Story 4: "Dark Secrets"

Summary: A female finder is raped and Komui has to investigate. Unfortunately, his investigation takes a turn for the worse when she points her finger at a certain exorcist.

Warnings: Rape is talked about, but no descriptions are given. Lenalee channels Road and also does some uncharacteristic swearing. Also, there's an OC in this story, sort of. I don't really consider naming a finder to be making an original character, but I thought I'd warn you anyway.

.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.

The report on Komui's desk troubled him greatly. The accusations it contained were of an incredibly serious matter. So serious in fact, that if he handled the situation poorly he could lose his job as supervisor. But that thought barely crossed his mind.

What had happened seemed too incredible to believe. He had double checked the victim's statement, not personally of course, the situation was still too delicate for that, but the Head Nurse had done good work in checking every detail of what she'd been told.

That someone had been raped on his watch was unthinkable. Yet it had happened. The female finder was currently in the infirmary, recovering from the wounds she had received. When she was well enough, she told her story to the Head Nurse who had written it all down and reported it to the supervisor. The victim remembered enough of the incident to name her attacker.

And that was where things went from bad to worse. It would have been bad enough if she had been raped by a fellow finder, but instead she pointed the finger at an exorcist...

Komui didn't believe that one of his exorcists could do something like that. Even him. Sure, the man was a little unstable and didn't care about anyone, but not even he would stoop to raping someone. Or at least that's what Komui had thought prior to reading the report.

Obviously, he needed to get the other side of the story. And he couldn't do that without telling the man the charges against him. But if he did that, his life could be in danger. He needed witnesses, people he could trust to treat the situation with the proper gravity and keep it quiet. And even more importantly, he needed exorcists who had the strength to contain the man if he decided to get physical. Lenalee would do for one, Komui trusted his sister more than anyone after all. Allen Walker was the next logical choice among the exorcists currently at headquarters. He would certainly treat the situation seriously. His presence might just make things worse though:

There was no one Kanda Yuu hated more.

.x.x.

The three exorcists reported to Komui's office exactly like they had been instructed to. With no words to the contrary, they assumed it was a mission briefing. It wasn't until they were seated that they learned differently.

"I am about to disclose something very serious to you. Nothing I say is to leave this room. Understand?" The three nodded hesitantly, struck speechless by the unexpected seriousness of the supervisor's tone. "Allen, Lenalee. You are here as witnesses. What I have to say concerns Kanda alone, I need you to stay out of this unless it is absolutely necessary. Understand?"

Lenalee nodded, hiding her burning curiosity behind a calm exterior. "Of course, Nii-san."

Allen looked to Kanda who was glaring daggers at him. He turned back to Komui. "Are you sure that I'm really who you want for this?"

"Honestly, no. But you're the best choice of those who are currently at headquarters, and this can't wait."

"Ok." Allen glanced back to Kanda before he fell silent. Inwardly he was panicking. He had no clue what was going on, but it wasn't good.

After a few minutes of silence, Kanda shifted his glare from the Moyashi to Komui. "Well? Get on with it."

Komui fumbled the file in his hands, nearly dropping it. He steadied himself and took a deep breath. Exhaling slowly he decided to go with the direct approach. "You've been accused of rape."

Lenalee's eyes nearly bugged out of her head. Kanda actually showed an emotion other than anger or annoyance: horror. And Allen... Allen burst out laughing.

It started as a snicker but it quickly grew into an all-out belly laugh. He was doubled over and having trouble breathing, he was laughing so hard.

It was a completely unexpected reaction. The other three gaped at him for a moment, before Komui collected himself. "Allen! This is serious! Calm down!"

Allen tried to make himself stop laughing, but it didn't work. Kanda growled and kicked the chair he was in, knocking the white haired young man onto the ground. Allen lay there for a minute as the laughter died to random giggles. He righted the chair and sat down. "Sorry for that. You can continue."

Komui narrowed his eyes at Allen. The Brit had shoved his Innocence hand into his mouth, biting down to stop the laughter from coming back. When the supervisor was satisfied that the outburst was over he turned back to Kanda. "A female finder claims that on the night of the twenty-third, you broke into her room and proceeded to beat and rape her. She-"

Another giggle escaped from Allen. Everyone turned to glare at him. Komui had had enough. "Alright Allen, this is an incredibly serious situation, what on earth could you possibly find funny about it?"

