"Just as the great oceans have but one taste, the taste of salt, so too there is but one taste fundamental to all true teachings of the way, and this is the taste of freedom." — Buddha


If someone had decided to write a list of places where Hibari Kyoya did not want to be right now, then Little Whinging, Surrey would likely be somewhere at the top of it- right behind 'anywhere within ten miles of Rokudo Mukuro'.

Hibari hardly even knew why he was here- or to be more specific, how Sawada Tsunayoshi had managed to convince him to do this.

Something about a paperwork-free excursion to Namimori in the near future, which is probably worth Hibari's current headache.

The assignment was simple in theory- go to the main base of a mafia family- that just so happened to have decided that a small town in England would be the perfect base of operations- and negotiate territories and alliances with them.

Now, normally such a task would not have fallen to him. However, it seemed that all of the usual go-to options were unavailable on this particular date.

It was just his luck that all the other Guardians had been away on that particular date.

"Kyoya, I'm really, really sorry about this but you're kinda my only option here," Sawada had pleaded.

"No."

"...I'll schedule an extra vacation to Namimori this year."

"No."

"A two week extra vacation to Namimori this year?"

"...fine."

Now, it should be noted that Hibari is perfectly capable of taking a vacation to Namimori on his own without any sort of permission from his Sky.

However, it is also important to note that such a trip would not free him from his responsibilities as the leader of the newly formed Foundation, nor would it keep him from having to deal with those annoying herbivores demanding that he come back every other second. There is only so much that Tetsuya could do on his own before Hibari had to step in, after all.

A sanctioned trip, on the other hand, was free of all such obligations. Such a trip allowed for him to temporarily give his subordinates authority over the organization; i.e. it let him shove off all of his paperwork onto them so that his signature wasn't technically required for anything.

It was far less annoying and much more convenient, so it would be very stupid of him to pass up such an opportunity.

Running the Foundation was an entirely different game than the Disciplinary Committee had been. For one thing, there was much more responsibility involved. His subordinates had to be more than just simple thugs- they had to be skilled mafiosos that could hold their own for at least a few minutes against even himself. Furthermore, the fact that it was an official organization with ties to the Vongola meant that he also had to learn to play the games of politics, which, unfortunately, could not be played with mere intimidation tactics as he had quickly learned.

The mafia was like a jungle- filled to the brim with carnivores worth his note and challenges for both his body and his mind. Though he would never admit it aloud, he was actually quite satisfied with his new lot in life.

Yes, he may be just a bit more tied down by this life. But that didn't mean that he couldn't do what he wanted, when he wanted to. Anyone who tried to change that would be bitten to death without mercy.

He enjoyed watching his 'powerful' enemies flounder about with mouths agape as they realized that they had been outdone, outsmarted and utterly defeated by a nineteen-year old and his fledgeling organization. He loved watching the realization dawn on them; the realization that in this world he was the one at the top of the food chain and that they are but the poor little grazers at the very bottom.

Though, this time might just be the exception to that little rule.

This famiglia, the Brunnegem, were very well aware that they were herbivores. They knew that he could kill them within a minute. They knew that their delicate necks wouldn't last a minute against his tonfas. The glimmer of nerves in the upper echelon's eyes was telling enough- they knew just how easy it would be for him to bite them to death.

It would have been simple to just terrify them into signing the alliance-renewal contracts and leave, but no, of course not. These herbivores actually had spines. Weak ones, sure, but they were there.

The blunt truth is that they actually did have one over on him (not that his pride is very happy with that little tidbit). These people may have been weak in mind, but they did have influence. Too much influence and territory. And they also knew full well exactly how necessary this alliance was to the Vongola- the Brunnegem could get away with declining and shutting off negotiations just fine, but the Vongola could not.

With the underworld changing as it was, the Vongola needed to have a firmer foothold in England- the center of all these uprisings. Power was shifting, but no one quite knew how it was happening.

And even if this wasn't an issue, then there was also the fact that Brunnegem's Italian territory directly bordered upon the Vongola's territory. There had been an alliance between the two groups but it was tentative and unstable, and recently expired on top of all that.

If he did the sensible thing here and ridded the world of these worthless, greedy rats then he risked starting a war between the Vongola and whatever factions of the Brunnegem remained organized enough to attack.

While the Vongola would certainly come out on top, especially with the Foundation and admittedly the Varia by their side, not only would such a conflict serve to distract them from more important things but it would also exponentially increase his workload.

Hibari already had enough paperwork hampering time that could be better spent training or biting herbivores to death. He did not need to make it any more annoying for himself.

They were just as aware of all this as he was. Hibari had to play by their rules or there would be consequences.

He hated playing by the rules of others. Especially by the rules of those who were unworthy of even his very presence.

Sawada will pay for convincing him to enter this situation. (Even if it was Hibari's own choice to do so.)

Because of him, Hibari was now stuck with seven interspersed meetings for 'good luck'. Meaning that he probably wouldn't be back in Italy until late in the summer.

