Chapter 7: Two Weeks Time

"The Annual Alliance Party" Tsuna repeated "The Vongola is hosting it this year"

"…"

Slowly, the blond turned to face his guardians, looking calm and collected as he should be. But then, the overly-stretched smile gave it away.

"…You…totally forgot about it didn't you?" G said it as if it were a statement rather than a question,boring his crimson orbs into twitching azure ones. The room fell into a still silence.

"So did you!" Giotto burst, his brows knitted together as he gritted his teeth. "How could I remember when the all the staffs quit?!" "That's not an excuse" Someone within the girls chirped, but wasn't heard by the panicking mafia boss.

"Not to mention that we don't-… Wait" He stopped abruptly and turned his attention to the girls.

"How much time left until the party?"

"Two weeks starting tomorrow" said Hayato, obviously amused by the sudden change of behavior of the calm and cool Vongola Primo.

"T-Two weeks?" Giotto repeated, the corner of his lips twitched up, showing a strained smile. "We don't have much time left!" He exclaimed.

"Woa Giotto! Calm down!" Cozart sputtered, failing to hide his growing amused grin.

"We could still make it if we hurry" Asari assured.

"But how are we going to get that with only 8 staffs, and they're newcomers to boot?!" G grumbled.

"Who ever said that we're the only ones available?" Hayato raised her brows, finger stretching out to point the guardians. "Have you ever considered yourselves?"

"You're saying we should help you?"

"Well of course, only the 8 of us won't be enough" Tsuna stated.

"Otherwise we won't be able to prepare the party in time, we need everyone" Enma added. Kyoya huffed and crossed her arms as she leaned onto the wall.

"But if we work together to the EXTREME, we might make it!" Ryohei voiced, earning a nod from Knuckle.

"Are you saying that ore-sama should work?" Lampo frowned. "Hell no"

"We should just cancel it" grumbled Lambo which went unheard.

"But it would be fun!" Takeshi laughed.

"They're right, we must help to the extreme!" Knuckle nodded in agreement.

"But we have our own work" G scowled.

"As if you have one" Hayato retorted, earning a sharp glare from the Storm Guardian.

"We do, and so do you. You're our servants, it's your job to prepare for the event efficiently, as we… we are your boss"

"Servants?" Hayato twitched, a vein popping on her forehead. "So you're saying that your job is idling in the mansion all day, practicing your pathetic shooting skills?" She spat. "Cause, from what I saw, that is your job"

"Why you imp-"

"G!" Giotto yelled and sighed, "The town are quite peaceful these days so we have some time to spare. The party is in two weeks, we need as much man power as we can to make it happen." He turned to Tsuna. "We'll help". She grinned. "However" She froze, "I won't tolerate anymore disobedience or disrespect from you girls".

"Yes Primo, it won't happen again" she bowed. Upon seeing this, a certain silverette gritted her teeth and lowered her gaze onto the floor.

"S-So we'll start-" Enma started but was cut off by a rather gloomy Cloud guardian.

"I refuse to do such things" Alaude strode out the dining hall, not bothering to finish dinner.

"So do I, a person such as myself would never do a peasant's work, let alone taking orders from a servant" Daemon followed the cloud guardian's action, leaving the rest.

"…"

"O-Ore-sama-" Before the seaweed head could even finish his sentence, a hand slammed upon his head, gripping it tightly, keeping the kid in the seat.

"Don't you even think about it" G glared, earning a whimper to his satisfaction.

Tsuna grinned and clapped her hands together. "Great then! We'll start tomorrow, first thing in the morning"


Giotto opened the door to his room and could see that the window in his office was still open. Curtains fluttering in the soft wind. He stepped inside and closed the door with a soft click.

'I thought I left it closed' He silently pondered. Pulling off his coat, he draped it over a nearby chair.

He slowly made his way to the window. Leaning against it, he poked his head out to see the night sky above, glittering with stars. The town in the far distance lit with soft yellowish lights could be seen. Giotto breathed in the fresh night air, letting his mind relax-

"Vongola Primo" Giotto jumped in surprise. He hands reaching for his gloves in his pockets when he turned around to face his assailant.

