Author's note: I am aware of the anachronisms inherent here, mainly involving blood-typing (the form used at present was reportedly discovered in 1901) and blood transfusions. However, I am going to justify my inclusion of this by saying that this is an imaginary end of the 19th century, as stated by Hoshino herself, and if we can have sentient robots, flying wireless communicators and elaborate medical and scientific equipment as presented at the conclusion of the Crown Clown arc, I don't think it's out of line to say that the Order has likewise figured out blood-typing and other such medical procedures. We do see rolling IV stands a couple of times in the story, which I'm not sure exactly when they were invented, but I'm guessing it was after the 1890s. Granted, this particular story takes place in the first decade of the 1900s, but most of the technology I'm mentioning has already been mentioned in previous fics or even in the canon. So, just so everyone knows, I know that there are technically historical inaccuracies, but for the sake of the story, and given what Hoshino has already given us in the canon, I think I'm safe to ignore that.

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of "D.Gray-man" or its characters. It all belongs to the brilliant Katsura Hoshino-sensei. I'm just playing in the sandbox of this beautiful and complex world.

Warnings: Some language, shounen-ai, and some rather weird descriptions of labor and childbirth. Also, I guess you can kinda say there are spoilers here. Kind of. Sorta? I dunno.

"Truth remaining truth, becoming song. Song becoming soul, and soul coming from soul. Growing from The Garden all there is to know, of the things that will and of the things that will not grow."
-- Michael Nesmith, "Life Becoming" from The Garden, 1994

"Life Becoming"

There are times in a person's life when epiphany does more than strike; it beats one into a stupor. Such happened to Arystar Krory III, in the wee hours of the morning, while he was curled up with his heavily pregnant wife Miranda. He had been sleeping rather fitfully when Miranda shifted and groaned loudly, bringing him out of his slumber; he pressed his hand against her swollen belly, feeling for contractions. She was now past her due date (by two days only, but still...) and he was getting nervous.

It was then that he was bludgeoned senseless by the enormity of his situation.

Here he was, married, about to welcome his first (and most likely only; he and Miranda weren't exactly spring chickens) child into the world, and... how on earth had he gotten here?

Eleven years or more ago, he had been alone, the caretaker of a large and mostly-abandoned old castle in Romania, visited only once by the friend of his grandfather, Cross Marian... and then gifted unknowingly with anti-Akuma blood in full maturity, a set of Innocence-laden fangs, and a beautiful but enigmatic housemate in Eliade. And without further ado, he'd fallen deeply in love with Eliade, not realizing she was in fact his enemy. In the end, he had been the one to take her life, and to this day, he still regretted the manner in which it had happened, even if it had been inevitable.

He had been released from that hellish prison of fate by two Exorcists who had never once judged him: Allen Walker and Lavi had both seen right through his acts and had known him for what he really was, and had recruited him. They had been the first people to recognize him as a human being, not as a vampire, and to consider him a friend. Allen had convinced him to cast off the shroud of fate as dictated by a deceased progenitor, and to become an Exorcist in service to humanity. It had been through Allen in particular that Krory had been able to live up to his full potential, and eventually settle down as he had. After all, Allen was responsible for the recruiting of Miranda Lotto as well.

"Arystar, darling?" Miranda murmured tentatively into the darkness. "Are you awake?"

"Yes. Are you all right, Miranda?"

"I'm fine, no contractions, if that's what you're asking, but could you possibly help me up? I need to use the bathroom, and I'm not sure I can get up on my own without... you know... having an accident."

He responded by gently scooping her up into his arms and carrying her to the small bathroom. While she attended to her business, he looked her over absently.

If he looked at her objectively, she wasn't the most radiant beauty in the entire Order -- that honor belonged to Lenalee Lee -- but she was lovely in her own way, and in his eyes, she was beautiful. Even with a belly as big as she had right now, she was beautiful in his eyes. Perhaps his perception of her beauty was tinted with his affections for her; she was such a gentle spirit, so loving and so forgiving. She was probably the only woman in the entire world who could love him so completely without being the least bit jealous of Eliade. She would occasionally ask him about Eliade, and he got the feeling that she was genuinely curious. She insisted that she wasn't envious of Eliade, that she understood that his love for Eliade was what made him who he was, and that in that regard, she wouldn't want him to change.

He wasn't sure at what point he'd become receptive to Miranda's gentle overtures of affection. They had begun as mere nakama, and then had grown closer over time. About a year and a half ago, he'd begun to notice a particularly poignant affection for Miranda, and he'd told her as much (since he wasn't exactly known for being terribly tactful, for all that he spoke with utmost politeness). At first it had driven a wedge between them, because she'd thought he was mocking her; it had taken both of them seeking some advice from Allen and Lavi before they'd become at ease with each other again. Mutual love of this kind was a new experience for Krory, and he hadn't wanted to screw it up like he had with Eliade. And yet... before he realized how quickly it was happening, they were sleeping together and getting thoroughly comfortable with each other. It had taken a while for him to convince her to call him by his first name, and to drop the honorifics, at least with him, that she used with everyone.

He'd considered marrying her for some time, but hadn't been sure she'd want to. At least, until she'd told him she was pregnant.

A smile played across his mouth at that memory...

"Miranda, what is wrong with you? You have not been yourself lately."

"Can I tell you something serious, Arystar?" Miranda was wringing her tunic in her hands. "I hope you won't be angry with me, I certainly didn't mean for this to happen."

"I am worried about you, my dear; please, tell me, whatever it is. I promise to listen with an open mind."

"Okay then," she said softly, not meeting his eyes. She sucked in a breath and then another.

"Are you going to tell me?" He cupped her chin in his hand, tilting her face toward him.

"Have you ever thought about having children? Because I'm... well, I'm pregnant."

"What?" After a moment he added. "Really?"

"Yeah. Catherine confirmed it for me. Not sure how that little contraption she used works, but Catherine says it's pretty much spot-on. She also said that this is why my appetite has been so weird, why I'm having nausea in the mornings, and why I'm so tired all the time now. She said it's common in the first couple of months to be nauseous, and perpetually tired, because of how much changing is going on inside the body." Her voice dropped to nearly a whisper. "Are you upset, darling?"

"Upset? Why would I be upset? I am of the understanding that it requires two people to create a baby; this is hardly your fault alone. I am just... a little surprised. Shocked, I guess. Give me time, Miranda. I will get used to it." He gathered her into his arms and hugged her. "I guess I never considered the possibility of having children. This will take some getting-used-to. But this is not bad news at all, my dearest." He pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. "I may not seem like it right now, but I am happy."

"I love you, Arystar," she murmured against his mouth. "There's no man I'd rather have children with than you. I'm so glad that I met you."

"That reminds me. Have you ever thought about getting married?"

