A/N: Happy two year anniversary! Thank you to everyone who stuck with this story for that long! You guys are so sweet!^-^

Oh my gosh! It's officially over! I'VE COMPLETED THIS FIC! Ahhhhh! I don't even know what to say! And did anyone else find it ironic that the time period within the story was the length of fourteen months? Or was it just me?

Sorry! Don't let me keep you waiting, and a big shout out to everyone who reviewed! :D

Longest. Epilogue. Ever.

And by the way, sorry I lied!

Disclaimer: My final disclaimer for this story! :'O *cries and blubbers* I-I don't own anything! *sniffles*

Epilogue

Time Frame — Morning of May 15th, 1896

—3rd Person POV—

~Allen~

"I am… dead?"

A low, guttural voice responded, "Not quite."

Swiveling around, Allen's breath caught in his throat, staring at the humanoid creature standing before him, sallow skin hardened and cracked like rock, irises glowing a toxic green that matched the Innocence crystal nestled in his chest, a small eerie grin curving at his lips, the strain against the stone-like skin causing it to crumble.

Allen stumbled back. "W-who are you?!" It was then that Allen took notice of his surroundings; he was back in his mindscape. Barren trees crowding on each side, flurries of snow, and a massive, waning moon. The only difference was, the absence of the lake; instead, the stone path extended endlessly on either side. "W-why are we here?"

"It took me a long time," the creature intoned, "To find you. I am Apocryphos."

"Apo-cryphos?" Allen slowly rolled the odd name over his tongue. He then narrowed his eyes, his presence inside of him implying all the wrong things to Allen. "Are you yet another parasite? I've dealt with one of those already, and I don't care to—"

"You should be a little more grateful, Allen," Apocryphos practically purred, grin widening, skin further splintering. "After all, I am the only thing currently standing between death and life. I am able to come here, because I hold your soul in my possession, and I could just as easily release it… Do you not want to see your friends, Allen?"

He became rigid, the weight of the situation settling like a heavy rock in his stomach as he swallowed thickly. Barely above a whisper, he demanded, "What do you want from me?"

"My original goal, was to become one with you," Apocryphos admitted, and Allen could hardly keep the revulsion from tainting his expression, nose wrinkling and lips curling in disgust. "I am a sentient Innocence; my sole job is to protect the Heart, and so I searched for you, killing anyone who dared defy me."

That was news to Allen. "You mean I'm—" It was then, that realization dawned upon Allen, turning his veins to ice, blood going cold as he froze in horror. "G-General Cross…" he barely managed to choke out.

"Hm? Yes, the General was a thorn in my side," Apocryphos sneered, "I had to rid myself of that meddlesome man. The other one was just an unfortunate casualty who shouldn't have interfered."

"General Klaud…" Allen whispered, horrified, before mercury eyes narrowed, anger burning. "How dare you—"

"If I were you, I would choose my words carefully," Apocryphos practically growled, expression abruptly turning fierce.

Allen clenched his jaw, and forced through gritted teeth, "What. Do. You. Want?"

Apocryphos tilted his head in thought, before admitting, "I would like you to allow me my return."

That… was unexpected. Anger momentarily diffused, Allen asked warily, "Return to where?"

"Home," Apocryphos elaborated, brilliant green eyes narrowing in nostalgia, "Once the threat of the Millenium Earl is ended, the shards of Innocence will eventually leave their Accommodators and return home. Only the Heart of Innocence may remain, in case another threat ever chooses to arise—choosing another Accomodator if the need presents itself." Mercury eyes narrowed at the implied threat. "But as the protector of the Heart, I am duty bound to stay. Only if the Accommodator of Heart grants me a pardon, may I then depart."

"Ah. And in exchange, I get to live," Allen summed up.

Apocryphos nodded, no signs of remorse betraying his features. "I shall return your soul to its rightful place."

Despite his resentment against the sentient Innocence—the one who had brutally murdered his Master—Allen swallowed back the bile and replied, "Then I grant you permission to return home."

Silver eyes shot wide open in panic. "Where the hell…?!" Allen gasped, feeling smothered by the lack of oxygen, walls compressing in from all sides. Movement proved to be futile, and though Allen had never been particularly claustrophobic, he could swear the walls were closing in on him. Shouting in panic, Allen futilely pressed his hands against the lid, belatedly realizing that he was inside a coffin. "Damn it! This can't be happening to me!" Allen gasped, and just as he was getting ready to activate his Innocence, shouting was heard from the other side.

