18Madison81: Thanks a lot! Haha, you could probably do better than me, though xD

InvisibleNeko: Arigatou for the review! To be honest, it may have been a permanent hiatus... you'd never believe how many stories went into the flames x:3 Also, Bel and Chrome will most definitely meet, worry not. Wait... did you say ICE-CREAM? Gimme some! 3

lady madland: Haha... ha... don't worry, I heard you... xDD Trust me, you've got no clue how lost I was trying to write the next chapter! I had to re-read everything to make sure it all made sense. I kept going back for a lot of it- I'm like, did this happen or not? I'll be sure to check out your story as soon as I get the chance! Which will probably be some time tomorrow I guess? School has got me rung dry x.x

BlackAngel'sWrath: Confusion hath be between thy reader to thy writer. Still trying to figure out exactly what I wanted to happen 5 months ago :3

Deadly-Chronicles: Reme. Is. BACK!

Chapter 7: Fake Paradise

Gokudera and Hibari watched in surprise as Chrome Dokuro, with a fierce look on her face, stepped into the dirty clearing. They were more than surprised, in fact, by more than one thing- wasn't she in a coma? Her state was near death. Hibari almost thought they might lose her. Evidently, though, that was not the case. She was up and in arms, looking more healthy than she had ever been. She was dressed pretty badly, though; there were bloody bandages still wrapped tight around her torso, bleeding slightly from the puncture wound. Her arms were bruised. On the contrary, her cheeks were bright and full, not pale and sunken in like before. The guardian's amethyst eyes possessed a bright spark he'd never seen before. Somehow, her eye patch also seemed more... up. It shone like crystal... Why, no one wondered.

But that look on her face? That expression, so unlike her usual show of innocence and shy wonder? Gone. It was the biggest surprise. Hibari gave his trademark smirk, impressed. Had this herbivore stepped up out of her shell? Perhaps she would be a better challenge, though for his reasons, he doubted that Chrome could outmatch the carnivore in front of them.

Especially with a hostage.

Hibari swallowed his words, then.

All three boys were staring at her-the intruder with a strange hunger, Gokudera with confusion, and he with pleasure. Then she was gone.

Just gone. No dirt cloud underneath her, kicked up from a step. No flicker. No nothing.

And then there was a hard, cold clang. The Storm and Cloud turned to see the intruder locked in a bind with three stone vipers, with Chrome behind him. She raised her trident, shiny and clean, hastily bringing it down. He shifted to the side, but couldn't dodge with the snakes squeezing the nerve out of his legs. Instead her strike slammed onto the man's muscular shoulder.

There was a satisfying pop, and a grunt of pain. Using his free hand, he shattered the snakes in response. Both moved away from each other, perching on two separate trees, acknowledging each other with angry stares. In that split second attack, Chrome had managed to snatch I-pin, where Gokudera decided to be of use, receiving the black haired girl once more.

"Who are you?" Chrome demanded, with an edge of calculated rage that much resembled her idol. "What do you want with me and my friends?"

The guy stopped, popping his dislocated shoulder back in place. That would sting for a while.

"They call me Skallon," he snickered, tapping one handgun idly against the bark of his tree. "What we want is not your friends. We want you. Why? You should know why."

Something akin to suspicion flashed through her. "If you want only me, then why did you attack the Vongola?"

He shrugged. "That's the way to get to you-Kill a couple, kill some more, kill someone beloved... and it's a sinker. All you Vongola brats are the same. I'm damn well sure that the decimo is, too."

"All of you are terrible," she scowled. "I get the feeling you're doing this for fun! Why do you need to kill to get what you want?"

"Don't be a pacifist. You are mafia; at least you are now. Mafia are about killing. And me? I'm mafia too. Death is the world, girly. get used to it." Skallon stopped tapping, and grinned a shark-like grin... the kind that sends shivers down the spines of others, and sends kids running. "As for why? I just do as I'm told."

