Miracles Of Christmas, a d.gray-man fanfic

Merry late Christmas and happy New Year, everyone! : D

AN: I wanted to make a Christmas fic, and I knew this song. I'm pretty certain Kanda despises all Christian celebrations, and even he's not 'blind, deaf and dumb', he certainly shuts people off, but I'm rather sure his reasons for that are out of his will. And that he actually wants someone to help him open. Who knows. That and, I always thought that Allen should find Christmas depressing. He needs Lenalee therapy, you know?

Also, this was meant for last year's Christmas, but I didn't manage to finish it; so now it not only might be a bit different from my current writing style. To be honest, I don't like it very much (but I almost never do when it comes to my own work), but I'm not postponing it for another year. Also please forgive my PMSing Lenalee and the might-be-present OOCness this time. Hope you enjoy~

Summary: Kanda hates Christmas. Lavi wants him to have a good time. Allen finds snow depressing. Lenalee wants everyone to be happy. Can the winter cold become warmer? A Christmas delirium.

Pairings: AllenLenalee and friendship!LaviKanda.

Disclaimer: -Man belongs to Katsura Hoshino. Song title and the nine lines of lyrics belong to The Who.

CHRISTMAS

Did you see the faces of the children, they get so excited

Waking up on Christmas morning, hours before the winter sun's ignited.

They believe in dreams and all they mean including heaven's generosity.

Peeping round the door to see what parcels are for free in curiosity.

And Tommy doesn't know what day it is,

He doesn't know who Jesus was or what praying is.

How can he be saved from the eternal grave?

See me, feel me, touch me, heal me...

See me, feel me...touch me...heal me.

Every year, winter would pull its white snowy sheet onto the skies over the Black Order, as well as the world.

Every winter, Christmas and New Year would come with the snow, bringing smiles onto the faces of those who survived another year of the war.

Every Christmas, everyone would gather together and celebrate it, finally being able to feel the peace and the support of their comrades, even if for a moment.

And every Christmas, Yu Kanda would lock himself in his room and not come out until everything was over.

This year didn't seem any different. The day of the Christmas Eve, everyone was preparing the cafeteria, helping in the kitchen, or simply spreading the friendly atmosphere. Even the Exorcists had forgotten their blood-stained duty for a few hours and joined in the fuss, all except one.

Kanda was nowhere to be found.

He not only didn't come for lunch; he wasn't in the training floor, nor in the forest either, nowhere where he could commonly be found. So the only option left was his room, and since his room's door had a lock, it was more or less an impenetrable fortress for any of the 'friends' that would decide to drag him out.

Kanda was laying on his bed, staring through the window. All he could see was the gray winter sky, and the cold wind was blowing through the cracks of the broken glass, but he didn't pay any attention to it.

Snow...so white and glossy, the crystal structures so fragile and so easily coloured by crimson blood. Kanda shook his head lightly, as the field of snow he was imagining suddenly started turning red from one side, the bloody colour spreading like poison over it. The samurai frowned and opened his eyes. The fools were always telling him that he was too much into his work and bloodshed and didn't care enough about other things, and he never listened. What else was there for him? Now however, it felt strange how every simple thing he thought about would turn into something morbid or gory. Maybe he was taking his work a bit too seriously.

Kanda sighed and closed his eyes, trying to focus on the silence instead. He could hear ticking from the clock in the hallway. However, eventually the ticking sound took a shape of a reverse clock in his mind, and that clock suddenly turned into Kanda's hourglass - and the samurai's eyes shot open once again, only to see the flower in the corner perfectly unharmed.

Faint sounds of singing reached his room together with the gusts of wind.

"What a stupid celebration," he muttered and turned into the wall to watch a lonely spider crawl over the cold bricks.

Lenalee knew very well what the situation was, and she did try talking to Kanda the day before but it didn't work. He was stubborn, so stubborn that it was getting annoying. He said he wouldn't go and it meant he wouldn't; last year Lenalee broke his room door and ordered him to attend the party, threatening him with her glorious clipboard. Kanda did go, but he kept complaining and picking on everyone all the time through. It wasn't really good for anyone.