"Married?"

"Yes."

"Arystar Krory! Are you... are you asking me to marry you?"

"Er, well... that depends."

"On what?"

"It depends on whether or not you want me to. If you do not, I will not ask. But if you do... then yes, I am asking you." His cheeks flamed with embarrassment at her intense gaze. "So, what is your wish?"

Her response was to throw her arms around him. "Oh, darling, if you're asking, I'm saying yes!"

And now, here he was, eight months later, contentedly married to her, and eagerly anticipating the birth of their baby. Their wedding had taken place not much more than a month after their engagement had been announced, because the Vatican's Holy See had almost demanded that the marriage be conducted in Saint Peter's Basilica, because this was a marriage of two Exorcists of the Black Order. Komui Lee, the Chief Supervisor, had advised them to do it before Miranda's pregnancy began to show.

Only a few of them had gone to Vatican City -- Allen Walker had gone as the supervising gensui, and Komui and his sister Lenalee had come on behalf of the rest of the Order. Lavi wasn't welcome in Vatican City due to an event that had happened ten years ago -- when he'd attacked the Pope, even though he hadn't been in his right mind at the time -- so he stayed behind and helped keep the Order running in the others' absence. Also, Lavi had pointed out that if the Vatican became aware of the homosexual nature his relationship with Allen, things would likely get really sticky. They had been lucky enough to escape notice the last time the two of them had been in the Vatican; they didn't think they'd be so lucky a second time. So, Krory and Miranda had gone with the other three down to Rome, and had had their marriage performed and ratified in the Vatican's great cathedral. It had been a quick procedure, because the supernatural barrier that surrounded Vatican City still affected Krory, making breathing difficult for him.

Immediately upon returning from Vatican City, Krory had been assigned on a mission with Lavi, and the two of them had both gotten badly hurt. They had come up against a pair of Noah, who had worked them both over pretty badly. Especially since one of those Noah had been none other than Road Kamelot, the First Noah herself, who was basically indestructible, and had already tormented Lavi more than once in his life. They probably both would have died had Allen not shown up via the Ark, with Kanda Yuu right on his heels, after receiving a tip that there were Noah in the vicinity. Between the two of them, Allen and Kanda had managed to destroy the other Noah, but again were unable to deal a debilitating blow to Road.

Krory still wasn't sure if Allen held it against him that Lavi had gotten so badly hurt. It wasn't like Allen to hold a grudge against any of his own nakama, but Lavi had been very near death; they'd had to bring through the Ark the Healing Exorcist (as she was now called a lot; her Innocence enabled her to heal blood-related injuries in Exorcists) Catherine Beauchamp from the Order headquarters just to stabilize Lavi enough to transport him home. Even now, six months later, he was still out of action because of his injuries. It really hadn't been anyone's fault it had happened, but Krory still blamed himself for letting Lavi get hurt like that. And Allen had been quite angry at first, though Miranda had insisted that she believed Allen was angrier at himself than at Krory.

The baron shook his head at such unpleasant memories, bringing himself abruptly back to the domesticity of the present. That painful memory was a good six or more months in the past; if Allen still held it against Krory, there wasn't much he could do. If Allen was still angry, he'd have to get over it on his own.

Miranda finally finished her business and started to get up; he moved over next to her and gave her some support, then scooped her up and carried her back to the bed.

"Thank you, darling," she murmured as he settled her back onto the bed. "You're so good to me."

"I try to be," he replied, curling up with her, resting his hands on the bulge of her belly, feeling the unborn baby inside moving around, kicking occasionally. "Now sleep, my dearest. You need your rest."

She snuggled against him, sighing with contentment, and some ennui (because she was really tired of being pregnant).

"I love you, Miranda," he added as they both drifted off.

"Lavi, I can't believe you told him that." Allen Walker grumbled. "You basically lied to him, you know."

"Huh?" Lavi blinked. The two of them had been lovers for over ten years, pushing on eleven, but every now and then they didn't connect on the same page. "Told who what?"

"Peter."

"Told him what?"

"That babies come from God."

Lavi blinked again, and then glanced over his shoulder at where their adoptive children Mandy and Peter were sitting on the floor of the apartment, playing with a puzzle. "What, are you trying to tell me that they don't? Peter and Mandy came to us by God's grace, didn't they?"

"Lavi, you know that's not how biology works!" Allen hissed.

"Relax, Allen, good grief. You want to tell the kids about the birds and the bees? You don't think they're a bit young for that?"

"Well..."

"My point exactly. Just let it slide. They'll figure it out soon enough. Let's just enjoy their innocence for now."

"Hmm, I guess you're right." Allen glanced up at the calendar. "I wonder why Miranda's so late. She was due a day or two ago, and I could have sworn that Catherine said that most babies are born earlier than their due dates."

Lavi shrugged; "Dunno. But no one's too worried about it. I remember Jiiji telling me that it's better for the baby to be late than early, because the lungs are the last thing to develop. Dunno if he was right or not, but I'm going to assume he was."

"What on earth would make you talk about that with him?" Allen's jaw dropped.

"You'd be surprised what Jiiji and I would talk about while traveling, especially as I got older. When I reached my majority, he told me some really interesting things." Lavi grinned at his lover. "I'll remind you that while I never got to practice it, I have a pretty good idea how to give a woman an orgasm."

"I didn't want to hear that!" Allen said abruptly, covering his ears. "I'm not listening! Stop saying those kinds of words!"

"Careful, Allen," Lavi said with a chuckle, glancing back at the kids again. "You got their attention now."

"Daddy?" Mandy was looking at them. "Is something wrong?"

"Your Papa is being disgusting," Allen said with a snort. "You know how he loves to gross me out."

"You asked." Lavi shrugged. "And what's so disgusting about it anyway?"

"I didn't ask about that! And it's disgusting because I say it's disgusting."

"You're entirely too prudish about the wrong things, Allen," Lavi chuckled.

The wireless golem that hovered near the doorway suddenly came alive; "Walker-gensui, you are being summoned."

"Why me? Isn't Kanda-gensui in the building?"

"I don't know," the voice of the dispatcher said. "But you were specifically requested."

"Very well." Allen set aside the research results he was looking over and stood up.

Lavi caught his hand. "Don't leave without letting us know you're leaving. If you're assigned away, stop by here before you go."

"I will, don't worry." Allen squeezed his lover's hand reassuringly. "It could be something as simple as a disciplinary action. Kanda's not very good at that kind of thing, after all."

"Now, now, Allen, don't be so hard on Yuu."

"Deny it, Lavi!" Allen challenged with a laugh as he grabbed up his greatcoat. "Defend Kanda! I dare you! Kanda sucks at the menial tasks. You know it's true. He's a great Exorcist, but his greatness ends when the Noah and Akuma are gone."

