A/N: I would like to dedicate this chapter to my readers from the past, present, and future. Special thanks to everyone who has reviewed, and everyone who reads this story

Disclaimer: I do not own D. Gray-Man, nor do I own the story of Cinderella. All of the characters belong to Katsura Hoshino.

Chapter Four: Allen

"One joy scatters a hundred griefs"

~Chinese Proverb

Just as Allen was standing up to return to the castle, a girl of asian decent that appeared to be a year older than he was had squeezed to the front of the crowd surrounding him. Her long black hair gently waved down her back, to her hips. She was dressed in the black and silver uniform of the Leverrier servants, and wore what appeared to be black knee high heeled boots. Her amethyst eyes had a guarded look in them that he was all too familiar with. Ignoring the girl for a moment, the white haired youth turned to his former opponent.

"Sir, could you please return the cards to me, they are a treasure of mine that I would prefer to keep." The man in question actually reminded him of Cross in a way, probably because of his lack of restraint when it came to alcohol and gambling. Allen grimaced in wry amusement under his hood at the thought, thankful that no one saw his facial expression. The man silently handed the cards back without complaint.

When Allen looked back at the girl, he smiled to himself, wondering how to make happiness gleam in her eyes.

It was when the girl turned to leave that the white haired youth reached his hand out, and gently laid it on her shoulder. She stopped as he leaned toward her to whisper in her ear.

"Please wait." To Allen's surprise, she actually did wait, so after he adjusted his hood to completely cover his face, and safely tucked his cards in a secret pocket in his sleeve.

The white haired youth whispered in the girl's ear once more, gently grasping her small delicate hands with his large gloves

"Follow me."

The boy led her outside of the pub, down the many streets that he knew by heart, to the park where he had met his original adopted father, Mana.

The park had clearly not been tended to for several years, but Allen still enjoyed visiting it just the same, and was attracted to its wild beauty.

Long emerald grass blades waved in what seemed like a non existent breeze. Towering trees ranging from oaks to redwoods were scattered across the expanse, but created one solid canopy out of their leaves. The only source of light was golden dappled sunlight that somehow managed to stream through various sections of the canopy, creating an ethereal glow that seemed to enhance each detail.

Allen took off his hood as the girl observed her surroundings. She was obviously dumbstruck by it and gasped. "I have not seen anything so beautiful!" She then turned to the boy, her skirt flaring with the motion, to find that he was no longer hooded.

Allen could read her thoughts easily, as if her face was the book of her emotions. He could tell that she was thinking about something relating to his identifiable features. Though precisely what, the boy could not tell. She tilted her head in curiosity, wondering who he was.

"Who are you sir?" She asked, her voice echoing the curiosity expressed in her movements and behaviors.

The boy chuckled to himself, "Isn't that the true question my lady," He stated, "I go by many names, but you may call me Allen." He then directed a warm, gentle smile towards her.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Allen, my name is Lenalee." The girl continued, "But I am curious... Why me?"

"Pardon?"

"Why did you take me here, why did you choose to associate with me," She asked "I am just a servent who wears the uniform of the Leverrier resedence, so why did you choose me?"

Allen looked at Lenalee with his silver eyes when he explained his reasoning. "I was in an orphanage until I was seven years old. While I was there, I remember meeting a girl of asian decent who was a year older than me, and even befriended her. She had seemed to be genial all the time, but I found out later that it was just an outer shell. If you looked close enough, you could have seen a deep sorrow in her violet eyes. In your eyes, I see the same sorrow but it is more intense in depth than in hers. That is why I chose you, Miss Lenalee."

The girl shyly lowered her gaze, "Thank you Allen, thank you for treating me with such kindness." Tears collected in her eyes, but as she tried to blink them away, they fell, leaving their stain on her lightly tanned cheeks. Suddenly, her knees collapsed, but just as she was about to fall, Allen caught her in his muscular arms.

"Allen-" She whispered as the boy gently laid me against a tree, her voice indicated that she was trying to hold her tears.

"It's alright Miss Lenalee, you may cry if you wish." He whispered back as he brushed aside her tears and swept her silky long hair out of her face. (A/N: *sniff* I felt like crying myself as I was writing this scene, but given that I was in a public place while reading it, it wouldn't have been appropriate)

~~X~~

"Thank you for helping me with the groceries Allen." The two teenagers were standing by the Leverrier Residence, with Allen holding a paper bag full of the ingredients for tonight's dinner in one hand, and holding Lenalee's hand in his other. The white haired youth had stayed with her until she had regained her composure, and offered to help her when she mentioned that she had to shop at the market.

It was when the two of them had to part when he leaned close to her and whispered in her ear.

"There is a ball that will be held at the castle and everyone is invited as long as they wear formal attire. Can you please come?" Allen's heart rose in hope when she bowed her head and whispered back.

"I will try, but there is no guarantee even though I want to go." The boy leaned in closer, and could practically feel her surprise when her kissed her on the cheek.

"I hope to see you there Miss Lenalee." With those words of parting, he pulled his hood over his face, concealing his facial expression, his eyes sparkling as he turned on his heel, disappearing into the crowed street.

Allen had a feeling that he knew Lenalee from somewhere else, but he immedeatly shook that thought from his head. If he knew her from before, she would have probably become a completely different person than the girl he once knew.

The boy contemlated on the feeling he had for the girl while he made his way back toward the castle. It was a strong feeling for sure, but he could not place what it was except for things he vaugely heard from the maids and butlers in the castle. They had called the feeling love.

If it was indeed love, it was a different type of love than what he had known with Mana. It was stronger, more passionate, it made him feel warm inside, it was something that he could live on for an eternity. It was something that he could not live without.

-Chapter Four End-

A/N: So, how did you like it? It was practically the same as last chapter, but some slight differences. I will be posting a Lenalee chapter as soon as I can, but I would like to ask for you to be patient since 1- this is the longest story that I have ever written, and 2- my teachers in school are not very nice and assign a lot of homework. Thank you!