Wednesday, November 30th, XXXX
1900 hours (7:00 P.M)
…
"Oh. Fuck."
Have you ever had one of those days, where everything goes right?
"What the hell happened…?"
Then, at the very end something terrible decides to show up on your doorstep?
…
As we ran to the front steps of Kanda's house with Timcanpy following overhead, we found the front door kicked in, the windows smashed , and everything not how or where it was left before.
We paused on the threshold, at first just gazing in to see everything in ruins. I tried to take the first steps in but Kanda held me back and walked in first with cautious steps. His eyes suddenly went wide as he seemed to remember something.
"Mugen…!" he whispered, and ran to the end of the hallway, turning right.
Not knowing what else to do, I followed him. I hadn't been to this part of the house before, but it was just another hallway with doors leading off it. I decided to look through each one since I didn't know which one Kanda was in.
The first one to the left lead to a basement. No lights were on so he couldn't have gone there. Another door further down the hallway on the right was a bathroom, and then the last door at the very end of the hallway on the left was a large study. There was where I found Kanda.
He was digging through a pile of broken glass and torn papers to get to a certain part on the floor.
For what reason I do not know.
Tim floated into his office and hovered over him somewhat, looking on to what he was doing. I myself was curious as to what he was trying to do.
Finally clearing the area Kanda used a crowbar he picked off the floor and started to pull up the floorboards to reveal an empty space below. Reaching in he pulled out what looked like from my angle a long wooden stick with an equally long black case. Upon closer inspection it was a sheathed sword with a case to go along with it.
Kanda swiftly put the sword into the black case and slung it onto his back, standing up and facing me.
…
"We're leaving, now," he said in a firm no-play tone. Allen was already on high alerts what with Kanda's house having been broken into, but this made him actually listen to what Kanda had to say.
"And what am I supposed to do, exactly?" Allen asked as though he really couldn't do much to help.
"Go around the house. Anywhere. Everywhere. Whatever isn't broken and looks like it could be of some use pile it by the front door. Half an hour, that's our time limit here." Kanda was damn demanding, but this event seemed to put him on edge so much as to use the voice he uses at work talking to his subordinates. Allen felt like he was in the army! He even almost saluted and said 'Yes sir!'
Kanda turned back to the room to look around it once more while Allen went back down the hallway to the living room where a surprise met him.
The flipped over and ripped open couches and the broken television lying on the floor had nothing against what was on the living room wall. It was enough to make Allen turn a paler pale.
"Kanda!" Allen called out. Kanda appeared a few seconds later, agitated and stepping heavily, almost to the point of stomping.
"What do you-" At seeing Allen's face he stopped speaking and looked to where Allen was pointing. He turned around and looked at the wall, and his face turned a shade similar to Allen's.
It was very clear now. The obviousness of the whole situation slapped him in the back of the head and called him an idiot for not noticing something like this earlier.
WE'VE FOUND YOU.
"Noah's…" Kanda whispered, staring at the pentagram and the message carved into the wall. He thought it was strange how somebody would break into a house and not steal anything, for from what Kanda could tell, nothing was missing.
"They were looking for something," Allen spoke out loud, staring blindly at the wall now.
"Looking? Of course they were! They were looking for me!" Kanda exclaimed as though it was obvious.
"No. Well, yes. But no," Allen replied. "They were looking for you and they found you, but you're not the only thing they were looking for. If you were they wouldn't have taken the energy to rip this place apart so thoroughly," he gestured to the rest of the house with his eyes.
Kanda's hold on the strap to the black case on his back tightened.
"And what do you suppose they were looking for?" he asked suspiciously.
"I'm not supposing anything, I was merely suggesting that they were looking for something," Allen shrugged.
"Then what do you merely suggest they were looking for? Supposing, of course, that you really know." It seemed like Kanda was trying to start something.
"I suppose they were looking for something important. I'm also supposing that's why they came through here with a tornado," Allen replied, catching on.
