Yo. Don't feel like making a funny. Hope you like the chapter, I tried to get all the typos.

Allen: Awww...What's wrong sweety?

Kanda: Why are you calling her sweety?

Lavi: Because she's having a bad day! (hugs Kiki) Everything will be fine hun.

Me: Wow. I feel so much better.

Kanda: (takes out sword) I can end your pain.

Me: ...(slowly considers it)

Lavi: No you can't! She has to finish writing the story! (throws Kiki on the floor) Get typing you stupid bitch!

Allen: (hits Kiki with bronze knuckles) And make it good!

Kanda: o.o.......

Me: So about that offer...

Kanda: No I like this better. (pulls out a lawn chair and some popcorn, sits down to watch)

Me: (sighs and is kicked in the gut)

Allen & Lavi: Get typing!

Chapter eleven: Washing the World Away

Lavi had taken off his poncho, leaving his chest bare, to give Allen something soft to rest on. His scarf had returned to being wrapped about his head, covering his eyes once more. He mulled about his business of supplies, looking through what he had left for Allen and Kanda when they returned. He had used one water bottle to wash future Allen's face…he was ragged-looking all over though. But other than that one, it seemed there would be enough for the two.

Allen breathed shallowly as he laid and rested. He didn't seem to get any better. Lavi knew he did not need water or food. He was like him. Lavi sat by his friend and wondered what he should do. Lavi leaned close to Allen and listened for a pattern in his breathing, some sign that he was going to get better. But his breathing had stopped. There was no movement in Allen's frail body. Lavi sighed with relief.

The immortal man stood up and walked to the road Allen and Kanda had gone down. A day had passed since he'd returned. He did not expect the two exorcists back yet, but he was anxious. His heart believed they made it…but his mind needed proof.

"Come back to me…" Lavi whispered to no one.

"Lavi…" Lavi turned at the sound of a small voice whispering his name. He rushed to the side of his fallen comrade, and took the hand that was meant for him. Allen's eye barely opened, but he was awake and breathing calmly.

"I want to tell you something…" Allen said hoarsely. He coughed as the words came out.

"Shh. It's alright. You'll have plenty of time to tell me when you get better." Lavi stroked his hand.

Allen smiled and looked at his friend fondly. "I won't get better."

Lavi was taken aback. "Don't…Don't say that. Sure you will…" But even Lavi knew he was lying to himself.

Allen tried to sit up, but ended up falling into Lavi's lap. The red-haired man held his friend tenderly in his arms. Though he had been traveling with Allen, for some reason it wasn't the same as the Allen he had been fighting with all these years before the tree. This was the Allen he knew, the Allen that knew him. His friend, his comrade, his dying love, lay smiling in his arms.

"I'm so sorry…" Tears welled in Allen's eyes, as he reached up to stroke Lavi's cheek. "I'm so…so sorry…For all the pain I caused you. For all those years of torment…I'm…I'm sorry…"

Lavi took hold of Allen's hand, and held it tightly. "Hush. It's alright. I was never mad at you. I could never…be mad at you. No matter what you do…I'll protect you."

Allen smiled a shaky smile. "I know." He said sadly. "I always knew you loved me…" Lavi almost pulled away at those words, but Allen drew him closer. "And I'm sorry I never got a chance to tell you…I love you too Lavi."

Lavi didn't move as his friend slowly began to unwrap the scarf around his eyes so he could look at him. The cloth fell to the ground forgotten, and Allen drew the man's face down to kiss him. Lavi wrapped his arms tighter around the boy and cried. Allen ran his fingers through his hair lovingly, pulling away to whisper words of love and encouragement.

"I'm so sorry…" Allen said again. "Forgive my lover and me, for never seeing you there, always beside us…"

Lavi wiped the tears away. "I…never…" He fell on Allen and hugged him close. "It's okay now. To hear you say you love me…even if it wasn't like with Kanda…it's okay…I think I can bear it."

Allen moved Lavi to look at him. "Be happy." Allen trembled at the near impossibility of this. But still, he hoped Lavi would try. "And please…Tell the past me…that I was wrong. Feelings are not limited. I won't let you suffer so anymore."

