"Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap," Cam muttered to herself as she looked around. She couldn't find Allen anywhere. Dang it, this was worse than the time she was supposed to be babysitting Tia Marcy's toddler Jay-Jay and he'd gotten his head stuck in a chair. They'd had to saw it in half to get him out! Of course, Allen wasn't a five-year-old, but he was a temporal foreigner. Who knew what sort of trouble he could get himself in to.

They'd both been trying on clothes, figuring out what sort of stuff would fit him. She'd paid for about a week's worth of stuff out of her sister's bank account (and hoo boy, she hoped Gale didn't look at the bank statements any time soon), and she had to say that Allen looked pretty freakin' amazing in the right T-shirt and jeans. He already had to beat off girls with a stick wearing that silly Victorian get-up - now he was going to have to upgrade to a crow bar to keep them off his back.

The mall wasn't overly crowded, but there were still quite a few people. Suddenly, a familiar shock of red hair bobbed over the crowd, and Cameron ran towards Lavi. She kept an eye out for other witches, which undoubtedly were flocking the mall. This was one of their favorite places. Those who were good at illusions had more than enough ability to use their five-finger discount with a bit of a magic boost, and witches didn't like other witches encroaching their territory.

"Hey, you seen Allen?" Cam asked, trying not to seem nervous. The eye-patchy teenager scratched his face, and he looked sheepish.

"Eh, well, I thought... no, no I haven't. You mean you haven't either?" Lavi asked, suddenly becoming serious after deflating in admission. Cam groaned, rubbing her face.

"For the love a' Pete, I was supposed to make sure he didn't get lost. I take my eyes off of him for two seconds, and he disappears. He's worse than my cousin Jay-Jay," Cameron grumbled as she turned around. All she could see were skylights, kiosks, girls wearing near nothing, and guys who were up to no good. Allen was kind of hard to miss in this crowd. Where could he have gone?

"You seen Kanda either?" Lavi asked, and Cam scoffed.

"What, the guy with the stick so far up his anus it's coming out his nose? No, I haven't seen him. He left quite a while ago, probably to the culinary store down near Sears. They've got plenty of knives he'd be interested in," Cam said, brushing the question off. Kanda wasn't too much her concern. Yeah, he was more likely to get in trouble and thrown in jail, but at least they'd know where he was. Allen... was a completely different story.

Lavi made distressed noises as he realized that he'd lost both his travelling companions. Cam may not seem overly worried, but Lavi didn't like the idea of either walking around on their own, especially in an environment they were so foreign to. Lavi could blend in anywhere. It was his job. He could become anything, anyone, at any time, and if that meant going chameleon in this odd place with all its doodads and gizmos, he was perfectly okay with that.

Mostly. He'd work out all the other emotional stuff later. Right now, he needed to go and find his friend.

"I guess the first place we should check is that round food place thing that we passed through."

"...Uh, dude, do you mean the food court?"

"Yeah! Whatever that is! Point being, Allen's a big eater -"

"Psh, no kidding."

"-and if he's anywhere, he'll be there. Come on."

And, just like that, all the lights very suddenly switched off.


Allen washed his hands in the bathroom sink, feeling much better. He may have gone a little overboard at that small restaurant with the sticky chairs and bright, yellow 'M'. Still, it wasn't every day he was allowed to drink wonderful, sparkly drinks out of massive, plastic cups...

Suddenly, someone else came into the bathroom, and Allen looked up in the mirror as he rearranged his hair into something that resembled order. Ugh! How did he get french fry in his hair? Wait, Lavi had started chucking food at him after Allen had called him a bean pole. Ah, of course, that's where it'd come from.

The boy who'd walked in wore a checked scarf and bright orange sunglasses (how odd! These styles never ceased to amuse him), looking around expectantly. Allen could hear girls outside the bathroom, and he groaned internally. He'd been trying to evade many of the female gender. They confused him with their coy looks, their finger waves, their little giggles...

Lenalee had never been like that. Lenalee was just... well, Lenalee. Come to think of it, he didn't ever recall girls acting quite so... forward.

"Hey, I'm looking for a... um, an acquaintance. Have you seen him any where?" the boy asked, and Allen looked as he turned to leave. He smiled, and he said, "Well, it's just me in here. I haven't seen anyone around." The boy looked slightly dejected, but he smiled nonetheless.

