Chapter 19 - Long time no see

As much as he was itching to go and scrub his stench off, keeping Akuma poison around was a lot more dangerous, especially with his luck, so Allen decided he'd pay a visit to Krory and attempt feeding him first.

At Komui's office Miranda as well as Lenalee waited for them with nervous but hopeful expressions. Allen made sure to discreetly keep his distance so his smell would go unnoticed by the ladies. After he handed in his official report to Komui, the Supervisor followed him back to the Infirmary. The Head Nurse already waited for them with hands scrubbed clean and eyes looking exhausted.

The lot of them surrounded Krory with Allen and the Head Nurse standing closest. Allen unclasped the cork of his flask, stirring up the thick Akuma blood sitting in its bottom. His hand reached behind Krory's head, gently lifting it, tilting it forward as he placed the likewise tilted the container so that the smell of blood would arouse his senses.

Blackened eyeballs snapped wide open. In surprise Allen let go of the flask as he jumped back, Timcanpy clasping his strands tight not to fall off.A bony hand shot out, catching it and bringing to chapped lips. Slurping and suckling sounds could be heard as Krory feasted on the meagre offering, his slotted eyes seeking for more, only halting when he laid eyes on Allen.

The boy held a hand up waving at Krory a bit taken aback. "Hey, Krory."

The feral expression tamed somewhat but his Innocence stayed activated. A golden iris drifted onto the people around him who were eager to see him back but held themselves back to let him regain his bearings.

"The Ark… The download…" he said as his eyes took in the form of his friends; seeing the length of Lenalee's hair he guessed he was put cold for a long time. Seeing a purple haired man, a blond young man and an elder lady in a nurse dress was a surprise but as his friends didn't seem to mind their presence he deduced they were harmless- "We won?"

A smile curled on Allen's lips as he stepped back to Krory's side, a hand resting on his tense shoulders. "Yes. Thanks to you holding up Jasdevi we could push Road and Tyki back and return home. Welcome to the Black Order, Krory."

A soft gasp stumbled by Krory's lips, his white turf of hair falling forward as the invocation ceased. He eyed the three unknown person near him, shifting back to his still awkward persona.

"I, uh, apologize for the state we meet in. I am Baron Arystar Krory the IIIrd, it is a pleasure to make you acquaintance."

Smiling, Komui extended a hand to him. "My name is Komui Lee, Lenalee's BROTHER," he screamed the word then his tone went back to normal "Supervisor of European Branch and Headquarters. I'm glad to have you with us Krory."

Krory accepted the handshake. "It's good to be here." He turned his gaze at the elder lady. "May I ask for your name as well, Madam."

"I am the resident nurse here, please call me Head Nurse and don't you dare go against my orders and try leaving the Infirmary before you're properly discharged like some of my patients," she said, her eye stabbing in Allen's way who smiled meekly and looked away.

Krory swallowed the lump he felt in his throat. "Y-Yes, Madam."

Finally his eye shifted onto Link.

The blond cleared his throat. "I am Inspector Howard Link, currently the watchman in charge of supervising Allen Walker."

Krory lurched forward, head swimming with vertigo; Allen quickly darted forth to catch him but Krory didn't pay him mind. "W-watchman? What? B-but why? What happened?!"

The excited atmosphere that welcomed Krory shifted, growing into something far less cozy. Unease settled in the hearts of those who knew the persecution Allen was facing.

Link opened his mouth to gave an honest reply, but was beaten to it by Allen.

"Ah, you see Master managed to get the big bosses mad for slacking off for so long, so because of that I am object of that investigation as well, as his tool-, I mean Apprentice," he replied smoothly. "They want to make sure that he's not in some tacky business and until then both of us are under watch and are not allowed to talk." To strengthen his point, Timcanpy nodded on top of his head. Nevermin that being in a tacky business they would not be let off the hook, but no need to panic, he could use the time they learned the truth and the knowledge of their reaction to his advantage to smoothen out the bumps in his path. Until then, his friends didn't need to know and therefore worry.