He had very seriously considered just leaving and letting some other Guardian handle this once they came back from their varying assignments.

But of course, one call from Sawada had put a damper on that. It wasn't that he was weak enough to be swayed by anymore bribery or anything of the sort.

No, it was that he had never heard Sawada sound so stressed in the entirety of their years of acquaintance. The little animal was at his breaking point- he was being spread too thin by the mysterious power shifts occurring across the world and the absence of the rest of the Guardians was also taking its toll upon the seventeen year old Decimo.

(And maybe the property damage from Hibari's last fight with Rokudo was just a bit too much to handle.)

Sawada had sounded desperate, more desperate than he had sounded since the very beginning of their involvement in the mafia. For this alliance to work out and for there to be no further problems. He was tired and almost-defeated and something in Hibari ached at listening to his Sky in such a state.

And so Hibari found himself staying in England for a longer-than-acceptable period of time.

Of course, it wasn't all that terrible.

For one thing, there was this one little cafe that he had discovered while exploring the town for the first time.

The tea there suited his tastes very well and certainly made his stay much more tolerable than it would have been otherwise. It was small and quiet as well- hardly any crowding to deal with. While the staring of the local patrons was rather irritating, Hibari also knew that it was to be expected. He was, after all, a foreigner in a small town- it would be more strange if he didn't get stared at all the time.

It was on his third or so visit that things began to get interesting.

The excursion started as it always did.

He ordered his favored jasmine tea and dealt with the curious stares as he waited by the counter. A younger Hibari may have bitten them all to death just for this minor irritation, but this older, more experienced version had a bit more patience.

Only a bit, though.

The chimes on the door rang, signaling the entrance of another customer as he went to pick up his tea.

It was a girl, small and lanky with wild black curls and startlingly green eyes covered by too-large glasses- an appearance that reminded him of the little cow that was waiting for his 'Kyoya-nii' to come home back in Italy.

It was endearing, the way she was staring at him with such an oblivious attraction. She probably didn't even notice how obvious she was being.

Her stare didn't bother him as much as the others. He always did have a thing for small and cute things.

He met her stare on a whim- he could have just continued looking over the proposed tonfa upgrades that the blonde gearhead had sent him, but something told him that this would be a much more amusing course of action.

She did not disappoint.

Her connection to Lambo Bovino melted away from his mind, replaced by an image of Sawada Tsunayoshi. For while he could clearly see the beginnings of a schoolgirl crush in her eyes, he could also see so much more.

There was some kind of a fire in her eyes- restrained, resigned but still burning with the strength of a Dying Will. Stubborn, determined, analytical.

He wondered what they would look like if it was set loose upon the world. Her eyes were those of an omnivore- not quite at the top of the chain but also not weak enough to be called an herbivore. She could be so much more, he thought, and it would be beautiful to watch.

There was potential. So much potential. She reminded him of Sawada in the beginning- an herbivore that could easily blossom into a carnivore.

Her eyes widened and she dropped her gaze. It seemed that she finally became aware of the cherry red blush upon her cheeks, he noted in amusement.

"Jasmine tea, please," the girl ordered. Her voice was pleasant, a soft, accented sound that anyone could appreciate.

The fact that she ordered the same thing as him did not escape him. Was she really so taken by him as to base her own decisions of his?

A herbivorous action.

Though, it was obvious that she was not a civilian. She seemed too wary in the way she stood and stepped- as though someone could attack her at any moment. She clearly wasn't entirely comfortable in her own skin, but she did not move with any sort of inexperience.

If he had to liken her to anything by this first impression then it would be a deer- soft in appearance but capable of lashing out in a flurry of horns and hooves when backed into a corner.

The girl made a noise of protest and glared at him, his lack of effort in hiding his amusement clearly grating on her nerves.

It was funny, the way that she thought that her glare could intimidate him into looking away. It almost made him overlook her previous careless action.

She huffed again, her emerald gaze dropping to his hands. Her gaze homed in on the Vongola Cloud ring, recognition dancing across her eyes.

She was in the mafia, then. Unexpected- she did not seem like the 'mafioso' type. But then again, appearances were deceiving.

"Are you married?" she blurted out.

Hibari choked on his tea.


A/N

I probably overdid it with the exposition here, but oh well. I had fun with it. A bit too much fun, but fun nonetheless.

I'm going to be honest here. The response this fic has been getting has completely floored me. Thank you all. So much. Especially for all of your kind reviews- every one of them makes my day a little bit better!

Though, there is one that I absolutely have to address personally.

Dearest goldengirl555,

Woman. I literally see you three times a day in person- must you remind me to update The Other Side of The Spectrum in a review for this beauty? Geez. It's coming- you know my perfectionism.

Love,

The poor girl that you totally adore with all your heart and soul that will probably be in desperate need of your pre-calc homework come Monday Morning.

Cheers!

(Edit- I forgot to proofread this beforehand. Whoops? The grammar should be a bit better now.)