Part 2
When Allen reached Komui's office, he knocked twice before entering, closing the door behind him. Treading carefully, he walked through a hoard of papers on the floor. There was also towers of books stacked everywhere that looked like they were about to topple.
He saw Komui's rabbit coffee mug on the edge of his desk among surrounding books and approached it. "Um, Komui? Are you alive in all this? I think this place is messier than the last time I was here." Allen was amazed was the disarray like a child who didn't put away his toys.
"One man's mess is another man's organization, Allen." Komui's disembodied and exhausted voice came from behind the desk. The Chief of the Eastern Branch of the Black Order was always doing paperwork. One of the perks of being an infield Exorcist was that Allen had only a small amount to do when he submitted his reports, but they still had to be as thorough as possible, right down to every detail.
Allen received complements on his reports. Despite not having a formal education, Mana had taught him how to read and write, what little he did have served him quite well.
Komui's head popped up over the pile of papers on his desk with a tired smile. The man, himself, was a happy person, always looking at things with a positive tone. His glasses were crooked on his face when he appeared. Komui fixed them. He then stood up. The pile on his desk, however, only showed Komui's top half.
"I have no idea how you can work in such a mess, Komui," Allen remarked.
"I get by," Komui replied. "Besides, I know where everything is. Careful not to step on those papers on the floor in front of my desk. They're new and have to be filed."
Allen lifted a foot and then moved away from the said papers, shifting to the left of the desk. He did see the image of a boot print on one paper but didn't say anything. There was a small couch near by and Allen made his way to it, but didn't sit. Instead, he looked down and saw even more papers covering it. Everything looked like a bomb went off in Komui's office.
Komui sipped his rabbit faced coffee mug and then stuck out his tongue. "Bah! It's cold!" he said. "I need my hot coffee to help me work." He whined. "So much bloody paperwork. After each Exorcist submits a report after a mission, I then have to go through it, condense the contents, and then submit my own report to the Black Order higher-ups. It takes up so much of my time. I would rather be working on my inventions."
"Like that toy duck your sent into the Woman's bath to find me?" Allen replied.
Komui chuckled. "Yes, well, but a bath is a bath, right?" he said. "You're refreshed now?"
Allen gave Komui a narrowed gaze. "So, what is this new mission you have for me? And please don't tell me you requested my assistance to help you clean up your office? Because if so, I'm leaving right now. I'm tried, Komui. I just came back from a tiresome mission."
"No, Allen," Komui said plainly, "a lot of this paperwork is for a new special project. That's why I asked you to be careful where you step. If even one ounce of information is unreadable, it could jeopardize the entire thing, and set things back weeks, months, even years!"
Allen gulped, and then eyed the piece of paper on the floor in front of Komui's desk with his boot print on it. Allen didn't ask what the 'special project' was. He thought it was best to let sleeping dogs lie, and hoped, no one later examined the boot print on the paper to his. It was best to see what this new mission was and then get the heck out.
Komui looked thoughtful for a moment. "Maybe I should invent a computerized filing system so information can be retrieved at the push of a button? All these papers are a bit problematic. Nah, hard copies are aways best. They're always easier for me to find."
Allen cocked an eye brow. Easier, he says…
"Hmm, now where did that sheet go with the mathematical specs to the project? I think it fell off the edge of my desk to the floor somewhere? It's very important."
Allen swallowed again. Oh, crap… he thought.
Allen thought of Komui as some kind of mad scientist, but without the full blown insanity. Although he could be eccentric at times, he was a brilliant man. He was also very protective of his sister Lenalee, too, and if anyone made even the tiniest advance towards her, that person would be subjected to the most harshest duties to be found in the Black Order.
He heard a rumour that someone from the kitchen staff made an advance towards Lenalee. She just brushed it off as a casual remark, but when Komui heard about it, well, even the Black Order had sewers to clean. He had not been seen in the kitchen since.
Just then, the door to Komui's office opened and Lenalee came in.
"Hello, Brother," she said happily.
Komui smiled. "Lenalee! I'm glad to see you."
