Exception

By: Aviantei

25. TRIangular: Ease and Pressure

Come Sunday afternoon, it was time for TRIangular to reassemble, and Allen and Ivy made their way to Lavi's home with mixed mindsets. While Lavi would have normally liked to go ahead and mix the location up, he knew there was zero chance in hell of Ivy letting them into her apartment, plus Lavi wasn't quite sure if he could handle being in the Brit's house all things considered. He needed to be playing with a home field advantage, and the garage was definitely his field, if the rest of the house definitely wasn't.

It was amazing how quickly Ari could reclaim her territory, despite being gone for over a year.

"Alright, we are all present and accounted for!" Lavi declared. All he needed to do was keep his energy up and he could handle this, no problem. "I now declare this meeting of TRIangular up and running!" Ah, the exhilaration of being able to open a meeting with a name and a purpose. "You guys gotta try this sometime. Ivy-chan, wanna make the opening statement instead. I promise, it's really cool!"

"In any event, we should figure out our next steps today," Ivy said, not even acknowledging Lavi's request. Sure, it wasn't like she had any plans, but she definitely didn't feel like wasting her afternoon on this nonsense. Considering what had happened on Friday, dealing with Lavi was a less than pleasurable experience and she really didn't feel like losing her temper. "Your thoughts, Allen?"

Lavi immediately struck, leaping into action and crossing several feet in one literal bound. It wasn't the reason for Kanda's nickname for him, but it certainly fit in situations like these. The redhead extended a finger dramatically in Allen's directions. "Let's start from Friday night. Brit, report!"

Allen blinked, gingerly pushing Lavi's finger away from his face. "It was actually kind of fun," the Brit said, looking happier than Ivy had expected. Then again, Allen hadn't called her wanting an explanation for Lavi's antics, so maybe he hadn't noticed…? "I was surprised things went so smoothly, but I'm glad it worked out. No problems at all, you guys, good job."

Ivy knew better than to stiffen up and relaxed a bit farther into the couch. Lavi knew better, too, and he covered it up with a complex series of hand motions which would've looked more at home flagging an airplane down. That didn't stop them from sharing a glance, though, and Ivy narrowed her eyes a slight amount.

We'll talk later.

"So then you guys hit it off, then?" Lavi asked, not wanting to deal with that particular brand of Japanese land mine at that exact moment. He focused on Allen's expression, trying to figure out anything he could. The Brit was definitely blushing, even if it was just the faintest shade of pink. "You didn't do anything indecent to my baby sister, did you, hm?"

Okay, that overprotective mode just wasn't right. Lavi had since gotten out of Allen's face, but the white-haired boy still scooted his chair back a bit nonetheless. "A gentleman never tells," he blurted, and Ivy's eyebrows raised towards her hairline. Lavi staggered back a bit, looking utterly shocked. "Come on you guys, you know I wouldn't!"

Ivy coughed, a bit ashamed for making the assumption. Comparing the two, Ari was more likely to start any scenario, given that she was a Bookman. So much else ran in the family, initiative had to be one of them. "Calm down, Lavi, Allen-san's right," she said. That didn't stop Lavi's heart from flailing wildly, though. "So, we can say positive results then? Any thoughts on which way you want to go?"

Allen nodded. "Ari-san is nice and fun to be around, but I don't want to base my decision on that," he said, pulling at the wrinkles in his gloves. "I definitely think it would be best to take Lenalee out, too, see how things go." Even then, he wasn't sure that would be enough to make a decision. Were relationships supposed to go that fast? It didn't feel right. Having Ari kiss him after one date was enough to make feel dizzy.

"Sounds reasonable." In comparison, Ivy was glad that she hadn't ever liked more than one person. This whole mess seemed like nothing more than a giant pain in the ass. "We still only have a couple of weeks before Valentines hits, so you might want to do it soon. I know you don't want to rush things, but you should definitely keep the situation under control."

"Control?" Lavi asked. He had been partially spacing out, but he definitely understood all the important stuff. Still, that sounded like a jab at his performance if Lavi had ever heard one, even if it was missing levels of malice.

