TWENTY-ONE

June 11th, 1985.

Lenalee sometimes needs to ask herself why she has not pushed Komui down the stairs.

He totally has it coming, that's for sure.

"No means no," her older brother stated sternly, looking everywhere but at her all-too-hopeful face. "I'm telling you, it's a total fraud!"

"No way!" Lenalee insisted, gesturing excitedly. "And I'm telling you, this is the bomb! The real deal! He's totally the best!"

"And how did you meet?"

"At the movies. I mean, duh, I've told you this nine times already." So, she was exaggerating. Who cares, as long as her point got across?

Komui closed the cabinets, and worked on looking in the pantry. "That sounds suspicious," he replied distractedly. "I'm talking really suspicious."

"Yeah, well, Kanda says the same about you when you freak out over me."

"Lenalee, sweetheart," the Chinese man looked over at his younger sister with a smile. "Since when has Kanda's opinion ever mattered to me? I mean, really, I learned a long time ago to not care. Why should I when nothing nice ever comes out of that dirty, dirty mouth of his?" He scoffed and returned to looking for his last bag of flour. "Where is that sack, Lenalee?"

"I don't know." She observed her fingernails idly. "…I bet Allen's hot guardian lets him do whatever he wants."

"Allen has no choice, he's frequently abandoned." Komui furrowed his eyebrows. "And, did you just call Marian hot?"

"Uh, yeah. He is, isn't he?"

"No. And you shouldn't think he is either, because he is a disgusting man with womanizing tendencies and this terrible habit of smoking and drinking and if you go near him, I'll be forced to take some serious measures. No offense, of course."

Lenalee narrowed her eyes. "Did you ever think that maybe seventeen was a good age to start letting teenage girls do what they want?" The truth is that she was trying to quote one of her favorite television shows, Square Pegs, and it wasn't working as well as it did in the show.

"Actually, I always thought seventy was a more on-track age for that, but whatever." The dark-haired man let out a pleased sigh as he found his bag of flour in the bottom of the cabinet. "Now, I can start dinner."

"Seventy? You've got to be a joke."

Komui grinned. "Do I tell jokes?"

"Knock-knock ones," Lenalee retorted with a similar smile. "And, really, they're all lame. All of them."

"Really? I though you liked my knock-knock jokes." The man looked amused.

"Whoa. Have we ever met?"

"Sure we have. Do you want chicken or fish? Because we only have fish."

"Then why ask me?" She huffed, crossing her arms across her chest. The multicolored bangles on her wrists made plastic clanks at the motion. "So, can we still talk about—"

A standard shrilling ring sounded within the living room, and Komui jabbed a thumb in that direction. "The phone's ringing," he said, stating the obvious. "Go answer it. Please."

"Ugh, you're such a zeek." The Chinese teenager stood up and dusted off her black tights. "Fine, I'm off." She walked into the living room, mimicking Komui passionately, and answered the corded tan phone.

"Hi?" she greeted. A smile lit up her face. "Allen! My favorite fag! …Oh, right, you're not gay." She rolled her eyes at that. "What's up, Brit?" Her fingers habitually began to twirl within the curls of the phone's cord. "You're not coming to band practice tomorrow? Why? …You're going out with Kanda?" Whoa, she did not see that coming. "Not going out? Oh, you're going to the park with him. To a family picnic." That was even weirder than her original thought. "Uhm. Wow. …No, Kanda didn't tell me. …Actually, it's okay because Kanda is a total jerk, but that's what makes him so loveable."

Lenalee winced as her British friend on the other line disagreed with her 'loveable' comment. Loudly.

"Anyway!" she interrupted quickly. "What about Lavi? Is he going? …You don't know? Aren't you guys going out? –Whoa, I was kidding! You are too sensitive, buddy." Seriously, she was getting this total suspicion that he was gay, if only because of his passionate rejections of the notion and his bad habit of attracting members of the same sex. "All right, all right. Call you later!" She hung up.

The girl ran back into the kitchen.

"On a scale from one to ten," she said, rushed. "How likely is it that Kanda is a fag with the radical hots for Allen?"

Komui paused, and gave her a long hard look.