"Do you suppose you have any suggestions as to what that supposed item might be?" And thus began the word war…
"Now, if I were to suppose that they were supposedly looking for a certain supposed special item, then I am merely suggesting that I was supposing there was supposedly more to them than just ripping things apart, and I am suggesting that they are not as supposedly destructive as you suppose they are. Therefore I am also just suggesting that whatever you supposedly have was suggestively worth taking the supposed time in order to find. That also leads me to suggest that you don't even stay a half an hour here, grab your things and leave now. Of course this is all supposedly just a suggestion under the assumption of a supposed suggestion."
"…Okay, don't do that again." …That Kanda couldn't keep up with and ended fairly quickly.
"All right, fuck searching this place; everything has already been taken to holding at the airport a long time ago. There's nothing here we need," and Kanda began walking to the front door, expecting Allen to follow him.
Which didn't happen.
He stopped and turned around when an extra pair of footsteps didn't follow his own. He saw Allen just standing there with his right hand tucked into his jacket pocket staring right back at him. He didn't have any expression set on his face. It was just blank, but almost like he was expecting something.
"Oi, what the hell-"
Click.
And then Kanda saw it. His very own gun in the hand of the last person he'd want it in. It was pointing right at him, again, but this time the person holding it wasn't so hesitant.
"I want my ring." That was it. Four words in one demanding tone. A dead tone declaring there was an 'either do what I say or die,' type of situation now.
His eyes had changed, too. Cold and hard. Kanda had never seen them before and didn't know what to make of it as of yet, but he'd been in these type of situations before.
"What the fuck do you think you're doing," he growled, "with my gun?"
"Taking back what's mine," Allen replied unaffected by Kanda's threat and completely impassive to the currently building atmosphere that he himself was making.
The tension grew as they commenced in a stare down, each other's patience growing thin. Allen's finger began twitching on the trigger. The gun was already cocked and all he had to do was pull it. He would get his ring and get away from this place for good. He might even be able to escape the mafia once and for all. The positive sides of this just kept adding up and Allen began seeing it positive to shoot a detective in their own home. It's not like he hasn't killed anyone before—
"Alright. Take it." Allen was cut off in his thoughts by what he thought he might have heard.
There's no way… he thought in disbelief but kept the expression off his face.
He lowered the gun and looked at Kanda's hand go into his coat pocket and pull out a small object. He tossed it over in Allen's direction which Timcanpy caught in his mouth. It's not like Allen could; his left hand was wounded and his right hand had the gun in it.
Tim showed it to Allen to verify it was the ring. Once Allen nodded Tim swallowed it.
"What are you trying to pull?" he snapped at Kanda and narrowed his eyes, not trusting his actions.
"I'm not going to beat around the bush," he said coldly, "I need you on my side. I need you come with me. If it means giving you what you want then so be it."
What he said made Allen smirk. "What makes you think that now that I have what I want I'm going to stay with you?"
"Not much, actually." Now it was Kanda's turn to shrug. He put his hands in his coat pocket and stood there waiting for Allen to speak.
"What do you think—"
He moved so swiftly Allen didn't have time to react. Kanda pulled his hand out of his pocket to reveal a gun and with one hand cocked it and pointed it in Allen's direction. Without hesitation he pulled the trigger that struck Allen in the neck.
Allen felt it and the sting, his eyes going wide. He tried to pull his hand up to feel where he got hit, but he was all of a sudden too weak and tired to do just that. He collapsed onto the floor and laid still. Tim flew over him frantically and when Kanda approached started attacking his head.
"Move you stupid thing!"
Wednesday, November 30th, XXXX
1930 hours (7:30 P.M)
Silent humming.
I feel it.
It's quiet here.
Dark.
…
Where am I?
…
…
Open, you stupid eyes!
Wake up!
Allen's eyes shot open and he found himself staring at his golden golem who was sitting right in front of his face, except he was sideways.
