A/N: Hey there~ Here's another OC story . Yeah...I write too many OC stories (sorry!) but this time it's a guy~~ And it's not romance (that's a first! XD). Still pondering on where this story is going and working on Kai's character. It's slight AU! I suppose, since the Estraneo family part might be a bit off (I'll fix it later). Do tell me what you think of it so far! Reviews would be lovely~~

Yes! I had to add Ganauche III *w* Doesn't he look so...awesome? XD The summary is subject to change! So do read and review~ Constructive criticism would be lovely as well! ^____^

"Where are you going with that child?" A young man stepped out of the shadows, holding out a gun, his finger on the trigger.

"Ganauche III, I see you've become a Guardian. I give you my congratulations," replied the hooded figure, shielding the infant that slept in his arms. "It must be a great honor."

"It is," the Thunder Guardian's words were sharp, his eyes still on the child in the other man's grasp. "If I'm not mistaken, you're from the Estraneo Family." Ganauche's eyes flashed dangerously; he had heard numerous things, nasty rumors about the Estraneo. It was a dirty underworld after all, but some things merely overstepped boundaries that weren't meant to be broken. "Whose child are you holding?"

The older man from the Estraneo replied without explanation, "The Sea, I'm holding the sea in my hands, Vongola. Being a clam, you must know the sea well." A sleek black car raced past and the man flung himself onto the trunk of the car, the hand that was not holding the toddler reached into his pocket and flung a smoke bomb behind him. The toddler awoke from his slumber, the dusky smoke tickling his sensitive nose, and his eyes watered. The child started to wail, a loud, shattering cry that faded as the Estraneo escaped from further investigation by the Vongola.

"Damn, he got away," muttered Ganauche, wiping involuntary tears from his eyes, coughing into his sleeve. "I'll have to tell the Ninth what happened. At least it wasn't the Tenth that he was after. But something doesn't feel right about this." The youngest of the Guardians coughed again and slid a slim cell phone from his suit pocket. He cleared his throat before dialing the Vongola Boss's number. The Estraneo Family was up to something…

[Twelve Years Later]

Kai Montague stood at the busy airport terminal at Namimori Airport, unsure where to go next. It had been a sudden impulse to go to Japan, a country he had not stepped foot in since his birth. His mouth twitched, in a pressed line that quickly upturned into a frown. The teen rubbed the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes against the busy backdrop of the airport. He felt weird thinking it, but there were so many Asian people around, so many Japanese around him. His "own kind." It all looked like a homogenous blob to him. He was too accustomed to always being the odd one out, the one that looked different. Now, he was just like everyone else. And what did that make him feel? He wasn't sure.

Where to start? Kai swiveled his head and observed his surroundings, as he was trained to. He tried not to push himself too much, he didn't want to slip into that state so easily and without control; it'd just give him a headache after the long flight, in addition to the sluggish state of jet-lag. The colors danced in front of his eyes and everything seemed to flash by so fast. He didn't know what was wrong with him. It was the jetlag; he blamed the jetlag for his headache. His throbbing brain told him to sit down. So he did, in one of those uncomfortable plastic waiting chairs. Kai dropped his head to his hands, trying to clear his mind. Did he have enough money to buy a drink? What was the currency in Japan again? Right, the yen. Damn, he had to get his money converted. His mind was all out of sorts. It was still in that status, when a certain little Italian tapped his shoulder.

"Are thou alright, sir? Can I assist thee in any way?" Basil, his bright blue eyes eager to help, offered a friendly upturned hand. As usual, when speaking Japanese, he retained his archaic speech pattern that his Master had taught him, which often lead to misunderstandings.

"I'm sorry?" Kai responded instinctively in Italian. "I don't understand what you're saying."

"An Italian!" exclaimed Basil excitedly in his native tongue, taking a seat next to Kai. "I hope you don't mind that I mistook you for a Japanese person. Are you alright? You seem to be troubled, sir."

"No, you were right, I'm technically Japanese, I suppose," spoke Kai, switching back to Japanese, his voice low and tired. He raised a weary brow at Basil, asking him how he came to learn that kind of archaic language.

"My Master taught me," Basil responded happily in Japanese again, making large hand gestures to go with his exclaimed words. "He passeth on so much knowledge of the great Japanese culture to me, it is most enlightening!"

The Japanese teen rolled his eyes, whoever this 'Master' was, definitely was messing around with this kid. This kid was weird and small, with too much energy and a weird dialect. "Why are you in Japan anyway?"