"Thanks, then. I guess I'll just be going," he stated in a disappointed tone.

And then, of course, the lights went out.

The girls outside screamed, and the boy let out a high-pitched squeal of surprised fear. Allen was not quite so fazed. He was used to odd happenings, and he didn't like this particular event. Intuition told him that something was about to happen, something he was not entirely fond of...

The door opened, and Allen could hear a set of three footsteps. Dark, low voices talked amongst each other as Allen searched for the door. All of a sudden, Allen felt someone attempt to grab him, and he pushed away automatically. The other two footsteps came near as someone yelled, "This one! I got him right here!" Allen mule kicked backwards, easily taking down the first assailant with a hit to the knee. Allen closed his eyes to keep himself from getting distracted, using the tricks that Cross had taught him (or, at least, thrown him into, more like). Pinpointing the general whereabouts of the other two, Allen lashed out his Innocence-laden hand and smashed a fist into the first one, near the ear. A large earring cut through his skin, but it quickly healed over as Allen pivoted and jabbed an elbow into the stomach of the next assailant. A knife whistled near his ear as the second one tried to take a dig at his ribs, and Allen brought a fist up into the attacker's wrist, narrowly missing.

Realizing he'd bought himself time, Allen backed up towards the door. He heard whimpering in the hallway of the bathroom, and he gently stated, "Come with me. It's not safe here." The boy with the sunglasses immediately leaped to his feet and clung to Allen as the two scuttled their way out, the three assailants left either moaning or groping in the dark for their target.

It was still dark in the mall, but Allen's eyes were adjusting. There were plenty of skylights above, and the dim light of overcast sunshine drifted down lazily, illuminating dust motes.

It didn't take long for Allen to realize that he was being targeted. He needed to find Lavi and Kanda. They, too, could be in danger. Oh, how he missed Tim...


Kanda riffled through some of the shirts in some store called Sears, sniffing at the poor selection. Everything was plaid and made of some weird sort of rough material. Considering this was, well, the future, he'd thought they'd make something a little more comfortable. Besides, this wasn't really his style. He'd been looking for something familiar, like a white button-up or a sleeveless shirt, but so far he'd found nothing besides cotton T-shirts. Tch, everything was so... generic.

As he walked back towards the entrance, he was abruptly run into. Kanda stood like a rock, but the other man went down like a sack of potatoes. Kanda seethed, "Watch it, retard." The other man, an Oriental with seedy looking features and shoulder-length black hair, threw himself back into an upright position, and growled, "Wanna say that again, punk?" Kanda towered over the smaller man, eyes narrowed, and he stated, "Sure. Watch. It. Re-tard." The man suddenly cringed under the weight of Kanda's withering glare, and finally Kanda realized why the man had been running in the first place.

Angry voices shouted behind the Asian man as a large, portly dark-skinned man along with several other lackeys came out of the fitting rooms. The Asian looked behind him, and Kanda noticed his shoulders stiffen. He was bruised - he could see several new acquisitions as well as a few cuts on his face. It looked like he'd gotten in trouble with the five pursuing him.

"Over there! Let's get him!"

" 'ey, Rosco. We ain't done with our appointment yet! You ain't even seen Mr. Knifey-knife!"

"Where you gonna run now, you nasty li'l -"

Kanda's eye twitched as the other guy bolted and abruptly smashed into Kanda... again. This time, Kanda caught the guy by the T-shirt, and the Japanese man lifted him up and set him to the side like he was a puppy that was in the way.

"Stay here," Kanda stated. The man couldn't do anything but oblige.

Kanda didn't do things because he liked people. Oh no, if anything, he hated people with a burning passion. To him, they were all freaking idiots in one way or another, and the world would just be better off without them (or so he liked to believe). However, there were moments where that old chivalry rises, and Kanda was left with that nagging feeling of generosity. This was one such time.

More than anything, he hated seeing someone beat down without a fair fight. That was just wrong. He smirked. He'd fight this with his left hand only. To be fair.

"Ooooh, looks like boyo has dumb muscle on his side. This one of your Chink friends?" a particularly mouthy individual spouted off. Out of the corner of his eye, Kanda could see a store clerk frantically calling on a phone at her desk. He internally scoffed. Like that's going to do anything, lady. Kanda cracked the knuckles of his left hand as the five circled. The big one hung back, though, looking awfully thoughtful.