Kanda's eyes widened ever so slightly as he realized what Allen was thinking. Allen returned the samurai's gaze calmly, speaking to the supervisor without breaking eye contact with Kanda. "First of all: Kanda and I were together all evening on the twenty-third. He can't possibly have done what that woman is accusing him of."

Komui pounced on the possibility that Kanda had an alibi. "Can anyone verify that? Is there anyone who knows that what you're saying is true?"

Allen blinked at the question. He blushed slightly at the memory of that night. "No. No one else was around."

"Then you were alone?" That didn't seem right to the supervisor. "What were you doing?"

Allen shrugged off the question. "I don't remember specifics; it was just the usual stuff that happens when we're alone together."

Like Allen wanted, Komui assumed that meant they were training and beating the crap out of each other. Unfortunately, it didn't change anything. "I'm sorry Allen, but simply saying that you were with Kanda isn't going to be enough to get him off the hook."

Allen's dejected expression was broken by another fit of giggles. Kanda's glare deepened, he didn't know how much longer he could keep quiet. Komui frowned at the white haired young man. "Allen. Explain. What is it about this that you find so funny?"

Allen shook his head to get rid of the giggles. "It's no stretch of the imagination that Kanda would try to rape someone." He smirked at the memory of the night the samurai had tried. "And I don't want to make any assumptions as to whether or not that lady was actually raped. But either way she picked the wrong person to accuse."

When he paused for breath, Kanda growled at him, kicking him in the shin. "Are you sure you want to finish that thought, Moyashi?"

Allen met his gaze steadily, ignoring the pain in his shin. "It's the lesser of two evils, Bakanda."

Komui looked back and forth between the two young men, trying and failing to figure out what they weren't saying out loud. "What are you talking about? Please explain it to me."

Without breaking his gaze, and ignoring the aura flowing off the samurai, Allen answered the question. "Kanda doesn't like women."

"Oh. ...OH!" It only took the Chinese man a couple of seconds to grasp what Allen meant. Kanda's gay?! I certainly didn't expect that... Wait! He stared seriously at Allen. "How do you know that?"

The glaring between Kanda and Allen only got deeper. Only this time Kanda was smirking.

"Oh my God!" Lenalee finally broke her silence. She was as white as a sheet, her mind completely blown by the conclusion she had reached. "You know... And he's... 'Alone together'... Really, Allen? Really?"

Allen turned bright red at her words. Kanda snickered at the change in coloring on his Moyashi. "You can't out me without outing yourself, Mo-ya-shi."

Komui still had no clue what was happening. He turned to his sister. "What's going on? What are you talking about?"

Her stunned expression never changed. "They slept together, Nii-san."

You could have knocked Komui over with a feather he was so shocked. He looked back at the young men. Allen was looking at his lap, his white hair spilling across his face and hiding it from view. Kanda had leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms over his chest, and was glaring at the wall. Neither was putting any effort into denying what Lenalee had just said.

Komui focused on Allen, wondering what was going through the young man's head. Kanda had tried to kill the younger on several occasions, what could have possibly made Allen want to sleep with the samurai? The incident he was investigating took precedence over his curiosity though. "So then when you said that you and Kanda were together at the time of the rape, you meant...?"

Allen nodded once, his voice never faltering as he spoke words that he was terrified of saying out loud. "We were in my room, having sex in my bed."

Komui just stared at him. He hadn't expected Allen to say it flat out like that. So much for being able to feign ignorance. He sighed. "Do you really understand the consequences of what you just said, Allen?"

"He does." Kanda shifted his glare back to Allen. "He's the one who insisted on keeping this quiet in the first place."

Komui blinked at the two young men. With Kanda's words, it became undeniably true that they were sleeping together. But there was something else there too. The way Kanda had phrased that implied that their relationship went deeper than just sex.

Lenalee caught it too. She stared critically at both of them. "Does that mean that there's actually something romantic going on between you two?"

