Chapter 1 - Spring Lillies and Jasmine For Luck
Stepping passed lush shrubs and bushes, four young witches dressed in pale yellow and light blue lined cloaks continued on their journey. Dark and tilted pointed hats donned their heads creating a shadow on their features. Light brown boots covered their feet from the healthy blades of grass of the forest. Only one girl carried something in her hands. A silver trident that was only slightly taller than her was grasped tightly in her small hands.
It was the first week of Spring and the day the four sisters arrived at the land of Namimori in the Kingdom of Vongola. It was a warm and cloudy day and a fresh breeze would occasionally cool them.
They have traveled for a few days now. They have trudged through muddy and rocky roads, slept in dark damp caves, and climbed through mountains to arrive on the land.
The clumsiest of the four failed to notice a small boulder and tripped over it, crashing onto the ground.
"Hahi!"
Her sisters halted their walk and turned quickly to look for any danger. One of them immediately rushed to the fallen's side, "Haru! Are you alright?"
Haru lifted her face off the ground revealing di sheveled brown hair, a red nose, and watery chocolate brown eyes, "Yes, thank you, Kyoko."
Kyoko helped her stand and Haru stamped her feet, "We've been walking forever! Haru is tired! When are we going to find some place nice?"
The second oldest witch with dark wavy hair and eyes placed a hand on her hip, "Complaining won't help our situation, Haru. We'll find our home when we find it."
Haru groaned at the answer, "Yes, Hana. I understand. I'm just tired."
"We're all tired Haru," Hana approached the upset girl and placed her hands gently on her shoulders. She smiled at the girl and Haru returned it.
"Soon. We'll find the perfect place, soon enough. But for now, we have to continue on."
"I think... I found it."
The three girls looked over to their youngest member who was looking through some trees a few feet away.
"What is it, Chrome?" Kyoko approached the long haired girl holding the trident. She gasped.
Her reaction gained Haru and Hana's attention and they walked quickly to see what was so surprising.
Through the trees was a large, luscious, and beautiful empty clearing. Fresh grass blanketed the area and small bushels of lily, jasmine, and honeysuckle flowers were scattered about creating a delicious aroma. Large trees created a barrier around the nearly three hundred feet of empty space, allowing for a beautiful and calming atmosphere.
Haru and Kyoko held hands with large smiles on their faces as they ran towards the center and spun around, enjoying the feeling of the earth and the beauty around them.
"Hahi! It's perfect! Haru loves it!"
"It feels so good here!" Kyoko happily sighed.
Chrome and Hana approached slowly, feeling rejuvenated as soon as they stepped in. It felt warm, comforting and soft. Something special happened here a long time ago; that much was certain.
After enjoying themselves for a while, Hana opened her eyes and noticed something from the corner of her eye. She began walking to the north which gained the attention from her sisters who curiously followed her.
Passing the clearing and the small barrier of trees was the sights of a large Kingdom. A large and intricate stone castle stood to the back of a large village. The girls could see many homes, a large marketplace, and people walking around doing their chores and duties and so much more.
An excited blush blotted the girls' complexions and their eyes widened in wonder. They couldn't wait to make their way to the village and see what they had in stock.
"Look! There's a bakery near by!" Kyoko pointed to the building near the entrance.
"Do you think they have cake?!" Haru beamed at the thought.
"How many people do you think live here?" Chrome tried to count the ones she could see.
"Too many," Hana huffed, making a wry face, "Too many monkeys and apes to count."
Her sisters laughed at her comment.
Hana began walking back to the clearing with her sisters following soon after, "Well, This is a good distance away from the castle and village. We could possibly make a home here. We'll settle here but only if it meets the requirements."
"First things first: in order for us to make a living, we first need to scout for...?"
"Materials for potions!" Haru chirped, raising her hand over her head.
"Food and water!" Kyoko copied Haru's motion and the two giggled at each other.
"Safety..." Chrome smiled and blushed as she too raised her own hand slightly.
"Right. Now let's split up and meet back here in half an hour. Chrome, I'm with you."
Chrome watched her sisters as each witch held out their hands and whispered a materialization spell to summon their wands. Her sister's wands were similar in style but different in color and gem. Kyoko had a long white wand with a single swirl of violet. A topaz jewel was embedded at the hilt. Haru held a swirled light yellow and green wand with an emerald jewel in its hilt and Hana held her swirled black and white wand with an amethyst jewel in hers.