"Eight. Point five."

----

June 12th, 1985.

"Hey. Take a condom." Lavi placed one in Allen's open palm. "You might need it."

Allen looked down at it. "Lavi," he started in a tone one octave lower than his usual thickly accented tenor. "I believe we might've gone a little too far. Thereforth, you have five seconds to take this…thing from my hand and never show it to me again. Ever. If not, then I will punch you in the face. With my left arm." He smiled stiffly.

"Oh God," the redhead gasped, covering his face as he bent over, half-crippled in laughter. "You—You're fuckin' hilarious! Holy shit that was hard to do with a straight face, you've got to believe me." He peeked through his open fingers to glance at Allen's less-than-impressed face, and he bent over farther. "Dude, dude, quit it! Christ, I'll have a conniption at this rate!"

"Right." The white-haired boy tossed the plastic square back at him, which he caught. "Don't ever show that to me again. I will seriously knock you a new one, and chances are I'll enjoy it."

"All right, all right." Lavi, with his laughter somewhat calmed, held up his hands in surrender. "My bad. I'm sorry. Hug?"

"Lavi—" Allen groaned in a whining tone, but grinned as the older teen wrapped his arms around him. He hugged back tightly. "It's too hard to stay mad at you, I say."

"That's the point, Brit ol' Boy," the one-eyed teenager replied easily. "All right, so do you have all your stuff?"

"I believe so," the British teenager said, patting down his pants pockets.

"Got your keys?"

Allen checked his side fashion-statement chain that ran from a belt loop to his front pocket. "Of course."

"Got your watch to keep up with the time?"

He felt his wrist. "Mm hmm." But, who cares? It was probably broken anyway at this rate.

"Got your ass?"

He patted his back pockets. "Still there."

"Well, protect it." Lavi took off one of his many bracelets and gave it to Allen. "It's a lucky charm. Kind of. Maybe. Almost. Not really."

"Thanks. I suppose." Allen took the bracelet suspiciously and slipped it onto his own wrist. It was a bright orange color, and it felt like his fashion sense was slowly dying by wearing it.

"Awesome." Lavi patted him on the back. "So, make sure you have fun and that you show Old Man Tiedoll enough smiles for the both of you."

"Not a problem, especially since I'm bringing Tim."

The yellow dog perked up at his name, a toothy grin on his mouth. "Hrmm?" he yawned, tongue lolling out the side of his mouth.

"Tim?" the redhead looked down at the dog (who was growing much, much faster than he'd ever seen any dog grow). "Um. Does Yuu know that Tim's coming?"

Allen ruffled Timcanpy's ears. "No, but he will. I need one person that I know to be there with me."

"But. You'll have Yuu." Lavi paused. "And Tim's not a real person, are you juiced?"

"Timcanpy is my best friend!" the younger teen huffed. "And I will treat him like one." Timcanpy wandered upstairs to get some water and maybe a few bites in his chew toy.

"Okay, okay!" the eighteen-year-old made a placating gesture with his hands. "Dogs are people too, I get it. Dork."

The white-haired boy rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say," he replied. Checking his watch, he sighed in a bored tone. "Where in the world is he? He lives, well, down the bloody street!"

"Shh," Lavi shushed, holding a hand to his ear. "Do you hear that?"

Allen strained to listen to whatever his older friend was hearing. "Hear what?" he asked.

"That."

"I don't hear anything."

The older teenager rolled his eye and reached out to grab Allen by the back of his hair. He pressed the boy's ear to the door, and held a finger up to his lips.

The sound was low, but it was definitely odd.

It was the sound of an incoming aged vehicle, but much, much faster than the motor was used to allowing.

And, Allen noted with a frown, it was coming closer.

Opening the door, he looked out towards the street.

A gray Chevy van, one more than familiar, came to a screeching a painful halt in front of Allen's house, smoke wafting dangerously from the skid marks in the cement.

Kanda rolled down the passenger window in time for a smaller, sleeker car to zoom by at an also unhealthy speed for a neighborhood area. "Fuck you Grandma!" he yelled in the direction of the other car. He flipped the driver his middle finger. "You didn't win! You'll never fuckin' win! Yeah, keep driving! Get bent!"