Allen looked at Kanda, who merely shrugged. "It's out either way, if you want to tell them, tell them."

The white haired young man pulled a necklace out from under his shirt. Dangling from the thin chain was a silver ring. The Lee siblings' eyes were glued to that band as Allen fiddled with it. They both knew without having to hear the words that it was an engagement ring. "I only wear it on my finger when we're on missions together. It's mostly just to cut down on people flirting with me, because he gets really jealous when that happens."

Lenalee could only stare at her friend. Allen was actually in love with Kanda. She was happy for him of course, but she couldn't help feeling a little sad that it wasn't her.

Komui's gaze fell to his desk, catching the folder still in his hands. And I had thought this couldn't get any worse... He adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. "We've gotten off track. Kanda and Allen, you are positive that you were, ahem, together on the night of the rape?"

Both of them nodded. "And is there anyone at all who knows about your relationship? Someone who could verify that you're not making this up just to avoid the rape charges?"

There was a moment of serious thought before Kanda spoke. "Marie."

When Komui didn't respond, Allen elaborated. "Miranda knows too, but you probably don't want to talk to her. It would only freak her out."

Komui nodded a few times. Then he looked up at the pair. "I have to investigate this to confirm Kanda's alibi. I'll keep it as quiet as I can, but you need to be prepared for the chance it comes out. If the rape investigation goes south, I may not be able to protect you. Because you were right earlier, Allen. Homosexuality has the lesser consequences of the two, and revealing your relationship may be the only way to keep Kanda from getting convicted of rape."

The supervisor was clearly done talking, so Kanda got up and left. Allen was about to follow when Lenalee spoke, her question stopping him in his tracks. "Nii-san? Which finder did this happen to?"

"It's best if I don't answer that. She's still recovering, and I wouldn't want anyone to disturb her yet."

Lenalee nodded. "I understand."

She stood up and left the office, pulling Allen along with her. She didn't let go of her white haired friend until they were quite a ways down the hall. Allen blanched at the look on her face. "I have a whole lot of questions for you, but they're going to have to wait. I know that Kanda would be executed if he's found guilty of raping that finder. What I don't know is: what's going to happen to the two of you if Komui has to tell everyone that you're gay? It's clearly something bad, but I don't understand why."

Allen laughed lightly. "That's because you're kind and open-minded."

He sighed and leaned against the wall. "Central however, is not. The short version is that if we weren't exorcists, we'd be executed. But because we are, things are a little less certain. There's a very slim chance that they'd let us be, though now that I know that your brother is on our side, that seems a bit more possible. We'll most likely be separated, banned from ever seeing each other again."

Lenalee gaped at Allen. "That's awful. What-"

"Again, that's a nicer alternative. With everything I've seen them do, they could do any number of cruel and unusual things to us."

"How is that better than execution?"

"We'd be alive." Allen sighed and looked at the ceiling. "As long as we're alive there's the chance we'd be able to find each other again."

Lenalee was suddenly pulling him down the hall again. "Lena, wait! Where are you taking me?"

"We're going to go talk to that finder. I'm not going to let that bitch do this to you."

"Lenalee! Did you really just say that?!" Allen was more than a little disturbed by her sudden change in behavior.

She laughed, but that only creeped Allen out more. "Like you weren't thinking it."

He really wasn't. Even with his lover's life on the line, Allen couldn't bring himself to think badly of the accuser. "How do you even expect to find her? Your brother wouldn't tell you who she was."

"But he did say that she's still recovering. Which must mean that she's in the infirmary." She increased her speed. "Now hurry up and stop dawdling!"

.x.x.

The perfect little girl act that Lenalee put on for the nurses terrified Allen. From their conversation in the hall, he knew that the Chinese woman was just about ready to murder "the bitch who would dare split up my family!"

Yet she acted completely innocent, claiming her brother sent her to interview the finder, Olivia. Allen tried to leave several times during the conversation, but Lenalee kept such a tight grip on his wrist that he wouldn't be able to break it without hurting her.

Her act may have fooled the nurse, but it didn't fool Olivia. She knew how protective Lenalee was of her friends, and denied her access to the room.

