AN: A special thanks goes out to Heitan who reviewed the last chapter. As always, I feel incredibly blessed when I see reviews, and equally ecstatic to see silent readers, as well as those who take the time to follow/favourite the story. I really hope you enjoy this chapter, and if you find any errors, please don't hesitate to notify me. While writing this, I am about ready to pass out... but I try to convince myself it's all worth it!
Info: My editor is Blaze Takishima. Thank you so much for editing in a timely fashion. Isikaru (on deviantart) is still playing as Hibari in this chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own KHR! If I did, there would be a bunch of gayness goin' on...
Chapter Two: Audacious
Tsuna heard the loud crashing sound from his classroom. His hyper intuition told him something was off since the moment Hibari and Dino started fighting, but he elected to dismiss it. Even though his clairvoyance of such situations proved flawless more often than not.
"It came from the roof!"
The brunette exclaimed loudly and blatantly. Yamamoto and Gokudera stood up in a flash to follow their boss to the roof. At that moment, Tsuna hadn't thought about the consequences of leaving the classroom in a hurry. This happened a lot, withstanding the duties of a mafia boss. He was often forced to choose between school and the well-being of his famiglia. For Tsuna, the decision came naturally and easily. He wouldn't let his friends suffer over the necessities of his own life, which validated precisely why he was chosen to become Vongola the Tenth. As soon as Tsuna opened the door to the roof, his eyes widened at the sight and everyone else gasped.
"Hibari-san, Dino-san!" The brown-haired teen rushed over to their side, witnessing Scuderia whimpering over his owner.
"My guess is that they fell off Scuderia." Reborn frowned and tilted his fedora over his eyes. Vongola's paramedics arrived immediately, wasting no time in healing the two men. Meanwhile, Reborn tended to all the school complications while illusionist's worked on restoring the school to normal.
Hibari groaned as he started to gain consciousness. He forced his heavy eyelids open to find himself staring at a bright white ceiling. He felt awful, his whole body ached. He sat up, rubbing the bridge of his nose with the hand that seemed easiest to move, the rest of his senses catching up.
"Hibari!"
He heard a voice loudly exclaim and looked around. The figure of Tsunayoshi appeared, standing up noisily from the chair he'd been sitting on. Hibari looked around the room.
A hospital?
Tsunayoshi? Why was he here?
He examined the room further, trying his best to focus. His cobalt eyes widened at the sight of the bed a few yards from his, or rather its occupant.
Dino Cavallone.
Memories of their battle came back rushing into his mind and he put the pieces together.
"You're awake!" Tsunayoshi went on, his voice full of worry and relief. Hibari didn't spare him more than a glance.
He looked over to Dino. The haneuma seemed to be in not the best shape. He was wrapped up in many bandages, some of which spotted with blood, and an oxygen mask hooked to his unconscious face.
Hibari looked away as he felt something was pinching at his chest. He felt angry, more angry than he'd felt in a long time. Why had that idiot protected him to that extent? Surely he'd have been able to refrain from sustaining that much damage if he hadn't of covered for his opponent like that.
What kind of idiot...
Hibari clenched his other fist and was met with a sharp pain. He looked down to find his upper arm and wrist wrapped up in a thick cast. His wrist seemed to be either broken or severely sprained. He wasn't sure which. The rest of him seemed to be alright though, nothing bad apart from some bruising and torn muscles.
"B-But Hibari-san! You have to stay here. Your injuries haven't healed all the way yet—" Tsuna stuttered. His guardian still had a broken wrist, but lucky that Dino had saved him from worse injuries.
A week passed by. Every day was a struggle to detain Hibari in the hospital room.
"P-Please." Tsunayoshi whined.
In this passed week, Reborn never faltered to cause progressive guilt on the young Vongola. He regularly reminded Tsuna that Hibari and Dino fought for him, and Dino nearly died if it wasn't for sun-class flames and the generosity of his famiglia. Tsuna felt horribly depressed each waking moment of the day, knowing that his good friend almost died because of him. He still didn't feet like he was fit to be the boss of such a strong group of people.