And talking didn't seem to work.

Then again, talking rarely would work on someone like him.

Lenalee sighed, putting the freshly-baked Christmas cookies into plates. Why did it have to be this way?.. If it keeps going like this, Kanda will completely shut off the world around him, and that wouldn't be any good for anyone either. And that was why this year she decided to go for help to a special friend of his who wasn't her, and that friend promised he'd do what he can.

The girl was so caught in her thoughts that she didn't notice a gloomy white-haired boy who was carrying the plates around the cafeteria and setting it down for quite a while; when she finally did, she felt slightly surprised, both that she haven't noticed him and that he was behaving like this. Normally, Allen was always cheerful when a celebration would occur - well, 'cheerful' could have fitted better to Lavi, but the British Exorcist definitely wasn't gloomy either, - and he'd help Lenalee with a smile. Now...something was wrong.

He stopped, setting the remaining plates on the table, and stared through the window. It seemed that he was looking at the glistering white snow, but it judging from his rather empty gaze it was doubtful he actually saw it.

Cold, clear, white, white white white like his hair, like the trace of his curse, the curse that Mana had gave him.

"Allen?" Lenalee called out worriedly. It was definitely not everyday to see him like this. It was almost creepy, actually. "Is something wrong?"

The boy flinched as if waken up from a dream and turned to her. "I-it's nothing, Lenalee, really," he said, forcing a smile onto his face. It was just a bit too cheerful to be convincing. "Don't worry."

He hurried off to continue with the plates a bit too enthusiastically, leaving Lenalee confused and concerned.

Lavi sighed exasperatedly as he was making his way up to the sixth floor. Everyone was down at the cafeteria, and his footsteps lonely echoed as he climbed the long staircase. His third year here, and it was always like this. He looked at the windows, admiring the pillars of gloating dust for a moment before he sighed again and turned into the corridor.

Stubborn, stubborn Yu.

Lavi knew the route quite well as he'd often have to escape quickly once he'd get too close to Kanda's room, yet he hesitated for a moment, standing in front of the row of black doors. He quickly found the mental record on it and pulled at the handle of the door that was hiding Kanda behind it.

The door was locked.

"Yu, you there?" Lavi called through the door hopefully, pulling the handle again, but there was no answer.

The redhead stood still for a while. Until now he hadn't notice how cold in fact this floor was; cold and dark and eerie. It definitely had to be bad for health. He wasn't even sure how many people lived there at the moment; most of them would move out soon enough. Suman's room used to be around here too, but he was gone; and in the end, Kanda was the only one who had lived here ever since he arrived at the Order.

That room really matched Kanda actually; even if those weren't the best conditions one could expect, he seemed fine with it. Or maybe he just enjoyed the silence, since this floor was much quieter than the others. Like the samurai himself. Always distant, always alone, always observing people silently and just making some snide remarks every now and then.. And doing everything not to let others attach to him..failing so miserably.

"Yu, open up or I'm breaking down the door."

Finally some kind of rustling could be heard - apparently, Kanda had gotten up - and then silent footsteps headed towards the door.

Lavi waited, for some reason suddenly breathless, staring at where the door was supposed to open. But the lock didn't click; the footsteps simply stopped right before reaching the door. Maybe it was only the redhead's imagination, but he thought he heard a frustrated sigh before Kanda spoke.

"Don't you dare to fucking threaten me, dimwit. And go away."

The usual blank, indifferent tone. Lavi tilted his head lightly, just how he would have done if he wanted to convince his friend with something through gesture, despite the fact that they couldn't see each other right now. "Aw, Yu. You know you don't want me to."

The answer was a silent growl, and Lavi had to gather all of his courage not to sprint down the hallway. But he didn't.

"It's snowing," he suddenly said in an almost soft tone.

