"So," Asuka leaned her cheek on her palm. "You're next."
She was currently in a cafe with the Kokuyo gang. Ken was stuffing his face with sweets and Chikusa scolded him in distaste. Chrome stared shyly at her slice of cake.
"...Will Mukuro help you?"
"...I don't know…"
"Do you think that you can beat them?"
She received no response. A sigh left her mouth as the girl continued to squirm uncomfortably. Was she afraid of her? Or did she just not like these kind of things?
"Am I scary?"
Chrome flinched, surprised by the sudden question. "N-no! I...I'm just not… used to this."
"...I see." She stood, pulling out a few bills and placing it on the table. "I'll be going now. Make sure you get there on time tonight."
Then again, she wasn't used to being friendly with former enemies, either. Even if she was just another person who was dragged into this mess.
"Dino-san." Asuka eyed the mess he made. "You're making a mess again."
The blond blushed deeply, spluttering and spitting out his food, creating even more of a mess. Next to him, Romario coughed into his hand to hide a laugh. She took out a box of tissue and handed it to him, though he ended up dropping it and knocking over his cup of tea.
"..." She could only watch in bewilderment as he continued to create a mess despite a subordinate being with them. Perhaps he was just innately clumsy like Tsuna. Unable to watch any further, she took his hand, which made him heat up even further, and led him away from the mess. "Stand here and don't move please." She then proceeded to clean up the food and spilled tea for him.
"As expected of Onee-sama!" Gokudera and Yamamoto were also with them. Romario had insisted they meet at the hospital to check and re-bandage their wounds, though Ryohei had refused because he 'extremely needed to go on a run'. "Bronco! Be grateful that Onee-sama graciously helped you clean up!"
Somehow, her mother had caught wind of them getting injured, so she made a full-course meal for her to bring to them. When she had arrived, Gokudera was yelling at Yamamoto while Romario was fixing their bandages. Dino had opened the door for her, but he accidentally stepped on a wire which led to him slipping forward and crashing into her. Luckily, the food was left unscathed. Unluckily for them, they now had a matching bandage on their nose.
"Are you gonna eat that?"
"Wha- Hey!" He blocked Yamamoto's incoming chopsticks with his own. "That's mine! Eat your own food!"
"But I already finished it?"
"Well then that's your problem!"
Asuka took out another container from her bag and gave it to the bickering pair. "Don't worry, there's more than enough to go around."
"Oh! Onee-sama is too generous!"
"Thanks!"
From the corner of her vision, she could see Dino inch out of the door. Romario was still attending to the two, so he didn't follow. But the way he was acting so sneaky made it too suspicious for her to ignore. Excusing herself to go use the bathroom, she quietly walked out to follow Dino. When he walked into an elevator, she decided to abandon her stalking. It'd be too troublesome to try and figure out which floor he was going to. So she waltzed right in with him, causing him to squeal in shock.
"A-Asuka?! What are you doing here?!"
"You were acting suspicious, so I decided to follow you."
"Um.." He looked around nervously. "I-I was just going to the restroom!"
"...The men's bathroom is right next to our room."
"I-is it? H-haha! I didn't realize! I… I was going to get a soda from the vending machine!"
"They don't sell sodas here anymore. Kyoya banned it."
"O-oh…" Sweat started to slide down his face." "U-uh… I was… Just going to get a quick breather!"
"Dino-san." She stared at him pointedly. "We're going to the fourth floor. Or did you accidentally press that instead of the ground floor?"
At this point, Dino was sweating bullets and close to tears. She had unintentionally put him on the spot and he was now debating the consequences of telling her the truth. In the end, he broke down under her scrutinizing stare.
"I'm sorry for lying! It was a secret so I couldn't tell you but we're keeping Squalo in this hospital after we saved him the other day and I was just going to check up on him-"
She stared at him, dumbfounded as she processed his words. "Wait, what? Squalo? He's alive?"
Dino flinched and nodded. "We had divers down there to take care of the shark in case Yamamoto was in trouble, but in the end, we ended up with Squalo instead. He's been here ever since."
"...Oh." The elevator doors slid opened, and they exited, awkwardly standing there for a few seconds. "...So, where's his room?"
"Y-you're going with me?"
She shrugged. "I might as well, since I'm already here."