Chrome clutched her trident tighter. The trident was her "wand".
Her sisters began speaking similar location spells. Haru spoke a material spell and Kyoko spoke a nourishment spell. Their wands lit a light green and yellow color respectively. The energy gathered at the tip then released as two small balls of light. It began floating away leading the way to what the two witches were searching for.
Now alone with her older sister, Chrome released her trident. It stood perfectly straight and held Hana's left hand. Together, they focused on every soul and being in the area.
The search was ruled successful half an hour later. Haru had found an abundance of lower grade potion materials and some middle-grade materials nearby while Kyoko found a fresh stream not five minutes away and some berries and fruit trees nearby as well. Hana and Chrome searched a three-mile radius for any negative energy and found only weaker demons nearby at the moment.
With the information presented, Hana determined it was safe enough for them to live in the area.
"Yay! I can't wait to enjoy a nice bath~!" Haru cheered.
"And a full course meal!" Kyoko chimed.
"A nice bed..." Chrome giggled.
"A slave dungeon." Hana cackled.
"Eh?!"
"Joking."
Each girl got in her place in the middle of the clearing. Each witch being 50 feet away from one another. Hana stood North, Chrome stood East, Haru to the South, and lastly Kyoko to the West.
They chanted a familiar spell in unison that they were unfortunately well-versed in. They concentrated on their words and focused their magic on springing a two-story cottage from the ground. The earth shook as the home teleported through the ground.
Once finished, the girls exhaled and approached their home. The sight of the stone cottage was very welcoming. The inside was empty with two built-in barren shelves that covered the side walls. A long but short stone barrier that separated the front and back portion of the home stretched from wall to wall with a small opening to the very right edge. A thin wooden flap allowed for an easy entrance. Several bags were stacked neatly atop the stone barrier.
A small kitchen area was easily visible from the entrance and a staircase leading to the basement was behind the barrier. To the back of the home was a spiral staircase leading to the second floor where the bedrooms were located.
Haru breathed in deeply, "Ah. Our lovely home. Haru missed you!"
"Haru, Kyoko you two fix the interior while Chrome and I work on the exterior," Hana ordered as she and Chrome walked back outside.
"Yes, ma'am!" The two giggled in unison.
The two girls faced the bags on the barrier and lifted their wands. Each bag opened with an audible click and the two girls used their magic to levitate the items in the bags to their rightful place. Beds and furniture were shrunk to make space and were only turned to their right size once in their proper place. Glasses, beakers, jars were placed neatly on the once barren shelves while others were placed in the kitchen cupboards.
Outside, Chrome worked quickly on disposing of any weeds around the area while Hana moved the bushels of flowers to the outskirts of the area in neat sections. When Chrome finished with the weeds, she created a long gate out of a few trees to encircle and line their home nicely.
An hour had passed by the time the girls were happy enough with their new home.
However, all that work had made them hungry. Each witch grabbed her woven wooden basket and the more excitable members of the coven led the way to the materials and food they found. Kyoko gathered red, green, yellow, and blue herbs to convert into tea and potions. Haru collected the same colored mushrooms for food and potion making. Hana strictly focused on berries and other fruits for food while Chrome mostly gathered feathers and apples to use.
Once their baskets were full and heavy, the girls decided to head back to their home, with their baskets levitating beside them. The setting sun cast an orange and pink glow overhead as woodland creatures either awakened or fleed home. They talked about their new living situation, the abundance of materials, and excitement to begin creating again. It wasn't until they reached the clearing that Hana spoke up about the troubles on her mind.
"I'm concerned."
The negative comment halted her sisters.
"Hana? What's wrong?" Kyoko asked her dear sister.
"In the other places we've been to, there was a wider variety of materials than here. All that we've seen so far are just herbs, apples, feathers and mushrooms!" Hana cringed, "Those are such weak ingredients that we won't be able to make a profit at all."
Silence followed as the other girls gave each other worried glances.
"Well..." Haru began, "That's just for this area, isn't it? We've seen other materials coming here and there's a mountain near our home. And there are markets in the village that are bound to have materials, right? We'll go looking for bigger and better materials once we get set up shop! Nothing will bring us down! Right?!"