Allen gulped in as much air as he possibly could, once the lid was ripped open, wrenching up and gasping desperately. "Damn, for a second I thought I'd already been buried," Allen groaned, before taking notice of the deep, rectangular aperture that had been dug up beside him, and spluttering in reaction. "Shit!"

"Allen?!" someone managed to choke out, and said boy glanced up, eyes meeting the bewildered and slightly frightened gazes of his comrades.

"Uh, I'm not dead?" Allen smiled sheepishly, a little more calm now, as he rubbed the back of his head. He was suddenly tackled back down, his friends piling atop one another in order to hug him. "G-guys? C-can't breathe!" he wheezed.

"Y-you're alive!" someone cried in relieve, and despite their confusion, it was the only thing that mattered.

"Allen, man, I-I'm so sorry!" Daisya stammered, eyes red-rimmed.

Allen blinked, dully recalling his last moments. "What… what exactly happened?"

"My Innocence, it—" Daisya seemed to choke on his words, guilt churning in his eyes. And Allen could tell the toll it had had on the older teen, brown spikes of hair looking bedraggled, his eyes drooping with exhaustion; deep, purple shadows bruising the skin beneath his bloodshot eyes, the rest of his skin swallow and pale.

"He says his Innocence was controlling him," Alma elaborated for him, tone solemn.

That was… strange; but not unheard of. Something clicked in his mind, recalling a tidbit of his and Lavi's conversation. "Daisya," he asked warily, "What was your prophecy?"

Recognition immediately lit up in Lavi's eyes, swiftly connecting the dots, but nonetheless, allowed Daisya to reply, "Um, prophesy? Damn, that was so long ago… I don't really remember all that well. Something about a heavy heart and my Innocence relinquishing… something."

"It was you!" Lavi couldn't help but blurt out, and then sighed heavily as all eyes turned to him questioningly. Clearing his throat, he clarified, "I mean, his prophecy—it said his Innocence would be an 'Eradicator of Iniquity'; 'The Executioner'."

"But… why would Allen be the target?" Lenalee pointed out, brow furrowed in confusion.

Kanda took quick note of his guilty expression with a sharp glance. "What are you not telling us, beansprout?"

Allen exhaled heavily, tilting his head up and absentmindedly gazing at the cloudless blue skies, deep in thought. "I guess there's no getting around it," he eventually decided, "Is there anyone else within hearing range?"

After a quick glance around, Alma reassured, "Nah, don't worry about it big bro. They're keeping their distance for now, trying to give us some space; though I'm sure they're also trying to spread the word of your revival. So, what's the deal?"

Despite that, Allen still lowered his voice to a hushed whisper. "Do you guys remember the small lecture that Lavi gave us on the Fourteenth?" At their quick nods, Allen continued, "Unfortunately, he wasn't quite as dead as you believed." Tapping his temple with two fingers, he elaborated, "Someone implanted the memories of the Fourteenth in me when I was young."

They all froze, astonished expressions the only response they could manage. "… The hell?!"

"… Yeah," Lenalee agreed, voice squeaky, "I think Kanda just about summed it up."

"B-but he's gone, right?" Alma stammered.

Allen nodded. "Thanks to Daisya," he replied blandly.

"I-I said I was sorry!" Daisya attempted to joke, his response indignant, but even then, Allen could see the shame deep in his dark eyes.

Features softening, Allen said, "It's okay, Daisya, I forgive you. It might not have been your decision, but it was the still the right choice. Unlike the rest of the Noah, Neah refused to depart at the death of the Earl. I would never have forgiven myself if one of you got hurt because he managed to take control."

"R-right," Daisya swallowed thickly, and Allen could see that it would take some time for Daisya to forgive himself.

"That still doesn't explain how you came back to life, 'sprout," Kanda scoffed, eyes narrowed in curiosity.

"Ah," Allen sighed, "That's a whole different story. Apocryphos."

Lavi eagerly leaned in. "There's more?! Tell us about it, shortstack!"

His lips curled in annoyance. "It's Allen!" And then added as an afterthought, "Can we have this conversation somewhere else? Not only am I starving, but casually making conversation while sitting inside my own coffin is kind of bumming me out." Allen hopped out of the casket, wincing in response to the stabbing agony in his chest, where Daisya had stabbed him. "And I should probably get this looked at."

"That's a great idea!" Lavi nodded enthusiastically, and then said with a sly grin, "And on the way, I'm sure you could tell us all about this "Apocryphos"!"

Allen groaned in annoyance, accepting Lenalee's help as she steadied him, his legs shaky from being unused for so long. "Lavi, leave him be!" she admonished him, and Allen tossed her a grateful look.

