Entry IV: A Barnum and Bailey World
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…anyway, all of these were in hindsight, and I'll deal with Allen on these little trust issues later on.
The party did finally go underway on a sweltering August day and, oh boy, was it exciting…
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The day of the party dawned bright and cheery, and toward the early evening when people started gathering for the party the weather was truly nothing but congenial, seeming to promise a fine day free of trouble.
At the entrance to the hall, Miranda stared from the pile of chips in her hand, to the party and the people milling inside the hall, and back to her palm again. The chips looked back at her, gleaming innocently. Johnny smiled.
"You've got twenty over there, Miranda?"
"Ah, yes," she said, weakly, "but, um, I don't know what it's for, what if I lose it?" This was the first time she was participating in a "real" party, after Allen assured her that the last party the Black Order held was not at all a real party and that she was a victim then.
"Oh, don't worry about that! It'd be good to keep it, but it's more for the final show. At least, that's what Lenalee said…ah, well, anyway, nothing will happen if you lose it, but just try to keep it in your pocket for the time being, alright?" Johnny said, visibly excited. A little bewildered, Miranda nodded and slipped the chips into the pocket of her pants, stepping gingerly into the hall.
Even after a few years in the Order, she could never really get used to how…loud the people at the Black Order could be. Looking around, she sighed in relief when she spotted Allen speaking to a couple of female Finders. Was it just her, or were the girls blushing? Perhaps it was the heat of summer and the number of people gathered there…
Making her way over and standing unobtrusively in the background, she observed as Allen laughed and waved goodbye to them, then turning and, as if by chance, spotting her. Allen beamed and headed in her direction.
"Good, good evening, Allen," Miranda said shyly. Allen grinned.
"Good evening to you too, Miranda! How have you been?"
"I've been well, thank you," she said with relief as Allen fell into a talk routine she was familiar with. Allen hummed and observed her carefully for a while, his smile turning gentle when she looked back at him.
"You haven't really gotten a chance to talk to Marie recently, yes?" Miranda blushed. "He's been on missions lately…well, we've all been. He's over there, why don't you go talk to him?"
"B-but, he'll, he'll want to rest, right?" Miranda stuttered. She actually really, really wanted to, but she wasn't quite sure how Marie would feel, and all. Allen shook his head, confident.
"He'll be happy to see you. He's already looking our way."
Hearing her voice, Marie had indeed turned over and was smiling in their direction. Pushing her in Marie's direction, Allen gave her an encouraging smile. Surprised, then bowing rapidly in thanks, Miranda made her way over to Marie.
"Oh, Emilia, hello!"
And if Allen's greeting to the other people was slightly more…playful than usual, Miranda only took note of it in the back of her mind.
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Smiling, Lenalee tucked her hair behind her ear, carefully noting Kanda's reaction. She nearly pouted when the man remained as stoic as always.
Well, perhaps less so these days, she thought. He and Allen still had an uncomfortable rivalry between them, but at least Kanda was less tense nowadays, probably having resigned himself to the fact that he'd have to work with them on a long-term basis. Undeterred, she continued talking to the man. As long as Komui didn't come barging in she was happy.
Speaking of which...
She scanned the stage area where an innocent table was set up. There was nothing on it yet – she hoped Komui lived up to his promise to provide auction items to lead up to the big item. And by god, she hoped Lavi was bright enough to pick up on what was going to happen. That hopeless boy – brilliant on all things to do with Bookmen information and human expressions, and alarmingly dense with actual human emotions at other times. Lenalee sighed.
Kanda noticed her attention on the table and looked at it, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"What's that for?" He asked in his usual brisk manner. Lenalee looked up at him and smiled again.
"Something that brother is planning for – later," she said, purposefully vague. Kanda snorted.
"That idiot better not be thinking of something stupid again."
Lenalee winced at the not too subtle reference to the last time the Order had a party. It was spectacular. Spectacularly terrible. Lenalee couldn't believe she didn't see through the various torture stages Komui put their people through just to find out, in an oblique way, who she liked. Understandably, many people at the party were looking around warily now, expecting something to happen, some even digging the chips out of their pockets and holding them as if they were a bomb. Coming from the scientists, it was unfortunately highly probable.
"I know what he's planning on doing. Trust me, it'll be fun this time, so please stay?"
Lenalee had somehow caught onto the fact that Kanda was contemplating leaving the party early, attempts at building camaraderie be damned. He was about to refuse when he made the mistake of looking at her properly.
