Disclaimer - I do not own D Gray Man or Bleach

Chapter Fourteen - A Shove in the Right Direction

General Tiedoll had heard the commotion caused by the battle and had been making his way in that direction. Unfortunately he couldn't travel fast enough and when he arrived he saw the smoke that was billowing from the city of Barcelona. His eyes widened as he saw the remains of the destroyed Akuma around the edge of the city and he knew immediately what had happened.

And he had been too late to stop it.

He had been traveling in this direction and had even learned from some travelers that had given him a ride that a demon attack on Barcelona was imminent. That little tip had caused him to leave their company so that he didn't put them in danger and he quickened his pace.

Unfortunately he encountered group after group of Akuma and he was forced to fight them. In retrospect he supposed that he had actually helped in the battle since the Akuma that he had destroyed had never made it to the city but it was hard to put things in perspective like that when looking upon the smoking ruins of the city.

He should have traveled faster.

"General Tiedoll!"

At the sound of this familiar voice the general turned around and watched as two of his former students walked up the hill toward him. His students were accompanied by two white haired youths that he didn't know although there was a very familiar golem perched on the taller boy's head.

That was General Cross' golem, of that he was certain. Was that boy Cross' apprentice?

"We were worried about you General Tiedoll," the youth with the golem on his head said as the group came to a stop in front of him. "I'm glad to see that you're safe."

Tiedoll nodded his head however there was a somewhat tortured expression in his eyes as his gaze once again shifted to the scene of utter confusion and destruction that was located beneath them. If only he had been here then perhaps more lives would have been spared.

"We should return to the city," Kanda said gruffly.

Completely used to his student's lack of proper manners the General nodded.

General Tiedoll accompanied the group of Exorcists back to the city, where he found out that his former student Daisya had been killed. This news served to further depress the General and he pulled a sketch pad from the pack that he wore on his back and began to draw something with a small piece of charcoal. The other Exorcists looked on in surprise as the General drew a seaside village.

Tears glittered in the General's eyes as he thought back to his lost student however he wiped them aside with the sleeve of his coat and continued drawing.

Then, once the drawing was complete, General Tiedoll pulled the piece of paper from the sketch pad and held it up. "It was from memory so it may not be one hundred percent correct," he murmured as he gazed at the picture. It was obvious that he wasn't speaking to any of the assembled Exorcists but instead to the student that he had lost. "Sorry that this is all that I can offer you."

And with these words General Tiedoll struck a match and touched it to the corner of the paper. The group watched as the paper was quickly engulfed by the spreading flames and the ashes flew up to the heavens. Then, once he had made this small offering to his fallen student, General Tiedoll accompanied the four Exorcists to the outskirts of the city.

There they met up with the Finder who had assumed command after the death of the previous Captain. He bowed to General Tiedoll and then quickly explained what was being done to rebuild the city. "Reinforcements are on the way from Headquarters and should be arriving by the end of the day," the man said in a subdued voice. "Chief Komui said that they are sending a large group of Finders as well as a couple of Exorcists."

"Very well," the General said. "Then we shall stay until they arrive, in case anything happens."

"Thank you sir."

So the Exorcists spent the day helping out where ever they could and then when the group of Finders, along with a pair of Exorcists, arrived they announced that they would take a short break and then depart. The Captain nodded politely and thanked them for all of their help and hard work.

"I feel really bad for the General," Allen told Hitsugaya in a quiet voice as the two youths prepared to depart the damaged city and resume their search for Cross. The two boys were sitting on some stairs along with Kanda and Marie, who were a couple of feet behind them.

Hitsugaya nodded. He knew how hard it was when you lost a subordinate and the fact that the old man blamed himself for the young Exorcist's death only added to his torment.

"So you two boys are searching for General Cross, am I correct?" General Tiedoll offered the two white haired youths a friendly smile as he sat down on the steps below them.

"Yes sir," Allen answered politely. "But we aren't having very much luck."

"I think that I can help you out with that," Tiedoll said, pointing toward the little golem that was hovering between Allen and Hitsugaya. "Timcanpy can be used to locate his master so all you have to do is allow him to lead you to General Cross."

"I had no idea," Allen said, reaching up and grabbing Timcanpy. This was yet another thing that his Master had sought to hide from him. And for good reason. Had Allen known that Timcanpy had this ability he would have found Cross long before now and perhaps even forced him to pay some of his own debts for a change. After all he was still receiving the man's bills in the mail. "So where exactly is he hiding Tim?"

The little golem flew into the air and, after a few moments, pointed East. Allen and Hitsugaya both stared off in the direction that Timcanpy was pointing, hoping that Tiedoll was correct with his information. It would be a tremendous help if Timcanpy really could lead them to Cross but a huge set back if Tiedoll was wrong.

