I had so much trouble with some of the scenes in this that I rewrote some of them a few times...

I hope you like it and maybe tell me what you think at the end! As always thank you for taking the time to read my work, I really appreciate it ^^

Upon her arrival, Lenalee was pleased to learn that she would have some time to herself. The servant who had been designated to greet the exorcist was kind enough to lead her indoors. Before leaving Lenalee, he requested she stay seated for the time being.

Looking across the floor, Lenalee noticed there were a great deal a people in attendance. All of whom she didn't know. It would be a miracle to be able to discern who the host was amidst the sea of high society.

The exorcist fit in just swell. Her hair was curled into a multitude of ringlets that came down to just below her chin. The makeup Emilia taught her to apply made her dark circles disappear and gave her the guise of a healthy physical state. It completely masked the way she felt.

Even though it was an odd way to meet, Timothy's tutor got along well with Lenalee. She helped her brush up on etiquette and general ball norms from her experiences. In their less productive moments, the two discussed their opinions of men.

While she crammed everything that a noble girl would normally study for years, in a week and a half, Johnny was just as busy as her.

He had to, along with his work, find time to create a dress for her.

It was a standard ball gown. A red dress with a pair of white gloves and choker to accessorize. The necklace bore a conservatively sized rose cross.

The most obvious difference from the other girls living it up on the dancefloor was, strangely, how they all seemed to travel in pairs. She understood the gentlemen were not to leave a lady unattended. But really? The ones away from men weren't alone either.

Lenalee shifted in her seat, it was like she was in the cafeteria and everyone was in their cliques. Not that there was anything wrong with that.

The ones who were off the dance floor gathered in circles. Some mingled, mainly the younger women and men but a reasonable number of older guests drifted about.

Still, though, it was annoying. Lenalee didn't know a single person there. Maybe if the servant that had led her to this position had given her some information or if she had taken the time to read the invitation, rather than just respond, Lenalee would understand her situation more. Maybe what the minister looked like? That would be nice. Even with that bother, she held her head high and smiled, just as Allen instructed her.

They couldn't hate her if she made it hard to find flaw… or at least that was the advice he gave the teen. She really worried about him... the dark look in his eye when Allen gave her the insight really stuck with her.

The wait lasted no longer than fifteen minutes. Although Lenalee couldn't have said she was ready for this when she first arrived, watching the way couple interacted she began to understand how to fine tune the high society manners that were drilled into her. Be docile and keep quiet.

"I do apologize for the wait, Miss Lee," said a woman in a rosy dress with blonde hair.

Lenalee stood to greet her, instinctively moving her hand to give a firm shake. "It was no trouble, rather— How do you do?" She said nervously.

"I am fine now. My name is Tricia Kamelot. I am Sheril's wife and, if you would allow it, your chaperone for the night," the woman, Tricia, smiled in a curious way. She crinkled the corners of her eyes with it, genuinely interested in meeting the younger girl.

Lenalee almost forgot. From all the ball rules, this was one of the most important: a young woman cannot be left unattended. She lightly brushed aside a strand of hair and accepted the offer. She was more than a little embarrassed that she was so perturbed to be in attendance when they went to the trouble to do this for her.

After asking to sit with the Chinese girl for a moment, Tricia was excited to give her some minor tips. They were mostly ones that she had already learned. Listen politely, refrain from slang, and to accept a request to dance unless feeling faint or otherwise engaged to dance with another. Even so, Lenalee was a glad to hear kind advice from the woman whom she just met.

Away from the seating, Lenalee quietly followed Tricia to the more populated area that she had mentally noted as the "clique-skirts." The name was well suited she felt, as most people chattering away gathered around the dancefloor.

The two stopped after passing several people. Tricia spoke with the women or men in a group in order to present Lenalee and make light conversation. With several introductions and new acquaintances made, Lenalee was asked to dance a few times within the first hour of the night.

"How are you enjoying the ball, if you would permit me to ask?" Tricia asked while the two sat after the exorcist was returned the lady's side by her most recent partner.

"It is quite nice. I'm sorry that I may seem uninterested," Lenalee said opening her fan to hide her frown from the other guests, "Being at a ball and meeting so many people is just a tad overwhelming."

Giggling the blonde replied, "Yes, I understand what you mean. It is terribly difficult, what with so many names and faces to remember. My first ball was like that too."

Frequently Lenalee sat with Tricia when she wasn't dancing in order to let the older one rest. Her health seemed delicate but not immensely serious. And while dancing she had to admit, the names and faces did seem to blend together. All the men in black suits did not leave very strong impressions. Rather, nothing they said had any substance. It was always about the weather or an inquiry of Mrs. Kamelot's well-being. They should have realized from the way she had been introduced to them that this was her first time meeting any of the Kamelots.