Fierce, azure orbs met with shocked large brown ones. Tsuna jolted in alarm upon Giotto's sudden hostility, she whipped her head to her surroundings to see there was no one but her and Giotto. "Pri-Primo-san?"

Surprise was still evident on Giotto's face as he collected himself. "Tsuna? I didn't hear you coming in"

"I did knock" Tsuna frowned. "Thrice"

Giotto's mind flashed the earlier hours of the day where Tsuna had also suddenly announced her presence in his office. He cleared his throat and looked at the girl. "You should try knocking harder next time, please"

She smiled, "Sure!"

"Is there anything I could help you with?" Giotto asked, smoothening his vest.

"Well, I want to ask about the party we're preparing. What do we need to prepare?"

Giotto blinked, he opened his mouth and closed it, then opened it again. "Food?" He croaked while Tsuna visibly suppressed a smile before saying, "I meant any specific like types of wine? Music? How much guests are we having?"

"Oh."Giotto paused. "I-uh…" Giotto frowned and put a hand under his chin. He could not remember the last time he hosted a party. He did remember the one he hosted for the beginning of the Vongola family, but it was interrupted midway by some enemy and the party ended in a fiery blaze.

His frown deepened. How about the other family parties he attended? 'I know there's food and wine. Various types of wine are there if I remembered well. Music? Was there music? Oh yes there was, the daughter of the Viettra family asked me to dance once, her fiancé threw a flying dagger at me.' He shuddered. 'But what kind of music was it again?' He racked his brain for answers, but then his train of thought was interrupted when Tsuna spoke up.

"I could see that you're exhausted for the day" She grinned. "We'll discuss this tomorrow okay?" The blond sheepishly grinned and nodded.

"Let's get some sleep, there's a lot of things we need to do I presume?" Giotto asked. Tsuna nodded and turned to leave.

"Oh, and Tsuna?" Giotto called. "Yes?" She put her hands on the door handle.

"How did you know that the party was coming?" With that, Tsuna smiled and pointed something on his desk. "It's written in your calendar Giotto-san. I saw it when I was cleaning earlier"

Giotto made a small 'o' with his mouth and nodded. Tsuna shut the door with a small click and left. Giotto made his way to his desk; paperworks were shattered over it and by the edge, stood neatly, is his calendar. He picked it up to see the promised date was circled and an elegant writing over it. 'Alliance Party', he frowned.

This wasn't his handwriting. Nor any other of his guardians either.


"May I ask why you are here?" Hayato groaned. It was early in the morning, the sun was peeping over the horizon but the town's people was already bustling with their stalls, prices written clumsily on cupboards, displaying fresh groceries and merchandise.

"Because Giotto asked me to" G said, sounding equally annoyed.

Hayato was walking through the morning market; she had planned to get all the groceries that Tsuna had asked of her. But then, the red-head partner she was assigned with was useless. Apparently, that guy had not been in the market for the last few years. New things were on sale, prices had gone up, weapons could be sold out in the open, pre-orders could be-

"What's this?" G crouched down, holding up small blade linked with a long chain from a nearby stall, he frowned. The seller had his eyes shining, staring at the storm guardian, hands already clasped together ready to serve his paying customer anytime. "That, Lord G, is a-"

Hayato put a hand up into the man's face. "He's not buying it Montello, don't bother" She sighed. Montello switched his attention to the girl. "What about you Hayato?" He spoke her name with familiarity and run his hands through the things he displayed. "These are new in stock, I could give you a discount for helping me last time, anything that interests you?" G watched the exchange between the two intently.

"Ah, maybe next time, I got urgent issues to attend to" She gave a small smile while the man nodded. Hayato then turned on her heels to walk on leaving a crouching G, who is deep in thought.

"G!" pulling G out of his thought. "I wouldn't want to find a lost child when I am done with the errands." G's eye visibly twitched and got up, but not before taking a last look at the merchandise sold. The carving on the blade stole his attention once again, shapes and symbols that he could not identify but before he could inspect it further, Hayato tugged the collar of his shirt, pulling him away from the stall.