Kanda blinked, staring at the door that was hiding the idiot from him. Did the cold in the floor give him a brainfreeze already? The Japanese turned to look over his shoulder half-mechanically, staring through the window. Indeed it was, Kanda never paid much attention to changes of weather when he wasn't on a mission, but now when Lavi pointed it out, it was really charming outside. Even the cold was somehow good. White silvery snowflakes landing gracefully, the town's lights in the distance - all looked almost like a Christmas postcard.

Kanda scowled and turned away.

"So? What's your point."

The redhead sighed, even though he could tell Kanda probably did look outside and did like the tale-like scenery. Even though no one could have told, Kanda was quite fond of nature's beauty, along with the changes of the year.

The problem was, he once again was doing everything to shut the intruder - in this case, Lavi - out. Out of his room, out of his thoughts, out of his heart.

"Yu, why are you hiding?" Even though Lavi was standing behind the door, Kanda could feel the sadness in his voice almost as if he was looking into his eyes. They were considered 'friends', weren't they? And yet they were never really close. It looked that way, but each had his own heart shut away from everything.

The samurai took a deep breath, not moving. "I'm not hiding," he finally muttered. Could as well tell the truth, after all he had to speak every once in a while and he preferred talking to someone he didn't hate. "I just hate crowds and speeches and presents and all that sappy stuff."

"But it's Christmas, Yu. Everyone's supposed to get together...even if the Order isn't much of a family like Lenalee says, it still acts like one," Lavi smiled a bit at the door, "and I can't say that I complain about it. It's the Christmas spirit after all, it's not about presents at all -"

"I'm not a Christian."

Lavi sighed defeatedly. Kanda was just too stubborn. "Come on, Yu. You can still come out and enjoy your time even if you don't celebrate it on the religious aspect," he muttered. "Christmas is about getting together, you know? All of the family-"

Kanda glared at the door as if everything was its fault. He didn't need to be reminded of the 'family' picnics that Tiedoll would organize every damn weekend he was around. "I don't need that," he finally grumbled towards it, though for a moment his sharp tone seemed to linger.

The redhead kept silent for a while, then he leaned against the door, resting his forehead against it and let out an exasperated groan. "Yu, why do you have to be so damn stubborn?"

No answer.

"We're still your friends you know, even if ya don't want to be one to us. We care about you, Yu. I do."

"Don't give me that."

"And we know that you do too even if ya never say it. And we can't letcha spend Christmas alone and cold. Just come out already." Lavi's voice started to gain the nagging tone, the one Kanda found most annoying and at the same time least possible of declining.

Kanda hesitantly stepped closer to the door, but didn't open it. He sighed silently and rested his arms against the door, hating the fact that the redhead's words almost made him feel guilty. Almost. "Go away already." The wind blew through the broken window again, this time bringing in a lost snowflake as well. Kanda shivered lightly as it landed on his neck. "You'll only get cold."

They were both right in front of each other now, if there wasn't a door between them they would have probably fallen into an embrace standing like this.

Lavi grinned as he knew Kanda now was mentally beating himself for letting such an altruistic phrase escape him. "I told ya you do care," he drawled triumphantly and raised his head. "If you don't come out, I'll stay here the whole day and talk to you so you wouldn't feel lonely."

Kanda almost slumped against the door as he heard it; annoying as it was, Lavi was stubborn enough to actually do this when it came to 'cheering Yu up'. "Fine," he growled, "I'll come to the damned party."

"Promise?" Lavi tilted his head again; to trust Kanda on this he needed just a little bit more.

Kanda barely kept himself from hitting his head at a wall. Lavi obviously knew he was a man of his word and minded honor greatly; if he'd say he'll come he'll have to do it. And if he doesn't, the redhead will stay there, nagging him for the whole day instead of a couple of hours, then probably catch a cold and actually make him feel guilty, not that he would, but the possibility was there. The choice seemed obvious here... "Yeah. Promise."

After everything was set and she could finally take some free time, Lenalee decided it was long overdue time to catch Allen and find out just what was wrong with him. She glanced at the clock, deciding that Lavi should be done with Kanda by now, then looked around, rather quickly spotting the white-haired boy and heading towards him.