Allen looked at her. Lenalee was cute, he couldn't deny it. But he knew mixing business with pleasure just wouldn't work for an Exorcist. He had to keep a relative distance. In his line of work, attachments could be deadly—even though he would lay down his life to save another. Not to say the Black Order didn't feel like a family to him, but emotion could be the enemy when battling Akuma. And yet, he couldn't turn off his emotions like Kanda.
I'm not a robot, I have feelings, and urges just like any other hot blooded man…
Yet even a simple: "Would you like to get some dinner together?" would bring a hailstorm of vengeance from Komui. And Allen didn't want to clean the sewers.
But if I still want to BE a man, I better keep myself in check here.
Allen first met Lenalee outside the main gate of the Castle when he first arrived to the Black Order, and after she belted Kanda over the head with a clipboard for being insufferable, believing Allen was an Akuma because the Gatekeeper saw a mark that it interpreted as the mark of an Akuma on his forehead above his left eye—a five star pentagram.
Allen had met a few pretty women during his travels, but Lenalee was the prettiest. But it wasn't until they wrapped up a particular mission together did he then notice her true loveliness. She always brightened a room and she always brightened his heart. He felt his heart thump faster as she walked into the office, but he tried to hide his enthusiasm with her arrival. She wore a short skirt that showed her nice slender thighs. The rest of her was pretty nice too. Her hair felt down to her shoulders and seemed to glister in the light of the room.
Then he saw Komui eye him and he cast his eyes away from Lenalee. Allen momentarily envisioned himself with a mop and bucket scrubbing off dirt and grim in the deepest sewer drain and fighting off rumoured very large alligators who liked to pick off the cleaners. To date, three swear cleaners had gone missing, only their work equipment remained behind.
Allen cleared his throat, and watched as Lenalee handed her brother another mug of coffee off a silver tray she carried. On the tray was also some cookies, shaped in the form of rabbit heads like the character on Komui's other mug, placing them down on the desk. They had pink frosting and rather large ears. Lenalee liked to bake, so she may have made them herself for Komui.
"Allen," she said with her usual chipper tone. "Has Komui explained to you about our next assignment yet?" She came to stand next to him.
"Our assignment?" Allen turned to Komui. "For the accompaniment of two Exorcists, the mission must be very important," he added.
"That's right," Komui's said, stepping out into the open with the new mug of hot coffee in hand. He took a slip and basked in the taste for a moment. Then took a cookie and bit off an ear. "And I believe it's the perfect assignment for you, Allen," he said, his mouth partially full.
"Brother, swallow before you talk, or you might choke," Lenalee chided Komui.
Komui swallowed, then took another sip of coffee to wash it down.
He continued, "When it came across my desk, and was in need of immediate attention, while Lavi was her just before you came in, he reminded me of your trials with General Cross and your fondness to gamble. So, naturally, I thought of you for this mission. It involves Poker."
Allen frowned, recalling some bad memories. "I wouldn't call it a fondness, Komui," he said disgruntled. "It was more like survival." Allen recalled his days traveling with his Master and gambling in dirty Salons to earn money, not only to pay off his Master's sordid debts but also to eat and live himself. "Notwithstanding, what's the assignment?"
"It involves a gambling tournament organized by a rich philanthropist named William Tate. It takes place in two days on a riverboat in London. He's invited some of the top players in the world to participate. And a member of the Black Order did receive such an invitation. Unfortunately, he can't attend." Komui paused, and there was a moment of uncomfortable silence. Allen wondered why. Komui then smiled. "So I want you to attend instead, Allen. Information has surfaced that one of the Clan of Noah will be attending, but we don't know who."
"So you want us to infiltrate the tournament and gather information?" Allen asked. "Does this involve Innocence? Should we be ready to protect all those people attending?"
"I don't know, but when a member of the Clan of Noah is involved, you can be assured something sinister is up. The Black Order does know the Millennium Earl and the Noah enjoy engaging with the wealthy elite and like to stay connected, so this could be the reason one of them was sent an invitation. It would also entice others with similar backgrounds to accept. We don't have a recent picture of William Tate…" Komui rummaged through some papers. "Ah, here we go." He handed the picture to Allen.