Dino led her to the third room down, knocking before entering. In the white room, machines and wires surrounded the bed where Squalo laid. He was nearly fully wrapped in bandages, and glared at her when he saw her.
"Why the hell is she here?"
"Nice to see you, too, Squalo." Dino went to check his vitals while she stood awkwardly by the side. "Everything seems fine. You'll be good to go in a week or two."
"Tch. I never asked for your help."
He smiled slightly. "It's been only a day and you're already back to being Squalo."
The silver haired man growled. "Voi. The hell are you saying?"
"Nothing, nothing. Asuka, why don't you take a seat? I'll go get a nurse to give him an overall checkup, so I'll be right back." She slowly walked towards the chair next to the bed, shifting uncomfortably as Dino left them to themselves.
"...You're that brat's sister." She nodded tentatively. "You're Wind, right? You'll be fighting Raphael." Again, she nodded. "...What are you, mute?"
"...Why do you follow that man?" She couldn't help but ask that question.
He said nothing for a few moments, as if wondering that himself, too. "...I was drawn in by his fire. He had anger far greater than any other that I've ever met. I wanted to see how far he could go." She could sense a but. He never addressed it.
"Do you ever regret it?"
"Hell no. He's fucking annoying as hell, but I swore that I'd go through with it."
"But he… He's so… Crazed."
He scoffed, rolling his eyes. "This is the mafia, kid. You gotta realize one way or another. We all have issues. Doesn't matter if it's mental, or some kind of trauma. Actually- why the hell am I talking about this?"
"...Well then, moving on." She supposed his answer was sufficient for now. "What kind of boss is he?"
"The shittiest of shit. Needs a fucking anger management class, that's for sure. He can go die in a hole for all I care. Fucking bitch does nothing but lounge around in that chair of his and throw expensive wine everywhere. If he were anyone else, he'd be fucking sashimi by now-" His heart rate was spiking just from talking about Xanxus. A bit worrying, she thought. "-Complains about his fucking steak being too saucy and then the fucking sauce for being too salty. Acts like he owns the fucking world-" Maybe he was the reason why his hair was already white.
Dino and the nurse came back to see a Squalo letting off some steam and an Asuka who was occasionally checking the heart rate monitor.
"Asuka! Asuka!"
A small ball of yellow fluff landed on her head lightly pecking her and chirping out her name. She grumbled quietly, and buried her head deeper into her arms. The tiny bird pecked her a few more times, but she was too tired to respond.
A few moments later, the door opened, revealing a disgruntled Hibari. It was past school hours and he was making his last rounds around the school. His eyes wandered at the figure hunched over a desk with his bird on their head. He glanced at the clock. 6:04. A part of him itched to take out his tonfa and hit her for staying so late. Asuka or not, it was against the school regulations.
Images of the bruises and bandages he had seen on her came to mind, and he told himself that he could make an exception for once. He walked up to her desk and plopped down on a nearby seat. Her breathing was slow and calm; no doubt, she wouldn't wake up for a while. He took a long sweep across the room as he leaned back into the chair.
The student council room was not messy, but not necessarily tidy either. Boxes of papers were placed in a corner next to filing cabinets and drawers. There was an occasional pen or scrap paper on the floor. A few chairs were misplaced around the room. The officers' desks were somewhat clean, but Asuka laid on top of strewn papers and open books. A pen was left uncapped and sticky notes were littered on the desk. 'An organized mess', she once told him. 'A pigsty', he replied.
Thirty minutes later, the sun had set halfway. Orange and red illuminated the sky, sending beams of light through the open windows. The room glowed softly with light. Hibari scoffed at the scene. It was exactly like one of those romance novels she talked about whenever she was bored. It was disgustingly sweet and cheesy.
A few minutes passed and the curtains blew back with a breeze. Hibari stood abruptly, brandishing his weapons at the figure on the windowsill. But the figure just smiled and bowed, not making any move.
"Hello, Kyoya."
He glared. "You."
"Me."
"Why are you here?"
The baby looked towards the sleeping girl with an amused smile. "I was looking for Asuka. She didn't show up like usual so I wondered if something happened. But it seems that she is just fatigued." He looked back at Hibari. "In any case, I will be taking my leave. Good luck on your battle."
