A/N: Hey, guys! *smile* I don't have a lot to talk about, sorry this is... marginally late. Not that, like, any of you will notice. *snort* Being that said margin is, like. Fifteen minutes.

Thank you to Devinely, amenokuma, KHR-Yunalesca, Time to Be, Lena-luvs-cats, Alaia Skyhawk, karina001, RMXStudio, Ern Estine 13624, jy24, TsubasaKEI, Candy Crackpot, Shadow Spears, chris1501, Shadow-X1999, Amelia Loves Anime, and 2 guests for reviewing!

Title: Blackberry Bushes

Author: liketolaugh

Rating: T

Pairings: None

Genre: Hurt/Comfort/Adventure

Warnings: AU

Summary: That night after Allen turns Mana into an akuma, it isn't Cross Marian who picks him up. It's Tiedoll.

Disclaimer: I only wish I owned D. Gray-man.

Marie hid a smile.

Daisya stared in undisguised fascination.

Kanda and Allen stared at each other.

For a minute, Tiedoll looked back and forth between them, looking mildly dismayed. "Oh, dear," he murmured. And then, more sternly, "Yuu, this is my new apprentice, Allen. Treat him nicely, please."

Kanda's snort clearly revealed what he thought of that request, but he didn't object as Allen sat down. Allen shot his master a wary look, but Tiedoll just smiled at him. Master did not always have the best judgement when it came to people, Allen had learned.

"Allen, this is Yuu," Tiedoll continued, smiling uncomfortably. "I've told you about him, of course."

Allen nodded shortly. Yes, he had, and Allen hadn't even been a big fan of Kanda before he'd met him, really. To Kanda, he said, experimentally, "You look like a girl."

Tiedoll covered his face in despair. Sorry, Master.

Kanda bristled and bared his teeth at Allen. "You look like an old man!"

Allen smiled. So Kanda was exactly that kind of person. "I thought I looked like a beansprout?"

"You do!" Kanda snapped. "And you look like you're asking for a fist to the face!"

Do I? That explains a lot. "And I suppose you're the one to give it to me."

"You bet your scrawny beansprout ass!" Kanda started to stand up and Allen tensed, but Tiedoll just gave a put upon sigh and tugged Kanda down by his arm - Allen noted with interest that Tiedoll hadn't used nearly the force he should have, which meant Kanda had gone down willingly.

"Yuu, what have I told you about hitting my other apprentices?" Tiedoll asked sternly.

"Do I look like I give a fuck?" Kanda muttered, but he didn't actually try again. Tiedoll sighed and looked at Allen, who winced slightly at his expression.

"Allen, please do not bait him." Allen shrugged and started to eat, avoiding Tiedoll's gaze. "I am not angry with you, but I would like for you to get along with my other apprentices."

Allen sighed. Well, he might dislike Kanda on a personal level, but… "Okay." Some things weren't really worth it, anyway.

Daisya broke his silence by reaching over to clap Allen on the shoulder with a grin. "That was great!" he told him, in direct contrast to Tiedoll's reaction. "We need more people to challenge Kanda around here, he needs it."

Allen smiled despite Tiedoll's look of despair. "Glad I can be of help," he said, with maybe a little too much cheer in his voice.

Marie shook his head, but he, too, was smiling. "If you two are going to do that often, things are about to get very interesting," he observed, amused.

"I'll leave him alone if he leaves me alone," Allen told him. It was true, anyway.

Daisya snorted. "Kanda doesn't leave anyone alone," he claimed.

Allen's smile flickered and he shrugged. "Then I guess we won't get along," he said unconcernedly, glancing at Tiedoll to see his reaction. To Allen's relief, he looked long-suffering, but not surprised or particularly annoyed. Of course, he never looked annoyed.

"Allen, when you're done, I've promised Komui to let him examine your Innocence," Tiedoll told him instead of addressing the issue. "I'll go with you, of course."

Allen glanced up at him and nodded. "Komui told me."

"Oh!" Daisya leaned forward and grinned, eyes sparkling with interest. Marie also looked to be paying more attention, and even Kanda glanced up. "Right, your Innocence! What is it? Mine's this thing here." He grinned and swatted the bell at the back of his hood - Charity Bell, Allen supposed.

Allen's hand twitched slightly, but then he smiled. "It's my left arm," he replied, not making any move to show them. Exorcists or not, other apprentices of Tiedoll's or not, he wasn't showing anyone he didn't have to.

"Cool!" Daisya decided, bobbing his head enthusiastically. "I haven't met a parasite before. Well, besides Nyne, but she hardly counts."

Allen shot Tiedoll a questioning glance.

"General Nyne," Tiedoll explained with a kind smile. "She's somewhere in the Andes at the moment, I believe. Her Innocence is a parasitic beast, a monkey called Lau Jimin."

Allen nodded thoughtfully and finished off his food with a small smile. It was very good; he decided he liked Jerry, if he was going to be this nice every time.

Then he looked up at Tiedoll expectantly, and Tiedoll nodded at him and started to stand.

"Allen and I must check in with Komui now," he informed his other apprentices with another smile, "but I'll be by to check on all of you later, of course." Each of them nodded. "Oh, and Allen will be around as well, of course - please help him if he has trouble."

Daisya grinned. "Hey, anyone who'll stand up to Kanda is fine by me!"

Marie chuckled. "You can count on me, Master."

Kanda grunted. That was more or less what Allen had expected.

Tiedoll nodded at all of them and then turned away, starting to lead Allen out of the cafeteria.

"You seemed to get along with them quite well," he noted with a smile.

Allen shrugged, casting his eyes to the ground. "They were very nice," he offered. Tiedoll gave him a disappointed look, and he returned it with a wry smile and corrected, "Marie seems nice. And Daisya is very friendly."

"Yuu just needs time to get used to you," Tiedoll assured him, but he didn't sound too convinced, and Allen gave him a look that told him so. Tiedoll chuckled sheepishly. "Well, I'm sure both of you will adjust."

Allen shrugged.

Sometimes his master didn't seem to be living on the same planet as the rest of them.

Well, I got somewhat less done than I expected to. *snort* But I rounded off the meeting, and then next chapter we definitely have the examination and then almost certainly Allen meets the Science Department. *smile* Thanks for reading, and please review!