He blanched at the visible pout and the wide, imploring eyes. Lenalee's hair was exceptionally pretty that day too, having grown out to the length prior to the disastrous trip to Edo. Kanda scowled and leaned back against the wall again.
Lenalee inwardly smiled in victory.
.
When Lavi entered the hall, he found himself, on instinct, looking for a certain white-haired Exorcist.
It'd be fun to tease Marie and Miranda, he mused, seeing them talking and all smiley at each other. Or Yuu, standing in one of the corners being all stoic while Lenalee talked to him. Or even joining Gramps and Krory at the tea table. Of course, he would have done any of those things, but first, finding Allen.
When he did spot him, it was only to see –
Allen flirting with Emilia?
Lavi gaped, stunned.
No, it wasn't open flirting…just chatting, maybe, and a shared joke or two. Well, it wasn't like he kept tabs on his friend or anything of the sort, but he didn't know Allen would be even interested in Emilia and, and…
He might have been jealous, or simply curious, so he went straight ahead and wrapped his arm around Allen's shoulders, smiling at both of them.
"'Sup, Emilia, Al-len!"
Emilia laughed. "Hello, Lavi."
"Don't you forget me!" Timothy huffed, kicking at Lavi's shin with his ever-present roller blades. Lavi winced and hid behind Allen.
"Yeah, hello, pipsqueak."
"I suppose I'm glad that at least you don't call me that," Allen added dryly.
"Hey! Who you calling short!" Timothy said loudly.
"No one did that," Lavi grinned, "you assumed that all on your own."
"Oh, Timothy, do be a little more sensible," Emilia scolded. Then she looked up and frowned, though her eyes were twinkling. "You too, Lavi – honestly, sometimes I wonder who the child is."
"I share your sentiments," Allen said, a look of utmost sympathy on his face.
"Oi, oi, Allen!" Lavi whined, tightening his hold significantly. Allen choked and glared as best as he could out of the corner of his eye. "Whose side ya on?"
Emilia stifled a chuckle as Allen started his retaliation, subtly pinching Lavi on his side and making the older boy yelp. Lavi responded with using his free hand to try and attack Allen's sensitive sides. Timothy decided to help Allen out – which was when Emilia intervened to pull him away.
"I'll just be off with Timothy for some food, then," she said with a giggle.
"Aww, Emilia!" Timothy whined to no effect.
Allen smiled. "I'll see you later, Miss Emilia, Timothy."
"Yeah, later!" Lavi waved a hand cheerfully.
If he was secretly happy to have Allen's attention all to himself, well – nobody else needed to know.
.
It was a noisy, lively thirty minutes later when Marie covered his ears and advised a confused Miranda to do the same. Not a second later, an earsplitting whine tore through the room. Sounds of pain and grumbling followed afterwards.
"What the hell, Chief!"
"Ah ha, sorry everyone, sorry!" A cheerful, unapologetic Komui said through the microphone, now back to a tolerable frequency. The crowd shifted and murmured, half in apprehension – most had not too fond memories of the last time Komui commanded a stage.
"What's with those expressions!" Komui whined. "Your wonderful, brilliant, magnificent, handsome supervisor has great things in store for everyone tonight!" He pumped his fist into the air, obviously expecting applause.
Silence greeted him, along with a host of suspicious looks.
"Oh, come on, guys!" Komui pleaded. "It'll be fun! You all still have those chips Johnny handed to you?"
Another murmur ran through the crowd as people dug into their pockets for the aforementioned chips. Komui nodded in approval. He caught Lenalee's eyes and smiled, a smile which made several people blanch. The glass of his spectacles glinted, catching the light as he pushed it higher up his nose.
He brought the microphone up with another flourish. "Alright then, my dears! We are going to play games with this!"
He was confused when, after he barely finished, cries of panic erupted, several people rushing for the main doors. Lenalee, seeing that he was doing nothing to stop the mass exodus, had no choice but to run up to grab the mike from him.
"Please, everyone!" She said in an extra sweet voice, desperate to salvage the situation. Most people stopped and looked at her warily, not forgetting that she's a Lee as well. A benign version, but still – better to be careful. Lenalee smiled winningly.
"You do not have to play the games if you really don't want to," she began. The tension in the air began to lift. "These are just party games, nothing humiliating or embarrassing, and we promise it's for something…fun, later on."
