Summary: AU. 2786, hints of other pairings. Young Tsuna always, since junior school, had problems with talking to girls, especially with the one he likes. So, he found himself standing in front of the door of a little shop in Chinatown to get a little help. Little crossover with pet shop of Horrors

Written for Haru's birthday, may third

Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! Or Pet Shop of Horrors or anything alike

Chapter 1

-...G-good morning K-kyoko-chan!- he blushed lightly as he looked at the direction where the girl of his dreams was coming

-Good morning Tsuna-kun!- the girl smiled and walked slowly to her classroom

And there he was again. He kept silent, no words coming from his mouth, his mind went blank in the moment he saw her beautiful smile. He just stared her back going away from him. The same story since junior school. Now he was 19, and luckily, both went to same university, but still he couldn't talk to her normally

-Tsuna! - a familiar voice called him. –Still no luck, huh? - He laughed and patted the brunette's shoulder

-Yamamoto! Y-you saw that?- he blushed heavier, and sighed out of frustration– I'm really no-good

-Yeah, I did - he laughed again an pat his shoulder to cheer him up –Don't worry, you'll do great next time

-N-next time? - he blushed again just thinking about it –I … I don't think there will be much of a change

-Um … You know, my old man says you can really improve your skills talking to people by talking to a pet

-A pet?

-Yep, my old man says it's because a pet always listens and they can't reject you, since they can't talk, hahaha

What … way of thinking is that? He thought in dismay, but he also thought he would give it a try anyway

-So, Yamamoto, do you think that would work?

-If my old man says so, then it must be true, don't you think? –He smiled, and then he remembered something- You know, I heard there's an amazing pet shop in Chinatown, you can go there after classes if you want. I'd go with you if I didn't have so much to study this week

And that's how he ended staring at the door of the mentioned pet shop. Why he was there again?. Right, to get a pet. And why he needed a pet anyway? Because he needed it for Kyoko-chan. But … but …

While a million ideas of how having a pet wouldn't be a great idea started to grow on his head, the door opened, curiosity taking the place of his previous questioning

Since it was a bit dark in the shop, he entered to take a better look

-Welcome to this humble pet shop- a velvety voice said behind him, scaring him. It came from a young asian man, most likely Chinese

-Y-you m-must be Count D

- I'm truly sorry, That's my grandfather, I'm only taking care of the shop while he is traveling around the world looking for new animals. But you can call me like that if you want

-I see. So … I … Ummm … I'm looking for a pet …

-And what kind of pet are you looking for?

He blushed.

-Well … the kind I … can … talk to …

-I see- he smiled- so you are in need of a very special one, may I know why?

His reddened face was all he got as an answer

-Interesting… so may you please follow me to the back door? I'm sure there is something special for you there

Tsuna followed the Chinese man down the long dark corridor in the back of the shop. There were a lot of doors, most of them barely opened so light peeked out of them. The scent if sweet incense filled the air. Roars, growls, barks and any other animal sound he could imagine came from the rooms behind those doors

He was scared. But he couldn't help feeling curious about what animals could be in those rooms too

So, he stopped in front of the doors and pushed it gently

There were three huge sofas in the room. There were a lot of animals lounging on them and around them too. The only thing mismatching that animal kingdom was a girl about his age, wearing a white and orange summer dress, black short boots and black gloves, sitting among them

-A girl?- He thought out loud

-A girl you say?- The count looked at the room- Are you sure?

He looked again at the room. There were just animals there

-B-but I'm sure I saw a girl in there! … A girl with a ponytail!

The count smiled

-Well, let's take a better look then

Tsuna looked again inside of the room. The sweet scent in the air became stronger. Instead of animals, there were a lot of people, all of them blessed with overwhelming beauty

His eyes took a good look to everyone in that room. How could that be? First, the room was full of animals, and then full of people

-Hey! It seems you're looking for something, need a hand?

-It's you!

-Hahi?

