Chapter One
Music broke the peaceful silence of the morning. The figure moaned, a hand reaching out to answer the incessantly ringing phone.
It took several tries but finally, there was a faint click.
"Hello?" She yawned, the word barely coherent. Blinking sleepily, she stared blankly at the ceiling, her vision still blurry. The weight beside her shifted as arms wrapped themselves around her, bringing her closer.
Waiting for an answer, she marvelled at the innocence the man beside her had when asleep.
"Airi~ It's papa!"
Running her hand through the man's hair, an eyebrow lifted at the proclamation. "Papa? What's got you calling me at-"
Narrowing her eyes in concentration, she tried to make out the time displayed on the digital alarm clock.
"-6:49 in the morning?"
There was a nervous chuckle on the other line and she stifled a sigh, knowing that her father probably did something without thinking. Again. "What did you do?"
"Well, remember when you asked me to book you a flight home?" "Mmm." "I did. Except…" "Except?" "Except I forgot to tell you when." "Aaannnddd?" "And the flight leaves at 9AM. Today."
She glanced at the clock, eyes wide. Suddenly she wasn't so tired anymore.
7:03.
"Fax me the ticket. Need to get ready and pack. Bye, love you."
Swearing softly under her breath, she stumbled out of bed, waking its other occupant in the process.
The man startled, eyes staring at her in dazed confusion. "Airi?"
"Great, you're up. Go take a shower; I need you to drive me to the airport. She stated, shoving a towel into his arms and directing him to the bathroom.
"Wha-" "Be ready in fifteen."
With that, she closed the door behind him and set off to make breakfast.
Another glance at the clock caused her to squeak and speed up.
7:15.
(And hour and a half later found her on a plane, making its way to Namimori, Japan.)
Blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Tall, elegant, graceful.
Stranger.
The brunette blinked, and blinked, and blinked. Then a piercingly loud, girlish scream filled the house-hold. His family's gaze – along with his tutor's and the stranger's turned to him. The unknown blonde woman stared at him then turned to look at his mother.
"Who's that?" She asked, undeniably curious.
Nana smiled brightly as she got up from the table and dragged Tsuna to where they were sitting. "Airi, this is your younger brother; Tsunayoshi."
Cue fallen chopsticks and open mouths as both newly-found siblings twitched.
"My what?" "Your brother, Ai-chan."
She scrutinized the feminine brunette, eyes unreadable. Then she smiled, a hint of something hidden beneath it.
"It's nice to meet you, Tsunayoshi-chan. You can call me Ai-nee or Ri-nee or whatever you want." "H-hai…"
When their attention was turned away from her and to the man cuddling the brunette like he was a child, a mischievous smile painted her lips.
It seemed as though life in Namimori isn't quite as dull as it used to be.