Me: Hi, guys! Super sorry for the late update! School caught up with me and made me super busy, but since it's summer, I guess that means faster updates. Probably. Maybe weekly?

I'll reply to reviews in the next chapter or two.

Chapter 2

It was lunch time – one of the periods of school that I actually enjoy. Here, up on the roof top, I could read all I want and no one would bother me. I had almost finished this book in my hands, which was about neurology, a topic I wanted to study further in college. The human brain just fascinated me. How it worked, what it does… It was so interesting – so entrancing that I didn't notice the shadow in front of me until the person cleared his throat.

"And what are you doing here, herbivore?"

Herbivore. It was Hibari-san then.

I looked up and saw him, an eyebrow raised and his arms crossed. I shrugged at him. "The roof top's quiet. No one can disturb my reading here. Am I not allowed to be here?"

He let out a 'hn', and just walked past me, heading towards the far end before laying down and closing his eyes.

I blinked, surprised. I had heard rumors of him punishing people for being on the roof top, but I knew that it wasn't really against school regulations to stay here. I had always wondered why they were punished, so it surprised me that I wasn't.

Maybe because I was quiet.

"And then it went – KABOOM! – and I was like – SWOOSH – and then – POW, you know?"

I knew that voice. Yamamoto-san.

I glanced at the entrance to the roof top, which was to my right. In came Yamamoto-san and his friends, Sawada-san and Gokudera-san. They were quite the group, with Sawada-san being the shy 'Dame-Tsuna', Gokudera-san being the smartest and the hotheaded one, and Yamamoto-san being the popular and friendly one. Their personalities quite clashed in my opinion, but maybe that was what made them click.

"Ah, Hiyori-san and Hibari-san!" Yamamoto called out, waving to the both of us.

Hibari glared at him, possibly for annoying his sleep, and growled, "You are disturbing the peace, herbivore."

Yamamoto chuckled nervously. "Maa, maa, sorry, Hibari-san."

Hibari just looked at him blankly for a moment before standing up and exiting the roof top silently.

"Weirdo," Gokudera grumbled under his breath before turning to look at me. "Oi."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Yeah?"

"Are you the Hiyori chick the baseball idiot's been going on about?" he asked.

"What of it?" I told him curiously, my eyes flickering back to the page I was reading.

"A-Ano, w-we were wondering if you would like to e-eat with us, Hiyori-san…?" Sawada asked me shyly, blushing slightly out of embarrassment as he did.

How curious.

"I don't see why not," I told them as they gathered around me, with Yamamoto sitting next to me, Gokudera on my other side, and Sawada in front of me. They pulled out their bento boxes and ate. I shrugged and went back to my book.

For a while, I was simply absorbing the information until I felt someone looking at me. I glanced up. It was Sawada.

"A-Ano, do you have n-no lunch, Hiyori-san?" he asked me.

I shook my head. "I don't eat lunch."

Gokudera scoffed. "No wonder you look like a stick."

"Maa, you shouldn't skip lunch, Hiyori-san. It's bad for your body," Yamamoto told me. Of course he would know. He was an athlete who needed to keep his body fit so that he could keep winning championships and tournaments for Namimori Middle.

"I know," I reassured him. "I just prefer spending my lunch reading." I gestured toward the book in my hands.

They all nodded and went back to their lunches.

"You'll get sick, you know," a squeaky voice had told me. I was pretty sure it did not come from my three companions.

I heard Sawada shriek before I saw a baby in the middle of our circle – the baby who was wearing a fedora hat. "Oh. It's you."

"HIIEEEE! You know him? Hiyori-san, how do you know him?!" Sawada panicked, losing all the previous shyness.

"I saw him when I left school the other day," I replied calmly, wondering why he reacted that way.

My answer seemed to make him calm down as he nervously laughed. "Oh."

"Hey kid, what are you doing here?" Yamamoto asked him.

"I came here to see Hiyori Akane. You are her, aren't you?" he asked me, although it sounded more like a statement. I nodded, and he continued, "Good. Tell me, do you know about the Mafia?"

Before I could reply, Sawada had violently reacted. "Reborn! Don't talk about that in front of my classmates! I told you not to get them involved! You already made Yamamoto-kun and Gokudera-kun a part of this mess. There's no need to involve Hiyori-san, as well!"

"Be quiet, Dame-Tsuna," the baby, Reborn, had said, giving Sawada a swift kick to the head, making the brunette fall to the ground.

"Juudaime!" Gokudera panicked, coming to the aid of the fallen boy.

Mafia? Juudaime? Juudaime means Tenth. What does this have to do with me, though…?

"Why don't you answer my question first before I answer yours," Reborn told me with a knowing look.

My eyes widened slightly in surprise. He could tell what I was thinking?

"Yes, and I'd appreciate it if you answered now," he said.

"Well, the Mafia involves guys who fight or protect people, I guess? And they fight with all sorts of weapons. They also have a boss who leads them. That's pretty much all I know." I replied.

He nodded. "Do you know about Flames?"

"'Flames'…?" I repeated. Flames refer to fire. But what is its relationship to the Mafia?

