(November 13 th , Morning, Allen's apartment over Tukson's Shop)
It was a beautiful day outside. Birds were singing. Flowers were blooming. And people went about their Sunday morning. In the Order, Allen would have been forced to go to Sunday Mass. Mostly, everyone prayed that God would give them the strength to defeat the Millenium Earl. That, or the funerals that were on the same day.
So, waking up to such a fine morning without a care was a blessing. The night before a Sunday was always the only time during the week that he could truly sleep without a nightmare plaguing him. Granted, he still woke up early to work out and jog before the sun came up, but that's just a habit that won't leave him. Like working, for example. He needs to move. It'd take some otherworldly power to make him truly relax or sleep in.
Going by his usual habits, Allen had gone out at 7 without waking up Sun and returned by 9, showered, and changed into a long sleeve black shirt and jeans before he began to cook breakfast. Simple scrambled eggs, bacon, and even some orange juice that he freshly made thanks to some produce he got from Mrs. Periwinkle. Now, if only she could stop trying to set him up with one of her daughters. It wasn't just that he wasn't interested, it was that they weren't, and that feeling was mutual between them.
They were nice people though. Allen usually asked them if they could send him practice exams for him to try and improve his scores on. He relied on the tests to see what he should focus his studies on now, and he's been making good progress as well. Granted, he couldn't compete with anyone when it came to Remnant's own history.
He barely can get a 70 percent passing on the practice exams he tries, but Math and Science were things that the science division of the Black Order drilled into him. They were… not happy when he told them he didn't have a plan for after they won the war.
Allen shivered as he continued to cook the eggs. While he has fond memories, the science division worked his mind to exhaustion. Crowley helped him develop ways to read and take notes, which helped as he focused on the differences between Remnant and Earth's own basic education. He's caught up on math and science, so for the next 5 months, he'd focus on Remnant's History and Dust Science.
So, with that mental plan made, along with two plates of warm breakfast, Allen set them on the dining table, went to the door of his bedroom, and knocked. "Sun! Breakfast is ready."
For a few seconds, Allen heard nothing. Then he heard a loud groan and some scuffling before Sun walked out with a white tank top, shorts, and messy hair. His face just said he had less than 7 hours of sleep.
"Long night?" Allen asked smugly.
Sun sent him a glare. Allen knew he had trouble sleeping. Cross Marian taught him how to make ' any' and ' every' heart race if he ever needed it when trying to uncover information. When would Allen ever need to use it? Put it like this. Innocence is a powerful material that can grant the user a variety of abilities or even bring legends to life or enchant everyday objects. It can keep a gladiator fighting for hundreds and hundreds of years, bring a doll to life with an enchanting voice and a soul, or create a literal time loop on the entire town for weeks.
Sometimes, it would bring fame and fortune to those who have no interest in protecting humanity. Cross Marian once seduced a mob boss' wife because the man had a ring of Innocence that, whenever he'd be assassinated, he'd rise within seconds, completely unharmed. The woman was nice. Allen could fondly remember how much she liked Cross. One of the few that got close enough to get to know him better. One of the fewer that nearly convinced him to settle down. And the only one who did not slap him when they separated for the last time.
Still wearing a smile on his face, Allen motioned Sun over to the dining table. Once the blond faunus teen sat down, only then did the smell of breakfast and the realization of how hungry he truly was set in. Sun let out a few satisfied moans through the mouthfuls of food he dug in. Allen wasn't a master in cooking but learned enough to make the few meals he did know taste well.
Once Sun had a few mouthfuls, he began to actually talk.
"So... What's the game plan for today?" He asked between spoons of scrambled eggs.
Allen ate his own, larger portion of the food. Sue him, he had to eat more anyways. "Well, both you AND Beretta now have been badgering me to watch more modern movies. So, I thought we'd go see one of your choosing-"
Sun jumped out of his seat, ran to Allen's room, and then back with his scroll in hand faster than Allen thought a person could move. "Okay, first, what genre do you like?"
His question went over Allen's head, who was still trying to figure out what just happened. "Pardon?"
Sun rolled his eyes, grabbed his chair, and put it next to Allen's as he opened his scroll in front of him so he could view the times and the types of movies. "We got a few out. For starters, a new Merveille film. They make a lot of superhero films."
