((Author's Note: Eek! Sorry for the long wait—I've had…no idea, really, what to continue the story with. I had only planned up to chapter 13, as many of you know, so now I'm winging it. I'm not too good with Lenalee's personality, and this was the best I could come up with for starters…I hope it's better than I think it is.))
Change of Heart
Chapter Fourteen : New Beginnings
The night lulled on as Road slept to the tune of Allen's heartbeat and his gentle humming. He ran his hand through her spiky hair a few times and smiled calmly. Moments of pure peace, he knew, didn't come very often. And here, in his own moment with Road, he treasured every second of the quiet night that she lay there, sleeping in his arms.
Soon, a faint rustling came through the bushes, and out stepped a very concerned, but very relieved, Lenalee.
"Allen! Thank goodness you're…" She stopped when she saw Road, and when Allen gave an expression that urged her to speak more quietly, for both their sakes.
"…What's going on…?" Lenalee stood by the tree, dumbfounded.
"…You remember when I was under house arrest, right?" Allen's grin became sheepish, and he let out a light chuckle. He didn't need to say much else, as Lenalee's brain put the pieces together.
"…Oh. I see." Was the only reply from the Chinese Exorcist as she leaned against a tree trunk and met Allen's gaze.
"…Yeah." He chuckled again, and Road stirred slightly. He hoped she wasn't waking up, for numerous reasons. "Do you have any idea…how she could join the Black Order?" Allen asked, in all seriousness.
Lenalee's eyes almost fell off her face, and Allen stifled a laugh to the best of his ability. He stopped, though, when he saw the fury in Lenalee's eyes as she knelt over him.
"Lenalee, listen to me, please." Allen stared at her with innocent eyes. "You want this war to end as much as I do…as much as Road does. I know we've never been on the best terms with the Noah…but please, give her a chance." He pleaded as Road stirred once more. Allen didn't see her eyes slowly open.
"Why should I give her a chance, Allen? She nearly killed you! What guarantee do I have that she won't kill you, me, and the rest of the Black Order once she joins!?" Lenalee said angrily in a hushed tone.
"Lenalee…there aren't any guarantees." Allen said in a hushed voice, as well. "There are no guarantees in the Order, and you know that as well as I do." He was right, as much as Lenalee wanted to believe otherwise.
"Allen…what would she do, though? I mean…she isn't an Accommodator…she couldn't be a Finder. What would she do?" Lenalee seemed to have acquiesced, and she was surprised to hear Road respond.
"I would…we would…be a bridge." She sat up and looked at Lenalee with her brilliant, yellow-gold eyes. "It sounds stupid and mushy, I know...but I told Allen earlier that I…"
Lenalee's eyes narrowed slightly as she finished Road's sentence. "You wanted to change your fate." She answered.
Allen was a little peeved, at this point. "Lenalee, how long were you listening?" He asked as he slowly stood up with her.
"Long enough…" She responded softly. "I don't see how this could work…" She folded her arms over her chest. Allen walked away from Road and put a hand on her shoulder.
"I was wondering that, too. But, it's worth a shot, isn't it, Lenalee?" He asked, and raised his blue-gray eyes to her green ones. Slowly, her cold expression melted into a softer smile, and she sighed. There was a moment of silence that hung in the air before she finally responded.
"I suppose. It won't be easy…but…" She looked at Allen, then Road, then to the ground. "But maybe…maybe brother could do something…" She raised her head and smiled. "I came to look for you—Cross was suspicious." She giggled slightly with the knowledge that Cross's suspicions were valid.
"So, I guess we should go back then, right?" Allen asked as he rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. Lenalee chuckled and spoke.
"Yep. Bring Road, too." She grinned and began walking back to the castle.
Road's expression of worry faded to a smile as Allen laced his fingers through hers and gently pulled her beside him as they followed Lenalee back to the Black Order headquarters. He wondered, absently, what the others would think; what they would say. Road was wondering, too, and probably Lenalee, as well.
But for the time being, they were content to know that there were now more options to be considered; that there were new beginnings on the horizon that could lead to greater heights, and each smiled with a different hope; a different idea of what the future would hold.