Dino's switched out by the bazooka- only for him to see the tragedy that fell, and the tragedy that broke his heart. Character death, written for D18 day 2012.

Thanks for reading, and I hope Dino isn't too OOC.

Tentative title, need a better one.

It had started off as a normal day. Birds were chirping, and there were only a few white clouds in the sky. For once, there wasn't a sound of head hitting pavement. That made Dino glad, because that meant Kyoya wasn't too irate today.

"Kyoya!" the blond called out with a smile, barging onto the rooftop. He found the skylark sleeping on the roof and immediately clasped his hand over his mouth. Hibari would be angry if Dino woke him up.

A steel grey eye opened and glanced sharply at the blond.

"Haneuma," he called out. "You woke me up." He rose menacingly, with his eyes blazing. "For that, I'll bite you to death."

"Ah- Kyoya, can't we talk about this?" Dino attempted to coerce the other, to no avail.

As Hibari charged forward, Dino tripped over his own feet and fell on his back. But right before the brunet could pummel him, a cloud of pink enveloped him. Dino faintly remembered it as the cloud of the Ten Years Later Bazooka.

He didn't expect anything he saw.

The blond's brown eyes opened to see... a casket, the color of cloud flames. His heart almost immediately dropped to his stomach. He dared to glance around and found his friends, Tsuna and the members of Foundation looking at him in disbelief. He took a shaky breath as he realized they were all clad in black. Finally, his eyes latched into Tsuna with almost a pleading look- one that said, 'Please tell me that this is a joke'.

The eyes that stared back confirmed that this wasn't a joke.

"Dino…" Tsuna began hesitantly, "listen… he sacrificed himself for you."

The horse's face paled at these words. He forcefully willed himself to stop looking at Tsuna, to hold back those feelings of wanting to throttle something. He wanted to deny the idea of who the body in the casket was, but he knew there was no other possible person. There was one iconic character missing from Tsuna's group, but judging by the color of that elegant box, he knew where they were. He looked inside with near heartbroken eyes.

And thus, his brown eyes met the refreshingly young face of Hibari's older counterpart. His skin was deathly pale, eyes closed. His face looked so calm, so angelic, and his hands were crossed over his chest. The ink black of his hair made him look even paler, and the violet velvet he was resting on sure looked comfy. But, Hibari didn't deserve to be here, not on this bed. No, Kyoya should've been surviving. He should be demanding Dino for a fight, drinking tea and beating down the enemy. He shouldn't be resting in a coffin, pale and unmoving and cold.

"Kyoya…" he whispered, eyes focused on the other's unbreathing face. He expected any moment for Hibari to open his eyes, say it was a joke, and do anything. Hell, he'd even be fine if it was Mukuro messing with him. But the seconds ticked by, and nothing happened. So, he swallowed down the lump in his throat and came to a shocking realization. He was crying.

Dino held back a bitter laugh. What would Hibari say if he saw his Dino's younger self tearing like an herbivore? Certainly bite him to death. But Hibari couldn't do that anymore, could he?

His mind dawned on what Tsuna had told him. Kyoya sacrificed himself for him? Kyoya loved him that much in the future? Dino's heart clenched and the pain felt worse than ever.

But suddenly, the pink cloud surrounded him again. As blurry brown eyes rose, he found Hibari, looking more upset than angered. His hair was a bit ruffled, and he had a frown on his face. Idly, he had to wonder just what kind of reaction his future self had when seeing a young Hibari.

"Oi, Cavallone. Why in the world are you crying?" Hibari demanded with a sharp glare.

Dino just stood up without a word and just came over to hug the other tightly. For once, he had naught any smiles nor made any odd excuses to be spared from a beating. He just made a simple gesture, embracing the other in a one-sided hug. Hibari made an attempt to escape, to no avail.

"Kyoya," he choked, resting his nose into the other's hair.

Hibari felt a twinge of worry as he stared at the other in utter confusion. What had happened in the future that had reduced the blond into this? And why had the other haneuma been so surprised to see him? The prefect bit his lip gently, before deciding that certain herbivores could have exceptions, and this would be the only one that this horse got. He wrapped his arms around Dino, and patted a bit awkwardly in an attempt to make him feel better.

They stayed like that for some time, even as the sun started to dip behind the horizon.