Some nights he would sleep on the side of Dino's bed, praying that he would feel better, like none of this ever happened.
Vongola Tenth stepped out of the room before he broke down for the upteenth time.
"The longer you struggle, the longer it'll take to heal, Hibari. Your school performance will decrease if you don't rest." The wise former-arcobaleno stated.
Reborn knew that school was the most important thing for Hibari, especially the disciplinary committee.
"Hmph." Hibari turned his head to look away.
Reborn also knew how to play all the right cards when talking to him. That's one of the reasons why Hibari respected him leaps beyond others.
Dino could hear people talking loudly—
Tsuna? Reborn?
And, oh God, a wave of relief washed over him. He could hear Kyouya's voice too. That meant Kyouya was safe.
It sounded like he was up and about, as he should have been. That made him smile.
So wait, how could he hear all of them?
Wasn't he dead?
The bronco's hazel eyes slowly fluttered open. It was extremely difficult to see and to keep his eyes open, for that matter. The drugs overwhelmed him and commanded him to sleep; he also couldn't feel a thing. Good thing he had been in many hospitals due to many fights, or else he would have fallen into a longer coma.
"That's right. You should stay here, Kyouya." Dino said weakly.
Hibari spun around at the sound of Dino's voice. Finally. He was beginning to think he would never wake up. Although he had fully intended to leave this place before that happened. He wanted to stab all sorts of insults at the blonde now that he could hear him, but he couldn't seem to get anything to come out, so he only stared.
"So you're awake." Reborn said to Dino. "That was quite a nasty fall you had. As the head of the Chiavarone Famiglia, you might want to be more careful in the future."
Speaking of his Italian family, his right hand man, Romario came rushing in from his station outside the door as soon as he heard the conversation. He looked more, if not the same relieved as Tsuna did. "Boss, how are you feeling?"
Dino smiled brightly; he wouldn't let the fact that he felt like shit show, especially not around Kyouya. Maybe if Romario was the only one in the room, he could really feel comfortable.
Hibari looked mad, as expected. Dino wasn't expecting that he would be all sunshine and rainbows, after knowing Dino had saved him. Well... Hibari was never sunshine and rainbows to start with, but Dino could still tell the difference between his moods.
"I feel fine, thank you. And cheer up, little bro." He could see the delighted spark on Tsuna's face, in contrast with Hibari. The small brunette didn't have to say much, the look on his face said everything. "It was my own careless mistake, I'm sorry. If you don't mind, can I speak to Kyouya alone for a moment?"
Tsuna glanced at the floor as Dino spoke. He felt a little embarrassed that Dino could see right through him, that he could tell he blamed himself for what had happened. Still, he always appreciated that Dino's kindness. Dino was one of the few that seemed to understand him.
He nodded hastily at Dino's request to speak to Hibari alone, and moved to leave, but then paused looking from one to the other, wondering if this was a bad idea. But then Hibari glared at Tsuna, a look in his eyes that seemed to say "get on with it". I guess he had things to say to Dino, too. Reborn and Romario had taken their leave, so Tsuna figured it would be alright, despite the tense atmosphere between the two. He nodded to Dino again, smiling, and left the room.
Hibari folded his arms best he could with his wrapped up wrist and stared into the adjacent wall. "Why did you save me? Do you have some kind of death wish, fool?" He growled angrily as soon as the door closed behind the others.
Dino had to laugh at the death wish comment. Hibari didn't know it, but he was actually funny sometimes... or maybe only to Dino. Anyone else that laughed at him would be "bitten to death" and that phrase sounded sexual since the moment he heard it.
Hibari ground his teeth when the haneuma started laughing at him. What did he take him for? No one else dared to laugh at him so shamelessly.
"Why did I save you? It was my own careless mistake, and it wasn't my intention to put you in a coma, or anything worse." Dino glanced at the ground, and back into Kyouya's cobalt eyes. "I've said this before, Kyouya, and I'll say it a thousand times more until you believe me; I love you." The blonde declared with zero hesitation in his voice.