"What sort of games?" Emilia said in a clear voice over the noise, curiosity written on her face. Having never experienced the previous party she had no idea what to expect.
Lenalee beamed. "Oh, things like Twister, piñatas, simple, really!"
"What is the 'something fun later on'?" Someone else shouted. Nods followed the question, most people still suspicious over the seemingly innocuous ploy. Lenalee smiled, deciding to reveal it just a little.
"We are having an auction. A special kind of auction, if you will."
There were confused noises and more expectant faces. Lenalee smiled.
"Now, none of us really earn any money, so it's unfair to use money as the price, isn't it?" Some nods and murmurs. "And so, we're using chips and we'll play games to earn more of them! It's simple. The more chips you have, the more spending power. And the things we're auctioning aren't all exactly physical items."
"Oh?" Allen said with sharp eyes and a grin. They shared a look. "Do explain, Lenalee."
"Very well," Lenalee said, playing along. "We've asked people to offer services as prizes. So, if you're a scientist, you can win Brother's promise that he will stamp all the documents you bring to him – "
"Are you serious?" Reever hollered from across the room, disbelief evident in his eyes – he wasn't privy to that information! Lenalee nodded even while Komui sobbed at the injustice.
"Of course. Other things up for auction are Jeryy's special dish of the week" – several people drooled, knowing that Jeryy didn't give that up easily – "the ability to destroy any of Brother's concoctions" – a wail from Komui and the fire of competition in the scientist's eyes rose – "a sponsored night out to town" – cheers from every corner of the room, especially from the Finders who rarely get a break – "and, well, lots more! So you see, you'll have fun playing the games, and if you can you might win something at the end of the night too!"
The atmosphere in the room had gone through a sudden transformation. It was undeniably one of the better plans cooked up – there would really be some team bonding activities and stress relievers, and they might even get to win something! People were starting to chatter with more excitement, the cacophony louder than when they were just mingling. Allen and Lenalee hid a smile when Lavi looked in their direction with suspicion.
Of course the Bookman's Apprentice would notice that something more was up.
Allen cheerfully headed over. Lavi gave him a wary look and looked as if he very much wanted to back away for every step Allen took toward him.
"What's this all about, sprout?"
"Why, what Lenalee said, of course," Allen said. Lavi didn't look convinced. "The first game's starting, Lavi, why don't you go join in?"
The preparation for the first game of Treasure Hunt had indeed already begun, with many eyeing Lavi to join their team. With a sigh, Lavi shot one last, extremely suspicious look at Allen before wandering over to join Krory, Johnny, Emilia and Timothy. There was a general excitement in the team as they realized they would be getting the brains of the Order.
Allen and Lenalee shot each other a look again. Their plans, without Lavi knowing, had already been set in motion.
"Everybody in their teams? Alright! Now, listen carefully, the first clue: 'You pass by me everyday, but you use me only when you need me.' Got that? There are a few places that fit, and only two teams will be allowed per location, so think fast, chop chop!"
Even as Lavi digested Komui's words, he absently noted that Allen was not joining in the games and was watching them all with a secret smile.
.
It was no surprise that Lavi's team was one of the first few teams to complete the Treasure Hunt.
After running to the baths, the courtyard, fighting through a maze that was somehow erected there, getting Timothy to rollerblade to beat out a finder to the training rooms which had only one clue left, running to the kitchens and solving a logic question involving scores of food (which they nearly lost when Krory's stomach growled and demanded food), solving a complicated world geography question in the library which Emilia nearly insisted Timothy should do for his education, they finally ran back into the Hall, panting and clutching their sides.
"Aaaaaand team number two is back! You guys win ten chips each!" Komui happily scrawled the results onto a whiteboard. Lavi looked around and spotted team number one.
"Of course," he grumbled. "Reever is there."
"Don't feel too bad!" Allen said from behind him. Lavi jumped. "They have Kanda with them, it must have slowed them down. A lot."
"Beansprout! I'll slice you!" Kanda yelled from across the hall, looking highly unhappy at having been forced into the game by Lenalee. Allen smirked in his direction.
"I can beat you any day."
Kanda growled and reached for Mugen. Lenalee, bless her heart, appeared and smacked his hand away from the weapon.
"Kanda!" She frowned. "Behave!"
Allen covered his smile with a hand. Lenalee spun to face him. "You too, Allen!"
"Ah, yes, Lenalee," he said, hastily.