"You got me there, Allen." The redhead grinned as he scratched at his hair in sheepishness. "You're just so hard on him sometimes."

Allen swung the coat on, buttoning it up quickly. Then he paused beside Lavi and gave him a tender, loving kiss. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

As the gensui left, Lavi resumed working on the records he was consolidating. He could hear the kids talking to each other, trying to assemble the puzzle. He indulged himself in a little smile of pride: those kids were so damned smart! Considering that neither of them was even seven years old yet (though Mandy's birthday, as deduced by Allen and Catherine shortly after she was brought to the Order, was only a couple of weeks away, and Peter's birthday was guessed to be about a month after that) the fact that they could handle complex puzzles, especially if they worked together, was quite astounding.

He then allowed himself to get fully absorbed in his work. As such, he lost track of time until a tug at his sleeve brought him out of his trance. Mandy and Peter were standing beside his chair, their faces fixed in mournful expressions of pleading.

"Papa... we're hungry."

"Okay." He glanced over at where they'd been sitting with their puzzle. "You kids pick up after yourselves while I finish this last piece here, and then we'll go down to the cafeteria."

Making a notation in the volume he was working on, he flagged it with a bookmark and closed the tome. Then he stretched his arms over his head and yawned. His back screamed in protest as he stretched, making him silently curse Road Kamelot for the umpteenth time. Structurally he was sound as a pound-sterling. But he still had stamina issues and inexplicably his blood-pressure would skyrocket in a mock fight. Catherine had deduced that there was still some damage to his circulatory system and that he was at risk in a real fight. Thus, he was still on leave of absence from active duty, and therefore spent his time working on updating old records. His training as a bookman came in handy here.

By the time he was on his feet, the two kids were swarming around him, eager to go eat. Lavi grabbed a spare sheet of paper and scribbled a quick note for Allen, in case he came back while they were away and wondered where they'd gone. Then, scooping the two children up into his arms, he stepped out of the apartment and started toward the elevator. No sooner had he gotten to the elevator than the door to the stairwell, located about three meters from the elevator itself, opened, revealing Allen.

"Eh?" The gensui blinked. "Where are you guys going?"

"They're hungry."

Allen blinked again and pulled his pocket-watch out; "Wow, it is lunchtime already! No wonder I'm hungry!"

"You're always hungry, Allen, so don't give me that!"

Allen plucked Mandy from Lavi's arms, settling her onto his hip. "I assume you won't mind if I join you."

"I couldn't stop you if I'd wanted to," Lavi retorted, sticking his tongue out. "So, no, I don't mind. I know better than to get between you and food." He folded his hand around Allen's, lacing their fingers. As the elevator arrived and they stepped on, he squeezed his lover's hand gently. "So you didn't get assigned on a mission?"

"No, that was a disciplinary issue, like I thought. The fact that the summons was so vague kind of gave me a heads-up on it. Rather unpleasant too -- they were disciplining Kanda and I!"

"Huh? Why?"

"It's that Noah we took out about a half-year ago. Someone in the Vatican has gotten into their heads that we shouldn't have killed him, that we should have captured him so they could interrogate him."

"Gah! The accursed Vatican again!"

"Yeah. But it's okay, I just let Kanda do the talking. It's amazing how much fun to watch he can be when he gets really cheesed off."

"Well, we know that Yuu doesn't suffer fools willingly!" Lavi grinned. "And I love it when you throw those weird British turns-of-phrase into your speech, Allen."

"Huh? Oh," the white-haired gensui chuckled, "well, you know, it's not very professional of me to talk like you and Kanda do, and I shouldn't use that kind of language around children anyway."

The elevator jostled a bit as its gears switched to a higher speed of descent. Mandy shivered and wrapped her arms around Allen's neck in fear. Allen patted his daughter reassuringly, rubbing her back gently. Lavi unholstered his hammer, activated it, and braced it against his shoulder, as a silent assurance to the kids that no matter what happened, he was prepared to protect them. He knew that they both disliked the elevator, but the stairs were too long and winding for the kids at this time. This building was extremely tall, and the stairs didn't connect from the base floor all the way up. They only connected a few levels at a time, before one had to walk around to another stairwell to get to the next levels.

As they arrived at the cafeteria, Allen set Mandy down and took her hand. Lavi twirled his hammer back into its holster and then put Peter down. "Allen, why don't you go order? We'll get a table. I spy with my little eye a Kro-chan and a Catherine. C'mon, rugrats, let's go see what kinds of mischief we can get into!"

Allen watched them go, making note of where they went, and noticing that Lavi's gait was a bit choppy, uncoordinated. Lavi normally had cat-like agility, despite his tendency to seem a bit clumsy; that clumsiness was an act, meant to make him seem harmless. In reality, Lavi was probably the best physical fighter in the entire Black Order, especially with his bare hands. Allen was convinced that in an equal fight, with just hands and feet -- no weapons -- that Lavi could even outfight Kanda. So for him to seem off his patterns was unusual, and Allen resolved to ask him about it later.

"Waaaaaaaaaalker-saaaaaaaaan!" Jerry, the Order's head cook, caroled happily upon seeing Allen. He leaned through the order window; "What can I get for you?"

Lavi and the kids arrived at their chosen table, which was right next to the one that Arystar Krory was sitting at with Catherine Beauchamp, the woman hailed as the Healing Exorcist and a close friend of Krory's wife Miranda. In fact, Krory and Miranda were part of what kept Catherine motivated and going during this difficult time of her life; she was recently widowed, after trying desperately for years to slow her husband's acute leukemia, and failing in the end. It was helping her maintain focus to have a friend who needed her help; as a nurse trained in midwifery, Catherine was helping Miranda manage her pregnancy, and was prepared to deliver the baby when the time came.

"How now, Kro-chan? Shouldn't you be at your wife's side?"

"Nice," Krory said with a grimace. "Please do not remind me, nor criticize me."

"A man needs to eat once in a while, Lavi-san," Catherine said with a smile as she took a pull at the coffee in her hand. "Especially a parasitic conformer. You should know this; you live with one, and a voracious one at that."

"Yeah, yeah. I won't deny that Allen's appetite still bewilders and amazes me." Lavi helped the kids to sit down in their chairs and then pulled himself up to the table. "So, how's Miranda?"

"No sign of labor yet," the nurse said evenly. "I think she's started having minor contractions, but that usually happens well before labor."

"So how much longer do you figure she's got?"

Catherine eyed him balefully; "She's not going to die, I'll remind you."

"Er..." Lavi blinked in confusion. "Didn't mean it that way. I meant, how much longer has she got, do you think, until she delivers?"