"Eh. Unrealistic movies aren't my thing. Seems too childish." Allen commented.
Sun turned to him and looked offended. "Hey, don't ever say that in public. These films inspire good in people's hearts. You know what? Just for that, I'm grabbing two tickets for tonight's showing of 'Specialist Vale: The Winter Trooper'. And if you enjoy that, I'll even find some Dust Discs on the other films too. Shoot, you don't have a disc player though."
Allen watched Sun go through the motions with a content smile until he heard a ringing come from the kitchen counter, specifically his Extension's ringtone. He got up and patted Sun's shoulder. "I gotta take this but you look a little more over the films."
The blond simply gave Allen a thumbs up as he continued looking over movies. Picking up the device, he stepped out into the hall to answer. "Allen Walker, speaking."
"I need you at the club." The voice of Hei Xiong on the line.
"It's my day off." Allen argued, complete with an annoyed tone.
"It's gonna be a rough day off if you don't get your ass down to the club." Junior hissed.
…
Allen sighed. "I'll be there in half an hour."
The day had started out right as rain. Allen was proud to wake up that morning. But now? Now he was waiting on a bar stool, the Malachite twins on each side of him. Whether they were there to keep him from leaving or not, he couldn't say. The two wouldn't even talk to him.
It took Allen half an hour to get to the club, and he waited another half hour before the twins dragged him to the back of the club used for storage and shipments. Allen had only ever been there a few times and only to grab another bottle of whatever concoction someone preferred in their bodies at the time.
Once they stepped inside, Allen was greeted by Junior sitting on a fancy leather chair with a plastic table in front of him. Opposite to him sat a man with orange hair and green eyes wearing a red-lined white suit with long black pants, a scarf, black gloves, and a black bowler hat with a red band around it, and a short young woman with pink and brown hair and eyes wearing a white cropped wide, broad-tailed jacket over a corset, brown pants, and high heels which did not help her appear taller.
When Allen and the twins approached, the sound of their approach notified the three around the plastic table. The man in white looked in their direction, his eyes seemingly analyzing Allen. The teen didn't even bother to acknowledge that look, simply turning his attention to Junior.
The man in question motioned for Allen to approach until he stood right beside him. Allen could see that Junior was quite serious, so he remained quiet. The man in the bowler hat took out a cigar and was about to light it when he looked to find a pitch-black arm stopping him. Everyone in the room tensed and looked at Allen. The woman near the man made to get up, only to be stopped when the man raised a hand as to say 'wait'.
"I'm not gonna lie, this is pretty ballsy of you kid. Any reason why you're stopping a man from enjoying a smoke before he gets the wrong idea?"
Allen smiled and let go, reaching into his pockets and pulling out a pack of matches. Lighting one, he let the match slowly light the man's cigar. "There's less of a sulfuric taste if you use matches. This way, the flavor of the cigar is preserved."
The man looked at Allen curiously and then took a puff, eyes widening from the taste of the cigar with a slightly lighter aroma. "You know your stuff kid."
Allen smiled. When Cross Marian occasionally smoked a cigar over a cigarette, he made Allen quite literally walk to the other side of whatever town they found themselves in at the time for the best matches.
After a few more puffs of the cigar, the man leaned back in his own seat. "So, introductions for the new kid. The name's Roman Torchwick, you've probably heard of me-"
"Nope." Allen interrupted, genuinely unsure of who the man was. Everyone in the room's eyes widened.
Roman, however, was the most shocked. Not out of insult, but because even he could tell Allen was completely serious. "Do you even watch the news, kid?"
"Nope." Allen answered. "I don't watch the news as much. Normally repetitive."
…
"Right..." Roman continued with his introduction. "The name's Roman Torchwick. This beauty next to me is Neo."
Said woman with pink and brown hair simply offered Allen a smile, but he recognized it very well. It's the kind that Road gave him before she impaled his arm to a wall. He did not like that look one bit. Still, he maintained a polite smile and attitude. "Pleasure to meet you. But could you tell me why I'm here?"
"Simple." Roman responded. "Last night, I went to a warehouse owned by some idiots that thought they could be the hottest new gang in Vale and got cocky with their expansion. Thought I'd go take them down a peg AND cripple their expansion to this side. Follow me so far?"