But being the wonderful friends he didn't deserve they still did. Krory gripped his blanket hard enough so that his knuckles matched the white of the cover. "That's absurd, you did nothing wrong! You shouldn't be confiscated like this!"

"Oh don't worry, I don't miss him," Allen laughed it off. "Besides, Link is much better company, he doesn't get me into trouble and bakes very delicious cakes."

Said man raised an eyebrow hearing that but chose not to comment. Krory still didn't stop eyeing the man suspiciously. "But that's not fair. You of all people shouldn't have to go through this. You saved us countless times and your Innocence came back for you even after it was destroyed and kept you from dying! That must be a sign that you're loyal and trustworthy!"

Allen was thrown back a bit at Krory's words, not expecting to hear such praise. He cleared his throat, willing the blush away. "T-that's very kind of your Krory, but really, please calm down. This situation might be a bit uncomfortable but I don't want to risk anyone's life because of something Master is scheming. That man knows me more than anyone else so he could easily manipulate me to do the dirty stuff for him without me noticing."

Again, there was an uncomfortable silence, but as intended, a lot less intense as before.

"Allen," Komui said,visibly weighing his words carefully. "that… sounds like you're admitting that you two are plotting something. You could face serious repercussions of someone interprets that the wrong way."

Allen shrugged nonchalantly. "Master should have thought of that before he dragged me into this mess." To the surprise of the room's occupants, Allen's expression shifted into something dark and his lips quirked in a very unkind way. "If he thinks he can get himself out of trouble by throwing me to the wolves he is wrong. If I fall, I drag him down with me." Some shivered at the almost childlike, sinister giggled bubbling from this, that was tucked behind Allen's a far less outright malicious smile. Tim mirrored his facial expression with a grin on his own. "That's why, don't worry Krory. This is to protect people and I'm willing to go through this if it means I can still do my job." And keep all of you safe.

The two held gazes until Krory sighed, knowing that he cannot change Allen's decision once he made up his mind. The man's shoulders fell, head lolling forward dejected. "I understand."

Allen reached out and squeezed his shoulder comfortingly. "Thank you, Krory."

"Alright, that's enough of an excitement for Krory, Walker. You lot," the Head Nurse turned her authoritative glance at the other Exorcists, "you are allowed 2 minutes each to catch up with Krory, he still requires medical supervision."

"I'll hand over my 2 minutes to Lenalee," Komui said with a smile. "Once you are discharged we can discuss business. Don't you dare abuse her kindness and make her do weird stuff thought."

There was a collective disgruntled sigh at those words. Krory bristled. "I would never force myself on anyone, especially a maiden!"

Komui pushed his glasses up. "Good. Keep yourself to that and there will be no unfortunate consequences for you."

What was that supposed to mean, the unasked question hung in the air, but no one wanted to bring up.

I should have warned Krory about Komui's… overprotectiveness, Allen thought to himself.

As promised though, the man stepped back and watched the welcome scene from behind. Lavi greeted Krory with a grin while Miranda and Lenalee fought to keep their tears of joy in as they took hold of Krory's hands. The three guided the conversation to happier themes to cheer up their friend. Once he regained his footing, he would be introduced to everyone.

"Time's up," the Head Nurse announced, snapping her pocket watch shut. "All of you, out."

The Head Nurse approached them with shooing motions to the exit when-

"W-wait, I just remembered!" Allen squeaked, a sudden memory exploding into his mind at the thought of Krory officially joining.

"The time is already up,Walker," the Matron all but hissed. "If you insist on staying though I will gladly lock you up."

Even if he knew he wasn't kept inside due to shortage of beds but apart of Allen feared that he would still be squeezed into some uncomfortable, tiny, windowless store room that he'd have to share with Link. It wasn't something he looked forward to.

"I-it is for the sake of Krory's well-being! The Order is a very" weird and at times outright more dangerous than the battlefield "special place so I thought I should give a heads up!"

The woman's eyes narrowed. "One. Minute."