"Right!" Kyoko chimed, raising her hand high.
"Right..." Chrome whispered, smiling.
"Right." Hana rolled her eyes lightly and smiled. "You've got me."
"Let's just enjoy our first night in our new home and then worry about other things." Kyoko smiled and ran towards the cottage.
"Ah, wait," Chrome called lightly and she too ran after her.
Haru and Hana glanced at each other before racing one another to the door.
That night, the girls had mushroom soup and green, yellow, red, and blue herb tea. It was a small meal but they were happy they finally had a roof over their head for the first time in weeks.
The next day, the girls were hard at work creating new potions in their basement. Kyoko handled the health, stamina, and magic potions since she was the primary potion creator. Chrome wasn't very good at creating potions but she was excellent in creating charms, both protection and cursed. Haru, with her boundless energy, would often switch between helping Kyoko create potions and going out to gather more materials. Hana took care of the products, confirming their quality and placing them on the shelves against the walls to sell.
Haru was outside, just having finished depositing a basket full of materials to Kyoko, when she spotted a man and woman, presumably husband and wife, passing by the once empty clearing with baskets in their hands.
"Good afternoon, young lady," the man greeted, squinting his eyes at her and the new cottage, "Do you live here?"
"Good afternoon! And yes!" Haru smiled, "Haru lives here with her sisters. We built and moved this home ourselves!"
"You... built this with your sisters?" The woman asked slowly, disbelief clear in her tone. The two glanced at each other. They were just here a few days ago, there was no way a couple of girls had built a stone cottage in such a short amount of time.
"Yup! With our own blood, sweat, and tears." Haru chimed happily.
"Why didn't you just move into the village?" The man asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable.
"Oh, we didn't want to bother anyone with our loud activities," Haru said, smile ever present on her face. "Too much screaming and explosions and all that."
The duo glanced at each other, unnerved. "Well, we'll just get going now..."
"Wait! Don't you want to come inside and see what we have?" Haru reached out an arm to the retreating villagers. "We have many things that'll make you never want to leave."
"We're fine, thank you."
"Come inside! Haru will show you things you've never seen before!" But they were already gone. Haru huffed at the rudeness and set off once again into the forest.
Another villager passed by the next day. He was a middle aged man, with dirty clothing and a large empty sack gripped tightly in his hands. He was confused by the sight of the cottage and walked to a window to see what was inside. Though the cottage appeared beautiful, there was something off about it. It didn't feel natural.
He sneakily peered inside to see vials of all shapes and sizes and colors adorning the walls of the cottage. A kitchen area was seen through the window and so was a staircase leading to the upstairs. It seemed empty though that did not deter him. Goodies could be found anywhere.
He grinned and placed his hand on the doorknob and turned. Except it didn't turn. No worries. He grabbed his hammer he kept on his belt and stuck the knob. Nothing. Confused, he struck again and again but the knob remained strong and undamaged. Next, he struck at the window with the same result. No matter how strong he swung, the glass did not break against the impact.
Huffing and panting, the thin man glanced everywhere for a clue. Vials in shelves in the strange house, an unbreakable door and window, a home where just a few days ago held nothing... His eyes widened as he realized it could only be one thing...
"What do you think you are doing, you stinky monkey?"
He shrieked and jumped from the voice. Four young women were standing just a few feet away from him, looking at him with curiosity. 'Witches,' he thought, eyes widening.
"N-nothing, dear ladies," He plastered a fake smile on his face, "I was just wondering who lived in this darling home."
The stern looking one raised a brow. "Then what are you doing with that hammer?"
He jumped and clenched the hammer tighter. "Th-this thing? Oh you know, just came over to see if you needed any hammering done."
"Our cottage is made of stone." She replied, the side of her mouth twitching and her eyes narrowing.
"Wh-what about those wooden things you have in there with those glass drinks?" He tried again, sweating and feeling small under her gaze.
"You mean our potion shelves?" A brown haired girl with large eyes asked.
"P-potions?" He squeaked, it was true then... these girls really were...
"Yes!" She exclaimed, stepping closer to the man. "Do you want to try one? You look hungry. Come sit in our kitchen and we'll feed you all the potions you want until you explode!" She placed her hand on his shoulder and he shrieked, flinging his arms around and tripped over himself as he ran away.
