I LIVE! Hello again dearies~ IB and TKD are taking so much time it's not even funny. Also I got a second job! I already work at Kumon, and now I get to be an elf at the Green Hills' Mall! But anyway, so I don't know if any of you read Crowsnight66, but you lovely readers of mine should probably say thank you to her for these two massive chapters. I was reading Chains (You all should go read it just sayin') on Thanksgiving Day I think it was, and I was like, I have to write again. Her writing just inspired me. SO 5000 words later, here you are~! There is fluff and angst and the plot moves quite far tbr. I don't own DGM. Enjoy dearies~!
Chapter 20: Whom can you trust?
Third Omniscient
Noah Mansion
The mansion on the hill overlooking the small Portuguese town gave off an unwelcoming aura, much like its inhabitants. The finely groomed landscape seemed pleasant enough until one realized that almost each plant or tree could be used to create the world's most deadly poisons. The mansion itself was furnished with only the best; silks, velvets, dark, richly colored woods, and old portraits adorned every surface. The house despite its sinister atmosphere screamed money and wealth. The color scheme was on the darker side of the scale, giving the interior an oppressive feel. The inhabitants of the estate preferred it to be that way; it suited their… singular tastes. The mansion had a room and study for each member of the infamous Noah clan, not that all of them had a great need for a study *coughcoughJasdevicoughcough*; several sitting rooms, a large dining hall with an adjacent ballroom, and an elaborate underground laboratory.
It was in this house that Road spent the night with her fellow Noah, Tyki Mikk. Here she and Tyki met with the Earl of Millennium, the leader of the Noahs, to discuss the next phase of their dastardly plan.
"Road-pet, you say that Allen is ready for the taking? And you are absolutely certain it's not too soon? The last time the transformation was rushed with a strong bond ended in disaster, and left us waiting for 35 years without a member of our lovely family. But I'm sure I don't need to remind you of that 3" The intonation of his voice was friendly and light, but the warning behind the words was unmistakable. The Earl sat behind his desk, much like he did during his earlier meeting with Tyki. Road perched herself on the arm of the fine leather sofa in front of the desk, while Tyki made himself comfortable in the corner of it. "You must be certain. I won't have the last relative of the 14th lost due to heaven forbid… Incompetence."
"I wouldn't mention it if I wasn't certain. The bond between Allen and that samurai is unshakable. They've been heading that way for a while now just needed a push." Road smirked, still quite pleased with herself.
"I have a question, Lord Millennium. Why do the new members have to have known a strong love before you can convert them? Isn't that a bit cruel, even for us?" Tyki held a look of utter boredom as he took a long drag of his cigarette, earning looks of disapproval from Road and the Earl. The Earl laughed, hearing the end of the question, and grinned in his predatory manner.
"But of course, Tyki-pet, it is cruel 3. Do we need a greater reason than that? It is our job to bring humanity to its knees, and if we cause a little heartbreak, who care? They're only humans 3." The Earl replied, eyes flashing dangerously. "But there is a greater reason than that. You see Tyki-pet, when they have that bond and are turned that the bond becomes toxic. It feeds the hatred that the memories already have. They believe that their loved one has betrayed them because the love was not there to save them. Love is ever so fickle, but hate… Hate is forever 3"
"Ok, wow. So you're like way more evil than I thought." Tyki muttered. "What do we do with Walker now then?"
"Now, the phase of our plan can be set into motion. Do you think there will be any obstacles to our visitation?"
"No. None of those stupid humans pose any threat, except maybe Kanda. But if we're careful, we should be able to grab Allen before Kanda knows what's happening!" Road practically sang with excitement. "Wait. What if we skip the kidnapping altogether? We could lure him here under the pretense that we're throwing one of our parties, and I want him to come. That would alleviate suspicions that he's been captured or in any danger at all for at least a few days."
"Oh very good, Road~ 3! Invite him here for the Christmas party, and then he will be ours! Now, back to school! 3"
Road rose from her perch on the sofa, running her fingers through Tyki's hair as she did so.
"I'll see you all soon~!" She said as she stepped through her door, back into her drab dorm.
˚~˚~˚~ People scream, are you listening? On the snow, blood is glistening. A horrible sight, we're crying tonight, walking in a D Gray Wonderland ˚~˚~˚~
Lenalee started at Road's sudden appearance; she had not heard the door open or the girl cross the floor. As much as she liked this new seemingly friendly girl, Lenalee felt something slightly off. The pig-tailed girl was not sure what it was, but Road would occasionally do or say something that was just wrong, almost sinister. But Lenalee did nothing. She merely inclined her head, acknowledging Road's return to their room, and went back to her schoolwork. Her art project on Lavi for Tiedol's midterm was nearing completion. He's such a bookworm… On her desk was a papier mâché book made from the pages of a few of Lavi's favorite books Lenalee had purchased at a used book store. Among them were several works of Shakespeare, famous Greek writings like the Iliad and Antigone, the Book of the Dead, and many others. Atop the book were two masks, the typical Greek theatre masks, one happy and one sad. The happy face was painted in bright colors; reds, yellows, and oranges, all clashing together with jagged lines. The sad face was much more somber, the colors dimmer. Muted blues, greys, and black formed a camouflage pattern across its features. Lenalee turned back to her painting, forgetting her unsettling thoughts.
