Disclaimer: If Katekyo Hitman Reborn were mine, I wouldn't need to write fanfics. If any of these songs were mine, I wouldn't be writing fanfics.

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Minimal fluff 09!

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Stop! In the name of Kabuki!

"Attention everyone, please! Let me introduce a new member to our backstage crew!"

The lady whom Tsuna recognized as the secretary that had shown them the ropes on the first day was clapping her hands at the door, looking authoritative as always. It was rehearsal time; the theater had already been prepping for a mini release when the two arrived, a tribute to springtime, while all the while getting ready for the big alliance unveiling, as Reborn was so keen to call it. Everyone turned to her, whom neither Tsuna nor Basil had bothered to learn her name, and she cleared her throat.

"Ahem. Thank you. All, this is Goro. He will be working with the backstage crew. He's a little late, but we need all the backstage help we can get. I hope you will all give him a warm welcome."

Goro's eyes searched the stage until he found Tsuna and a small smile crossed his face. The rest of the actors had called out welcomes but the two Vongola spies had stayed silent. "It will be a blast to work with all of you," he said calmly.

If he doesn't blow the place up first, Tsuna thought to himself. But at least Gokudera was here. The more they had on their side, the better. And perhaps it was better to have Gokudera handing him his props backstage; a few of the hands had already given him strange looks and Basil had complained of groping and harassment. Kabuki was a dangerous water to tread on.

Chiharu, who was sitting with the director, seemed disinterested, but then again, they all had to stay apathetic toward each other as not to give anything away. Or could it be that she had held a grudge against him for dismissing her works of art? Tsuna decided not to dwell on this as Gokudera got situated backstage.

"Start from scene three, please. Tsunami-san, please don't linger about."

The director, Takayama, was a grumpy man who seemed to hate everyone who 1) didn't know their lines the day after the script was handed out 2)didn't know what they were doing after he explained it once and 3) was Tsuna. Chiharu had tried to minimize the damage, but even the Vongola boss couldn't push himself to sound girly if his voice was changing. Takayama seemed to blame him when his voice grew awfully pitchy. It wasn't like he wanted to squeak up the place. Basil was a natural onstage though, even if he grew painfully quiet.

"Tenth, I got your back!" Tsuna nearly rolled his eyes as he disappeared backstage. Gokudera was going to give them all away if he wasn't careful. He shouldn't worry though; the silver-haired bomber had been in the mafia since he was in diapers, so a little enthusiasm could slide.

"You got your eye on Tsunami-chan!" Tsuna heard a backstage hand say to Gokudera. "You've got good eyes."

"Eh? You sure about that?" Gokudera was advancing on the unsuspecting crew member and Tsuna wondered if he ought to say anything. Takayama hated him as he was, and if he stopped rehearsal for a backstage fight, it would be hatred something awful…Basil was also trying to do damage control but before either of them could step up, the crew manager appeared from the shadows.

"Is everything alright?" Gokudera glanced at the man. A lollypop stick stuck out of his mouth and he had calluses on his hands. He thought his hair was strange with its color, but this man took strange to another level with this weird almost artificial curl in his hair. "It's fine," he said levelly, as the stagehand he was menacing scampered away.

"You look new. I'm Spanner. I'm the crew head part-time. Nice to meet you." He held out his hand as Gokudera extended his slowly.

"What do you do normally?"

"I'm an auto mechanic. But the theater needed my help." Gokudera nearly gripped the man's hand harder. More like the mafia probably paid him off. Faking a friendly smile, Gokudera released Spanner's hand and shoved his hands in his pockets. "It's nice to meet you too, Spanner. I'm Goro."

Spanner stared at him for a moment, as if reading his soul, before shrugging. "Work hard," he said vaguely as he went off to adjust the lighting. For a moment, the three were left alone and Gokudera turned to Tsuna.

"Tenth, Tenth, are you okay? You're feeling well?"

"Yes, thanks. You should worry about Basil-kun too, though."

"Oh, well…Basil looks like he's doing fine." To this, Basil gave him a sarcastic cold look. "But Reborn's got everything under control. We're on this theater like bees to honey."

"What about Hibari-san?"

"You don't need that violent bird."

"Well…" Even if Gokudera didn't want to hear it, it was true. Gokudera heard the skepticism in Tsuna's voice and sighed. "He's part of the plan, relax."

