Disclaimer: DGM not mine, and never would be.

I honestly thought DGM chapt 208 was the best ever already, and 210 just got it even better — epically hilarious and the YULLEN xD

DGM208 and DGM210 are loved.

;

Well okay okay, enough of that.

Hope you like.

Chapter 6 - Turning tides

x

Five people stood still like a statue against the wall as one Leverrier strolled back and forth the row, finally stopping when Komui ended a call with a finder.

"Komui," the marshal said, an order if anything else.

"Yes?"

"Why are all of them finders? I do not believe he had not come in contact with a single exorcist," Leverrier lurked towards the black-haired standing at his desk. He slammed his right palm onto the dead table and looked straight into Komui's eyes, albeit smug and daring him to refute. "I know he had met other exorcists. You can't fool me."

With that, he straightened and frowned at Link who was a couple of feet away. The man nodded dutifully and fished out a notepad.

"Two days before yesterday, Allen Walker first washed up, did 202 push-ups then went to the library and talked with Lavi Bookman about how Lavi Bookman's previous mission had gone. He then met Lenalee Lee on the way to the cafeteria and greeted her. He ordered a long list of food- too many to list- but after he finished his meal, he disappeared." Link finished the last recount he had had the time to record down. His eyes left white paper to look at his superior. "I found him later as I stood guard outside his room. I followed him inside the room for which later he claimed he needed to visit the restroom. As I turned to follow him out… I was knocked out from behind. How it was done was unknown to me."

Leverrier gave a smirk at his underling, satisfied, before turning back to the supervisor. "Hear that? Lavi Bookman and Lenalee Lee. Now I wonder why none of them are here."

Komui looked the marshal in the eye this time, and evened his breathing. "Lavi's away on a mission. I did not know he had met Lenalee…" He tried to sound the least bit reluctant. "I'll get her."

The marshal narrowed his eyes at him as if he knew what the supervisor was thinking deep down. "You better. I will wait half an hour. Right here."

xxx

Lenalee was standing in front of her coffee-brewer, waiting for the beans to grind themselves. Her fingers traced the handle of a cup mindlessly. She was worried, and it would be an understatement itself. There had been no word of Allen ever since the upper-ups suddenly declared he had turned into a noah, a traitor to the Order. She simply could not believe Allen would… just so suddenly turn into another person and forget them totally. If he was going to turn, there had to be phenomenon right? He was perfectly fine when she had talked to him earlier- Her body halted movement. The problem her brother was so troubled with, the ark doors closing… That was it, wasn't it? It was not because Allen fell into a deep sleep, not because the arks doors closed along with the boy's consciousness… It was because he, no, the Fourteenth wanted it… She bit her lips to stop the tears that threatened to escape. So, so had the one she just spoke to really Allen? Her grip tightened on the handle. No that was definitely him… Something must have happened in the interrogation room to trigger it…

And a tremor suddenly shook up the room.

Curses from various occupants flew across the room she was in – the kitchen – as pots and pans began clattering noisily, plates smashing mercilessly onto the ground from shelves one by one as if it were their lifelong purpose. The table shook, the cup in her hands trembled rowdily, spices and ingredients spilled over from their respective containers, creating a mess on the ground and across tables. Voices started rising as more chaos ensued. Akuma attack. Quickly releasing the cup to let it fend for itself, she dashed towards her brother's office.

The tremor stopped while she was on the way, and the announcement of the Order being under an attack spread.

She had just entered the hall when an ear piercing explosion exploded from the sky. The ground trembled, jerked and rocked as a warning. Then chunks of rocks were flying. Loud crashes, echoing booms, cracking noise from pillars broke out all at once as the ceiling disappeared with a shutter of the building. She dodged. Blocks after blocks collapsed into a useless pile, denting the ground with a determined force. A veil of midnight sky was dragged across the broken heaven. And then suddenly, all she could see was akuma.

She activated her innocence. It was a dozens of level ones she had destroyed before she heard other exorcists streamed in. Just as she finished off another akuma, a hand grabbed her on the collar sharply. Startled, she quickly turned and made to kick at the enemy when she stopped short. A gasp escaped as violet turned into saucer plates. Then she was falling.

Lenalee flippantly dropped to the ground along with gravity as the hand released her. Wincing at the impact, she only managed to get on a half-sitting position when her brother rushed to her side from the doorway opposite the one she had come from, last from the newly entered group. "Lenalee," Komui glanced her quickly over to see her injuries. She knew there was nothing serious being she felt fine, which was proved when her brother sighed.