Allen was sitting in the far corner of the cafeteria, gazing out the window again. His look seemed dreamy but sad, and he didn't really hear Lenalee when she approached him. He flinched as the girl's hand landed on his shoulder. "Lenalee?"

"Allen, something is troubling you, isn't it?"

The boy blinked, then sighed and looked forth, chewing on his lip. That was true, but it seemed so trivial he didn't quite feel like sharing it, thinking he was the only one who could understand it. And that aside, he felt bad for making the wonderful girl next to him concern herself with him over it. He didn't want that. It wasn't worth Lenalee's worry. It wasn't that important anyway, it was just something he found sentiments in. The snow had started falling again, and if snow could feel something, he was sure it felt like he did.

"Tell me then," Lenalee insisted and stepped to stand right in front of Allen, her hands on her hips, blocking the outside view. "If something's wrong, the least you can do is let me try to help."

"Really, Lenalee, nothing's wrong," Allen tried to reassure but it came out somewhat strainedly. "Don't worry about me -"

The girl sighed. Honestly, he could be worse than Kanda sometimes, with all of his not-wanting-to-concern-others and savior attitudes. "Don't give me that," she muttered, still a bit strictly. Maybe it was the place he didn't like? Maybe if no one else hears, he would share whatever it was with her. "If you don't want to talk here..." Before the boy managed to say anything, he was pulled up from his seat and dragged out of the cafeteria.

He didn't feel like protesting though, and so he was dragged through doors and hallways until he understood that he was being pulled up the stairs, and suddenly he found himself with Lenalee on the roof of the Black Order castle. Long way down, he could see the forest, covered with snow and the long blue shadow of the HQ's mountain. It looked so peaceful, yet at the same time threatening, that Allen couldn't help but remember that day in the cemetery many years ago; he shuddered as a sudden gust of wind blew some snow into his face.

He saw an expectant look on Lenalee's face and turned his eyes away. He winced as the girl's foot landed on his, clearly demanding an answer.

"It's just that...today is Christmas Eve," the boy finally mumbled and looked up at Lenalee. A part of him hoped she would understand more than anything. Not long ago he realized that he truly did love the girl dearly, but he was too worried she saw him as a brother to ever mention it, and the mere chance of her understanding him better than others was making his heart pound faster.

She nodded lightly. "I heard it's your birthday tomorrow, you shouldn't be sad about it." She frowned a little bit and tilted her head with a hinted question. She knew the day the boy's presumed birthday was celebrated actually marked something else, but did it really..

Alright, that wasn't exactly it, but quite closer than he had expected. Allen stared at the snow for a while before answering. "It's not about that...it's Mana."

Lenalee widened her eyes a bit, the surprised expression replaced by a soft one moments after. "Your father, wasn't he?" she asked silently.

The boy nodded absently. "He...adopted me on Christmas," he mumbled. "It was snowing that day too...just like today.. He was the only one who ever said 'I love you' to me. He was the one who took care of me when everyone would turn their backs to me, who raised me and taught me.. And he's gone."

"I'm sorry," Lenalee said silently, placing her hand on Allen's shoulder. Losing someone dear to you was never easy, and she didn't find Allen's behaviour all that surprising now. She herself barely remembered her own parents, but it still made her sad sometimes. "I shouldn't have asked..."

"It's alright."

Allen stared at the white horizon, not feeling the snowflakes being blown into his face, and his expression softened a bit as he put his hand on Lenalee's.

"Really, it's alright."

The evening had come, and the, how Lenalee would call it, 'family dinner' took place. It wasn't a big or noisy celebration, just a simple get-together for those who managed to live for another year; and yet there were quite a lot of surprised faces when the people saw Kanda coming in. He didn't seem to care nor notice; he silently made his way through the cafeteria and took a seat between Lavi and Lenalee. Neither of them said a word, but smiles appeared on the faces of Kanda's two friends while everyone resumed their chatting.