Irritated by Hayato's action, G yanked off her grip and scowled. Recalling the conversation earlier between the peddler and Hayato,

"What'd you help him with?" He asked, while the girl sighed, feeling an urge to punch someone but she had also promised Tsuna. "Robbers, thieves, trouble-makers. There're a lot of those in these areas. We had been helping the townspeople with-…wait" She abruptly stopped, her eyes turning to meet the guardian. "Isn't that kind of your job?"

G frowned again, finally understanding why the town had been so peaceful lately. As if reading his mind, Hayato clicked her tongue and kept on walking, muttering along the words of 'Doing the bastard's job'.

The sun was up in the sky now, illuminating everything. Hawkers were shouting prices and goodies, the townspeople bustling by, trying to get their needs. A variety of things were displayed but G's mind kept wandering back to the stall before. Glancing back, he mentally took a note of where it was. They stopped in front of a rather large stall. Bags of coloured powders were what on sale. 'Spices' He registered from the mixed scent emitting from it. There were some he recognized but many he did not.

Hayato, who was talking to the merchant, saw the confusion in the guardian's eyes. Following his train of sight onto the spices, she smirked devilishly.

Scooping a cup of brown powder into her hands, she held it up for G to see. "Do you know what this is?" She smiled, she had G's full attention and continued. "This, mio Tempesta Guardiano, is a very famous powder. Cooks often use them in their dishes. Their scent is unique, and it's rather mild" She held it up higher, levelling G's neck. "Smell it"

Curious and intrigued, G bend his head down to the brown powder. From the corner of his eye, he could see the female merchant looked stricken and shook her head vigorously. But it was too late as he took a strong whiff.

A strong scent of hot chili powder invaded his senses as he choked and turn into a coughing fit. Hot tears welled up in his eyes as he hacked. His blood singing in his ears, distantly he could hear Hayato laughing. The merchant lady was panicking and had filled up a glass of cold water for him. G gratefully accepted and drowned it down.

"Red Savina Powder" Hayato said, washing her hands under a water tap. "A spice that is very well known for its' supreme heat" She sniffed her hand and cringed. "Not for the faint-hearted"

G wiped his mouth with his sleeve and growled. "You tricked me". Hayato played innocent, "Did I? I think what I told you was true."

"You said it's mild!" He seethed, his face flushed.

"Maybe it is to me. What? Can't take a little heat?" She smirked again, loving the little payback while G scowled.

Hayato got up and walked to a nearby stall, leaving G behind to recover from his spice attack.

G wiped the tears with the hem of his sleeve. He wanted to curse that woman but failed to do so when a cup of clear liquid with flecks of green in it was shoved into his face. He looked up to see Hayato still smiling.

"No-"

"It helps" She cut him off. "We're planning to use this in the party". She dipped her finger in and put it in her mouth, tasting it and shoved the cup higher. "It's nice"

G looked skeptical and glanced at the merchant who nodded in approval. He leaned down to sniff the substance. The scent of sweetness and salt washed over him, a tinge of mint and something else. He could feel the heat in his veins being relived slightly. He reached for the cup but then Hayato raised her hand higher and shoved it into his face. The liquid splashing slightly into his face. The redhead swore.

"You looked like you needed it, your tattoo made your face look like you're on fire." Exasperated, G swiped the cup from Hayato and gulp it down.

Finishing the last drop of the drink, G sighed in relief as the burning heat of the spice had been tone down. Using his cuff of his dress shirt, he wiped his face before giving Hayato a glare and accused, "That was deliberate of you"

"You were taking a long time, I got tired of waiting" She said and turned away to face the merchant to say something, slipping coins into the merchants hands before turning to face him again. "Come on, Hime's probably wondering why we are taking so long"

The merchant passed Hayato a few bags of spice. "We still have a lot of things to do." Suppressing his boiling anger and followed the silverette. His hands aching to get revenge.


Kyoya had thought her association with paper work is temporarily over but then writing invitation letters is just almost the same…

Nope…it's worse.

She scribbled the same words over and over again on cards that pile high above her head. She had sat on the same seat, immobile for hours and yet the cards seem to not end. Curse the brunette that had had assigned (pleaded) her to this.

Slamming the pen onto the desk, she got up. Stashing her tonfas away, she knew what she had to do.