"Don't forget to tell them about the time traveling!" Alma reminded him with a cheeky smile, barking a laugh at Allen's indignant, "Alma!"

"Aw, come on!" Lavi whined, "You can't just say something like that, and leave me hanging, shortstack!"

Allen rolled his eyes, and then paused abruptly. "Hey! Where're Timothy and Mei-Ling?!"

"They, uh, they took it pretty hard," Daisy said, clearing his throat, "Komui took them off to the side a while ago, to talk to them."

"But with the ruckus these idiots are making," Kanda scoffed at the wide-eyed personnel, who were still keeping their distance, "I'm surprised they haven't already found out."

"Speaking of which!" Alma nodded over to the wide-eyed duo, standing a little ways off, by a grove of trees, and staring at Allen as if he'd just come back from the dead. Duh.

Twin cries of, "Allen!" were heard, as they rapidly raced over and tackled the poor teen, shrieking in delight, Timcanpy fluttering above them enthusiastically. And despite the thundering agony that it caused his chest, Allen couldn't have been happier.

"By all rights, you should be dead, boy!" the Matron—and yes, it appeared she had survived—berated him with her usual, fierce scowl, tutting disapprovingly as she gave him another once over. "I'll come to check on you, later this afternoon," she stated, gently pushing him back onto the bed, and making her way out. "Don't you dare move an inch off that bed; you must rest! And under no circumstances, will you be allowed any visitors!" The door snapped shut with a sharp click.

Allen winced, and despite knowing that he wasn't to blame for the state he was in, he still felt sheepish for angering the Matron so much. And of course, he attempted to follow her orders, but then his stomach began to grumble uncomfortably, and then, he began to get twitchy (lying dead for a couple days after all, tended to stiffen one's muscles). Fortunately for him, it hadn't been a full five minutes, when of course, someone decided to break in. And by someone, he meant Lavi. And obviously, if you were going to break the rules, you might as well take full advantage, and break as many possible; which is why, Lavi decided to invite the rest. And brought loads of food. And some desserts too. And hey! Why not invite the kiddos as well? Thankfully, the redhead had the good sense to not include Komui, because God knew, with so many potential "suitors" for his precious Lenalee in a single room, he was bound to blow a gasket…

"Hiya, shortstack! We come bearing gifts!" Lavi grinned, rolling in a cart full of food. Clearly a bribe, but Allen wasn't complaining.

"Fnkz!" was what Allen managed to say, because by then, his mouth was already stuffed with food. Swallowing, Allen paused to exclaim, "Thank God!" And then dug in with the vigor of a man who hadn't eaten in days—which he hadn't, but that's beside the point. Between mouthfuls, Allen managed to string a sentence that equated to, "So what have I missed?"

Noticing their grim expressions—and there was something disturbing about Timothy, a seven-year-old, having that kind of dark expression—the white-haired boy briefly halted, tensely awaiting their answer. Ultimately, it was Lenalee who replied quietly, slightly teary-eyed, "There were a few other casualties; not just you. And it turned out that a lot of the Science Division members working under Komui didn't survive the attack to the second Headquarters."

"Ah," Allen swallowed thickly, prodding his food with a fork at this point. "Who else?"

"Marie," Daisya forced through gritted teeth, and Allen froze in shock, recalling how in the other time line, it was a different member of the trio that had been killed.

But before Allen could contemplate it any further, Kanda spat, "And the fucking Noah didn't even have the guts to die. If I could get my hands on him…"

"Wait! Some of the Noah survived?" It shouldn't have surprised Allen, but for some reason, it was still shocking to hear.

"A few," Alma admitted with a frown, "Tyki Mikk—the one he fought against—is currently being held under custody. Fortunately, he was freed of the Noah before he could kill Suman too. And if you're wondering, Suman already left; said he wanted to get back to his wife and kid as soon as possible."

"At least that's something," Allen muttered darkly under his breath. "How many more Noah survived?"

"Not many. Another one, he called himself Wisely; killed Tina and Gwen like it was nothing," Lavi inputted, "And the last one; he referred to himself as Sheryl Kamelot."

"Road's father," Allen said, and thought it seemed that the others had already made the connection, hearing it confirmed made them uncomfortable. To think that people like the Noah could actually be a family…

"What about Krory?" Allen asked worriedly, recalling the timid Exorcist, and wondering if he was doing alright.

Kanda killed away that hope pretty quickly. "Dead," he answered, and then admitted, "And stronger than we thought. Took the Noah down with him, so they're both gone."

