Written for the second round of the Angst Writing Contest administered by Dior Crystal-san which I find extremely hard to conceptualize! It took me six scripts of rewriting before I finally stuck with this. Add to that it's another BL pairing. I tried my best writing this, squeezing it to all the requirements I have to accomplish, as well as our province's anniversary fiesta (on the 19th). I really tried my best, but it wasn't satisfying.
Katekyo Hitman Reborn! is a creation of Amano Akira.
Warning: OOCness, twisted ending, and twisted everything.
~tTt~
The Orchid & The Owl
"Dusk, is just an illusion, because the sun is either above the horizon or below it. And that means that day and night are linked in a way that few things are; there cannot be one without the other, yet they cannot exist at the same time. How would it feel, I remember wondering to be always together, yet forever apart?"
~tTt~
He couldn't sleep.
Eight-year-old Rokudo Mukuro opened his multi-colored jewels and scanned his moonlit room. The ceiling was of glass, and he had a clear view of the dark star-dotted sky. The canopy with its white curtains filtered the moonlight to his face. His king-sized bed still had a large amount of space to be filled. His head was not resting on a pillow; that other white and feather-stuffed object was at the foot of his bed.
But they weren't the reasons why he cannot sleep.
It was because he had a mission tonight. He had a good reason of why he was inside this white-themed room; why he was inside this building of glass and crystal.
This building belonged to the Millefiore, the most powerful family in the Mafia. He was a spy of the Vongola, the second most powerful. He would pass cryptic information regarding the Millefiore to his Family tonight. Orders are meant to be obeyed.
But that wasn't the only reason why he cannot sleep.
The door was open, and from the darkness came out a man of white. From the milky moon, Mukuro could see the shadow slowly pacing up to him.
His curtains parted, and he, with eyes now shut heard a soft voice murmur to his ear. His heart was pounding. He wasn't going to fail this time. Orders should be followed.
But this guy knew he wasn't asleep.
"What's wrong, Muku-chan?" the voice whispered gently. His eyes fluttered open.
Byakuran, the Millefiore Boss and his supposed foster parent smiled at him in return as he snuggled next to him. Cautiously, Mukuro inched away from his enemy. This man shouldn't touch him. He'd be terminated when Mukuro had finished his mission.
"Nothing. You can go sleep Byakuran-san." He assured as he enveloped his sheets around his body and feigned a small smile and trying to sound as innocent as possible.
Byakuran didn't listen and moved closer to him before fully stroking the child's hair. Angry was Mukuro deep inside, because he had no time purring up to this person. He still had something much more important to do.
"Do you want me to tell you a story?" He crooned; his fingers were now strumming Mukuro's bluish sheen of hair.
Mukuro sighed. "Why bother? You must be tired, Byakuran-san for the things you did this morn."
"This is the only fun thing I can do, Muku-chan. Can't you listen? This is my favorite from the bunch…"
He knew that this person won't give up getting close to the new kid.
"Very well…" he heaved as he covered his body with the white sheet.
"Yay~! It's a simple fairytale, Muku-chan. For your first night here, you are sure lucky having me to tell you this. It's a little tale about the Orchid and the Owl."
Mukuro rolled his eyes as he cursed himself for hiding his trident in a bad place at a bad time.
"There was once a snowy owl who absolutely hated the day more than anything. He was the leader of the group of owls like himself. He absolutely detested everything that reminded him of the day, even the animals and plants that dwelled in that time! But then…"
Mukuro rolled away from Byakuran, who remained stubborn enough to crawl still next to him, his smile still present.
"One day, at sunrise as he flies back to his oak home, he passed a barren dry patch of land amidst a field of green. There, dwelling on the dead tree trunk was- guess what?"
"An orchid," Mukuro stated flatly. It was already mentioned in the title! This was so predictable.
"Wow, that's really smart of you Muku-chan~! Yes, dwelling in that place of bereavement was a little pure white orchid. It was the only trace of life inside that dead land. The moment the owl saw the orchid it had a foreign feeling that welled up inside itself. It couldn't explain to itself why its own heart beat really fast and its own temperature rise. It didn't realize that at that moment, it fell in love with the pretty orchid."
