Lavi jolted up, his heart pounding and forehead covered in sweat. He gasped in several breaths, not remembering being so winded. It took several minutes before he calmed down enough to think properly, his Bookman predecessor would have been ashamed that it took him that long.

When Lavi's mind cleared up enough, he looked around at his surroundings. He was quick to recognize the location, it was his bedroom in the Ark. Glancing down, he confirmed it. His rich red bed sheets greeted him. Am I dead? He wondered to himself, feeling more calm but no less confused.

He'd never given much thought to what the afterlife would be like, since he'd assumed that when he died, his memory would awaken in a new human eventually and there would be no "crossing over". If he had put any thought into it, he certainly didn't expect to be allowed into Heaven, being a Noah. Could this really be what the afterlife was like? If true, it was more mundane than he'd expected though not as unpleasant.

His room had always been his favorite place to be. While he always appeared for the required family meals, he spent much of his time outside of his office in his bedroom, catching naps or reading. The various surfaces in his room were always covered in books that he'd taken back from the Ark's library to read elsewhere.

Despite feeling like the rug had been pulled out from under him, Lavi tried to wrap his head around the situation. He couldn't quite make himself believe this was the afterlife, it just seemed too strange. Didn't I die?

Lavi had been sure that he did. He felt himself slip away and with the Innocence poisoning, he'd likely been beyond treatment unless cared for immediately.

Lavi eased himself out of bed, standing gingerly. Only to be surprised by the lack of pain anywhere in his body, he felt fine. Maybe he really was dead, then. The dark red carpet underneath his feet felt soft and familiar. Then he turned back to his bed. He wanted to test something.

He easily searched out the bell he kept in his room. It was in the same spot he'd always kept it, on his bedside table. He grabbed it and gave it a quick ring, the high pitched sound piercingly loud in the otherwise deadly silent room.

Not more than a few seconds later, an Akuma dressed as a maid pushed open his door slightly and entered the room, bowing to him a few feet into the room. "Yes, Lord Millennium?" She demurred emotionlessly.

Lavi stared at her for several long moments, eyes wide in surprise. This is what was supposed to happen when he rang the bell, but he hadn't honestly expected it. Was he really back home? He severely doubted that the afterlife came equipped with his bedroom and Akuma servants. How long had he been out to recover so completely from his wounds?

Determined not to show any sign of weakness, Lavi kept the brunt of his emotions and confusion off of his face. "What is today's date?" He asked with a tone of complete calm and disinterest.

The Akuma appeared surprised by his question, but knew better than to ask about it. As expected, they promptly gave a reply. "It is October 6th, 1889, My Lord."

Lavi's heart skipped a beat at that information. 1889? I died in 1892…that's impossible. But was it? As Lavi thought about it, he realized that it would hardly make the situation more strange. It was already unfathomable that he would have survived, nevermind sleeping through his entire recovery.

I'll ascertain the truth for sure soon enough, Lavi told himself. The servant knew their place and didn't interrupt Lavi's quiet musings, staying in their bow. Lavi waved them away. "That's all I needed, you may go now. Oh. Wait, I require Lustol. Do let Lulubell know that I wish to see her immediately."

"Mistress Lulubell is out right now, My Lord." The maid responded, hesitantly.

"I don't care. Send someone out to go tell her I want to see her. I don't want to wait long." Lavi sent them a warning look and the Akuma hesitantly nodded, backing out of the room.

"Of course, My Lord. It will be done right away!" And then Lavi was once more left alone to his own devices.

"Is it really 1889?" Lavi murmured to himself, aloud. If it was true - as bizarre as the idea was - then that meant that it was three years before he died.

Did he dream it all or was it something else? The thought brought forth his memories of that exorcist who could turn back time for short intervals. The Innocence wouldn't have helped him, of that he was sure. The Innocence wanted nothing more than the complete and utter destruction of the Noah and their Akuma army.

But none of the Noah had abilities regarding warping time so what was the deal?

Well, he could test out the dream hypothesis by watching the next couple days to see if things happened the same way he remembered them. Lavi's memory was unparalleled and he could remember every detail of every day even if nothing substantial had happened. Doing this would give him his answer.

Deciding to wash his face while he waited for Lulubell, who he was sure would rush over when she heard that he wanted her, Lavi proceeded to his en suite bathroom.

The spacious side room was darkly lit with candles along the walls. Lavi stepped up to the sink, expertly ignoring the shadow of his Noah hovering behind his reflection in the mirror. He did briefly glance at his own face just to check and indeed his face was free of the scratches and bruises that it had become covered in during the final battle. Time travel or dream, those were the most viable options.

Lavi tugged each of his sleeves up so that he could run his hands under the water without wetting his shirt, but froze when something black on the skin of his left arm caught his eye. Slowly, he turned his arm and tugged his sleeve up further, revealing a line of black writing along the inside of his forearm. It looked like a tattoo…

He certainly hadn't had it when he died.

Lavi recognized the language easily, it was Latin. There were two phrases intertwined on his arm. The first translated to English easily as "Second Chance". The second phrase around which the first was wrapped translated more loosely, but it basically read as "fix your mistakes". He supposed it could also be read as "right your wrongs".

At any rate, the message was clear and it proved to him that whatever happened wasn't a dream. The existence of the markings on his arm and their content lent credence to the idea that he was in the past. He'd awoken years in the past so that he could try again.

It irked him that he didn't know why or how, but he would find out.

Lavi sat down to write out what he knew about Allen. His brain was just about as organized as they come but he had some things to work through.

He would first become aware of Allen's existence two years from now. Roughly one year before his death, an exorcist who largely stayed back during the war came forward and in the year that the war ranked up, proved himself to be an unparalleled threat, far outdoing the Generals that the Noah had initially been concerned might have the Heart.