Allen took in a large gulp of air. "Krory, once you're recovered you're going to be taken underground to a somewhat creepy cave with five men you will never see later looming above you with scary light around them but the true surprise is the 15 metres tall Dragon-looking lady because Komui enjoys jumpscaring people with taking them down there and let Hevlaska pick them up with her countless, bony ghosthands without any warning whatsoever - but it's ok, she is a very nice person! Komui is the one you need to watch out for - Master is still as much of a bastard as before but since you set all your fortune on fire he won't come to you asking for money, but if he does tell me so I can beat sense into him; but anyways Komui often sets off a robot apocalypse once in a while and also has a gigantic, terrifyingly large and painful drill that is to fix Parasitic Innocence so avoid breaking it at all cost!"

Allen panted, gulping more air after the rant as Link looked up from his own pocket watch. "53 seconds." Just a half second off, according to the little clock Tim was projecting.

The Head Nurse extended a glass of water that Allen gratefully gulped down and once she was sure he swallowed, he grabbed the boy by his collar and all but tossed him out, locking the door behind all of them.

Komui pouted at Allen childishly. "You ruined by fun."

"You need to develop a better sense of humour, Komui."

Komui humped, storming 3 steps away until he remembered Lenalee was still there, chatting with Miranda. He gave her puppy eyes, to which Lenalee sighed and walked up to him with a serene wave at her friends. The two left with Lenalee's voice reprimanding Komui to stop acting mean.

Allen turned to not quite madly, but dash towards the bathroom when Miranda squeaked up behind him.

"U-um, I-I was thinking, d-do you want to come and eat lunch?"

Lunch. Allen's eyes sparkled, saliva running in his mouth- but then tensed. "U-um, I'd love to yes, um, it's just, um," he laughed nervously seeing the crestfallen look on Miranda's face, thinking he was rejecting her. "I- I just returned from a mission, you see, so I'd like to clean up a bit to give proper respect to the dining area. Is it ok if I join you in half on hour."

Her brown eyes lightened up at that. "O-ok, I'll make sure to tell Jerry in advance that you'll be coming."

Allen beamed at her. "Thanks, Miranda. I'll see you then." He quickly waved then all but fled to the bath; both Link and Lavi followed him, Bookman trailed after them silently.

It was still noon so there was practically no one inside, much to Allen's relief. He peeled off the clothes he wore for days back in the desert and pretty much hid it in the laundry basket.

He fetched a small bucket for himself along with shampoo and carefully washed his greasy and spit drenched hair. Next to him Link sat down as well, scrubbing his hair back to its beautiful golden shade. Even though his eyes were closed he picked up on all the little noises Allen made.

Allen grimaced at the sight of all the filth that came off his hair. He poured the evidence away, preparing another clean bucket of water and a towel - at times like this it was better to just rub the damp fabric over himself than submerge in water. He just sat down starting with washing his face when Lavi called out.

"Need a hand with your back, 'sprout?"

Allen brushed his wet bangs back, fixing them in place with the hairclips Tim coughed up. "My name is Allen and I can do it for myself, thank you." He dipped his towel in the warm water and started washing off himself.

Typical Allen, pedalling to be 'independent' even when there was no need to. Lavi, however, knew how to nudge Allen in the desired direction. "Kro-chan would be heartbroken to know that your back is not washed properly while he's unavailable."

Allen paused with his cleansing and let out a deep sigh. "Fine," he gave in with much reluctance in his voice "but no funny business. I don't want to walk around with some sort of obscenities drawn or written all over my back".

Lavi held his hands up defensively. "I wouldn't dare to do that when the guardian angel or demon on your shoulder would chomp my hand off." Yes, he was still upset about that.

Allen straightened himself, raising his head proudly. "Tim could only be an angel of course!" He poked the golem in the face. "But no more disrespect like that! I know you love your spot but don't be rude. We're trying to get along with the General and she is a package deal with her Innocence."

Lavi took a small stool and sat behind Allen. The boy was already scrubbing Tim vigorously, intent to polish him to perfect shine. The smile on Lavi's face withered just slightly as he raked his single eye across the macabre view of fresh and old cuts and bruises on Allen's sickly pale back but forced cheeriness on himself and stuck to the present. He took up the towel and gently started wiping the dirt off Allen, careful to avoid the stitches.