Other exorcists were already destroying the akumas at different corners of the room when she got up. "Nii-san i-"

"Why, hello supervisor." An oddly familiar voice cut in from the sky. Swallowing, the siblings looked up to see a white-haired standing in mid-air, a foreign grin present on the overly familiar face.

xxx

Gaze locked on the sky while leaning against the backdoor, Kanda stood near the large metal strips which connected the two cabins. The train jittered and clattered with every progress, and raven locks lifted with the wind, ever so lightly. It was a dark night. Without so much as a star or wisp of moon light. Yet it was smoothing, as he faced the heavens. Peaceful was more than an appropriate word.

"Che," he muttered lowly, reluctant to break the silence that had formed despite the train's motions.

"What if she was Alma Karma?"

Subconsciously, his fingers reached towards the hilt of Mugen. It's such joke. Cobalt irises narrowed at nowhere in particular, Kanda could not help but draw the images from what seemed a very, very distant memory. It was all back to that… vision which he woke up from…

…it's a lotus.

It's bornt from mud, pointing toward upward heaven

A flower that blessed the world…

…

I love you.

He clenched his fist as he felt his heart ached unintended. Kanda swallowed as he fought down the strong emotions his but not quite his. No. He recited in his head, snapping his eyes shut. No, no, no. His eyes felt a tinge warm and a deep scowl formed on his forehead at that. Damn it. No.

Then abruptly, came a familiar whirling noise of mechanics somewhere down the train. Alert, cobalt flashed open; fingers gripped his katana instantly – but the ground beneath his feet all of a sudden disappeared into a black pit. Everything seemed to freeze, everything turned dark. Before he could blink, he was already falling. And he couldn't move so much as a finger.

Fuck.

xxx

Lavi sighed and slumped against the closed door. The Japanese had not even stayed to hear him out.

"So? He's dead."

He messed up his hair in frustration, what was he to do now? If Kanda knew Alma Karma wasn't as dead as he had thought, what would really happen? What would change? Perhaps… he really should have heeded the Panda's advice and saved the trouble. But the idea was not appealing either, saying he should just ignore something that would change his friend's life. Friend. Lavi swallowed curtly and straightened, deciding to get out of the room to walk around. He could appreciate some air.

Lavi strolled through the seemingly quiet corridor. Everyone appeared to be in their respective cabins, chatting away and doing nonsensical stuff with their friends. Family. And he was just there walking alone, trying to figure out whether he should insist on telling the truth to a friend, force him to listen before walking off. A friend that he was not supposed to have. He paused at a window, staring at his own reflection which seemed all too contradictory to him.

Friend…

The sudden bombarding overhead of what he recognized as bullets jerked him from his thoughts. In an instant, the redhead was out and running down the train corridor. He shouted to the passengers streaming terrifically into the corridor to just get out of the train quickly and stay away. Not that they seemed to notice though, the other boarders were too preoccupied with their screaming of horrors to even notice that there's someone who was going to help them. More bullets crashed the glass windows, scattering sharp bits over the hall, more wood broke into splinters at the abuse, and more cries sounded - turning the whole train chaotic in minutes.

Shouting once more to the crowd, which was rather ignored, the redhead spotted a man standing dumbly right before a window. He made a dash for it and pushed the man onto the ground, barely missing a bullet and broken glasses that lodged millimeters from where they had just been a second before.

With speed that is admirable, he regained his foot with a frown, looking out the windows for the sources of the attacks. Lavi could not see the akumas from within the train.

He had already gotten his hammer out and extending it, had been about to get out through the unhindered windows when he felt it. His feet stepped onto empty space and he simply dropped with gravity. Shit, he thought with a clench to his weapon, Yuu-chan you better make it.

xxx

"Allen…" the olived-haired female started. Even from the distance, he could see the glimmer of tears slowly gathering in violet eyes. It made him snort.

Stop, he called in his head. The akuma halted in the air as commanded, and exorcists wasted not the opportunity to destroy them. Ignoring the insults anonymous exorcists had started to throw at the supposed " Destroyer of Time", silver orbs turned to the siblings in attention. He would not bother with those whom Allen Walker did not even know.