Road hopped up to her bed, her mind still thinking, planning on the best way to get Allen to agree to come with her.
˚~˚~˚~ Deception and perfection are wonderful traits. One will breed love; the other hate. ˚~˚~˚~
Allen awoke with a start, thinking his alarm clock was going off.
"Oi, Moyashi, get back here. It's only six. We've got a couple hours before classes." Kanda grumbled, pulling Allen back down into his chest. Allen curled up against the other, enjoying the feel of the samurai's muscled arms around him, protecting him. Kanda smiled softly, his face hidden by white bed-head.
"It's Allen, Bakanda," Allen mumbled half-heartedly, knowing his words would fall on deaf ears.
"OHHHH YUU! OPEN UP! YOUR DEAREST FATHER WISHES TO SEE YOU!" Tiedol's voice came through the thick wood door, loud and abrasive. For a usually quiet guy, he sure as hell could be as obnoxious as Komui if he wanted to be. Kanda sat straight up, snatching his and Allen clothes up from where they'd been thrown the night before. "YUU-CHAN! I'LL DIE OF OLD AGE IF YOU DON'T HURRY UP!"
"SHUT UP THE FUCK OLD MAN! DON'T CALL ME THAT!" Kanda bellowed back, wrenching the door open to glare at the intrusion, just as Allen finished yanking his trousers on. "WHAT!"
"Now, Yuu, don't use that tone with your dear father," Tiedol admonished, stepping into the room. "Tut, tut, you boys can't keep a room clean to save your lives can you?"
Allen flushed a deep red, as it was a point of pride for him to keep things neat and tidy. Kanda glowered by the door, threatening anyone who had the bravery to poke their heads out of their rooms to see what the ruckus was about.
"So, Yuu, how are you? I haven't seen nearly enough of you this semester." Tiedol bemoaned. "I would have thought you cared enough to visit with your old man during his office hours, but no alas, I was mistaken."
"Tch. I've been fucking busy." Kanda finally closed the door, and sat on his bed, arms crossed tightly across his still bare chest.
"With what? You can't possibly have that much schoolwork." Tiedol raised an eyebrow. "Allen, my boy, tell me the truth. Do you kids really have that much work?"
"Uhh, well sir, each class is different. We always have a lot of English, history and math. Typically we have a project for you and Theory of Knowledge; we've been working really hard on your midterms by the way. And none of this includes our internal assessments that we have to do on our time outside of class." Allen rubbed the back of his head nervously with his good arm; his other was hidden behind his back.
"Ah I see, and I'm sure that detention with Komui didn't help did it?" Tiedol looked sternly at Kanda. "Yuu, are you ok?"
"Tch. Allen and I had a fight, big deal, roommates do that all the damn time." Kanda replied tersely.
"Well, alright, if you're sure you're doing alright. Just doing my dad-ly duty, checking in on my son!" Tiedol said with a smile as he rose to leave. "Oh and Allen, keep an eye on him for me."
"Yes, sir!"
˚~˚~˚~ You were everything, everything that I wanted. We were meant to be, supposed to be but we lost it ˚~˚~˚~
"So, using our ways of knowing what can we conclude from this real life situation? Come on, use your heads!" Bookman ordered, hurling a book at Lavi to wake him up.
"Uhh, well, through reason we can conclude that this person is only reporting what suits their argument via confirmation bias." Lenalee attempted. "And from that it can be asked how is anything we know true?"
"Very good, Lenalee, at least someone was paying attention." Bookman grumbled. "I suppose that will be all for today. Don't forget you have you presentations due, and I expect them to be at least sixes." (A/N I'm using a lot of IB stuff in this, but the grading scale for theory of knowledge (TOK) is 1-10. A 4 out of 10 is passing.)
The students departed the class, all heading off for different locations. Lenalee, Lavi, and Allen met Road and Kanda by their set of lockers. Amazingly neither Road nor Kanda had any new injuries, having been alone with each other for a few minutes.
"How was the mind fucking?" Kanda asked. "Bookman seemed pleased; it must have been awful."
"It wasn't too bad; I still don't quite get how to incorporate some of the ways of knowing though." Lenalee pouted, leading Lavi to wrap his arm around her shoulders, grinning.
"Ya did great, Lena-lady! Did ya see how tickled Gi-gi was? He's never that happy!" Lavi laughed as the group began walking toward the science hall.