"Dear Lord," Allen groaned. "I think I'm ashamed to have him in front of the house."

"Damn, I am too." Lavi rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Seriously, what the fuck was that?"

Kanda stepped out of his van and slammed the door, fixing his ponytail at the nape of his neck. "All right," he said gruffly. "Let's roll, brat."

"Not until I find out what all that was about." Allen crossed his arms.

The Japanese teenager rolled his eyes. "Old lady tried to cut me," he explained. "So I was all 'fuck no' and cut her, then she got all juiced and went all fucking nitro on me, and she so wanted a race. So, I gave her one."

"And you lost?" Lavi commented, snickering.

Kanda narrowed his eyes. "I didn't lose, dickweed," he growled. "I stopped. Don't try me, Cyclops. I will beat your ass."

"Sure, sure," the redhead grinned, waving a hand in dismissal. "It's okay, I totally believe you."

"Good. Now, loser, let's go."

"All right." Allen held two fingers to his lips and whistled. "Timcanpy!"

"Whoa, why the fuck are you calling the dog?"

"Why else?"

Timcanpy scampered out, obviously excited to see Kanda. "Woof!" he barked, jumping on the tall teen.

Kanda, with a look of barely hidden panic on his face, glared at Allen. "No," he snapped. "The dog isn't coming. Jesus Christ, this mutt is trying to lick my face! How the fuck did he get so damn big?"

"Isn't he?" Lavi stepped behind the dog and grabbed him underneath his front legs. Timcanpy was forced to stay in a standing position, and he looked up at Lavi's grinning face with his own toothy smile. "I love this dog, man. But the teeth are fucking lethal."

"Tim isn't going to do a thing," Allen said, sniffing. "He's a sweetheart, unlike you."

"I'm not trying to be a sweetheart," Kanda grounded out, trying to get out of the dog's golden-eyed sight. "I'm trying to get to this fucking lunch so I can have it fucking over with. Now, let's go, and leave the mutt."

"Nope." Allen smirked. "If Tim doesn't go, then I don't go." The mocking stretch of lips widened. "And if I don't go, then ickle Andy'll be all by himself with his big bad family." The white-haired boy pulled a false look of distress. "Imagine the horrors."

"I'm going to kick your ass," Kanda snapped, flicking a wayward bang out of the way of his eyes.

"No, you're going to let Tim come."

"How about this: No. Simple, ace?"

The British boy snapped his fingers. "Or, we can get even simpler." He smiled. "A bet, if you will."

"Don't do it!" Lavi cried, his expression bleak. "You're gonna lose, man!" His wallet was still sensitive, Allen thought in amusement.

"Lose?" Kanda looked interested. "I don't lose. What's the bet?"

"We'll play rock-paper-scissors," the white-haired boy explained, grinning. "Two out of three, of course. If I win, Timcanpy comes. If you win, Timcanpy doesn't come. Simple, no or yes?"

"Hmm," Kanda hummed lowly in thought, eyes on Allen's gloved hands. "All right."

"All right." Allen grinned harder. "Let's play."

----

"Seven outta eight!" Kanda snapped, glaring at his traitorous hands that failed to win a single game.

Allen waved his right hand mockingly. "This can go on forever, Kanda," he replied. "But, you'll only be late for your little lunch. Admit defeat."

"Fuck you," the Japanese teen retorted. "I don't lose."

"Ha," the younger boy barked a laugh. "Everybody loses. Well, except for me, but that's a different story. Now, let's go, and let's show Tim a good time at the park."

Kanda clenched his fist, obviously dead set on using 'rock' for the umpteenth time. "Fine," he snarled. "But if that mutt shits in my fucking van, I'm throwing the both of you out in moving traffic. Believe me."

"Tim, you get to come!" Allen cooed, bending down on a knee and flipping the dog's ears up straight playfully. "Isn't this blinding?"

"Woof!" Timcanpy licked the boy's face.

Lavi bent down. "You cheated like hell," he commented lowly.

"And?" Allen shrugged. "A win is a win, no matter how I got it."