Komui arrived while Lenalee was trying to convince the nurse to let her in anyway. He had come to see if Olivia was ready to talk to him yet. But first, he was going to have to deal with the two exorcists. "You really shouldn't be here, Allen."

Allen made an irritated noise. "I'm aware of that, Komui." He tried to pull away from Lenalee once more, but her grip didn't budge. "Would you let go of me already?"

Lenalee made puppy dog eyes at her brother when he turned his attention to her. "Please let us stay, Nii-san."

The supervisor narrowed his eyes at his sister. He really should have known that she would do something like this. He was incapable of denying her request though. "Fine, but you have to stay over there."

Komui waited until the pair were standing against the far wall, then he and the nurse went into Olivia's room. He stopped just inside the door, keeping his distance so she would feel more at ease. Last time he had tried to speak to her, she had freaked out before he even got in the door. So even though she refused to look at him, it was progress.

Clearing his throat, Komui closed the door so that his sister and Allen couldn't hear what was happening. "Olivia-san, would you be willing to recount your experience for me?"

She didn't say a word. The slight shake of her head was the only response Komui got. He moved on to his next question. "You have named Kanda Yuu as your attacker. Is this true?"

Olivia gave him a barely audible "Yes."

Komui scribbled something in the folder he was holding. "And how certain are you that he was indeed the man who attacked you?"

She was silent again. The supervisor tried to gauge if it was because she was thinking or because she didn't want to answer the question. He couldn't tell. But when she still hadn't responded after a couple minutes, he moved on to the next item. "I am still conducting my investigation, but Kanda has an alibi for the night of the incident. He can't be the man who attacked you. Does that change your story at all?"

The expression on her face was a mixture of horror and anger. "That's a lie! That man raped me and you would just take his word over mine?! What kind of a conspiracy is this?!"

Komui let her shout. Until she calmed down anything he said would only aggravate her further. When she finally stopped hurling insults, Komui collected himself and spoke as calmly as he could. "I'm sorry, but my hands are tied. Unless you tell me your story, I can't help you."

She laughed in derision. "Ha! It won't change anything. This is just going to get covered up!"

When Komui opened his mouth to protest, she spoke again. "Go away. I'm done talking to you."

He frowned, but complied. He gave a short bow, and then turned to leave. "I'm sorry you feel that way."

Komui was halfway out the door when she suddenly said, "Stop."

"That's Allen Walker out in the hall, isn't it? I'll talk to him. And only him."

Komui looked from her to where Allen was standing, completely oblivious to the fact that he had just been mentioned. The supervisor turned back to Olivia. "Why?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Just send him in."

"I'll see what I can do." He bowed again and left the room, the nurse following behind him.

Lenalee pounced on her brother the second he was back in the hall. "So? What did she say?"

Komui sighed and adjusted his glasses. "She wants to talk to Allen."

Allen looked scared and backed further into the wall. Komui gave him a gentle smile. "I didn't tell her anything about you and Kanda. But you've got the entire Order fooled into thinking you hate him. She probably thinks you'll be on her side."

The white haired young man relaxed a little, and Lenalee used the opportunity to pull him towards the door. "Get in there and talk to her."

Komui physically stopped her with hands to her shoulders, giving Allen the chance to finally escape her grip. "That's not a good idea. He's sexually involved with the man she's accusing of raping her. He won't be able to treat this situation impartially."

"But it's Allen." Lenalee argued.

Her brother sighed; his sister's logic was undeniable. "That doesn't make this any less of a bad idea, Lenalee."

He turned to Allen and stared seriously at the young man. "We need her to tell us what happened, and she says she'll talk to you. Will you be able to listen to her without causing problems?"

After a long moment of thought, in which the Lee siblings both thought he had forgotten they were there, Allen nodded. "I'll do my best. I need to know what's going on."

The nurse went inside Olivia's room and explained the situation to her. She opened the blinds covering the window so that they would be able to watch and make sure nothing happened. Then she moved a chair, placing it far enough from the bed that Allen would be more than an arm's reach away from Olivia. Then the nurse left. "She's ready, Allen."