Lenalee soon turned away to look at Allen, who seemed to look a bit more sour than before when Lenalee's attention focused on the samurai, and asked him if he felt better now. The boy nodded lightly with a smile, in fact, he was still feeling upset, but he also enjoyed being with everyone like this...especially Lenalee, and especially after learning she comprehended the reason of his quietness today and didn't find it silly nor unnecessary.

"Was it that bad?" Lavi grinned at Kanda as the dinner was finally over and everyone started to get up from the table and scatter. Kanda glanced at the redhead drearily, then at an empty plate that was originally his but now was set in front of Lavi.

"Yes, it was."

He was about to walk away when Lenalee caught his sleeve. "Wait just a moment, Kanda. Christmas Eve isn't over yet." She had her sweet smile on, but something told the samurai that he would regret if he declined that offer.

Well, she was rather close to a family...at least more so than the whole hordes of morons he was just sitting at the table with. He didn't like that much people around. So maybe if it was just them..

..screw it, Beansprout was also in Lenalee's most important people list, wasn't he? Damn.

There they were, in the library's corner where the fireplace was, all four of them sitting on the couch staring at the fire, their legs covered by a checked plaid that Lenalee had brought here, probably just to emphasize the Christmas spirit or something, because hell did the checks look warm and cozy in front of that fire. They talked a bit about this and that, hours passed, and in the end silence befell them.

Kanda looked rather irritated; next to him Lavi was yawning and occasionally hitting Allen with his elbows. Lenalee looked over them and sighed, seems they'd have to try some games as just spending time together appeared rather boring to the others. Well, that was what she had planned, anyway.

"Alright then," she said, jumping up and then pulling a small table covered with a cloth with what looked like hay under it in front of the couch. "I thought it would be interesting if we tried some of the... Christmas' magic things, though I'm not really sure how -"

"Ah, I know! It's a Christmas Eve tradition in some countries," Lavi explained rather happily. "You draw straws from under the tablecloth, and it's supposed to show you how much good things will happen until next Christmas, or, originally, how long you'll live."

Almost holding their breath, they drew out their straws, looking at it as if it had some magical prophecy written on it or something - Christmas Eve made it look special, probably. Kanda didn't seem phased at all but drew one as well.

"Not bad," Lavi drawled, looking at his quite long straw, then glancing at Lenalee's average one and Allen's, which was a bit shorter. "Whatever they're supposed to display again, mine is bigger than yours -" he received an elbow in his side, "- I mean, oh no, old man I will have to attend little Moyashi's funeral!"

"The name is Allen," the white-hair reminded him, emitting slight dark aura. "And don't worry, I'm sure you'll be killed early, considering that big mouth of yours." A light punch from Lenalee made the devilish flames disappear in an instant.

"What about you, Kanda?" she asked. Maybe this wasn't the best Christmas entertainment, with them facing death every day of their lives, but it was a tradition..

Kanda was staring at his straw, which was, no doubt, the longest of all of them. "This is bullshit," he grumbled and before anyone could say anything snapped it in two, throwing one half to the floor and keeping the other in his hand, "That's more like it." He threw it off as well. "..What are you looking at?"

"!" Allen and Lenalee were gaping and staring at him as if he just drove Mugen through himself or something.

"..Does that mean Yu's life will be considerably shortened by his own stupidity?" Lavi inquired with a mix of curiosity, concern and amusement, and whined the next moment as he received the regular hard whack on the head.

"Shut up," Kanda said solemnly and sat back down.

Lenalee smiled. "It's just a superstition," she said determinedly, "We shouldn't look too much into it."

"Good idea," Allen said with a genuine smile this time.

"Che," Kanda agreed.

Lavi whined some more to get attention, but in the end just received an extra punch in the ribs, though lighter this time.

"So...I guess it's time to tell stories," Lenalee muttered thoughtfully and put a finger to her lips. "I think so, at least. Anyone know any good ones?"

"I do!" Lavi chirped, his eye sparkling a bit, his sleepiness gone in a moment.

"If you let this moron talk more, I'm leaving," Kanda stated.

"That's so mean, Yu. It hurts my heart."

"What's your point."