"You're so whipped, man," Lavi said, swinging an arm around Allen's shoulders.
"Anyone would be against Lenalee," Johnny said in a low whisper.
"What's 'whipped'?" Timothy demanded.
"Right!" Emilia said loudly. "I see the other teams are back as well!"
"What's – "
"Indeed!" Komui cried out, the beginnings of manic glee in his eyes. "This is how the chips deduction goes! The last team, you guys have to give up seven chips each, and the second last six, and…"
.
Twister was, predictably, a near disaster for Lavi's team.
They had Krory on their side, which made for an advantage. Krory was tall and rather flexible and could reach impossible spots. They had to send Lavi in as well when there was a call for the second person from each team, and that was when Lavi realized that Twister with over twenty people, even on an expanded mat, was hell.
Lenalee was obviously taking a lot of glee in sending the golems around to take videos and photos. Lavi's back cried out in pain.
"Lavi." Allen's clear voice rang out. And of course, with Lavi's luck, Allen just had to be co-gamemaster and be able to control exactly where the wheel landed for the most painful spots. "Left hand…red," he said, amused as the wheel stopped. Lavi cast his eye around for a spot of red.
That was conveniently located around Mandy, a sweet Finder girl. He sighed.
"Sorry, Mandy," he said, reaching up and around her to achieve contact with the red spot. She grinned a little.
"All in the spirit of the game!"
Lavi exchanged a long-suffering look and slightly amused smile with her. Since they were all in it together, he might as well commiserate with other people.
"…Toma, right leg, green," Allen said in a slightly sharper voice.
There was a cry from his corner of the mat, followed by the sound of several people toppling over.
It was going to be a long game indeed.
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In an attempt to win more chips (since Lavi was absolutely sure some sort of diabolical plan was going on behind the scenes), they worked doubly hard at the mass capture-the-human game. Lavi had never been so glad for his photographic memory.
"'A man with a secret fondness for romance novels'? Oh, oh! Emilia, go find Jeryy, hurry!"
"Alright!" Emilia ran off, heading toward a conspicuous head of pink. Lavi glanced around him warily to make sure none of his team members were being eyed by others yet. So far so good.
"Hey, Lavi!" Russell shouted from some distance away.
"What? I'm currently trying to figure out which of the two hundred girls we have stalks Yuu, so leave me alone."
"Why don't we form an alliance? We can capture more people that way!"
Lavi eyed the other team which was obviously losing its numbers, having been stripped of many members. The odds were not good.
"Sorry, Russell man! You're on your own!"
"No! Come on, Lavi, help your good friend!"
"No way! We will win this, yeah, Tim?"
Timothy grinned. "Of course! They'll never guess which one leads to me."
"Atta boy." Lavi patted his head.
"Ooooh, I'll curse you in your sleep, Lavi! Just you wait!"
"Sure thing, sure – woah!"
Lavi yelped as he saw Reever running straight at him, eyes gleaming. Frantic, he wondered if that meant Reever got his clue.
"No freaking way, old man! Krory, Timothy, RETREAT! Where the hell are Johnny and Emilia!"
"I've got Jeryy!" Emilia pulled the chef toward them as Jeryy waved a handkerchief in farewell to his team mates.
"Excellent! Let's hide first, Johnny will find us later!"
"STAY STILL, LAVI!" Reever looked very manic, his obvious lack of sleep adding to the effect.
"You'll have to do more than that – WARGH! Yuu!"
"Hmph, you're coming with us."
"Oi! Innocence is not in the rules! Lenalee!"
Lenalee, standing at the side, turned to see what the commotion was all about. Her jaw dropped.
"Kanda, stop it! It's a party, not a battlefield!"
"Stay still, idiot rabbit!"
"Damn, if that's the case – Oozuchi Kouzuchi! You guys, duck!"
"Wait a minute all of you, if you destroy you have to pay – AHH!" Komui let out a very manly scream as the hammer swung toward him. Timothy took the chance to grab Komui.
"Gotcha!"
"Awesome! This gives us bonus! And Johnny, c'mere, you. Now, for serious, retreat."
"Erm," Emilia glanced at the side, "Lavi, is it me, or are some of them running at us – "
"They want our blood. LET'S GO."
.
In the jealousy that succeeded their group's overwhelming win in capture-the-human, destroying the piñata became more of a revenge farce than a game. Lavi, wisely, stayed out of the game, using Timothy's exuberance for the game instead.