Chrome wasted no time. She tossed her trident from the right to the left hand, then smashed it into the thick trunk of the deciduous tree she stood on. There was a sinking, sucking sound before it suddenly caved in on itself. The limbs fell, cascading into a waterfall of breaking wood and flimsy leaves. In a loud crash, all of the debris pressed together. It reminded her of how a junk presser compressed garbage, only this was a weapon. The whole lot of it defied the laws of nature, forming one big golem of trees. Its own weight made the thing creak and groan, crack and rustle, when it came alive through a burst of green dust.

The golem rushed forward, ramming into the tree Skallon was on. He jumped just as his perch exploded on the impact-the force was frightening. Gokudera, previously focused on stopping the profuse bleeding, looking up in awe. Just how strong was his teammate? She was no longer the meek little girl she used to be. She was... amazing. Shining.

She reminded him of someone he'd wanted to forget.

Skallon cackled lightly to himself, shooting downward at the behemoth Chrome almost effortlessly created. To his resentment, the illusionary beast parried the attacks with ease. In fact, it was more like it was shrugging the energy off, causing it to disperse harmlessly. He cursed and dashed down to attack close quarters, connecting the butt of both his weapons to the golem's thick body. First a crack appeared, like a cob web around brittle wood-then a significant chunk of its arm fell to the grassy floor.

He smiled.

Hard to penetrate, yes.

Annoying, yes.

Unbeatable, no.

Just like cockroaches-hard to kill, but it could be done. He will win. He will win because the Savior requested it. He will win because the life of his true love depended on it. He will win because she had to die, because everything was her fault.

Chrome came from behind again, slashing downward in a single bright arc. He met her blow with the tip of his pistol, deflecting it. There was an opening, and he took it- in one swift movement, the partnering weapon jut firmly into her stomach. Her eyes flew wide with pain that invaded the anger, and she let out an agonized, bloody cough before slamming into the ground. Her opponent's victory was short lived; the golem threw itself onto him, creating a mass of flying woodchips and the crunching sound of bone. He turned the moment he hit the ground, shooting four consecutive bullets right into his assaulter's face. There was one final crack, and the hard brown skull broke, causing all the parts to fall lifeless.

She struggled to her feet, using the trident as a kind of walking stick. Her other hand gripped her sore stomach feebly-he had stricken the wound the black and white man made, making it even more painful. A thin line of scarlet threaded from her lip, staining the already tainted bandages that ended at her neck. Already fatigue set in...but Chrome's efforts were not entirely fruitless.

Skallon was in just as bad a shape as her. She succeeded in wounding him significantly... there was now an ugly zigzag of torn and raw flesh, on bit of it hiding the pearl of a bone. His left shoulder, the same one she attacked before, seemed in terrible shape. It looked like the skin was peeled of, and twisted at and impossible angle.

She was triumphant, on that note. Who knew she was capable of so much devastating power? His shark grin was gone now, instead replaced with a look of menace and scorn. His wild blonde hair was even wilder now, too feral, even. A slick blotch of blood ran down one half of his face, and over one of his icy frost eyes. They glared daggers; so much hate and anger and determination all aimed at her. Why?

Gokudera and Hibari saw the whole thing. The illusion was powerful... staggering and intense... it drew both boys in easily. They had developed a newfound respect for her, now. Gokudera had succeeded in applying his surprisingly advanced medical knowledge upon I-Pin's wound... the poor girl was ghastly pale now, yet miraculously, her breathing was normal and rhythmic. Unless something happened, she'd live through it. Chrome remembered that she had been the reason she got so hyped up... fighting for her friends made her more powerful. She knew that applied to all the guardians as well; powerful Tsuna, extreme Ryohei, the bright Yamamoto and light-hearted Lambo. Even the angry Storm and the aloof Cloud fought for those they cared deeply for.

That's why they were guardians.

That's why they were Vongola.

That's why they were Mafia.

They weren't bad.

Not killers.

Not them...

Not them.