"Flames are what Mafioso wield. They vary in kind, color, size, purity… you get what I mean, don't you? There are only seven kinds of Flames that Mafioso have: Sky, Storm, Rain, Lightning, Cloud, Mist, and Sun. These are natural among all people – all you need is resolve to access them." Reborn explained, his eyes turning a little dark. "However, there is… one artificial Flame, something that was created years ago."

"Reborn-san, you don't mean…?!" Gokudera had exclaimed with unconcealed shock. He was looking at me with wide eyes, and maybe even a little more respect, mixed with slight suspicion. Now, what was that about?

"The artificial Flame was created by the Vongola Famiglia." Reborn continued, watching me intently, probably wondering about my reaction. There was no look of recognition on my face, so his lips tilted upwards slightly.

"Vongola Famiglia… Vongola Family? What's that?" I wondered out loud.

"Rebo—" Sawada tried protesting, until the infant shut him up again with a smack to the forehead.

"Juudaime!"

"Tsuna!"

"Dame-Tsuna is the heir and eventual boss of the Vongola Famiglia, and you possess the artificial Flame," Reborn told me with a serious look.

Bullshit. This is bullshit. This is absolute bullshit. This is—

"I'd appreciate it if you toned down a little on your colorful language." Reborn told me with a raised eyebrow.

"So you can read minds…" I stated. "This… is a lot to take in."

I probably seemed fine on the outside. My blank face hadn't changed, but inside I was panicking. I didn't want to be in the Mafia – didn't want to be involved in it. If I had this Flame, then would that mean I had to be a Mafioso? Is that not why he's telling me this right now?

"I see you've pieced it all together," Reborn hummed, shocking me.

"No way." I told him, standing up immediately, as Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Sawada looked at me. "I don't want to be a part of the Mafia. I refuse."

"HIEEE! So you were recruiting her!" Sawada accused the infant with a disappointed, crestfallen look. "Stop involving innocent people in this."

"Huh? Why don't you want to join the Mafia game, Hiyori-san?" Yamamoto blinked at me.

A… game? "You think the Mafia's just a game?" I asked him, surprised. "The Mafia isn't a game. Do you think if you lost a battle, you could just walk away or start over? No. If you lose, that's it. You're dead. There's no going back."

I looked at Reborn with a frown. "I'm sorry. I actually want to live, thank you very much."

"I'll see you around, I guess," I told the three as I left the rooftop.

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I lived near Namimori Park, so I always passed by the playground, where children ran about and played by the swings. It was a nice sight to see, and maybe a little sad. They were so innocent – you could see it in their smiles. But now that I know about the Mafia – just how real it is – it scares me to think that what if one of these children would be forced to join the Mafia? Their innocence would be lost.

I clenched my fists.

He wanted me to join the Mafia, all because I had this Flame in me. What if he was lying, though? What if this was just an early prank?

I shook my head and sighed as I neared my front door, opening it and entering my house.

If he was lying, Sawada wouldn't act that way.

I locked the door and went into the kitchen, dumping my bag on one of the stools. I started making a salad for myself, washing the vegetables and grabbing a bowl. I tossed the ingredients together, along with the dressing I had made. Grabbing a fork, I sat on one of the stools and ate.

Flames…

"If you're interested, all you need to do is join."

I scowled, flickering my eyes to the baby who had appeared in front of my bowl of salad. "How'd you get in here, and what do you mean by that?"

"If you want to know more about Flames, just join the Famiglia," he replied, not even bothering to answer my questions.

"Can't you find someone else?" I groaned. "I'd rather not lose my life so early."

"You are the only one who has these Flames, so it would be best for the Famiglia to 'claim' you now. We did create it, of course." Reborn reasoned out. "If not, other Famiglias would hunt you down, and they're not as… kind as we are."

"The words 'Mafia' and 'kind' in the same sentence?" I said in disbelief.

"It's true, though."

"What's so special about these Flames, anyways?" I sighed, resting my face on my hand.

"That is one of the reasons why the Famiglia needs you as soon as possible." Reborn replied. "We don't know much about the Flames, especially since it was created in the time of Vongola Secondo. This is only the second time they've appeared, so we don't have enough information on it. However, it is related to the Flames of Rage."

"'Flames of Rage'…" I repeated. "And they are?"

"Flames possessed by the Varia leader Xanxus. The Varia is the Vongola's independent assassination squad." Reborn told me, stealing a grape from my salad and munching on it.

I sighed again. "Fine. I'll join, but on certain conditions."

"Oh? And who gave you the authority to make conditions?" Reborn asked me blankly.

I narrowed my eyes at him slightly. "I possess the Flame. While it may be true that your Famiglia is the kindest, I could still give it up to other Famiglias."

Reborn chuckled softly. "Your terms?"

"I expect to be notified immediately on anything that concerns me, especially these Flames. Furthermore, I don't want to fight, at least, not be ordered to fight, if possible." I replied. "I'll think about the others, but that's what I have for now."

"Those are plausible terms. Alright, then. We have a deal. Welcome to the Famiglia, Hiyori Akane." Reborn told me as he disappeared in a blink.

I groaned again and facepalmed. "What did I just agree to?"

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Me: So there! Akane's joining the Famiglia now, albeit reluctantly. What is to become of her now?

See you soon (possibly next week)! Enjoy and review please!

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