"Oh, could it be that cute little Allen is crushing on General Nine~?"

Allen shot an unimpressed gaze over his shoulder. "As always, your jokes are very tasteless. If you want to know it that much, I requested her because she takes her job seriously and being a fellow Parasitic user she's the one knowing best how to achieve maximum performance."

The more Allen fought the clearer it got: he was no good at long, drawn out battles. During his training with his Master he only encountered Level 1s that were easy to destroy for even rookie Exorcists. The first Level 2 he encountered was more of a danger due to its cunning and unknown ability but when it came to face to face it was still relatively easy to destroy - it only ended up with such casualties due to his own inexperience. The reformed Crowned Clown easily scraped apart a Level 3, but if they ganged up on him he had to stay on his toes not to lose his head.

But the Level 4s and the Noah were a whole different level. Like walls that he could not jump over. As humiliating it was, he could only thank his life because his enemies underestimated him (the Earl, the Jasdevi twins, Lulu Bell, Level 4s, horse face and turban head) or played around with him as a form of twisted affection (Road and Tyki). But now that the Earl seemed to seriously get on his case and intend to eliminate him, he needed to get stronger. He needed a mentor. A competent one. One who would help him master his Innocence and not ripping people off their money.

"So you don't have to worry about me if you plan on confessing to her or something," he threw in, not wanting the two to catch on what he was thinking about. "She will turn you down though. She cannot stand men who don't take their job seriously. Honestly, I cannot guarantee your safety if you try to flirt with her."

Lavi gulped and laughed nervously. "How lucky is Kro-chan, to have two cute girls by his side as he woke up," Lavi sighed, changing the subject a bit.

Allen rolled his eyes at that. "Would you please stop butchering Japanese already. Kanda isn't even around to cringe at it or threaten you."

"But it annoys you too~"

"And I'm pretty sure jumbling up languages in such manner is not only annoying but an insult to hear for a Bookman so I advise you to quit it before your mentor runs out of patience."

As if to confirm his point, Bookman cracked his knuckles, casting a dark glare at Lavi. The redhead swallowed the nervous lump in his throat. "Gotcha."

Lavi and Bookman soaked in the hot water of the onsen for a bit until Allen properly dried his body and Link fixed new bandages. Allen put on the clean clothes - the familiar crisp, white shirt and black slacks along with a striped ribbon tied around his neck. Beside him Link was back in a freshly ironed uniform. The Two Bookmen came and dressed themselves along with him, ready to follow him to eat.

The dining hall was a lot less busy than usual. The reminder of the attack made his chest pang but forced a smile on himself when he spotted Miranda's dark hair.

Jerry welcomed him with the same excitement as ever, gushing to himself as Allen listed off dozens of dishes. With a speed only possibly accomplished by Jerry, Allen pushed away his trolley of meal to where Miranda was sitting.

"I hope I haven't kept you waiting for long."

"N-no, it's ok, I prefer to wait for my food to cool a bit and drink Jerry's nutrition drink besides my soup."

"Nutrition drink?"

Miranda nodded. "Y-yes, Jerry was really concerned that I was so skinny and sick looking so he shared with me some of the special formula made for Finders."

"I never heard of it."

"Would you like to try some?" She offered. "This is pear flavoured but Jerry said he could make one of any taste."

Allen reached out to take the glass from her. "Thank you, Miranda. I'll just take a sip then." It was interesting for sure. Sort of like thicker milk, almost the consistency of drinking yoghurt but he could definitely feel something hard that was blended into fine powder swim in the mix. There were various tastes mixing in it, but the most prominent one was indeed the pear. He handed the cup back.

"It's good! I'll ask for it next time."

"I don't approve of drinking such substances instead of eating vegetables but at least this way you get nutrients in too not just calories," Link remarked dryly.

Allen huffed, biting into a hamburger. "I can't help it! I'm a Parasitic Type so I need to eat a lot of food that is high in energy."

Link rolled his eyes then cut into his spinach pie, ignoring Allen's glare that raged 'hypocrite' as his meal at least contained some greens.