He paused outside the door. There was a moment of panic as everyone watched him active his Innocence. Allen drew his sword and leaned it against the wall. He could feel their confused looks, so he turned back to them and smiled. "I think we'll all feel better if I'm unarmed in there."

Then he went inside and closed the door behind him. He sat cross legged on the chair, keeping his one hand firmly in his lap, idly fiddling with the cuff of his empty left sleeve. Once he was settled, he looked at Olivia. He'd been on a mission or two with her before, and remembered her as being a somewhat pretty brunette. That beauty was almost gone now, hidden behind dark bruises and bandaged cuts. Allen broke the silence first. "Why me?"

"Because..." She seemed to struggle for words. "Because I know your reputation. The Order, and especially that supervisor," she practically spat the word, "are going to do whatever they can to pretend this never happened. I know that you won't let them sweep this under the rug."

Allen nodded slowly. It made sense, in her paranoid state she would want to be careful who she trusted. "Tell me what happened."

He sat there in silence while she described her attack in great detail. He hung on every word, and absorbed every detail. He needed to know exactly what happened that night.

When Olivia was done with her story, she leaned back and waited for him to say something. She had decided to talk to him on an impulse, because of his hatred for her attacker, she hadn't expected him to actually listen so patiently while she cried and stumbled over her words.

Allen sighed heavily and asked the question that was bothering him. "How do you know that it was Kanda who attacked you?"

He was glad he'd left his weapon outside when she started swearing. It was incredibly uncomfortable hearing his fiancé talked about like that. It took everything he had to remind himself that she was only saying those things because she believed Kanda raped her.

When he ignored the curses, Allen managed to piece together what Olivia was saying. "You don't actually know it was him, do you?"

"Are you implying that I'm making all this up just to get that bastard in trouble?" Her defensive tone made Allen bristle. "Because I'm not going to let you accuse me of faking being raped!"

"No. That's not at all what I meant. I believe you really were attacked. And I want to see the guy who did this to you get punished. But I want that to be the right guy." He paused while he watched her calm down. "All I was saying is that it sounds like you accused Kanda based on conjectures. You took what you knew about your attacker and determined that Kanda fit that best and so you decided it was him that attacked you."

Olivia remained silent, so Allen continued to talk. She understood the logic behind his words, even if she didn't agree with them. "If you had told Komui that you only had a description, he would have been investigating that instead of wasting time questioning Kanda. You need to talk to him now, before his investigation confirms Kanda's alibi."

"What alibi?" She practically spit the words. "It's just nonsense made up by the higher ups. They'd do anything to protect one of their exorcists. I thought you of all people would understand that. You hate Kanda. Why would you so willingly accept something that is so obviously a lie?"

Allen sighed. He thought he'd made progress, she had seemed like she was considering recanting her accusation. Apparently, he was wrong. "Look, I know that Kanda's alibi isn't something that anyone made up. And I was there when Komui questioned him. Komui is taking this very seriously, but you need to tell him that you don't know who raped you. He can't investigate this properly if you don't."

Olivia stared blankly at Allen; once again, his cold logic was at odds with her anger. He sighed again. He stood from his chair and moved to the door, pausing with his hand on the doorknob. "I didn't want to tell you this, but I guess I don't have a choice. I'm Kanda's alibi. At the time you were being raped, he was with me. So will you please change your story? Because I have to stick with mine, and I don't want you to have to go through that."

Allen didn't wait for a response. He left the room before she had time to process what he said.

Ignoring the curious looks the others were giving him, Allen picked up his sword from where he left it and deactivated it. Then he turned and stared levelly at Komui. "She doesn't know who raped her; all she has is a description. I know you don't believe that coming from me, but it's true. I tried to convince her to tell you herself, but she's too paranoid. She's going to continue to accuse Kanda."

He walked off. Komui took a few steps after him, but knew chasing Allen was pointless; the angry and frustrated aura coming off of him was enormous. "Allen! Wait! Where are you going?"

The rumbling of the young man's stomach was the only answer he got, and the only one he needed.

.x.x.

The rumor that Kanda had raped someone had spread like wildfire. No one ever figured out how it got started, but by the time lunchtime came around the cafeteria was buzzing with gossip.