Contemplating whether she should use faintness as an excuse to leave the room, escape the unbearable humidity, a familiar figure made his way over. A soft click on the marble with each long stride.

"Would you permit me to sit by you, Miss Lee?" Tyki asked.

The girl stared wide-eyed at him, timidly nodding. Saying she was surprised to see him was an understatement, as she opened her mouth to speak before closing it. After a few moments of her deciphering the thoughts in her head, she turned to look at Tricia. The woman smiled and nodded her head, once to her, then to him.

"Is something wrong?" Tyki asked, drawing her attention back. "Are you not happy to see me."

Lenalee shook her head, "No, I'm really glad… It's just, why are you here?"

Tyki raised a hand to his mouth, perplexed. Narrowing his eyes, the noah thought for a moment, "I thought I told you about my brother?"

"I haven't met any other Mikks here," Lenalee said before she heard Tricia repress a small laugh.

"Excuse me," she apologized, "I was not aware that you did not know. My husband, the minister, is his older brother."

Lenalee silently nodded as Tyki apologized for the misunderstanding and sat. There was a sneaking grin on his lips the whole time.

Scratching his cheek lightly, Tyki's gaze wandered around the floor as the talked to the teen. "It feels like it's been years since we saw each other," he said.

Opening her fan, Lenalee raised her right hand so he couldn't see the stupid face she thought she was making. "No," she corrected, "It has only been a little over two and a half months." Lenalee could feel herself internally screaming. She wished she could have said something normal. Now he knew she'd been counting and wanted to smack herself.

"Ha, yes. I suppose it felt like longer to me," Tyki said, voice a bit wobbly. He, likewise, felt foolish after his first comment. Of course, she didn't miss him that much, he thought. He was just getting his hopes up for no reason. "How are things with that little bi—" Tyki started to ask before catching himself and clearing his throat. "Exorcist. The one with the red hair."

Lenalee closed the fan and pressed it to her lips, hardly able to contain her laugh as her shoulders shook. "My associate is well, but we don't speak anymore," she replied. It was comforting to hear Tyki hadn't changed. He was as casual as ever even at a formal event — a little too much. Lavi's new nickname would have been a major slip-up even she knew that without being told.

She watched as he ran a glove through his hair and turned his face away. For a fraction of a second, she could have sworn he looked guilty before the barely covered smile on his face came up. It was a look that made it hard to tell if it was out of joy or something else.

As he glanced back over to look at Lenalee, he immediately looked away, nervously running his thumb over his bottom lip. "Will you dance with me?" He asked without much of the confidence she was used to hearing.

"I would like that," she said coyly curving the corners of her mouth up.

As they both stood, her taking his arm, they saw Tricia merrily watching their interactions. She gave them a small wave before they realized that they had forgotten about her while talking.

On the floor, Lenalee and he prepared for the music to start. They moved their hands into position, Tyki waiting for the music to start before allowing himself to place it on the small of her back.

During the dance, Tyki felt he was overly conscious of where his hands were. He thought he was moving the way he always did but felt he was going to miss a step any moment. And to his relief, he didn't… much.

Lenalee enjoyed being close to the noah as they went through the movements. Partway through, when his grip tightened she was mildly ashamed to feel her heart skip a beat. She knew having these kinds of affections for a noah was bad news but her brain would not listen! No matter how hard she tried to tell herself that they were friends and nothing more, the stupid thoughts wouldn't cease.

Occasionally the two would bashfully meet the other's eyes before breaking the contact. Both unsure how to act around each other after their mental distractions from prior to the ball.

As the end of the song neared, Tyki whispered to Lenalee, "Forgive me for being such a terrible partner."

She looked back up at him and smiled, "You shouldn't be so down on yourself. This was nice."

When it did end Tyki escorted her back to Tricia. "Did you two have a good time together?" She asked.

Lenalee nodded with a simper, unsure if she should mention having forgotten the woman was there when she was talking with Tyki. "It was quite pleasant."

"I almost stepped on your feet twice," he said confused.

"That makes us even then," Lenalee responded, making him even more confused. As far as he could remember, Lenalee was perfect in her steps. "I look forward to dancing with you another time."

Bidding them farewell, Tyki left to find another place in the large hall.

Lenalee tugged her white kid gloves up higher and sat back down by the older woman. "Tell me, if you would not mind, do you know the language of the fan?"

"No," Lenalee said perplexed.

"That explains it," Tricia sighed. "When you were talking and set the tip of it on your mouth, you were telling him you didn't trust him."

After lamenting the misunderstanding she caused, Lenalee went with Tricia to make more small talk with other guests. They were just as difficult to talk to as earlier. With the night in full swing, some of the men unfortunate enough to drink themselves stupid tried to lecture her on religion after noticing the crest on her necklace.