"Huh, that's some harsh advice. I'll remember it, fer sure."

"You do that." The boy walked to the van, where Kanda stood irritably in front of the back open doors. He waved in leave. "I'll call you later!"

Lavi waved back, grinning. "You should totally be naked when you do!"

----

"Where the hell was that guy?" Kanda asked as they drove towards the park, which was only a few blocks away, and a car wasn't nearly as necessary as one might've thought.

Allen graced him with a deadpan look. "I know a lot of guys, Kanda. Be more specific, would you?"

"That creep that suddenly entered your life again. With the goatee. And the glasses."

"My uncle? Cross?" the gray-eyed boy snorted. "Excuse mon français, but I couldn't possibly give less of a damn." He sniffed. "I'm not his keeper."

"Never said you were," Kanda muttered distractedly, turning into the park's parking lot. His eyes narrowed. "Damn, all the cars are here. Shit."

Allen looked forward, interested. "So, they're already here?"

"Doy." The van came to a halt about nine parking spaces away from his family's cars, and Kanda tugged the gear into park. "Don't embarrass me, brat," he said in a threatening tone.

"Oh, but of course not." The British teenager rolled his eyes. "Don't bother my dog, then."

"I wouldn't touch that mutt with a ten-foot pole." The driver side door was kicked open, and the older teenager hopped out.

"Arooo…" Timcanpy whined, pressing his wet nose to the window in the back. Allen unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car, rushing to the back to let out his dog.

"Don't cry, Tim," he murmured, opening the metal doors. The yellow mixed dog jumped down to the cement ground, his curled tail wagging, and wandered over to Kanda.

The guitarist stepped away. "Fuck no you don't," he growled, walking backwards every time the dog got closer. "Keep away from me!"

"Woof!" Timcanpy barked cheerfully, pawing at the spot where Kanda once was standing. The long-haired man had taken off towards the grassy park, hopping over the gate and not giving any indication towards stopping.

The dog, with a vaguely satanic tint to his grin, chased after him.

Allen looked devastated. "Tim!" he groaned, walking to the actual walkway leading into the park. "I need to put on your leash! Come back!"

"Oh, shit, that's your dog?" an amused voice commented from behind him, and he looked around to see the grinning, make-up molested face of that one foster brother of Kanda's who's name he couldn't remember for the life of him.

The fifteen-year-old made a low sound of frustration as he snapped his fingers. "Err, Danny, am I right?" he tried, a weak smile on his lips.

The man looked almost offended. "Yeah, no. Daisya Barry," Daisya grinned, holding out a hand. "Uh, Aaron Rocker, right?"

"Completely wrong." Allen shook the hand with a laugh. "I'm Allen Walker. According to Lavi, I'm here to keep Kanda company while he tries to ignore your existence."

"Oh man, we've needed you for years, dude." Daisya ran his fingers underneath his dark blue beanie cap as he grinned harder. "Aren't you that white-haired kid from McDonald's? Yeah, you're the only albeano-whatever I've seen."

"I'm not albino," Allen corrected, huffing. "It was trauma, and hair products. But, yes, I did go to McDonald's. How do you know?" He cocked a suspicious eyebrow.

"How don't I know?" the man pressed his fingers to the corners of his lips and pulled them up in a mocking smile. "Ronald McDonald, baby. Trippendicular, right or right? Well, except for when I got floored by Kanda, but that's just life."

"Why, that was you?" the young man blinked in surprise. "I forgot mascots were real people too, I apologize."

Daisya laughed, his being a high-pitched, lilting sound that reminded Allen of clowns. "Harsh, kid, but it's cool," he replied. "You're a riot."

Kanda took this time to grab Allen by the collar of his shirt and shoved him in the direction of the dog only feet away. The boy yelped as he landed on the ground, with his dog stepping on him while still following the older teen. "Fuck this!" the Japanese guitarist cursed, running farther down the park.

His older ex-foster brother cackled. "Don't run that way, man!" he crowed. "You know Old Man Tie—"

"You look like you're having fun, Yuu," Tiedoll commented loudly, smiling widely as his used-to-be-foster son jumped over the tarp on the grassy ground. "Can I join in?"