Kanda sat at his usual table, with his usual soba, but with a much larger bubble than usual. Normally the samurai wouldn't have cared that people were avoiding him, but he could hear the whispers and was realizing just how unliked he was. For the first time he understood what Allen meant whenever he'd told him to lighten up or relax. It wasn't about having a sense of humor; it was about not getting angry at every little thing.

The moment Allen entered the cafeteria he was warned to stay away from the samurai, but he ignored the well-meaning finder and sat with Kanda anyway. Allen wasn't going to let peer pressure stop him from sitting with his fiancé. The pair never said a word to each other as they ate; body language was all they needed to communicate.

Both of them wondered how the gossipers would react if they knew that "someone as perfect as Allen" was sleeping with "a monster like Kanda", but they were interrupted when Lenalee sat down with them. She had been kicked out of the infirmary not long after Allen left.

The meal was spent answering the questions Lenalee had about their relationship. They kept their voices quiet so as to not be overheard since they were in the middle of the cafeteria. After receiving satisfactory answers to her questions, Lenalee finally worked up the nerve to ask the one that most intrigued her. "So... How did all this start?"

Kanda managed to pull off glaring at Allen and Lenalee at the same time. The white haired young man smirked at the samurai, which only made his glare deepen. They both knew that Allen would tell the story in the way that most embarrassed Kanda. His whisper was barely audible, but that didn't make his tone any less firm. "He came into my room one night with the intention of raping me."

Lenalee's eyes looked like they were about to fly out of her head. She expected Allen to start grinning like it was all a big joke, but instead the young man turned his attention back to his food. She watched him poke at the dishes; the expression on his face looking more like he had just told her that it had rained than that his fiancé had once tried to rape him.

Her "WHAT?!" was less of the shocked screech she intended it to be, and was more of a strangled whisper. She looked back and forth between her two best friends, but even Kanda's body language confirmed that they weren't messing with her.

Allen sighed and gave her a gentle smile. "Kanda's solution to how ... sexually frustrated he was with me was to take me by force..."

.x.x.

Allen lay in the small bed of his room at the inn, trying to fall asleep but struggling to do so in the unfamiliar environment. He rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in his pillow. He heard, but didn't register, the faint click of the lock of his door being picked. The flicker of light coming in from the hallway as the door was opened was missed, as were the dark shadow of someone swiftly stepping inside and the click of the door being relocked.

There was hardly any light in the small room, but it was enough for the intruder to see by. His dark eyes took in the shape of the sleeping white haired teen, practically devouring him with his gaze. The way the blankets accentuated the teen's skinny form made the intruder's already tight pants get tighter.

The dark figure paused in his steps momentarily; there was no turning back once this started. He desperately wanted and needed the body below him, so much so that it had come to this. But the white haired boy was so pure and innocent, especially in his sleep. Did he really have the heart to take that all away?

Allen shifted slightly and the intruder's focus returned to his pulsing erection. The teen had been unknowingly torturing him ever since they first crossed paths. And today's events were the final straw. He couldn't take any more. Masturbation had stopped satisfying him over a month ago. He needed release, and this was the only way he was going to get it. And if the teen fought back, well that's what the syringe in his coat pocket was for. It would disable the teen's Innocence and disorient him enough to give the dark haired intruder the upper hand.

Having made up his mind, the intruder inched closer to the bed. He moved as silently as a cat, not wanting to wake his prey. The dark figure froze when Allen shifted yet again, this time rolling onto his back, tossing the blankets aside and covering his face with the crook of his elbow. A few agonizingly slow seconds passed before the intruder dared to breathe. Then he swiftly covered the remaining distance and climbed onto the bed.

The sudden weight on top of him was Allen's first sign that there was someone in his room. His eyes flew open, recognizing the intruder even in the darkness. He sat up, quickly pulling himself out from under the taller figure. "What the hell are you doing, Bakanda?"

The Japanese man was startled to find his prey awake and lucid. He hesitated for the briefest of seconds, doubting his plan, before forging ahead and capturing the teen's lips. Allen gasped at the initial contact, but how he responded blew Kanda's mind. Instead of fighting back, he pulled the samurai closer.

