Once again, Mana and Allen left the circus with a tear-filled goodbye. Even those that hadn't met Allen the first time had fallen in love with the kid, regardless of how often he might have accidentally gotten in their way. Just like before, no one wanted Allen to leave, but this time, Mana didn't offer to let Allen stay behind. There was no point in asking now. Allen had proved that he didn't want to leave Mana's side.

Time ticked by, and winter melted into spring. More months flew by, and soon it became summer once more. This summer was more mild than the last one, much to Mana's pleasure. The cooler temperature meant that he could perform longer, and being able to perform longer meant more money, and he aimed to take full advantage of this.

Today, Mana was juggling in a crowded marketplace, and his audience contained everyone from old folks on their way back from church to children who'd been dragged on errands by their mothers. He'd only been performing maybe an hour, but his hat already had a good number of coins. If this kept up, they'd be able to get enough food to make even Allen full. ...Probably, anyway.

After another hour, Allen was getting bored, and with boredom came the urge to wander. Ever since he'd gotten lost at the small fair, Mana hadn't let the child out of his sight, but now with the way Allen was squirming on the bench behind him... Mana sighed and gave in.

"Allen, why don't you go look around?" he suggested when there was a lull in audience. He took a couple coins out of the hat and handed them to his son. "Stay in the market and try not to get lost. Come back for lunch."

The boy's eyes lit up. "Okay! I'll be back!" he promised before rushing off into the crowd.

Somehow, Mana got a bad feeling from all this, but he couldn't call Allen back now saying that he'd changed his mind. Well, he could, but that would just make the kid think Mana couldn't trust him. Plus, there was another huge crowd of children and parents cheering for more juggling, and if he wanted to feed Allen, Mana couldn't refuse.

The day was very uneventful until lunchtime, when Allen didn't return. Mana scratched his head and looked around the marketplace. It was still crowded, so Allen might have just been caught up in foot traffic, but for some reason, Mana doubted that was the case. All that was left was that Allen was lost and he'd have to go find him...

"Mana!"

The clown looked up from the hat he'd used as a collection dish. "There you are. I was just going to go—" He stopped when he saw Allen's bloody and bruised face. "What—?"

Allen grabbed his father's hand and pulled, interrupting his question before he'd even gotten most of it out. "Mana, come quick! Hurry! It's bad! Really bad!"

But Mana didn't moved. He was too stunned by his battered assistant to move. "What's going on?" he asked at length. "Who did this to you?"

"That doesn't matter!" Allen shouted, frustration clear in his voice. "If you don't hurry, he'll die! Please, Mana!"

'Die' was the magic word. "Who'll die?" Mana asked, quickly pocketing the rest the morning's earnings before allowing Allen to drag him through the market at a run. "What's happened?"

"Some kids were hurting him," Allen explained breathlessly as they rushed past people and stores. "I told them to stop, but they wouldn't listen, so I fought 'em off myself. He's hurt bad, Mana. You've got to do something!"

Mana was about to ask whom the 'he' Allen was talking about was, but when they reached the alley at the outskirts of the marketplace, the old clown knew instantly. There, sprawled on the damp ground, was an old dog. A scruffy brown terrier that looked like Nicoli when Mana had first picked him up, to be precise.

The dog lifted its head weakly to glance at Allen and Mana. It "wuffed" softly and wagged its tail once in recognition before letting its head drop back down. Allen gasped and rushed over to its side. The dog blinked wearily up at the child, as if to say, "Why'd you come back?" before closing its eyes and huffing weakly.

"Mana, you have to do something!" Allen cried over to his father.

"I don't think there's much I can do," Mana replied, kneeling down next to the dog as well. "He looks pretty beat up. I doubt there's much anyone can do."

"Please, Father!" Allen begged.

Mana bit his lip. Since Christmas, Allen had started using the word 'Father' more and more often to refer to Mana, but it was still on rare occasion that he said the word to his face, since the child had gotten so used to calling him just plain "Mana." The way he said it now showed him exactly how much the child believed in and needed him. "I'll see what I can do," he said after a few moments.

Carefully, Mana lifted the dog off the stone street like a broken doll. The poor beast whimpered as his hands touched a particularly sore spot, but other than that, it didn't make a sound. A couple broken ribs, some nasty cuts, and some internal bleeding, he noted, seeing the small amount of blood that the dog seemed to have coughed up while Allen had gone. This doesn't look good.

"Can you help him?" Allen asked, worry making his eyes wide.

"I'll see what I can do," Mana replied as he had before, "but I can't do anything here. We'll have to go back to the inn." Thankfully, that wasn't too far away from where they were at the moment.

Allen led the way to the inn, which was empty except for the innkeeper, who stared when they entered. "What in God's name happened to you?" she asked, digging a handkerchief from her apron pocket and dabbing at the blood on Allen's face. She also gave Mana a dirty look.

"The dog," Allen said, pushing away the handkerchief. "I was saving him, and he's in worse shape than me."

"Dog?" the woman repeated. Then she realized what the bloody mess in Mana's arms was. "What in the world?"