"Hey, boys. I think y'all should lay off of this one. Methinks he be more than you bargain for," the big one stated, sounding oddly distinguished for his company. Kanda was tempted to spit, but he felt that would be rude to do so in a store.

So he spit anyways. It landed on one, rubber-and-canvas shoe. The offended wearer was anything but happy.

"Oi, I payed a hundred friggin' bucks for these!" A fist swung his way, and Kanda batted it aside like it was a fly. The man was sent into a rack of clothes, knocking the whole thing over. Another two came at him immediately after the first, deciding to take the opening, and Kanda ducked under one, and flipped him on top of the other. The fourth one, this one more hesitant, removed a knife, and Kanda grinned, revealing a maniacal gleam that could scare the pants off of any serial killer in either dimension.

"Fun," Kanda muttered. It didn't take him long to relieve the man of his knife and turn it on him, cutting a gash into his leg. The other two from before had recovered -

The lights suddenly went out, and Kanda couldn't have asked for better circumstances. Psh, these amateurs couldn't hit a house if they were standing right next to it. Never the less, he did find it a nuisance when one had him in a choke-hold and the other stabbed him in the arm. Kanda grasped a forearm, and he wrenched to the side, hearing the pop and snap of a breaking elbow joint. The man screamed as Kanda threw him to the side and pulled off the other man on his back. The big one hadn't interrupted as of yet, and Kanda doubted that he would.

That one was smart. He was the one to look out for.

The lights flickered back on, and Kanda found himself facing a single, lone assailant, the first who'd had his shoe spit on. He was breathing hard, staring at his downed companion. One of them had an arm bent in an angle that was not possible, nor meant to be, another had blood pouring for his lip as well as a probable head wound, and the third was holding on to a near-hamstrung leg. Kanda gestured with two fingers of his left hand, smirking.

The final one removed a gun from his waistband, a large, ugly metal thing that seemed to exude malevolence. Kanda raised a single, sarcastic eyebrow. Guns he could handle.

However, he didn't get the chance to deal with the problem. A tall, blonde woman with a crooked nose suddenly walked in front of him, took the assailant's arm, and snapped upwards with her other arm. The attacker's eyes flew wide open with pain as he dropped the gun, and Miles contorted his arm again so it was up behind his back. He protested loudly, cussing as profusely as possible, as Kanda watched the cop-in-training kick his knees in so he was kneeling on the ground.

Kanda looked back to the Asian guy that he'd just saved, who looked rather shocked. He rubbed his throat, and he fidgeted uncomfortable next to Kanda. He suddenly smiled, crooked teeth gleaming out from a cavernous mouth, as he patted Kanda's shoulder, and he stated, "Man, we gonna be fri-"

Kanda didn't waste time punching his lights out. That's what he got for running into him and dragging him in here in the first place. He hit the floor harder than lead from a second story building. Whatsherface stared at him with incredulity.

"The heck you do that for? He didn't do anything, did he?" she asked, putting a knee in her chosen man's back. Kanda was busy looking about, trying to find the fat, dark-skinned man from before. It appeared he'd left as soon as the lights had gone out. He wasn't surprised. That one was definitely smarter than he let on. Not everyone had the brains to know when to run.

Allen and Lavi included. Especially Allen.

"Tch," was the only reply he gave, crossing his arms. Just as he'd promised himself, he'd only used his left hand. Ha, these guys might as well have been blindfolded the entire time. Absolutely no problem whatsoever. Of course, there was that little mess on his arm, but hey, nobody's perfect.

Police soon showed up, and Kanda immediately felt apprehensive. He didn't like authority. More than anything, he hated uniformed authority. No wonder he'd been so belligerent towards the Order. Still, they took the four, and Officer Whatsherface had a small talk. Kanda stood off, hoping not to be noticed. He could see Bookman standing off, not getting involved. The old man was a smart cookie, too. Kanda himself hoped he wouldn't have to deal with any of that mess. He didn't like sitting in a chair and answering questions. He was definitely a quiet guy. Telling stories was not his strong suit.

Lavi appeared pretty soon after that, followed by Whatsherface's sister, the drama queen. Those two were a match made in hell. They knew exactly how to push Kanda's buttons. They were too loud, they were too touchy, and they were too confident. It wasn't the best combination he could think of.