Lavi wept and only nodded. Allen went on. "Go and finish what you came here to do. I've given all that's left of my power to the boy…May that light guide you all." He squeezed Lavi's hand, as if he didn't want to let go. "Hurry…So you can back to us soon…"

Lavi looked at Allen and smiled, moving his hand through Allen's hair affectionately. "I will. Wait a bit longer. Then we'll be together…the three of us."

Allen smiled brightly and kissed Lavi one last time. He nodded and breathed in the outside air. All was silent as the wind came, and seemed to take a bit of his energy with each caress. He lifted his arms to the sky, offering his body, and soon…he was gone.

Lavi slumped on the ground and cried. His heart flooded into the world, tear by tear, sob by sob, and left nothing within his chest but a hollow beating.

~X~

Carrying Allen down the path wasn't as energy consuming as Kanda thought it would be. The young boy was lighter than he appeared. Allen would mumble sometimes in his sleep, and clutch at Kanda's jacket. Kanda didn't pay much attention, as he focused on getting back to where hopefully, Lavi was waiting for them. He wondered if the stupid Usagi had made it…He wondered if he cared.

Of course you care…Otherwise, why would you bother wondering?

Kanda growled and tried to brush the thoughts away. He didn't deny them, but he put his attention on the path ahead, putting one foot in front of the other.

Suddenly Kanda lost balance as there came a rumbling from beneath him. This feeling was all too familiar and he jumped away in time as an Akuma came from the ground. Four more followed suit. They all roared and glared down at Kanda with a lustful hunger.

"Damn it all!" Kanda growled. "I do not have time for this!"

The samurai ran for the retched beasts, avoiding the first one as it bite into the earth for him, and running along its spin to the second one. He jumped from Akuma to Akuma, hoping to reach the other side of them and run like hell. This wasn't a solid plan, nor was it any good. But with a sleeping Allen in his arms, he had no other choice but to run.

Kanda was caught off guard by an Akuma coming up to bite its comrade and stop his approach. Kanda skidded to a halt and jumped out of the way as the rest of the Akuma came to feed on their brother. Kanda tried to take this opportunity to sneak away, moving below them to the path ahead. But an Akuma saw this, and wiggled between the feeding to try and block his path. Kanda growled and took his sword, holding Allen in one arm; he flung the boy over his shoulder. He sliced the air and his hell beasts came in shadows to beat away at the Akumas head. The creature ignored it, pushing through the pain to try and get to its goal.

Kanda screamed with rage and threw blast after blast of hell beats at the pursuing Akuma. All the while he was continuing to try and wiggle through the others and get away. Blood and bone began to fall from the Akuma the others were feeding on, forcing Kanda to halt and find a different route. But the walls were closing in on him. The Akuma laughed and pushed through the mob harder, as the other Akuma began to notice the fleeing human beneath them. Kanda jumped and sliced one with his sword, landing on an Akuma and jumping away. The Akuma he had cut moved sluggishly now, but was still alive. The samurai moved to place the final blow on it, and silence it forever. But there was still four more to deal with.

Kanda twirled to the side, hitting the one that tried to bite him next and jumping to the side as another dug its head in the ground, attempting to crush him. Kanda's breathing was becoming labored as he hit one after the other, each one sustaining damage but all refusing to die. They had him circled now, trapping him there like a mouse trapped by a cat. Kanda had to stop and take as many breaths as he could before another one came at him and he had to jump away. There was nowhere for him to run now.

Kanda's arms slumped, but he held onto the boy precious in his grip. He moved Allen so he could look at him, and grit his teeth. Tyki's words echoed in his head, causing would-be-tears to almost fall.

"No." Kanda hissed. He held up his sword and glared up to the offending Akuma. "I will protect Allen!"

He summoned his hell beasts again and hit the first Akuma. The force of the blow was somehow magnified, bursting through the Akuma as if it were nothing more than paper. They continued, cutting through two more of the Akuma in the same manner, till there was only one left. The monster screeched, sensing its impending doom, dove into the ground and tried to disappear. Kanda smirked and thrust his sword into the ground after it, a light erupting from the cracks as the ground rose from its roots and into the air. The last strangled cry of the piteous Akuma came from the fray, before the rocks fell silent.

