"Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty."
-Mother Teresa

~O~

It took Mukuro two days to learn how to fly. It took him another day to actually learn how to ride on the wind currents and how to navigate mid-air –and not get dizzy with his 270 degrees vision when he accidentally rotated his head. He hadn't known flying could actually be so tiring. Especially when he hadn't eaten anything in these last three days –well, it's not like he will actually eat worms like a normal owl does. Mukuro has a reputation to uphold, dammit!

So, with an empty stomach, and exhausted body, Mukuro flapped his white feathery wings and flew his way to the nearest town-

-and almost crashed on the ground in flabbergast.

Because of course he had to end up in one and only place in the whole world that attracted weirdoes and crazy people like moth to flames. Because, of course, he had to be wake up as a stupid bird in a forest that happens to be the hometown of his –former- sky.

Because, of course, the town that happens to be nearest to the forest he had ended up in happens to be Namimori.

Why couldn't it have been some small, unsuspecting town in any other part of the world? Even somewhere in Italy would have been better than this! Why did it have to be the epicenter of all the chaos and Vongola Madness?

Why did it have to be goddamn Namimori?!

Tsuna winced in pain as he tried to sit- keyword: tried. His body didn't want to let him sit up actually, since it was protesting by the way his limbs hurthurthurthurthurt, and his eyelids felt so heavy that he just wished to sleep and never wake up. But he can't do that, considering his Mama was waiting for him at home and must be worried about him.

(A Lie.)

He can't let his Mama worry about him- his warm, kind-hearted Mama who loved him unconditionally even after knowing how much messed up he is (because what kind of child would be so pathetic as to trip on thin air; attract trouble like bees to honey; get grades so low that would make even an idiot blush in embarrassment and be a general nuisance to everyone around them) and honestly, she really deserved a better son than someone like him. That's why Tsuna tries oh-so-hard to overcome his pathetic-ness.

(But it is never enough. It never is.)

Tsuna knew he wasn't anyone special. He wasn't smart, nor was he athletic. He was clumsy, weak and fearful. He didn't have any friends. He was really Dame-Tsuna.

Well, it's not like anyone would even want to be his friends. He was so pathetic, why would someone even want to be a friend of Dame-Tsuna?

But sometimes….. sometimes he wondered that life would so much better if he had someone whom he could have a heart-to-heart talk, someone who he could joke around with, someone who would lecture him for doing stupid things –not that he had any courage to do something like that, but a guy could dream, right?- but would still come for his rescue; someone who wouldn't leave him even after knowing about his dameness… and then he would remember his present situation in his own life and would mock himself for thinking something so stupid. Because after all, who would be friends with Dame-Tsuna?

Tsuna was snapped back from his thoughts when his sides throbbed in pain, and he winced. Oh right, he needed to get back to home before it got much late. He got cornered by some bullies on his way home, and they took out their frustrations for being beaten by Hibari-san on him. he knew it's not fair, but it's not like he could do anything about it anyways. Even if he tried to complain about them to the authorities, they would only blame him back for telling 'lies' and "it must be your fault for inciting them somehow". Telling Hibari-san about this was even worse, he would only bite him back to death for being a "pathetic herbivore". So, the only thing to do about it is to just keep quiet and move on as if he hadn't been beaten black and blue at all.

Blinking his eyes, Tsuna stared at the evening sky, as it was lit up in beautiful combination of orange and yellow and pink. And there was even a very small white fluffy cloud in the sky. How cute-

Wait, why is the cloud coming nearer to him?

He blinked his eyes again and squinted them at the nearing figure of fluffy white color- which turned out to be a bird, actually. The bid with beautiful white feathers flapped it's wings as it flew around in a circle above him, eying him curiously with gleaming indigo eyes. Tsuna stiffened the bird- which turned out to be an owl- cautiously landed next to him, and tilted it's head. It's indigo eyes narrowed on the bruises marring his body –and is it just his imagination or did the bird actually frown? How could a bird frown anyways?

The bird's indigo eyes glanced at his brown ones –as if searching his soul- and then it hooted softly.

(Something inside him armed and burned as if in response to the bird's call, and he didn't realize what it actually was until much, much later.)

The bird then hopped near his head and nudged his cheeks with his small, fluffy head.

A giggle escaped Tsuna's lips and he mumbled, "Stop it, that tickles."

The bird just glanced at him –it's indigo eyes gleaming mischievously- as it nudged his cheeks once again. Tsuna giggled as it's fluffy feathers tickled his skin with it's feathery touch, and he ignored the bruises on his body throbbing in pain as he laughed.

Tsuna stared at the bird and smiled softly. "Thank you for making me laugh, bird-chan." He whispered. "I've never laughed this much ever."

The bird patted his cheek softly with it's wing softly, making Tsuna blinked in bewilderment, and his eyes teared a bit.

"You're so nice, bird-chan…." He whispered. "No one has been this nice to me, ever- well, except for Mama, that is."

The bird hopped closer to him and cuddled against his neck, and he almost choked on it's fluffy, white fur. He chuckled and said, "I'm fine, really, don't worry, okay?" a thought crossed his mind and he mumbled in exasperation, "Though I really can't believe I'm actually having a conversation with a bird-no matter how one-sided it is. Is this a sign of how I'm finally going crazy?"

The bird gave him a stink-eye –how did it even do that?!- and poked his cheek with it's beak. He shifted his face away from her, and exclaimed, "Sorry, sorry."

The bird then huffed and hopped away from him, as if it were pouting. Tsuna chuckled again at the bird's antics, though he regretted it the very next second as his wounds throbbed again in pain –he really must've strained a nerve or something like that…

He distantly heard flapping of wings, and turned to look at the commotion –

only to have his breath –literally- knocked out of him as something was dropped on him.

Tsuna wheezed as he knocked off his school bag that had been dropped on him by a certain bird, and glared at the very bird who smugly fluttered it's wings and hooted at him impatiently.

"You're such a hard taskmaster, bird-chan." He sighed exasperatedly as he tried to sit up and grab his bag –ignoring his hurting bruises- and the bird that was urging him to get home quickly –because why else would it drop his bag on him, and hoot impatiently in his ear to get up quickly- flew around his head in circles.

Taking a deep breath, Tsuna stumbled as he stood up and slung his bag on his shoulder. He took a step forwards, only to glance back hesitantly at the little white owlet hovering mid-air. He really didn't want to leave this little bird here. What if it never came back to him?

"Um, would you like to come with me, bird-chan?' he asked sheepishly to the bird –and in a corner of his mind he felt bewildered at his own actions, but then again, if the bird was smart enough to urge him to go home to rest, then it must be smart enough to understand him, right?

The bird shot him a flat look in response, making him chuckle as he mumbled-

"Cheeky much, eh, Bird-chan?"

(And so, the lonely Sky finally found a friend in the most unexpected way…..)