Hey, it's your lovely authoress speaking and I would like to thank you all for the reviews! Seriously, you people are amazing and you are what keeps me updating this story!

I would like to announce that im changing the plot of the story a bit (but you probably wouldn't have noticed, I just felt the need to say it…)

Oh yeah, and I think I mentioned something about posting the first chappie for a different story, and I tried to, but fanfiction screwed up or whatever and then I decided to not post it til later… so yeah

Im gonna just get on with it now (but I fucking love you guys XD)

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Two and a half weeks, twenty arguments (five of them fatal), and four trashed blueprints after the bombshell that was the first conference between the two companies, the design was completed. It was actually really simple, so simple that the two Presidents couldn't believe they hadn't thought of it before. It made Lavi laugh hysterically and when Lavi laughed hysterically it made Kanda want to strangle him to death and when Kanda wanted to strangle him to death it made them argue and when they argued things got out of hand.

But that was a common occurrence (and why five of the arguments were fatal).

Anyways, the design fit all of the descriptions perfectly. Solar panels coated the complete top hood of the car. In order to better conceal them, they researched a special dye that is able to conform to any object and make it any color of the rainbow. It just depended on what was mixed with it.

The only bad part about this discovery was that the only place to get the product was on the backstreets of Austria. It was also incredibly expensive, seeing as it only existed in one part of the world. But Kanda had many resources at his disposal. That combined with Lavi's assets made them virtually unstoppable.

And neither of them was adverse to blackmail.

The car was definitely cheap enough for middle class Americans and the storage tanks were large enough to keep the car going for a week, if not more. It was small and sleek, but could fit five passengers. Lavi and Kanda's design would be perfect for anyone, whether it was a forty year old businessman or a soccer mom driving her kids to practice. And, as a plus, they incorporated the dye in a way that would allow the owner of the car to change the color to whatever they liked. They both hoped this would get them extra points with Leverrier.

But first the model had to be built so they could see if it actually worked.

"So I guess we have the week off, huh?" Kanda jumped in surprise. He turned away from the papers he was authorizing to see Lavi leaning against the wall of the conference room. He looked comfortable, as if he had been there for a while, watching, learning. Doing whatever Lavis do.

"When did you-?"

"So what are we going to do?" Lavi asked, ignoring what Kanda was saying. As usual.

He sighed.

"Lavi, I'm working. Go away." Kanda began scanning the papers again. He found that it grew harder and harder to concentrate as a pair of feet shuffled slowly over to the table. By the time Lavi reached the chair next to his, he had read the same line over nine times. He growled and dropped the documents. "Don't you have your own company to run?" Lavi smiled.

"Yes, I do." He stopped at that, apparently not going to say anymore. Kanda raised his eyebrows in askance.

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Are you going to go run it?"

"Nope." Again, Lavi didn't elaborate. He just relaxed back in his chair and crossed his arms behind his head. Kanda resisted the urge to push the chair out of one of the many windows lining the room.

"You're not giving me the right answers."

"You're not asking me the right questions." Kanda's fists clenched and he gritted his teeth.

"You're unbearable."

"In case you hadn't noticed, you are too." The tone of the redhead's voice turned his rising anger into curiosity. Lavi didn't sound rude or sarcastic; just matter of fact. Kanda glanced up at him. The redhead was zoned out, seemingly in his own little world.

"Why say it like that?" Lavi blinked and moved his gaze from the wall to Kanda's face. The long-haired man regretted saying anything when that one green eye stared into his own. He sensed that their conversation had taken a serious turn. Lavi cocked his head slightly to the right.

"Isn't everyone unbearable in their own way? I mean, there's something about all people on this earth, at least one thing that just pisses others off. Don't you think?" Kanda couldn't help but nod. He was mesmerized by the brightness of Lavi's eye, and he found himself wondering what his other one looked like.

Maybe he received an injury when he was younger that left an ugly scar he was embarrassed about. Or maybe he was like Tim with his two different colored eyes and he didn't want to be gawked at everywhere he went. He could even have another brilliant emerald eye sparkling under that patch and Kanda would be none the wiser.

