This is an AU that I started back in March, way before we even got word that we were getting an update, and I now finally decided to post this. This AU is an exploration of what would have occurred had Allen never left the circus with Mana, as well as if Mana hadn't left the circus at all. This jumps back into the normal -Man timeline during the Search for Cross Marian Arc, after they find Krory.

Disclaimer: I do not own -Man

Red

They went to the circus because it was meant to be a lead on where General Cross was. They didn't know they'd find something else there as well. Mini-AU

Lenalee had never been to a circus before. Having been taken in by the Order at a young age, and having her time split between training and missions (not to mention her numerous escape attempts) hadn't really ever given her the chance to actually go to one before. This was her first experience with ever being at a circus

And, to be honest, she couldn't really hide her disappointment at the one they were at.

"You look so disappointed, Lena," Lavi commented, stating the obvious as he ducked under a low hanging string of lights.

"A little," She admitted. "It's just that this is my first time at a circus, and it's… not quite what I expected, to be honest."

"Heh, that's for sure," Lavi agreed, "Makes you wonder why a womanizer like Cross would be in a dump of a circus like this."

"He could be looking for accommodators," Lenalee pointed out as they paused in the path. "That is part of the Generals' orders, to find accommodators for the Innocence."

"Yeah, but when has Cross ever done any actual work?" Lavi asked, laughing, and Lenalee found herself laughing as well. "I mean, I've never met the guy but even I know that he acts as if he's allergic to the stuff."

"True," Lenalee let out a sigh as their laughter subsided. She glanced around the path once more before saying, "We should probably find our way back and regroup with Bookman and Krory, see if he's found anything out."

"Yeah," Lavi's voice was a bit sullen, laced with annoyance. "I just hate to think what the old panda will say when we come back with nothing. Man," He let out a sigh of his own. "Why does General Cross have to be so difficult to find?"

"Cross?" One of the circus workers who had been passing by stopped, looking at the two Exorcists. "Do you perhaps mean Marian Cross?"

Lavi and Lenalee shared a surprised look. It seemed as if they had hit the metaphorical jackpot. They had actually found someone who might know where the General might be.

"Yeah," Lavi spoke first, taking a slight step forward. "Know him by any chance?"

"Oh yes," The man nodded sagely, a smile on his face even without the assistance of the clown make-up he was wearing. "I've known him a long time, my brother and I. He's always visiting us and they talk about–"

"Oi, Walker!" A new voice interrupted the man, and all three looked over to see an irate teenager stomping over toward them. "Maurice is lookin' for ya! Don't want ta keep 'im waitin'!"

"Ah, Allen!" The man, Walker, smiled wider, if that was possible, as the teen approached the trio. Unlike the clown, this teenager had a scowl on his face like he was thoroughly displeased with the world in general. Walker directed his attention back toward Lenalee and Lavi. "Cross also comes to visit Allen as well! They–"

"Shut up, ya old man!" The teen, Allen, shouted at Walker, swatting at him though the blow didn't connect. He was red-faced, but whether it was from shouting or the cold Lenalee couldn't tell. "And 'ow many times do I 'ave ta tell ya, it's Red! Red!" The boy put extra emphasis on the name, but Walker only hummed in response. "Now go see what Maurice wants, I don't want ta get yelled at for not deliverin' 'is message!" Red gave Walker a shove in the direction that he had come from to encourage the clown to move before the man started wandering off on his own.

"Clowns," Red muttered the word under his breath like it was a curse, shuddering, before turning his attention to the two Exorcists.

"Sorry 'bout that," He apologized, a frown replacing the scowl on his features. "Walker's a bit," Red let out a low looping whistle and circled a finger around his temple. "Dunno why. 'ope 'e didn't say anythin' too weird or somethin'."

"Not really," Lavi told the other circus worker. He gave the teen a scrutinizing look. "Has he said weird things before?"

"Don't know why it matters ta ya, but 'e 'as," Red answered, giving Lavi a weird look back. "Always talkin' 'bout some dead brother of 'is and Earls and demons and that sorta thing. You know. Crazy talk." Red emphasized his explanation with a shrug in the general idea of 'what can you do?'