Hibari's eyes widened for a short moment at the confession, then narrowed angrily again, before Dino could notice he hoped. Yes, he'd heard it before, but of course he'd never be stupid enough to take words like that seriously. Never from the mouth of this man.
There were so many things he wanted to shout at Dino, so many insults and frustrations. But of course he wouldn't give Dino the pleasure of letting him know he'd stirred him that much.
"Enough." Hibari breathed out harshly. He marched up to Dino and grabbed his shirt by the collar, staring fiercely into his golden eyes. Firmly stating syllable by syllable. "I never asked you to save me. Don't ever pull a stunt like that again. Ever."
He had never been this angry before, and wasn't sure why. Of course it bothered him that his opponent had more or less saved his life. It was a great disgrace. But more than that, he couldn't seem to let it go. He wanted to hear Dino promise never to do something so stupid again. He didn't want to leave this room until he made Dino say so.
Dino didn't really care what Hibari was saying-something about saving him. It was a mix of the drugs and his one-track mind when it came to Kyouya. Now, as far as the bronco could tell, Hibari was dangerously close to his face and the only logical action was to kiss him.
"Is that a love confession, Kyouya?" The blonde teased because Hibari grabbed his shirt after he just confessed to loving him. With Kyouya, you could never tell what he was feeling. He never let weakness show, aside from when he slept, maybe.
Dino hoped he could see that one day, to run his hands through black hair and stare into Hibari's eyes lovingly, and his love returned. Or, maybe that was too out of character for Hibari. Dino was fine if the skylark glared at him for the rest of his life.
Good thing drugs existed, or else moving his arm would be incredibly painful. He wouldn't have bothered if this wasn't a chance to kiss Kyouya himself. This was the closest he'd ever gotten willing, and Dino wasn't going to let that go to waste, under any circumstance. He removed the mask from his mouth and grabbed a fist full of Kyouya's hair. He leaned the skylark down with as much strength he could muster, and brushed his lips passed Hibari's.
Hibari froze when Dino grasped his hair and brushed his lips against his own.
Was he kissing him?
He blinked several times, wide-eyed. It finally registered and he scrambled to push himself away from Dino. With Dino's injuries and the drugs in Dino's system it wasn't hard to free himself.
He stumbled back several steps, still shocked. A blush began to burn at his cheeks and he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, keeping it there to hide his face. His eyebrows furrowed angrily as he remembered where he was in the conversation and he scowled in annoyance, letting his hand drop.
Was Dino even listening to him? Did he even care about how seriously close he'd come to dying? For what? To save Hibari's life?
Hibari spun around and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him and speeding past Tsuna and the others waiting outside it.
The kiss only lasted a moment, maybe even less than he thought...but that didn't leave Dino with less satisfaction. He felt more satisfied than some of the happiest moments in his life, from such a simple kiss. Who knew that lips touching lips could feel so good, yet so bittersweet? The bronco hoped that it wouldn't be the last time he got to kiss the skylark. He always wanted to feel so much more of Kyouya than normal, and that feeling only intensified with the kiss.
Dino was on cloud nine; no amount of kisses, touches, or even sex he had in the past could compare to that one kiss with Kyouya. Dino was determined to get what he wanted out of Kyouya, even if that meant letting the skylark beat him to a pulp. He didn't care, messing with Kyouya was no longer his top priority, he'd take advantage of any moment he had.
Tsuna widened his eyes as Hibari suddenly fumed passed him, hiding his face and-was he blushing? No, maybe he had a fever? Why? More importantly, how was Dino? The brunette walked inside of the room and saw Dino sleeping peacefully with the oxygen mask on his face.
"What just happened?" Tsuna asked and looked at Reborn, who held a smug smirk on his face.
A couple of weeks later, Dino felt much better and he was even working on muscle therapy. The injuries he suffered were nothing new; he actually suffered worse injuries and had come close to dying many, many times. It was all worth it to see Kyouya again, however. He would repeat the fall again and again if it meant it was the only way to save Kyouya's life. Come to think of it, there was nothing he wouldn't do for the skylark.
