Okay guys, chapter 173 broke my heart and mended it all over again, so more plot twists have formed and I ABSOLUTELY ADORE LINK NOW, TOO!! T-T oh dear God... CROSS-SAMA!! I KNEW YOU WEREN'T A TOTAL A--HAT B-- MASTER! Q-Q -Cross Marian fanclub member-

and I know I got Cloud wrong, but I havent heard enough from her to write her correctly T.T

But guys... if you have a question, or expect me to reply to you... please log in? It makes it much easier to reply if you do, and I've gotten some amazing reviews that I want to reply to, but I cant since they're not logged in -.-

there are times when people misread and I want to correct them, or when I'm given a question, I want to answer it, and I'm not going to be using anyone's email other than on , because... well, that'd give away my email, too. So, if you want me to reply/answer a question... please sign in for like... five seconds? I'm not nagging, and you don't have to, but it'd make it easier...

This sucks, I know it sucks, and it's short, but I've been having problems with writing lately. I know what I want to happen, but I'm going to have to get past the first stages of this before I can go do what I want. Timing's also an issue in here, so it's going to be complicated like that, so please don't yell and scream at me for not-so-great chapters like this...

disclaimer: s are overused

The door banged shut behind him as he entered, promising that none of them would leave before the meeting was over. It was dark and took several moments for his eyes to adjust to the dimness. It was scarcely decorated. The only thing that could possibly be called a decoration was the huge flag over the tabel, hanging down over them, forcing the Order's crest to be noticeable at almost every moment.

The tabel was large and round, black and surrounded by chairs, half filled, half open. He swallowed and took his seat beside Renee, head of the American Branch. They shared a glance with each other before looking over at their friend, Komui.

Komui looked, in a word, beaten.

There were bigger bags under his eyes than anyone had ever seen on him. His hair was uncurled and lacking it's usual sheen. One of his hands had a darker blotch on it. A coffee stain, most likely. That hand was trembling.

Why? He had already been cleared of any charges of having connections to the 'deserters' other than his younger sister and the fact he had defended Allen Walker two years prior. However, it was determined by the grand generals themselves that Komui was innocent and was never planning to help them escape.

Levirrier, obviously, was furious. It was a well known fact at that point that he had been trying to purge all impurity in the Order for years. Allen Walker had been the one stain he had been fighting with for a while. The moment he supposedly had the stain off of the clean white shirt, coffee came and spilled again on it, making it even larger than before. True to that, Allen Walker had returned in a bang, stealing exorcists into his alliance. Like a coffee stain.

Komui's hand with the coffee stain was shaking. His little sister was gone. Going to be hunted down. Allen was going to be assassinated if anyone found him. Kanda was deemed to be put into custody with Johnny and the Bookman Order was thinking very seriously about the fate of their faulty apprentice and the most promising heir.

Bak and Renee shared another worried look. They had also become attached to the 'deserters' during previous visits. It was quite impossible to not feel anything for them, but what they felt had to be like nothing compared to Komui.

Komui had watched as Lavi struggled to become and exorcist and then try and fall out of the habit. Komui had watched as Kanda struggled to be the best and never ever be hurt. Komui had watched Allen live in hell. Komui had watch quietly, sitting beside his little sister, holding her hand while she was writhing in insanity.

Komui had sat beside Johnny at night, telling him Tapp had definitely gone to heaven with Suman. Komui had seen it all and everything else there was after that.

Bak breathed out a tense sigh while Renee closed her hands into fists under the table. They might not be from the same branch, but Komui and the 'deserters' were their friends and they weren't about to be left out of the action. They tried to sort out everything in their heads, everything they ever knew and every debate they'd ever been in. Like it was all coming up, directing them to this one debate.

Levirrier and Link strode up to the front of the room, Levirrier surrounded by an air of tenseness and loathing, directed towards most every person in the room. Link carried with him a large stack of papers, and though it didn't show, he had the distinct air of a person who did not want to be in whatever place they were already in.

"We are here today to discuss the deserters," Levirrier barked. One of the people, somewhere in the shadows of the tabel, groaned. Levirrier's head snapped around to their direction.

"Inspector, please forgive my rudeness, but have we not discussed them enough?" She asked.

"Three of our most powerful exorcists and one of our most knowledgeable scientists are on the run with a Noah who obtained an Innocence through taking over the body of the supposed Destroyer of Time!" Levirrier barked, "Are you so willing to let such traitors run free, while they have the power to overthrow our Order, which has stood, battling the Millenium Earl for uncountable years?" The room echoed with Levirrier's outburst. The poor lady whom had dared speak fell into frightened silence. Not a squeak escaped her. There was silence for almost several minutes before yet another lady spoke.

"Levirrier..." Cloud whispered, "What exactly are you planning for those children?"

"Only the most painful and inescapable death this Order can bestow," He hissed back. "Those 'children', as you call them, have committed the worst crime in the recorded history of the Order," He said, his voice rising with every word, "The Bookman records that were secured two years ago, have still not yet yielded a worse crime, and they were recorded by the original Bookman in the time of Noah himself!"