"Alright, this is getting real depressing," Lavi cut in before anymore could be said, and turned to Allen, ignoring his horrified expression, "No more Noah survived; Socaro obliterated his opponent, and our dear Yuu here of course is no slouch, either—"

"Don't call me that, you damn rabbit!"

"—Anyway, let's talk about you, shortstack! Apocryphos and time traveling!" Lavi wiggled his one, visible eyebrow comically, attempting to lighten the mood.

Fortunately, everyone relaxed a little, and smiling weakly, Allen replied, "Right. Umm, it's a long story, but it does have to do with some of the stuff Hevlaska told Miranda. It starts out like this…"

Time Frame — Morning of May 17th, 1896

"Hey, wait up! Where are you two headed?" Allen called after the duo, running after them, ignoring the strain it caused his chest.

"Allen!" Alma beamed, turning around. "We were actually on our way to look for you. To say goodbye."

"G-goodbye?" Allen stammered, coming to an abrupt halt, his words jolting him into reality. That's right, the Black Order was technically no more. They didn't even have a Headquarters for crying out loud—at this point, they had all found it easier to stick to Central.

The only one even staying with the Order would be General Socaro—since he was thought to be the last general left, he had taken on the mission of continuing his job and traveling the world; his Innocence had technically left him, but someone still needed to make sure nobody was trying to take after the Millenium Earl's footsteps, and Allen's own comrades had refused to inform anyone of his status as the Host for the Heart of Innocence, so the job hadn't been thrust to him—though it didn't mean Allen himself wouldn't keep an eye out for that sort of thing.

But other than that, Exorcists were finally being released of their duty, free to do as they pleased. And Allen had forgotten that some of his friends would want to leave and start lives of their own.

It was Kanda who replied, "I am going to continue my search. It was the promise we made. And I still need to find her." It took Allen a moment, before recalling the image of the strange ghost lady he'd seen through his cursed eye, as she called after Kanda. And it was as if this thought triggered her appearance, because his cursed eye was suddenly swirling to life into rings of red and black, cogs whirling above it and through the lens, Allen observed as ghostly wisps slowly gathered together to create her ethereal form.

"I-I can see her again," Allen gasped, freezing Kanda and Alma in place, their eyes shifting quickly, as if attempting to get a glimpse themselves.

The specter of a woman simply stood between them calmly, with a gentle smile, the despair that Allen had felt from her before seeming more relaxed into a saddened state.

"I-is she saying anything?" Kanda finally ventured to ask, as if afraid that his mere voice would scare her away. But it didn't. Allen shuddered, silently staring, eyes glued to her as she gazed sadly at Kanda, and eventually she opened her lips, voice echoing.

"I'm sure you will search for me as long as you live. You might discover that Alma is me, one day. I couldn't stand that."

Allen was frozen in horror, eyes widened as he stared at Alma. But how could that be…? And it was then that Allen recalled how they'd been created in first place; brain transplants. So did that mean… Alma was the one Kanda had been searching for all along? Allen desperately wanted to ask her, but she had already faded away.

"I…" Allen attempted to answer Kanda's earlier question, but his voice was dry, as he wondered how it was possible for Alma to be chaining his past self down to this earth. But they had also been created with Akuma cells… Allen swallowed back the bile threatening to rise.

"Allen," Alma asked him cautiously, "What did she say?"

Taking a deep breath, Allen finally found it within himself to repeat, "I'm sure you will search for me as long as you live…"

"She knows," Kanda breathed, shocked.

"She does," Allen nodded solemnly, now resolved, "And you've already found her. And she has already passed; she wants you to move on."

Kanda's eyes narrowed dangerously. "What else did she say?"

Swallowing thickly, Allen whispered, "She couldn't stand it… if you were to discover…" Allen shook his head. "We should all respect her final wishes."

Before Kanda could react violently, Alma pressed a hand onto his shoulder squeezing. "I think he's right Kanda. Maybe, there are some things we're better off just not knowing."

Stiffly, Kanda demanded, "Then what am I supposed to do now?"

"I…" Allen awkwardly trailed off, not knowing how to answer such a question, but fortunately for him, someone interrupted them.

"There you are! We've been looking for you!" Lenalee called, and turning, they noticed Komui was there too, forcibly hauling Daisya and Timothy along, an amused Mei-Ling accompanying them.

"Where are you dragging us off to, you crazy man?!" Timothy demanded, struggling against his vice grip.

Komui tsked as the group finally reached them, and allowing Daisya and Timothy the freedom to move on their own. "Must you be so impatient? You should all just follow my beautiful Lenalee's example! Look how eager she is to simply trust what her brother has in store for her!"