"Why, I'm sure you know very well who I am," he looked into violet. "Lenalee?" He smirked at her expression, knowing that was one of denial. "But it doesn't matter. Either ways… the surprise is going to begin. You just need to wait for everyone to be present. "

"Allen!" the female exorcist called again, a face of determination suddenly. "You can do it if you try Allen, I know you can stop this." That was when gold sparked eyes narrowed downwards. So that was all it was about.

"Lenalee, it's useless. He's not coming back." He declared with a smile, before glancing leisurely at the opposite quite willing to add in his head but still did. Yet.

"Why are you doing this?" a logical question to ask came from the brother, standing protectively in front of his sister even though it should be the reversed. But he did not answer. He could feel it, that they were travelling through the doors. They were reaching. And the party is starting. It is going to start.

"What do you want?" a deeper voice than the previous demanded. "Fourteenth."

The white-haired inclined his head to face the heavens in thoughts, before dropping his skull to the side to smirk once more in the face of one Leverrier who had stepped into the hall following the supervisor. The same one he had seen in that room. With the same two dotted man of course.

"You'll see." He nearly beamed at the other man's glare. "That's what I said didn't I? I thought you'll remember."

As the man gave him a nasty look, he turned back to the opposite wall, staring and ignoring the man. He could only try not to snort in amusement. It was ridiculous. God chosen apostles actually willingly followed this man for centuries.

He snapped his fingers. "Well, now let the surprise begin."

It was dark. And he still could not fucking move.

Kanda tried to roll his eyes despite it all, not that it worked. It was getting real annoying. He knew he was falling. But he had to be falling for a good ten minutes or so. Without landing. Che. The air pressure was making him slightly out of sorts; the previous time falling into Noah's Ark had not even been that bad. At least he hit the ground, which was a logical thing to expect when you fall.

Che. Thoughts begun to wander, his head went back to the train before darting back to right then. He would stop relating the train with what Lavi said. Wanting to glower but felt his face muscles too stiff to even move, the Japanese growled in his throat, increasingly pissed with wherever the hell he was in.

Then his instincts reacted. The dark hole was leading to an end; a change in air pressure was evidence. Narrowing his eyes, or attempting to, Kanda felt an instant pull and suddenly he was falling for real. The light blinded him.

"… hurts!"

"Fuck."

"W-what is happening?"

"Back at the Order. I see…"

"..."

On instinct, cobalt narrowed at the other voices even as he stayed flat on the ground. Che. So he wasn't the only one. In a swift movement Kanda got up, checked Mugen and the surroundings. It was oddly familiar. A frown made its way onto his face.

Before him was the hall where the coffins of numerous dead exorcists contained would be lined up neatly in. The coffins would not be there anymore obviously, they would always be cremated along with the bodies the minute prayer was over. But the hall was in a worse state for wear than when he had first left for the mission. The raven haired caught sight of a horde of figures at the other end of the hall and knew something was off.

"Oh no-nonono w-what is—" He would ignore that.

"What's going on?" a voice came from his side, making him avert from his gaze ahead to look the redhead from the corner of his eyes.

"The hell I would know," he retorted.

Then something in him resounded, making the Japanese scowl. If Lavi was here, then those people on the train… Oh well, they could die for all Kanda cares. It was not like he was at fault.

"Invasion." Another voice answered solemnly. "Look up there."

He did to the bookman's words, as did the other three, or two actually, who came back in the same outrageous method. Kanda's throat tightened. He did not want to know who that was. But it could not be more apparent and he could only feel an urge to kill the white haired. Che. I knew it. He's a god damned moron. Air brained. Naïve brat.

"Welcome," the boy in mid-air had begun to speak, smiling at them in a way Kanda found disgusted. It twisted his face in such a strange angle it made him another person. And he hated this new person even more than he hated the previous owner, simply because that face looked even more annoying.

"Allen-kun?" Marie furrowed in comtemplation.

"Panda…" he heard the redhead's low murmur.

"Yes, I guess the time has come."

xxx

The Allen smirked, pleased, and walked to the centre of the hall on air, to the seemingly cut off ground that separated the two groups. Everyone turned to look at him. He was the centre of attention that night.

Gray orbs travelled across several heads before resting on that one person he had already decided on.

"Kanda," he called. He could feel everyone tensed up at him calling their comrade, their friend, their ally; their vipes trying to tell him he was not his comrade, not his friend, not someone on his side and he should leavehim alone.