Scratch that, Allen was the one who was sideways. He was laying down on leather that was vibrating slightly. He tried to sit up and found it difficult because he couldn't move his hands. He looked at them to see what was wrong and saw that he was handcuffed. He sighed in irritation as he realized he was in the backseat of Kanda's lotus.
Tim rested on Allen's hands and did its imitation of crying seeing that his master was alive. Allen smiled at him, but then shook him off to use his hands to feel his neck. It was sore and tender to the touch but there was not bullet wound.
Bastard shot me with a sedative…
Allen sat there silently and glared at the back of Kanda's seat, wishing death upon the atrocious man.
Kanda looked in the car mirror and saw Allen was awake with the most hateful expression on his face and he smirked.
"You can't actually win."
Allen remained silent, not wanting to speak unless he had to.
"How did you get my gun?" Kanda questioned him.
"Outside. You weren't paying attention," was all Allen mumbled for the rest of the ride to the airport.
Wednesday, November 30th, XXXX
2100 hours (9:00 P.M)
"And so, do you know what she said?"
Kanda and Allen had arrived at the airport around eight and met up with Lavi at their terminal for their flight that was to leave at nine. They were currently waiting to be called to board the plane as the airport seemed to be running behind schedule, as they always were.
Lavi was now talking, or at least trying to, with Kanda about some girl he was in a relationship with and how he had tried to break up with her because they were leaving the country.
Kanda obviously didn't want to hear it but was deciding not to make a scene and meditate, making it seem like he was listening.
Germany, huh… Allen had been un-cuffed once they got to the airport so as not to draw attention to him without the help of his strange appearance of white hair and red scar. Of course he got the occasional glance from passersby and a pointed finger or two by toddlers.
The last damn place I want to be right now…
"Now boarding Napar Airline 82. Destination: Berlin, Germany. Repeat, now boarding Napar Airline 82. Destination: Berlin, Germany. Passengers please make your way to Terminal 9."
"Finally," Kanda mumbled as he stood up from his chair. He didn't know if he could last any longer listening to Lavi.
They began walking towards their gate when Kanda noticed Allen was still sitting down, apparently lost in thought and staring off after a custodian that had just passed by.
"Oi," he said in his direction and it caught Allen's attention.
"Oh, right," Allen mumbled and stood up following behind Kanda to board the plane. He didn't have much of a choice now anyways so there was no point in running away. He had what he wanted and was outnumbered two to one.
They arrived at their plane where a woman was waiting to take their tickets.
"Good evening, may I see your tickets please?" she said with a smile.
Kanda took them out and showed her the three tickets, but instead of taking them she was looking at what Kanda was carrying.
"Um, I'm sorry sir, is that a sword?"
"It is," Kanda answered plainly.
"I'm sorry but that can't be taken as a carry-on onto the plane," she said a little hesitantly with the look she was receiving from Kanda.
"I have permission to," Kanda stated, showing her a card he was handing her along with the three tickets.
She took all four things and looked at the card. Once looking it over her eyes widened as she looked back up to Kanda.
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, sir! I didn't know," she began apologizing.
He gave her a brief nod telling her that it was fine. He just wanted to get on the plane.
"Right," she said as she looked back to the tickets, "First class, Seats one and two A on your left, and one B on your right," she ripped all three tickets and handed them and the card back to Kanda. "Enjoy your flight." She was back to her calm demeanor.
They walked through the tunnel and onto the plane where they found their seats in the front.
"I sit next to Allen!" Lavi said as Allen sat down at the window seat in A.
Kanda, however, thought differently as he sat in the aisle seat in A. Lavi pouted and went to sit in beside them in row B.
"No fair."
"If you could just stop acting like a child, for two MINUTES," Kanda's voice was growing in volume as he began growling at Lavi. He'd been getting on his nerves ever since they got to the airport.
"Okay, okay," Lavi said, taking the warning.
Allen turned to the frosting window and sighed. This was going to be a long plane ride.
"What am I doing here…?" he whispered to himself.
