Author's Note: My first DGM fanfiction! I'm...strangely proud. Though I feel I kind of missed the point I was trying to make with this fic--whatever it was (I've forgotten now). Maybe that's why I feel like the ending is a bit flat?

Any way, this just a little tribute for our favourite Bookman, Jr., and Miranda. :) Please enjoy.

Oh, also, a note on my spelling of Linalis name: Yes, I know the official spelling is Lenalee, but I personally prefer how it was spelled in volume two (speaking of which, any one know what was up with them suddenly changing the spellings?).

Disclaimer: D. Gray Man, Lavi, Bookman, Miranda Lotto, Allen Walker, Yu Kanda, Linali (Lenalee) Lee, Komui Lee (who is crazy!love), etc., all belong to Katsura Hoshino. "Great Expectations," of course, belongs to Charles Dickens. I'm just totally abusing the title for the name of this fanfic.

---

It was a beautiful day, even the eight year old Bookman-in-training had to admit. Perhaps that’s why Bookman had taken him outside to study today?

Or, rather, it was because there were a lot of distracting people and things inside where they were staying, and despite his near photographic memory (he was still working on it), his attention span wasn’t much longer than the typical eight year olds.

Speaking of which, he should really be paying attention now, shouldn’t he? Ah, well, he thought, grinning inwardly, he could always sneak into the old Panda’s room and read up on the what the lesson was, later. He was more of a visual learner, any way.

Lavi glanced around a bit more, as Bookman ducked his head down to read something from the text in his lap. The sky was awfully blue today. The past few places they had traveled to, it had been winter and the sky had been covered in thick white clouds.

Speaking of which, there was something he didn’t understand about that…well, there was one way to remedy the situation…

“Bookman.” Lavi interrupted the old man, who’s expression turned from patient to rather furious as he realized the young red head hadn’t been paying any attention.

“What.”

“W-well, I was just wondering…” He held his hands up in front of his face, should he have to face the panda’s wrath. “Why is the sky blue? You never told me.”

Bookman blinked. “The sky appears blue because the air scatters short-wavelength light more than longer wavelengths. Blue light is at the short wavelength end of the visible spectrum, and so it is more strongly scattered in the atmosphere than long wavelength light. Thus for, the human eye perceives blue when looking at the sky.” He sighed slightly, then, with a swiftness Lavi decided he really shouldn’t have, reached out and grabbed the young boy’s ear. “Now then, pay attention!”

“O-okay, okay! I’m paying attention! LET GO OF MY EAR I’M PAYING ATTENTION THAT HURTS OW!”

--

So, as he did with all other information, Lavi stored that fact away, recalling it every time he glanced up, or saw a bit of blue.

And, despite the fact that it was common for him to know things others didn’t, he was still surprised how many people did not know why the sky was blue. And, so, it had become a bit of a favourite question for him to ask.

He had asked Komui, after they first met. The Chinese man had smiled at him and gave him the same answer Bookman had.

He had asked Linali, Kanda and Allen, as well. The first simply said she didn’t know, the second that Lavi better ‘stop asking him such trivial questions and wasting his time,’ and the third said he never knew, but that Mana had told him a myth that the sky was blue because it was sad about not being able to be with the sun, or moon, or ‘something like that.’

It was funny, Lavi thought, that these were exactly the answers he was expecting from each person. Everyone always lived up to his expectations of them-- no surprises. Lavi really wasn’t sure how he thought about this.

--

Naturally, every new recruit was put through Lavi’s little ‘trial.’ So, when Miranda Lotto joined the Order, Lavi asked her the first chance he got.

“Oi! Mira-chan!” Lavi called after her, as she was walking out the door after leaving her letter for Allen and Linali.

The unconfident woman stopped after a moment, turning to face the red head. “Er…?”

Lavi grinned. “Yeah, you! Miranda, right?”

“Um…yes?”

He walked forward, so that he as a bit closer to her, lacing his fingers behind his back. “I just have a question. Would you mind?”

Miranda smiled nervously at him. “Oh, no. What is it?”

His green eye seemed to sparkle slightly. “Tell me, Mira-chan, do you know why the sky is blue?”

Miranda was quiet for a long moment, a thoughtful look on her face.

Lavi’s grin faded a bit. “You don’t know, do you?” Just as he had expected…

“Um, well, not exactly.” Miranda shook her head. “I was just wondering, does it really matter?”

The young Bookman blinked, surprised. But the smile never left his face as he replied, “No, no it doesn’t.”