"Ah, well then there's no problem." Allen exclaimed happily. "I went and took care of that problem for you." He purposely left out Sun's involvement. This guy already seemed bad news enough.
Roman laughed. "You did, didn't you! Oh man, those guys ended up getting their asses knocked back to their side of Vale when they couldn't even pay back the stuff you took."
"Oh, I didn't steal the drugs. I dumped them into the sewage that led out to the docks." Allen explained.
"And the Dust?" Roman inquired.
Allen's smile twitched. "What Dust?"
Roman chuckled darkly. "So, we're going to play that game? Fine." He snapped his fingers and only then did Allen realize something. Neo was gone.
The next thing he knew, his head was slammed through the table, breaking the plastic piece of furniture in two and pinned to the floor. A bit of red stained the corner of his vision. Soon enough, the end of a cane slammed down next to his head as Roman crouched down to meet his eyes.
"Let's try this again." The man was no longer wearing a face of amusement. "I want the Dust you procured from your little impromptu raid. You tell me where you stashed it, and I'll let you go mostly unharmed."
"Listen to him, kid." Junior called out. Allen could see him and the Malachites standing on the sidelines. The three of them were nervous, even he could tell. "Just, give him what he wants."
Allen grunted. "Sorry, can't do that. It's already gone."
Roman squinted his eyes. "What do you mean gone?"
The teen's silver eyes looked up at Roman, with no fear. "Exactly like I said. Sorry to say, but you're not getting your hands on the dust!"
Allen's shout took both criminals by surprise as he managed to break free of Neo's hold and jump back a safe distance from the two. Roman watched him move, tapping his cane against his hand. Junior and the Malachites looked surprised.
Once he was a slight distance away, Allen caressed the top of his head and winced, pulling back his hand to see a bit of blood. He had a slight gash under his right eye, but nothing too damaging. Maybe simple bandaging would be the only thing needed.
Roman whistled. "Nice moves, kid. What did you say your name was?"
"I didn't." Allen called out.
"Well, now's a good time as any." Roman countered.
…
"Allen. My name is Allen Walker." He introduced.
" Allen Walker~." Roman tested the name a bit. "Alright, 'Allen'. I'd like to offer you another way to pay me back."
"I don't have that much Lien if that's what you're planning on asking." That wasn't necessarily true. Allen had a somewhat decent amount, but that'd put him back to square one.
Roman shook his head. "It's more of a personal entertainment. I pride myself on giving the occasional idiot or two a shot at walking away Scott-free."
"Yeah, and how many actually do get that reward?" Allen asked suspiciously.
The criminal in front of him chuckled. "Good point. But it's either that or we go and visit your workplace. What's it called? Tukson's Book Trade ?"
Allen's eyes widened in surprise before he went and glared in Junior's direction. At least his 'boss' had the decency to look away. He turned his attention back to Roman. "Fine. What do I have to do?"
"Simple." Roman took out his scroll, pressed a few keys, and showed it to Allen. "You have to survive 5 minutes."
"Against you?"
"No." Roman pointed to his partner. "Against Neo."
The woman waved at Allen, still wearing the same smile. Allen raised an eyebrow at her and then looked back at Roman.
"And if I beat her in those 5 minutes?"
…
"Pft-HAHAHAHA!" Roman started laughing, with Neo covering her mouth as if to try and stop her own. "Oh wow, you're serious. Fine. In the very miniscule chance you do beat her, I'll... owe you one or something."
The teen gave him a deadpan look. "Really?"
"Hey, we can always go back to beating the crap out of you." Roman countered at him.
Allen clicked his tongue. "Fine. When do we start."
Roman clicked start on the timer. "You just did."
In that split second, Allen barely managed to duck a roundhouse and then an axe as Neo began to move faster. Her reflexes. Her speed. And the fact that small cracks littered the ground where her heels impacted? Allen put it together quickly.
She had Aura.
Her attack patterns were hard to follow, and she seemed to chain her attacks. One of the kicks grazed the sleeve of his shirt, cutting the skin under it on his right arm. And to make matters worse, Allen had become stagnant. It may have been barely half a year, but he hadn't fought at all. At best, he did workouts just to keep his physical abilities up and mostly out of habit. He hadn't been in a fight for a long time.