But her opponent, Skallon, why did he bear so much hate for her? Chrome didn't understand one bit of it. If she knew anything, it was that all hate had reason. What were his reasons for cursing her, when she'd never even seen him before? It had to be something. Whilst Hibari readied his tonfas and Chrome groaned, raising her weapon once more, he struggled painfully to his feet. The wounds he carried were bigger than hers, but he pushed himself until the hunk of meat that was his arm looked ready to fall off. Chrome recalled that she had awoken her coma after parting with Mukuro. She recalled waking to a loud gunshot, then following her instincts. Then she saw I-Pin, her friend and un-related sister, at tatters near death. Her heart was consumed with blinding rage, contained just barely, to destroy this determined man. Now, though, her rage was gone. No one deserved to die.

She wasn't being a pacifist, like what the man suggested.

It was just that she, Nagi, knew what it was like to die inside, and die in the minds of others.

It hurt.

-Faceless-

Bel leaned against his little cage, genuinely bored. Using a tiny scrap of metal he found some time ago, he knocked it rhythmically against the floor. Tap, tap, tap... over and over. The beautiful but burnt blonde hair sloppy fixed over his eyes made it harder and harder to see as he got sleepier each second-but for some reason, he felt like if he surrendered to the tired darkness, he's lose himself. But that made no sense, right? The prince can never lose, especially not to his own entity. Princes are invincible.

Invincible...

A loud, metallic clang snapped him from his thoughts. Bel's eyes flew open-he never realized they were closed-to a sudden, blaring light. Instantly, whatever hint of sleep from before shattered into bits n' pieces. That girl, whose name he never did really ask, stood in front of him. The sinister masks from before were all tied over one shoulder... they were blank and stark white, smooth and shiny, but no longer the same empty shells as before. He could see underneath a few of them; instead of the same white material, he glimpsed some sort of crimson gel, writhing as if it was alive.

What was this about?

She stood in front of him while tinkering with one of the masks. Her bright green eyes, heavily contrasting the fiery hair, stood out to him. They were filled with unearthly concentration, the type that he never had the patience to hold... but there was a strange, evil presence about her... well, maybe not her exactly. Something around her. Something that watched the girl. He just didn't know what it was.

"What are you doing, peasant? Royalty doesn't wait, and I've been waiting here for a while," Bel growled, grinning at the same time. It was a deadly combination-well, if she was looking at him, that is. But no, she was transfixed with whatever those masks really were.

"Don't call me peasant, madman," The girl stated stoically. "Don't you know it's rude?"

Bel half pouted, like a kid who desperately wanted candy, but couldn't get any. He crossed his arms, trying to look menacing, but failed due to the fact that he wore no shoes and looked... wimpy. Royally wimpy. "First of all, the prince doesn't need to be polite. Only to a princess-and I don't see any here, ushishi... secondly, you are a peasant! And thirdly...aren't you being rude, calling me madman?"

The corner of her lip lugged down. She fumbled for some blue tack-like substance, before smoothening it onto another mask. "Well what am I supposed to call you then? Your highness? Prince? Royalty-guy? Mister Madman?"

"Any of the first two you said, though I prefer your highness. Real name's Bel, though," he added with no apparent reason.

For the first time, she looked up to stare at him, as if he was crazy. "Are you serious? You highness? If I were to ever do that, you'd have to call me by my name too."

This time it was his turn to act incredulous. "You must be joking. Beautiful royalty such as myself, addressing a peasant with such pleasantries?"

She shrugged. "Then I won't call you anything but madman, Mr. Madman."

Belphagor muttered an advanced string of curses before glaring through his bangs. "Tch, fine. Tell me your name then, peasant."

The girl smirked. It was too easy to play that guy, she laughed to herself. "Flax. It's Flax."

Then she stopped smiling. Why was she even talking to him? Best not develop any kind of preference of him. He was disposable. He will be gone. It was her duty to fix he and his friends, or get fixed herself.

She didn't want that. Besides... for him, she had to wait.

For him, and that's it.

"Flax, then," Prince Bel said, testing it out. "Ushishi... weird name for a weird girl."

Flax rolled her eyes. More like, Bel was a weird name for a weird madman-she didn't say that out loud, though.