"Kill yourself!"

The sandy-haired man chuckled, and spotted Timcanpy, who came to a halt and was sniffing the picnic basket with clear interest. "What a sweet dog!" he said cheerfully, waving the dog closer to him. "Is this what you're running from, Yuu?"

Kanda, breathing heavily, sat down roughly a few feet away from the tarp and Tiedoll. "Keep that fuckin' mutt away," he rasped, running his hands through his inky hair. "Or, I'll do something—uh—do something—"

Allen smiled charmingly. "Sound it out, Kanda."

"Shut up brat!" the Japanese teen furrowed his eyebrows. "I'll do something…drastic. Yeah. Drastic."

A shadow fell over him, and Kanda looked up irritably. "Didn't know you were afraid of dogs, Kanda," his oldest ex-foster brother commented, stepping around him with an amiable smile. "Well, I didn't know you were afraid of jack, really. You were always that kid who was all unafraid and stuff."

"I didn't know you liked to talk so much, Marie," Kanda snapped back. "Oh, wait, yes I did. Leave me alone, I'm not afraid of it." Noise Marie, owner of BlackOut, just shook his head with a smile as he sat on the tarp close to his old foster father.

Daisya looked skeptical. "Dude, you were minutes away from screaming like a bitch. And it was funny."

"He has a point there," Allen stated with a dismissing wave of his hands. "I'm going to have to tell Lavi and Lenalee this, just so you know."

"Yeah, 'cause you're as gossipy as you are bitchy." The guitarist flipped the middle finger at him, and Tiedoll looked offended.

"That was rude, Yuu," he scolded, covering Timcanpy's eyes. "Don't use those kinds of gestures, nobody likes them."

Kanda flipped him off too.

Allen cocked an eyebrow. "What about language?" he asked Tiedoll. "I mean, Cross would destroy me if I made one profane statement at him, but what about you?"

Daisya snapped his fingers. "Oh, man, he's totally cool with it!" he exclaimed. "Watch this," he turned to Kanda. "Hey, Jap, fuck you!"

"Yeah, well, fuck you too, GI Joe."

Tiedoll simply shook his head, none too subtly rolling his brown eyes behind his glasses.

The British boy looked at Marie, who huffed. "You don't curse?"

"They can fuck each other all they want," Marie deadpanned. "I'm not gonna join in. Besides, mindless cursing is childish and lame."

"I think I like you." Allen sat closer to Marie. "Even if the bouncer for your club manhandled me to the point where I still feel violated."

"Yeah, my bad. Chaoji's cool, though, always chill." The bald man stretched his muscled arms. "He's on his way, Tiedoll. Just so you know."

"Great!" the man clapped his hands together, his glasses somewhat slipping down his nose. Tiedoll pushed the spectacles higher on the bridge of his nose as he smiled. "So, how is Cross?" he asked Allen.

Allen smiled. "I'm going to kill him."

"Of course you are. Is he in jail yet?"

"Not exactly, but I had to hotwire a Turbo once since his car ran out of gas," the teenager licked his dry lips. "And we somehow got the bill off of our trail."

"That's wonderful." Tiedoll shook his head, scratching between Timcanpy's ears. "The man was always an insufferable prick, no offense. I love him, though, as a good friend."

"No, it's okay, I understand completely." The white-haired boy shrugged. "I just don't love him as much as I hate his bloody guts. He's going to die."

"I'm sure." The French man reached over to ruffle his hair. "I'm kind of sorry that you had to be in his custody."

"Kind of?" Allen believed that, in order to be a functioning member of society, he deserved some pity for being related to Cross Marian. Being under his custody, though, was a different story, and required at least one's full extent of sympathy, including offers to lunch because he must've been underfed and abused.

It was more effective than most people thought, Cross included.

"Well, you're such a nice young man that he must've done a great job with raising you."

"Oh no." Allen held up his hands. "I'm self-raised. That man had nothing to do with it."

Kanda snorted. "Shut up, brat. He loves you." His tone was overly sarcastic.

"He doesn't love me like Timcanpy loves you, dimwit. Don't you boy?" Allen smiled at his dog, ruffling his half-perked ears.