"Witches! Potions! Death!" He yelled hysterically as he faded away.
"Oh... why does this keep happening?" Haru pouted.
Once the thief made it into the village, he cried out warnings about witches coming to kill them all. He gripped villagers shoulders and shouted about how they were close enough to cast a death spell against the village.
The citizens shoved off the thief's dirty hands off them with disgust but were concerned with his words. With the man's screams of impending doom, rumors were created. And those rumors soon reached every inch of the town so everyone and their babies heard them.
Soon enough, the concerns reached the castle. Servants were the first to hear the rumors and spread it to every other employee.
"Witches? In the Kingdom?" Prince Tsunayoshi, the heir to the throne, choked at the rumor. He grabbed a napkin to stifle his cough and swallow his piece of steak. His mentor glared at him, "Choking on such a small piece of information like that? You still have much to learn."
The Prince set down his fork and took a swig of water. "But apparently there are witches in the Kingdom, Reborn! We don't know if they're hostile or not. They could be planning an attack against us!"
"The Tenth is right!" Gokudera Hayato, the Prince's right-hand man, gripped his fork tightly enough to bend it. "Witches are never peaceful! I say we eradicate them immediately!" He stood from his seat then bowed deeply to his Prince. "Tenth! Allow me to blow up their broomsticks and send them flying!"
"Quiet. You're making too much noise," Hibari Kyoya, one of the Prince's Guardians glared from the opposite side of the table.
"I think having witches in the kingdom is interesting."
The three men at the dinner table turned to face the King. The man continued cutting bite-sized pieces of steak, happily ignoring the confused looks.
"Forgive me, Your Majesty, but what is so interesting about a potential threat?" Tsunayoshi inquired.
"I do not believe they are here to cause havoc," The elderly King hummed. "Witches are very impulsive, as we know. If they wanted to, they could have dried all our water, turned our shoes into frogs, or turned our hair to a shade of pink!" He laughed before continuing. "These rumors have been circulating for a week now, has it not? Perhaps, these witches aren't as evil as the rumors make them out to be."
The dining hall was silent with only the sound of the Kings utensils hitting the porcelain plates.
"I suppose that is a possibility..." The Prince agreed with some trepidation.
His mentor smirked, "You should go introduce yourself to the witches, Dame-Prince. A King should never fear an enemy and a Prince should never fear a witch."
The King clapped his hands once, "Excellent idea, Reborn!"
"Ah! Wait! I didn't agree to this!"
"Too bad, Dame-Prince," Reborn chuckled and ate a cut of potato. "You wouldn't want to disappoint the King, would you?"
"Tsunayoshi, first thing in the morning, I wish for you and your two Guardians to go greet the witches." Hayato and Kyoya glanced at each other from the corner of their eyes. "And if they are evil, as you suspect, give them a notice of rejection. And if they are kind..." The King paused.
"Invite them to the castle for a welcoming party?" Tsunayoshi asked sarcastically.
"Excellent! Yes! You are filled with excellent ideas tonight, young one."
The Prince cringed deeper, sinking slightly in his seat, "No... I didn't mean it."
"Then why did you suggest it?" Reborn smiled, enjoying his student's misfortune.
"Alright, fine. I will go greet the witches. But if I come back as a toad, it will be on you, Reborn." Tsunayoshi grumbled, stuffing a piece of meat in his mouth.
"Wonderful. Then we can find a nice girl for you to wed and turn you back into a Prince."
The Prince groaned at the remark, "Please allow me to finish this meal in peace, Reborn."
The four continued with small banter as they finished their dinner. However within each person layered emotions of excitement, wonder, trepidation, worry, and fear. Whatever came next was going to be something new.
Hi! This is a new story that I've been playing around with in my head for a year or two now. I've recently connected the events perfectly to create this. This was not originally going to be a Reborn fic but the lack of female representation in both the show and fandom upsets me. So this is my attempt at representing the girls and I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. Het pairings only because it's a minority in this fandom lol.
Next Chapter:
"Watch out!"
"Wao."
"I told you witches were evil!"
"Hahi! I'm not evil, you soggy, undercooked octopus!"
"She's... so... cute."
"You're the Prince?"