~tTt~
"I'm sending the data I picked up, Arcobaleno," Mukuro smirked as he inserted another small data disk on the large computer drive. The large screen read 95 per cent. Good. He smiled smugly to himself. He had never been caught in stealing some information for the last four years. Probably by now, his efforts should be fully appreciated. How long should he be doing this information gathering? he wonders.
"Good job, Mukuro." He heard the Arcobaleno's voice resonate in his thoughts once the loading was complete. "Continue feeding more info on the Millefiore, and be on your guard. One of these days they might be suspecting you."
"They won't be." He replied confidently. "If these dimwits did, then I shouldn't be here handing you what you need for my four years of doing this mission."
The connection was silent for a few moments.
"Hmm, you are correct. But I'll give a warning just in case."
"Arrivaderci, Arcobaleno. I'll be doing another errand for my fake boss."
With that, he closed the computer, with it vanishing in the parting of a misty sweep. He looked at his black suit and brushed some dust off as he advanced up the staircase and walking with utmost care in case some Black Spell guards come to watch. His steps, once he reached elevation were now quicker and more certain. He must hurry, or else he would be unable to get more 'sessions' with Byakuran. The glassy walls reflected his darting figure as he sprinted to the Main Hall in the far end.
He then stopped as he remembered to ask himself first: why?
He asked himself at why, at the end of the data operation, he remembered that time four years ago. The first time he ever had slept inside the Millefiore headquarters. The first and only time he heard of that tale…
… when the creature of the night fell for that of the day.
~tTt~
"That's absurd!" Mukuro suddenly interrupted then. "How could an animal fell for a plant, much more if that- that owl fell for an orchid that lived in the day?"
"It might be impossible," said Byakuran, as he covered Mukuro's feet with his blanket and lied down at the bed as he gazed up at the stars from the ceiling. "But in the story it happened. At first, the owl would only spy on the orchid every time at dusk but one day, it can't help itself but appear at the orchid. The orchid, having no eyes, believed that the owl was a bird of the day and fell in love too with the bird."
"Both of them are fools." Mukuro scoffed as he pulled the blanket up until it reached his chin.
"Oh really?" Byakuran's eyes now drifted from the sky and back to the child's unbelieving eyes. "The time will come when you'll be blaming yourself when you become one, Muku-chan. Wanna bet?"
~tTt~
Twelve-year-Mukuro was now bottling up his rage.
He couldn't believe that he, of all people would be speaking in front of the whole Millefiore citizenry by the next two hours!
His eyes immediately landed on Byakuran's, who was heartily eating his marshmallow parfait at the head of their table as he asks more men to ready for 'Muku-chan's cutie speech'.
"What's wrong, Muku-chan?" He asked, noticing Mukuro dangerously glaring at him at the far end. "Still not ready for later, hn?"
"H-how will I b-be ready?" Even he surprised himself of stuttering at his enemy. For him to appear weak this time… "You o-only t-told me now when I will be s-speaking in one hour, d-dammit!" Darn, he even had to stutter swearing. His hatred that he bottled up for the Millefiore Boss was now imperishable! He swears to himself as he clasps his invisible trident more tightly. He had never done this thing before. He had never, ever spoken in front of many people before!
Byakuran was looking at the child and noticed for the first time that his eyes were telling him the truth. He was really afraid. (Probably of embarrassing his daddy, tehehee!) He had noticed how introverted his Muku-chan was from the four years since he had taken him here at his home. Muku-chan had rarely talked to even his soldiers. The only one he had the courage to talk to was Byakuran.
And now, all Byakuran wanted was for Muku-chan to see he wasn't the only person that existed in the Millefiore's own utopia.
Byakuran placed his right hand on Mukuro's left shoulder and let out a soft smile.
"Muku-chan, please? For me?" He asked, trying his best to sound like a caring 'daddy' at his nervous 'sonny'.
Mukuro thought a little, and even in his anger, he felt calmness wash over him as his shoulders and rigid expressions relaxed a little. Slowly, he came to realize that the burning sensation of deep hatred in his chest started to go away.
"I'll try." He agreed, finally able to feign his kiddy grin at his foster parent.
He didn't realize that he didn't fake that simper at all.
~tTt~
Mukuro couldn't actually believe that he did it.
