AN: I couldn't let the story end the way it did. Fading Gray could litterally have two different endings, one with the epilogue (a slightly happier ending) or one where Rhode is indefinitly dead, and the war is starting. And that the relationship between Allen and Rhode was just a step towards that.
I definitely like this ending more. Not because it's happier, but because it's more indefinite in where the relationship will go, but more conclusive to the whole issue of the war.
Fading Gray
Epilogue
There were stories parents told their children before they go to sleep, stories that all children who had the privilege to hear loved. The story told of a group of holy men and women who had to fight against the evil of the world, monsters that loved nothing more than to hunt humans. This group of people faced all sorts of challenges, fought all sorts of battles, in order to protect humanity.
Of course, there were various versions of the story. The monsters ranged from dark shadows to vampires that will suck you dry, to the bone. However, the most popular and known monster was the ugly machine-like being that will sprout from your body if you were bad. They were the minions of the main enemy of the group, vile creatures that can easily cause the death of an entire village.
It was inevitable that there was a war between the forces of good and evil. The holy group of priests and priestesses fought valiantly against the wretched beings that hoped to cause the end of humans, and the world. And due to their courage, they won. But they did not stay to celebrate their victory; before the world was put back in order and before they could be named the saviors of the world, the group disappeared.
This story excited many children- the very idea of fighting the bad of the world, the idea of saving the world appealed to them easily.
However, they didn't know that the story was real, that the war had only ended five years ago.
--
It was a gray, dreary, intolerably cold winter day in London. A man, no more than twenty three years old walked down a stone path lined with increasingly brown snow, dirty mush that squished and stained his black boots with every step. The man hated days like this, downcast days that did not do justice to the holiday season. Particularly today, the supposed happiest day of the year- Christmas. Less known, and slightly less important, it was his birthday; the reason why he cut his business trip short to be back in London, in order to celebrate it with his friends.
People on the streets stared at the man wearing a black suit and matching gloves. His coat was detailed with silver, reminiscent of the one he wore what seemed like decades ago, but most astonishing, although handsome and without a doubt in the prime of his life, the man already had hair as white as snow. They were also wary of his strange pentacle tattoo on his eye; he seemed more like a clown dressing up as a business person instead. He ignored all the stares directed at him, until he saw someone with long black hair tied in a ponytail, wearing a long beige coat and a brooding expression. The eccentric looking man's expression immediately changed; he was grinning like a madman at the sight of his friend.
"Kanda!"
Kanda, who was leaning against a nondescript building's wall, nodded his head slightly to show his acknowledgement. People were surprised to know that the young man knew Kanda, one of Britain's most talented military officials. Without a word however, the two friends set off towards the hidden fortress on the mountain.
It wasn't long until the pair was interrupted in their silence by a group of rowdy kids. The children, dressed in tattered clothes and thin jackets were filthy and obviously part of less well-off families. It wasn't their appearance that drew Allen's attention to them though, rather, it was the words they were saying, laughing tauntingly and pointing at something in the middle of the group.
"Haha, what a freak, right Tom?"
"What do you mean 'you're special'? Your parents abandoned you here, remember?"
Intrigued and slightly angered, Allen strayed from the path towards the kids; Kanda grudgingly followed. Walking nearer to the group, Allen noticed that the 'something' the children were pointing at was really a girl, sobbing in her hands. He immediately felt a familiarity towards her, and made his way closer to the group.
"What are you kids doing?" Allen began, in a mood to reprimand the abusive children. Kanda stood by, slightly annoyed at how Allen seemed to always make himself part of someone else's business.
The leader of the group, a little boy with brown hair and dirt-smudged cheeks looked up at the two adults, recognizing that both of them were of high status. He swallowed and prepared an answer in his most polite voice. "It's nothing sirs, just, she stole our food!"
"That's no reason for you to make fun of her. Look, she's crying."
"You don't understand sir. She's just arrived at this town, and she's been causing trouble everywhere. And look! She's so queer-looking!"
The girl, aware that the boys had left her alone, stopped her cries and looked up. Allen followed the boy's pointed finger, his gaze landing at the girl. She had shoulder length disheveled hair what was unusually black for someone English, immense amber eyes and olive skin. Under different circumstances, Allen was sure she would be extremely pretty. "I don't see anything wrong with her."
