A/N: This is a real drabble-drabble; it's basically me rambling on about leniency and blahblahblah. But the next two in this collection - M and N - will be comical and actual scenes between the characters. So, uh, stay tuned.


L – Lenient

When it came to being lenient, not many people had the tendency to bend the rules or show vast amounts of compassion.

Komui didn't care; he was easygoing and could be quite lenient, but he had to be less-so for the sake of his job.

Kanda had practically not a speck of leniency; he liked things strictly one way or another, and didn't dabble much in merciful acts.

Linalee and Krory had quite a lot of leniency; they were compassionate in their own way, especially towards their friends.

Neither of them, however, was as lenient as Allen; he wished to save even the souls of the Akuma who were once people, and that sort of mercy takes a lot of leniency.

Yet out of every exorcist in the Black Order, however, Lavi was the most lenient, even if he didn't show it. And he didn't show it very often because, technically, he wasn't supposed to be so lenient; he was meant to be the next Bookman; an observer, a studier, a recorder. Nothing more. He wasn't supposed to care or feel or But Lavi wasn't your average Bookman. He was a joking individual; cocky, playful, constantly looking at what mattered in a moment, and not the past or future.

Inwardly, however, Lavi had a battle raging within himself. It was like there was two of him; one was the cold, distant, perfect Bookman; the other was his outer self that he showed from day to day, the version of himself that was everyone's friend. But the darker side grew rapidly, and finally showed himself when Rhode wove her twisted spell and made Lavi bury down deeply within himself.

He saw horrible things there. Nightmarish things that he's tried to keep from his dreams. He saw zombie versions of the people he knew, and despite what his other self tried to convince him of, people he cared about.

It still hurt and angered the redhead to know that he had allowed Rhode to play him like a puppet, his cold, cruel side exposed to Allen. He physically beat his friend, and for that, he could never forgive himself. He even hurt him after Allen had tried to talk him out of it with a one-armed embrace.

Although he played it off otherwise when they had lain side by side on the ashy ground at the end of the battle, he severely regretted the whole thing. He wished that he could go back and re-write what happened, if only to save Allen the grief.

On the other hand, however, he held leniency toward himself; he could forgive himself a little, because the whole experience had magically brought him and Allen closer together. So maybe it wasn't so bad, because now he could appreciate the soft, warm relationship he presently possessed with the younger white-haired boy. The friendly smiles and simple touches were enough to remind him that Allen was extremely lenient, too; he was able to forgive, and never forget so that he could cherish the outcome and not the battle itself.