"I wouldn't exactly use the word eager," Daisya muttered blandly under his breath. "So what is it, Sis-com?"

"And how come we're not including Lavi?" Alma piped up.

Clearing his throat, Komui replied, "As Bookman's apprentice, this offer, unfortunately cannot pertain to Lavi." After making sure they were all paying attention—coughTimothycough—he went on to say with a clasp of his hands and cheery grin, "Now that this is finally over, Lenalee and I would like to welcome all of you to come stay with us. Not sure where we'll be staying, but I'm sure we can figure out the details later! And of course," Komui pointedly looked at Kanda, Daisya, Alma, and Allen when he said this, "You can all be adopted as Lenalee's brothers! You'll protect her and get jobs, while I stay home and cater to my sweet little sister!"

"Brother!" Lenalee sighed and they all groaned. Leave it to Komui to ruin a sweet gesture like that. Even so, Allen couldn't be happier at the thought of not having to say goodbye to his friends. At least, not all of them.

"Ah, that sounds great, but," Mei-Ling fidgeted, "I was hoping to return to my grandpa. I'm sure he's still worried about me."

"Of course, Mei-Ling!" Lenalee scooped up the girl into an enthusiastic hug. "And don't worry, we'll be sure to visit!"

"Visit who?" Lavi abruptly bounced up them, and they exchanged glances, unsure of what to say to the Bookman Junior.

But before awkwardness could set in, a long, drawn out, "Meooooowww!" was heard among them. They all froze, eyes darting about, before they landed on the ugly thing that dared call itself a cat, as it rubbed up against Kanda's leg. Fortunately for the thing, Lenalee scooped it up before it could kicked away harshly with an eager, "Velcro!"

They all stared in shock. And it was Lavi who broke it by saying, "… Kandina's still alive?!"

They burst into laughter at Kanda's quickly angering face. "His name is Velcro," Lenalee corrected for his benefit, though a giggle still escaped her.

"What I'm wondering," Daisya said, "Is how the hell that little monster managed to survive two of our Headquarters being destroyed. By the Noah."

"They do say a cat has nine lives!" Mei-Ling piped up, a grin on her own.

And Timothy could only continue to guffaw. "That thing is hideous!"

"Hey!" Lenalee pouted, "Leave him alone!"

Allen could only sigh as they continued to mock his gift to Lenalee, and muttered, "Velcro, I'm so sorry your face looks like that. I thought you looked cute… in an ugly kind of way. Ugly can be cute!" But Allen remained ignored.

"Maaawww. Moooww. Meeooow," Velcro simply continued to meow with his old man look.

"Aww," Lenalee cooed, "He's singing the song of his people!" They all gave her an odd look. "… What?"

Lavi shrugged. "I still say he's Kandina."

"Rabbit!"

"Speaking of rabbits, how'd you enjoy the one I gave you, Lenalee?" Lavi asked calmingly, because trying to be suggestive in front of Komui, was practically begging an early death.

"Oh," Lenalee's face suddenly lit up with a devious smirk, and they all took a step back, because that was never a look you wanted on Lenalee. "I didn't really. But Velcro did. A boy has his needs, after all."

They blanched. "No!" Lavi gasped, face pale as he shuddered in revulsion. "I didn't need to know that about Kandina!"

"Rabbit!" And this time, nobody held Kanda back.

Fortunately for Allen, his best friend survived the ordeal.

"Hey Lavi, am I ever going to see you again?"

"Here's the thing, Allen," Lavi said with conniving grin that Allen just knew meant trouble, "As a Bookman, I'm not supposed to have any attachments, but, "Lavi" just doesn't seem to agree with abiding by the rules in general. I wouldn't be surprised if he randomly decided to pop in from time to time."

Allen couldn't hide the grin that broke out. "So this isn't goodbye, then?"

"'Course not, shortstack!" Lavi exclaimed, throwing an arm around Allen. "You're my best bud, after all!"

"It's Allen!" But even that didn't deter Allen's joyous beam.

A/N: Again, sorry I lied (not really)! But come on, you guys! Kill Allen? Yeah right! We gotta give the poor guy his happy ending! Sorry to anyone I made cry!^^" (And sorry to anyone I made gag at the mention of Velcro! And yes, I'm still mad he shoved his face into my water cup! That stupid cat and his love for human water… -_-)

AHSDGHDKFMKNLS! I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT TO SAY!

Thank you so much for all the support over the past two years! You guys have made me the happiest writer with all your awesome reviews! *pulls audience into a group hug while crying* THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!

Timely Mishaps is officially over! :'D