Lenalee send a quick warning look to Kanda as a sign to cut it out, and it worked, though Lavi muttered more complaints under his breath. "Well then, what about you, Allen?" she said a little too enthusiastically. "You told me you were an entertainer?"

Allen shook his head. "I'm afraid all of my stories will include Master at this point," he muttered, emitting more dark vibes for a moment, then simply looking rather miserable.

"I guess that leaves you, Lavi," Lenalee sighed and shifted a bit so she would see him, at the same time giving Kanda a 'Be nice' look. The Japanese rolled his eyes and sunk deeper into the couch. "We're all ears."

"Alright, alright! So. This happened back when I and the old man were travelling around North Europe. We were riding a train further north, and God bless the fabulous Russian ladies in glorious fur coats, when the cold hit so badly the railing started to -"

"Weren't you supposed to tell a tale?" Kanda inquired in a bored tone, giving the redhead a glare. It was a known fact that no one could really stand listening to Lavi's travel stories - maybe because he would usually talk for hours - and that could have been a reason the Bookman Junior lately tried to share them at every opportunity that occurred. Lenalee and Allen nodded rapidly, the latter even biting back a mock reply of 'Wow, Kanda likes tales' because honestly, Lavi's babbling about his endless adventures was much worse.

"I'll get to that," Lavi explained and shook a finger. "Now, I'm telling the story, so shush and listen, dear children."

"I'm older than you," Kanda reminded bitterly.

"Details," Lavi waved it off. "Where did I stop?"

"How about we go to get some tea for us all, Allen?" Lenalee said with a beaming smile at Lavi, ignoring his words that now were spilling out like the river of Amazon, and nudging the white-haired boy with her elbow lightly. "We'll be right back." Maybe it was a bit cruel to leave Kanda to endure the story alone, but as long as she had something to do - like making and spilling tea, then bringing it for re-heating - she could bear it just a bit easier. Besides, he did seem to somewhat get along with Lavi...that and they both acted like brats sometimes. Often. She quickly got up, pulling Allen with, and tiptoed out of the room. Lavi just mumbled an 'Ah, sure', and his mouth was just going on and on, he didn't even seem to notice they were gone.

"- And then I told her, 'You know, that's all nice and dandy, but don't you think you're a little overdressed?' And she said - Wait, where did Lenalee and the kid go?"

"Yeah, whatever," Kanda grumbled, not really having heard the question. By now he was sunk as deep into the couch as possible, blankly staring in front of himself, looking half-asleep.

"You're not listening," Lavi pouted and poked the Japanese. "How 'bout you tell me a story now, Yu?"

"Great idea," Kanda grumbled and rolled his eyes. "Once upon a time, there was a stupid rabbit who wouldn't shut up, therefore he died slowly and painfully. The end."

"Aw."

"..."

"That's it? Yu, that was mean.."

"..." Kanda just kept staring rather blankly before turning to face forth and closing his eyes with a scowl that said Lavi would better not even think of doodling on his face if he held all of his limbs precious.

Lavi sighed and sunk into the couch as well. "Fine, I'll be silent. You can blame yourself for ruining the awesome holiday mood we had going on." He did wonder where was that tea, though. And the couch seemed so comfortable..

When Lenalee and Allen came back, carrying a warm teapot and a tray, they were met by silence. That was quite unexpected; as they walked in they realized the other two Exorcists were in fact asleep.

"We're too late.." Lenalee mumbled a bit disappointedly and set the tea on the table.

"Should we wake them up?" Allen inquired, putting down the tray. Sure, it didn't look like they were really enjoying this, but..

The girl shook her head. "Maybe not," she whispered. "Look, it's already late, and they seem to need this." She had to admit Kanda looked rather peaceful, so maybe it wasn't the best idea to wake him up into the irritating reality just now.

"If you say so.." the boy muttered, straightening up.

Lavi mumbled something in his sleep, his head slowly lowering itself on Kanda's shoulder. The latter scoffed for a moment but didn't wake up, his expression easening up again soon enough. The shades of fire coloured them in warm tones even through the distance from the fireplace to the couch, making the scene seem quite...Christmas-like.