"Tsunami-chan?" Tsuna started as he heard Chiharu call his name from the stage. "Your cue was called five minutes ago. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, sorry!" Dashing out, Gokudera watched him before turning to Basil. "Are you two going to be alright?"

Basil gave him an apologetic look. "Hopefully."

--

On opening night, Takayama announced that Tsuna, who had been given the lead part as Princess Hinagiku, had been reassigned to Maid Number Seven, who only had one line ("The petals of the sakura delight me so."), and Basil was to play the lead. Tsuna wondered if he should feel disappointed; instead he felt relieved – yes, this was a minor play, but he didn't want people to regard him as a disaster on stage. If he was going to take part of Operation Kabuki, he may as well do it right, right? Gokudera had been more than willing to blow Takayama to the moon but luckily, he was swamped with loads of backstage work to do the night before.

Basil had been willing to refuse the role, despite the fact that he had worked with Tsuna enough to know every line, but luckily Tsuna was able to talk him out of that as well.

And anyway, Tsuna was glad to get out that nasty costume. It was more silk and kimono and red that he had ever liked to wear at one time. Sure, he painted a pretty picture, but he could hardly move. Could he be wearing any more clothes? Basil looked stunning with them (as expected) and Chiharu bustled with them backstage.

"Ah, you look so beautiful, Bella-chan…"

As she was pinning the fabric right (Tsuna was just a tad taller than Basil), she murmured information to the two as she worked. "Reborn's got the place covered, but he says nothing major should happen. Just an unveiling of the two new members. Hibari's supposed to start as a regular at this play. He's supposed to be a fan for one of you two, but it hasn't been decided yet."

"Hibari-san, a Kabuki fan?" It was too much to imagine the bloody prefect as one who reveled in the arts.

"He looks quite fetching in a suit. He looks perfect for the job," Chiharu simpered, biting some pins in her mouth. "You two should be fabulous tonight. It's a full house."

"That's a lot of people."

"Damn right it is. This place fits a lot. You two better find more information about the alliance because there's going to be a bloodbath if you don't save the viewers first." Tsuna shuddered at the thought.

"Break a leg!" Chiharu finished with Basil's kimono and patted the two on the back. "I'll be sitting in the front so I'll word your lines to you if you miss. Gokudera's got everything backstage so he'll dim the lights if anything screws up. Don't worry about a thing." Giving them a rather plastic smile, the two could see she was fraught on nerves as well. It was a routine play, though, so the mafia shouldn't be involved.

Even so…it was a debut.

"Good luck, Basil…ah, Bella-san!"

At last, the crowd lowered down to a mere murmur and the curtain was drawn. Switching on the soundboard and the lights, Gokudera sat in the sound booth and watched the theater. Takeyama wasn't supposed to show up to such a minor teaser, but no one could be sure. There were oddly a lot of black suited men lingering about. Turning on the spotlight, the light shone on a red kimono in the middle of the stage, as Basil sat looking rather small amidst flower petals.

Aware that he was half-trembling under the layers of clothing (he was a mafia member, not an actor! At times like this, Basil wondered why on earth he had allowed Reborn to set him up in such a situation), Basil took a deep breath and spoke. "On days like this, the air is clear…"

Faces were swimming in mass amounts in front of him and Basil realized he was getting dizzy from the lights already. Better finish his monologue quick. "…the snow has melted and dew abounds…" Who wrote this cheesy script? Ah, he had spotted Hibari sitting up close and he swore it was Bianchi who had shifted in her seat. Feeling a bit settled, he opened his mouth to continue when he forgot a rule that Chiharu had practically spelled out the first day of training.

"Do not ever meet eyes with someone in the crowd because it will definitely screw you over."

The pair of eyes in question weren't even matching; one was a dark blue and the other was a deep auburn. They went well with a sly smile that sent shivers down his spine; it was as if this person could read his mind. The young man in question was dressed rather sharp, like Hibari, in a suit and he was tapping his chin with a finger waiting for the next line. Basil knew he was the only one on stage, so there would be no one else to look at, but it was as if the stranger had no other eyes for him…

There was a hiss and Basil came out of the trance he had seemingly been under. Chiharu had covered this up as a soft sneeze ("Oh, bless me.") and Basil quickly stumbled over the rest of the monologue. As the lights dimmed and the choir came out to do their little dance piece, he snuck a peek back toward the man, but said man had looked away to whisper something in the ear of a young woman sitting next to him in a black dress and almost identical facial features. Behind the two was a pair who looked rather sketchy for kabuki attendees, with messy hair on one and glasses that glinted in the light on the other.