"A couple of days, I'd guess. But it could be a few hours too, though I doubt it'll be that quick. She could start labor at any time, but at her age, for a first pregnancy, it usually is a long labor before delivery." The nurse put her cup down and narrowed her eyes. "Lavi-san, you look a bit paler than normal. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine and dandy. Never been better."

"Which could mean anything," Krory said. "You are almost as bad as Allen when it comes to covering up how you really feel."

Allen arrived then, carrying a few plates of appetizers to tide them over until Jerry finished with their food.

"Good afternoon, Walker-gensui," Catherine said as she resumed her coffee. "We might have to go forward with that idea I broached to you a few days ago. Lavi-san doesn't look very good, in my opinion. He's paler, his eyes are glazed, and his balance is off. He walked into a couple of chairs coming over here."

"Shit, you were watching that closely?!" Lavi's jaw dropped. "And what idea are you talking about?"

"I may have a way to fix the systemic damage your circulatory system took. But it's risky, which is why Walker-gensui isn't keen on it." Catherine was automatically using Allen's last name and title instead of his first name, out of respect for his position. Allen had tried several times to convince her that he didn't mind the platonic intimacy of her just calling him "Allen," but she seemed to remain somewhat distant from him, as if she felt she shouldn't hobnob too much with a gensui.

Allen gnashed his teeth. "I just don't like the idea of blood transfusions involving parasitic-type blood into a non-parasitic conformer. It just seems to me like you're asking for trouble; who's to say my Innocence will react benignly to him?"

"I don't intend to take any of your Innocence, Walker-gensui. I believe the highest concentration of that is in your arm, am I right? I only want the blood that has healing properties triggered by Innocence. My Innocence will do the rest."

Allen made a face. "And how do you plan to extract the Innocence from my blood once you've drawn it?"

"I have a centrifuge; Komui-san's team built one for me. Might need you to invoke and call it back too. Look, I won't be doing a full-system blood replenishment! Just a tiny bit of hemoglobin from you, and little bit of plasma from Krory-san, and it should be more than enough."

"She has already gotten some of my plasma, by the way," Krory added. Lavi just scritched at his scalp in frustration.

Allen was just finishing off his appetizers when Jerry's assistants arrived with their orders. The family tucked in to their meals, though Allen kept an eye on Lavi, noticing his much-adored lover was somewhat uninterested in his food. Lavi had never been as enthusiastic about food as Allen was, of course, but he had a healthy appetite, since he was a high-energy person who needed a lot of fuel and a lot of rest. Catherine was eyeing the redhead as well, and her expression was growing more and more dour by the minute.

"Lavi-san, are you sure you're all right? Because you definitely don't look it."

"I'm fine, geez. You worrywarts!"

"Lavi," Allen said calmly, "can you blame me for worrying? I nearly lost you half a year ago. And you're still not back to normal from it."

"Stop that, Allen." Lavi pointed his fork at his long-time beloved. "That's not fair. I'll remind you that that was Road Kamelot I went toe-to-toe with! She's never an easy opponent, especially when she's trying like hell to mind-fuck you!"

"LAVI!" Allen said sharply. "Watch your language!"

"Sorry, sorry, but you know what I mean."

"I do, but I'll remind you that we're not to use that kind of language."

"Bloody Road Kamelot," Lavi said, making a savage stab at a meatball with his fork. "She got me that first time, and nearly broke me. I had Jiiji drill me after that so that I don't ever get caught again by that ability of hers, but she's got more than one trump card."

Krory stood up; "I am going back to Miranda now. Catherine, you will be reachable, correct?"

"Of course; you know where to find me. Just don't do anything to startle or scare her -- that could feasibly trigger early labor, and I'd rather everything happened naturally for her."

"Understood." The baron took his leave and exited the cafeteria quickly. In his absence, Lenalee Lee popped up to take his place at the table, happily chatting up her nakama. Allen kept a surreptitious eye on Lavi, feeling more and more unsettled as the minutes wore on.

Things spiked when Lavi put down his silverware and pushed his chair back. "Is it just me, or is it really stuffy in here? It's almost... it's almost hard to breathe."

Catherine moved with lightning speed, seizing the redhead by the arm and hauling him out of the chair. "Allen!" She turned to the gensui urgently, eschewing politeness. "Come with me! We've run out of time!"

"Now wait just one cotton-picking minute!" Lavi protested, pulling himself free. "What the hell is the matter? I just said that the atmosphere feels oppressive."

"Who's the nurse here, Lavi?" Allen said, standing up as calmly as he could, so as not to alarm Peter and Mandy any further than they were already alarmed. "Lenalee, can I trouble you to look after the kids a bit?"

"It's no trouble at all," Lenalee said with a carefree tone, though her concern was pretty obvious in her eyes. She put her arms around the kids and shooed Allen. "Go on, Allen-kun."

"Why are you all panicking?" Lavi complained.

"I've been watching you," Catherine retorted. "You're starting to show signs of extensive, significant systemic damage now. If we don't get this fixed now, you will be at risk of stroke or cardiac arrest, a risk that will increase as your system starts to fail. I'm not about to let someone else die of blood disease, damn you!"

She dragged him up a couple of flights of stairs to the floor that had her medical room. He struggled against it, but with Allen behind him, he couldn't fight much.

The next thing he knew, he was forced into a chair in the medical suite. "Now just a minute!"

"Restrain him, if you please, Walker-gensui," Catherine said coldly to Allen, going to a cabinet and pulling some syringes and a set of IV equipment from it. Allen, who had positioned himself behind the chair, placed his hands firmly on Lavi's shoulders, keeping him seated.

"I'm sorry, Lavi," he said softly to his lover. "But I'm worried about you, and even though I don't like the sound of this procedure, I trust Catherine. I've been watching you for months, but this is the first time I've seen behavior from you that I would have to qualify as alarming, and considering what internal system took the hit... can you blame me?"

"No, I can't say as I blame you, but damn. This kidnapping business, and scaring the kids? Not cute."

"I know," Allen said gently, dropping a kiss into Lavi's unruly russet hair. "Look, when this is over, maybe we can take some time to ourselves. I imagine we can convince Lenalee or Komui-san to look after the kids for an hour or so."

"Yeah," the redhead retorted sourly, "like I'm going to be in the mood for sex, Allen. Are you kidding?"

"Give me a break, Lavi," the gensui chuckled, dropping his voice to a husky timbre, "when are you ever not in the mood for it if I initiate it?"

"I'm ignoring you, Allen," Lavi said somewhat loudly. "Stop saying words."