"What sort of demons?" Lavi asked, stealing a glance at Lenalee. It seemed they both had the same thought; that this Walker may know something about the Millennium Earl and the Akuma. Add that to the fact that he apparently knew Cross, and something strange was afoot.

"What's it matter ta ya?" Red snapped crossly, but before Lavi or Lenalee could answer, yet another voice interrupted their conversation.

"Hey you freak, what are you doing just standing around?" The speaker was still a ways away from them, but he was headed toward the group, and the sight of this worker made Red pale. While with Walker, Red was brash and rude, it was obvious to Lenalee and Lavi that the teen's bravado did not work with the approaching circus worker.

"Yikes, it's Cosimo." Red's hands clenched reflexively, and Lavi wondered what Cosimo had done to the kid to earn that sort of reaction. "Gotta go. Look, if ya insist on askin' more, come 'round th' freak show later, a'right?"

Before either Exorcist could say anything else to Red, he was hurrying down the way he had originally came, slipping out of sight down a side path between tents.

After a quick strategy meeting with Bookman and Krory, it was agreed that it would be prudent for them all to discreetly return to the circus that evening. There was the chance that the General– if what that apparently crazy clown had said was true –could appear, and it would be useful to get more information from Red. They decided that Bookman and Krory would attend the big top show in the main tent and keep an eye out for the General and any Akuma there while Lenalee and Lavi headed through the freak show to try and catch Red.

"I wonder what Red does in the freak show," Lenalee mused aloud as they navigated around the crowds of people wandering the paths of the circus.

"Who knows," Lavi hummed, "Maybe he's a cannibal." He grinned and waggled his eyebrow, and Lenalee only rewarded him with an exasperated sigh and a shake of her head.

"You're kidding, right?" She asked, wholly unconvinced. "He didn't seem like he was a cannibal."

"Does anyone look like they're a cannibal?" Lavi responded philosophically. Lenalee ignored that question, instead looking at the signs outside of the tents.

"Oh, here it is," She redirected the conversation. "The freak show." Lenalee gave a polite nod to the worker standing by the entrance to the tent before ducking inside, Lavi following close behind.

"You've seen our Human Skeleton," A worker on the stage was announcing grandly, "Been amazed by our Sword Swallower, and dazzled by our Fire Twins! What more could we possibly have for you, you ask? Well, as they say, we've saved our best for last. Now, I have to warn you, our last freak is not for the faint of heart. I am required to ask that those who don't think they can handle it to leave." She paused, waiting to see if any of the audience would exit the tent. But no one did; Lavi and Lenalee edged closer. It was a bit disappointing that they didn't make it in time for the full show, but it didn't really matter as long as they managed to catch Red after everything was done.

"No one's leaving? Well, you've been warned." The worker continued, before gesturing to the side of the stage. "Behold, the boy forsaken by God himself!"

There were gasps from all around the audience as the boy walked on stage. Lenalee stifled a gasp of her own. The boy that the announcer declared forsaken by God was Red.

"Tragically gruesome, isn't it?" She circled Red like a bird of prey as she spoke, Red standing center stage. "The poor boy was born like this, his infection beginning on his arm," The worker gestured to Red's left arm, and the teenager obligingly lifted the arm to show it off to the audience.

His arm was a dark red, the color of blood that had scabbed over, and his nails were as black as night. Red was also shirtless, showing the redness from his left arm continuing across his bare chest, slowly creeping up to his neck. There was also a strange green mark on the back of Red's hand, but before Lenalee could ponder it too much, Lavi nudged her as the freak show worker was still talking.

"–poor boy doesn't have much time left at all," She was shaking her head sadly in a theatrical manner. "Any day could be the day that the devil comes to claim this God forsaken child for himself!"

Then, as if the announcer had said the magic words, the ceiling of the tent to the freak show exploded.

Immediately, the audience scattered, the sound of screaming filling the air. The worker on stage tried to calm everyone down, but it was no use once the Akuma started firing down on them all, like fish trapped in a barrel.

Lavi and Lenalee heard the Akuma before they saw it, heard its disgusting high-pitched laughter, before watching as it fired bullets into the center of the audience before they could move. The poor folks were dust before they knew what happened. Lenalee could see that on the stage, Red and the other circus worker were conversing about something; Red shook his head before pushing the announcer towards center stage.