Lavi could allow himself to be mildly impressed with how the Order managed to keep him a secret from them. The Noah knew so much about Innocence and the Order, but this had been a surprise to them.

Something that only became glaringly obvious when Lavi looked at the page he was writing on was how little he actually knew about Allen Walker. The other man's face was burned into his mind and he remembered every word of every conversation they'd ever had, but those weren't helpful for information at present.

Allen Walker would keep a low profile until after the destruction of Edo by Lavi himself. Allen would appear as just another exorcist alongside the others that his Noah would trap in the Ark for fun while it broke down. The fact that two of his Noah would be killed in that encounter, one of their Noah being destroyed by Allen in the process, was a terrible unforeseen consequence. The first of many.

Allen's Innocence mostly took physical form in his arm with a cross embedded grotesquely into it, which he could turn into a giant claw or that could be detached and used as a sword. Allen's eyes had initially been his most notable skill. The guy had become infamous quickly for the ability to see the trapped souls of Akuma and being able to identify them as a result. Lavi didn't know precisely how his eyes worked or how the trapped souls were supposed to look.

Lavi knew only slightly more about Walker's ability to destroy someone's inner Noah. They'd investigated in a rage-fuelled panic after Allen had destroyed Tyki's Noah after the whole Ark debacle which turned into a disaster.

All they had been able to find out was that Tyki's Noah had unbelievably been completely obliterated and Lavi privately doubted that Joyd would be able to reincarnate ever again, no matter how much time had passed. That he was gone. All that Road had been able to report from the incident was that Allen had stabbed Tyki with his Innocence, it had glowed brightly and Tyki had screamed in extreme pain. Then she had watched in horror as Tyki collapsed and never got up.

He simply…didn't know much about Allen and frustratingly little about his most concerning abilities.

Lavi stared off into space as he thought back to Allen's last words to him. He couldn't hear them, it was like his whole world was underwater in those last moments. He was an excellent lip reader however and despite his state at the time, the words he saw being spoken had been baked into his mind and he could still recall them.

I love you.

Those had been the words Allen Walker had said to him before he died, tears streaming down his face. That had been his response to Lavi's question about why he was reacting the way he was.

It had been on the back burner from the moment Lavi had woken up in his bedroom, the thing that could wait while he figured everything else out, but now that he sat down to think about it properly, he only grew more astounded.

Allen Walker had loved him? What a surprise…he'd had not an idea of it. Still, he couldn't very well question the truth of it when Allen had made the confession on Lavi's death bed, the latter being drenched in the former's tears.

No, he supposed the actual questions were when did it happen and what should he do about it going forward? The idea that he shouldn't take advantage of Allen's future feelings for him didn't even cross his mind. The Noah naturally took advantage of every weakness they found and this one was simply too juicy to ignore. The Heart didn't have any such glaring weakness, so finding it in the Heart's champion was a stroke of luck that couldn't be reckoned with.

But when did it happen? Technically, it could have happened at any time, given that Lavi had been slightly more visible in the war than Allen had and he'd been unaware of his love until his dying moments. Realistically though, Lavi thought to himself as he tapped his pencil rhythmically on the paper. It could have only happened in the time from a little over a year before we met to roughly a month before my death.

The time frame was difficult because there was no set time for Allen to fall for him and there was every possibility that Allen might have seen him before they properly met, although such occasions would have been rare before then. It could've taken anywhere from several months to simply one glance on the most extreme end.

Lavi couldn't rule out love at first sight, since he still didn't know why Allen fancied himself in love with him. All they had done was fight and when they did talk, it was Lavi mocking him and the Order while trying to kill off him and his comrades. Lavi failed to see how any of that was endearing.

Whatever attachment Allen thought he had to him shouldn't be able to withstand pressure, but that wasn't the Earl's intention so it didn't matter. Lavi would be more than willing to act charmingly and in whatever other manner he needed to to make it easier for Allen Walker to fall for him.

The only things that Lavi knew for certain regarding Allen's love was that he would indeed manage to convince himself in the future that he loved Lavi and that he wasn't in love with Lavi yet. Three years in the past, Allen was still something of a recluse in the Order. A relative unknown except among the very highest ranks of the Order.

And so was he.

To Lavi's knowledge, no one in the Order has seen him yet, as Lavi has always been prone to using his fellow Noah as his eyes and arms for most minor matters, such as hunting exorcists and chasing leads for the Heart.

But… Lavi considered with a shark-like grin spreading along his face. That lends itself to some unique opportunities.

Because - seeing how Allen was the one who ruined everything for them in the first place or would ruin everything in the future - Lavi's best chance for changing the future in their favor was to meet Allen early and either kill him or manipulate him to Hell and back…and then kill him. Because there was no world where Lavi didn't end him for the crime of being an exorcist and killing off himself and his Noah. There was only a world where Lavi instead decided to leave Allen alive for a time and take advantage of his feelings to destroy both him and the Order.

Allen might not be too powerful yet or he might be. Without knowing his exact power scale at this moment, Lavi's best bets towards defeating him were to either to bide his time for the perfect moment for a surprise attack and deal him a killing blow then, or to get to know Allen better to the point where he could learn more about those horrifying abilities the Innocence had given him and use that intimate knowledge to his advantage in the fight.

At any rate, both required getting close to Allen and doing so before his original debut in 1891. Something like that would prove nearly impossible for someone who wasn't Lavi. He would have to make a social call, but Lavi's greatest advantage was that no one knew what he looked like yet. His hands-off approach was really working wonders for him right now. Lavi's grin was like a knife.

After all, it would make going to the Order undercover all the easier.