"Of course, you are more unbearable than any normal person what with your constant yelling and anger management problems. I think you should see a psychiatrist before you scare a small child or punch an old man in the face. You also growl a lot; were you a dog in a past life?"

And the moment was gone.

Kanda snapped out of his reverie. And he was mad. Really mad. And Lavi was smiling. Fucking grinning. Which made him even angrier.

He stood up, shaking with silent fury.

"You son of a-."

"Heeeeeeyyyyyy guys!" Allen's incredibly loud voice blasted through the otherwise soundless room, surprising both of the Presidents.

Kanda's head snapped toward the door and he tripped over his chair. Lavi stared at him wide-eyed as he fell forward. Kanda's hand brushed the top of the table, making the papers fly everywhere. And they both realized that Allen wasn't in the room.

Lavi yelped as the full force of Kanda's body weight hit him right in the chest. Kanda tried to stop his fall, but he couldn't find any purchase and just ended up right on top of the redhead. It wasn't so bad at first, but then they hit the ground.

Kanda knew the air rushed out of Lavi's lungs because it happened to him as well. It was probably a lot worse for the redhead, though. A bit of concern pricked at the corner of his being, but he ignored it.

There was an unspoken barrier between the two of them and Lavi had just broken it. He deserved to be in a bit of pain.

"Get… off… me." Lavi gasped out. Kanda would've laughed at the way the redhead looked right then, trying to inhale as much air as possible, if it weren't for the fact that he was feeling much the same way.

And Kanda never laughed.

He rolled off Lavi and regretted it the moment he did it. It wasn't so bad when he had been still, but now that he moved, a sharp pain bit at his chest. After shifting around a little, it wasn't so bad. It was more annoying than anything. But he was Kanda Yuu.

He could deal with it.

It wasn't like he didn't already deal with a certain annoying something every day. Not naming names (Lavi) of course.

"Woah. Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt anything… you two look a bit… flustered." Allen's laughing voice came from a small speaker next to an even smaller video camera. Kanda sat up with a slight wince and glared at the camera.

"Allen, what the fuck are you doing in the Security office?" A sheepish chuckle came out of the speaker. Lavi sat up next to him, taking deep breaths with a hand over his heart.

"Jeese, give us a little warning before you do that next time, eh?" He said, irritated. "I don't want Yuu to flatten me into a pancake. I like my body the way it is, thank you very much."

"So does Kanda." Allen giggled girlishly.

Kanda face-palmed.

"Did he just make a sexual comment about us?" Lavi asked it like he was asking his mom where babies come from. Kanda groaned.

He really was working with a bunch of idiots.

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Allen, enough with the jokes and tell me why, exactly, you are speaking to us over an off-limit intercom?" There was a pause before Allen spoke again.

"I sensed a spike in the rage-meter and had to check that you weren't beating the living daylights out of your partner. It was out of the kindness of my heart I did this and you should be thankful. I basically just kept you out of prison for the rest of your life. And you know what else? I think I hear the sound of a raise in the middle distance. Do you?" He rolled his eyes. Allen was acting like a little girl. He wanted to know the real reason as to why he was down there. He wished the white-haired man would stop beating around the bush; it was exasperating.

And he wasn't getting that raise.

"I don't hear it."

"Really? I think it just got louder."

"Is he always like this?" Lavi whispered. Kanda inclined his head at him.

"Every fucking day." The redhead frowned.

"Well, why don't you fire him?" Kanda scoffed. He couldn't help it; the question was just too ridiculous to him.

"I couldn't fire him. He gets the job done and that's all that matters." Lavi seemed satisfied with that answer. "It's not like I could fire him even if I wanted to." He mumbled the last part under his breath.

As if he hadn't already considered that.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Are you guys done gossiping? Because a certain douche bag is here to see you." Kanda froze and felt Lavi do the same. He stood up and took a small step toward the camera.

"You don't mean… Leverrier?"

"The one and only." For a second, Kanda panicked.

"He's not in the room with you, is he?" Allen chuckled.