Allen took notice of a large, posh man, with a handlebar moustache. He was mixing with other socialists at a dinner engagement when the picture was taken in this setting. It was a profile picture and William Tate looked to be speaking with a tall, young individual with darkest hair. "Is that who I think it is?"
Lenalee took a look. "I think it is, Allen," she said, with concern. "That's Tyki Mikk. Maybe he'll be the one attending representing the Noah?"
"He's not that great of a poker player," Allen began to say. Suddenly, a revelation hit him. "Ah, Komui, there's a problem with the plan," Allen said. "I'm too young. I can't enter 'official' tournaments, there's an age limit. You have to eighteen. Master Cross once tried to enter me into a tourney when I was younger, but it ultimately failed despite making me look like an easy target because I was young and 'inexperienced'."
Komui mused, he looked Allen up and down. "Your age and height do pose a problem, but luckily you have something going for you in this case: your white hair. Despite your boyish appearance, everyone will think you're a lot older. And I'm not making light of your situation, Allen. It's an asset in this case."
Allen nodded. His hair turned white with fright after his encounter with the Millennium Earl that day long ago when he was younger, with the return of Mana, his mentor. He wanted Mana back so bad after he died that he called upon the Earl to grant his wish. Little did he know that it was a trick and Mana's soul became trapped in an Akuma. Allen wasn't sure how he did it, but his Innocence had activated on its own in the presence of an Akuma and he managed to release Mana's soul back to great beyond, but not after he sustained an eye injury.
Mana sliced him with one of his mechanical talon appendages in a rage for bringing him back without thinking of the consequences. Allen had been very apologetic, but he just missed Mana.
Allen shook the memory aside. "Oh, that could work," Allen said quietly still within a moment of recollection about that day. "As long as I don't tell anyone my real age." Allen put a hand through his hair, it was thick. "I suppose for once my hair can work towards my advantage."
Lenalee suddenly inserted her hand into his lush hair, her hand moved through it feeling its consistency. "It's very soft, Allen," she remarked. "Do you use a special shampoo?"
Allen squeaked abashed and his face flushed. Why is she touching my hair?
Komui looked downright aghast, his mouth almost dropping to the floor.
"It is pretty nice, Allen," she said innocently. "Oh, I do seem to recall someone in the Science Department asked me to ask you if you would give them a sample of it to analyze for any residual bio-markers of Innocence as Innocence is in all DNA of a host even in hair cells."
At this point, Komui's new mug of coffee seemed to be boiling over with some sort of outward heat source. It was spilling all over his paperwork at his feet.
Allen swallowed hard.
"Um," Allen said, a little speechless. Komui looked like he was about to blow a gasket. Allen let out a nervous laugh. "Sure, but maybe not at the moment, okay?" he said, worried that he was able to be attacked by Komui for enticing Lenelee into some sort of fetish touching.
Komui looked at Allen with dagger eyes.
Lenalee dropped her hand. Then she looked confused at Komui. "Anything wrong, Brother?" she asked, seeing his reaction. "It was a legitimate request from he Science Department."
Komui suddenly smiled. "Oh?" he said, as if her words had some magical power to calm the savage beat inside him. He cleared his throat. "If it's for science, sure," he said calmly. "Allen, shave off your hair and give it to the Science Department."
"What?" Allen balked. "Wait just a minute."
Lenalee chuckled. "Maybe later, we don't have time to gather a sample right now."
"If the Science Department wants a small clipping, then I'm happy to oblige, but I'm not going to shave my head bald for them," Allen said.
Something in Komui's stare told Allen that his refusal was on the level of insubordination, an evil twinkle glint off his glasses. For a moment, he saw Komui coming after him with the largest part of shears the Chief could find or even build and cutting off his hair just to please Lenalee, and so Allen wouldn't look attractive to her—not to say she even feel that way.
"Just a small sample would be fine, Allen," Lenalee said, "but later. We have a new mission."
Allen let out a small sigh of relief.
Komui handed Allen a file folder before leaving after a short mission briefing and Allen browsed through it as he made it back to his quarters, and Lenalee to hers, but he would have to go through it more thoroughly on the trip there. He knew he would have some time to do so.
He started to pack his things.
To be continued...