Catherine came back from preparing the centrifuge, and without saying a word, she drew a couple of vials of blood from Allen and then disappeared again into the workroom with the centrifuge. Allen draped himself over the back of the chair that Lavi was sitting in, taking this time to enjoy some privacy with his lover, even if it was a false sense of privacy. Catherine didn't seem to mind the outward displays of affection between the two of them, so it wasn't like he was afraid of offending her. He kept the level of intimacy down to a manageable level -- there was a limit to Catherine's ataraxia, after all. There was no sense trying to get too frisky. But his romantic relationship with Lavi had always been a very touch-oriented one (actually, so had their friendship to some degree, prior to falling in love; he couldn't think of any other friend, other than Lenalee, who had been as open with physical contact), and he saw no reason to limit contact more than necessary.

For his part, Lavi relaxed a bit when Allen started to get more intimate. He closed his eyes and rested his head against the back of the chair, taking the opportunity to enjoy Allen's distinctive scent as he did so. It certainly beat the starchy, pristine smell of this jumped-up laboratory.

"Say, Allen," he said after a lengthily silence, "have you ever thought about getting married?"

There was an awkward silence between them as Allen froze. Then he loosened up a bit. "Believe me, Lavi, if it were possible, I'd have married you years ago. It's just not possible."

"That wasn't quite what I meant, but yeah, I get your drift. Never mind. Forget it. Silly idea."

"I'm serious, Lavi. If it were at all possible, I would have. But we can't go public with our relationship, and you know that. Most everyone in the Order knows about us, but... we can't risk the Vatican finding out."

Catherine emerged again, carrying a number of syringes in her hands, and her Innocence bottle in her apron. She handed the bottle to Allen; it was larger than it normally was for invocation. "Please do me a favor and fill that with water while I set up the IVs."

Allen did as asked, though his gut started to twist with disquiet. Something was really, really wrong. That metallic taste in the corner of his mouth was a harbinger of bad news every time it cropped up.

With practiced ease, Catherine set up the IVs, and then began feeding the syringes of blood and plasma slowly into the IV tubes. "Tell me if anything feels wrong, Lavi-san. We'll head off any reactions at the pass. I've tested this technique on myself, so I don't think there will be any problems, but you never know."

Just then, there was a sharp searing noise, and then the door to the medical suite caved in. Before anyone had a chance to say anything, Lenalee came charging in, her Dark Boots active on her legs, with Peter and Mandy cradled in her arms. Hard on her heels was Kanda Yuu, his Innocence sword Mugen drawn and activated. Kanda halted in the doorway and stood like a barrier.

"What the hell?" Lavi blurted out.

"We're under attack," Kanda said tersely. "Beansprout, I hope you're ready to earn your keep."

"Under attack?!"

"Road Kamelot showed up in the middle of the cafeteria," Lenalee said, trying to keep her voice as calm as possible. "Apparently the Order's barriers are nothing to her. It was all I could do to get the kids out of there safely. We need to fight them off."

"Beansprout, you and I are the only gensui in the building at this time. I hope you can keep up with me this time."

Allen handed the Innocence bottle back to Catherine and said firmly; "Lavi, you are to stay here."

"Hey now wait--"

"That's an order," Allen said severely. "Who's going to protect the kids and Catherine?" He seized Lavi by the collar and pulled him close so that he couldn't divert his attention. "I'm depending on you to keep our kids safe, Lavi. I can't defend the Order and look after them at the same time, and neither can you. You're going to have to be the last line of defense for this room."

"Don't be stupid, you goddamn rabbit," Kanda said acridly. "You're not up to the level of fighting that crazy Noah right now. Don't throw your life away because of your pride. Dumbass."

"What about Miranda?" Catherine's eyes widened as the full effect of what was happening started to sink in. "There's no way she's in any condition to deal with any of this!"

"I'll use the Ark to bring her down here. That's the fastest way, and she'll be safest with you." Over the past ten years, Allen had perfected a silent technique of opening and directing the great Ark. Without saying a word, he activated his Innocence, threw open a portal to the Ark, and disappeared through it.

Catherine shook herself out of the stupor and activated her Innocence bottle, handing it to Lavi; "Drink all of that. It should start working immediately. You won't be a hundred percent right away, but it should stop the deterioration of your circulatory system, and start to rebuild it."

Lenalee was consoling the children, who were clearly badly frightened. Lavi swigged down as much of the water as he could get down in a gulp, and then repeated until he had drained the bottle. Handing it back to Catherine, he plucked the IVs from his arm, and, heedless of the blood welling from the needle-holes, he gathered his children into his arms and held them against him. "Go ahead, Lenalee. The Order needs you. I'll take care of them. They are my kids, after all."

A portal opened in the ceiling and Allen dropped through from the Ark, followed by Krory, who was holding Miranda in his arms. Miranda, for her part, looked like she was in agony. Her dress was stained with fresh blood and fluids. Her condition was pretty obvious.

Catherine uttered a coarse expletive, something she rarely did. "When did this happen?!"

"A little while ago," Miranda wheezed. "I'm sorry, Catherine. It just happened so suddenly!" She then bit back a scream.

Catherine assisted Krory in moving Miranda to a chair. "Damn. I'm not really prepared for this. And now's definitely not a great time for this. Miranda, you have the worst timing, I swear!"

Krory gave his wife's shoulders a squeeze. "I want to stay with you, dearest, but..."

"Go, darling," Miranda said through teeth clenched in pain. "You have an obligation to the Order. And anyway, what kind of home would it be for our baby if the Order falls? I'll be fine, Arystar." She gave him a brave smile; "I trust Catherine."

"I know. So do I. With any luck, I will not be long." The Romanian then took his leave, activating his feral Innocence as he charged through the broken doorway. Allen and Lenalee followed hard on his heels. Kanda was already long gone.

"I really wish Kanda-san hadn't broken the door like that," Catherine muttered. "It's not like it was even locked."

Lavi pulled Oudzuchi Kodzuchi from its holster and activated it. Increasing its size, he fit it into the broken doorway, effectively blocking it off entirely. "There. Now the Noah can't get through without a hell of a lot of trouble." He braced its lengthened handle against the wall and let go, giving the hammer a silent command to hold its form, no matter what happened to his concentration. "Is there anything I can do to help you, Catherine? I do have some medical training, archaic though it may be."

"I need that bed over there stripped and then dressed with sterile sheets," Catherine said, pointing to a small multi-purpose hospital bed. "Not exactly sure how this is going to progress; it depends on how long her labor lasts. Miranda, I'm going to have to have a look at you, to see if you're dilated at all."

Lavi motioned to both of the kids to come with him. "Help me with this, okay?"

"Papa, I'm scared," Peter whimpered.

"Is Daddy going to be okay?" Mandy's eyes were huge with distress.

"He is going to be just fine. Trust me. When he gets that look on his eye, there's no one in the world stronger than your Daddy. Not even your ol' Papa. Now come help me with this bedding."