"Of course not!" Kanda sighed in relief. "As much as I hate the guy, I'm not about to say what I think of him to his face. Thankfully for me there're many others I can do that to. For example," Kanda ignored the now rambling Allen and extended a hand to Lavi. The redhead took it, gladly, and let the long-haired man help pull him up. A sudden thought struck Kanda.

"Allen, where is he?"

"On his way up."

"What?" Kanda immediately dropped to the floor and started picking up the scattered papers. "Why didn't you say that in the first place?" Allen should've known he would get all worked up about this. He hated it when people arrived unannounced, and since it was Leverrier, he hated it even more.

The guy really ticked him off for some reason. Not only that, but he felt weak when he was around. Weak and scared, like he was a little boy. And that just ticked him off even more.

Maybe it was the Hitler-esc figure. Or maybe it was the fact that the man could have any one of these car companies shut down in the blink of an eye if he wanted.

Yeah, probably the latter.

"Wow, you're in a state. Do you really think he's that bad?" Lavi crouched down next to him and helped gather the documents in some semblance of an order.

"He hates the guy with a burning passion." Allen chimed in. "I don't know why 'cause he won't tell me." Kanda felt Lavi's eyes bore into the side of his head, but he refused to look. He guessed that the other was starting to figure out that it wasn't just hate that he felt toward Leverrier, but also a small amount of fear. "He really shouldn't worry that much; I was joking before. I bought him some time, like the amazing Vice President I am." Kanda picked up the last paper and placed the pile on the table. Lavi deposited the ones he had gathered on top.

"Oh really? How did you do that?"

"I told him that you just introduced a new mandatory rule. Apparently, now everyone has to be strip searched before entering the building." Kanda stopped rearranging the chairs.

"You said what?" He asked sharply. Allen laughed. A small noise sounded behind him and he saw that Lavi was also snickering behind his hand. "It's not funny! For the love of God, Allen, please tell me you did not strip search Malcolm Leverrier, our fucking boss!" Lavi quieted at that.

"Oh come on, I didn't actually do it. I only told him he had to wash his hands and feet before entering."

"That's not much better."

"Okay, okay. Yell at me later. I've got to go, he just got in the elevator. Have fun." And with that, the line cut off, leaving the partners in the room alone once again.

Kanda shuffled back and collapsed in his chair. Quiet settled over the room even as Lavi sat down next to him. They both stayed there, waiting for Leverrier to arrive.

"You're right." Kanda said, breaking the comfortable silence.

"About what?" Lavi asked curiously. Kanda looked at him, completely serious.

"I should probably fire him."

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FYI STATEMENT

Name: Malcolm C. Leverrier

Description: Leverrier is a man of average height and a lot less than average looks. Some say he even resembles Hitler.

He is the current acting head of the VAP, and has been for 15 years, although he was not the man who founded it. His name was Charles Anderson and he died under suspicious circumstances. It was never ascertained if it was murder of not, but Leverrier was exempted as he had an alibi. (Though some people believe he had had his eyes set on that job and killed Anderson to get it.)

He has an assistant named Howard Link who worships him as a god. He follows him wherever he goes and does whatever he asks. When Leverrier in unhappy with a company, he sends Link as a warning. If Leverrier himself shows up, the company is most likely to be shut down. This is why he is referred to as a douchebag.

Warning: Leverrier has a short temper. It is best not to insult him or degrade him because he will explode. If he doesn't explode, that means he is planning the destruction of your life and you will wish you hadn't said one tiny word to him that was upsetting.

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"Good afternoon, Mr. Kanda, Mr. Bookman." Kanda flinched at the word 'mister.' That was what people used to call his father and he hated it when he was addressed as such.

"Why, hello, Mr. Leverrier. Would you like to sit?" Lavi said politely. Leverrier nodded and moved over to the table. Lavi and Kanda had stood up and moved forward when the man had arrived, so they followed Leverrier back to their seats. Kanda felt a slight pressure on his shoulder and realized Lavi was squeezing it. He looked over just as he flashed him an encouraging smile.

He felt a bit better after that.