His drive to see and feel Kyouya again helped the bronco feel better. It aided his ability to eat all the disgusting, yet healthy hospital food.
Time was up, and Tsuna had decided to (finally) go along with becoming the new boss. How could he not while drowning in guilt? Reborn congratulated Dino for his hard work, and just hoped that Hibari would show up to the ceremony.
The ceremony came nearer and nearer as the days flew by.
Hibari's bad mood had not subsided at all since that day in the hospital, but he couldn't help notice the day approaching. He didn't want to go, by any means. Though the match had ended badly, and one could say it wasn't enough to declare a winner, Hibari knew that Dino had the upper hand, at least before the accident happened.
He swung his legs down from the student council sofa he was lounging on and rested his chin in his hands. His one wrist was still in a cast though it was nearly healed.
He decided he would go to the ceremony. Dino, as big a fool as he was, had obliged Hibari with the fight he asked for. And more than that, Hibari was dying to see him again so that he could beat the life out of him, now that he was probably on the mend.
Several days later, the day of Tsuna's ceremony approached at last. Tsuna hurried to tie his necktie but Reborn criticized his sloppy job with a smirk on his face.
This was crazy; he was really going to do this. He was officially going to take over the Vongola Famiglia. He shook his head as if that would make things seem more real, but it didn't help. He'd already been through a lot… Perhaps after the ceremony his life wouldn't change. Maybe it was just a title for show.
At least he hoped. He'd had it with mafia trouble and danger to his friends. Several hours passed and the ceremony approached. Tsuna finally arrived via a black limousine, accompanied by Reborn and some tough looking guys in black suits, all Tsuna had never met before. They seemed to show Tsuna the utmost respect.
He stepped out of the car nervously, soon after surrounded by his family. Gokudera arrived first of course, followed by Yamamoto, Chrome and all the others who knew of the ceremony. He even spotted Hibari glaring at him from his aloof place in the back. He wore a suit as well, much to his demise, simple and black like most of the others.
As the ceremony arrived, Dino made sure to dress as sharply as he could. He even bought a new suit, and Romario wondered how he was even standing and walking with his injuries. Along with Ryohei, Romario had healed him with as much energy as possible. Dino asked this of the sun class suitors because he needed to watch his little bro in decent health.
Ryohei went on this whole freak out, as usual, about how extreme it was that Tsuna was Dino's little brother. The Italian don had to explain to Ryohei that Tsuna, was not in fact, his younger brother. It was only a nickname.
The blonde was equally excited to see Hibari and Tsuna, but sad that the Ninth was dying and everyone knew that. It was especially difficult for Tsuna, and Iemitsu, since they were related to the Ninth. He couldn't imagine having to receive an award from his sick Grandpa.
It was sad how Tsuna didn't have much time to get to know his Grandpa. Dino wasn't sure if that had something to do with being Japanese, or the fact that Vongola Ninth was extremely busy. He didn't blame Tsuna for being so reluctant to take the title of Vongola Decimo. It was blatantly obvious that Tsuna hated Iemitsu for never being around.
Most people thought that Tsuna was too nice and didn't fit being the boss of one of the biggest mafia organizations. Dino knew that Tsuna would make a great leader ever since he met him; a boss didn't require a murderous attitude. The brunette's attitude was the exact reason why all these people loved him. He had persuaded Kyouya, (which was difficult enough,) along with Mukuro and some of the worst people Dino had ever met. Even Byakuran fought alongside Tsuna, the same man that nearly destroyed the world a few months ago.
The blonde stopped his train of thought as the limo halted, and out walked Dino like a girl ready to meet the latest boy band. The rest of his family stepped out of the limo after him, and tried to keep up as Dino socialized with literally everyone he saw.
Hibari watched from afar for a while until he finally spotted Dino's familiar bright hair appear from behind a limo door. Hibari already felt his anger arising again and strode over to him, though he was surrounded by the time he got there. Without regard to whoever was around, or the man's injuries for that matter, he snatched Dino's wrist tightly and pulled him out of the group, leaving many of the people looking offended or confused.