Once all of them had their fill, Miranda headed to the training rooms and Allen withdrew to his room and crashed into his bed.

Link sat on a chair beside him, picking up a book, eyes on the pages so his gaze didn't disturb Allen.

Allen's blinks were heavy like lead until he could no longer open his eyes and finally have a relatively peaceful nap.

The thick surface of the water broke through as Allen climbed out of the pool. By the edge Crowned Clown waited him with a smile.

"Welcome back."

Allen allowed himself to be hauled out of the water, be set and dusted down and have Crowned Clown drape his arms around him. In this void, barren world, he was the only one radiating emotions.

"I know that you are… attached to me, Crowned Clown…" his Innocence was nearly beaming at the different meanings that could be written under this figure of speech, "but could you perhaps allow us… more room?"

He was met with an angelically innocent laughter. "But Allen~, I'm a full-body armour~ I was designed to be as close to you as physically possible."

A confused frown marred Allen's face; it felt he was lacking fundamental background informations for this to make sense. "Designed? By… whom?" Or perhaps the better question: by what?

The answer came with bubbling laughter, the sort that achingly reminded Allen of that certain person he treasured in his broken little heart. He idly wondered if Crowned Clown acted like this on purpose. "By you, of course! I am a physical manifestation of your heart, your deepest instincts, fears and desires. I am the sheet between you and the rest of the world that both connects and separates you from it."

Turning his head back as much as possible, Allen held gazes with the greenly glowing, inhumane irises but them sighed. "I… feel like you're saying something meaningful but I don't understand it at all," Allen replied honestly. There was nothing else he could decipher from that facial expression, aside from deep devotion. Deep dedication mirroring Allen's acceptance and self-sacrifice towards the Innocence.

He got a squeeze and a snicker in reply. "Give it time and you will. Soon."

Allen hesitantly nodded and peeled off the arms, stepping back a bit. He wanted to know more, but there was a conversation much more urgent that needed to be settled now. "For the time being then what can I do to make that strategy work?"

"Well, practice of course?' was the simple reply. 'We are connected on a cellular level so detaching is hard. But you can work it up like muscle so don't be crestfallen."

"I see. Thanks. Now…" his usual tone shifted into something lot less friendly "where is he?"

Crowned Clown stepped aside, motioning towards the woods where the eerie throne was sitting in the distance. To Allen's surprise, the scene around him seemed to stretch and- and pass by him, objects blurring in his peripheral vision as if he was soaring through the air and abruptly he found himself facing an equally surprised Neah.

Before he could even open his mouth, Crowned Clown clasped a heavy hand on Neah's shoulder and forced him to stay sitting. Regaining his bearings, Allen's face was schooled into a black stare. Even if he felt like yelling at the guy, he didn't want to completely kick up the agreement; if he played his cards well then perhaps he could still save their cooperation. "We need to talk."

Neah cocked his head to the side, feigning ignorance. He looked just like a normal person, but in his gut Allen felt something sinister stir. Every inch of his being just knew and screamed: Neah was dangerous. "About what?"

"You know what I'm talking about."Allen replied as he pushed the clothe of his Exorcist uniform off to reveal the new scars on his right arm. Anger was burning within him but he didn't want to blow off just yet, didn't want to give Neah the satisfaction that he got to him. "This is a language I never learned and yet I know it."

Neah hummed, pondering on his word. "Maybe you're actually not an idiot and are a secret linguistics genius."

A white eyebrow twitched. "Why thank you for the compliment, but I doubt I could be doing that when I can hardly read my own mother tongue. That can only mean it is your memory."

"Hah. How can you be so sure it's not the memories of your Innocence?" Neah taunted, throwing a side-glance at the Anti-Akuma weapon that gazed down on him coolly.

Allen raised an eyebrow at that, eyes never leaving Neah. "Memories of Innocence?"

"Nice try but no," Crowned Clown replied.

Allen was itching to ask about that too but he had to focus. "There you have it. That must mean it must have been you."