However, as the game went on, he couldn't help but notice that more people were starting to chat and laugh over the night's games, the party for once more fun than destructive. He supposed there was some truth to what Allen had said, about them not really needing a reason for a party. But –
Now that he was not participating in the games, there really wasn't much to occupy his mind. When Emilia turned and laughed at what Krory just said, looking at him as if to see if he shared the joke, Lavi managed to smile weakly.
And when the piñata was smashed by Marie's group, Lavi took the chance to clap and cheer, hearing an echoing cry of delight run around the room at the delicacies that poured out of the cow. Amidst the cheers his claps sounded hollow to him, and he was well aware that the adrenaline of the games was starting to wear off of him.
"And that's the end of the games, guys, well done!" Komui cried out. There was a cheer all around with the sound of champagne bottles popping, the tables also overflowing with food. Allen and Lenalee nodded at each other and, quietly, they disappeared into the backstage. "Just mingle around and eat something and we'll be out in a second!"
Krory was about to lunge at the food when he noticed Lavi's silence, despite the great number of chips they've won from the games. He decided to wait, smiling when the boy looked over.
"I do wonder what he has in store, all the items?" Krory asked in his low baritone. Lavi's lips quirked up.
"It'll be fun, eh? We won quite a bit, we can outbid the others, whatever it is…where's Allen, do you know, Kro?"
"Hmm?" Krory looked around. "He was just here a while ago, wasn't he?"
"Yeah," Lavi scratched his head. His brow furrowed. "I have the feeling that he and Lenalee are up to something…"
Krory studied him for a while, sipping his drink.
"You watch him a lot, don't you?" He finally said.
"Mm?" Lavi brought his head up and looked at Krory. "Whatcha mean by that?"
"Well, you always look out for him, seeing whether he's around. Is that not the case?" Krory said. He sounded genuinely curious.
Lavi continued looking at Krory, stunned for a while. Krory, even while unnerved by Lavi's stare, didn't back down.
Lavi finally forced a laugh out.
"I'm the Bookman's Apprentice, Kro. What kind of Apprentice would I make if I didn't know such things, eh?" He swiped a piece of bread from a table and nibbled on it, avoiding eye contact with Krory.
Krory didn't look quite convinced. He shifted on his feet.
"Look," Lavi said, finality in his tone. "Allen is prophesized to end this war, alright? I have to keep an eye on him. Gramps told me to."
"Alright, alright," Krory said, raising his hands in a gesture of peace. "If you say so, that must be it, isn't it?"
"Ah."
There was an awkward silence for a while with Lavi chewing on the bread, seeming to lose more appetite by the minute. Krory coughed. "Well, I'll be going to talk to Johnny over there now."
"You go do that, Kro," Lavi said with a wide, brittle smile. Krory nodded and headed off quickly, sending periodic backward glances.
When Lavi was sure that he was alone in spite of the number of people around him, he allowed himself to drop his head into his hands. The bread was tossed to the side.
Shit, now even Kro has noticed.
He had forgotten himself, a little, during the games. It was just so fun playing that he had forgotten he was not supposed to be a part of them, even though it was so natural just joining in. What kind of Apprentice was he being, he wondered.
Damn, even Bookman was noticing, he was sure. During the games even as Bookman joined Miranda's team, he knew that the old man was looking over at him every once in a while with those sharp, piercing eyes, waiting for him to slip up or, or something. He didn't know, it was just, he had been on edge the whole evening, ever since he suspected that there was something deeper behind the party that he could not know about, try as he might –
However, there was hardly any time to reflect on that as the lights started dimming and a smiling Komui brought out the first item of the night, a coupon of sorts. The murmuring in the crowd went up and Lavi, hiding himself in the darkness, allowed himself one last forlorn smile before he lifted his head up, smile ready for anyone that might come across him.
He was prepared for whatever the auction threw at him. It was just a game that would end soon, like all party games, and he could go back to life without worrying if he was supposed to join in and party like the rest of them did.
Lacing his fingers behind his head, a faint smile spread across his face as Komui announced, in an excited voice, the start of the auction.
"Okay guys! The Black Order's first ever Auction begins! And for our first item of the night, we have an all-day all-expenses paid coupon for a night out in London. Starting at three chips, just three chips! Oh ho, I have a four here from Michael, four, five from Mandy, anymore takers, anyone up for a six…"
Yes, everything would be fine, there would be nothing left in the night for Lavi to worry about.