And then Allen. Kanda immediately felt murderous. As much as Allen was a definite equal, Kanda did not like the Beansprout. Optimism, pfeh. He could shove it about 'optimism' and 'hope' and 'saving people'. Most people didn't want to be saved (though the screaming masses that fled from Akuma would definitely beg to differ). Hope and optimism... After everything he'd seen, they were little more than pretty paper to dress up a dreary, brown package with nothing inside of it. And, to be honest, Kanda liked his package to be simple, plain, and straightforward.

There was nothing pretty about life. You came in, screeching and covered with blood and fighting it every minute, and most of the time, at least for Exorcists, you usually left the same way.

"What did you do?" Cam asked, staring at the number of guys who'd been tied with strange, plastic loops to each other. They all looked like they would recover in a few weeks, if that. Even holding back, Kanda had done a number on them. The Japanese man was watching over the racks and into the mall, a habit born of looking out for Akuma. He always knew when people were watching him, and there were definitely a couple of people on their trail.

"It looks like Yuu had a little fun, ne?" Lavi quipped brightly as he hung on to Allen, who protested to his personal space being invaded. For once, Kanda could empathize. Being attacked by the Idiot Rabbit was no fun for him either. Kanda sniffed. He suddenly narrowed his eyes as he watched the same four girls walk past again. They all walked by at different times in different groups, but it was always the same four, and they were a little too interested in the store to be wanting to buy simple clothing items.

They especially had their eye on Lavi, and not in the least lascivious way, as Kanda would've expected. Kanda had noticed that, too - girls, and even some guys, staring at the three of them in a way Kanda doubted had anything to do with mere curiosity. He didn't like it. For one, he wasn't used to it. For two, girls were... kind of icky and confusing. For three, being watched always gave him a bad feeling, no matter the reason. Still, as he watched the four girls go on their way, a nagging in him called him to blink and focus, an odd pulling sensation at his mind as if it had snagged on something he couldn't sense with his physical body.

And then, just like that, the entire world changed in an instant into swirling color, light, and humming, thrumming energy. A film had been placed over his vision, the real world overshadowed by a skeleton of bright lines and wonderful, indescribably color. In that moment, he noticed that the lights coming from Lavi and Allen and Bookman were distinctly different from Cam's and Miles', an innate intuition telling him that he too would glow with the same light. The four girls were not the same colors as Cam or Miles. They were blurry and indistinct, half-formed smudges of dimness. Blobs of light similar to each girl's own color was hovering nearby.

"Kanda? Whoa, Kanda, are you okay? Hey, snap out of it," a voice said, and Kanda blinked. The entire nightworld he'd seen vanished in an instant like someone had ripped a screen from the front of his vision, revealing the world to him again in all its stark, brilliant, every day form. The world of light he'd witness seemed to have burned an image into his eyes, though, like he'd been staring into the sun. He shuddered, looking at Lavi.

"What are you staring at, idiot?" Kanda seethed, shoving his shoulder and walking away, confused by what he'd just witnessed. Lavi put up his hands in his usual noncommittal manner and stated, "I didn't do anything, serious!" Kanda ignored his answer and continued heading towards the girls outside of the Sears, all of them talking among themselves in very non-girlish fashions. There was no giggling or glancing or snide expressions. It was just plain, straight business talk, something very serious, and Kanda knew for certain that the four were witches. That aura they'd had, the color of the light they'd thrown off...

"Hey. You four. The ones with the bad hair," Kanda said loudly as he neared them, and the girls looked up. They smirked and took on poses of 'toughness', but Kanda could tell that they were worried. After all, none of them topped five foot four, and Kanda was a good half-foot taller, not to mention just plain bigger. He crossed his arms and stated, "Go home."

"What? You can't be serious. What are you, a mall cop?" one of the girls asked insolently, and Kanda wanted to punch her in the face. However, he was feeling nice. The most he'd do was scare her. He cracked his knuckles, and he ordered again, "Go. Home. And tell whoever it is that's been sending you and your kind out here that they're going to be in a world of hurt if they keep messing with things they shouldn't." The girls glanced at each other before one of them muttered, "He's crazy. Come on, let's call security or something."

"Go ahead. I've got all the time in the world," Kanda grumbled, towering over them. The girls slowly began to walk away, slinking like chastised hyenas from a particularly grumpy lion. Lavi peered over his friend's shoulder and asked, "What was that about?" Kanda gave his stock answer as he began to walk back to the store.