While they worked on changing the bedding -- and he kept the kids active in it, in an attempt to distract them from the gravity of the situation -- Lavi kept his ears tuned to Miranda and Catherine; Miranda was valiantly trying to swallow her cries of pain as her entire body seemed to be wracked with contractions.

"Well, you've got a ways to go yet," Catherine said finally after finishing her examination. "Still, there's no telling how long this will take. It could take up to twenty-four hours -- if not more! -- or it could all be over in less than an hour."

Miranda pressed on her great belly. "Oh god, I hope it's over soon. This... this is way worse than I was expecting."

"Well, we don't want to rush anything."

"Bed's ready," Lavi said, patting down the sheets. While Peter and Mandy stood off to the side, huddled together, Lavi went over to Miranda and helped her to her feet, guiding her to the bed and giving her a boost into it.

Catherine wearily wiped her brow with her sleeve even as the sounds of fighting outside in the main part of the building resonated through the walls. "This is going to be a long day."

Minutes dissolved into hours, and the fighting still raged on outside the door. Inside the medical suite, a different kind of struggle was going on. Miranda's labor was progressing steadily, but being cooped up in a small room with a laboring woman and two small children, while the entire Order was fighting just beyond the walls, was making Lavi really short-tempered and fidgety. He could feel his body steadily repairing itself thanks to the infusions of blood and Innocence. He hadn't realized just how run-down he was until now. And here he was, stuck on idle while everything else went to hell around him.

However, after at least three hours of idleness, Lavi was abruptly presented with an opportunity to test his newfound strength, when the wall next to the broken-but-blocked doorway suddenly shuddered, cracked, and then crumbled, revealing a gray-skinned figure of a woman with the distinctive crown-of-thorns stigmata spanning her brow. A Noah. Lavi's brain ground to a halt in utter disbelief. How did she manage to get here like that? (Never mind the obvious answer: she was a Noah. Normal attacks were useless against them.)

Shoving the children back into a corner, he grabbed Oudzuchi Kodzuchi's handle and swung the hammer at the Noah. "Maruhi! Gouka Kaijin: Hi--" He didn't get a chance to finish the attack, nor hit the seal, because the Noah launched herself at him, body-slamming him against the far wall; she hit his abdomen just right that the wind was knocked out of him, slowing his reactions instantly. She then grasped his throat with both hands and squeezed. All this was conducted in absolute speechless, almost eerie silence.

Then Mandy screamed in terror as it registered to her and Peter what was happening. "PAPA!"

"Oh no you don't, you Noah sleaze!" Catherine roared, lunging at the Noah and plunging a scalpel into the woman's neck.

The Noah smirked and turned icy golden eyes to the nurse; "Did you really think such a pitiful object could hurt me?"

Catherine smirked and twisted the blade in the wound; "Actually, it can." She then unstoppered her Innocence bottle and splashed the wound with the water. Then she wrenched the scalpel out and shouted. "Innocence, Level Two, Activate!"

The Noah blinked in confusion, as the water splashed against the wound illuminated... and then suddenly the woman went into convulsions. "What... did you..." She fell to her knees, gasping for breath and clawing at the hole in her neck.

"Your one weakness: Innocence. And you just got the mother load of it. Now get the hell out of my office! Go die in the gutters like a cur!" With a remarkably agile maneuver, Catherine then kicked the Noah in the face and sent her sprawling across her back on the floor.

Lenalee appeared in the hole in the wall, looking concerned; "Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah," Catherine said with a bit of a growl. "But get rid of that offal." She pointed at the motionless Noah. "I'll not have that kind of filth in my medical room."

Lenalee grimaced and delivered a kick to the Noah's head to knock her unconscious, then dragged her out of the room.

"Jesus Christ, Catherine, I had no idea you had that kind of move in you!" Lavi sputtered, finally getting his breath back. "And here you told me your Innocence is supportive only."

"That was a one-time thing. I wasn't sure it would work, but I had to try it." The nurse was breathing heavily; as the adrenaline wore off, it was clear that she was more frightened than she'd let on. She was trembling. "It works on Akuma, but Noah are different, obviously."

"That damned Noah caught me completely off guard. I was so worried about her darting sideways and hitting one of the others, I didn't guard myself properly. I left myself wide open."

A moan from Miranda brought them both back to the present predicament. Lavi picked up Oudzuchi Kodzuchi, increased its size again, and tried to wedge it into the hole in the wall now, as well as trying to blockade the broken door.

"Well, dammit," Catherine said. "Looks like delivery is imminent. Miranda, are you feeling in any overwhelming urges to push yet?"

"N-no, n-not yet."

"Good, we still have some time."

Lavi crouched down beside Peter and Mandy, gathering them into his arms and comforting them.

"I'm sorry," was all he could say. He didn't even know exactly what he was apologizing for, since he'd done what he had to in order to protect them, but he felt like he should apologize for them being so frightened.

Both children flung their arms around him and proceeded to cling like burrs to him.

What the hell? After all this time, I still can't handle a Noah? This is getting embarrassing.

Allen wearily pulled his mask down and surveyed with growing dismay the extensive damage to the building. There was one Noah unaccounted-for, but other than that, the fight was basically won. Road Kamelot and Lulubell had been forced into retreat (it hadn't taken much with Lulubell -- she was highly unusual for a Noah in that she did not appear to like confrontation). A third Noah, also a woman, had accompanied them, and had gone missing in the fight.

"Is it over?"

Allen glanced over at the speaker, a recent Exorcist from Spain by the name of Orlando. "Not until we find that other Noah."

"We caught her, Allen-kun," Lenalee called as she came over; Noise Marie trailed behind her.

"'Caught' her?"

Lenalee gestured to Marie, or more accurately, to the limp form that was slung over his shoulder, bound by the wires of his Innocence, Noel Organon.. "She attacked the medical room; looks like she tangled with both Catherine and Lavi, and judging from the wound on her neck, it wasn't Lavi who brought her down."

Allen felt his blood go cold instantly.

"They're fine," Lenalee said quickly. "Lavi just got separated from his hammer, from what I could see. I don't know what happened, but when I go there, this Noah was on the floor, not moving, Lavi was apparently recovering from having the wind knocked out of him, and Catherine was standing over the Noah holding what looked like a form of surgical knife. And there's what looks like a knife-wound in the Noah's neck."

"Do we even know this person's name?" Marie inquired.

"Does it matter?" Kanda spat. "Put her down and I'll finish her."

"Wait a minute, Kanda!" Allen interjected. "You and I just got our arses reamed for not capturing the last Noah we managed to bring down. Maybe they'll back off of us if we can hand her over to the Vatican."

"Fuck the Vatican," the Japanese swordsman retorted. "Haven't we already established that even the Vatican isn't safe from Road Kamelot and the Earl?"

