"-daichi ni, taruru ikuseno," Lavi caught the tail end of the boy's utterance.
"What was that?" Lavi got the boy's attention.
"How much did you hear?" Allen asked. He only turned his head half-way, not bothering to do a full turn.
"Just enough for about five or six syllables. Not much," Lavi draped a blanket over Allen's brown coat. It was a thicker coat, but the slight breeze was winning as Allen visibly shook.
He accepted the gesture, pulling it tighter around himself. Lavi leaned against the building, off to Allen's left.
"Did I miss anything good?" Lavi asked, more a rhetorical question, and his usual humor.
"Did you get to talk to Bookman?" The younger asked, choosing to side step the question. Lavi let it go.
"Yeah, the old mans the same as ever. I'm thankful for that at least," the red head smirked.
"He made it clear I'm no longer a bookman-in-training, but I'm ok with that."
"Really?" Allen didn't try to hide his surprise.
"It's sort of like his way of letting me go. I'm free."
'Freedom huh,' the white haired boy let his eyes wander.
"Think about it. A bookman doesn't make ties. He avoids anything that might keep him from acting. Things like friends, beliefs, feelings. Like this." Lavi's right hand found Allen's left, making a small fist. Discouraged was the opposite of the curious exorcist. Lavi found his way in, intertwining is fingers through the others.
"Huh?" Allen felt something take his hand. He glanced quickly, but didn't retreat.
"Have you never held hands before?" Lavi laughed. Allen didn't answer right away.
"No, only with Mana. And even than it was a rare thing." Lavi read embarrassment in his face.
Lavi didn't want to make the boy uncomfortable. He had hoped to cheer him up. Allen had said he was going outside for a minute. Lavi had assumed he'd be back, but when (what felt like) more than five minutes, he decided to search. Allen had indeed gone outside, around back of the inn. He clearly had something on his mind.
'He needs to talk to someone,' the thought crossed the exorcist's mind at the time.
"Is this ok?" Lavi asked Allen. Loosening his grip. Allen's face brightened a little.
"It's nice," he said, quickly tightening his own hold on the others hand. Lavi felt his smile come again, warming his face.
"I'm glad."
"I want to be moved to the European Headquarters ." Lvellie stopped reading the file in front of him, now looking straight ahead at who had spoken.
"What?" His tone was something a child would cower from.
"I want to be moved. Permanently," Link restated. He stood straight, tall, and both arms at his side.
"What are you asking me, Howard Link." The man's eyes spoke for him: Link was serious.
"I wish to transfer to European headquarters, sir. It's a simple matter of your orders." Lvellie sat the file down on the desk, leaning more forward, his elbows on the flat surface of said desk, chin on top of interlaced fingers.
"Why do you want a transfer?" Lvellie asked. Link had one chance to answer, and he knew this all too well.
"I want to be able to keep on top of Allen Walker's and Lavi Bookman's case. You will eventually be called away by the generals for whatever reason and have to leave. I'm needed here. For purposes that benefit everybody, and mostly myself." Link remained unmoved by the older man's scrutinizing glare.
Lvellie asked one question: "Can I trust you?"
"That is up to your discretion, sir." Lvellie grinned, relaxing back into his chair at this time.
"I see you've finally grown a little bit of a back bone for yourself, Link. I'll let you stay, but only because I'm interested. I relinquish you from under my command for the time being then." Link let himself relax a little himself.
"Thank you. If there's nothing else, may I leave?" Lvellie held his hand up, the way people did to silence another. Link waited.
"One last thing before I make your transfer official." He stood and a mere few inches from the blonde's ear, Lvellie spoke, softly but no more friendlier than usual.
"You can win or lose this fight Link. Pick your side carefully." Link left Lvellie's temporary room Komui had been more or less forced to give him. The rooms the exorcists and finders occupied had not been to 'his liking.'
'I already know what side I'm on,' Link proudly thought to himself.
"Do you think he's lost?" Allen and Lavi had come in from the cold and figured the fastest way to warm themselves was to get under the covers. Lavi, on his back, stared up at the ceiling. He replied,
"He's the one who insisted on going alone. Apparently Kanda really wanted to go buy the food himself." Allen was still cold. He had taken off the snow covered coat and blanket and layed them over the seat Kanda had once occupied.
"Until Kanda gets back, I guess we wait," Allen sighed. He had wanted to go and get out of the inn for a little while. The other two (mostly Kanda for once) thought it better if Allen stayed where it was warm. He had slowly gotten his color back for the most part the last day or so, and the samurai wasn't willing to risk a relapse so soon.
"I could fall asleep right here. How about a mutual nap?" Lavi turned so he was on his side.
"That sounds good to me," Allen yawned, turning to his side too, his back facing Lavi, (unintentionally). Lavi closed the gap between them, Allen's smaller self fitting nicely against Lavi's frame.
"How's that? Comfortable?" Lavi already was mostly comfortable himself and falling asleep.
"Yeah," Allen was able to say before he closed his eyes, almost instantly asleep. He could feel Lavi's arm hold him close.