69 Ways #15 - Be Yourself

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The Wall was in a worse state than Allen had imagined. It wasn't exactly a physical structure; the wall was like the out of boundary area in a video game. It was the place where you could see the horizon, but never actually pass through.

The damage that had been done to the wall was severe. There was a gigantic hole smack in the middle of the sky and cracks that branched out around it. Within the hole wasn't anything mind-blowing or absurd. No, instead of there being anything, there was nothing. It was just darkness and void. The sight of it was disturbing. Looking inside of it was like being a small child staring into the darkness of their closet at night and thinking there might be a monster inside.

It was that kind of feeling they experienced when they arrived the next day. Cross was waiting for them, sitting on the grass before that nothingness. He didn't turn around to greet them, but he did stand up when they approached.

"Took you guys long enough," he said.

Allen could barely take his eyes off of the void. "Master, what is that?" he asked. "Something like this..."

"Shouldn't exist," Cross finished. His expression was so serious that his intense gaze just might have been the thing to cause the break. "This shouldn't have happened. The wall was supposed to be a secret."

Bookman examined the wall in full detail with Lavi. They used the hammer-Innocence's extend feature to reach the break, which was way above their heads, and returned minutes later to report the full damage.

As Allen had expected, there was absolutely nothing to be seen within the hole. Lavi told them about how he stuck his hand inside and experienced an extreme freezing sensation. Other than the cold there was nothing to be noted about the damage. Everything was as it appeared.

"What about those References you mentioned?" That was the reason why he and the others had even bothered coming. They had been told this was an emergency, but nothing appeared to require immediate attention. Allen wondered if staying back at the Order would have been a better idea.

Then he remembered that the Order was filled to the brim with hopeless idiots and stalkers. The only decent people within lacked common sense or weren't around enough to make sticking around worth it. He didn't regret leaving suddenly.

"You don't want to see The References, kid." Cross shook his head and spoke tiredly. There was a visible exhaustion showing on his face. "One of them slipped through last night while I was on watch. There were two of them and I managed to kill one, but the other got away. Tiedoll is hunting it down right now. I haven't heard word from him since then."

As Kanda was the most familiar with Tiedoll, he (reluctantly) used his golem to try to establish a link. He waited a few minutes but got nothing. Tiedoll was either busy or out of commission.

Cross didn't say anything. Lavi and Bookman discussed privately what the General's lack of communication may imply, while Kanda paid no mind and thrust a paper into the Cross's face. He began to demand to be "paid in advance" for his services.

Allen stayed out of both conversations in favor of thinking things over. His teacher must have stayed up all night by himself. There was no one else around but them. Knowing that guy, he must have ordered everyone away after deeming the site too dangerous. He had wondered why it was just the five of them plus Timcanpy, but now he understood that ordinary people couldn't be involved. They were the only ones qualified for the job.

"Master, you said that you killed one of The References." Allen pushed Kanda aside. The community sadism sheet remained unsigned. Kanda swore that he would get his signatures later, but he was shushed by Allen. They didn't have time for nonsense. "Was there anything left behind when you killed it? Is there... a body?"

He really didn't want to look at a corpse, especially not when his teacher was the one who had previously fought against it when it was living. Anything left behind was bound to be a mess.

Cross nodded. He pointed just a little far off to their left where a gray and white furry body laid almost concealed by the growing grass.

"That one was a lot of hassle to take down. He kept doing all this annoying crap and was taunting me as I tried to shoot him," Cross reported. He didn't look any longer at the defeated enemy and pulled Bookman to the side to discuss something.

Lavi joined Allen and Kanda where they stood. He had been kicked out of the conversation as it was a private matter.

"I want to see what this Reference thing looks like," Lavi said. "If it came out of that void-thing it must be grotesque, right? Like something you'd see out of a horror movie."

They cautiously got closer to the location to see what kind of monstrosity Cross had taken down earlier. As the distance between them and it shortened, the fallen figure's shape became easier to see. It had two long legs, large feet and gloved hands. On its head were rabbit ears.

They stopped just before the body.

"..." Allen's expression was blank. "That's just Bugs Bunny, isn't it?"

"No, that's a Reference." Lavi didn't sound like he believed it himself. "That's a Reference, Allen."

The body before them also clutched a carrot in his gloved cartoon-hands. The side of his face that wasn't hurried in the grass had an X over the visible eye.

"Umm, I'm pretty sure that's Bugs Bunny," Allen said. His face was beginning to twitch from the absurdity of this development. "That's an iconic American cartoon character. My teacher just killed a children's cartoon character."

"No, I'm sure it's just some knock off," Lavi insisted. "Bugs Bunny can't be dead."