More silence was followed by this. "And why 'children', Miss Nyne?" Levirrier asked, reverting to hushed words. "Surely you've realized by now they are monsters whom have invaded our tower and leeched off our precious sacrifices that God himself hath granted us," Komui visibly tensed up. "Everything about Allen Walker seemed to point to him being a traitor, but no one saw the warning signs before—"

"—Why would we know Walker was or is a traitor?" Bak demanded. "Walker was the most trustworthy, inspiring young man most of us had ever—"

"Allen Walker appeared at the Order with a curse mark on his forehead!" Levirrier roared. "Allen Walker survived the Noah two times when he supposedly was to be exterminated! Allen Walker was able to control the Ark on pure will and Allen Walker was and currently is the heir to the Fourteenth Noah!" A bang echoed through the room as he struck the tabel.

"Did any of you think it odd that he could charm anyone into anything? Or that the late Cross Marian would just happen to pick him up after he had brutally murdered his foster father, who happened to be Number Fourteen's older brother?—"

"Dont youbring Marian into this!"

All eyes turned from Levirrier to Cloud. She was standing, her hair displaced from her outburst, showing the battle scars on her face. Her pale blue eyes flashed dangerously, clear and focused, ready for a fight, verbal or physical, it didn't matter much.

"Cross Marian was and probably is a bastard, even as a ghost or a devil, or whatever he is now," She said. "He was a bastard, but when you saw the way he looked at that poor child, you knew that—"

"Knew what?" Levirrier shouted. "Knew that he was planning to use Allen Walker to overtake the Order, but was killed before he got the chance? Knew that Allen Walker was the one? What did you know that Cross wanted with a child such as that?" He spat. "Allen Walker was apprenticed to Cross Marian for three years, on the fourth year he came to the Order and aided in the search to find him! In that same year, he was discovered to be related to the Noah, and you stand here, expecting me to believe everything Cross did was out of coincidence?"

Cloud was silent, but she still stood firmly, her lips in a tight line.

"Do you expect us all to believe that Cross Marian stood idly by and allowed the Millenium Earl to meet Allen Walker on his father's grave? Don't you think that's a slight bit idiotic, considering his duty an exorcist!" Cloud closed her eyes.

"If you had even glanced at Cross when that boy was mentioned you would have realized Allen was almost his son..."

"Cloud, please sit down..." Komui said. "Your argument wont be heard here, I'm sorry," Cloud bit her lower lip, but did sit down. "Now, Inspector Levirrier," Komui said, his voice strengthening with every syllable. He looked up heatedly at Levirrier. "Would you be so kind as to enlighten us as to what we will be discussing, and possibly, begin the discussion? I recall I have work to do," Levirrier's eyes narrowed.

"Of course," He said, "We will continue using the Ark for transportation to the battle field."

The room irrupted in conversation. Levirrier growled until they finally died down, demanding he be heard. "We are only using it in sight of the assumption Allen Walker will be too fearful to use it if he hasn't yet shut it down," He explained, his voice growing level. "The fact remains that there may be a trap, and so, before anything, we are planning to launch a full-scale investigation of the ark and all it's portals, in addition to guards being posted at every entrance."

Several mutters and sharp comments swept about, all at once so it was difficult to decide whom had said what. Bak hissed to Renee "He certainly does love abusing power. We only have so many men... and why would Walker try to come back if he just got out, anyway?"

Tiedoll and Sokaro shared looks. "I doubt Allen's foolish enough to try something of that sort." Tiedoll muttered. Sokaro grunted back about "the brat wont even try to close the portals, the imbecile takes after Cross, after all..."

"We will dispatch a group of exorcists to track them down when we have enough in spare," Levirrier continued, "In the meanwhile, we should have strict supervision over all exorcists whom knew Allen Walker."

One by one, everyone but Bak, Komui, Link, Renee and the three generals were getting into the act. "Make it a new policy to have a tracking chip imbeded into the exorcists, so we wont ever have them run away! Get the science department on that right now!"

"Make the newer exorcists track down the desserters, they wont have emotional attachments to get in the way."

"Can Hevraska trace innocence? We might be able to find them that way."

"Did anyone ever decide if Cross was really dead? It could have been he was trying to get Walker out of the Order but he failed and got himself killed or had to go into hiding!"

As the mutter and bustle died down, Levirrier spoke again, "Furthermore, no one is to address the heretics by name within the walls of the Order unless it is of the most importance, so much that they must be at our gates, weapons out and looking to kill to even utter their leader's name," This time, there was no muttering, no movement, just confusion.

"Why would we not say their names?" Someone asked. Komui did not know them, neither did Bak Renee or the generals. It was one of the Grand Generals in charge of the Order. A female.

"Because, Miss Currel," Levirrier stated, "They no longer exist as anything other than deserters who need to be captured."

CRITIQUE, PLEASE!

Next to be updated will probably be the X-over, then CoinBoy or BeforeItWasLost. I'm trying, I really am.