"So, what brings you to First Illusion?" Kanda let Lavi do the talking, since he was still nervous and angry at the same time, both emotions fighting for dominance. He was afraid if he talked right now, he would either end up yelling or walking out of the room, both of which were not an option.

"Oh, I was just on my way to a meeting when I recognized that I was driving past your building, so I decided to stop in and see how you were coming along on your model. You see, I have a few spare minutes, but I must be going soon. I wouldn't want to be late." Lavi flashed him a smile and nodded enthusiastically. Kanda just watched.

"Of course, of course!" Lavi said happily. "We promise not to keep you long. Actually, our design was completed a few days ago and is now being built at the workshops in Akuma."

"Interesting." He said, stroking his moustache. He directed his attention to Kanda. "Why not make it at your company, Kanda? It is closer after all." Kanda was relieved that he had done away with the honorific. But at the same time he was offended with the way Leverrier was speaking to him. The man was sneering like he already knew everything about their project and was just there to insult the flaws and affront them in any way he could. In any case, Kanda was fuming. Lavi seemed to notice this and came to his rescue.

"Well, Mr. Leverrier, we worked out that since we've been doing the designing and configuring here, the model should be built at my place. And I trust my mechanics more, anyways." Kanda shot him a small glare, but the redhead didn't seem to notice. He just chuckled and Leverrier chuckled with him, though it was a lot more menacing than happy.

"Well, it's too bad you don't have a blueprint here because I really would've loved to see it." Leverrier said smoothly. Alarm bells went off in Kanda's head. It looked as if Leverrier was up to something, but he wasn't sure what. "Are you sure you don't have a copy lying around here somewhere?"

"Positive." Lavi said with a smile. It was a perfectly normal smile on the outside, but after spending weeks working with this man, Kanda could tell it was a forced smile. That meant Lavi was wary of Leverrier now as well. That helped Kanda regain some of his lost confidence.

"It's too bad we don't have a copy for you to look at. Then you could see for yourself exactly where we stand. Besides, don't you have a meeting to get to? We wouldn't want to make you late, Mr. Leverrier." Kanda said the name with no small amount of distaste. Leverrier narrowed his eyes.

"Yes, I do. Thank you for reminding me." Leverrier stated, mockingly. "I guess I will be on my way then." He stood up from his chair and walked to the door. Just when Kanda thought he was free, Leverrier turned around. "Oh, and Kanda?"

"What?" He asked as civilly as he could through his gritted teeth.

"Your new policy about washing hands and feet is one of the stupidest things I've ever heard." And with that, he departed.

Kanda was completely tense until the quiet sound of the elevator doors closing showed that the bastard was actually gone. His muscles relaxed and he let out a breath he hadn't even known he'd been holding in.

"I would've thought that last remark was funny if he hadn't said it in such a creepy voice. And the way he asked to see a copy of our work? I got chills. I can see why you're scared of him." Lavi said lightly, obviously trying to make Kanda feel better.

It didn't work.

"I am not scared of that asshole! Why the hell would you think that?" Technically it was true. He wasn't scared of Leverrier. He was scared of being weak and Leverrier made him feel like a fucking cockroach. Small and defenseless and useless.

Naturally, he was never going to tell Lavi that.

"I don't believe you." Of course he didn't. "You are scared of him. That or you're frightened of the way you feel when he's around." Kanda stiffened. Lavi saw this.

"So that's what it is, huh?"

"Can we not talk about this?" Lavi looked like he didn't want to drop the matter, but upon seeing Kanda's face, he nodded slowly.

"Sure thing. What do you wa-?"

"I think my Vice President and assistant slept together." He blurted. Lavi stared at him. Kanda internally scolded himself. He had been a bit desperate to change the subject and had just spilled the first thing that was on his mind. Which was probably a stupid thing to do; he really had to get some control over himself.

"Wow. Me too." Kanda stopped thinking for a second to see Lavi shaking with laughter. "Oh God, isn't that funny?" He cackled. Kanda blinked.

"Seriously?" Lavi wiped a tear from his eye, still chuckling slightly.