Here, in the face of the crowd he, on the spot, managed to construct a speech that made these throng of people cheer.
He looked at their smiling and shouting faces, all imbued with so much honesty and certainty as they clapped and stamped loudly for the Boss' kid they had never met. They never suspected him to be the key player that would soon bring their sacred city to its destruction.
His mouth immediately curled sideways in glee as he looked on and waved at them. They returned the gesture much, much livelier than what he had expected them to do. This was wonderful! In that simple way, he had won the hearts of these people so easily!
And it was all thanks to…
He looked at the back and saw Byakuran also clapping with the crowd and then putting both his hands on his shoulder. Mukuro beamed at him.
"I knew that Muku-chan could do it!" congratulated Byakuran as he ruffled Mukuro's hair. "Wasn't it fun talking to a large batch of people?"
Wait. Mukuro looked incredulously at Byakuran. Nah, this guy can't possibly mean he made him speak to every living person inside his fortress so he could get over his… shyness? (He said it, he really said it!)
Nah, he just wanted to boost his ego! He probably put him there to brag about what a special father he is. He just probably said that to make Mukuro feel good, and make himself feel better.
But Mukuro, even then, couldn't help himself to say those two simple words to him.
"Thank you."
He tried to remind himself he was thanking Byakuran for letting him bring his 'perfect' world to its destruction. He wasn't thanking him for helping him overcome his fear of people.
But as he looked on at Byakuran, he wondered if he really wasn't lying to himself again.
~tTt~
"Since then," Byakuran continued his tale to the now- bore-ridden Mukuro who scowled as he thought about the ticking seconds he had wasted on the first night of his mission. "The owl would often visit the orchid, and by then, it wondered if it really hated the day. Often, in the face of the sun, he would talk with the orchid and the more it knew of the flower, the more did it fell in love with it. The flower thought the same way.
"One day, the owl asked the orchid why such a pretty flower would let itself dwell in a land where neither flora nor fauna would try living in. The orchid simply told the owl that it was the place where it had grown, and even if it wanted to go and live in a much more habitable location, it cannot move even if it wanted to."
~tTt~
It was a beautiful night, and just high in the star-splashed ceiling of the sky was a full moon. The houses outside Byakuran's skyscraper home were all bathed in white, and the people, instead of sleeping soundly in their beds would be leisurely strolling about in the many open cafes that give way to the roads around the Millefiore citadel.
And on such a wonderful night, Byakuran leisurely strolled around the world he created. Most people would wave at him. Others would bow low whenever he passed them. All of them showed great respect for their young leader returned it all with his infectious smile.
Mukuro, who was just behind him secretly sulked at the sugar-coated affection that Byakuran was giving his people. This twelve-yar-old didn't have the time to be sucking up to them. He was supposed to send some really important information to the Arcobaleno this night, as in right then, right now.
"Can we go back, Byakuran-san?" Mukuro asked, trying to make his voice both sleepy and polite and making sure that his eye-drooping was perfect. "I really need to study for tomorrow." He tried to mold the fact that he goes to school every morning to early afternoon a good-enough excuse to steal more data.
"Aww, but Muku chan~" Byakuran begged him with large puppy-dog eyes that surprised Mukuro. How could those tiny slits of his make his eyes appear that huge? "It's such a nice night today. And I've never been able to explore this place with you for four years… I thought that this will further expose you to more people."
Mukuro sighed. "Okay. But let's hurry."
Byakuran was immediately in high spirits. "Muku-chan said yes! Let's go to a café then! You like hot chocolate, right?"
Mukuro sighed again. He had already told Byakuran that this wasn't his time to dilly-dally. This time he was sure that he would ditch him after five minutes.
The café was cozy inside in its slightly oval-shaped ceiling. The cushioned chairs delighted Byakuran even more as he ordered for one cup of hot chocolate ("With double extra marshmallows!") and a cup of black coffee with ice cream cake ("The 'Marshmallow Delight' flavor please!") on the side. The two plushy chairs faced the window and from the window, they could catch a clear view of the lovers snogging outside and the moon above and outshone the stars for this night.
"Muku-chan, why do you like chocolate so much?" Byakuran asked out of the blue. Mukuro, already deep in thought of how he would ditch the Millefiore leader snapped back to reality.