"Woof."

"I'll kill you so fast your uncle'll feel the burn," Kanda sniffed in offense. "Keep that mutt away from me."

"Of course," Allen hugged Timcanpy's neck. "He'll always love me more. Won't you Tim?" The dog nuzzled his cheek, his tongue poking out his mouth.

"Marie, do you have your Polaroid?" Tiedoll asked.

"Nope. But, now I feel bad for not having it," Marie grinned. "I want a dog like that. That would be too harsh."

"You're making me want to puke," Kanda muttered. "Fuck these new cavities in my teeth, you and your dog-loving fagness."

Allen narrowed his eyes. "Fagness is not a word," he said. "And I am not gay."

"Right. Tell that to my—" A hand covered his mouth.

Chaoji grinned. "Don't go there, Kanda," he said lightly. "It's kinda gay too."

Kanda practically ripped the older man's palm from his mouth. "You touch me again," he threatened. "I'll make sure you're breathing through tubes for your twenty-second birthday."

"Whoa, calm down." The Asian man sat next to Kanda, obviously enthralled to be able to do so. "Hey Tiedoll, hey Daisya."

"What's chillin', Mr. Roboto?" the dark-haired man greeted. He sighed, plopping back on the tarp, arms crossed underneath his head. "Feels like it's been forever since I've seen all of you at the same time."

"Yeah, well, we don't live together anymore, remember?" Chaoji replied.

Marie nodded in agreement. "I kinda miss the days where we all lived in the same house. Kinda."

"I still wish you all were dead," Kanda growled, arms tightly crossed. "I want to go home."

"Not until we eat, Yuu," Tiedoll scolded.

Allen perked up, interested. "Food?" he asked, eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, we'll be eating in a few moments. At least, once Kanda quits popping the fuck-you finger at Tiedoll," Marie narrowed his eyes at his youngest ex-foster brother.

"Fuck you." The finger changed directions.

----

Daisya Barry, as Allen was quick to learn, loved pranks and games.

They usually weren't that funny.

"Ha," Allen laughed blandly, flicking the gummy worm out of his sandwich. "Thank you, but try again."

"Why're you so sure it was me? Huh, Whitey?"

"Why aren't I sure?"

"Damn, got me in the face." The pale man huffed, and took a bigger bite of his sandwich than was necessary.

Kanda glared at his wrapped sandwich. "I don't like beef," he grounded out. "I keep telling you this, old man, and you don't fucking listen!"

Allen looked at the sandwich. "I love beef," he announced. "And, I think beef and I could have a beautiful relationship."

"Take it." The guitarist threw the sandwich at the younger teen, who caught it rather eagerly. Timcanpy whined from his spot on Allen's lap, eyes wide.

"No Tim," the white-haired teenager scolded lightly. "I already gave you half of a half of a quarter of my sandwich. I think you should be as fit as a fiddle."

"Arooo…"

Tiedoll tore half of his sandwich. "He's so sweet," the man cooed, holding the food out to Timcanpy. The dog's sharp teeth tore into the soft sandwich, and the man retracted his hand quickly at the sight of them. "But, those teeth are dangerous."

"I know, right?" Kanda grumbled.

Allen rolled his eyes. "Oh, you act like he's had a bite at you before," the pianist stated, huffing.

"He chewed my fucking leg the first day I went to your house, hoser!" Kanda snapped, pointing at the jean-clad victim of a leg. "You gave him a Scooby Snack for solving the fucking mystery on how my legs taste in a dog's mouth!"

"I'm telling you, Kanda. I feed him to scold him."

"Well, it's totally fucking working." He rubbed his temples. "You know what? Bag your face. Talking to you is like getting cancer, fuckin' kills me."

"Damn," Daisya heckled, his dark eyes wide.

"Hmm…" Allen hummed, his gray eyes narrowed. He stood up, dusting off the back of his jeans. "You, Kanda, are a completely thick arse." He made an insulted expression. "My Lord, I've never met more of a jerk than you!"

Kanda shrugged, yawning. He covered his mouth loosely. "Better for me. I was going for the grand championship."