But that wasn't going to stop him right now. When one of Neo's kicks got close, he grabbed her leg and tried to throw her away to get a chance to breathe. However, she quickly recovered by using her momentum to execute several flips and charge back at him. Allen quickly adopted a modified combat stance, one that Noise Marie trained him in.
Once Neo charged at him, Allen did the same. This wouldn't normally take her by surprise if Allen didn't close the gap at the same speed she did. Jabs, hooks, uppercuts. Allen tried everything. And while he got close several times, Neo would usually dodge, albeit narrowly. He wasn't closing the gap, but he also wasn't letting her get a chance.
She did attempt a multitude of counters, however. There were multiple times when Allen found a leg hooked around his arm and he barely managed to pull it back before she attempted to snap the limp by bending it in a way it shouldn't. He also held back from using his left arm. Even without it active, he knows the limb can punch through or bend steel and would rather not use it on a living being, aura or not.
From the sidelines, Roman called out. "One minute down! Four more to go!"
Allen wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. He was holding on. If he used only necessary movements, he could last the last four minutes. However, the second that thought passed, Neo went over to a crate and picked up a parasol before charging back at him. Her attack pattern changed completely.
She went from a Capoeira style to a Bartitsu one. And the parasol? It definitely hit harder than it should have. Meaning it wasn't just a regular fashion item but a weapon. Allen took some distance and yelled.
"What the hell is this? Why does she get a weapon, but I don't? That seems kind of like cheating!"
Roman rolled his eyes. "I told you the challenge was to survive , kid! Never said anything was breaking the rules! You can start running for all I care, but I doubt it'll do you much good!"
Despite Roman's warning, Allen did attempt to run while still pacing himself so he wouldn't waste all his stamina. Not that it proved useful. Because the second he turned his head to try and find where Neo was, he spotted her keeping up right next to him. She gave him a two-finger salute before attempting to whack his head with the parasol.
Allen narrowly dodged the attack, backflipping and attempting to kick her at the same time, only for her to avoid it just as he did, if not better. But still, Allen charged back at her again. Trying to keep her off balance, employing everything he was both familiar and unfamiliar with.
It was random. But it seemed to do well enough that he managed to get her off balance as she landed off and stumbled slightly on her feet. Allen took that chance and charged at her, delivering a right hook only for her to shatter into pieces of glass. This took him by surprise, as he stared at where Neo had just been. He frantically searched the area for a clue.
He read about this. Huntsman and Huntresses had an ability called 'Semblance' each unique to the person who wielded it. But to see it in action was another story. That, and he had no idea what Neo even did. Was it a form of teleportation or-
SHNK!
Allen's eyes widened. He looked down to see a sharp blade protruding from his abdomen, blood dripping down its edge to the parasol it was attached from. He looked down to see Neo, innocent smile and all. He attempted to grab the blade to try and stop her from causing any more damage, only for her to quickly rip it out of him, a trail of blood following in the air.
He quickly fell back, clutching the wound as a familiar uncomfortable feeling of warmth and sharp needles pricked from the wound. He heard a few gasps from Junior and the twins, but no attempt to interrupt.
"Two and a half minutes left, kid." Roman called out.
Allen's eyes widened. Roman's announcement was the only warning he had before he was promptly kicked into a tool cabinet across the storage area, wrenches, screws, and the like falling on him as they bruised his body. Neo twirled the parasol, the blood on the blade flinging off it before she let it rest on her shoulder and slowly walked to Allen.
Junior grunted and grabbed Roman's shoulder. The orange-haired criminal didn't even bother looking away from the scene. "Let go of my shoulder, Junior."
"This is enough, Roman." The mob boss pleaded. "Is some Dust really worth killing a kid over?"
Roman shrugged. "Eh. Neo will probably cripple or maim him. And if he dies, it really wouldn't matter as much. We could probably just dump his body far away from here in an alley. Make it look like a mugging gone wrong. Police usually brush those off quite easily." The man grabbed Junior's wrist and forcefully moved his hand off his shoulder. "Besides, I didn't pay a thousand Lien for those security codes to that warehouse just for some brat to one-up me. Security codes that you apparently also had is what I've heard and attempted to send him for free. Picking favorites, Junior? Thought we were friends."