Kanda looked down at the rabbit thoughtfully.

"Looks pretty dead to me," he said. It didn't escape anyone's notice that Mugen had been unsheathed. "Let's make sure it doesn't come back."

"Kanda, no!" Allen shouted. "That's a horrible idea! Not to mention, that's also extremely disrespectful towards the dead."

"I've always wanted to have Rabbit Stew."

Allen blocked Kanda from destroying the body any further. Lavi meanwhile considered that notion.

"Well, I am pretty hungry," he admitted.

"See?" Kanda tried pushing Allen out of the way but to no avail. "If you'd just let me slice it up a bit, we could have a nice warm Rabbit Stew. You don't want to have to pay for food, do you?"

Allen let Kanda pass.

"That's what convinced you?!" Cross shouted from afar.

They ignored him. The three of them surrounded the dead body, crouching down and discussing how to proceed.

"We could probably cut around the bullet wound, but what I'm worried about is if the meat has rotted or not," Lavi said. "It's also been on the ground and I tend to go by a three second rule."

Allen inspected the wounds, which were only around the head. Everything else was clean.

"If we're really worried about being poisoned, we can use salts to make rabbit-jerky," he suggested.

"No. I want Rabbit Stew," Kanda said. He was adamant about having his soup.

Allen sighed and agreed to stick to the original plan.

"Maybe we can use the carrot. I'm thinking we should chop it up into small cubes and add it to the broth?" Allen removed the carrot from the cartoon's hand and brushed off the dirt. "We're going to have to scrub it first, though..."

"The only things that need to be scrubbed clean are your souls! They're fucking filthy as hell!" Cross cursed at them loudly, but as it was, the three hungry young men did not care.

"If you cube it, I'll kill you," Kanda threatened. "I want the carrots cut circular."

"The shape doesn't affect the taste," Lavi pointed out.

"I want them round."

The carrot would later be cut into round shapes. There was no arguing with Kanda as he was too stubborn. He planned out the entire meal from appetizer to desert without allowing the other two to give their input.

The round-carrot Rabbit Stew began to cook with the three of them sitting around it. Cross marched over to their fire and frowned down at them disapprovingly. Kanda gave Cross the middle finger as he concentrated on his meal, while Allen moved so he was safe behind Lavi. The General didn't look happy in the slightest.

"What are you idiots doing." Cross's voice was restraining anger unsuccessfully. "There's a time and place for jokes, and now is not that time. Why the hell are you three cooking a meal in the face of danger? Are you people stupid?"

Maybe it was a hangover that was making him so easily irritable, or maybe it was exhaustion. Either way, it was beginning to bother Allen.

"There's no reason for us to be on edge," Allen argued. "If we don't relax, we'll end up like you: tired, useless, crabby and probably in debt."

"What does the last one have to do with anything?"

"I don't know about you guys, but I would hate to be in debt."

"No, Allen, you already are in debt..."

"Being in debt is the worst experience ever. I would recommend that no one ever be in debt. If you have debt collectors running after you, it's because you're probably acting like Cross Marian."

"Where is this speech going?! You're just insulting me here."

Allen went on. "In summary, don't act like a Cross Marian. We should all calm down, get some rest and not stress out over a broken wall."

"Or else you'll end up in debt," Lavi concluded. "And if you end up in debt, Allen ends up in debt. No one is happy."

Cross rolled his eyes and turned away. He seemed to have gotten the message, because he excused himself from the group to go catch up on sleep. As he left, he shouted over his shoulder that he wanted to be updated on any important developments. They agreed and continued as they were.

With him gone, it was their turn to watch over the wall.

"The stew is ready," Kanda called out. "Cross doesn't get any leftovers because he's an ass."

"There aren't going to be any leftovers anyways if Moyashi with us," Lavi responded.

Lavi and Bookman gathered around the fire to claim their helpings. Allen's stomach growled, and he was quick to request whatever everyone else didn't eat. It didn't matter if they were in a dire situation; his appetite would always be the same.

When they were done with their meal, a single helping a Rabbit Stew was left behind.

"Allen, aren't you going to eat that?" Lavi asked.

"No, I'm saving it for later in case I get hungry."

The bowl was set aside with not his, but Cross's name on it.

Allen hoped he didn't mind that it was made of (hopefully not) Bugs Bunny.

._.

A/N: I heard that Hoshino opened an Instagram account and was posting spoilers of the next chapter plus pictures of her cat. I checked it out and I have to say that I'm pretty excited for what's to come! I'm glad Hoshino is doing much better now :) Everyone was so worried about her health, but it looks like she's made a recovery.