"It's a long story," Mana replied. "You don't mind if we—"

"No, go right on ahead," she said, stepping aside so that they could reach the stairs leading up to their room. "I'll bring up something for the poor little dears in a little bit."

Mana thanked her and followed Allen up the stairway, dog whimpering quietly with each step. By the time he reached the top, Allen was already standing impatiently in front of their room. Mana shifted the dog to one arm and unlocked the door.

"Allen, get a blanket," Mana commanded, and when Allen brought what he'd asked over, laid the dog down on the soft bedspread. The dog "wuffed" quietly and thumped its tail once in thanks before closing its eyes.

"He'll be okay, right?" Allen asked as Mana got some bandages from his things.

Mana bit his lip. He didn't want to lie to the boy, but telling him that the dog would more than likely die regardless of what they did for it didn't seem like a good choice either. So, he said, "I'm not sure." Technically, it wasn't a lie. Mana had no idea if the dog would live or not, even if the odds were against Allen's newest canine friend. Then, he said, "Go ask downstairs for some warm water and a rag, would you?" to distract Allen from the lack of uncertainty in his voice.

The boy nodded and ran out of the room, thumping down the steps. Mana sighed and turned back to the old dog. "You've been through a lot," he commented, gently touching the dog's forehead. "If you promise not to tell Allen, I'll help you best I can, okay?" The dug "wuffed" meekly in response and thumped its tail. Mana smiled and lightly traced a few magic symbols of healing over the dog's heart. The symbols glowed, and Mana whispered to them their duty.

That finished, Mana straightened up and sat in the nearby chair. "If nothing else, that will let you pass on without any pain," he told the dog. Healing spells could only do so much, and somehow, he doubted even his magic could save the dog before the injuries made his body give out.

The dog looked up at him with eyes full of understanding. He wagged his tail again to thank the magician before closing his eyes once more with a relaxed sigh. Mana leaned down and scratched the dog between the ears, and the dog's tail wagged a little at the small gesture.

"You're feeling pretty good right now, hm?" Mana whispered as the dog's tail thumped a little faster. "Probably better than you've felt in years."

The dog let his tongue loll out of his mouth and panted happily. Mana had to smile at this delighted little reply.

"Mana, I brought the water." Allen pushed open the door with his shoulder and carried the small tub into the room. He seemed confused by the dog's wagging at his coming in. "You're looking lots better," he commented, patting it on the head. "Did Mana give you something?" He looked up at his foster father with a small frown.

"Just a little something to make the pain go away," Mana answered truthfully. "Now let's get those cuts cleaned out." He knelt down next to the terrier and took a rag from in the hot water. He cleaned out the various gashes and had to wonder who it was beating the dog and how much danger Allen had put himself in. But once all the dirt was out of the creature's coat, the injuries seemed less severe. Well, the ones one could see, at least.

Carefully, Mana set to work patching up the few wounds that were still bleeding. There wasn't much he could do for the dog's insides, but hopefully the magic would do its job.

"Can we keep him?" Allen asked softly.

"We can't," was Mana's simple reply. "We'll hold on to him until we meet up with Raine and the circus, and then we'll give him to them, okay?" He then turned to clean the blood off Allen's face with another rag. The boy didn't seem injured except for the black eye that was steadily darkening and his nose, which didn't seem broken, and Mana would know a broken nose after so many years as a performer. Mana let out an exasperated sigh.

"Is it that bad?" Allen asked.

"No. Nothing a little time won't heal." And a little magic, Mana added to himself. He almost wanted to laugh at how dependent he'd become on his ability, at how pathetic he'd become to trust so much in something like that, but with the trouble Allen got into, anybody would stoop that low. Well, it wasn't bad, exactly, but there was such a thing as "too much of a good thing." It was, after all, possible to become immune to the effects of magic, something Mana didn't want happening to Allen.

Shaking the unbidden thoughts away, Mana said, "I'll go get us some lunch."

"Oh, the innkeeper said she'd bring something up for us for free," Allen said. "She said anyone nice enough to save a dog deserved some food on the house." Surprise must have been written all over Mana's face, for Allen added, "I'm telling the truth. She really did say that!"

"I believe you," was all Mana could say, especially because the innkeeper was standing in the open doorway with a tray, looking rather amused by the two she was watching.

The innkeeper smiled at them both and set the tray of food on the table. "I hope the dog feels better soon," she commented, laying a bowl of some sort of ground meat on the floor by the canine in question. The terrier thumped its tail appreciatively and dug right in to the food she'd set down for him. "My! What an appetite you've got!" She laughed to herself. "I guess I'll be going, then." She curtseyed slightly to Mana and Allen before stepping out.

"That was nice of her," Mana said rather stupidly. He shook his head, realizing just how stupid he'd just sounded. Well, that didn't matter too much. What did matter was that they had some lunch.

The rest of the day passed without incident. Mana performed some more after lunch while Allen stayed back in the room with their newfound friend. That night, when they were both ready for bed, Mana told Allen once more that they wouldn't be keeping the dog. Rather, they'd give it over to Raine and the circus next time they saw them. Allen seemed a little upset by this, but once Mana explained that they couldn't afford to keep it, he half-heartedly agreed.