-You're the girl I saw!

-Well … that's a quite interesting choice, young one - The count smiled- since this child IS a pet, you can take her home if you want

-Me? Take her home? But it's a human!

-In fact, she isn't. She's an animal. A fox more specifically - He petted the girl's head, and two orange ears raised at his touch, and an orange tail started wagging slowly behind her

-Hiii! S-She has ears! And a tail!

-Didn't I told you she is a fox? - He indicate the girl to leave them, to talk with him more privately

-But she looks like a human

-In ancient japan, foxes used to take human form and mingle with humans. Mostly for playing jokes on them or test their purity. They are pretty rare to find this days, but this one is one of them. – he started walking to go to the front of the shop again, indicating his guest to follow him- They most of time keep their human form, but if they trust you, or want to make you realize they are not common humans, or they are caught unaware, they can show some fox parts –the count sat near a coffee table in the shop front– Since she seems lively enough near you, it seems she likes your heart – the count smiled and poured some tea for his guest and for himself

He blushed and looked to the door in the back of the shop for a moment, thinking about the fox-girl. She was for sure an amazing animal

-She can surely make your dream to talk to a certain girl come true - he sipped his tea, making Tsuna blush a bit more- But I can't give her to you. It's a very precious animal

-But can you … um … lend her to me?

-Lend her? – He stared at the ceiling in thought, and closed his eyes looking for an answer – Sounds interesting –he mused on the thought. Then he laid his mismatching eyes on him- Very well, first you have to know how to take care of her, then you have to sign the contract

He brought some papers and put them on the table, in front of him

-Her kind mostly eats Japanese food, but this one has also a taste for sweets. For anything else, she is old enough to take care of herself. When you don't need her anymore, you return her to me. Sign here to close the contract –he pointed a line at the end of the contract

He took the ink feather and signed the paper. The dark red ink seemed to dry really fast, leaving his signature looking like dry blood on the paper

-Now for payment, you have to pay me with three Domino cakes, three Valencia cakes, three chocolate mousse cakes, two fruit tarts and five almond croissants from that fine shop in Little Tokyo

-T-that's too much!

-An important fee for so valuable animal, don't you think?

He tried to complain, but just a frustrated sigh came out of his mouth

-And now for warnings: First, don't let her know your name, and second, don't be too kind with her, it also happens her kind tends to go a bit overboard when it's about rewarding kindness, the same goes with the opposite. If you break anyone of those rules, the shop is not responsible for what happens

-Hiiii! But! But …

-No buts, young one –the count smiled- if you don't break the rules, there's nothing to worry about, right?. Besides, you already signed the contract

He lowered his head, sighed and nod

-So, how you are going to name her?

-Name her? If she takes human form doesn't that means she has a name?

-Of course she has a name, but you're not allowed to know it, since you are just being with her for a while, so you have to name her

-I see –he sighed- well –he scratched his head, in thought- I'll name her Hatsu

The count looked at him- Why such a name?

-Isn't it a Japanese name? – he blushed a bit – It seems to fit her though

-Interesting naming sense you have- The count smiled again, finished his tea, called his young assistant to go for the girl, and let them leave

And that's how Tsuna ended guiding a dark-haired girl to his apartment, to live as his pet for a while

Note: yeah! It's me again! Sorry for not writing anything since long long ago, so I'm making it up writing this short series (I planned it to be no longer than 5 chaps or so).

For the cakes, I had to do some research for bakeries, and found that there is one in Little Tokyo, that is quite good according to the reviews I read. I don't think they sell to take out, but let's imagine they do.

For "Hatsu" I looked for it in a dictionary, and it does mean "hearts" (looking a bit further, it does mean "hearts", but as food –It's an animal's heart's meat-). Then I found out it really is a name (and a girl's name in top of that! XD) and it means "First born". Both "Hatsu" words are written differently

First chap and I didn't planned it to be so long ._.

Have to add, my writing skills went a bit rusty

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