Kanda gasped for air as if he had been holding his breath the entire time. He sheathed his sword and scooped Allen into both his arms. He looked down at the boy and lightly brushed away a bit of his hair. Allen smiled and sighed in his sleep, utterly unaware of the near-death battle Kanda had just fought. The thought did not even cross the samurai's mind. He was far too busy tending to Allen, with loving touches that no one else would ever see. With a strangled sigh, Kanda continued walking.

~X~

Lavi sat with his arms around his knees, rocking slightly back and forth. He chanted an elegy to himself, whispering in a apathetic tone, as he starred off into nothing.

"One, two, three. The Fourth waits for me. One, two, three. The Third is mine to be. One, two, three. The Second chains, I will not be free. One, two, three. The First I've yet to see.

"Fight for future sight, save this dying light. The angels will was sworn, a new future will be born. A hundred years of plight, all shall end tonight. Then, where the two times combine, salvation will be yours and mine. Innocence we wait, at the place of fate.

"Where you and I…must die."

He picked at the ground and mumbled this verse over and over again. His eyes showed no red, but it lingered on his cheeks. He had left his poncho and scarf where they were, not caring that an unforgiving wind had come to bite at his skin. A shallow whistle came from the wind, as if to signify the shell Lavi had become.

"I don't want to…lose any more friends…" Lavi stood slowly; picking up the scarf and walking to the edge of the water, letting the small waves cover his feet. He wrapped the scarf around his head once more.

When Kanda returned, Allen was still sleeping in his arms. He looked at Lavi, who was still standing in the water, his face down and his hands clasped together. Kanda laid Allen down on Lavi's poncho, and walked over to the immortal man.

"Did you defeat her…?" Kanda tried to move to look at Lavi's face. The man merely nodded. Kanda sighed and shook his head.

"So then…Now, we go to the third factor, right? Who is he?" Kanda asked.

Lavi looked up and smiled. He laid his hands by his side and took a deep breath, pretending for a moment that he was still a human needing air. He looked over to Kanda, who only starred at him with a confused and worried look. Lavi looked down at the slumbering Allen.

"What happened to him?" He whispered.

Kanda seemed hesitant to answer. "Tyki separated us…" He said. "He got to Allen first."

"Hm. But he did not die." Lavi moved onto the land and seemed almost as if he was about to walk down the final road himself. But he stopped before long.

Kanda moved next to him and looked at the immortal man. Something was wrong. He seemed hollow and far away. He remembered that Lavi had been distant when they parted, but he was still the determined man they had met the day they were brought here by the tree. What was different? Suddenly, Kanda remembered something else.

"Lavi…" He said slowly and carefully. "Where's Allen? Did you rescue him in time?"

Lavi smiled and shook his head. "There is no time. No minutes, hours, days…not for me…not for him…I did not think we could die…"

Kanda felt a sinking in his heart. Allen was dead. He looked back to his Allen, almost as if expecting him to be gone. He looked back at Lavi, and slowly put a hand on his shoulder.

"You did all you could. I don't think Allen would have asked more of you." Kanda said.

"No." Lavi responded. "Allen would never have asked for more…And neither would I."

Kanda swallowed a breath and took a step back. "What did he say?"

Lavi turned to look at him, a small, shallow smile plastered falsely on his lips. "He said good-bye, and then was gone."

Kanda furrowed his brows. "You're lying."

Lavi just chuckled and looked at the slumbering Allen. Such and innocence was still on his face, before he would realize how much his actions affected people. How many he would save, how many more he would break.

"When he wakes we'll head for the Earl's castle." Lavi grew stern and looked down the long road. "His time is almost up."

Allen: Kiki can't bid you happy reading ahead, as she is chained to a typewriter and forced to write the next chapter.

Lavi: Don't worry, we electrocute her for every typo she makes, so it'll be fine.

Kanda: I've never loved you both more than I love you know.

Me: (types as she slowly plots her revenge)