Allen looked pained. "She's a human, Kanda."

"She's a Noah." For anyone else, Kanda wouldn't have bothered to argue the matter, but Allen outranked him, at least unofficially, and frankly, Allen was probably the only person who could really goad Kanda into a verbal argument.

"The Noah are humans!"

"Shut up, beansprout, and get the hell out of my way. Don't you have family you should be checking on?"

Allen glared at him. "That's not fair." Still, he cast a furtive glance in the direction of the medical suite, unable to completely quell his apprehension that something had happened to Lavi or the children.

The Japanese gensui drew his sword; "Get lost, beansprout. You've outlasted your usefulness for now."

Despite his best intentions, Allen's concern for his lover and his kids won out. Throwing Kanda a final glare, he turned and made haste for the medical room. His anxiety increased as he saw the level of damage to the suite, though it was a bit ameliorated when he spied Oudzuchi Kodzuchi visible in the gap, blocking it.

"Lavi!" He yelled. "Are you okay?"

"Is it over?" His lover replied.

"Yeah, it's over. The building is in really bad shape, but we managed to drive them out. Move your hammer so I can get through, dammit! Are the kids okay? How's Miranda?"

The hammer disappeared from the gaping hole in the wall and Allen forced his way through, to come upon something rather... astonishing.

Miranda was propped up on the foot of a bed in the room, with Lavi supporting her from behind; Catherine was in front of Miranda, and from the position Miranda was in, combined with the noises of straining coming from her, it was pretty obvious what was happening. For a very long moment Allen just stared in abject, almost morbid curiosity, before his prudence got the better of him and he turned away.

"Don't stand there like an idiot, gaping -- pitch in and help!" Catherine said harshly.

"Help?" Allen turned back, looking at Lavi to see if he could get any response from him. "How can I help?"

"I need a pan of warm water and some towels." The nurse's attention switched on the fly; "Come on, Miranda, bear down a little more. It's crowning -- keep it going. This is the hardest part right here, so just bite down and bear with it, it'll be over soon. Allen, are you going to help me or not?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Allen said, smarting to attention and forgetting his rank in his flustered momentary skittishness. He hurried to fulfill her request, trying to shut out Miranda's moans and cries of pain and exhaustion.

How can Lavi be so calm? He thought, glancing over at his lover, who was gently talking Miranda through the whole thing, as if trying to keep her calm and focused. He also seemed to understand when Miranda needed to shift position, and moved her with ease. I know he had some medical training from the old Bookman, but... obstetrics doesn't sound like something a historian would bother with!

Still, the fact that both Catherine and Lavi were remaining absolutely calm was helping to keep Miranda from panicking, which was good, since that was one think Miranda unfortunately did very well.

Allen felt a tug on his coat, and glanced down to see Mandy and Peter clustered beside him. "Daddy?" Mandy tugged again on his coat.

"Oh, my sweethearts, are you two okay?" Allen paused and put his arms around both children.

"Sometime this century, Allen!" Lavi said sharply, indicating the items Catherine had requested. "This baby isn't waiting around!"

Allen squeezed both children apologetically and resumed filling the pan with water. "Get the towels for me, okay?"

By the time all the materials were brought to Catherine, the delivery was very nearly done. Catherine was coaching Miranda to bear down one more time.

"Come on, Miranda, you're almost done! Just one more big push should do it. That's it, bear down, that's it, thaaaaaaat's it! There we go!" The nurse pulled a bloody, squirming red mass away from the bed. The room feel eerily silent for a few seconds as Miranda went limp with exhaustion, leaning against Lavi and panting with the effort. Then the entire room was filled with the angry squall of the newborn.

Allen, who had never really considered the actual mechanics of childbirth, just stared in absolute fascination. Even his normal polite nature and attention to manners couldn't deter his curiosity. Catherine severed the umbilical cord and then gently cleaned the blood and fluids off the tiny body with a towel that she dipped in the pan of water. Then she swaddled the newborn in another towel and stood up, looking at Miranda. "You did great, Miranda. Your baby is quite healthy, at least as far as I can tell from a preliminary examination. I'll give you both a thorough examination a little later, but first, I'm sure you'd like to hold your baby." She smiled as Miranda tiredly held her arms out; she gently laid the bundle into the new mother's arms. "You'll also need to give her a name, I might add."

She turned a little. "Allen -- er -- Walker-gensui, perhaps you could go inform the father that he has a beautiful and healthy daughter? I'm sure he'll want to see her."

"It's a girl?" Allen said without thinking, still awestruck by what he'd just witnessed.

Catherine's mouth twisted into a wry smile; "Yes, it is a girl. That's what a daughter usually is, after all."

"Go get Kro-chan, Allen," Lavi said with a snicker. "I'm sure he wants to meet his daughter. And Catherine's not kidding. This little one is very beautiful."

Trying to shake the clouds of incredulity from his head, Allen turned and stepped through the gaping wall, casting around for the familiar visage of the Romanian baron.

"Krory!" He called when he spied him. Raising an arm, he waved until he had the baron's attention. "Come here!"

Krory was limping, having taken a bit of a blow to his left leg. He also looked completely worn out. His face was drawn and paler than normal, and the veins around his eyes were prominent. As he came over to Allen, it was pretty obvious that he had taken more damage than it appeared at first. He had probably tangled with either Lulubell or Road directly.

"I'm to tell you that you are now the proud father of a beautiful and healthy daughter," Allen said with a grin as he reached a hand out to steady the tired Romanian. The depth of Krory's exhaustion was immediately obvious, as it took a moment for Allen's words to even register, let alone sink in. When it did sink in, the baron's eyes grew huge.

"I have..." He swayed a bit on his feet. "I must see her."

"Of course. That's why they sent me to get you. Come on." Allen pulled Krory's arm across his shoulders to give him some support. "We should have Catherine take a look at you too. I don't think I've seen you this worn out and run down since we first got back from the Ark way back when."

"I am not as bad off now as I was then, Allen. Trust me."

The room was cleaned a bit and Miranda was apparently resting comfortably in the bed when Allen and Krory arrived. Catherine was perched on a stool at the foot of the bed, wearily filling in a medical chart. Lavi was cleaning up the medical equipment in the sink, with Mandy and Peter pretty much stuck to his legs like burrs.

"Wow, Krory-san, you look like hell. What'd you do, fight the Earl himself?" Catherine blinked as she took in the sight.

"Not exactly, no. Rather, the First Noah herself. And I will be damned if she did not get away without a scratch."

Catherine moved the stool over to the head of the bed, to allow him to sit down.

"Well, Arystar, darling, here she is," Miranda said softly, shifting the tiny bundle in her arms to show him. "What do you think?"