Neah placed a hand over his chest, face twisting to look disappointed. Perhaps if Allen didn't know he was bullshitting then maybe he would have bought it. Perhaps. "Me? I never did such thing."

At this point, he had to force himself to remain at least somewhat civil. Fury and unease mixed in him as a small part of his mind considered that Neah might not be lying. "Please don't be dishonest with me. I think I already explained to you that you and I are in the same boat. So do tell me. Why are you going against our agreement?"

A dark chuckled bubbled up from Neah. "Oh, I think you have a fundamental misunderstanding here, Allen. I didn't do anything."

Allen's eyes narrowed, as if seeking the hidden meaning Neah quite obviously wrapped up. His eyebrows furrowed, his eyes moving side to side, as if trying to read it out of the air. When a possible, horrible implication flashed in his mind, his eyes widened in horror. "No…" he breathed a whisper lined with dread. The sick feeling he felt in that moment when he laid eyes on that scripture, when he realised his useful ability was locked seeped back into him like the cold wind of the tundra. "The Fourteenth?"

"There you go, see?" Neah replied cheerily. "You're not that stupid."

The lump in his throat distracted him from reacting to Neah's egging even the slightest bit. "But how? And why?"

Neah shifted his legs and leaned to the side to rest his chin on his palm. Crowned Clown's heavy hand never left him. "Technically every human can become a Noah. In the Flood all humans were killed and they were replaced by the descendants of the Original Noahs from 7000 years ago."

Allen halted hearing that. Why would the Noah restore a world they destroyed and then intend to destroy it again? No, he had to focus.

"That still doesn't explain it why it's reacted to me. The Fourteenth Noah belongs to you, is it not? I shouldn't be able to awaken it! I'm an Innocence host!"

It couldn't be, he reasoned, he was an Exorcist, he was connected to a piece of Innocence. He was the very existence the Noah and the Earl despised on such a primal level and sought to destroy.

Despise. A shiver ran down on his spine as very old, cold memories that he wished to forget resurfaced. He could almost see snow fall onto shabby tents that lost their vibrant colours with time, he almost felt the cold bite into his very bones in that harsh late December.

There was a time when all he knew was to despise. Curse and hate everything and everyone, including that heavy, heavy red arm he could hardly move, that made him both a freak and a liability.

There was a time when he too despised that arm. When he even thought that having no left arm at all would have been a lot better.

But those feelings were gone. He buried them along with 'Red'. He no longer feels resentment at the Innocence, only-

And yet… Allen could can almost feel it. Its presence, looming over his back, grinning at him through the cracks of his broken heart. The same one that looked back at him in the mirror.

"Well, I guess it means you're more of a monster than you care to admit." Neah's almost jovial tone made Allen jump, snapping him back to their current conversation. He shook his head to rid himself from those thoughts. Focus. He needed to squelch out as much information as possible.

"Answer the question, Neah," he said in a very plain tone despite the anxiety building up in him.

Finally, Neah decided he had enough beating around the bush and spoke. "You triggered it," he said, eyes structurizing Allen. "It could be anything. A certain place, a certain sight or sound… a certain person."

A certain person. There were certain people that were both connected to him and Neah. Cross outright admitted that he carried on the will of the Fourteenth. Tim was silent - but him possessing the score was a fact that cannot be ignored. And then, the person closest to both him and and Neah was… was-

But it's not necessarily a person, he reminded himself. Mana was long dead, if he was the key then he would have long been taken over by the Fourteenth when he was still a child and provided no resistance. It would make no sense to go off only now.

The same went for Master. Even though he started the process by sending him to that room and Tim who showed him the score if he did it while he was still a child.. or when he was in that state…

The only hard evidence that undoubtedly started the process was the score with its language of unknown origins and the mirror that showed him the Shadow, the Shadow that took possession of his body and played that melody. The Noah Memory. The entity that had leered down on him long before Neah appeared.

"How do I make it stop," was his next toneless question.

Neah cocked an eyebrow at the blandness of his tone, apparently no longer feeling any amusement out of the interrogation and just wanted to be done and get over with it. "Beats me. But if I intervened now I would just make it worse."