It was a pain but all she could do was listen in silence.

Tricia helped steer clear of most trouble to which Lenalee was immensely grateful. The blonde knew all the proper etiquette tell people to get lost in the most respectful way possible. Lenalee was in awe by her. Thanks to that, the exorcist was able to let her shoulders rest a little more, not obligated to accept every offer to return to the dancefloor.

Just as the last dance approached, a few of the men she met that night returned to talk to Lenalee. All in the group were asking for the chance to have the last dance with her, not making it easy for her to speak as quarreled with one another.

"There you are, Lenalee," Tyki said approaching from behind. "Excuse me gentlemen, but I have already reserved her last dance." He flashed the other men a smile as he held his arm out to her.

Securing her arm, Tyki proceeded to walk the exorcist to the other dancers. While she looked back, Lenalee caught a glimpse of the group's shocked faces.

"Sorry," he said, immediately starting to dance as the music had commenced before they made it to the floor, "It looked like you might have needed help."

"Thank you and I'm sorry as well," she let her gaze fall to his tie, "Mrs. Kamelot told me I used the fan wrong."

Tyki breathed out in relief, "I was hoping that that was the case."

Looking back at his beaming face, Lenalee smiled too. "Next time I do that, I'll be sure to hold it upside down."

His eyes widened as his voice faltered for a moment, "You don't mean–?!"

"Is holding it that way rude?" Lenalee asked, unsure what his flustered response meant. "Mrs. Kamelot suggested it so I thought it would be fine..."

"No, I would not be against that as long as you meant it," he said before swallowing. He could feel his cheeks heating up as he looked away, hoping it wasn't noticeable.

No, Tyki would by no means be opposed to Lenalee saying "kiss me."

In fact, he had thought about kissing the exorcist a lot more than he thought was appropriate for friends. If he'd known how distracting the simple desire would be, he would have done it earlier.

Back when they were alone in the house or at the hotel. He had been so close. They were less than an arm's length apart. But Momo and Clark were right: he was too dense for his own good. He didn't even realize it until he was thinking of her every day.

Even so, he could handle being friends. Being by Lenalee's side was enough most of the time. He didn't want to be stuck with reminders of her every which way, they were starting to drive him crazy.

"You know," she said bringing him back, "I'm very glad to have seen you today."

"Is that right?" Tyki cheerily responded as they bowed. The music stopped: their cue that the party was now over and that any of the remaining guests were to soon leave.

"My life has been somewhat of a mess as of late," she said as he led her to the sidelines where no one stood. "I think this is what I needed."

"I wouldn't have guessed you like balls so much. They're kinda stuffy and you have to wear a corset. That's even worse," Tyki grimaced, adjusting his tie.

"No silly, I'm talking about you," Lenalee said putting her hands behind her. "I needed to see you. No one at the Order seems to get what I see in you. I just— it's easier to be by your side." Rubbing her hands together, she closed her eyes for a moment. It was worth it to get some of this off her chest. And Tyki was more than thrilled about hearing this straight from the one he'd been obsessing over for weeks.

Tyki's mouth twitched at the corners while he covered his mouth, "I feel the same. But is it alright if I ask you something?"

"Yes. Do you want to ask something besides that?" She said sarcastically.

"Shut up," Tyki huffed, "You know what I meant." Pressing his clothed knuckles to his mouth, Tyki got quieter, "Another time, do you maybe want to hang out? But, um... just you and I?"

"Just you and I?" she repeated, "I'd like that."

Tyki immediately perked up at the response, "Really?!" He stepped forward to hug the exorcist before pulling his arms back and pretending like he was stretching. Tyki then shoved his hands in the pockets of his pants and bounced on his heels. "I mean that's good to hear. So... do you know if Sheril set this up?" He asked.

"I thought you were all in on it," she said. "Your sister seemed excited to meet me."

"Tricia? I guess she did but Sheril was trying to stop her from coming out here since her health isn't so good," Tyki wondered aloud. "If it wasn't him then who? The only people I've talked to about you were the guys and Road."

Lenalee laughed, "There you have it! Road set this up with her." He sighed, of course it was her.

They talked about how they had spent their time apart while the guests made their way out. He, Eeez, Momo, and Clark were together up until a few days before the package for her and Lavi arrived. Figuring Road would mess with her stuff before she sent it, Tyki chose to hold onto Lenalee's sweater and gloves.

Lenalee skipped over the more depressing parts and instead tried to focus on the broad activities. Lunch with Allen and the others, missions, more time to herself. She didn't spend more than a minute on it as she brushed off her time away as boring.