Thinking over the past few days, things seemed to have been moving in fast forward. One moment he was locked in a room, doomed to die, then he was locked in some detective's house, and then locked in his office…
Was it him or was this becoming a recurring theme?
Anyways, he just couldn't believe he was leaving the country under arrest with people he didn't even know, and to Germany no less.
Master…
Kanda looked over to Allen and studied his expression. A sullen one, and once again lost in thought staring at nothing.
People began to slowly fill the rest of the plane, though by the end half of it was still empty. Nobody shared row B with Lavi so he was able to be annoying all to himself, the way Kanda liked it.
"Attention passengers, please take a seat as we will be departing shortly. Note that when the 'fasten your seatbelt' sign lights up it will be time to do so, and please keep them fastened until we reach a desirable height…"
The flight attendant came on the speaker and began going through directions and cautions, noting where the emergency exits were among other things. Allen pulled Tim out from the inside of his jacket. He had deactivated him so the metal detector wouldn't go off while passing through it in getting into the airport. He tapped at certain spots and Tim came back to life. He stretched his wings out and looked up to Allen who was pulling something out from Tim's side.
It was an ear bud. He stretched the chord out and put it to his ear.
"Tim, play the message master left."
The message began to play and Allen closed his eyes, listening intently to it.
'Hey, Allen
Come to think of it, I've never asked you this before, but… Do you like Tim?
I asked you to keep hold of him for me, but…
…To be honest I was always planning on giving him to you.
I've told him he can do as he likes from now on.
You may not want to listen to me, knowing that I'm carrying on the Fourteenth's will…
…But in case you're thinking you're being made to walk a path that me and the Fourteenth chose for you…
I just wanted to tell you – you're wrong.
A path is something you create as you walk it.
The ground you've trodden hardens, and that's what forms your path.
You're the only one who can create your own path.
So stop wearing that mask of "Mana."
Walk, on your own.
If you haven't given up yet, that is.'
The recording was set on repeat, and as Allen listened to it over and over again it began to lull him to sleep. He closed his eyes, realizing they stung and refused to be opened again. Tim shuffled in Allen's lap to make himself invisible to everyone else on the plane and would rest there until Allen woke once more.
Kanda noticed Allen doze off, but it wasn't the same type of sleep he witnessed in the office. This one was more stressed and many more tense muscles were visible in the face, especially around the eyebrows where he seemed to be frowning. Perhaps it was what he was listening too?
Kanda shook off the feeling of eavesdropping. Holding his sword to lean on his chest he crossed his arms in front of it and fell into a light doze.
Wednesday, November 30th, XXXX
2245 hours (10:45 P.M)(Ireland Time)
"Attention passengers, due to the inclimate weather our arrival time will be delayed by approximately one hour…"
Kanda's eyes opened at the sound of someone speaking over the radio. Realizing it was a message notifying that they were to be on the plane for another hour he closed his eyes once more and made a low growling sound at the back of his throat.
It was then that Allen woke up. Though reluctant he reopened his eyes to hear the message being repeated. He groaned in annoyance hearing it and rolled his head to look out the window. It was somewhere between lightning, hailing, and snowing with a mix of high winds and the plane was in the middle of it.
They were probably going to go around the storm cloud, which could take god knows how long.
Allen pulled down the shade on the window to block the depressing scene and turned to the aisle where he saw Kanda with his eyes closed. Thinking he was asleep Allen tried to get away with something while he thought he still could.
He took the ear bud out and replaced back to the side of Tim's head and waited for a flight attendant to walk down the aisle.
"Excuse me," Allen said in a formal tone using his British accent.
Kanda twitched, but it went unnoticed by Allen. For a moment Kanda thought Allen was addressing him, but from the tone of voice he doubted it. Allen would never speak so nicely to him. He kept his eyes closed and waited to see what would happen.
"Yes, how may I help you," came a voice off to Kanda's right, and he heard Allen reply to it.