"Because it's sweet." He replied without much thought as he began to conjure in his mind more plans of how he will then give more information about the Millefiore when the time comes.
Byakuran grinned serenely at him. "You haven't got many sweet experiences in your life, haven't you, Muku-chan?"
Mukuro stared at him. He, in Mukuro's simple answer easily deduced about what kind of life he underwent before falling to the Vongola's hands.
"I haven't. I lived in a bitter place." Mukuro didn't face Byakuran as he spoke, not wanting him to make him stutter again. "I saw many people die, and all I could do was look at them perish."
Yes, he confirmed to himself. He saw his family vanish in front of his eyes as Byakuran's men killed them all. That's why he chose this mission in the first place since that Arcobaleno told him the objectives.
"What about Byakuran-san? Why does he like marshmallows so much?" It was now his time to ask the big boss a quick question.
Byakuran this time looked at him, his mouth in a thin and straight line. Then, he smiled.
"Because they're fluffy," he answered in that friendly voice of his. "Unlike the hard hearts people have. Mine included." He chuckled and sipped the coffee that only then Mukuro noticed was already on their small and round wooden table. "You know, I did a lot of… sacrificing for the sake of building this kind of world. I admit that I'm a bad man, Muku-chan." Byakuran looked at his apprentice, his voice became rawer, less like the sickly sweet voice Mukuro always hears from him. "And if by any chance you succeed me, I don't want you to become that way, okay?"
Byakuran put his right arm on the table and covered his eyes with his right hand.
"I want you to make this world not the way I made it, Muku-chan." He whispered, and he heard Byakuran's voice more tense than before. "I love my family, and I won't let anyone destroy it."
Mukuro looked at Byakuran. He looked at his always-smiling chaperone, for the first time breaking down. This person seemed less of the guy who ordered the death of his two friends from five years ago. All he could feel of Byakuran as he groveled on the table was utmost pity.
He convinced himself that it wasn't real pity.
But in that little moment or after, he had forgotten about his plans to leave Byakuran alone. All he wanted was to hold his 'fake' leader's hands firmly and at the same time gently. He wanted, in his own little way to make him stop crying.
He looked once more at his boss, who sniffed as he gulped the last of his remaining coffee. He simpered back.
"Okay." He answered, letting his small hands take Byakuran's own. All in that, Mukuro couldn't believe it.
He couldn't bring himself to hate him in that tiny moment. And he himself sought refuge in his foster father's arms.
~tTt~
"Then what?" Mukuro looked eager now. Even he couldn't believe that he liked where the story was going.
"Ooohh! Muku-chan wants to know what happens next!" Byakuran confirmed, as he closed in at Mukuro, who didn't move back this time. "Well, the other owls found out about the secret meetings they had, when their boss would disappear suddenly in the day and would be a flying a little off-balanced in the night. They then confronted the owl and ask him to make a decision: to leave the orchid or to leave the flock. Without hesitation, the amorous bird chose to be with the little orchid. From then on, he became more of the bird of the day that he before loathed. He thought his problems were finished, and he had triumphed over fate for letting love control his life. But the worst was yet to come…"
~tTt~
Mukuro sent a little more data at the large computer screen, his eyes trying to look away from the last pieces of information that he would be giving the Arcobaleno. He cringed a little, as he circled the room back and forth with his eyes closed. Any moment now, he would be hearing the verdict of the other side, and finally his mission would be over.
It would be finally over, after all these years that he lived in the arms of his enemies. It was already five months since he found out that other side of his fake boss.
He knew he wouldn't be able to see any more of his boss' sides much longer.
He could remember three months ago, at his graduation ceremony, when Byakuran put his hand once more at his shoulder as Mukuro took his diploma.
"I'm proud of you," he murmured, circling his arms around the graduate's neck, and all the graduate could do was open his eyes wide and feel the warmth of Byakuran's guilt-free embrace.
No one, not even his comrades at the Vongola, told him that they were proud of him.
No one, not even his comrades at the Vongola would hug him so sincerely and so tightly.
He wondered why of all people, his dear foe would be the one doing the honors.
But he closed his eyes, and reciprocated it. His own small hands circled around his boss, and he let his head rest on his chest. He only then realized just how much he had grown.