Finally, Allen looked into Neah's eyes and the latter got honestly uncomfortable with that empty gaze drilling into him. "Did you not want to be a Noah?"

For the first time in this conversation, Neah was thrown aback. "It's not really a choice. You either accept the mission or perish, the Noah Memory will simply just jump to another candidate."

Obey or die, even if it kills you. Right, Suman?

"I see. So you don't know how to stop it."

Neah's eyebrow twitched. This brat and his cross questions. He was very right not to just handle all information on a silver platter.

"I never heard of a Noah getting successfully Exorcised from a human host. The only way past incarnations died was either the host running out of their life span and dying naturally or getting killed. And an Exorcist implanted with the Noah Memories on top is unprecedented, so I cannot tell."

White lashes slowly blinked soaking up the information. There was something stirring in the stormy clouds of his iris but Neah couldn't really put a finger on it what went through Allen's head.

"I see," the boy replied curtly. "Thanks, Neah. I'll drop by later."

Neah's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, puzzled that Allen turned away and Crowned Clown let go. The same way as they emerged, the two disappeared to the edge of the horizon.

Now that the two were out of sight, Neah allowed himself to breathe out a shaky sigh. He managed to hint enough useless information that was true nonetheless that satisfied Allen and his feathery guardian even if only temporarily. Even if he had no complete control over the 'Fourteenth' it was a beast Neah still held on a leash, that Allen believed Neah was still something he had to be very cautious with. The two was unaware that Neah had no idea what the Fourteenth was up to. It wasn't supposed to be so prominent allowing Allen to read magic.

Amber eyes looked up seeking out Allen's back, his stomach lurching with the striking similarities and sharp differences between his Allen and this. This Allen… was dangerous. He was a naive fool who believed he could save people if he just tried better, but a reckless, unpredictable and self-destructive one nonetheless. And the even more disturbing thing was that sick devotion of that humanoid Innocence towards Allen that had almost as much of a 'personality' already as the Apocryphos and guarded him like a dog, all eyes on that boy - but Neah knew that thing never let him out of its sight either.

A cold feeling settled in his chest at the memory of the Independent Innocence. He swallowed at the multiple scenarios popping up in his mind, one worse than the other. If that thing learned about implanting his memory within his Allen… Then the Allen he saw now was…

Allen… what happened to you?

"I don't think he lied," Allen whispered despite the distance between him and Neah, with the guy living in his head his sense of privacy was breached to an even more extreme degree than Link's constant surveillance- "but he's definitely not telling the full truth."

"He is still weak but he is not non-dangerous," Crowned Clown hummed in agreement, circling around him, the cape around his shoulders seemed to extend as he walked around, surrounding Allen in a circle with the fabric. "He will do everything and anything to manipulate you into doing what he wants."

"It is not risk free, but for now, I will accept what he says as truth until something that contradicts it comes up," Allen decided. "As for now we theorize that the Fourteenth stirred a bit and showed me something from its 7000 years old memories. We don't know if the process can be reversible or cancelled but we can suppress it. Innocence is polar opposite to Noah so if we just get stronger we can minimize the effects until we find a permanent solution. For now, this is the only way to move forward."

Crowned Clown nodded. "And naturally, I'll have your back."

Allen cocked his head to the side. "Are you really sure about this though? Cooperating with Neah? With me, when I'm..."

Crowned Clown flashed him a smile. "You are not going explicitly against the will of the Heart. Even if you are going on a different path, you are not betraying our cause to destroy the Millennium Earl along with the Noah and his Akuma."

"The Noah..." Allen's face settled into a frown at that. "How come Master didn't Fall then? He was basically fostering a host to a Noah." Unseen by him, Crowned Clown's eyes narrowed in fury. "Was he perhaps using some magic on Judgement too? Instead he was attacked by someone, someone trained enough to deal with an Exorcist… I doubt the Noah wouldn't have tried to rub it in my face if they did it… so perhaps it was an inside job?"

Crowned Clown chuckled, cutting off his host before he entered dangerous thoughts. "Cross Marian is… indeed quite the wayward Apostle… But he is very good at what he is doing and knows how to reach peak efficiency. At least that's all I can think of, the Heart doesn't really talk all that much about the hows or whys."