"Basil, you choked!" Tsuna whispered when the Italian stumbled backstage. "What happened?"

"Ah, nothing. Please don't worry about it." He glanced back on stage again, where if he tilted his head right, he could see the strange man with the different eye color…it seemed as if the stranger could still see him even behind the curtain and…he smiled…

"Basil-kun, are you alright?"

Basil opened his mouth to reply but no words came out.

--

"Oh, onii-chan, I have never actually seen a kabuki play before!"

"Oh, Kyoko-chan, you have missed a lot! It's fancy to the extreme!"

"…Oh, but onii-chan, neither have you…"

Yamamoto nearly face-palmed himself. Ryohei had convinced Kyoko and him to watch the spring opener as a 'undercover sting operation', but Yamamoto was pretty sure it was just because the case wasn't supposed to start until two days later and Ryohei was getting ants in his pants. No other officer had been invited but by the way things were going (Ryohei staring up at the stage in awe and Kyoko looking starry-eyed), this case was going belly-up once again. Sighing and rumpling his ironed suit, Yamamoto stood up and started toward the aisle.

"Ah, Yamamoto-kun, where are you going?"

"Bathroom." If they were going to do an undercover sting operation, the mafia members were not just going to dance on stage and sing, "I'm a mafia member, police please arrest me!" This was a waste of time. If they really wanted to get something done, they should have gone backstage immediately to watch what happened there…the mafia was sure to operate in the shadows. He was one, but sometimes police officers could be unbearably dim.

Sliding through the shadows, Yamamoto reached the door to the stage and entered rather silently. He hadn't gotten a few steps into the darkened area when he heard a voice hiss out at him. "Who are you and what are you doing back here?" Yamamoto blinked and it turned out he hadn't entered the stage door after all. The sound booth was empty except for a young man with flashy, silver hair. It was a dance scene and said man had been nodding off when the door opened.

"Police," Yamamoto said shortly, flashing his badge.

"I don't give a shit, you're not authorized back here. What are the coppers doing in a theater anyway? You got a search warrant?"

Jumpy little shit, Yamamoto thought, although they were probably around the same age. He was going to watch this guy. It wouldn't hurt to announce his intentions; get the mafia a little nervous. "We've heard that some mafia dealings are going on in this theater. You wouldn't happen to know about it, would you?"

"What are you trying to imply?" If this guy was guilty, he sure was cool about it. Yamamoto took a step forward.

"I'm implying that your people should step down from whatever you're planning."

Gokudera opened his mouth to retort but held his tongue. This was a cop he was talking to; he had to choose his words carefully. "I'm just a stage help. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Then you wouldn't mind me poking around backstage, right? Forbidding me to do so would be an obstruction to justice." Smiling widely, Yamamoto cocked his head. "Since you're not in the mafia, it shouldn't be a problem, eh?"

This guy was just so…! Nearly knocking over the chair, Gokudera stood up and grabbed a fistful of the calm, collected officer's collar. "You would be smart not to poke your nose where it's not needed, cop. Everything's under control here."

"It doesn't seem like it," Yamamoto countered and Gokudera pushed him, causing the former to stumble on some cables.

"Get out of the sound booth or I'll call security."

"I'm leaving, I'm leaving. I'm a cop, anyway." Turning to go, Yamamoto turned with a smirk. "My name's Yamamoto, by the way. You'll probably be seeing a lot more of me a lot often." Before Gokudera could form a curse, the young man disappeared back into the darkness, closing the door behind him.

Effing…! Reborn would have to be told. This probably wouldn't end the operation, but now the cops were snooping about, things were going to get a bit more edgier than they expected. But, Gokudera thought with a grin, he liked challenges and there was no way in hell that Yama-guy was going to be putting them behind bars. They were just going to have to see who was smarter, and it was definitely going to be him.

--

The reception was warm and friendly as the patrons were unaware of the discussions occurring around them. Gokudera had joined the rest of the crew to clean up but slipped off into the reception room to find Reborn. Said infant was nestled in the arms of his big sister, who was thankfully wearing a masquerade mask.

"Bianchi…wrong theater."

"Ah, sorry, Gokudera. I'll take it off." The silver-haired woman chuckled as her fingers fluttered on the mask and Gokudera blanched. "I'm kidding. What's wrong? You look worried." Reborn turned as well.