He pulled Dino into a small alley way, between the main building and a smaller side wing. He released his wrist and wasted no time in throwing a right straight, straight into Dino's jaw. "I forgot to give you that parting gift last time," he explained sarcastically.
Dino held true to his word, since he knew that Hibari would find him and pull him away angrily, and he also knew that Kyouya would probably beat him up. That's exactly why he had Ryohei and Romario heal him to the best of their ability.
The blonde barely flinched as Hibari's punch connected with his jaw, leaving a metallic taste of blood in his mouth. He quickly wrapped his whip around Kyouya's body, all the way down to his legs. The whip snugly squeezed Hibari with determination and sky flames.
Hibari grunted when the whip squeezed around his body. He hadn't really expected Dino to fight back, at least not here.
"That was a mistake, Kyouya. I remember the last kiss we shared, and you know what I noticed? You kissed me back." He pulled Hibari even closer with the whip, "that's right, it wasn't my imagination."
Obviously Hibari didn't kiss him back, Dino knew that, he just wanted to see the shocked expression on Kyouya's face.
The skylark's eyes went wide at the mention of the kiss. He didn't want to hear about that. He didn't want to think about it. And what did he mean, kiss him back? He blinked, confused, his cheeks turning pink as he thought about it. Hibari had kissed Dino back? He didn't remember doing such a thing, nor had any reason whatsoever to do so, but he couldn't remember clearly whether it was true or not.
His eyes flickered across Dino's features as he tried to read his motives. First to his eyes, then his lips, for some reason. Hibari's blush deepened and he began to feel uncomfortable, a rather foreign feeling for him. He squirmed a bit, trying to get loose so he could lengthen the distance between he and Dino. "I...didn't..." he denied, more to himself than Dino as he continued to struggle against the tight whip.
The blush on Hibari's face turned Dino on more than expected, but he couldn't lose focus, not now. The skylark actually believed that he kissed Dino back.
Now, that was surprising. Usually Hibari denied everything he had to say; maybe kissing Kyouya got through to him. Maybe he actually believed that he loved him? And... maybe Hibari had his own feelings for Dino? The Italian boss shook his head, riding his hopeful thoughts.
"Oh, yes you did. Let me refresh your memory." As if Hibari had no choice, the blonde leaned forward and locked lips with the cloud guardian. He kept a firm hold on the whip with his right hand, while his left hand bent Hibari down all the way on to the floor, not really caring that they were in an alley.
Hibari's breath hitched in his throat when Dino kissed him.
He hated this, hated how it robbed him of control. Like before, it was hard for him to keep his thoughts coherent. Why was Dino doing this? Did he want to mess with Hibari that much? Before he knew what was even going on, Dino had lowered him to the floor, their lips still locked, the whip still restraining him.
"VRRAAAAAAAIII!" Squalo yelled as soon as he stepped out of the limo, earning the attention of everyone, especially Yamamoto who seemed to be the only person excited to see him. "When will this ceremony start!?"
"Ushishishi, Squalo's making this about him again." Bel laughed, looking around at all the allies of the Vongola, including the Shimon family who destroyed this ceremony last time. They could do it again if they really wanted, Bel didn't really care– it was fun to see everyone's reactions.
"You like hearing yourself talk too, Senpaiii." Fran scolded with a bored tone.
"Tch, shut up apple-head. You have yet to replace Mammon; go back home and live in a tree."
A large shout interrupted Kyouya's thoughts.
Regaining himself and his surroundings, his eyes snapped back open and he pulled his head sideways, breaking the kiss. "What the hell are you doing!?" He half-shouted, feeling almost embarrassed about what they were doing in public, although he had not initiated it.
"I wanted to clear the air, about who's in control here. Let's not forget who saved who last time, so I would say you owed me." He knew everything he was saying would piss Hibari off and humiliate him. It was the same feeling the skylark felt when Mukuro dominated him.
If Dino could think clearly, he would not say these things to Kyouya in a million years. He loved him, really.