Timcanpy narrowed his eyes and bared his teeth, which made Kanda glare back at the dog, moments away from baring his own teeth. The yellow mix growled lowly in his throat, and Allen flicked him between the eyes.

"Leave him alone," he scolded. "He's being a jerk, sure, but that's no reason to go about biting him. Don't give me that! You were bloody damned about to chew the mess out of his leg."

The dog huffed, looking away.

Marie tried to swallow his sandwich, but the urge to stare at the display between the owner and the dog was rather overwhelming.

"Right," Allen smiled, pleased at Timcanpy's compliance. "I'll be taking a walk. For some reason, I have this terrible urge to tell Kanda to go to hell." He grinned. "Oh, wait, too late."

"Don't come back."

"Dude, I think I love your boyfriend—" Daisya whispered as the white-haired boy walked away, but didn't exactly get to finish his statement as Kanda grabbed him by the neck and slammed his head onto the ground.

He did not look happy. "Say that again," he snarled, tightening his grip. "I dare you, double-dog dare you, deadbeat—say it again!"

"Whoa!" Chaoji, with experience in removing people off others, hooked his arm around Kanda's neck and pulled roughly. "What's your problem?!"

With a rasping breath, Kanda shoved him away, rubbing his neck. "That brat is not my boyfriend," he grumbled. "Quit saying that."

Daisya coughed as he massaged his own neck, sitting up straight. "I totally forgive you because you sound mega-pitiful." He grinned. "Like you want to be his boyfriend, you fag. But, it's all good, because damn that kid is brand new."

Tiedoll shook his head at the display, a small smile on his face.

"Jesus Christ, Kanda! Don't kill him! He's, like, barely twenty!"

"Fuck that, Marie! I'm making sure you have one less birthday to celebrate you ungrateful dweeb!"

"Hey, I need my twenty-first birthday!"

"No, you need to shut the fuck up and fucking die."

----

Allen heard the screams, of course. He was kind of worried, but then again, he was positive that Tiedoll or Marie might do something to intercede the killing intent. Maybe Chaoji, but he wasn't too sure.

The young man walked to the low lake near the middle of the park, and marveled at the near empty bench near the edge of the water.

With sigh, he sat on the wooden seat, crossing his legs.

"That didn't sound chill," the other person commented, his voice deep and melodic. "Need a cigarette?"

Allen turned to look at the man and smiled. "No thanks, I'm underaged—" the smile fell slightly. "Mikk."

Tyki Mikk perked up at the sound of his name and looked over at the teenager. "Allen," he said, surprised. "Didn't see you there."

"Clearly, since you were offering me cigarettes."

The wavy-haired man waved a hand in dismissal. "Nah," he denied. "I offer everyone cigarettes. Usually the morning after, but whatever." He leered. "I haven't seen you in weeks, since that, err, incident. What's up, baby?"

"Don't call me baby." Of all the luck. That was so not an incident. "Why do you look like you just came from church?"

Tyki tugged at his dress pant legs, cocking an eyebrow. "Church? Sorry, there aren't any churches that support my religion." He clicked his tongue on the roof of his mouth in annoyance at the fact.

"Religion? What are you, Muslim?" Allen asked, a frown on his face.

"What? No!" the Portuguese man huffed. "I'm part of the Church of Noah."

"I've never heard of it. What's so ace about it?"

The man shrugged. "I believe all of mankind should be eliminated," he explained nonchalantly. "It's pretty simple."

Allen blinked. "Erm, wow, that's—"

"Well, except for you, because God had to've had a direct hand in that." He motioned lewdly towards the entirety of Allen's body.

The boy brought his hands to his forehead and rubbed his temples. "How is your music going?" he asked instead, feeling the headache from Tyki edge at his mind. "You have a single out, right?"

"We've got two. Awesome, right?"

"Right."

"But," Tyki sighed. "The company wants to release our album on CD."

Allen cocked an eyebrow. "Compact Disc?"

"That's the one." The Portuguese man frowned. "I can't say I trust the things, but whatever. Davie and Jazzy were freaked to find out."

"Does anyone really even have a CD player yet?"

"I sure as hell don't, and I know most of my family doesn't."