"Thank you." Mukuro said, reminiscing the other moment when he gave thanks to him as he gave that speech before. He never thought that he would be able to say those two words to him again.
And he never thought that in that little intimate gesture, he thought twice of doing his real duty against the Millefiore.
"You've given plenty of help to us, Rokudo Mukuro," said the Arcobaleno, ruining his conversation along with his memories. "And now, finally your mission will be done. You already know what happens next."
"I know." Mukuro smirked. "I have to leave." Indeed, after the four years of having dwelled in the nest of the enemy, he was really going to bid farewell to it.
His mouth curled into a frown. He heaved a great sigh. After his years of hard work, he was really…
He wonders what Byakuran's expression will be once he sees a neatly-smoothed bed, with no Mukuro sleeping in it.
"Correct, and you better be," said the Arcobaleno. "Since while you are fleeing the Millefiore headquarters, we will bomb this place to the ground tonight."
Mukuro paused. "Tonight? H-how did you manage to do that? Isn't this place hard to penetrate with the number of posts guarding this country?"
"Oh, we have taken care of that," the Vongola adviser assured. "Thanks to the data you've amassed, we have already taken them all down yesterday. All the Millefiore hideouts were blazed of the four years you've been here, thanks to the information you've fed us."
"B-but this cannot be-"
"Be on your guard, this is the last time I'll warn you," said the Arcobaleno, his voice getting more and more static with every syllable. "Rokudo Mukuro, we salute you for a mission well done."
The room was silent. The screen had blacked out and disappeared. But still, Mukuro remained planted on the ground, eyes still open and mouth agape.
Why, when it was already the end he regretted what he did at the beginning?
~tTt~
"It was winter, and the owl wasn't used to such extremely cold temperatures, and so it had to leave the orchid. It tried to persuade the fragile flower to come with him. The orchid refused, reminding it sadly that it will not be able to last the journey south and even if it did, it wasn't used to the soil on those parts. The desperate bird tried to make the white flora accompany it, to no avail. For the second time, it had to make a choice.
"The time for the owl to leave was fast approaching. It took a long while to choose- will it leave its lover to wilt by the cold winter or will it do the opposite and stay?
"Just as the first tiny snowflakes daintily fell on the barren ground, the owl finally decided. It silently prayed for the Creator to make sure it was the right one."
~tTt~
Mukuro never thought he would be running this fast in all the twelve years of his life.
The Black Spell and White Spell soldiers were already assembled and were going the opposite direction he was. He ran faster, passing the door of his own bedroom. He huffed a little and hesitated if he will steal a glance at it one last time. It was the first place that he had ever talked with Mukuro, and the place where he had told him about the Orchid and the Owl, the first story he had liked.
He remembered, how the day after Byakuran told him that story, he was at the top of the skyscraper, gazing upon the sunset far in the distance, pondering why the story had such an ending.
"Ah… dusk, the time the night and day meet," he heard a familiar voice behind him comment the scene he was looking at. "Funny how these two entities share a mutual bond with each other, but they'll for eternity remain apart."
"Please don't remind me about the orchid and the owl." Mukuro snapped as he concentrated more on how the dying sun would set a trail of pinks and purples on the clouds, chalking it in a swirl of pastel colors.
"But that's what destiny prepared them," said Byakuran simply, handing Mukuro a chocolate shelled- vanilla ice cream parfait and began munching on his own. "No matter what choice the owl took, their relationship to end in tragedy was inevitable."
"And yet for the owl to do that… and yet I salute it for doing that…" Mukuro's spoon easily found the soft filling inside and took a bite.
"Muku-chan can be such a romantic~!" Byakuran commented gleefully as he chomped more ice cream. "Even if you hated his choice, you liked it at the same time?"
Mukuro turned away. Byakuran was easier to hook up! This guy was so easy to get close to.
"I do, but just a little." He says shortly as he eats a little more dessert.
"Muku-chan," the boss called him at a seat just behind him. Mukuro obeyed because he knew that he could lose this guy in his deceptively-friendly demeanor much more quickly this way. "I want to add one more thing then. Don't ever fall easily." He pointed at the shell in his parfait. "Keep yourself in a shell that can be hard to crack. "Otherwise…" His metal spoon easily crushed the brown covering. "That person who made you fall will easily gobble you up. That is a real hindrance the moment you succeed me." He then got himself more parfait.