Ivy crossed her arms, hoping to preserve some heat. Lavi's garage tended to keep pretty warm, but as they went deeper into winter, its status as a hangout tended to be questionable. "Let's look at it this way: Allen-san and Ari-san have gone out on a date together. It's getting pretty close to Valentine's. If I were in that situation, I would probably assume that the other person was interested in asking me to the dance.

"Ari's already proven she can take the lead in the situation." Allen faintly blushed in memory of the kiss, but the other two didn't seem to notice. Ivy held up her hand, slightly pointing forward. "If Allen doesn't make the move, Ari will, and she'll make it fast. Allen needs to know how to answer her if things are going to stay in his ballpark. So, the sooner you and Lenalee go out, the better."

It was so practical it almost hurt. And Ivy said she hadn't needed Lavi's help in getting together with Kanda, tsk, tsk. "It is an effective use of time," Lavi had to admit. "Though you should really loosen up, Ivy-chan, no need to prepare for war over there. Does your brain ever rest?"

Ivy scowled. "I was just offering my opinion. If you don't like it, then get out."

Ouch. This was his house, you know!

"No, no, it's okay, I get it," Allen interrupted. Ah, Ivy must've been in a pretty sour mood, though Allen wasn't about to ask why. This whole situation was pretty close to a landmine as it was, no need to set it off farther. He liked having all of his limbs attached. "I wanna be fair to Lenalee and give her a chance. So let's figure this out."

Ivy smiled a bit. That was some progress. "Alright, good." She tried to ease up a bit more, but even still, there was tension in her shoulders. She needed to stretch when this was all over, especially if she was going to be hitting anyone in the near future. "So then, I guess you and Lenalee could talk about it, but we should talk date ideas."

"Right." Allen paused. What sort of things could he do? Matching up the experience with Ari's was probably a good deal, but paying the bill was the hard part.

"I don't think we should try to go back to Millennial again," Lavi said, probably a bit too fast. He couldn't help it, though. If he wasn't blacklisted already—no, scratch that. He'd probably never be able to set foot in that place again for the rest of his life.

"Agreed." Ivy almost spoke as quickly, giving Allen minor whiplash in the process. The two had never been this synchronized before. It had to be like the second coming or something. Maybe the revelation? "I'm not double-dating anymore," she added, hoping to get things out of the way before Allen was able to trap her into another guilt-trip. "Yu-kun doesn't like it, and I don't either. We weren't really planning on going out, so it shouldn't be as much as an issue…"

Lavi nodded, putting his hand to his chin for good measure. "Alright, then let's talk situation," he declared, grabbing a free rolling chair and sitting down. Not only was it comfy, he could spend his time on spinning, too! "We still wanna be able to observe and stick close, so something in an open area. Crowd coverage would be good, too."

"Your thoughts, Allen-san?"

Good, she hadn't forgotten this time. Lavi rolled a bit closer to the couch besides Ivy, and Allen even chanced getting a bit closer to the thing. He should still have been able to make it to the door of things went bad, so that was a plus.

"I dunno," Allen admitted. Man, this whole date set up was just not his thing. Maybe he should research. "Something open? I don't wanna sound lame, but shopping might be best." Lenalee did like that sort of thing, after all. It seemed a bit lackluster in comparison, but it was the company that mattered most, right?

Lavi and Ivy exchanged glances. Lavi shrugged, leaning over the back end of the chair. Ivy gave a small nod. "You're the boss," Lavi said.

Well, that was easy. A bit too easy. No, Allen just needed to stay strong. Things had worked out well, and he had been certain of disaster. Lenalee wasn't even as eccentric as Ari was, plus they were planning in advance. This whole thing would work out just fine.

He hoped.

"Alright, then I'll ask Lenalee out this week," Allen said. For some reason, that sounded a lot easier than it would be to do. But Ari had managed to do it okay, so Allen could at least handle that much. If he couldn't even ask a girl out on his own, then this whole situation had a lot more problems than it already did.