"I would like to order a glass of scotch, please," he said in that smiling tone.
The flight attendant bowed and walked away from their aisle and Allen sat back in his seat, staring at his shaded window through half-lidded eyes. Putting on such a fake smile…he hadn't done that in a while.
"Here you are, sir," the flight attendant said as they came back with a silver tray and a single round glass sitting on it.
Allen turned away from the window with a smile in place already as he accepted the glass handed to him.
"Oh, thank you," he said, and rested back into his seat and swirled the contents around before silently bringing it up to his lips to take a sip-
-to find it missing from his hand.
He turned to the left where he knew Kanda to be sitting to find the man had already downed half the glass.
"Hey!" Allen began to raise his voice but then remembered where he was. By the time he realized this and set on just glaring at Kanda instead his glass of scotch no longer existed.
"Keep your voice down, we're on a plane," was all Kanda said as he placed the now-empty glass in one of Allen's cup holders. Allen ignored his statement.
"That was my glass of scotch," he growled.
"You're under age," Kanda replied as he settled back into his seat, closing his eyes once again.
"The drinking age was lowered five years ago," Allen shot back as he also leaned back in his seat, intent on not looking at Kanda anymore.
"You'll be sober while under my surveillance," Kanda said as his eyebrows settled into that eternal frown he had while dealing with Allen and his antics.
"You can't even allow me some privileges? I'm not a child," Allen glared into nothing as he said this, knowing he was just doing it for the sake of argument.
"We've been through this," Kanda sighed as though annoyed.
"It doesn't change anything," Allen gritted out, frustrated.
"I'm not going to argue with you."
"I didn't say you had to."
"All right then."
"But you can't treat me like some kid!" Allen clenched his fists, tired of this back and forth with the aggravating man.
"I will if I'm legally your guardian," Kanda said, dropping a bomb in his words.
Allen's neck snapped to him at the statement, mouth gaping and eyes wide.
"You wouldn't."
"I would."
Allen's eyes narrowed. "I'll get myself emancipated."
Kanda shrugged. "You wouldn't be able to."
"Why not?"
Kanda almost chuckled. "Because we wouldn't let you."
Now Allen had had it. "God damn it," he hissed while standing up from his seat. "I'll smoke when I want and drink when I want as long as I can obtain them by myself I'll do as I fucking please. You won't control me."
He began to step out to the aisle, the space between rows big enough for him to stomp by in front of Kanda with ease. He was jerked back, however, when something caught the crook of his arm and held him there. He looked back to meet eyes with Kanda's, menacing and daring Allen to do something before he got his words out.
"Yes. I. Will," Kanda's baritone voice made it all the more intense, and for a moment Allen's eyes flashed something strange before he threw the expression away. His arm went slack in Kanda's hold and his eyes averted themselves from Kanda's, no longer able to take the glaring resemblance they had to something in his past.
Kanda caught hold of the change and almost felt guilty for grabbing at Allen, though he knew not the reason for Allen to now be looking as though the very ground was betraying him.
Allen jerked his arm out of Kanda's hold and mumbled something like "bathroom" before disappearing down the aisle, his glare set on everything that didn't remind him of Kanda.
Kanda settled back into his seat, grumpy and folding his arms over his chest like some child. Never would he have guessed Allen would react like that, so it wasn't his fault in his mind.
"Hey, Yuu," Lavi said as he came to stand in front of Kanda, leaning on the back of the seat in front of him. "Maybe you could give him a little bit of leeway, huh?"
Kanda looked up to Lavi and glared. Apparently he had seen the spat he had with Allen moments before, but he couldn't believe Lavi was choosing Allen's side.
"You can never just give a little. We'll give him and inch, and he'll take a yard." At that Lavi sighed and moved back to his seat on the other side of the aisle, picking up a book he was reading before to concentrate on it once again.
Kanda glanced to the side of him where he saw Tim conspicuously placed out of sight, though he was out enough to hiss at Kanda. Kanda frowned at the thing and turned to face forward and close his eyes once again to pretend nothing had happened at all.