"I'd talk to them about that." The British boy replied with concern. "You can't exactly sell something when nobody has the technology."

"That's what I said." Tyki smiled. "Great minds think alike, baby."

"Calm down, and don't call me baby."

"Sure, sure." The man stretched his legs and reached into a pant pocket. Pulling out his wallet, he opened the flip and searched through a plethora of cards that showed the man obviously had connections.

Allen would have to remember that.

"There we go—" Tyki muttered, pulling out a thin inverse checkerboard designed business card. "Our record company is pretty interested in the Black Order," he explained, smirking. "So, if you want to talk to someone, look for the Millennium Earl. He'll definitely hear you out."

"Well, thanks Mikk," He must've been hitting the record company jackpot or something. "This is very sweet of you."

"Alright then, right here," the dark-skinned man pointed at his cheek. "I'd like a kiss."

Allen narrowed his eyes. "You know I'm not going to give you one, right?"

"Well, that's just too damn bad," Tyki moved closer, his arm slipping behind the teenager's back. He smiled with a perverse tint. "It's just one kiss."

"That's what I can say about the first one," the British boy deadpanned, pushing the man's face away with a single finger. "And, I think you need to remember how much of a disaster that was."

"Well, now your two friends aren't here, so it's cool."

"Dear God—"

"Hey, brat!" Kanda's eternally pissed-off voice called, and there were steps coming closer. Tyki backed up so fast Allen felt his hair mused by the wind. "Where the hell are you?"

"Are you serious?" the man asked, an eyebrow cocked. "Did you know he was going to come?"

"Not at all." Allen stood up, grinning and dusting off his pants. "But, I'm pretty happy he did. Cheers, Mikk!"

"Call me Tyki." The man waved him goodbye, a smile on his lips.

The fifteen-year-old walked swiftly back towards the family picnic area, rubbing his arm nervously.

Kanda stood in his path, hands stuck cockily in his pants pockets. "Brat," he greeted. "Where'd you go?"

"To the lake—wait, why do you care?" Allen crossed his arms with a cocked eyebrow. "Honestly, I can say less to you, especially considering how you are a total jerk to a high degree."

"Look, brat, about the cancer shit," the Japanese guitarist snapped, looking away. "I didn't mean it. I was just being mean. Or something. The hell if I know. Let's go."

Allen tried to keep a straight face, but the smile was getting harder to resist. "If that was an apology," he replied, following Kanda. "Then that was a really half-arsed way of going about it."

"Then it wasn't an apology, dumbass." Kanda rubbed the back of his neck, scowling. "Your dog is bitching to Tiedoll like it's fucking Bambi or something. Make him shut up."

"If you'd give Tim a chance, then maybe you could be good friends." He was lying, and it was pretty obvious with how the older teenager glared.

"Shut up. You just want the mutt to chew me."

"Yes," Allen said honestly. "Yes, I do."

Kanda shoved him in an almost playful manner. "Yeah, well, fuck you too."

Oh my god I love Wham!. WAKE ME UP, BEFORE YOU GO-GO, DON'T LEAVE ME HANGIN' ON LIKE A YO-YO--tell me that line is not EPIC.

So, yeah. Kanda/Allen. Yay. Tyki/Allen. Yay (in my opinion). Lavi/Allen. There needs to be moar. D: Emi needs the pairing like a drug or something. At least that's what she was telling me on the phone, like "update because I need Laven" and I'm all "dude, we discussed this chapter and how unLaven it was" and she's all "okay, well, I still need the update" and there you have it. :D

Daisya was more fun to write than you will ever know. :)

Hopefully it is to your standards. And Tim needs to be in your standards.

I want a dog like him. D: (lol I just want a dog, actually)

Here's a kinda fun fact: For the past twenty chapters, I usually listened to various eighties bands and music to get a better feel for the time and the pace of the 80s. But, for this chapter, it was nothing but Pokémon. My Pokémon soundtrack was loud as hell, and I couldn't turn it off because of intense nostalgia. D: So, yeah, next chapter, I'm definitely going back to Tears for Fears and Pet Shop Boys (who are lolriffic and homo).