Kanda pushed Allen down onto the mattress, removing his hand from his pocket and leaving the syringe behind. He hadn't expected the white haired teen to cooperate, but it appeared that that was actually happening. So long as his prey was willing, he wouldn't need to stoop to rape, but he would keep his guard up in case things went south.

Allen remained blissfully unaware of the samurai's intentions. His fingers tangled into Kanda's hair as the kiss deepened. They danced across his scalp until they reached his hair tie. The cord was swiftly untied, and the navy hair cascaded down around them.

Kanda broke the kiss and eyed Allen critically. His hand strayed to the pocket with the syringe in it. "What do you think you're doing, Moyashi?"

The white haired teen laughed, sliding his hands from Kanda's hair down to his chest. "I asked you first, Bakanda. You're the one who snuck into my room in the middle of the night."

"Moyashi-"

Allen kissed Kanda briefly, shutting him up and making him lose his grip on the syringe. The teen's fingers began unbuttoning Kanda's jacket. "For all I know, I'm having a wet dream. So just shut up and let me enjoy this."

.x.x.

"... Long story short, I found the syringe while we were getting dressed." Allen paused briefly to make sure Kanda wasn't murdering him with his eyes before he continued. "That led to a whole lot of fighting and arguing, and that led to more sex. But that didn't happen the way he expected it to either."

This was something Kanda objected to. He growled at Allen. "Don't tell her that."

Allen pouted at him. "But I like that part."

"I know you do. But it's embarrassing for me."

"This whole story is embarrassing for you." Allen snickered.

Kanda frowned. "That part's the worst though."

Allen gave him a look that reminded Lenalee of a kicked puppy. "But it's my favorite part, Yuu. I like that you let me take you."

"Mo-ya-shiiii!"

The white haired young man clasped his hands over his mouth. "Oops. Sorry."

Lenalee continued to stare wide eyed at both of her friends. She had been struck speechless at learning that Kanda really had tried to rape Allen. The embarrassing tidbit that Allen had let slip had gone over her head. She understood that she had just been told something juicy, but she had no clue what it was. She wanted to ask for an explanation, but the look on Kanda's face said that she wouldn't get one. So she settled for sighing and stopping the two from killing each other. "Sit down, Kanda! It doesn't matter that he told me, because I have no clue what he's talking about."

The two young men stared at her for a moment before being satisfied that she was telling the truth. Lenalee filled the silence that followed. "I don't want to hear about your sex life anyway, so let's move on to something else. What happened the night you got engaged?"

Kanda scoffed and Allen snickered. Lenalee blinked at them. "What?"

Allen collected himself and placed a hand gently on hers. "You can't say that you don't want us to talk about sex, and then ask us about a night where all we did was have sex."

The Chinese woman turned bright red. She was saved from further embarrassment by the appearance of her brother. Komui approached the table where the three exorcists were sitting, and their conversation abruptly halted. "Olivia retracted her accusation. What exactly did you say to her, Allen?"

The white haired young man blinked at the supervisor. "I didn't think she listened to me."

"Allen." Komui gave the young man a look, telling him to focus and answer the question.

"It wasn't much; just that she should trust you." After a pause, he tacked on, "And that I couldn't be on her side if she continued to accuse Kanda."

"You didn't tell her-"

"Of course not!" Allen was horrified by the suggestion. "All I said was that I was Kanda's alibi. It was the only way I could think of to convince her to trust me."

Komui nodded absently a few times, thinking hard about the response. "Well it worked. I've got an investigation to get back to, but you should be able to relax now. I don't foresee any reason to expose your relationship."

.x.x.

The man who had actually raped Olivia was quickly found and apprehended. There weren't many men in the Order who had hair as long as Kanda's, so it didn't take much time to investigate them all.

The official verdict that Kanda was innocent had been announced at breakfast four days ago. Half of the Order's staff accepted the samurai's innocence, the other half didn't. They demanded proof of his alibi. And until they got it, they were going to make his life hell. (It only worked in theory though, as they were all still scared to death of him and his temper.)

