"Yeah...it was a surprise to me too." Allen somehow manages to keep his tone diplomatic, not wanting to set them off. He smiles when Ozzie hugs him, resting a hand against those messy locks and ruffling before he pulls back.
But he very nearly loses it when the Earl scoops up both twins, and they hug him. They hug Mana's body, with Mana's face, that looks at him with barely disguised, gleeful cruelty. Something in his heart cracks, and Allen has to bite his tongue until the coppery taste of blood slicks across his tastebuds. He thinks he might burst into tears otherwise; seeing them where he once was in Mana's arms.
Allen smiles. Bland, kind, utterly disarming if one doesn't know the subtle cues in his body language. It's such a normal looking thing, but to Allen it feels like greasepaint smeared across his skin ─ hiding his true self from the audience that is the world. They shout at him to dance, and dance he shall. Like a marionette on strings.
"I see it." He nods, falling into step beside the other three. Hand clasped behind his back, head tilting ever so slightly. He cannot fully escape his true nature ─ mirror shine eyes glitter with mischief. "It was so nice of your Papa extend an invitation to eat, and to pay for me too!"
If nothing else, Allen can drain the Earl's wallet dry or watch him try to explain that no, he won't be paying for his hated enemy to the twins who would undoubtedly be upset on his behalf. Squirm and suffer, Millennium Earl.
Oh the Earl can see his little ploy, run his wallet dry and laugh after the fact. Sure, he had money. Plenty of it! Enough to buy more than one fancy mansion, no doubt. But it was the principle of the thing now. Paying for his enemy to eat his happy fill. His brow twitched, a sign of some annoyance that would normally be hidden by that ever-smiling suit.
But the twitch went just as quickly as it arrived, and the Earl gave a hearty laugh. “I don’t recall agreeing to pay for you… I just invited you to tag along.❤️” He figured that would be that, and Allen would be funding his own bill. But while Allen had accounted for the twins being upset with that… the Earl had not.
Sylas gasped oh so dramatically, and Ozzie pushed back a bit to look at their father. “But best cousin not have money!”
Sylas was quick to follow behind on his twin’s words. “Stinky drunk takes it all!”
“Stinky drunk…?❤️” The Earl muttered, before thoughts of Cross formed in his mind. Right. That old fool that Mana fancied. That made sense, he was a bit of a mooch even back then. Before he could ease his son’s worries, Ozzie had effectively wiggled out of his arm and padded back over to Allen. He dug in the pockets of his human form, and pulled out a little pouch that jingled. He held it up with both hands to his beloved cousin, a big smile on his little face.
“Best cousin have mine, don’t need! Cousin need more.” Well. This was irritating. Either the Earl let this happen, and be perceived as the dad who would let his son give up his pocket money because he himself was too stingy. Or, he takes back his statement and lets Allen Walker eat his fill with reckless abandon.
He really should’ve just let the brat’s brain cook from that fever all that time ago.
The Earl leaned forward, Sylas holding secure as he pat one big hand on Ozzie’s back, bumping him to keep walking to the restaurant. “Oh, put that away. I was just teasing~❤️”
There was a long, drawn out ‘ooooh’ noise from Ozzie, as he tucked his coin pouch away and nodded. Then grinned once more, walking while half clinging to one of the Earl’s legs. “Best papa. Papa so silly.”


