"Ah, you know. Back stage problems." He glanced around and saw a few stage hands had slinked to enjoy the punch and attractive ladies in the reception room. "Some cues are a bit off and the polizia is just getting wrapped up in all the loose wires."

At the mention of the word, both Bianchi and Reborn stiffened. "That sounds like trouble," Reborn mused. "You'd better look into it."

"I will."

"Ah, Bella-chan, Tsunami-chan, you two were great!" Fuuta had come with an armful of flowers to greet the two. "You two were wonderful! I knew you could do it!"

"Ah, Fuuta-kun…you shouldn't act so friendly," Chiharu said carefully, glancing around. "So many people could overhear you…"

"Oh! Right." Acting shy, he handed each onnagatas a bouquet. "You two stole the stage tonight."

"Thank you, Fuuta-kun."

"Tsunami-san, is it?" At the sound of Tsuna's stage name, the four turned. Hibari was striding over to them, looking a bit strange in a suit and (was that a…) a smile. Just from walking through the crowds, the stoic prefect was already earning interested looks from some of the young female patrons, who were whispering to each other up a storm. Tsuna blinked as Hibari bowed before him. He never thought he'd see the day when Hibari-san would actually bow to him. He felt a shot of terror as he knew this would probably mean that he'd have the stuffing beat out of him by the time this operation was over.

"Ah, yes…and you are?"

"You can call me Hibari."

So bold, Chiharu thought, almost cringing. Only Hibari would have the guts to use his actual name in such a situation. Quickly ushering Basil and Fuuta away, she gave the two a glance and winked at Tsuna.

"Oh, um, yes, hello Hibari-san," Tsuna said, fumbling over his words. Was this what Chiharu meant when she said Hibari was going to be a regular? What did that even mean? He was trying to seek her out in the crowd to give her a 'help me!' look when he felt Hibari take his hand. Turning back around with surprise, Tsuna was just in time to see Hibari lower himself on one knee and kiss his hand.

Alright, so he wasn't going to be alive at the end of the operation.

"You were lovely tonight, Tsunami-san," Hibari murmured, although Tsuna thought he saw him twitch. Ah, that's right, Hibari hated crowds. And they were attracting a lot of people. "Ah, um…thank you so much." Pausing and wondering about the invitation, Tsuna decided to wing it. "Um…I'd like to get some air. Would you like to come with me?"

"That's fine with me."

The two made their way through the crowd (although Hibari dropped his hand the moment their little act was over) and onto a deserted balcony of the theater. In the cool, evening air, Tsuna stretched his arms up. Hibari's expressionless face had come back and Tsuna wasn't surprised in the least.

"Sorry you had to do that," Tsuna said quickly. Maybe if he apologized now, he'd get more slack at the end. Hibari sighed and loosened his tie as he leaned on the balcony ledge. "That baby said it was necessary."

"I didn't know you'd actually want to do it. I mean, you don't like crowds or anything and the theater is basically a lot of people in one area."

"You look nice," Hibari said suddenly, changing the subject. Tsuna frowned at this interruption before feeling his face heat up. He wasn't that modest that he would feel embarrassed by such a comment, but this was Hibari-san they were talking about and he just said he looked nice? Flustered, Tsuna looked down at the street, where some of the patrons were starting to drive away. "Um…thanks…"

The sky darkened and the two remained silent, although Hibari glanced at the trees near the balcony once in a while. A yellow ball of feathers poked out once in a while and it had been Hibird who had hinted that someone had been listening to their conversation. Now that neither were talking, Hibari indeed heard footsteps pacing the roof. So the Hatsuhana family was that strict when it came to security…they hadn't given anything away but knowing dame Tsuna, the kid probably would have started reciting the plan.

"Tsunami-san, it's getting a bit chilly. Would you like to step back inside?"

"Ah? Um, alright."

--

"Where's Tsuna going?" Basil asked when he saw Tsuna and Hibari parting the crowds.

"Tsunami, you mean," Chiharu reminded him, pouring Fuuta and herself a cup of punch. "I bet they're just getting some air. No big problem. You were wonderful, though. You should be a full-time actress."

"I'm a boy, Misaki-san."

"Ah, this would be Bella-san, am I correct?"

Hearing the familiar name, Basil looked up and nearly stepped back to see the staring stranger from the crowd. There was a friendly smile on the young man's face, but the eyes seemed to eat him up in one gulp…dangerous. He was trailed by the woman in black and the two sidekicks. Fuuta fell silent behind Chiharu, who was analyzing each of the members of this group.