The said man, however, only glowered at him.

Thoughtfully, the Allen spoke.

"Do you want to join me?"

Cobalt orbs stretched almost painfully. A loud growl from the man made its way to his ears, before another violent voice cut in.

"FOURTEENTH!" Leverrier declared, his face stiff and eyes seemingly burning. "STOP YOUR NONSENSE NOW!" As if on cue, several black men appearing from all directions started casting chants at him. They had him for approximately half a second before their spells broke with a sizzle, scattering thereafter. Bits of yellow spell papers were left clinging to his skin.

"Strange huh," he knew his voice was cold. He stared void into the marshal's eyes, a cold burning fury. "You prepare these," The Allen pinched and lifted a tiny map of yellow from his left arm. "To attack Exorcists, when you're supposed to be on the same side as them?" He snorted. "You spent so much to prepare against your God chosen apostles to control them, rather than the akumas you were supposed to be fighting. Ironic, isn't it?"

Leverrier was downright glaring. "ALLEN WALKER YOU-"

He narrowed his eyes before dusting his arm of yellow strips. "You know if it had been him, these would have worked. Marshall. I don't use the innocence, so it's practically dormant now." The said Leverrier stepped back, as if in refusal that their powers were not enough to control him. The Allen sent a chilling glare at him when he made the men in black to throw another spell at him. Not that it worked any better than the first.

"So, Kanda." He resumed his intention, silver eyebrows lifted. "Care to join me?"

He smiled knowingly when all the Japanese did was glare, again. The man was seriously considering wasn't he? But then as if to interrupt his stage, a familiar stench made its way to his nose. He looked to the side, ticked.

A door had opened next to him without him noticing. And then now a man with glaring red mat under a carefully tipped gold hat was blatantly smoking his ass beside him.

"Yes?" his voice dipped an octave lower at the uninvited appearance of the man.

The man albeit snorted as he held his cigarette. "You take too long."

"Cross!" Lenalee shouted from the ground. And all of a sudden gasps filled the hall as every exorcist fumbled why their General was standing with the enemy.

"Marian Cross!" an especially furious voice demanded.

"Yo."

The white-haired clicked his tongue. Fine, that asshole can be a decoration if he likes attention that much.

Returning his attention to a certain Japanese, "So, Kanda?"

xxx

He did not even bother himself with concerning why a certain General of the Order is openly going against it. He could care less about some god damned womanizer. He could care less about the Order - he hated it more than anything. But the risks that it meant, was it worth it? Would the Order let him go?

Kanda che'd, looked up and was about to speak when his mouth went dry. Beside the forever missing General appeared his own General whom he had protected for years from a newly opened ark door.

"Kanda! Why is Master Tiedoll here with them?" an anxious voice he knew to be Marie's called from his side. That was the very same question he wanted the answer to.

"How would I know!" he shouted, pissed, before staring at his General. "Old man… why are you here, or rather, there?"

The man smiled just like he had always had, and just shook his head. "Well well it's a long story." The raven-haired glared. That was a ridiculous answer for someone who suddenly went and just –"I think you should answer him Yuu-kun."

His glower deepened if that was possible, snapping back to white-haired who seemed amused by the situation. Cobalt narrowed in a mixture of anger and contemplation, Kanda growled, "I'm in."

"Kanda!" That was Lenalee. He looked to the female standing about thirty metres before him, further behind the Allen Walker, but on the ground. She shook her head vigorously at him, seemingly about to cry and unable to provide more words. Kanda knew what she wanted to say, but it was too late. He already decided. He would gamble it. He could only tilt his head away, avoiding the female's pleading and accusing gaze.

"Well that's a good decision, you'll see why." The white-haired only smiled at him, making Kanda want to slice him up. His grip tightened on Mugen. This guy… "Not like you really had a choice, actually. But congratulations, there you go."

The fuck is he talking about?

But before he could retort, the white haired snapped his fingers and - On cue, his feet lost ground again, making Kanda curse, pissed. He was definitely going to kill him one day, Fourteenth or Allen Walker. In a split second of darkness, he was suddenly in a room, and he recognized it instantaneously. It was his plain bedroom in the Order with nothing but that wilting flower.

Somewhere in the other side of his brain, he was glad the fall was quick this time round.