Junior grunted. "So, you're just doing this for some sick kicks?"
"Pretty much. Two more minutes to go." Roman chuckled. "Looks like the kid's still got some fight in him."
Junior's attention went back to Allen, who was leaning off the ruined tool cabinet for support. His hair was a mess, his usual ponytail gone, and bangs covered his left eye. Blood dripped from the corner of his lips, and he wore an expression of complete shock.
They were trying to kill him. They're toying with him and they're trying to kill him. He was panting at the realization. At first, he thought they'd simply beat him to a pulp. But the blood that dripped from his stab wound said otherwise. That and Roman's words.
He flinched, as Neo's steps got louder the closer she got. She was still smiling. Amused. He was going to die...
After everything he's been through, they were going to kill him and toss his body to the side. The thought made him shiver. And the worse part was... they were human. Akuma were human souls forced to kill. And even the criminals in his world weren't like this. All for some material used either as a power source or weapon. A material that all the general public had access to.
His hands wandered around the ruined cabinet, searching the shelves for something to use to stop the bleeding. It wasn't profound, which meant that she didn't stab an artery, but it still caused some blood loss. And he doubted they'd pause for him to get proper medical attention.
Hoping for duct tape, his hands went and grabbed something different. He stared down at the blowtorch in his hand intently, the fire dust vial connected glowing a faint orange. Gritting his teeth, he pulled up shirt until it went past the wound.
The action made Neo pause curiously, while Roman whistled at the scars that littered the boy's abdomen and seemed to move up. Soon enough, the two criminals were shown the sight of Allen cauterizing the wound the small puncture wound shut, the skin turning pink and black from the flame. The teen in question let out a stifled yell as he tossed the blowtorch to the side and let his shirt fall over the wound again.
Neo held her parasol under her arm and applauded Allen with a smile. The twins and Junior looked shocked, and Roman was genuinely surprised. He looked down at his scroll again.
"One and a half minute."
Allen, still panting, stood upright. Both his hands clenched into fists. Neo gave a silent sigh, holding her parasol over her shoulder. However, she was genuinely surprised at the pitch-black fist about to make contact with her head when she narrowly dodged it, moving to her left and attempting to counterattack with her weapon.
However, Allen grabbed the parasol easily with the same limb, squeezing and bending it to the point where it was unusable. Neo's eyes widened and she managed to wrestle the weapon out of his grip, shock, and anger evident as she looked upon the ruined object. She glared at Allen; this time legitimately angry.
She charged again, this time activating her semblance. While Allen saw her charging directly at him, she really slid to his side and attempted to kick and dig her heel into his wound. So, imagine how she was genuinely surprised when her leg was caught in a grip that she couldn't seem to budge. When she looked up at his face, a black and red ringed eye glared back before she was promptly slammed into a crate beside them and then into the ground, the air knocked out of her.
Shock covered the spectators' faces. Especially Roman, who stood up quickly, knocking his chair down. He knew Neo's semblance well enough that it should have been impossible to see through it like that. And that eye. It got him curious for a moment.
And then, she was promptly kicked at her side and launched into the air before landing and rolling on the ground. Her right side hurt along with her ankle. And she was starting to become aware that her aura possibly took some more damage than she ever intended. She barely registered the large CRACK sound that echoed before rolling away as Allen closed the distance, the ground breaking from the single step, and slamming his left arm down where she had just been not even a second ago.
The impact left a small crater, which caused Neo to shiver. There were very few times she felt fear. She did not expect this to be one. She quickly flipped back to her feet and reverted back to the Capoeira style. It puzzled her and terrified her as it felt like she was hitting a brick wall whenever Allen blocked her hits. And when she couldn't dodge his newfound attack speed and had to take a hit, she felt it.
She soon realized why. Allen was leading with his left arm now. And if that didn't make things worse, her semblance was completely useless against him. His left eye. Whatever illusions she threw, he barely paid notice to them. He looked through them. All with that damned, weird eye.