"It seems that the devil has decided that this is the day to claim God's forsaken child!" She announced dramatically, and Lenalee wondered if that was really the right way to react in this situation. "We ask that everyone not panic, for this is only part of the show! If everyone would just make their way calmly to the exits, everything will be all right!"

"Man, I can't believe these carnies," Lavi shook his head, pulling his Innocence from his belt. "Trying to make money off of anything. Ready to handle these guys, Lena?"

"I'll get the one above the tent," She nodded, activating her Dark Boots. "You make sure no one else dies Lavi." Lenalee leapt into the air and out of the tent before Lavi could respond.

"Well, if you put it that way," Lavi said to no one in particular, "Might as well get this show on the road then– little hammer, big hammer, grow, grow, grow!" He kept his Innocence to a manageable size, so he could still deal damage to the Akuma, but not deal accidental damage to any of the civilians who were still skulking around in the tent.

Lavi battled his way to the main stage through the crowd of people surging toward the exit. Red and his co-worker were still standing on the stage trying to calm the crowd and assist in getting everyone out of any exit they could get to. They both looked relatively frazzled considering the situation, but other than that, they were maintaining a calm demeanor and it seemed as if they weren't bothered by what was happening. Neither of them looked hurt either, managing to remain unscathed from the mass exodus from the freak show tent.

An explosion sounded from above, a cloud of gas appearing from above the tent. Lenalee had destroyed the Akuma it seemed. That was a relief, but people were still flooding out of the tent. When she landed on the stage in the tent, she was breathless.

"There's still more of them out there," Lenalee told Lavi. "They're attacking the entire circus, not just here. I saw Bookman and Krory taking care of some near the main tent, but there's a lot out there. It's almost like what was reported near the city where Kanda's group found General Tiedoll."

"More a' what out there?" Red rudely cut into the conversation. His arms were crossed over his bare chest, and he had an irate scowl plastered on his face.

"Trust me Red, buddy," Lavi looked at Red, "Even if I told you, you probably wouldn't believe me."

"Try me," Red challenged, before adding on sourly, "And I ain't your buddy." There was a moment when the two just a stare-down, measuring one another up, before Red broke it off to speak with the other circus worker on the stage. "Becca, go back to th' main tent and tell th' Ring Master what's goin' on. I'll be right after."

Becca hesitated before nodding, slipping out of one of the side entrances that they had been guiding audience members out of earlier.

"Now," Red demanded, "Are ya gonna tell me what's goin' on or not?"

"This might be hard to believe Red," Lenalee started, glancing over at Lavi quickly, "But we think that what your friend earlier– Walker, I think you called him, –that what he said was true."

Red stared at them, blinking.

"You're jokin', right?" His voice was flat and filled with disbelief. "Walker's crazy. 'e 'asn't been right in th' 'ead for as long as I remember. And you're seriously tryin' ta tell me that that nut job's been tellin' th' truth?"

"Told you that you wouldn't believe it," Lavi commented, and Lenalee smacked him.

"Lavi," She hissed, "This isn't the time for 'I told you so's'."

"This isn't really the time to be having this conversation either," Lavi pointed out to Lenalee before turning back to Red, "You want answers right? Well, you're going to have to wait. We'd really love to explain more, but your circus is currently being massacred by Akuma, and we don't have time to explain things to you when there are innocent people out there dying." Lavi turned away from Red. "C'mon Lena." He left the tent, and Lenalee followed.

"You know, that was a bit rude," Lenalee pointed out to the Bookman in training. "He does deserve some answers."

"I agree," Lavi admitted, "But is now really the best time for him to get them?"

"Probably not," Lenalee looked up; there weren't as many Akuma in the sky as before, but that didn't mean anything. True, Krory and Bookman probably had taken a fair amount out already, but others could be hiding, waiting for the right chance to strike.

"'ey, wait!" Red's voice called out to them once more before they could split up and tackle the Akuma.