"She is almost as beautiful as you are, my dearest," Krory said just as softly. "She will be breaking hearts everywhere she goes. I am proud of you, Miranda. And I am in awe."

"She needs a name, darling," the new mother murmured. "I'm too tired to think straight, and besides, she is your daughter too."

"You did all the work, my dear."

Miranda shook her head.

"Are you sure, Miranda?" Krory laid a hand tentatively on the newborn's head. "Oh wow, she is so soft!"

"Mmm, yes. Please, darling, she needs a name."

"Well..." He stroked the newborn's cheek gently with a fingertip. There was a weighted silence in the room, and the thought of 'Please, don't name her Eliade' was almost palpable from Lavi and Allen. "My grandmother's name was Angela. I did not know her, but I do know that Grandfather adored her. Perhaps we should name our little girl Angela as well? Since she is our little angel..."

Allen sidled up to his lover; "Lavi, how did you manage to remain so calm?"

"Heh," the redhead chuckled, "I take it that's your first time seeing a woman give birth."

"How many have you been around?!"

"Miranda would be the third. The other two were years ago, back before I was 'Lavi.' Did you forget that as Bookman's successor, I was trained by Jiiji in all kinds of medicine?"

"Yeah but..."

"Say, Allen," Lavi interrupted, resuming his menial task. "Remember what I said earlier?"

"What?"

"About marriage. I meant traditional marriage, by the way."

"And I told you, that if it were possible, I would have -- "

"Again: not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?"

Lavi sighed. "Do you regret anything, Allen? Do you regret not settling down with a woman and having children of your own, from your own genetics? I don't mean that I think you're not happy now, but... does it ever occur to you what might have happened? Even just in passing?"

Allen pursed his lips in concentration, before answering solemnly. "The only regret I have is that I cannot seem to convince you that I have lost nothing. You are the one who gave something up to be with me. And we have children of our own, even if they aren't related by genetics to us. Do I need to remind you that I'm not related by blood to Mana?"

"I suppose. I just wonder sometimes, Allen. I can't help it. I still don't understand why I fell in love with you, or you with me."

"Who cares 'why' it happened? The fact is, it happened, and I don't regret it. Do you?"

"No." Lavi shook his head. "My only regret is disappointing Jiiji. I know he really did want me to succeed him. If there had been a way I could have succeeded him, I would have, but when I fell in love with you, I really couldn't anymore, even if I had given you up. So, really, I didn't give anything up, it was already out of my reach by the time I realized it was in jeopardy. So don't be hard on yourself, Allen."

"The one being hard on himself isn't me, Lavi," Allen pointed out. "You're the one questioning your own worth of my affections, when that's never been an issue. Besides, seeing how painful it must have been for Miranda to do that, I don't know that I could in good conscience put a woman I loved through something like that. I can't help but think that she'd hate me afterwards for making her go through all that."

"I dare you," Lavi said savagely, "to ask Miranda if she's holding it against Krory, if she hates him because that she had to 'go through all that' as you say. Did you hate me afterwards when you nearly died protecting me from those Level Threes that ripped a hole in your side? You're not an idiot, Allen, so stop talking like one."

Feeling unexpectedly vulnerable in the face of Lavi's sudden, inexplicable anger, Allen stepped up close behind his lover, threading his arms around his waist, and hugged him close. "I'm sorry, Lavi. I didn't mean to upset you. My point is that I have you, Mandy and Peter; that's more than enough for me. I don't need to think about what might have been." After a moment, he moved a bit, resting his chin on Lavi's shoulder; he dropped his arms from Lavi's waist to encircle the two children, who were still attached to their Papa's legs. "I've told you before, you're all I need. The three of you. I love you all, and I have no intentions of considering what my life might have been like without you."

The sound of footsteps in the rubble of the broken wall alerted Allen of the arrival of others, and he looked up to see Komui Lee gingerly stepping through the hole in the wall. Lenalee followed him. Both of them nodded respectfully to Allen and Lavi, but headed straight for Catherine.

"Well, Catherine, how do they look?" Komui inquired.

"I haven't given them a full examination yet, but so far so good. I really expected her to be in labor a lot longer than that, but I suppose the stress of the Order being attacked escalated things."

Komui nodded in acceptance of this and turned to Miranda; "How do you feel, Miranda?"

"I'm glad it's over, and that she's safe and healthy."

"Have you given her a name yet?"

Miranda looked at her husband, who was focused on the tiny baby. "Arystar suggested we name her Angela. I think it's a beautiful name."

"It is a beautiful name."

Catherine shifted a bit; "Lavi-san, how about you? How are you feeling? Is the procedure working?"

"Yeah," Lavi replied. "I don't know where you came up with it, but it's sheer genius. I haven't felt this good in a long time. I had no idea I was this run-down!"

"Ah, well, this is just the first step. I don't care how good you feel, either; I'm not kidding when I say you're far from healed. You're probably feeling a bit of an adrenaline rush. I'd advise you to go rest a while." She glanced at Allen; "I think the same can be said for you, Walker-gensui. You look really tired too."

"She's right, Allen-kun," Lenalee said gently. "You fought harder than any of the rest of us. You really should rest yourself."

"If the Vatican gives us more grief over the Noah," Komui said gravely, "I will take them on myself. Had I known that was why they wanted me to summon you, Allen-kun, I would have spared you that."

Allen waved a hand dismissively; "Bah. The Vatican doesn't really scare me. Besides, I got to watch Kanda go off on them. Talk about letting slip the dogs of war!" He picked up both kids. "But I think I'll take your advice and go rest a bit; I am unexpectedly tired."

"Well, that's what happens when you've been fighting nonstop for a good four hours," Lavi said pragmatically, plucking Peter from his arms.

"Make sure you both rest," Catherine said crossly as the family moved to pass through the broken wall.

When they had gone, she turned to Miranda and the newborn, shooing everyone else out of the room. "Time to give you both a thorough check over. You're still not done with this whole childbirth thing, you know, Miranda. You've still got afterbirth to pass. And you should be lactating here soon, so you can feed her."

Krory dropped a kiss on Miranda's forehead, and gently caressed the baby's cheek with a finger. "I will be waiting outside. I am proud of you, Miranda."

Fin.

Author's After-word: Considering this series started before the whole "Level Four" arc was completed in the manga, I chose to ignore that storyline completely very early in the series; however, you may remember that I had mentioned that the Black Order had been attacked, way back in the first story "Lost Reason" so that is what I'm referring to, rather than the Level Four fiasco.

Lame ending is lame, but I couldn't really think of anything less lame. I beg your forgiveness. I ran out of ideas. This fic has been an absolutel nightmare to finish because of frequent distractions and plot-twists tying themselves into knots. If anyone has any suggestions for a less-lame ending, I'm definitely open to suggestions.