Kyoya walked the hallway in strides, eyeing every corner, searching for a certain platinum blonde who skipped work. Her search was interrupted when the sound of cloth ripping followed by a high pitched scream and loud thud echoed throughout the hallway.

Kyoya doesn't have to see the person to know who the scream belonged to. Another equally high pitched scream followed by crashes echoed throughout the hallway.

Kyoya narrowed her eyes, 'Those are not the cow herbivore's screams' she thought and walked towards the source of the commotion.

She ended up in front of the grand hall. The large doors were left open slightly. Moving closer, she took a peek between the cracks. Steel orbs widened at the sight.

Golden silky cloth, or what it seems to be, ripped and burned hanging in the high ceiling and chandelier, the mismatched curtains hanging awkwardly and she was sure that the glass windows were shattered. Floor scattered with toppled table and chairs some of which is broken beyond repair. It was completely disastrous.

Two dead bodies lying flat on the floor which she identified to be Lambo and Lampo, emitting inaudible moans of pain and mumblings of incoherent words.

Failing to find any reason to care, Kyoya simply walked off to continue her search for her prey. But even after hours of searching and dropping a word of 'making sure this is not a Halloween party' to Tsuna, she couldn't spot the platinum blond anywhere.

Exasperated, Kyoya threw her tonfas and it landed upright on a poor herself on the soft grass, she gaze at the blue sky attempting to catch a short nap but a shadow above the roof caught her eye. Kyoya squinted her eye to discern what it is before a smirk crept on her lips, flecks of platinum blonde hair was reflected by the sun.

'Found you'


"Daemon" Giotto called, turning up his pace to catch up with the melon head. Daemon stopped and perked up a brow.

"I need you to find some musicians for the party" Giotto said.

"Nufufu, I don't remember agreeing to contribute for the party" Daemon smirked.

"Of course, that is, if you want folk music in the party then I suggest you to get on it" Giotto smiled as the smirk on the other faltered. "Surely you know something or someone that knows music, judging that you are previously quite well-known person"

"And why should I help you Primo"

"Because I asked you to" Giotto locked eyes with his Mist guardian. "Please Daemon, and take Mukuro with you, Tsuna's request"

Daemon's scowl immediately disappeared replaced with a slight smirk. "Taken a liking on the lady already Primo?"

The blond head sighed. "This is the least I could do. They are our last hope of making this work. The Alliance Party is important for peace and you know that"

Daemon hummed and folded his arms, contemplating. "I expect something in return for my favour" Daemon materialized his scythe from a shroud of purple mist. Tapping it on the floor, he disappeared into thin air.

Giotto released a breath he was holding, never would he expect his Mist guardian would actually agree helping by only a bit of persuasion.

Mukuro scowled and took out her trident when purple mist form before her. Dispersing, it revealed a smirking melon head. He took a step forward but was stopped when the sharp edge of the trident was directed at him yet again. The mismatched eyes narrowed in disgust.

"What do you want Vongola, I refused to be toyed by you" She spat in disgust and the man's smirk went wider. Using the tip of his finger, he pushed the trident away.

"I am your lord. You will do as I say" He said. "We're going hunting, surely this will amuse you more than yesterday"

~(Events of yesterday)~

"Spade! I demand you to let me out or suffer in Hell's blaze" The card in his breast pocket shouted again. Daemon was strolling among the townspeople. People shy away from him and kept their distance, partly from fear and mostly not to get scratched by the scythe he was twirling.

"Pray tell" He chuckled. "How are you going to achieve that?"

"Kufufu, never underestimate me Vongola" Daemon felt a sharp pain on his chest. He scowled and took out the card. A mini Mukuro could be seen with her trident in hand, she was smiling, satisfied at a tiny blooming flower of red on Daemon's dress shirt. He grimaced and flicked the card. Profanities emitted from it and he smirked.

He continued walking and found himself before a building. The house was elegantly decorated. Gold trimmings line the walls, poles crafted into statues and water fountain decorated with a mystic mermaid pouring water from her jug into the pond below. Flowers bloomed full in their glory.

