Insane? Says who?

Chapter One: The Beginning

There it was again.

No matter where he went, how far he ran, how much glass he shattered, it was still there.

That black figure.

The seemingly empty, unseeing eyes.

And worst of all, that damned grin.

It haunted him. It followed him everywhere. The bathroom mirror, the window in his room, even the reflective surface of his plate whenever he ate. It drove him crazy, how it seemed to be everywhere. If he looked hard enough, if he was paranoid enough, he could even see the figure in his eyes. There was no escaping the figure, though it didn't mean he didn't try.

It'd gotten so bad lately. Allen couldn't even remember a time when it wasn't following him. The paranoia kept driving him closer to the edge. He slept less, ate less, socialized less. It became harder to hold up that same polite mask. His smiles became faker. He could hear the force behind his laughter. He knew they noticed. It really wasn't that difficult to notice his facade slipping, his insanity becoming more apparent. After all, why else place him under close watch. He was a liability after all.

Now faced with the figure once more, Allen glared harshly into its pure white eyes. Those eyes couldn't deceive him. The pureness was a lie. His hands gripped the bathroom sink tightly, his glare intensifying. The sound of a scratching pencil broke him from his illusion. When he turned, he saw Link writing something down on that clipboard he always had.

His anger dissipated with a sigh, knowing they'd probably force him to see the psychologist again. Allen refused to believe that he was mental, though the visits were routine now. He absolutely hated them, what with the psychologist acting so sympathetic, like he was a child. That was impossible. He never had the chance to be a child, so how could he be one now?

Yet another sigh escaped his lips. He plastered his usual polite smile onto his face and left the bathroom, not even bothering to hold the door open for Link. At first it was okay enough having the blonde around, but now it was annoying.

Allen shoved the harmful thoughts out of his head and focused on finding his way to the cafeteria. Even with his awful sense of direction, his stomach lead him towards the delicious smell of Jerry's cooking. Reaching the cafeteria, he noticed his 'friends' already seated at a table. Marie, Miranda, Lavi, Lenalee, Chaoji, Krory and even Kanda. A few waved to him cheerfully as he made his way to Jerry's counter to place his order. He struggled to ignore Chaoji's heated glare, similar to his own, on his back, but it still hurt him.

Soon enough, his monstrous amount of food was made and wheeled to the table. He took his regular place at the end and joined in on the conversation. For a while, he was able to ignore Chaoji's hateful looks and Link's scritch-scratching away. However, the second he looked at his suddenly empty plate, all of that disappeared. There it was again.

That same. Grin.

Suddenly, an uncontrollable, white-hot rage swept through him. Allen's body shivered with the force of his anger, hands twitching violently. His eyes narrowed and he grit his teeth, trying to hold back this unfounded animosity. Just as he thought he had himself under control, the figure's grin widened just a fraction of an inch, and his patience snapped.

Allen jumped up from his chair and gabbed his left arm. Crown Clown's sword form appeared with a flash, drawing the attention of the others. They suddenly sprung to their feet after realizing his intentions. He could see Link torn between writing this down and finding a way to stop him

"Allen!"

"What are you-"

"Stop!"

"Moyashi!"