The leader of the group made a motion and two of the group moved beside her. In a sweep, they removed the bangs covering her forehead, revealing small crosses that looked chiseled into her skin. She quickly avoided his stare, painfully aware of her awkwardness. Allen and Kanda recognized the markings at once, both of them gasping at the image. The girl immediately shook her head, forcing the boys to let her bangs go and hid her face in her knees. Ignoring Kanda's obvious glare and look which meant to say 'leave her alone, she's the enemy and we shouldn't associate with her', Allen turned to face the little boy in front of him. "So she's a little different. It's hardly any reason to tease her about. Now, it's getting late, you kids better head back home, alright?"
The kids knew an order when they heard it. They obeyed without another word.
Once the children were gone, Allen made his way towards the desolate girl. However, something stopped him- it was Kanda, who caught hold of Allen's gloved hand. Surprised, Allen looked up at the older man, though understanding his position. "Beansprout, that's not her anymore."
Allen tugged his arm away, smiling. "I know, Kanda." After Rhode's death, Allen had told his friends of their estranged relationship; while the others didn't understand, nor could most of them even accept such a relationship's existence, they grew to ignore the story, or to grudgingly respect the sacrifice of the Noah. To Kanda however, surprising even Allen, he understood and accepted the idea of them the easiest. It made sense to him, they were like the ancient balance between yin and yang; or at most, he respected the pride and trust the Noah girl had in Allen, for Allen. That didn't mean he approved of their relationship though, and even now, years after the war, he still regards the Noah as the enemy.
In a swift, fluid movement, Allen took off his jacket and draped the heavy cotton over the girl's head. She looked up then, enveloped by the warmth still within the jacket and saw a soft smile. She clutched at her shoulders to stop the coat from falling to the ground; to try and keep the warmth from escaping just a bit longer. "Mister, why did you give me your coat?"
"It's winter." Allen replied simply, still smiling. Behind him, Kanda sighed, and leaned against the wall of the building beside him.
"But I'm… different. Why don't you ignore me like the rest of the adults?"
"Because there's no shame in being different." The girl stared at him in disbelief. Sighing, Allen brought up his left arm to face the girl and slowly pulled the glove off, revealing blood red flesh, a cross on the back of his hand and bony fingers. The girl gasped. "I'm just as weird, right?"
She reached up to touch the sinewy arm, pausing just slightly to ask for permission. It was warm, but incredibly rough, and she relished the feeling of being with another person who accepted her for her strangeness. Hesitantly, she introduced herself. "My name is Andrea. My parents abandoned me three months ago because of my marks and my weird… behavior."
"What weird behavior?" Allen asked, surprised and curious.
"Sometimes I say things… that I don't mean to say. And sometimes I have memories of something I never seen or shouldn't know. It's almost like I have a different person in me."
Allen nodded in understanding; Rhode had once mentioned about 'awakening' her memories as the first Noah child. Unable to say anything about the matter though, Allen merely stood up and stretched his hand, now gloved, at Andrea. She blinked, but accepted albeit reluctantly. "Are you sure? Your friend doesn't seem to like me, mister."
Allen made a sideways glance at Kanda, and laughed, while pulling the girl up. "Don't worry about him, he always looks that sour. And please don't call me 'mister', you can call me Allen."
Andrea obeyed, still clutching his hand as they made their way down the road, with Kanda in tow, arms crossed.
--
"Rinali." Kanda called, once the three were through the main doors of the Order. Allen chuckled at Andrea's awed gasps when she saw the largeness of the building; it was like a castle to her.
Within moments, Rinali was at the entranceway, with Ravi behind her. Her expression was one of immense joy and excitement, mirrored by Ravi when they saw who was with Kanda. "Allen!" she exclaimed, running into an embrace. While returning the hug, Allen also replied to Ravi's casual greeting.
"And Beansprout brought something with him." Kanda muttered, while unbuttoning his coat. Instantly, Rinali stepped away from the businessman and saw, still holding his hand, a little girl. Both she and Ravi stared at the child, then at Allen.
"Hi! I'm Andrea!" she volunteered, hoping to break the sudden tension. Allen avoided their gaze, and then met them with a strong resolve. "Yeah." He answered the hidden question.
Rinali accepted the answer without question, and gave her attention to Andrea. "Andrea, is it? Oh my, look at your clothes. Come, I'll get you something warmer." She gently led the girl up the stairs, leaving the three men behind her.
"You're sure." It wasn't a question, more of a statement, an observation made by Ravi.
Allen nodded, not wishing to explain anymore of his decision. They already knew why he wanted her to live with them. Chuckling uncomfortably, he decided to change the topic. "I'm starved. I wonder what's Rinali making for dinner? And you all have to fill me in on what you did these past months, I've missed so much! How's your book going, Ravi?" Kanda had disappeared to his room while Allen rambled.