"Well," Allen thought to himself. "There's really only one way to find out."

The young Exorcist turned to face his companion, who nodded ever so slightly. Hitsugaya was obviously thinking the same thing that he was; that the only way to know if this was true or not was to follow Timcanpy's directions and see what happened.

"I guess we should continue our mission," Allen said, his gaze shifted from Marie, to Kanda, before finally coming to rest on General Tiedoll. The General nodded in his direction. "Good luck with that. I sincerely hope that you find him."

"Thank you sir," Allen said.

General Tiedoll watched as the two white haired Exorcists departed, following the direction that the little golden golem had pointed out to them. Then he collected the pack that he had placed on the ground and began to walk away from what remained of the city of Barcelona. Clean up had already began, led by a group of Finders that had just arrived, and the bodies of those who had lost their lives in the battle would be sent back to the Order.

All that was left was for him to continue his search for Innocence and those capable of controlling it. That was the only way to make the sacrifices that those poor souls had made mean anything. The war must continue and, for the sake of humanity, they must win.

"General," Kanda called out. "We were ordered to accompany you back to the Order."

"I'm sorry Yu," General Tiedoll said, as always speaking to his former pupil as though he were speaking to his son. "But I can't go back to Headquarters. I have been charged with finding Innocence and worthy Accommodators and I will continue to carry out that mission."

Kanda scowled as the General offered him a smile.

"Then allow us to accompany you on your journey Master," Marie said.

General Tiedoll nodded and Marie and a reluctant Kanda fell into step behind him. This reminded the General of old times and he painfully noted that there was only one thing missing. Daisya. He could still remember the day that he found that young boy and the memory brought a smile to his face.

"Senile old man," Kanda thought as he followed along behind his former Master. Far from having enjoyed the time that he spent with the General, Kanda was loathe to be in his company again. The man had the infuriating habit of treating him like a child and it annoyed him to no end.

The Millennium Earl was annoyed with the outcome of the attack on Barcelona, to say the very least. While it was true that Tyki did kill one of the Exorcists who had been participating in the battle the fact remained that countless Akuma had been destroyed and the General was still alive.

"Next time," he said as he sat in his rocking chair, surrounded by phones and floating jack-o-lanterns. "You won't be so lucky Exorcists. I will find the Heart and with it I will destroy you all."

The only good thing to come from this battle had been finding the location of the two white haired Exorcists that were causing him so much trouble. Both had shown up and helped with the battle and they couldn't be very far from that location.

Their days were numbered and the number was low.

"Lord Millennium!"

The Earl turned and watched as the First Child bounded into the room. Road twirled around a few times before leaping into his lap. "Play with me Lord Millennium, I'm so bored."

"I have a better idea," the Millennium Earl said as he held the girl in his lap. "I know where those two Exorcists with the white hair are. Why don't you take Tyki and go out and play?"

"That's a great idea!" Road exclaimed, a smile spreading across her face at the thought of playing with the two boys. Killing them would be so much fun and would surely serve to relieve her boredom at least for a little while.

"Take Lero with you," the Earl said. "And leave immediately."

"Right."

Road leapt lightly from the Millennium Earl's lap and skipped away across the room. She seized Lero, who was propped in a corner, before exiting the room, humming a very familiar tune as she went. Hearing the tune the Earl picked up on it.

"Who is it who has my Heart? I will find you soon. . ."

Swinging Lero around as she skipped Road made her way through the mansion to the room where Tyki sat in front of a fireplace, an open book held in his hand. "Tyki!" she called out in an excited tone of voice as she bounded in and disturbed him.

"What do you want now?" Tyki asked, his tone casual and almost bored.

"Lord Millennium has found out where our targets are," Road said with a smile. "They were involved in the battle in Barcelona. So why didn't you kill them while you were there Tyki?"

Tyki chose to ignore the taunting tone of her voice. "I didn't come across them or I would have." The man got to his feet, closing his book and placing it in the chair. Pulling two by now familiar playing cards from the inside pocket of his jacket, Tyki turned to the girl and said, "We should go and take care of them."

"Right," Road said, twirling around once more. "This is going to be so much fun."

Having enjoyed his fight with the Exorcist that controlled the bell, Tyki secretly agreed. This was the great part about his 'black' persona. When he assumed it he was completely free from all the moral baggage that humans were plagued with.

"You will not escape."

A/N - Allen and Hitsugaya have been given a helpful nudge and are now off to find Cross while Tyki and Road are continuing their hunt for our favorite white haired Exorcists, having also been given a nudge. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, please leave a review and tell me what you thought. Taking some parts from DGM for convenience but planning on changing things around to suit my purposes.

The Musician: Someone needs to kill Lero. That damn thing's obnoxious. Always has been.
Lero: That's mean, Lero!
The Musician: Please I'm begging...