"Oh, yes, I am."

"Wonderful. You were stunning tonight." The man smiled briefly. "I don't visit this theater very often, but I decided to come with my sister and my friends tonight. I'm glad I did." Basil wondered if it was perhaps a trick of the light but the different colored eyes seemed to be staring past the thin yukata he was wearing.

"And you would be…?" prompted Chiharu.

"Oh, excuse my poor manners," the man said, although he didn't sound sorry at all. "My name is Rokudo Mukuro. This is my sister, Nagi." The girl in black bowed slightly. "She has a lazy eye so she has to wear the patch." Even with the eye patch, Nagi was still quite pretty and was effortlessly turning some heads. "These two are my friends; Chikusa can be a bit strung up and Ken can be a bit rabid at times, but they're still good people." Finished with the short introduction, Mukuro cocked his head. "Have you heard of regulars, Bella-san? The leaflet said you were also new to this theater."

"I know a bit."

"Let me explain then. Regulars are the patrons that come to see a specific actor or actress. Did you know," Mukuro said, inserting an odd fact, "that back in the day, kabuki actresses were also prostitutes? They banned female actresses but then the actors were setting up a little harem of their own as well…" Chuckling lightly, Basil swore the auburn eye seemed to glint in his direction. "Regulars appeared even then."

Basil glanced back to see Chiharu's reaction, but the manager had blended in with the crowd when he hadn't noticed.

"I'm not that sort of person," Basil replied after it was apparent that Mukuro had been waiting for a reaction. "I'm sorry to disappoint you."

"That wasn't what I was implying at all!" Mukuro laughed at this and glanced at his posse. Nagi merely smiled but Ken burst out in hyena-like cackles. "But you certainly are pretty enough." He smiled dangerously endearingly as he reached a hand out to cup Basil's face, but the young Italian slapped his hand away.

"I've faced enough of that from the stage hands, thank you." Although it had stopped since Gokudera had arrived, but Mukuro didn't have to know that.

"Is that so…?" The different colored eyes glinted again as he glanced at the fore mentioned stage hands being discovered by Spanner. "I may have a talk with some of them, then."

"Don't bother." Feeling himself slipping away from the onnagatas personality that Chiharu had made him take up, he graced his face with a smile. "Thank you for worrying, though…Mukuro, was it?"

"That's right." Mukuro turned back to Basil with an equally shadowy smile. "Remember it." With a wave of his hand, he walked away, followed by the three who had remained silent behind him the whole time. Basil watched them go. Mukuro had been distracting enough in the audience but he was just…different. The whole theater smelled of a conspiracy; Gokudera was looking edgy and men in black were patrolling the place.

"The world is but a stage and we are all merely actors," Chiharu recited behind him. When he turned, she smiled sheepishly. "Or so, paraphrasing Shakespeare. Who was that guy? Mukudo?"

"Mukuro." Basil turned back at the retreating figures. "He says he wants to be my regular. Isn't that something?"

"Definitely," Chiharu said, a smile tugging at her face. "Especially when you're blushing like that."

"Am I?" The adrenaline rush hadn't faded from the stage, causing him to feel a bit numb. "I didn't know that."

"Come on, Misaki-san, he's not red at all!"

"Shush, Fuuta-kun, I was just trying to test him!" Clapping him on the back, Chiharu smiled. "Well, it means we're acting convincible enough. Reborn will be pleased. Loosen up and have some fun! I'm sure you'll have a lot more regulars. I know! I'll make it into a game between you and Tsuna. Hey, Fuuta, you think Bianchi would bet on this too?"

"What?"

Meanwhile, as Takayama drank in the compliments for a good show with his signature crankiness, a man in black stepped up to him and murmured something in his ear. His next expression caused most of the patrons to scatter as a scheming expression graced his face.

"Is that so…the police and unknown gang? This is going to be one hell of an opening night!"

to be continued…

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Note: Yes, I know Basil doesn't have this cute little accent. I forgot to add it when I was writing and it's a lot easier to write him without using all those thees and thous and besides, Basil talks a decent amount in my fic, unlike the canon. Insert sad face. I decided to update because I have eleven alerts and that's pretty much like ten reviews, I think. Hopefully these small fluff happenings will encourage more readers. Like Claddagh. What happened there?! Anyway, review, please. Please.