The present Mukuro sneered. That guy, was ironic to be warning him. Since in the end, he would become the person to crack and gobble what was left of him.
He would become the person who would help him lie to himself.
~tTt~
"The owl decided to stay with the orchid. That night, a blizzard approached that patch of land. Shivering, the owl, with all the strength left enough for it to speak in the freezing cold asked why the orchid couldn't leave the land it was in.
"The orchid said to the owl that it was because this was the land where it was born, and it owed the land a great deal. It would even sacrifice its companionship with any flower for the sake of giving the dead land life.
"The owl as its body slowly began to freeze up understood what the orchid meant and admired its strong faith in itself. The fowl snuggled next to the flower, and giving it the last of its remaining body heat said to the bird:
"'Then let's give it life together.'
"The bird didn't regret its choice of not leaving its love even till the end.
"The next morning, the owls of the lovestruck bird out of guilt decided to tell the bird that they didn't want him to go south alone. When they went to the white landscape below, all they found was their beloved leader, limp and buried in the snow, its eyes closed and frozen shut. All that was left of the orchid was its limp stem. The petals were blown by the heavy wind that night. The owls, in tears buried the two tragic sweethearts together beside the still-standing tree.
"The flora of the day and the fauna of the night were finally one. This time, for eternity."
~tTt~
"Byakuran-san!" Mukuro half-yelled, half-whimpered as he slammed the Head Office room door open. He was relieved the moment he saw his boss still unscathed and who waved pleasantly when he approached. "You have to get out of here!" He panted, slamming his fist on the table hurriedly, trying his best to wake his boss up.
Byakuran smiled calmly. "I know. Do not be worried, Muku-chan. The trouble will definitely go away. I promise~" He patted Mukuro's head reassuringly.
But Mukuro wouldn't believe it.
"Byakuran-san, you already know that it's impossible to defeat the Vongola this time. Your allies are already eliminated. You will soon too if you don't flee!" He pleaded desperately, now grasping tightly his Boss' hands and looking at him in the eyes, trying to muster giving all the honesty he had. "Please, Byakuran-san…" He added, now loosening his grip as his head bowed and knew that he would fail. "Please…" He murmurs as he now grips on his coat tightly, wishing that he had never met him in the first place or else he wouldn't be having these mixed feelings now.
"Can we take a walk, Muku-chan?" Byakuran said finally, looking at him with so much kindness that Mukuro knew he didn't deserve.
All Mukuro could do, to prevent himself from stammering again was just nod and follow him out.
By the time they exited the room, a loud and chilling explosion resonated from the outside. Mukuro was about to be knocked down when he was held on tightly by Byakuran.
"Relax." He tried to comfort him by holding Mukuro's hand tighter and soon, like before, his shoulders would lose their stiffness as they continue walking. Orange and yellow were seen through the glass as large clouds of smoke and dust rose up from the bombed area. From the light, Mukuro could see the people screaming in panic as more bombs fell down and Mukuro was swept off his feet. "Muku-chan, don't look outside. Just think that we're having our father-son conversation, all right?"
Mukuro tried to block his sense of sight and hearing as he continued to be led by Byakuran through the hall.
"I never thought that Muku-chan would know about the oncoming attack by the Vongola. Much less know about the fall of the other citadels I built in many areas. But I won't ask why-" He interrupted as Mukuro was about to explain. "It's meaningless for me to know anyway, since it's already too late for me to know the truth. But what I do know is that I love this place. I love this haven that I had created. I don't want it to fall into the wrong hands and be decimated." He stopped walking and faced his foster child, smiling at him and then kneeling down. Mukuro followed.
And just like that, he pulled him once more and let him sob into his arms.
"I love you father." Mukuro whispered, as he also circled his hands around Byakuran, who merely closed his eyes and smile sadly. "I really love you, so please go with me." He pleaded one last time at him.
His father smiled at him, his eyes closed. He never thought that his child would be able to say such words.
"I love you too, Muku-chan." He admitted, his arms then ready to do their last duty for his son. "And I'm sorry." Just like that, with all his strength he pushed Mukuro away to the open door of the elevator, the moment Mukuro opened his eyes to see the glass separating him and Byakuran.