She reminded herself once more that it didn't matter. In five more minutes, he'd be gone, just like everyone else that the savior set his eyes on. Once the girl was satisfied with the last mask, she went right up to the prince's cage. He looked up, almost expectant, with an expression that said, 'Finally, what took so long?' Flax punched in a combination of letters and cryptic codes and the field zipped out, with a plasmatic 'zing' like some magnetic disconnection. Half expecting him to keep staring at her like some exhibit, she turned to get the equipment.

Instantly, he was on her. They were still enemies, after all. Didn't enemies kill each other?

There was a sharp pang on her shoulder, when the little chink of metal pierced the miniscule area between two belts. His weight overcame hers, twisting her around, and they both fell. With a bang, her back slammed into the cold silver floor-the air knocked out for a split second, the world spinning, before the red-head regained her senses. As expected, Prince the Ripper was on top, nailing her to the ground with both hands. He had a sadistic, fox-like grin that reminded her of someone else she knew. They were close... she could touch him if she wanted... so close that his hot breath met hers.

For a moment there was only silence. She examined him up and down, taking great care to keep the precious masks out of harm's way. The hair that covered his eyes still remained in the same place, surprisingly, there was a small indent around the top of his head as if it was used to housing some sort of hat, which no longer remained. Bel's body, lean but still muscular, rode countless burns and scars. Well, that was what happened when someone got stuck in a fire, anyway.

They stared at each other.

And she made the first move.

Shifting her dead-weight right leg, Flax brought up the other one to knee him in the stomach. Both of them were in bad shape-she naturally was not a good fighter... him? For all she knew, Faceless threw him all around the rings of Hell. He coughed and spluttered before bringing back his arm, and thrusting it forward. She moved her head just in time for the bit of metal to only slice her cheek, just a thin amount, not poke her eye out like how it may have. Had this been under normal circumstances, she knew she'd be dead.

But this girl had some tricks up her sleeves.

Grabbing on vial secured to her belt, she hit it against the floor. In its place there formed a thick blue fog, musty with the scent of stale... something... and rotten... something. Bel above her wrinkled his nose with disgust before suddenly growing pale, and dropping on top of her. He was like a drunken man, now, looking left and right with no comprehension. Flax knew what he was going through-probably the prince was seeing doubles, blinking constantly and light headed. Before she'd developed an immunity to the stuff, she'd felt it many times over.

By no means was it a pleasant experience.

With great effort, she pulled out from under him and rolled to the side. Taking the mask from before, she held it out to him. What happened next would be final.

Bel was looking at her now, with an odd mix of confusion, anger, and surprise. She approached him. This moment was in her favor. Stretching out the mask, the girl frowned.

"I'm sorry."

Two words.

Then darkness.

The mask was over his head.

-Faceless-

The last thing Bel remembered was a blurring, searing pain. Something cold stung his eyes, and when they opened, everything was all wrong. Flax was blue for one. To top it off, she had four eyes. Four braids, too. As for belts? Counting would give him a head ache. The room was in bad shape, too; the cages that held Squalo, Levi, Lussaria, Fran and Mammon were shaped like bananas. Also green. What was with green?

And then Flax, again and again. She was doing something. Then she got bigger... maybe she was walking towards him? Yeah, that had to be it. But he just sat there like a moron, blinking, blinking, blinking. And then something wet on his face. Something red. Something black.

The mask.

And now?

Now he didn't know here he was.

Because now, Bel awoke with his vision fixed, lounging on a huge, king-sized bed covered with smooth leopard-fur. Similarly designed slippers dressed his feet that should have been bare and bruised. He looked up to see sharp bangs of white-gold, not the last burnt black-blonde he remembered.

What was going on?

Ta dah, chapter 7 ^.^ Personally I think it's my worse chapter yet (I finished it at midnight after all) but oh well, I promise the next one will be better! Also, if you have any plot-related questions, free feel to ask away. Since I haven't updated in a while, minus the last chapter, I don't really remember exactly everything I was gonna include, so if you ask a question I'll make sure it gets answered. Anyway, there's a more important matter at hand- I never thought of pairings yet. Ever. So... what do you guys think? Who should Chrome be paired up with? Bel? Hibari? Someone else?