Hearing the fast click clack of heels, they turned to the stairs. It was none other than the noah of dreams. She excitedly ran down the steps and across to them, launching her body at the Chinese girl who barely had enough time to brace for impact.

"Augh, no fair! I wanted to hug Lenalee," Road whined after being caught by Tyki. He scowled, not too pleased by having the wind knocked out of him.

Lenalee giggled, "Hi Road, how are you?" She waved to one hell-bent on chewing out the one who set her down.

Stopping her scolding, she looked from Tyki to Lenalee, then again pointing. "She's fine with us being here. Lenalee is alright with being at a ball with noah," Road said slowly. Pulling her mouth closer to him, she whispered, "Who is this?"

"Relax, I'm still Lenalee. And hey if you kill me, who cares. It's not like they'll really miss me at the Order," Lenalee deadpanned.

Road opened her mouth wide and looked back at Tyki clearly offended, "What did you do, Tyki? Lenalee's got the morbs!"

"No, I'm pretty sure it's depression," Lenalee said impassively folding her arms in front of her.

"Same difference!" Road pouted, crossing her arms and glaring at Tyki.

Putting his hands up defensively, Tyki furrowed his brow. "Don't get mad at me. I didn't know about this."

"That's because you would worry too much," Lenalee explained before it broke into an argument, opening her fan in an ill attempt to put distance between them.

Able to see that they were too busy bickering, Lenalee quietly walked away. Spotting the familiar blonde updo, she made her way over to Tricia who was speaking with some servants.

"Miss Kamelot," she asked, "Is there anywhere I might rest before we eat?"

Turning from the maid, Tricia smiled. "Why certainly. Dinner will be in about an hour—" Slightly louder she called out, "Please stop fighting you two. Tyki come take Miss Lee to a guest room to rest— I will have a servant fetch you when the table is set."

Before leading the exorcist down one of the many hallways in the Kamelot residence, Tyki mocked and stuck his tongue out Road.

In the room, Lenalee went straight to the couch and rested her head on her palm, using the right armrest for support. As she flopped down Tyki gently shut the door, groaning loudly.

"That was so annoying," he fumed, "Road thought she could keep you all to herself before dinner." He grumbled on about the audacity of the other noah as shed his jacket and tie, aimlessly throwing them to his left.

Lenalee rolled her eyes at him. As if this wasn't the same as what Road wanted. She was about to mention it as he threw his gloves off and began undoing the buttons on his vest. "What are you doing?" Lenalee blurted out and looked away

"These layers make me way too hot," he said, "It's no big deal. You've already seen me naked and all."

"No, I haven't!" She said covering her reddening face. "Don't take anything else off, Tyki."

He paused in the removal of the black vest. Smirking at the flustered exorcist he spoke, "Fine, fine. But I'm taking my gloves off."

Lenalee huffed, "Nothing else besides that okay!"

Tossing them onto his other clothes, Tyki walked over to the unoccupied cushion. Her dress pushed to the side let him sit. "Red's a nice color on you," he observed after taking the time to look at the outfit.

Lowering her hands, Lenalee watched as he ran his hand along the scrunched up fabric of her dress. "The bodice lace is quite itchy," she said, "but thank you."

"Can I hold your hand?" Tyki asked as he lifted his eyes up to her.

Nodding, she held the one that rested on her lap out to him. "Here," said.

Interlacing the fingers of her right hand and his left, Tyki pulled her closer, one hand reaching out to her waist. He smiled with her up against him, whispering something she couldn't hear.

"What was that?" Lenalee asked, resting her head on his chest.

"Nothing," he said moving his thumbs against her in a soothing motion. "I just thought we could take a nap."

Putting her free hand on him, she agreed. She didn't want to go to dinner.

They sat there against each other just making small talk to pass the time, neither actually tired. Until there was the eventual knock on the door.

"Lenalee!" The energetic voice of Road chimed. "I came to get you for dinner."

As she opened the door, Tyki pushed himself up and let go of Lenalee.

She gasped, dramatically holding her hands over her heart as she stood in the doorway. "Tyki you slut!" Road yelled as if she had just walked in on a very different scene.

Lenalee couldn't tell for the life of her what triggered her to say that of all things.

Road pulled out a handkerchief as she pretended to cry, clearly faking it. "You said we should leave her alone and that I couldn't spend time with her, but here you are... Spending…" She 'cried' even harder at her next words almost choking on them, "quality time together!"

Running his hands down his face in exasperation Tyki groaned. "I swear: it's times like these when I can't stand you."

"Oh come on," she said raising an eyebrow and returning the dry cloth to her hidden pocket. "How do you expect me to have fun around here if I don't do this?"

"One Sheril is bad enough," Tyki said cringing before he stood to help Lenalee up. "Let's just get this over with."