And all he could do was slam on it hard again and again as it glided down. From his back, he had a clear view of his Eden falling as more of the Vongola's invisible choppers gave heavy punishment to the Millefiore members, who blindly shot the sky on the rooftop with their guns. He knew that they were no match. He saw a house explode and closed his eyes the moment his elevator finally landed. It opened straight outside their home. Byakuran had really thought of everything.
He looked back. The elevator remained open, perhaps inviting him to go back and join his Boss, no his father to fight until he dies. Just like the orchid and the owl. The elevator was making him choose.
"The bird, didn't regret its choice of not leaving its love even till the end."
He thought about the choice the owl decided. He looked up, and saw a missile nearly hitting it by a few feet, before making a loud explosion by the right, knocking him off-balance as he looks on and sighs in relief.
The elevator remained, its glass a little cracked but still intact.
He took a deep breath and then, full speed ahead ran. His decision was final.
He ran.
He ran straight to the opposite direction of the elevator and out into the blazing wasteland. He ran, but at the same time, he cursed, he spat, he stamped his foot, he bit his lip and then…
…He cried.
Small tears fell from his cheeks as he took more large steps out of the way from the fire that tried burning him as he sped up at the landed helicopter at the end. He looked back, just in time to see his then- skyscraper palace.
Then suddenly, from the inside, the place Byakuran had spent six years designing burst into flames, and all Mukuro could do was helplessly look at it from the copter window as they made their way back through the headquarters.
"Excellent, Mukuro." He heard the Arcobaleno's voice again within the walls of the helicopter. "Without your help we couldn't have launched a fairly successful invasion like this. Once more, the Vongola will become the most powerful Mafia family again."
He looked on, not giving a damn about what the Arcobaleno was spouting. He didn't care whatever he'll try to say now.
He made his choice. He chose to survive, instead of perishing along with Byakuran.
"The bird didn't regret its choice of not leaving its love even till the end."
He remembered those lines that his father had recited. Those lines that he thought was easier to do than destroying this world he had created.
He looked up, and thought about the moments he spent with Byakuran, of all the times he had lied to him.
~tTt~
"In the end, did the orchid realize that the bird it had fell in love with was an owl?" Mukuro asked innocently, making Byakuran smile a little.
"It knew all along, but even then it decided to just let it be." He said simply, winking at him. "The orchid believed that it shouldn't let a simple difference like that turn itself off from the owl. Sleep-sleep then Muku-chan. Night-night."
~tTt~
Mukuro looked at the dead land that was left of the Millefiore one last time before he sped away more into the night. He remembered the time that Byakuran told him about the orchid knowing since the beginning that the owl was a creature of the night, and still accepting it for what it was.
Probably, Byakuran already suspected Mukuro as the spy he was.
And still, he accepted him. He returned Mukuro's fake smiles with sincere ones. He returned his plastic expressions with honest ones. His expressions were genuine, while Mukuro's were facades.
And still, he didn't mind.
Mukuro smiled at himself. He wanted to close his eyes one more time as he prepared to drift off in the comfort of his dreams.
"I often dreamt of us being together." He smiled, as a tear trickled down. "But like that of day and night, we'll be probably forever apart, unlike the orchid and the owl."
He opened his palms and suddenly, something fell out one hand, to which he caught.
He looked at the crumpled paper in his fist, the place where Byakuran held his hand before putting his life on the line and putting Mukuro's life out of it.
~tTt~
"If someone comes into your life and becomes a part of you but for some reasons he couldn't stay, don't cry too much! Just be glad that your paths crossed and that he made you happy even for a while. Remember about the stories you shared, the sweets you ate and the memories you created.
Remember that even if we cannot be together, it doesn't mean we can be apart forever!"
~tTt~
He gasped once more as he finally let his tears waterfall down and his mouth cry out.
"Thank you." He hiccupped as he clutched the small note more tightly and tightly until his eyes closed and his mouth fell silent.
He didn't realize that in the hallway, Byakuran had shot him, and he thought that the gunshot was an explosion.
In the end, saying those two words three times does the charm.
"The flora of the day and the fauna of the night were finally one. This time, for eternity."
END.