Ivy looked to Lavi, trying to urge him on. Really, this would be the one time his ridiculousness could be considered a push in the right direction. She sighed. Did really need to say it? "Do you need any pointers?" she said. "I mean, Lavi hits on girls all the time. Not that you should act like him, but he can at least give you confidence tips."

"Huh, me?" Lavi pointed to himself. Ivy nodded, and the redhead's face broke out into an absolute grin. "Aw, yeah, I can help you out if you want, Brit. It's all in the attitude, the swagger! Lenalady will probably say yes in a heartbeat, but a little extra oomph can't hurt."

Ivy was fairly certain that the word oomph did not require that much emphasis or a hand gesture of any kind. Allen repressed a grimace. "I'll be fine," he said. Great, skeptic looks from both members of the peanut gallery. "I mean…I'd like to give it a try, alright? If I get stuck, I'll come to you guys, okay? But I'd like to try this on my own."

No objections. They could handle that much.

"Then that settles it!" Lavi jumped to his feet and patted the back of Allen's chair. "I think this meeting is as good as concluded. We'll reconvene as needed." He grinned, resisting the urge to give Allen a strong clap on the arm. "It's in your hands, Brit, so go for it!"

Ivy also stood, brushing off her pants. "Good luck, Allen-san," she said. "We're here for you."

And maybe it shouldn't have, but that little bit of reassurance made Allen feel like he was actually ready for this, even if it was only just a little. In some cases, a little could happen to be just enough.

Allen left shortly after, bundled up in his jacket and managing to hum despite the bitter cold. Ivy hoped he would be okay walking, but the Brit had concluded that things were fine and went about his merry way. While Ivy was glad there wasn't an excuse for Lavi to escape the conversation, concern seemed to still be nagging at the back of her mind.

Well, at least there's that.

Shaking the feeling off, Ivy stood, crossing her arms. Lavi was significantly taller than her, but that didn't mean she had to lose intimidation grounds on it. "Why don't you take a seat, Lavi?" she said, still keeping her voice at a moderate tone. Things tended to be scarier when they seemed like they weren't going to be.

Lavi went back for his chair, and Ivy took the opportunity to roll it across the room. Lavi grimaced but managed to turn it into a smile "Don't mind if I do," he chirped, sitting directly in the middle of the couch. It was still warm from where Ivy had been sitting before. "So, I'm sure you wanna chat?"

That was a goddamn understatement, but why not add fuel to the fire anyway? It was already rearing to be a raging inferno at this point, and not the fun disco kind.

Ivy didn't instantly flare up, though, and Lavi had to admit he was a bit impressed. Maybe things were better this way; dealing with Ivy held the possibility of Kanda leaving him alone in the future. Then again, looking back at the dodgeball match and a few other select incidents, Ivy could be equally if not more ruthless.

Well, go big or go home. And seeing as I'm already home…

"What the hell was that on Friday?" Ivy demanded, the furrowing of her eyebrows tightening up her skin. She raised a hand to her temple, and Lavi hoped she didn't have a migraine. "You were definitely in trouble, then you just disappeared! I had to fucking break a table because of you, and I hate that shit." Ivy tried to take the deep breath route before letting out a frustrated growl. Repression was not always the answer, and she hadn't been able to vent whatsoever about the whole fiasco.

Lavi blinked at the mention of the table, though that sounded like a tale that could wait for when Ivy wasn't livid. "Look, I'm sorry I screwed up," Lavi said, and he meant it. He had made a promise—several, really—and he had broken them. That was just wrong on several levels. "I really wanted to get out of it without bothering you guys, and then I did. I was just so focused on getting the hell out of there I forgot to tell you guys." Save driving was not an option; driving was a privilege after all! Lavi did a lot of stupid things, but getting on his phone while driving wasn't one of them, especially in the middle of winter.