Fifteen whole minutes must have passed before he felt shuffling in front of him and a slight rush of air ran across his face as someone passed by him to seat themselves in the seat next to him by the window. There was the slightest hint of smoke lingering on the breeze and Kanda inched open one eye to see Allen had returned from wherever it was he had been. He was facing the other way, once again focusing on the covered window, paying mind to nothing else.
In the corner of Allen's seat Kanda could see Tim wriggling around to rest upon the crook of Allen's neck as the boy slowly and distractedly lowered his eyelids as though the world's problems were asking him to fix them all at the same time and he was trying to block them all out.
Kanda decided that, for the moment, the lingering odor in the air didn't actually bother him.
Thursday, December 1st, XXXX
0100 hours (1:00 A.M) (Germany Time)
"Finally! That plane ride seemed like it lasted forever!" Lavi said as they headed over to baggage claim and looked for the suitcase Lavi checked in at the airport back in Ireland. Kanda's possessions were either destroyed back at his house or were currently being transported to Berlin, Germany sometime later. Allen never had anything to bring in the first place.
"Lavi it was only three hours," Kanda said as he rolled his neck. Sure it might have been only three hours, and it might have been first class, but sitting still like he did for the entire ride had made his neck stiff. That's why he hated flying.
Lavi only shrugged at Kanda as he grabbed his suitcase off the rotating platform. "Time passes slowly when you're bored." He straightened up and began rolling his suitcase behind him as all three of them walked towards the airport entrance. Since it was so early in the morning it was almost completely deserted. "So? Where are we picking up your car?"
"They're bringing it around here," Kanda gestured in front of them to the valet lane outside the airport doors. "We'll just have to wait for them."
"Hungry…" Allen mumbled to himself as the two detectives walked in front of him. He missed how Tim's wings perked up at the word, and how he squirmed out of Allen's hood and to the ground of the carpeted Terminals, away from them.
Allen picked up his pace and came to stand by Kanda instead. "Where exactly is it that we're going?" He glared at Kanda simply because he didn't have any other expression he wished the man to see.
Kanda didn't even spare him a glance as he responded. "INTERPOL's main branch headquarters."
Allen stumbled. "Say what now?"
"It's not like we can just go and barge into Russia with guns blazing," Kanda said as though he were explaining simple concepts to a child who just didn't seem to get it. "We have to report back now, anyways."
"Man I'm just tired," Lavi said, and a yawn escaped him for emphasis. He glanced at his watch before he continued. "I can't wait to get there already and sleep! Oh yeah! We haven't lived in headquarters for a while now, have we?" He turned his head to address Kanda, to which the man simply nodded in agreement.
"We? A while? I thought he was just a rookie?" Allen said, confusion riddling his words as he addressed the question to Kanda.
"That's his cover up for his previous job. He's been working for INTERPOL for years. There he's the gun specialist, computer technician, and record keeper, or bookman," Kanda riddled off jobs Lavi did and acted as thought they were nothing special.
"I have super observation skills!" Lavi couldn't help adding, to which both Allen and Kanda ignored.
"What were you then?" Allen couldn't help but ask.
"Gun handler, sword specialist, and martial arts trainer." Kana stated it simply and factually. After that Allen fell back a few steps to contemplate the new information.
"Swords, huh," Allen whispered to himself as his eyes focused on Kanda opening the doors to the airport for them to file though.
Just before he stepped out he felt something tug at the hem of his jeans and he looked down to see Tim, a package of pretzels in its mouth as its stubby little feet pulling on his jeans.
"Tim!" Allen said, surprised, as he picked Tim up and allowed it to drop the package in Allen's open hand. It stood there, looking up at Allen and waited to be praised.
By this time Kanda had turned back to them and raised an eyebrow as Allen tried to hide something behind his back.
"What," he said, making Allen jump and look up to him from his hand.