"Daemon!" A feminine voice called. Daemon smirked and took out the card. He muttered some words and it disappeared. In its place was Mukuro. Eyes full of annoyance and yet she managed to keep a devilish smirk. Her trident was already position below his chin. Blood trickling down his neck as it pierced his skin.

But Daemon was unfazed by this. He even smirked when he heard the footsteps coming closer had abruptly stopped.

"Who, is she?" Chloe pointed at Mukuro who had changed her attention from the melon head to the woman. Daemon noticed this and immediately takes his chance, swatting the trident away from him, grabbed Mukuro's hands, pulled her into his embrace and landed a kiss on the side of her head. Mukuro, to his surprise, smiled, her eyes closed.

Chloe, stunned and shocked, was trembling with anger as she screamed. "H-How could you! You pompous bastard-"

"But dear, you clearly stated this morning that we're over" He smirked and added. "I'm glad you did"

Chloe was panting, a hand over her heart, tears threatening to fall. But then, she composed herself. Heaving a deep breath, she pointed her finger at Mukuro.

"You" she said. "Who are of you to be better than me, I, am Chloe, daughter of a greatly respected familia-" The floor beneath Chloe cracked as the woman fell, burst of magma exploded as lotus flowers bloomed around it. A high-pitched scream ripped through. "I hate the mafia" Mukuro said coldly.

Shock passed over Daemon's features before changing to a look of amazement. The pole of fire disappeared, Chloe fell on her knees, horror and fear stricken, tears streamed down her face but no injury was visible. She sobbed uncontrollably as she clawed her face, eyes wide and boring into the ground below.

"Nufufu, how interesting, you're a Mist-" Daemon suddenly choked as he felt the air in his lungs being sucked out. His skin burned and bones ached. He felt like spitting blood. He looked up to see Mukuro standing in front of him smirking, her mismatched eyes staring back at his, purple mist shrouding her. But something was different, her red eye that usually reads 'six' had changed to 'one'.

Mukuro opened her mouth to speak but Daemon could not catch it as hell flames burst around him.

He quickly summoned his scythe and cancelled the illusion on him. Clearing his throat as he stumbled in attempt to regain his balance. His eyes locked on smiling mismatched ones. Mukuro attempt to make another move but before she could. Daemon had whipped out his card on her, trapping her in the tiny space again.

He ignored the screams and stuffed the card in his pocket. He looked at the trembling woman at the floor blandly before turning to walk out the garden.

"Nufufufufu" He started to laugh as soon as he left. Wiping his bloodied neck with a napkin, he grinned half of his eyes with his palm, he shook with excitement and glee. He touched the card with his hand gently and walked towards the mansion, successfully scaring the civilians with his constant laughing.

It seems that he had finally found something entertaining and worthwhile. He was really glad that they were over.

"You mean how your beloved suffered or you were humiliated. After all, you're the Vongola's Mist guardian" Mukuro smirked, twirling her trident.

"Nufufu, I would like to see your little trick again" Daemon ignored the insult and made no room for the other to speak. He grabbed her arm and instantly shrouded them in thick purple Mist, dissipating into the mist.


"Enma, what do you think of this?" Cozart held up a bottle, squinting his eyes to read the faded words labelled on it.

"I-I don't know much about wine" Enma stuttered, her fingers fidgeted on the hem of her clothes, looking around her warily.

They were in the cellar of the Vongola mansion, rows and rows of wine lined up against each other neatly. Giotto had requested them to choose several types of wine for the party. Cozart, being the drinker as he is, happily volunteered for the job and had dragged Enma with him.

"Meliort, 1529" Cozart whistled, and popped the bottle opened. Enma gaped as the man drunk directly from the bottle.

He wiped his mouth and smiled. "This is good, it should be nice for the party" He handed the bottle towards Enma. "Want some?"

"I…don't take alcohol well" She muttered and shook her head. Cozart raised a brow and pulled the bottle back. He started to stroll among the aisles of the cellar and started to pull out some more bottles, not before tasting them. Enma followed closely behind, ready to give a helping hand to the man. She observed her surrounding, noting the aged labels of wine and the slight scent of wood and grape in the air.

After awhile of more tasting and collecting, Enma noticed that Cozart had his arms full of wine bottles as he walked into another new aisle.