And when she tried to aim for it, he countered with an elbow to her jaw and kicked her away. The more he hit, the more she could feel it. And she couldn't tell whether it was because her aura was decreasing or not. And then... her heel broke. She was knocked down in the middle of blocking.
Allen took advantage of this, in his hysterical state. He pinned her arms with his legs and raised his left fist. Whether it was the lack of stamina that finally made him slow down or maybe the pain in his side fading, he didn't know. All he knew was that he managed to calm down enough to look at Neo's horrified expression and his face, bloodied and cursed eye reflected in her mismatched eyes.
His fist slammed down, cracking the ground next to her. Allen rolled off her and collapsed on his back, breathing heavily, only for a weight to suddenly appear on top of his chest and small yet strong hands grab his neck and start to squeeze. He tried to pry Neo off him, who glared down with hate-filled eyes.
His own cursed eye deactivated, oxygen slowly starting to get cut off as the corners of his vision darkened. Just when he thought that was the end, Neo was pulled from him. She attempted to claw at whoever interrupted, only for Roman to grab both her hands. The criminal looked at Allen, the bloody and bruised teen gently rubbing a hand over his bruised throat with tears in his eyes, and then down at Neo.
She was disheveled and mad. A random kid off the street pushed her to this extent. He then looked over to her weapon, tossed to the side, and bent. From what he witnessed; the kid didn't have any aura to speak. Which means he matched up to Neo with pure raw strength alone. That was a scary thought to him.
He looked down at Neo again, as she attempted to pull away. "The timer's done. He survived the five minutes."
Neo glared at Roman and then down at Allen, who managed to sit upright. The white-haired teen looked away shamefully. Whether he meant it or not, she couldn't tell. But her attention was on his left eye, the offending subject returning to its normal, dull silver color. Whatever he did, it let him see through her illusions.
Roman followed her eyes staring at Allen's, already putting the pieces together. "Alright kid, looks like your debt is paid."
"You're actually keeping your word?" Allen asked, genuinely surprised.
Roman helped Neo up as she walked on the boot that didn't have a broken heel. "Don't get too excited. If I had a choice in location, I'd probably have one of my men shoot you. From now on, you stay out of my way."
"I plan on it." Allen confirmed.
Once the two criminals left, the malachite twins attempted to help him up, only for him to pull away.
"Get away." He told them, his voice low.
Allen tried to get up and stumbled a bit before he found his bearing, his left hand over the stab wound he forcefully sealed. He glared at Junior, who didn't look phased.
"You told him where I worked. What else?" Allen asked.
"Only that." Junior answered.
"Bullshit!"
"Believe me. Don't believe me. I don't care either way. But I am telling the whole truth. I only told him where you worked. Not who you know or anything else."
"Yeah, well, speaking of the 'whole truth', why didn't you tell me he was going to hit that warehouse?"
"You think I knew that he was going there on the same day?" Junior growled. "I gave him that information three days ago and he simply put it off to the side until today. The 'Belle Noire' gang was getting ready to sell and I thought Roman simply forgot about it. Wouldn't be the first time he put off a heist until he wanted to."
Allen looked at Junior's face for any trace of lying. He was bad at it. But this time, he couldn't find any trace. He clicked his tongue and began to limp away.
"At least let one of the girls unlock your aura, kid! You'll at least heal faster and-"
"Absolutely not!" Allen yelled, glaring at him. "I don't want my aura unlocked. I've made that expressly clear. If my aura is unlocked and gets detected during the entrance exam into Beacon months from now, I'll be forced to be a combat student instead of purely academic."
"So what, you'll just go days with a burnt closed stab wound?" Junior questioned.
"If I have to, I will. Aura may be a blessing, but there are laws that govern its use and the people who use it." Allen began to walk away, but not before turning back to him. "Oh, by the way? I quit."
After that, Allen made his way back to the apartment over at Tukson's. Sun had gone out for the day to grab lunch as well. Once he stepped in, he went and grabbed the first aid kit to treat himself as best as possible. And when he finally calmed down, he rushed to the bathroom and puked as he remembered the fact that he nearly killed Neo at the end. He almost crushed her head. He was so close to crossing that line. And that thought went on as a loop as he puked for a while longer before passing out.
Sun would find him an hour later, passed out on the bathroom floor...