This fic is crossposted on AO3 at /works/18196955/chapters/43044518. Chapter 1 title from "Front Street" by Will Wood and the Tapeworms.
...
Tyki Mikk smells like gasoline and roses today, and Allen can't help but fall.
It's different every day- he doesn't know where Mikk finds all those colognes, or if maybe the Earl buys them. (Wow, that's a weird thought. He can just imagine it, the fucker in his top hat asking if the Noah would prefer cherries or oranges.)
(He wonders, sometimes, what Mikk's mouth tastes like. He imagines violet and blue, since that's usually how he smells.)
Allying with the Noah family did not go as expected; rather than a prisoner, he is treated as a guest. An honored guest, with a floor of their building to himself. (He wonders what Mikk is up to right now, there on the third floor. Probably asleep already- oh, shit, it's late.)
Allen meditates until he can pretend he's gotten some rest, and goes down to eat at five in the morning.
.
Tyki Mikk smells like sawdust today, woodsy and dry-deep, and Allen kind of wants to sniff him. Not that he would- that'd be weird. Mikk's probably straight, the bastard.
Allen puts it out of his mind (mostly) and gets ready for Weapons Training (Thursdays, ten A.M., mandatory for all but the Earl who usually comes anyway. He was excused from the last two, but since he started training this week, he's there for every class. And it really is like a class.)
The rest of the Noah are lined up against the padded wall, and he takes his place next to Nea. It's odd talking to someone who he first met as a hallucination/imaginary friend in his head, but they get along surprisingly well.
"So, what happens today?"
"The twins teach this one." Nea rolls his eyes at Allen's expression. "They're surprisingly good teachers, though, and they've got plenty of experience with weaponry. We're not allowed to use our powers."
"I'll manage." Allen fishes out the amulet that blocks his powers- and Innocence- from his pocket. The twins created that for him, too.
His attention is diverted from thoughts on the amulet's design by Jasdero clearing his throat. "Alrighty, you fuckers, today we're starting DAGGERS." Devit joins in, and they speak together. "Allen, you weren't here when we did switchblades, but you should be fine for this-"
and it's just Devit speaking now, "But we'll check on you a bit extra-"
both of them again- "So that you don't bleed all over-"
Jasdero: "the nice-"
both of them, the fuckers, "training floor."
(In a whisper to Nea: "Do they have to do that?")
("Devit admitted to me once in another incarnation that they enjoy 'fucking with the heads of the weak,' so I'd assume so, yes.")
.
It's all practical exercises, and Allen's done most of it before, albeit in slightly more real situations. Learning to fight out of necessity as a child gave him instincts that couldn't leave him if they tried, and the physical exertion of the last few years have left him strong and mostly healthy. He throws, and the dagger hits the center of the target on the first try.
There's a short break for lunch, in which he gobbles down six helpings of stew while Nea averts his eyes, and then they're back at it.
.
One in the afternoon, sparring. He's paired first with Lulu Bell, who beats him by one point.
"I was a homeless lesbian in France," she says by way of explanation when he remarks upon her skill, to which he replies, "I was homeless and transgender in England." They agree to meet for tea and swapping stories at four.
.
Next, he's paired with Wisely, who's got an amulet of his own that keeps him from reading Allen's mind. ("I honestly wish I could wear it all the time, but apparently my powers would break the thing and render it useless after more than a day. Jasdevi said my daily limit is eight hours. It did cut down the headaches, though.") Wisely has also been homeless and can fight as well as Allen can, so it doesn't much matter. Allen beats him by two points.
.
He's paired with Mikk and told to go easy on him, since he hasn't had much experience in this.
"Ready, set, go!" says Devit, and the pairs are starting up. Then there's a knock on the door, and all is silent.
.
Really, it's almost comical how quickly everyone stops. Blades are dropped to the floor, heads turn, and when the door opens to reveal an Akuma servant you can hear a pin drop.
She calls the Earl out, and he leaves, and there is something very very wrong because there's a standing rule not to interrupt training sessions unless it's an absolute emergency.
The door opens once more, and the Earl's face pokes out. "Allen, m'boy, could you come out here for a minute?"