"Nothing," he tried for casual, but his tone came out a bit strained.
Kanda easily pulled out his hand from behind his back and saw the package of pretzels, not knowing where on earth Tim would have gotten them from. A quick sweep of the eyes and Kanda saw that everything was mostly closed save for the check-in and check-out centers.
"That thing steals?" Kanda said, glaring at Tim as it tried to scuttle out of sight up Allen's jacket sleeve.
Allen, trying to show that he didn't much care what Kanda thought of Tim, said with a shrug, "I'm its master. It does whatever it takes to look after me and make sure I'm okay. I was hungry so it got me food."
Kanda let Allen's hand drop and turned back around to face Lavi, who was beaming for some reason.
"Speaking of food, I'm starving! Let's go eat something here!" Lavi gestured back to the airport just as Kanda's car came rolling up the valet lane.
Kanda only glared at Lavi. "I'm not eating at the airport," he growled out just as the man that was driving his lotus stopped in front of him, holding his keys out as if scared to get too close to the man himself. Kanda snatched them away angrily as Lavi responded to him.
"Then we will eat at the cafeteria at headquarters!" he let out a shaky laugh. "I can wait that long."
Thursday, December 1st, XXXX
0200 hours (2:00 A.M)
An hour later found Kanda's black lotus pulling up to another valet lane in front of a tall office-looking building in the middle of Magdeburg, Germany. It was roughly thirty stories tall and three-and-a-half acres wide.
Kanda stepped out of the driver's seat just as a woman came by the car and took his keys from him. She waited until everyone was out of the car and the trunk was relieved of Lavi's luggage. The valet drove off with the car to park it in a near-by private car lot, leaving the three people to gaze up at the building before them.
"Ugh, I'm getting tired of sitting down for these long periods of time," Lavi complained as they finally made their way up the steps of the cream-colored building, holding his suitcase since it couldn't roll up stairs.
Kanda was right behind him, though paid no more mind to his constant complaining. The two of them reached the building's double front doors and opened them. Lavi slipped inside while Kanda stopped and turned around to locate the third and last member of their group.
Allen was still at the foot of the steps.
Kanda had already reached his limit a long while ago with Allen constantly lingering behind them, and made his way back down the stairs in angry stomps. Lavi simply waited at the top for them.
"What the hell's wrong with you?" he said as he grabbed Allen's arm and yanked him up the first few steps. After Allen stumbled and caught his balance he snapped out of his trance and shook his head to reply to Kanda.
"Nothing. Just dreading meeting some people here," he mumbled as he glanced once again at the sign that rested like a crest on both building doors.
That made Kanda stop.
"You… know people here?" He questioned cautiously. That wasn't possible; Allen had never been here before in his life.
As far as Kanda was concerned.
Allen had continued up the steps without Kanda, continuing his explanation even though Kanda was clear out of ear shot.
"Yes, well, let's just say I have a history with this place. I'm not exactly welcome, you see…"
…
…
"Oh, supervisor! They've arrived!" A man with an accent called out to the semi-darkened room, his Australian accent carrying. His sandy hair bobbed around his face as he turned away from the computer screen to address someone behind him.
"What? Already?" said another man, coming up to the seated one with a coffee cup in hand.
He wore a lab coat like the man who had called out to him, but he was also wearing some strange beret atop his head. His hair was straight and black but curled up to his face at the ends. He leaned over some to get a better look at the monitor from over the sandy-haired man's shoulder.
"What's this?" The seated man said. He squinted at the screen as he focused on the people walking up the steps to their building.
Lavi was standing at the top to hold the doors open. Kanda was stomping back down the stairs and had just grabbed someone off camera. The person, along with Kanda, was brought back into focus, and the man squinted harder.
"There's three of them..!" he gasped at the end, catching his supervisors attention just as he was turning away.
"Yes there are supposed to be," the man said as he sipped at his coffee. "Huh," he said as he once again leaned over. His eyes went wide as he, too, focused on the boy being dragged up the steps by Kanda. "Is-isn't that-"
"No, it's not possible!" The seated man yelled as he jumped up from his chair and backed away from the screen.
