A/N: I quickly whipped up this chapter for you while I still had the chance, so I hope you appreciate it.(: And thank you so much to Takei Daloui, The Moyashi Beansprout Midget, Lena-luvs-cats, Manu259, and jy24 for reviewing so quickly and wonderfully! I enjoyed reading your responses!(: Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Still no!

Chapter 16

Time Frame — Morning of January 22nd, 1896

—3rd Person POV—

~Allen~

"But you see, it's like this," Alma was saying on their way down to the dining hall for breakfast. "I could trick Yuu into trying it out, but then have him deny it ever happened or I could force him to do it, but then he might not enjoy it properly! Allen, what should I do?"

It was getting increasingly difficult to keep his amused smile at bay. Tossing him an odd glance, Allen shook his head and replied, "Alma, I love mayonnaise as much as the next guy, but I don't think tricking or forcing Kanda into trying it out would even remotely change a thing. The guy's already hard to please as it is. Just let him stick to that damn soba he eats every day."

"But don't you see, Allen?!" Alma dramatically tossed his hands in the air as he exclaimed, "I'm trying to save Yuu from himself!"

"You've known him longer than I have," Allen couldn't help but snort. "By now, shouldn't you have accepted the fact that he's completely impossible?"

"No way!" Alma stubbornly refused. "Trust me, I've pushed and kicked my way through Yuu's hard shell multiple times! And I certainly won't give up on him when it comes to the delicacy that is mayonnaise!"

Allen huffed, "Suit yourself." It was then that they finally arrived to the cafeteria, other students sparsely sitting at random tables. The only person he recognized was the lanky redhead. "Hey," the white-haired boy turned to Alma, "Who's the girl sitting with Lavi?"

"Huh? Oh!" Alma's grin turned sly. "That's Cho—"

But it was at that precise moment that the brunette girl turned, accidentally making eye-contact with Allen. And in a flash, his cursed eye whirred into motion.

"What the—Allen?! What's wrong with your eye?!" But Alma's demands went unanswered. Rapidly, the older girl had launched up and ran, snatching Allen by the arm and dragging him out of the cafeteria, ignoring the protests of Alma and Lavi. Allen allowed her to haul him out, his mind racing with questions they made their way out into the empty halls.

And once they come to halt, Allen demanded with a hiss, "Sachiko! What are you doing here?!"

The Akuma-girl's expression crumpled beneath his glare, as she stammered, "T-this is where General Cross sent once he modified me. He wanted me to keep tabs on the going-ons…" Allen could only gaze at her with incredulous features, and she pleaded, "Please, you can't tell the others about me! They'll kill me if they find out, modified or not…"

Allen's expression instantly softened. "Right, of course not. How are you holding up?"

Throwing a cautious glance around and making sure they were still alone, Sachiko lifted the shirt of her uniform slightly, revealing the shard of Innocence imbedded into her hip, the skin around it cracked, black veins spreading outward as if it were diseased. "It's been holding up alright, cho~. The burning sensation hasn't increased in the slightest, though it hasn't lessened either…"

Allen frowned. "You sure this is the best method? The skin around it is crumbling and falling apart."

"Yes," she nodded rapidly. "Cross said that if he were to use spells it would be a lot less painful, but it also wouldn't last, and I would give into my natural instincts sooner rather than later. This was the most permanent solution he could find, cho~."

"Alright," Allen sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "Still, I don't like this…" His eyes narrowed. "And what is your relationship with Lavi?"

The brunette fiddled with the ends of her shirt as she tugged it down, shame written all over her features. "I… I really like him, cho~."

"Sachiko!" Allen hissed.

She abruptly turned her head to him, a glare of her own in place. "It's Chomesuke now! Don't call me that, cho~."

Allen lifted an unimpressed eyebrow. "Oh, was that also Lavi's doing?" Her cheeks turned red, and that was answer enough. "This really isn't a good idea," Allen finally said, "Not only are you a modified Akuma, but he's also a Bookman. He definitely shouldn't be getting involved. And neither should you. You're both going to end up hurt…"

"Please," Chomesuke begged, "Just… No one has made me feel this human since… Just, please."

As she said this, Allen couldn't help but glance up at the writhing soul chained to her, not only caged by Dark Matter, but also held down by Innocence. Two opposing forces constantly fighting for control. And then, he observed her pleading expression, slowly crumbling the longer he took to answer. He caved. "Okay, fine…"

"Yes! Thank you!" Chomesuke squealed, tugging him into a hug in her excitement. "Thank you so much!"

Allen padded her back with a sigh, simultaneously forcing his eye to deactivate. It would be a pain doing so around her presence, especially because he could already feel the ache forming around his left eye, but he'd manage it. "Alright, come on, I'm getting hungry," Allen pulled back, heading back to into the dining hall, Chomesuke happily skipping by his side.

"What was that all about?" Lavi demanded, as he and Alma turned to them, the both of them standing near the entrance.

Without a care in the world, Chomesuke bounced up to him, pecking him on cheek. "Oh, nothing, cho~. But I hear that you've been picking on Allen, Lavi! He's practically like my little brother, so you better behave yourself, cho~!"

"Eh?! I did not! Wait, what do you mean, "little brother"?!"

A/N: Lavi x Chomesuke is one of my OTPs, and I just had to include it! :D It's nothing that will be major in the story, more background than anything else, but I just wanted it to be there~. :3 Haha, hope I didn't disappoint with Lenalee's absence, but don't worry, according to my outline, she should appearing next chapter. Please review!^-^