"Look," He said, before either of the Exorcists could say anything to him. "I know ya don't really care for me right now, but listen, if these really are those demon things Walker talks about– not that I'm sayin' I believe ya or anythin' – I do know they'll probably be tryin' ta attack the main tent, because that's where we gather everyone when somethin' happens. If ya really are tryin' ta protect everyone, ya gotta make sure they don't get to the main tent, if they 'aven't gotten there a'ready."

"Got it," Lenalee and Lavi both nodded.

"Now, get out of here before you get killed kid," Lavi told Red as Lenalee kicked off and took to the air once more.

"It's Red, and I got responsibilities too," Red shook his head, turning to head down a separate path. "I gotta warn everyone, and get them outta th' main tent and scattered in the woods before anythin' happens."

He ran off, disappearing down a side path, before Lavi had a chance to try and convince Red otherwise.

Lavi just shook his head, and hoped the poor kid wouldn't die before the night was through.

"Extend!" He shouted, using his Innocence to leap up and join the fray.

Mana Walker was, in the nicest way he could think of to call him, a dumbass. True, the years hadn't been kind to him, but it didn't change the fact that he was a dumbass. Even before his brother's death, Mana was a dumbass, which was probably the reason that he had been told to watch over the idiot.

"I promise I'll come back," That smartass had said. "Just watch over my brother, and I'll come back. You'll see."

Hah, what a riot.

Cross scoffed, smoking pouring out of his mouth at the movement, and he dropped his cigarette to the ground. Crushing it under his boot, he rested a hand on Judgment at his side. He'd been paying a visit to the circus that Walker was at, intent on checking up on the old codger and the brat as well as following up on a hunch of his.

Whatever way he wanted to spin it, Cross either picked a very good night, or a very bad night to check up on the nut brother. Akuma were attacking in hordes, and it was left to one's imagination as to why. Cross had a fairly good idea though; he was there, obviously, and he had caught wind from some of his sponsors that the Noah were taking out the generals, which included him. Not only that, but he had spotted Bookman around earlier, and there had been a flash of green in the sky earlier– the new accommodator for the Dark Boots. Add in whomever Bookman's new apprentice was, that made at least four Exorcists in one area. An Innocence hotspot if Cross ever saw one.

There were two options for Cross to consider. Option one was to join in the fight against the Akuma, and actually do his job as an Exorcist. Option two was for him to sit back and let the other Exorcists in the area take them out for him. He knew what option was preferable for him, but as Cross watched one of the Akuma blow up one of the tents, he knew which option he had to pick.

"God damn it Neah," Cross swore, sighing, before drawing Judgment and making his way through the circus wreckage.

"Oi, there ya are, ya stupid clown!" Red swore, aggravated, when he finally found Walker, standing placidly near the wreckage of one of the trailers. He had a stupid smile on his face, like this was something great that was happening. Upon hearing Red's swears, he turned to face him, and waved.

"Allen!" The stupid clown shouting, waving at him like it was any normal sunny day, and their lives weren't on the line. "Allen, there you are!"

"How many times do I have ta say that it's Red, Red!" Red protested, muttering more to himself, picking his way carefully to Walker. He didn't want to shout, or do anything to draw attention to either of them. Walker was causing enough noise for the both of them anyways.

"Hurry up Allen!" Walker shouted once more, "He's waiting for us!"

"Christ Walker, can ya be any louder?" Red said as loud as he dared irritably, glowering at Walker.

"Don't be like that Allen!" Walker grabbed Red's hands as soon as he was within range. "He's finally come back, we don't want to keep him waiting!" Before Red could even process the statement, Walker started dragging Red off.

"'old up!" Red dug his heels into the dirt, and yanked his hand out of Walker's. "Who's waiting? What are ya goin' on about, ya old codger?"

"There's no time Allen!" Walker's tone was urgent, and held a startling amount of lucidity in it, considering how batty the clown normally sounded.

"For th' last time, my name is Red!" Red shouted, his face turning the same shade as his preferred name.

"Pardon the interruption," A new voice came out of nowhere, startlingly loud in the silence that had settled. Explosions were no longer as loud or frequent as before, and Red jerked to look to the side, where a man was approaching them. He was smiling, which was strange for the situation, but the thing that was most unnerving was –

"But would either of you happen to be Mana Walker?"

The man's skin was gray.

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