"Tch."


"Okay, so, bread, milk, eggs, icecream, chips, soda, bananas, tampons - am I missing anything?" Gale asked as she pushed the little wire pushcart towards these large kiosks with moving, black devices that shoved the food around. Lavi and Allen had goofed off the entire time in the super market, even more so than when they'd been in the mall, and now Allen was picking up the tampons with a perplexed look.

"What are these for?" he asked, shaking the small box. Cam and Gale looked at each other nervously before Cam snatched them out of Allen's hand.

"Uh... just... girl things," Cam said mysteriously, and Allen looked at Lavi for help. Lavi himself didn't know, and he shrugged his shoulders. Kanda had decided to go home with Bookman, and so the two were left with Gale and Cam to grab the necessities for the week. They'd also bought toothbrushes (a strange plastic, bristle kind that Allen had thought was used for cleaning anything but teeth), toothpaste (which Lavi had squirted all over himself the minute he'd got a hold of a tube), deodorant (which Allen thought was actually some sort of candy), and shampoo (yet another item Lavi couldn't help but get all over his clothes).

"So, what's our plan after this? It's almost dusk," Lavi stated, leaning against the cart. He'd insisted on pushing Allen around in one, but the store manager started to look at them funny, so Cam told them to quit. The two had groaned and whined about it, considering they were having so much fun, and Gale had laughed. She'd never seen two people have so much fun in a super market.

"I had wanted to get Allen enrolled in Cam's high school, but it looks like we're going to have to wait on that. I need to talk to a friend of mine, Sergei, as well as my grandma," Gale said, and Lavi sighed. It looked like happy fun time was over. They'd be going home soon. Lavi walked over to the man swiping items across a red light, and he was fascinated by how the thing beeped every time something else passed in front of it, but only a certain way. What was this magic?

"Hey, could I try?" he asked, pointing to the little red light in its holder. The guy looked up at him with a disbelieving look.

"You're joking," he drawled, and Gale slapped her forehead. Luckily Allen and Cam had run to grab a few more things from the beauty aisle like soap and a razor, so they weren't around to join in the shenanigans.

"Humor me," Lavi said brightly, holding out a hand, and the guy sighed. He pointed to Lavi and said, "He's not from around here, is he?"

"You can say that again," Gale mumbled. "Just let him do it. Not like he's going to hurt anything." The guy behind the counter shrugged, and he handed Lavi the holder with the little red light. The redhead stared at it for a while, trying to figure out how it worked, before Gale held up a can of soup and handed it to him.

"See the bar code? You just swipe the laser over it, and it reads the code. Then, it goes in the computer and logs it in," Gale explained as Lavi did as she said, and it beeped. His face lit up like Times Square at New Year's. The guy behind the counter rolled his eyes in an exaggerated fashion as Lavi asked, "Can I do it again?" The cashier gestured to the rest of their acquisitions, and Lavi went to town, scanning everything.

"This is so much fun! You get to do this as a job? Sheesh, this is a piece of cake!" Lavi asked, and the cashier stared dully.

"After the first thousand times, it loses its novelty," the guy muttered. Lavi suddenly looked at the laser on the inside, wondering what it looked like, and he was immediately blinded.

"AH!" Gale took the handheld laser from him and said, "I think that's enough for one day. Come on, Cashier Boy, let's get this show on the road." Lavi rubbed his one eye with the heel of his hand, and he muttered to himself about laser lights and hammers as Allen and Cam came back. However, Cam looked red as a tomato, and Allen looked... well, confused would be too nice a term.

"Uh, Gale, could you explain the meaning of 'condom' to Allen?" Cam snickered, pointing to the boy who looked like he was being puzzled by a sphinx. Gale opened her mouth and shut it, realizing that she'd never had to explain this before. Teenagers usually understood right away what those were for, and little kids never asked about it. How did she tell this to a guy from the 1800s?

"Why do you ask...?" Gale said suspiciously as she handed grocery bags to Lavi. He was already carrying about six, and he looked like an overburdened camel. Still, bravely he tried to take on as many as possible, feeling guilty if he left so much as one.

"A girl handed me this, and I have no idea what it is," Allen said, handing over a very bright, very familiar looking square. Gale licked her lips as Cam busted out laughing.