"But, the golem!" the supervisor retorted, just as surprised as his subordinate. He pointed towards Allen's shoulder where a gleaming glint of gold hung out from his jacket hood. "There's no mistaking it…" He had to set his cup down on the table before he dropped it. His hands were shaking.
"Watcha guys looking at?" Some third person said as they came over to see why the two men were surprised. He took one look at the monitor through his big swirled coke-bottle glasses, and gasped. "That's-"
"Brother? What's wrong?" A woman came to see this time, addressing the supervisor, and now the monitor was frozen on a close-up of Allen's face. She, too, gasped, and covered her mouth with both her hands. "Oh my!"
"There's no way!" The sandy-haired man yelled, slamming his hands down on the back of his chair. He turned around and dashed out the door to the brightly-lit hallway.
The supervisor turned around as well, and called after him.
"Reever!"
…
…
"We have to talk to the supervisor so you'll be seeing him first," Kanda said after he recovered from his shock on the stairs. He would get his answers, but it would be better if his supervisor was also there to confirm whatever it was Allen said.
"He's a really nice guy!" Lavi put in and they all walked down a hallway to reach the back of the first floor.
The hallways were mostly white or cream-colored. Every once in a while a hallway would come up with a single strip of color riding right along the walls as if they were used as a color-coding system. Allen didn't ask about them. He didn't think he would get much of an answer, anyways.
They turned a corner and headed down a hallway with a brown stripe running along it. As they walked further down they heard something faintly resembling running footsteps and someone calling out a name. It all happened too fast, however, and before anyone could react, someone had come crashing right into them, or more specifically, Kanda.
"Kanda!" the man yelled just as he tried to stop but found he couldn't in time as he rounded a corner and was met face-to-face with none other than the man he was looking for.
He skidded, but only succeeded in tripping over himself and pushing Kanda down, ramming heads.
"Ngh, damn it…" the man said as he had also succeeded in smashing his nose against the floor, and was now bleeding freely.
Kanda was rubbing at his head, still spread out on the floor, and about to choke the person who had run into him when he saw who it was.
"Komui?" he said as he helped the both of them up without any help from Lavi, who was too busy laughing a few feet away, or Allen, who looked like he'd rather be shooting himself in the foot.
And instead of getting a 'thank you' or a 'sorry-for-running-into-you-and-ramming-heads' apology from the man he'd just helped up, he was being yelled at.
"Explain!" his supervisor, Komui, said nasally as he squeezed his nose shut.
"Explain what?" Now it was time for Kanda to be angry. What had he done? Why was he being yelled at? "What the hell's wrong with you? What's going on?" he continued as he saw more people in lab coats run down from where his supervisor had just come from.
It was Reever, the man with the sandy hair, who spoke next. "Kanda, why's he with you? Where-How did you find him?" He pointed at Allen, after wheezing out that last sentence, who was trying to unsuccessfully hide behind Kanda.
"What the fuck?" Kanda snarled. "Why does it matter?"
"Kanda, do you realize who this is?" The one with the coke-bottle glasses spoke now, huffing and face red.
"Who this is?" Kanda repeated, looking from Allen to the boy, and back again. What was he missing? Why was he surrounded by all these people? And why did it seem like he was the one who didn't know anything?
"He's-he's" Glasses wheezed out, but had to stop. Reever finished for him.
"Cross's apprentice!"
Kanda paled and swung around completely to face Allen, who flinched under the intense gazes of everyone.
"Cross? Cross Marian!" Kanda said, and everything went silent.
It was Lavi who just had to break the silence.
"Whoa, didn't see that coming."
..
..
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I can't imagine how long it's been since I've updated. How long has it been? Two years? Wow, and my style of writing has changed quite a bit. Still hope you all are still satisfied with this!
Sorry!
-Xenophili