That said and done with, the two went to bed.

The next morning, Mana woke to find Allen prodding the sleeping dog gently. "Leave him be," he muttered, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

"But he's not waking up," Allen said, poking a little harder in his determination to wake the dog.

Oh... Mana rushed over to the dog's side. It didn't take a genius to notice the dog wasn't breathing, and the clown had to wonder if Allen was purposefully overlooking the obvious. "Allen, he's dead."

"He can't be dead," Allen replied simply. "He was just fine yesterday."

Mana bit his lip before saying, "He's dead, Allen, regardless of how he was yesterday. He was an old dog," he added quickly before Allen could argue. "He probably passed on in his sleep."

"But—"

"No buts, Allen," Mana stated. He grabbed a handkerchief from his things and started dabbing at the tears in the child's eyes. "He's gone to a better place." Or that's what Mana hoped, at least. Even he had no idea what lay beyond death.

"B-but..." The tears started rolling down Allen's cheeks despite Mana's attempts to dab them away. "H-he was fine yesterday. H-how come he died?"

Mana gave up on keeping the boy's tears back and allowed him to start sobbing over the dead dog. There was no harm in it. The practical side of him knew the Earl couldn't ask humans to resurrect animal souls. Animal souls weren't strong enough to power the Akuma. Besides, a good cry might be all Allen needed to get over the dog's death. His more compassionate and understanding side knew better than that, though. It was time that healed all wounds, not crying.

"H-he was a good dog," Allen sniffled. "H-he w-was really nice and-and those people—"

"Allen, there's nothing we can do about that now." Mana petted his son's hair to try and calm him, if only a little. "The most we can do now is give him a proper burial and to let him move on, okay?"

Allen sniffled and tried the rub the tears out of his eyes unsuccessfully. "Why'd he die, Mana?"

Mana sighed. "All lives must end sometime, Allen," he said solemnly. "Mine and even yours will end someday."

"But I don't wanna die either," the child muttered.

"That's a long way off, Allen," Mana promised, patting the boy on the head. "Come on, let's give this little guy a proper burial."

The whole time Mana dug a small grave in the inn's backyard, Allen held on to the innkeeper, sobbing. It only took a few minutes to dig deep enough, but it felt like hours before Mana could lay the dog's body in the grave. Then it felt like another hour to bury it properly. "Any last words for him?" Mana asked, turning to his son.

The innkeeper gave Allen a gentle push to his father and the dog's grave. The child placed a couple flowers—courtesy of the innkeeper's little garden they were burying the dog in—on the mound. He muttered and hiccuped a few things between sobs, then stubbornly wiped his tears away, saying that it was stupid to cry.

Mana then pulled Allen into a hug and wouldn't let go until Allen pulled away like any other eight-year-old boy who felt he was being held far to long. That done, the clown whispered, "Go on inside and get some breakfast. I'll follow in a minute."

The boy nodded and scrubbed away the few remaining tears in his eyes as he went with the innkeeper.

Once they were inside with the door shut, Mana turned back to the grave. "You should get going, too," he said.

If anyone had been had been watching, they would've thought him crazy for talking to a mound of dirt. Unless, of course, they could see what Mana could see. Then they'd either understand, or think them both crazy, for sitting on the grave was a translucent terrier that was wagging its tail and panting happily. It "wuffed" loudly and put both its paws on Mana's knees, attempting to reach the magicians face for a big "thank you" slurp.

"Now, now," Mana muttered, taking the dog's paws and setting them back on the ground. "You really shouldn't be hanging around. Go move on to the big boneyard in the sky or whatever it is on the other side."

The dog cocked its head, thinking, then jumped up once more. This time, Mana's face was close enough to the ground for the dog to reach, and so its cold, transparent tongue was able to cover the clown with ghost dog slobber.

"Yes, I know," Mana said with a small laugh. "I get it. You're trying to thank me for trying to help you yesterday. You don't have to."

The dog whined and scratched at the man's pant leg to get attention.

"There's something else?" Under normal circumstances, Mana would have just left the dog, but ghosts were different than the living being. Animal ghosts could communicate better than their living counterparts, and often when one didn't move on right after death, there was a reason that one could guess. If they could see said animal, of course.

The dog bobbed its head in a nod (another example of better communication) and then ran around in a circle, as if to chase its tail, barking all the while. Mana frowned, not quite understanding. The dog growled low in frustration, then barked again. This time, Mana got the message.

"Allen will be fine," he replied, at last sensing what the dog was trying to say. "I'll make sure of it for you."

The dog wagged its tail wildly again in appreciation. It used Mana's knees for balance to slobber all over Mana's face once more before bounding off. As it ran, the dog became more and more transparent until, a few feet away, it disappeared completely with one last excited, "Wuff!"

"Rest in peace," Mana said, as was custom, before retrieving his handkerchief and wiping all the saliva off his face, which wasn't. He turned and headed back inside.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter, even though it was a little sad with the dog dying.

Anywho, if you spot any typos, please tell me. Thank you!