Allen looked up, meeting the glowing irises, unaware of the secrets it hid. "This makes me think… Crowned Clown… how do you Innocence choose hosts? Are you the ones choosing? Or the Heart assigns them?"

Hoh, so he wants information from me as well, the Divine Entity realised. Even in his sleep he only thinks about his duty. He contained a smirk and a pleasant shiver. "I am very sorry for the disappointing answer, Allen, but honestly, I have no recollection. I recall the time I was 'one' with the other pieces then shatter and scatter, entering hibernation… until I felt your call."

Allen's white eyebrows shot up in utter surprise. "My… call…? But… I had you in me long before the first time I properly synchronised with you."

The Innocence waves his hand side to side. "I didn't mean in such way. This call is not usually verbal. I mean more like your spiritual being reached out into the supernatural."

Against the intentions, this just confused the host more. Allen waved with his hands for his partner to slow down. "Hold on, my what reached into the where?"

A different approach then. "Basically, I felt that you conceived into this world and in distress. Your heart had cried out and it resonated with my being."

A cry strong enough to defy nature itself.

An old conversation flashed within Allen's mind.

Parasite Types synchronize with the raw, unaltered form of the Innocence.

Parasite Type Conformers are like weapons restraining the power of Innocence with their own bodies.

A soul calling for another one from the otherworld, fusing into one being.

A soul calling for an entity from another world ,fusing into one-

They are the Anti-Akuma weapons.

"And as I am programmed to do, I immediately sought you out and fused with you as much as I could without proper synchronisation. I don't know anything else, just that I instinctively knew you were out there and I was meant to be yours, the same way I know I exist to destroy Akuma. So if you thought about seeking out Accommodators by tracking them down with the Innocence I'm afraid you reached a dead-end. It is a safety measure by the Heart so that the Noah or their supporters cannot track down Apostles with Innocence and vice versa."

Crowned Clown gave an apologetic look to his Accommodator whose shoulders fell and head lolled forward. "I guess we will need to go the old fashioned way then." Well, he still had the advantage of knowing about Timothy but there was a chance other Accommodators would be found with the mass awakening of Innocence. As much as he worried about the boy with how crazy things were getting he rather if Timothy stayed under the radar for a bit longer. The Earl only learned of him when they barged in rather thoughtlessly.

Allen looked down into his palms, clenching his fist with a new resolve. "Then I guess there's nothing else to do but for us to get stronger and work harder. I have to get strong enough to defeat enemies on my own and not break my body in the process. General Nine is correct, I must not allow myself to land in the infirmary all the time; if I become useless humanity will lose one of its strongest assets against the Earl." He chuckled, dusty pink covering his cheeks. "Not to brag, I think we're a good team but I still need to improve."

His silver eyes widened when gloved fingers reached under his chin, tilting his head up to meet green tinted silver eyes overflowing with adoration. "Being confident in your abilities is not arrogance. I wholeheartedly agree with your statement and I really look forward to our continuing partnership. Now then, time for you to get some deep sleep with no visions to stall your brain's rest. So shush and shoo shoo, it's time for you to indulge yourself in your dreams~"

Before Allen could protest, Crowned Clown poked Allen in the forehead. Allen expected to burst awake at the touch but instead he was sent back into the lake flying with a shriek, leaving Neah to sweatdropping in the distance.

I wonder if you as the reader cringed at 'if I become useless humanity will lose one of its strongest assets against the Earl' as much as I did, because it is a terrifying reflection of Allen's self-image. Same when I recalled that very inappropriate moment when Bak likened Allen to a weapon and he took it for granted. I thought, well, that is actually not far off from the truth - and it brings up a very interesting question on what makes an Akuma Akuma and what makes a human human?

This has been lying in my drafts for a while, waiting for finetunings that I could do very occassionally because I am going through stuff irl. Hopefully by mid-June everything will calm down and I can write and update more frequently. I appreciate nice comments but please don't say a thing if you just plan on nagging me for updates.