A/N: Heh, my bad. I was actually supposed to update last night, but I was too lazy to get on my laptop. ^.^" Anyway, it's here now, so let's be thankful.(; And thank you to Alice2795, Lena-luvs-cats, jy24, Amelia Loves Anime, and IncredibleIdiosyncrasies for taking the time to review! Love you guys! Please enjoy!(:

Disclaimer: I don't need to prove anything to you! But for the sake of not getting sued, I'll simply disclaim ownership. What you don't know won't hurt you.

Chapter 27

Time Frame — Noon of March 14th, 1896

—3rd Person POV—

~Allen~

Once they were back at the hotel, Allen took the opportunity to take a quick rinse and change into a pair of clothes that weren't soggy and covered in sand. And much to his annoyance, he had to force Timothy to the same—the kid was a muddy mess and the fact that he refused to acknowledge it irritated Allen to point where he snatched up that blue-haired brat and tossed him into the shower. Fortunately, Timothy took control from there and Allen was finally able to leave him to his own devices.

"What a pain," the white haired teen grumbled, towel drying his hair and strapping on his sandals just as Timothy came out of the shower wrapped in an oversized towel. "What do you think—no, idiot! You can't put on the same clothes!"

The seven-year-old pouted. "But General Klaud promised we could come back to the beach later tonight!"

"Yes, later," Allen stressed, "As in you should leave your swim clothes out to dry while we go have lunch and do something else."

"Dry?" Timothy wrinkled his nose and whined, "But they're just gonna get wet anyway!"

"Yes, and if you leave them in a pile like that they'll get stinky," a new voice piped up. The boys glanced up to see Lenalee and Mei-Ling at the doorway. Lenalee continued with a patient smile, "Now go on and do as Allen says Timothy. Please?"

Timothy grumbled but complied without another word, much to Allen's relief. "Is everyone ready?" he asked, turning to the girls.

"Just about," Mei-Ling nodded, "General Klaud and Kanda are already waiting down in the lobby, and I think Daisya and Alma were fighting about something, but they should resolve it in three… two… one…"

"What are you all standing around for?" Daisya demanded as he and Alma exited a nearby room and passed by theirs. "I'm starving!"

Eventually, Timothy was appropriately dressed, and the gaggle of teens (plus, one seven-year-old) were heading down and meeting up with Kanda and the General.

"Listen up!" Klaud called, "We're going to a seafood buffet down by the ports, so I need you," here, she pointed to Alma and Allen, "To be discreet of all the food you're consuming before we get kicked out! Got it?" They nodded eagerly, and finally they were on their way, walking through the town by foot.

"So where did you two run off to?" Alma asked, sidling up beside him.

Allen didn't really get a chance to answer, as Mei-Ling piped from the back with a giggle, "Allen was teaching Lenalee how to swim! Aren't they so cute?"

"Mei-Ling!" Lenalee scolded her, and no one had to glance in her direction to know that she was blushing a bright red.

"What?" Mei-Ling asked innocently, and then laughed. "It's not like anyone can keep a secret with me around. And even then, the two of you are so obvious! It's cute! … But, if it makes you feel better, I could go ahead and tell everyone about how when Alma force-fed Kanda mayonnaise over a month ago, Kanda actually didn't find it to taste that bad."

"What?! Kanda! Why didn't you tell me?!" Alma demanded, whirling around to face his grumpy best friend, who was spluttering indignantly. Daisya burst into raucous laughter and Lenalee couldn't help but face-palm. Allen could relate; obviously Mei-Ling was just egging them on. She was a psychic, not a mind reader.

But no one would be able to convince Alma of that. The cheerful teen pestered Kanda all throughout their walk, much to Allen's amusement. And he was certainly grateful that Mei-Ling had been merciful enough to take the attention off of him and Lenalee. Even at the cause of Kanda's dignity. Allen stifled a snicker.

"I'm getting worried about Mei-Ling," Lenalee murmured, moving to walk beside him. Allen could hear Mei-Ling chatting with Timothy towards the back.

He turned to Lenalee and quirked an eyebrow. "Huh? Why's that?"

"You wouldn't know it," Lenalee whispered, "But when Mei-Ling first joined us, she was the sweetest child I've ever met! So innocent and nice, but I think Lavi and Daisya have been too much of a big influence on her…"

"No kidding," Allen deadpanned. But then, he shrugged. "Anyway, she's just a kid. Let her have some fun. I doubt Lavi or Daisya will get her into any serious trouble."

"Hm, yeah, probably," Lenalee eventually conceded. "Ooh! We're here! I'm starving!"

The group poured into the restaurant, and much to Allen's delight, they were soon given free reign once Klaud paid. Allen had the urge to just snatch a cart and stack it with piles of everything, but instead, heeded Klaud's advice and stuck with three plates to begin with. All the practice of carrying stacks of food as a waiter had made him adept at balancing the plates on his arm. It was as he was getting ready to ladle out some shrimp that someone bumped into him, causing him to almost drop one of the other plates he'd already filled up.

"Oh! So sorry—Allen? Is that you?"

It wasn't until he'd made sure that his food wasn't about to tip over, that he turned to the familiar voice. "Oliver!" he exclaimed, pleasantly surprised. "Hey! What are you doing here?" Allen eyed the older teen, feeling a lot more relaxed in his company when the other wasn't dressed in stuffy clothes and Allen wasn't working as a waiter. Oliver's wavy hair was pulled into its usual low ponytail with a couple of shorter strands framing his bronze eyes, and he was dressed in more casual getup.

Olive chuckled and admitted, "Well, with everyone going on break over at the academy, I convinced my parents to also give me a break from my tutors. We own a house and a small strip of land down here by the beach, so I took a train the first chance I got."

Allen's eyebrows shot up. "You mean you're down here by yourself?"

"Eh, I guess so," Oliver shrugged it off. "My parents were busy as usual, but hey, doesn't mean I can't take a vacation," he grinned. "But what about you? I thought you mentioned back at the Golden Haven that you'd be working through break…"

"Oh, yeah… Heh, my friends dragged me out here," Allen admitted, pointedly not specifying that it had been a seven-year-old brat that had tricked him into coming. "Well, you're welcomed to join us over at our table," Allen pointed a thumb in the direction of the largest table there, where some of the other Exorcists were beginning to crowd around. "One my friends—Lavi, I might've mentioned him to you before; he kind of packed his bags and ditched us to chase after a girl, so we've got room."

"Oh yeah? Awesome, I'd appreciate that," Oliver nodded, and Allen thought his grin might've even been a bit relieved.

Once they'd both stacked up on some more food, they joined the rest of the Exorcists. "Hey, guys!" Allen called their attention. "This is my buddy Oliver. I invited him to join us."

Various calls of "Hey Oliver!" and "Nice to meet you!" travelled around the table as everyone finally settled down to eat. A mixture of conversations eventually cropped up around the table, and before he knew it, Allen was genuinely enjoying himself. Now, if only he didn't have to keep getting up and refilling his plates just to be more 'subtle', that'd be great…

A/N: Meh, it was a bit fillerish. And don't mind the OC. He's actually pretty important, so I don't want any complaints. Don't forget to review please!^-^