Lenalee smiled faintly and covered them with the checked plaid.

"Yeah," she replied silently to Allen. "And there's something I want to show you. Let's go now."

They quietly left the room, managing not to disturb the peace of their sleeping friends.

"So, what was it that you wanted to show me?" Allen asked rather curiously. They were back on the roof, the snowy landscape looking all the more magnificent in the dark-blue cover of the night. It was fascinating how nights were never completely dark in snowy winters; it was almost as if the land was giving out a silver glow to enlighten the travellers or souls that were lost in the night. The clouds were beginning to clear, and a bit of perfectly round moon could be seen.

Just as a Christmas postcard, he thought, smiling faintly.

"Isn't it wonderful?" Lenalee whispered, gazing upon the scenery as well. Suddenly the sound of a tower bell ringing reached them, it had to be midnight and so the other day has already started, even if there were still hours until the morning light.

Allen flinched lightly. "It's really late," he muttered, putting a hand on Lenalee's shoulder to lead her back to the stairs, "We should get back.." He didn't want to think what Komui would do if he learned that he was out with his sister at this hour.

"Yes," the girl agreed, "but first, I'd like to tell you something." The boy peered up a bit. Was it what they came here for in the first place? Or maybe.. The girl looked a bit nervous all of the sudden, and the faint pink creeping on her cheeks was making her even cuter, if that was possible. "I was thinking about the talk we had in the afternoon."

Allen blinked a bit and looked Lenalee in the eyes. What was she getting at? They..talked about Allen and his father, if he remembered correctly. Maybe she was going to say something that would make him feel all warm and happy again? "Um, yeah..?"

"You're selfish and self-pitying, Allen," Lenalee deadpanned, looking the white-haired boy in the eyes with the most lovely beaming gaze those eyes had ever seen.

For a moment Allen felt like a rock crushed him. Not that he really expected a confession or anything, but this.. Hearing such an opinion of yourself from the girl you like could flatten your ego just as effectively as an elephant stepping on an origami swan.

"..Lenalee?.." he uttered in shock, staring at her. She stared back, determined look on her face.

"You said that your father was the only one who told you.." she bit her lip for a moment but then continued, her eyes glinting a bit, " 'I love you', but do you think nobody else does just because of that? Besides, there's plenty of people in the Order who do, Allen, because you're kind; you're not only like family, you're hope to them! So don't you dare say nobody loves you!"

Allen was still gaping at her like a fish before managing to stomach everything, his expression softening and becoming slightly sad. "I'm..sorry," he mumbled, bowing his head a bit. "I didn't mean it like that, really, I -"

He silenced as he felt Lenalee's hand landing on his cheek and raising his head.

"I.." he tried to continue, mesmerized by the girl's deep dark eyes, their gazes locked together for a moment.

And then Lenalee leaned forth, and their lips met in a soft, innocent but heartwarming kiss, and Allen realized that feeling the girl's breath on his skin as a contract to cold winter's air was something bewitching, and the moment was just glorious by all of its essence, but it ended way too soon.

"Wait, Lenalee!" Allen called out as the girl suddenly turned around and stormed towards the stairs. He managed to grip her hand; he didn't want to pull so that he wouldn't accidentally hurt her but she stopped by herself, looking back at him with a barely noticeable sad frown. Allen swallowed. "Please forgive me," he spluttered, squeezing Lenalee's hand lightly and bowing his head again. "I would never want to upset you. I would like you to always be next to me and correct me when I'm being foolish." He smiled a bit awkwardly, raising his eyes to the girl's, who seemed brighter all of the sudden. "Don't ever think you're not important to me, because.."

A pile of snow, apparently separated from one of the taller towers, fell down in the speed of a dropping stone, and landed right on Allen, covering his head and shoulders in the white cold mass before he ever managed to finish his sentence, the embarrassment causing him to shut up and just gaze at Lenalee helplessly, still squeezing her hand.

Just his luck.