"E-Erm…Cozart-san?" Enma tapped his shoulder, eyeing the bottles that were slipping dangerously. "I-I think that's enough"

Cozart swirled to face the girl, his body swayed, and one arm full of bottles while the other hand was holding on another one.

Her eyes widen at the content of it. It's nearly empty.

"Enmaaa!"Cozart slurred. "I didn't know you were here, did you come to find meee?" He cheerfully said and waved his hand that was holding the wine he was drinking. The bottle knocked him on the head. He frowned and glared at the bottle, shaking his head and blinking his eyes to clear his vision.

"It hit me" He wailed. "I didn't know bottles could retaliate?"

"They…don't" Enma stared, clearly baffled at the sudden change of the man's composure. He swayed dangerously towards Enma but caught his step.

"How about some wine, my fair lady?" He shoved the nearly empty bottle into Enma's hands. He smelled of alcohol, his crimson eyes are glazed as he staggered to get up straight. Enma's eyes widen in realization as the scene played before her. It was all too familiar.

He's drunk, very drunk.

Oh damn.

Enma didn't have much great experience with drunken people considering that she had worked at a bar. But there's a reason why she had always volunteered to do the dishes instead of serving people. Hayato and Kyoya was always the one to kick out people that were out of their conscious control.

She didn't know what to do or how to deal with them. Or rather the drunken man that is before her.

"Hey Enmaaa" Cozart waved his hand in front of her. "Ya listening to me?"

"Y-Yes" Enma snapped her attention back to the man before her.

"I mean, how could've you dream of something that could made you scream like hell's following you." He paused and frowned as if trying to remember something.

He snapped his fingers. "You dreamt of the midnight monster?"

Enma blinked "…The what?"

"The midnight monster" He clumsily waved a hand in the air as if to illustrate his point. "Lampo told me all about it back then, he said it haunts him every night, scared the crap out of him. But I didn't believe him."Cozart flashed a smile and swayed, catching his balance again.

"Uh…no" Enma imagined Lampo cowering in his bed-sheets while the monster loomed over him. But instead of an overly-sized lump shaped creature creeping out, she had imagined a tall lean man with a fedora on top.

She shuddered.

"Hey!" Cozart yelled. Enma felt a cold sweat ran down her cheek as Cozart looked at her closely. His face inches from hers, blurry crimson compass-like orbs bore into another crimson ones.

"You keep spacing out" He pouted childishly. "Am I that boring?" The Shimon boss tried to glare, but it failed as he couldn't get his eyes to focus. Shaking his head in dizziness, Cozart tried to move back but then he lost his balanced and tipped forward, crashing into the poor girl.

A loud thud could be heard within the cellar, followed by clicking of glasses. Enma, sitting on the floor, shocked beyond belief was holding onto an unconscious Cozart. Bottles of wine scattered around them, some slipping open, spilling its' reddish contents.

Trembling, Enma looked down to see Cozart sleeping on her, eyes closed shut and doesn't seem to wake anytime soon as she tried to shake him awake. Yesterday's event repeating itself. Mourning for her luck, she pondered whether to turn into a stone rigid statue or a worm to wiggle herself out of the situation. The latter is supremely tempting.

Arms snaked around her waist, she jumped at the movement as Cozart settled himself comfortably with her stomach as pillow, snoring away without a care. Pushing down the urge to facepalm, Enma silently cried.

Stone rigid statue it is.


So hey~ I'm back! But not for long though, my life had take turn into a very stressful hectic one. Studies and ridiculously important exams bombing me at every corner, barely had time to type my fic. SIGHHH

But typing fics had really helped me to relax so that's a good thing I guess. Also, I recently reread my own fic and wasn't very satisfied at it. Minor changes will happen in the previous chapters as I wanted the development between the two group to not be so... awkward and weird.

Hoped that you enjoyed the chapter as I did (Pardon if there's any mistakes), more will come soon in the next one! Please look forward it~

Please PM me if you have any questions or suggestions or just maybe for a chat, I welcome it all.

Do please review also~ It's a great source of motivation for me to see that my fic is still alive despite the almost dead author…

See you in the next chapter~