I decided to start this aside from my other 1896 fic because I wanted a chance at writing them a little more out of character with more possible angst and romance. I'm still going to keep up with my other fic, of course, but I hope this story will be enjoyable as well! So, of course, enjoy!

Summary: Sort of AU. Takes place in a future where Chrome is 16 and Hibari is 19. Mukuro is freed from Vendicare and goes missing along with Ken and Chikusa. Now on good terms with the abandoned Mist guardian, Hibari invites Chrome to stay with him in his house. ChromexHibari

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

It was later in the afternoon, and a 16 year old Chrome was walking back to Kokuyo land after a long day at Namimori High, a school she'd transferred to about a year ago.

As she was walking down an empty street, she couldn't help but to drift back and forth into her memory of the previous weekend.

Flashback:

"B-Boss?" Chrome asked questioningly.

The two of them, Chrome and Tsuna, were sitting in his office, Tsuna giving Chrome a sympathetic look.

"Yes. I was finally able to have Mukuro Rokudo freed from Vendicare...however, I received word yesterday that he'd fled right after release and is now missing along with Ken Joshima and Chikusa Kakimoto. We're looking for him, but, unfortunately, that just isn't at the top of our priorities right now," Tsuna explained with a saddened gaze.

Chrome was speechless. Mukuro had never contacted her about this...and now, he was missing? "I...I see," Chrome finally replied quietly. "Well...thank you for letting me know, Boss." She bowed her head and left his office solemnly.

Tsuna only watched with sympathy as she walked out.

End of Flashback

"Mukuro-sama," Chrome muttered to herself quietly. She felt as though she'd always known he could abandon her at any second, but when it actually happened...she just couldn't quite fathom it.

Even after six days had passed, she still felt the same emptiness she'd felt when she first found out.

She returned to Kokuyo land with a sense of melancholy. Things weren't quite the same without Ken scolding her or Chikusa telling him to calm down.

She plopped down on the old, torn couch that had remained in their little hide out for all of these years.

Knock Knock

Chrome looked up to see a man a couple of years older than her at the open entrance to the room.

"Oh, Kyoya, hello. I didn't know you'd returned to Japan," Chrome greeted with tired eyes and a monotone voice.

Hibari studied her appearance. Her face was tired and her whole form seemed devoid of any kind of liveliness. Even back when she was the introverted child she'd been when first entering the Vongola, her expression had never been quite so broken.

"The herbivore informed me of what happened," he said coolly. "Apparently, the illusionist has gone and disappeared once again."

No response.

Over the last few years that had passed, Chrome had grown quite fond of the Cloud guardian. She'd felt like she could trust him, despite his past with Mukuro, and she ceased to annoy him like the others. However, they'd never really come around to speaking of Mukuro. This was the first time they'd had a reason to.

"Kyoya...you should leave..." Chrome finally spoke up.

He raised a brow slightly and sighed. "Fine then, let's get going," he replied calmly.

She gave him a curious look.

"You'll just end up dying if you stay in this run down old place."

Her eyes drifted away from him. "Kyoya...I can't..."

Hibari's face hardened a bit. "Rokudo Mukuro is missing, and I highly doubt waiting here is going to increase the chances of him coming back."

Chrome's eyes widened.

"Waiting will get you no where. Haven't you figured that out yet?" Keeping his serious demeanor, he extended his hand toward her.

After arriving at Hibari's house, she'd settled with a small suitcase containing a couple of extra Namimori uniforms along with a few other necessities.

"I'll go make some tea. Go wash up," Hibari said calmly as he left the room.

Chrome entered the kitchen after taking a quick shower and changing into a plain white yukata that had been left sitting by the sink for her.

One thing Hibari realized that he had failed to notice earlier was her change in hairstyle. She seemed to have abandoned that pineapple like hairstyle she'd worn before and simply let her hair down, falling to her mid back, as well as parting it to the side instead of its usual middle part. He concluded that it must of had something to do with Mukuro's disappearance. Perhaps she was trying to distance herself from him after all.

They sat down to their tea in silence.

"You know, I've always liked this old fashioned Japanese style house you have. It's a nice break from modern structures," Chrome said after a while.

He noticed she wasn't making eye contact.

"The room I'm staying in is very pretty too! I never really noticed how good your decorating skills were, Kyoya," Chrome said with a small chuckle.

She was faking it.

He couldn't take it when she smiled at him like that.

"You're a terrible liar," he replied bluntly to her attempts at making small talk.

Her face fell. "What do you mean, Kyoya?"

His eyes narrowed. "You can't seriously expect to hide anything with that shabby little act."

"K-Kyoya..."

There was a brief moment of silence before Hibari spoke up again.

"Do you want to forget?" He asked somberly.

She looked into his eyes with her one with a conflicted expression.

"I see," he replied coldly as he stood up from his chair.

"Hey, what are you-"

He gave her a slight pat on the head, to which she was surprised at and said, "You should get some sleep then, Nagi."

Her eyes widened.

"Y-Yes."

Okay? I'm really hoping I can make this into a good story with some more drama and other romantic themes in the future. I'll try and get a stronger plot going as soon as possible, but I'm still debating if this should be an actual 189669 fic, or just an 1896 comfort sort of fic. Reviews are very much appreciated, and thank you for reading!

Author's note: Hibari's serious personality pretty much stays in character, but I wanted Chrome to have a less timid nature and be a little more comfortable around Hibari, so her 16 year old self is pretty much just quiet as apposed to being totally anti social. Also, yes, Hibari does live alone. Chrome still goes to Namimori High school because they have a three year age difference, so technically Hibari would be a college student. However, since I can't actually see him going to a real college, he's pretty much just an adult that takes care of his Vongola missions and whatever else. Aside from Ryohei, the rest of the gang are all pretty much a year older than Chrome so they're like 17 and 18-ish.