Years of friendship told Ravi to not poke into the matter so soon. He took Allen's offer and gladly decided to show him the newest installment to his novel in progress; Allen followed him to his office.
--
Dinner was delicious, and a joyous affair- their small family was semi-together once more, the only missing member being Komui. The four friends filled Allen out on the recent happenings of their lives, and of the lives of their other friends- exorcists, scientist or finder alike that had recommenced their lives once more after the war. They of course did not forget about Andrea, and at random intervals, Rinali or Ravi would inquire a bit about Andrea's past, herself, or her family.
They decided (including Kanda) that Andrea, although having a connection to the Noah family, was a charming and sweet child, who deserved to have a family, no matter how dysfunctional they were.
The four adults concluded the feast with a toast of red wine (a present from Cross, who had surprisingly remembered the holiday and Allen's birthday).
--
She found him sitting outside the terrace; the forest and training grounds to his left and right respectively. He was staring peacefully at the starry sky, ignorant of the icy coldness.
"What are you doing, Allen?" She inquired, while pushing his coat at him. He laughed and accepted the offering.
"Stargazing. I'm trying to find a constellation."
"Oh, what's that?" Andrea, hoisted atop the balcony of the terrace was now staring at the sky as well.
"It's when stars connect to make a picture." Allen answered without missing a beat. "Look over there, that's the Big Dipper see? It's like a giant spoon."
Andrea nodded, and continued her observations. She was in awe at how close and beautiful the stars were that night, on the mountain and from the crisp December air. "Which constellation are you looking for then?"
"Andromeda." He paused, focusing his attention at a faraway point. "Ah, I found it, its right there." He pointed at a distant area to his right. Andrea strained in her seat and squinted.
"What's it suppose to look like? It looks like a blob of shiny to me."
Allen chuckled, and leaned against the railing. He wrapped one arm around the girl to make sure she wouldn't fall and rested his head on the other. "Andromeda is a Greek princess who was saved by a warrior from the evil sea beast. At least that's what the myth was."
"What happened to her after?"
"She married the warrior and lived happily ever after."
"Oh." She thought about the story for a while then smiled. "I like that story."
"You do now?" Allen raised an eyebrow playfully. "And what were you doing, looking for me?" He asked after a pause.
"To thank you." She replied simply.
"Thank me? For what?"
"For saving me." Allen, for all his years of experience could hardly react when the child leaned in and kissed him on the forehead. It was chaste, lasting for only a second, but the warmth was there. And Allen stared in surprise at the smiling girl in front of him. "Thank you, Allen." She whispered playfully.
There was a flicker of a moment when Allen recognized the presence of the other girl. The other being within Andrea who will inevitably be part of Andrea, who was never forgotten by Allen, or the Order. He smiled and lifted the child back to the ground. "It's getting late. Let's go get some sleep, shall we?"
Andrea nodded, and grasped Allen's hand as they headed back into the building.
AN: Writing the Andromeda part was fun; I totally didn't plan Andrea's name to be a mirror of Andromda, the name of the princess. And I didn't even know if I wanted to use the reference again. But it seemed kinda useless to me if I mentioned it before, and it never played a part in the conclusion. And voila, Rhode now lives on as Andrea. It's still Allen x Rhode... in essence.
And really, it's more like a second chance for them. For their relationship, and for the Noah. Now that they know the existance of Noah are still around, maybe they'll go around finding the Noah children and raising them to love humans and humanity; just so they won't be against the Order anymore, or someone like the Earl can't use them for their own gain.
Boy, did that feel like the 'nature vs. nurture' arguement there. haha.I totally side with nurture.
And the whole '5 years into the future' thing was playing with my mind ages ago. I even had jobs that the main exorcists could be: Kanda is obviously a military person (as mentioned here), Rinali is a nurse! (for obvious reasons) and Ravi is a tie between a writer and a history teacher. I chose writer because of an icon I have of Ravi. Allen was the only hard one, I couldn't see Allen as anything BUT an exorcist, but I decided, since he can play his cards, he might as well be a business person (because he can play his cards right[ bad pun).
Writing this was a great experience. I feel that my writing style really did evolve from what it was before, and I feel glad that I contributed into making this pairing a little more popular. At least more people know about this pair. And it was really fun too. That's why, for anyone who's interested, I'm playing with the idea of writing a series of short stories that occur during the same timeline as Fading Gray. It'll be more focused on other characters though, and it'll be a variety of pairings. Or none at all, depending. Review and comment if you have any qualms to that idea