"Y-you should've seen the look... on this old biddy's face! This skinny chick was wearing, like, shorts that make my underwear look like freaking granny panties, and this tube top in bright orange and she stuck it in his shirt pocket and- oh my god, it was hilarious, Gale, you should've been there," Cam gasped through giggles and snorts, and Allen still looked hopelessly lost. He shrugged his shoulders as he blushed, knowing that it had to do with something ... unsavory. Lavi, who'd caught wind of the conversation, suddenly asked Gale, "You want me to explain. We, uh, have something like it." Gale let out a small sigh of relief. She gestured towards Allen, and Lavi handed her the grocery bags. As they walked out of the store, Lavi and Allen walked ahead.

"How do you think he'll take it? That's one blatant pass," Gale muttered to Cam. By now, Lavi and Allen were talking animatedly. Lavi was making hand motions, and Allen still looked confused.

"Ah, he'll be fine. A couple of girls in the mall just about jumped him. I think it's the whole innocence thing he kind of just... radiates. I mean, seriously, he's cute as a button. Girls dig that sort of thing. It helps that he's a gentleman," Cam explained. Now, Allen looked like he'd gotten it. He was nodding his head, smiling, and then, suddenly his face turned to one of horror, and he flung the small, terrible package like it had caught on fire. Lavi laughed and slapped his knee as Allen wiped his hands on his shirt, and Cam grinned.

"Yep. He got it." Gale shook her head. Those boys had a lot to learn.


"Mama?" Gale asked. Skype was being stupid today, and the image was blurry. Lavi had asked about a thousand questions already about it, and the intern had to threaten to take off his head with Kanda's sword before he'd back off.

"Yes, honey? What is it?" Tanya Miles asked, and Gale sighed. This was always a touchy subject with her mother. The magic gene, or whatever it was that gave someone the ability to see the world as light lines and blurred, energy shapes, had skipped her, and so she'd always been out of the loop concerning Gale's magical abilities until she'd become a teenager. Her grandmother had had to explain everything, and Tanya was still a little... sore about it being kept a secret.

Gale's grandmother had taught her all the old ways of witches, the spells and tricks that were passed from mother to daughter, or in this case grandmother to granddaughter. She was Gale's go-to source on all things magical, and so far her grandmother's advice had been invaluable. Gale didn't know what to do about this problem, though. She'd never had to deal with something so big.

Allen walked by, and he stopped to wave at the camera. Tanya stopped and stared before asking, "Honey, what's with the teenage boys in your apartment?" Gale looked behind her, and she realized that Lavi was standing in the kitchen wearing nothing but his shorts, Kanda was currently polishing his sword using silver cleaner, and Allen, of course, was standing right behind Gale. Bookman was in the bathroom doing... whatever it was old men do in the bathroom.

"Uh, well, you see, that's what I need to talk to Nana about. It's, um, you know..." Gale said, making explosion gestures with her hands to indicate 'magical influence'. Tanya made an understanding 'oh' with her mouth, and Allen asked Gale, "Does she know...?"

"Yeah, but she's not a user. This is my mom. Mom, this is Allen."

"Uh... hello, Allen. Are they from... out of town?" she asked, and Gale wished she could control her facial expressions better. She could swear she just winced.

"You... could say that. Anyways, where's Nana?"

"Who's Nana?" Allen asked.

"My grandma. We call her Nana. It's a Hispanic thing."

"Whatchu talkin' 'bout, donde esta Nana? Nana's right here, you stupid," an old woman said, waddling into view. Tanya palmed her face, and Gale's face split into a smile. Allen snickered behind a polite hand, and the old woman seated herself next to her daughter.

"What do you need Nana for, mija?" Nana asked, her wrinkled face coming closer, her eye practically filling the screen as she leaned towards the camera. Tanya got up and left, throwing up her hands in despair. Allen stated, "Hello, Nana. I'm Allen. It's nice to meet you." Nana regarded Allen with a critical eye before smiling and saying, "This boy's a keeper. Too bad he's so young. They don't come polite like that no more. Then again, I always say to snag 'em young - you train 'em better." Gale stared at the ceiling, and she took a deep breath as Allen's face colored.

"Pull up a seat, Allen. Maybe you can explain this better than I can. Tell Nana what happened. It's okay - she's a much better witch than I am, trust me." Allen looked uncertain before he launched into his tale of how they had somehow been dumped nearly a hundred years into the future. Nana listened attentively, chewing on the end of an old pipe. At the end, she shook her head.