"Oh yeah, I'm dead serious. My Vice President is Tyki Mikk, whom you know. My assistant's name is Lulu Bell. She's the blonde with glasses. I'm almost positive they've slept together. Isn't that just weird?" Kanda looked at him, amazed.

"Yes, it is. It's Tim and Allen I'm talking about; know them?" Lavi nodded, a look of contemplation on his face.

"The white-haired man and the golden-eyed one. I've had my suspicions as well. Every time I've seen them together, they are just that; together. Almost inseparable. And now, out of the blue, they stop associating with each other. It doesn't make sense."

"Exactly. And I know them both well enough to see the looks they give each other… No matter which way I look at it, it seems like the most obvious answer in that they slept together. I'm not sure where the whole Tim being angry part works into this, but I have a few ideas." Lavi grinned at him.

"Tell me when you've figured it out. I love a good office drama." Lavi laughed heartily and Kanda found that the corner of his mouth lifted up slightly, too. He quickly wiped the look off his face before the redhead could see it. He didn't want anyone, much less Lavi, to see him smiling.

It would throw off the balance of the whole fucking universe.

"So, about Leverrier-."

"I already told you I don't want to talk about him." Kanda interrupted sharply. The redhead frowned at him.

"I just want to know what's going on between you two, I'm not trying to make you upset."

"You're making it sound like I'm having an affair with him." Kanda shivered at the thought. It was just too horrible to even consider. He wished he hadn't said it. "Which I am most certainly not having." Lavi started sniggering as he placed his chin in his palm.

"That's not what I meant by that and you know it." He said after calming down. He leaned towards Kanda and inspected him with his calculating green eye. Kanda stared defiantly back. "Are you going to tell me?" He finally asked.

"No." Lavi leaned back with a sigh.

"I'll find out whether you tell me or not. In case you hadn't noticed, I'm very observant." Kanda scoffed and Lavi stood up with a small smile on his lips. "I have to go now. Tyki has been holding down the fort while I've been gone and I don't want to anger him by taking too long." Lavi said with a chuckle. Then he looked at Kanda. "In answer to your earlier question, I do have my own company to run, it just doesn't take much effort during the Challenge. I'm gonna take some time off; I suggest you do the same." He walked to the door and turned. "Bye Yuu-chan. See ya in a week!" And with a wink, he left.

Kanda stared after him. Then he looked back at his papers. They were out of order so he set to putting them back in their places. He placed the ones he had already read in a pile and the ones he hadn't in a different one. When he was finished, he regarded his handiwork.

"Wait, did he wink at me or was he just blinking?" He asked the empty room. No one answered.

Damn that eye-patch.

Kanda stood up and ran a hand through his long ponytail. A slight crackling noise penetrated the silence. He paused and glanced around the room. It didn't take him long to realize what the noise was. He rolled his eyes.

"Allen, what do the words 'off-limits security office' mean to you?" The crackling noise appeared again.

"Ummmm… it means Allen is allowed to go anywhere he wants because he knows you love him?"

"Wrong. Now you better get out of there before I-." He stopped, remembering something important. Remembering how they had just been talking about Allen and Tim not too long ago. "Allen, how long have you been there?"

"I just got here. I came in when you were asking the vacant room a question. What were you saying; I didn't quite catch the whole thing."

"None of your concern." He said quickly, straitening his tie to cover up his fast reply.

"Okay, whatever you say boss man. I'm going to go talk to Debra about the files we received last week. Have you finished reviewing those documents yet?" Kanda glanced back at the table.

"Almost. I'll be done with them by the end of the day."

"Great. I suppose I'll see you tomorrow then?" He was about to say yes when he remembered what Lavi said earlier. He contemplated it in his head.

Should he take some time off? He hadn't since he had taken over the company. There was just too much work after his parents died, too many papers and too many people. He did deserve a day to himself. Maybe call up his old college friend Daisya and see how he was doing. Or visit his old mentor, Tiedoll…

So it was settled.

"No, you won't. I'm taking the day off."

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And so ends chapter four…

I hope you guys like it!

(you know, if you did like it, theres a little button under here that you can press and tell me yourself…. Just saying)