"Lenalee was the only to understand it. I still have no idea what goes on in that class." Allen said, intertwining his hand with Kanda's, as Kanda pressed a kiss to the crown of the whitette's head.
"Allen! Kanda!" Lenalee shrieked. The boys jumped at her outburst. "When did this happen! And whyyyyyy wasn't I told?! I could've had so many good pictures of you two together!"
Kanda and Allen stared at her like deer in headlights, dumbstruck while Lavi and Road fell over themselves laughing.
"It's a *gasp* fairly new development *gasp* Lena-lady~!" Lavi told her between gawfs. "Maybe a few *gasp* hours old."
"TOGETHER?! WHO'S TOGETHER?! NOT MY DEAR, SWEET, PRECIOUS LENALEE! WHO DOES BIG BROTHER NEED TO KILL? LENALEE~~~!" As if on cue, Komui came bursting out of his class, limbs flailing in all directions, tears streaming down his face, as he clung to his sister.
"Niisan! It's not me! It's Allen and Kanda!" Lenalee exclaimed, pushing him off. "Aren't they adorable!"
"Oh, yes, yes of course." Komui cleared his throat, and straightened his clothes before crisply walking back to his room. "Don't be late!"
With that the group filed into the lab, preparing for another hellish ninety minutes of Komui.
˚~˚~˚~ We don't need no education! … Hey teacher leave those kids alone ˚~˚~˚~
"From there the acetyl-CoA enters the Kreb's Cycle by joining with the 4 leftover carbons, and it goes through a series of reactions…" Komui droned on about the Kreb's Cycle. Allen sat attentively, furiously taking notes all the while. When a small paper ball found its way onto his paper, he brushed it away, and continued writing.
"Allen!" A whispered voice called to him as the paper came back. Sighing, Allen paused in his frantic note taking, and uncrumpled the ball.
Meet me after class. Alone. I have to ask you something. 3 ~Road
Allen's eyes widen, what could Road want? Suddenly, time slowed; its break-neck pace replaced by a snail slow crawl, not at all helped by Komui's lecture on the Kreb's Cycle.
˚~˚~˚~ Hold it together birds of feather, nothing but lies and crooked wings ˚~˚~˚~
"Allen~!" Road jumped onto his back as he exited the classroom with Lenalee, Lavi, and Kanda. "I have to talk to you about something, but it can't be here. Let's go to my room; Lenalee and Lavi are going out tonight, so no one will overhear us. It's about the family."
Road whispered into Allen's ear, smirking at Kanda all the while. Kanda, for his part, steamed silently. Allen reached out and patted his shoulder, smiling.
"I'll see you later. You've got nothing to worry about; it's family stuff." Allen began walking back towards the dorms. Road waved back at their friends as she was carried away.
"Ok see ya later, Allen! Maybe we could play poker later!" Lavi called, waving as he and Lenalee departed towards the school's main gate.
"Tch, we'll see about that." Kanda growled, stalking back to his own dorm to get Mugen.
˚~˚~˚~ Nothing could be worse, all these imaginary friends, hiding betrayal, driving the nail ˚~˚~˚~˚
Road unlocked her door, and brought Allen inside. The dorm was typical of its occupants. Road's half was filled with toys, candy, and dark colors with borderline spooky posters. Lenalee's was brightly colored and neat with cheerful decorations.
"Make yourself comfortable, though this shouldn't take very long." Road said, throwing herself onto her own bed. Allen went over to the window, and perched on the sill, half on it and half off. He drew his knee up to his chest, and waited for Road to begin.
"Well, I'm sure you remember my family? I know you remember Neah." Road smirked at Allen's suddenly paled complexion. "We've missed you, Allen. If you had stayed after Neah's death, we would have taken you in, and made you one of us, truly one of the family. But, you can't change the past!"
"So, what do you want from me, Road? I missed you, too, but your family, at least some of them, always creep-ed me out." Allen laughed apologetically. "I mean you and Neah were always my favorites and I consider you two family, but them… I don't know. That might take awhile."
"Time is of no consequence, Allen. But what I wanted to ask you is that I want you to come to the family Christmas party. It could be your re-introduction to the family! There has been a bit of turn over, since you last saw us, what ten, twelve year ago or so." Road laughed. Allen thought it over; for Christmas break he had though he could either stay at the school or go with Cross. But now here was a pleasant option.
"Alright, sure. What's the worst that could happen; I get stuck with you and Tyki all night. Heaven forbid," Allen joked.
˚~˚~˚~˚ Open your wings evil angel, fly over me evil angel, why can't I breathe evil angel? ˚~˚~˚~
"Lord Millennium?"
"Yes, Road dear, what's happened 3?"
"He's coming. In no more than a two weeks, he will be ours. And this time, he won't escape."