Lenalee raised her free hand to her mouth and laughed silently, but her look on the boy was rather warm now. She stepped closer and brushed the snow off Allen's hair; the boy was already red as a lobster from embarrassment by then.

"So..would you like to.. go out sometime? With me?" he mumbled, deciding that the risk was worth it as things couldn't possibly get any worse. "I-I thought maybe we could-"

"Of course," Lenalee answered, smiling widely. Now, was it really that hard? Talk about being an old-fashioned gentleman, it took this much for him to actually ask her out. Said gentleman blinked for a few moments, before a wide smile appeared on his face.

"You'd like to? Really? That's.. that's great!"

The girl just smiled at him again and finished de-snowing him. "I'll look forward to that," she said.

"There's a carnival in town in a few days," Allen said rather happily. He knew he could easily win some nice things at carnivals' games, well, because he knew a lot about it or something...Lenalee would be impressed as long as she didn't catch him cheating, right? Anyway, this was too good to be true. Had to be a dream. He barely kept himself from pinching his arm, as if this was a dream he definitely didn't want to wake up from it at least until the date is over.

"Sounds great," Lenalee said. She wasn't sure why Allen looked so excited, but she figured it had to do with her, and that did make her contented - all women likes to be appreciated, after all, and this was the guy she liked. What a nice day...night.

They stayed on the roof for a while longer, watching the snow, breathing the chilly winter air, enjoying each other's presence and warmth, until remembering it was already night and they should probably head back.

"I should go to Brother now," Lenalee said softly. "He was working overtime on Christmas Eve, he's probably asleep on the desk and getting cold. You don't mind, right, Allen?"

The boy shook his head a bit with a smile. "Of course not," he said. "You really mean a lot to him, you know that. I'll be fine." He squeezed Lenalee's hand a little for reassuring. Sure, Christmas was supposed to be a family holiday, but right now he really wouldn't feel upset about being left alone for several hours, after all the Order was a pretty good family, and he wasn't going to rob loving brother and sister of their quality time together, not him. Everything just seemed so bright. Now, alongside of saving the world, he had another dream, and it was right next to him. And the least he could was treat it nicely.

They got back inside together; after holding hands a bit awkwardly and Allen managing to peck the girl on the lips for goodbye without getting too embarrassed, they parted ways. Allen headed downstairs towards his room to sleep, while Lenalee went to Komui's office.

Komui was asleep on the couch, half-full cup of coffee still in his hand. He looked tired but rather peaceful, what was a good thing. He had to bear so much, and he tried so hard for the best of the Exorcists.. After digging around for a bit, she found the chief's regular blanket and pulled it over him.

She curled up next to him, using the spare part of blanket to cover herself, and leaning against him a bit. This might not have been much, but it was still some time with family, and even the couch didn't seem too uncomfortable. Next to him, she always felt like the same little girl, and it was a good feeling, since as an Exorcist, she had the world's fate on her shoulders. "Merry Christmas, Brother," Lenalee whispered and lightly pressed her lips to Komui's forehead.

Next morning, as Christmas' spirits went high and happiness in the air was so thick you could almost touch it, a certain irritable black-haired Exorcist was very surprised to wake up on a couch under a gay-looking checked plaid, next to a redhead with an eyepatch who was supposed to be his friend.

Later on, Lavi often referred to that moment as 'the day Yu found friendship under his Christmas tree', what annoyed him greatly by the way, but that didn't change the fact. It was natural to become a little closer to someone you had spent a Christmas night with, after all, and the redhead sure didn't mind that. Finally his everlasting quest to mutually be friends with Kanda had been fulfilled.

Meanwhile, Allen and Lenalee didn't have any shocking revelations; what happened was meant to happen for a while now, at least that was what Lenalee said the next day when they set off for the very short first date, before embarking on more missions that duty had called them for. Still, it had to be the happiest and warmest Christmas ever for Allen - just like, or, probably, even surpassing, that white winter evening when a lonely kid had finally found a dad.

Miracles did happen on those snowy nights.

THE END