'To visit a friend," Basil said simply, a fleeting expression of worry crossing his face. "And where are thy quarters, sir?"

"The Great Me is staying nowhere," said Kai, his tone trying to sound bored and flat. It felt weird saying something like "The Great Me", to be able to be sarcastic without having to be whipped for it. He rolled an imaginary rubber band across his palms, his nerves jittery, but his face remained impassive. "I just got here for the first time in my life and I have yet to plan a course of action. No money, no connections, no names, no nothing."

Basil looked thoughtful, tilting his head toward his hands. He appraised the teen that sat next to him, would he be a threat to Sawada-dono? He was taller than Basil, which was a fact, with a solemn air about him and a slight hunch. Kai's black hair was smooth and crisp, with only a few natural waves and his eyes were a wary pair of obsidian. The Italian smiled, the Asian boy looked harmless enough, just very tired. It was always nice to make a new friend. Basil excused himself for a bit to phone the Sawada household and waved to Kai from his place near the windows (for better service).

On the other hand, the Montague boy listened to his own words rolling around in his head, his throat feeling stuck and the words "Can you help me?" were at the tip of his tongue. He never spoke about himself, unless he was asked by his superiors. Never. He had been taught, "Kai, you are a servant. Nothing less. Always remember your place in this world." The boy rubbed the bridge of his nose in anger, a miniscule indent already there from the years of pent-up annoyance. There had been one person that Kai would have been willing to tell everything. But that person was gone, perhaps, forever. The boy with the obsidian eyes folded his hands over his face, trying to stop that shaky feeling of being out of place. He suppressed a shudder in his breathing and looked up to see the Italian walk over again. I'm Italian too, Kai thought bitterly, glancing at his closed passport. Kai Montague. If that's even my real name.

He eyeballed the blue-eyed boy, who made animated motions with his hands. He seemed reliable enough, a little too talkative and just a teensy bit too trusting, but he seemed normal. The thing that annoyed him about this person was that his hair hung too low in his face. It bothered Kai to see Basil's hair so long; in his opinion, it was kind of girly. The edges of his mouth lifted faintly in the first almost-smile he had felt in a long time. He was so girly looking and he talked in Japanese that Kai didn't quite understand. Maybe they were more alike than he had given him credit for; they both had "Masters" didn't they?

"Um, sir, my friend said that thou mayest stay at his house if thou likest. May I ask what thy name is? My name is Basil." He held out his palm for a handshake, grinning widely. Sawada-dono could help this boy out; if anyone could, concluded Basil, Vongola the Tenth could help this weary, homeless, and lonely traveler.

"Kai Montague." His name came out in a clipped tone, as if reporting to roll call. He shook Basil's hand, noticing that the boy's hand was smaller, yet just as rough. This Basil person had a weird name too, was his mother chewing basil leaves when she birthed him? Was basil even good to eat? Reproachfully, Kai checked over Basil again, looking for any bulges that might indicate a gun or concealed weapon. Automatically, his hand twitched to his own pocket, where he had his slingshot hidden. His revolver was tucked into his shoe and covered by his pants. Basil wouldn't know if Kai had these on him, not if he was a normal person. Grudgingly, the refugee boy decided to relax his guard; he desperately needed people to look out for him. Trusting a plant, especially an herb, had to be better than nothing.

"Sawada-dono! It is I, Basil. Here is the guest that I mentioned on the phone earlier," said Basil loudly, ringing the Sawada doorbell. The blue-eyed CEDEF member smiled encouragingly at Kai, who stared at the closed door with dread.

"Basil-kun!" Tsuna exclaimed, swinging open the door to welcome in his friend. He glanced up at Kai and squeaked, "Hiiiiiiiiiie! Wh-wh-who are you?"

This guy was even weaker looking than Basil. Kai wondered if this kid's name was a plant too. Or even worse, (or perhaps, even better!), the name of a single-celled organism, like a paramecium or amoeba. Kai opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a huge BOOM! Naturally, his hand reached for his gun.

A/N: Hi there! Sorry if I make Basil a bit OOC...I'm not the greatest at writing archaic English, so his dialogue might sound a bit off. And we really know nothing about Ganauche so far...so I get to play around with his character a bit XD Do tell me what you think of Kai, I'd love to hear your opinions and suggestions~ Thanks again and please do review! XD