuff so ye. I know I'm pretty late but D GRAY MAN HALLOOOOWWWWWW GWAHHHH-