Ivy felt some of her tension ease up. He seemed genuine enough, and this level of irritation just wasn't healthy for her, period. Suddenly feeling exhausted, Ivy dropped to the couch beside him. "You're welcome for not having to pay a bill, by the way," she grumbled, which reminded her… "Though you owe our waitress a big giant tip. Her name's Sachiko-san and I expect you to pay her back for all the trouble I had to cause her."

"And how do you propose I do that? I have to be banned from the place."

"You're smart. You figure it out."

Lavi snorted. Sure, Ivy's mood could switch a little bit more quickly, but: "You and Yu-pon are made for each other, Ivy-chan."

"What the hell's that supposed to mean?"

"Don't worry about it. How about I drive you home?"

It was amazing how much you could hear through walls when you understood the theory. One summer vacation between middle school years, Ari had gone through the trouble of learning where all the weak structural spots were in the house. If you exploited those, eavesdropping was pretty easy.

Ari had suspected it when she had flipped through her (then sleeping) brother's notebook, but this pretty much confirmed it. This whole TRIangular nonsense was a way for Allen to sort out his feelings. Part of Ari felt a bit down at that, but she had to be grateful she had even been given a chance. Besides, even if Allen was going to be asking Lenalee out, he was doing it to be fair.

All things considered, Ari had gotten there first.

No, don't be that way.

Ivy and Lavi left out the side garage door, winter air slamming it shut behind them. That meant Ari would have the house to herself for approximately a half hour, which worked out well. Standing up to work the kinks out of her neck (of course the indoor weak spot of the garage was practically next to the floor), Ari skipped towards her room, retrieving her cellphone from her pocket.

It took a couple of rings for Johnny to pick up, but that was okay. They barely exchanged greetings before Ari had even made it to the kitchen. "Incident confirmed: one older brother up to something, over," she reported, pouring herself a glass of pineapple juice.

"Oh? What's going on?"

And so Ari told him to the best of her ability. Given that she was a Bookman, there was plenty to share.

"I don't know how to counteract it, but I definitely don't like it," Ari declared. Johnny made an understand sound across the phone line. She could hear the sound of scissors—Sundays were his tailoring days after all. "It sounds like they're trying to keep Nii-san subdued, which actually works out for me. But no one ever said I had to play fair, right?"

A technicality if anyone had ever seen one. Even without knowing the whole situation, Johnny had to admit that was somewhat true. He had already committed to this whole endeavor with the dress, might as well keep going. And as long as nobody got hurt.

"What do I have to do?"

"We need to run a counter mission," Ari decided, taking a sip from her glass. You really had to savor these things. "We'll run alongside them for a while, just to keep things simple." She was going to need Lavi's notes for that. "And then when the right moment arises, we'll strike in. Oh, whatcha say? Operation Parallel Interception is go!"

If it weren't for the fact that Ari was partially working against him, Lavi would have been proud.

What is having time to myself even?

Thanks this chapter go out to all the people who've read this the past week, especially CG who has been making time for this silly story in his busy schedule. To all of you, I hope this can make you smile in lieu of the other things that have happened this week.

I am steadily working my way through NaNoWriMo, and will hit the 30K mark tomorrow! I will also be finishing up my book within the next five days. Scary stuff.

In any event, coming up with chapter titles for this series has become hard. Quite hard actually. Its a bit concerning. I can't seem to think of anything goofy at the moment, so you'll have to put up with these less fun titles instead. Sorry about that.

In any event, after this there are only five more weeks of consistent Exception updates! Sadly, that means I'll be taking a break from this story, and shifting my SOSS project into high gear come December. Still, I do want to see Exception finished (no matter how excruciatingly long that takes), so know I won't be gone for long! No matter what, you can expect to see another burst of updates for sure next fall. Think of it as waiting for a new season of a TV show to air.

Let's not spend all that time thinking about that far in the future, though. If you're looking for a casual af writing group, check out [Equinoctial Stars over Seasons]. Thinking of something a bit more structured? [Shibuya Operation - Story Storm] is coming this December! And, finally, next week's chapter will be the girls taking action. Please look forward to it!

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