"Serious stuff, mija. You got yourself in some serious stuff. You talk to Sergei yet?" she asked, and Gale winced. Allen, completely new to this, asked, "Who's Sergei? I apologize for the questions, I'm just curious." Gale sighed.

"Sergei is a very rich, very...unfortunate friend of mine in the physics field. He's had dealings with magic, but... in a less benign form. He helped us create a circle that could cross dimensions with the least amount of energy expenditure, only he was caught in the blitz that came afterwards. He's not too happy with the witch community, and I don't know if he'll even talk to me," Gale explained. Allen nodded. He scratched his chin, thinking back.

"Perhaps if you offered something in return for his services, he'd be a little more willing to listen," Allen suggested, and Gale shrugged.

"There's not much I can give him. He's already got just about everything. Now if he'd stop being so sour, he could get himself a girlfriend," Gale muttered, and Nana cackled as she said, "You should offer yourself as his girlfriend, and then you can lead him along on a leash just about everywhere. I could give you some nice love potions that -"

"Nana. No. Love. Potions," Gale groaned, putting her face in her hand. Allen could only guess the havoc that love potions had caused. He'd seen some of the effects first hand from the Science Department. Oh, the horrible consequences of a simple attraction draught...

"Alright, alright. Fine. You want some real magic help, though, you gotta see Mama Constancia down in Mexico. Now she's a good'n. She knows everything there is to know about summons, one of the best teletransitrists out there. The other ones that are just as good are also a little crazy, so she's the safest bet. You'll need to book tickets for a flight down there. She should be able to tell you how to fix your little problem," Nana said, and Gale sighed to herself. Plane tickets weren't cheap. How was she supposed to get them all down there? She couldn't just leave the boys here -

The phone rang, and Gale got up.

"Hang on, Nana. Allen, shouldn't you be going to bed?" Gale sighed, and Allen scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. Allen looked up at the screen and Nana grinned.

"Ain't had any trouble as of late, right?" Nana asked, and Allen winced.

"I was attacked a few times since I've been here, but other than that everyone's been incredibly sweet," Allen said with a bright smile. Nana shook her head.

"Yep. They certainly don't make them like they used to. Shew boy, I would've like to have met you in my younger days, instead of that no-good, rotten, horse-stealin', rooster-struttin' Orlando," Nana grumbled, and Allen blinked several times. What was it with women in this dimension? It was like he was some sort of magnet! This wasn't funny!

"Mother! Papi was not a horse-thief! You were the horse thief!"

"And I was good at it, too! Better than your Papi, even. I didn't get caught, the sucker."


A/N: So, here I am again, finally! I know, I've been so late. I said weekly, and obviously that didn't pan out. Right now I'm on vacation - things should get a lot less hectic (hopefully), but seeing as my internet tends to be spotty considering I'm in the Third World, updates will be sporadic, as always.

Big, big, big thanks to Uniasus and karina001 for their wonderful input on the last chapter. Very good on the answering my crit questions! I love it, I love it, I love it! As well as the speculation on Kanda, which was amazing. I hadn't thought of that, honestly, but perhaps it will become an important piece of the puzzle now. Keep those reviews coming! Input is probably the best thing you can give to a writer, even if its just a small note on something you thought was interesting.

There are two new favoriteers to add to our ranks; give a big welcome to quillop and Lotus seed! Both of them are amazing reviewers as well as favoriteers. Go multitalented people! Be sure to check them out.

And my subscribing family is getting bigger, especially now that I have quillop and Bleachfan462. See what I meant by multi-talented? S/he's sure to get everything on this, and I'm amazed. I honestly didn't think this story was good enough to warrant subscription AND favoriting.

And, finally, the discussion questions: Were the fight scenes confusing? Did you have trouble following what was going on? Were the fight scenes well executed, or did they fall flat? What happened to Kanda's vision for those three or four seconds? What other modern day devices do you think the 19th century characters haven't encountered yet? How do you like the setting? Are the OC's enjoyable to read? Is the story suspenseful, or is the plot beginning to drag? Again, feel free to elaborate on any one question, or review on your own notes, comments, etcetera. Even better, combine the two if you want!

Now, I'm off to do another chapter, and hopefully get it down within the month...

God bless you, and keep reading!