But hunger after he kissed him exploded.
It was like a vampire's first taste of blood; he just couldn't get enough of Hibari's lips.
He tasted like green tea, the Japanese drink he liked. Like anything else about Hibari, the love for his country oozed out of every fiber. The love Hibari felt for his country was like the love Dino felt, except entirely different. His fingertips burned against Kyouya's smooth, cold skin. The Italian boss felt like he was on fire.
Hibari could feel the anger boiling up inside him at the haneuma's words. About who was in control? Owed him? Hibari was already suffering enough having to live with the fact that Dino had saved him, and now he owed him for it? It was something he should have never allowed to happen.
He felt the whip slacken ever so slightly and took his chance, focusing his powerful flames around the weak spot and causing the whip to unravel enough for him to quickly maneuver his way out of the whip's hold.
He smacked away Dino's hand harshly and scrambled to his feet, breathing harder than he should have been. He wanted to hit Dino again, maybe a dozen more times, but didn't want to brave getting wound up in the whip again. Not right now. He needed to clear his head first.
"I'm here, aren't I? I owe you nothing!" He spat and glared Dino up and down, keeping his guard. He wasn't sure what Dino would do anymore. The haneuma had been acting strange, what with kissing him. Twice.
Dino turned over and sat on the ground, looking up at Kyouya. The blonde wasn't really sure how to respond to the skylark, for the first time.
Usually a witty remark escaped his lips or he could improv something to say, but deep down he knew that Hibari was right.
Dino didn't know what came over him, telling Hibari that he owed him and reminded the raven that he saved him. When really, Hibari didn't owe him anything. Dino only followed orders from Reborn, not wanting to fight Hibari in the first place, and made a mistake that almost killed both of them. That didn't count anywhere close to a favour; if anything, Hibari did him a favour just by showing up.
The bronco felt like he deserved Kyouya to punish him, so why wouldn't he hit him? The cloud guardian never had a problem with expressing his anger towards him before. He finally stood up, throwing his whip to the side and stood with his arms wide open. "Go ahead, Kyouya. I know you want to, I've humiliated you more than necessary." He stared at Hibari with loving, kind eyes, waiting for him to move.
In the near distance, another black limo drove up and out poured several more people. The Shimon Famiglia it appeared. Enma stepped out first, followed by Adelheid, Kaoru, and Julie. Adel and Julie looked to be arguing about something, as usual. Meanwhile Enma scanned the area, looking a bit like a lost puppy.
Tsuna paced around in his private dressing room, looking at himself in the mirror excessively. "I can do this, I can do this." His eyes tried to match what he was telling himself, but with one look at him, anyone could tell he was nervous. He was always uneasy around crowds, major stage-fright, and not to forget his clumsy tendencies. The brunette looked out the window through a crack in the curtain, seeing Enma. Tsuna had insisted that the Shimon family should have been invited, and the Ninth trusted Tsuna's wishes, though everyone else was reluctant.
Hibari watched reluctantly as Dino threw his weapon aside and opened his arms, inviting Hibari to hit him.
Hibari's eyes darted around his face. Honestly, what was he up to? The way he was acting so unpredictable made Hibari feel a little wary of the haneuma. Not that he was afraid of him, of course not. He just wasn't sure what the best move was to make.
But if Dino wanted to be hit, well, he'd have no problem obliging with that. Hibari had little qualms about hitting a defenseless man.
Hibari clenched his fists several times as he silently scrutinized, then took several long steps forward and swung his fist as hard as he could into Dino's gut.
Then, before Dino could recover, he grabbed his shirt and pulled him down into a clumsy kiss. He didn't know what the hell he was even doing, but it seemed to be the proper thing to do somehow. He broke the kiss shortly after. His lips and whole body felt hot and twitchy, but he didn't linger on thinking of why.
He stared headstrong into Dino's eyes. "Now we're even." He declared, despite the statement not really making any sense. He felt a little foolish after doing it, but hid behind false confidence. If this was about control, he'd definitely never let Dino get the better of him.