"Take what you need." A voice came from behind which, when he turned to look, was an opened ark door, blinding white light streaming from the irregularly shaped blocks. Che. Need? He whirled back to take a full view of his room. After scanning his dull room which could even make off as unoccupied, he got up and stalking to the desk, already knowing what he was to take. Grabbing the fragile glass in a firm grip, he looked at the glowing flower for a second before turning to leave in a fluttering curtain of raven.

xxx

Lavi's fingers drifted to his shrinked hammer at the side of his pants, wary, as those similar eyes that had been of a person he could have called a brother strayed across the crowd on top from the air. It was almost as if everyone aside from the white haired were inferior.

A little pang resonated in his heart at the face that looked too similar.

Allen…

The redhead frowned a little as he shook his head to shake off that thought. He was a future bookman, every single one around him is nothing but ink on paper. No one should be an exception.

A little mental chuckle started on its own as if trying to point out he never did thought anyone as mere history, which Lavi quickly halted. Kanda already decided to leave with them, he needed to concentrate – it was not the time for it.

Emerald eyes looked back up at the supposed destroyer of time standing leisurely between two ex-Generals of Black Order, who was still looking over the crowd.

What do you think he's trying to do?

Shut up and watch, idiot.

Geez panda, I am not—

A light shiver ran up his spine at a piercing look that was directed at him from gold eyes.

He kept his face void of any other emotions, a perfect poker face as he refused to shift gaze; even if his head was running a thousand miles of questions per second. He needed to observe, to simply watch if he wanted any answers.

Then, out of all the scenarios he had predicted, the next moment came unexpected.

A smile crept on the Allen's face, trying to be friendly.

"Lavi Bookman. Do you have any intentions to join me?"

What?

Before he could so much as response, a palm appeared right in front of his face cutting him from the gold irises - tracing the source; the redhead found Panda had shifted to standing right before him.

"Bookman clan always stood on the same side," the deep voice of his mentor came, answering in his stead. "We had chosen the Black Order's side and were not about to change that fact anytime during this war."

Ever slowly, that raised back of a palm lowered enough for Lavi to catch sight of the Allen narrowing his eyes dangerously.

"Oh?" His voice betrayed none of the anger his face portrayed. "But I was sure I asked Lavi Bookman, not you Bookman-san."

"I have no intentions to join you." Lavi decided he had to say something. Besides, he had caught the look on Panda's face when the older tilted his head sideway back.

A chuckle started to drift into his ears and emerald eyes looked on at the white haired with his poker face still safely kept on.

There's obvious something he's trying to do Panda.

… Just don't go with him baka deshi.

I already said no to him!

"Well, of course, you can have your choice." Gold eyes flashed at him, and Lavi instinctively gripped his hammer a little tighter.

"But do give it a thought would you?" The Allen paused. "It would just be a place streamed out of the Black Order – meaning no one could say you changed sides."

"It still is." Panda supplied in all his solemn voice, even though the white haired blatantly ignored him.

Don't be fooled. It is changing sides; it's the third side of the war.

I…

He suddenly was at a loss of words.

Facing him, that face morphed into an unfamiliar smile, making the redhead having to resist the strong urge to lick his suddenly dry lips. He almost did, even if it would have shown his unease when—

Thump thump thump.

Thump thump thump.

Thump thump thump.

He snapped his head toward the entrance of the hall, a little glad for the distraction. Before he could see the people who formed the shadows – many strips of paper were sent flying toward them.

"SEAL!" came a unified cry.

His eyes widened as he heard many exorcists dropped onto the ground with a hiss of pain.

Taking a double check on himself, he realized he was spared because he was a bookman. Lavi sighed a tiny sigh of relief inwardly. He would hate to stay defenseless when the white haired still stood in the air, proud with crossed arms and a blank face.

"None of the exorcists are going to leave." The voice the redhead recognized as Leverrier's spoke once more. And to think Lavi had wondered why the man had gone silent. "No more."

"And I'll make sure you don't get to leave either, Fourteenth."

He spotted a too large distorted smirk on the Marshal half way across the hall, before turning back to catch a horde of new faces appearing at the entrance of the hall.

Third exorcists.

And they reminded him of the Second.

You think Lavi would join them? [;

4.5k+ words for this, not the longest i'd admit. But no worries, i'd definitely finish this story as long as the world doesn't end.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!
And Happy Birthday to Allen!

Hope you enjoyed.

Do review~

Hoshino, please dun kill Kanda in 211... T.T