The four exorcist friends were sitting together at dinner. Lenalee was itching to tell the redheaded Bookman apprentice everything she'd learned about Allen and Kanda's relationship, but she had been sworn to secrecy. She smiled occasionally at Allen, who was poking silently at his food. The stress of having his fiancé's every move questioned was taking its toll on him. They hadn't been alone together since the whole fiasco started. Lavi failed to notice that the youngest of their group was distracted; he was too busy trying to get Kanda to spill his alibi (for curiosity's sake, not because he sided with those finders).

The tension at the table was broken when Komui approached. He didn't say a word, just handed Allen a file. The young man opened it with disinterest, but soon his eyes were glued to the contents. He read every word twice. And then a third time for good measure. When he looked up his eyes were sparkling with hope. He had been so prepared for the worst that this outcome caught him completely off guard. "Is this for real?"

Komui grinned. "Absolutely."

If it were possible, the young man's eyes sparkled even brighter. He jumped from his seat and hugged the supervisor. "Thank you!"

The Chinese man laughed. "Don't thank me, thank Olivia. She's the one who pulled the stings."

Tears pooled in Allen's silver eyes. "Why would she...?"

Komui smiled gently as he took the file back. "She said it was a gift. A thank you to you for believing in her, and an apology to both you and Kanda for turning your lives upside down."

The conversation had the attention of everyone in the cafeteria. But no one expected Allen's next move:

The white haired young man moved swiftly back to the table and sat on Kanda's lap. He straddled the samurai's hips, pressing their chests together in a tight hug. Allen pulled Kanda's hair tie from his ponytail. And as the strands fell around them, the two locked together in a kiss.

In the complete silence that followed, every word the pair said could be heard perfectly. "What the hell do you think you're doing, Moyashi?"

Allen's eyes continued to sparkle as he kissed the Japanese man again. The tears of joy and relief began to fall when he spoke. "Central has officially approved of our engagement, Yuu. They're going to allow us to get married."

Kanda turned from his crying fiancé to the supervisor. His question died in his throat when he saw the expression on the man's face. It was true. The Lee siblings smiled happily at each other as Allen and Kanda kissed passionately.

Meanwhile, Lavi's brain, along with the rest of the cafeteria's, was about ready to explode. The fiercest rivals in the history of the Order were making out and talking about marriage. The redhead cleared his throat loudly. "Could someone please explain what's going on?"

Allen blushed fiercely as he snapped back to the present and realized what he'd just done in public. He tried to move, but Kanda's arms kept a tight hold on him. The samurai smirked at Lavi. "You wanted to know what I was doing the night of the rape; that's your answer: Allen. I was doing Allen."

The euphemism was rewarded with a light fist to the stomach. While the pair bickered and kissed, Lenalee explained everything to Lavi and the bystanders.

The redhead was at a loss for words. He had always prided himself in his observational skills, so how had he missed the romantic relationship between two of his closest comrades? But he could see it all so clearly now: the secret glances, the obvious lies, every step they had painstakingly taken to hide their true feelings. Ultimately Lavi was thankful for his status as a Bookman; that impartial detachment allowed him to react without having to decide if he was happy for the pair or disgusted by the homosexuality.

Eventually Allen broke away from Kanda and returned to his own seat, though they remained close. Allen removed the chain from his neck and placed his engagement ring on his finger. Lenalee immediately switched topics, pestering the pair about their wedding plans.

Her brother laughed at the blank looks on the pair's faces. He smiled at his sister. "I think it's safe to assume that they have never even thought about having, or want to have, a wedding. That's why I brought this."

A second file was placed in the center of the table where all four exorcists could see it. The marriage license was already filled out, complete with a priest's signature, it was only missing theirs. Komui pulled a pen out of his pocket and handed it to Allen. The white haired young man took it without hesitation and smoothly signed his name on the paper. It was too sudden, but he didn't want to risk Central changing their minds.

When he was done, Kanda took the pen and scribbled his signature beside Allen's. He wanted nothing more than to be officially joined to his Moyashi.

Lavi and Lenalee signed as witnesses, and it was done. In the middle of the cafeteria, on an unremarkable Thursday evening, Allen Walker and Kanda Yuu were officially married.

It would be several months before they would learn Central's true motives behind letting them marry, but in the meantime, they were just happy to be together.