Before he could swing at him, the baby jumped out of the window, disappearing with the wind. With an annoyed huff, he slammed (quietly closed -she was still asleep) the window shut and walked back to his seat.
It was almost 7 now. The sun had set and the sky was a deep indigo. Asuka still slept deeply, her soft breathing filling the silent room. Hibird had buried itself in her hair near the crook of her neck, snuggling to her warmth. Hibari was debating whether to wake her up or to take a nap himself. Before he could decide, the door slid open. He looked up, but there was no one. He looked down, and saw Reborn standing at the doorway.
"Ciaossu."
"Baby." He walked towards the two and hopped onto a desk, looking over at Asuka before back at Hibari.
"Are you coming tonight?"
He yawned. "Not interested."
"Are you sure? It'll be an interesting one." Hibari didn't reply, instead closing his eyes and leaning back. "...Then wake her up at 8. There'll be someone meeting her outside." He jumped off and left the two to themselves.
It was 7:18. Asuka began to stir from her sleep, and slowly lifted her head from her arms. A sleepy yawn left her mouth as she stretched her arms and back, letting out of a breath of satisfaction when she heard the popping of her stiff joints. Her hands came up to rub her eyes before looking around the room and spotting the prefect.
"...Oh, good morning, Kyoya."
"It's evening."
"Is it now?... I was just going to take a quick nap, but I guess not." She stood up from her desk, giving Hibird a gentle pet and putting on her coat. Her eyes glanced at the pile of work on her desk, sighing and closing the books in resignation. She glanced at the clock, a look of contemplation crossing her face.
"Do you think we can get some food before the next match?"
"Hn."
"Let's just go get some takeout then."
"Here you go." Asuka dropped a plastic bag into Chrome's hand.
"T-this is?"
"Takeout. I doubt they bought you dinner, and you probably didn't eat that cake in the morning, so here."
She had found the three loitering in front of the school after she parted ways with Kyoya. Reborn had told her the day before to meet with them beforehand. Why, she had no idea, though it was probably so that she made sure they didn't try anything, or to keep the others from getting too riled up when they found out. Ken was already sniffing through the bag, trying to find something he liked.
"Are you ready?"
"I-I think so…"
"...That's fine then."
She looked towards the gym. Tsuna and the others weren't there yet, only the Varia. She could go early, but Reborn had also told her to be 'fashionably late, but on time, to add a dramatic flare'. Honestly, she swore that people in the mafia always had a thing for theatrics and such. Then again, she hadn't eaten yet, since she had to go rush to get the food and come back. So she took a box and a pair of chopsticks from the bag and sat down on a bench to eat. Ken was already wolfing down his share while Chikusa was calmly eating. Chrome just stood there with her bag, but she sat as well when Asuka kept staring at her.
A while later, they were all finished with their food (Chrome had only eaten half, much to her annoyance -the girl was stick thin, she needed to eat more). She had seen an unconscious Tsuna be carried into the gym by Gokudera and the others a few minutes ago. Her phone then vibrated. Flipping it open, she read the message Reborn had sent her.
After tossing the leftover trash, she motioned for the other three to follow her to the gym. According to Reborn, it would be a 'grand' entrance. Ken and Chikusa would enter first, and then Tsuna and the others would overreact and freak out. Then, Chrome would make her entrance, introducing herself in Italian. And again, according to Reborn, Tsuna would be 'extremely cautious and no-good in this situation' and his guardians would also be mistrustful. But also knowing Tsuna, he'd somehow defend her despite himself. So in order to thank him, Chrome would give him a kiss on the cheek, much to Asuka's chagrin. She'd rather not have anyone kiss her brother, but Reborn had been adamant in his plan. And of course, the kiss would cause Gokudera to blow up, so that was when she would enter to calm everything down.
'A mafia style entrance,' he had called it. 'An unorthodox, heart attack inducing drama,' she replied.
Nonetheless, the plan was to be followed, and she sent the two off into the gym. As expected, cries of indignation were heard, and when she heard Tsuna shout 'Rokudo Mukuro!', she sent Chrome in. Again, more shouts and yells emitted from the gym. Soon after, she heard heard Tsuna's high pitched scream and more shouting. Deciding it was time to go in, Asuka stepped into the gym.
"Kyoya's going to bite you to death for being so loud at night."
"N-Nee-chan!"
She placed her hands on Chrome's shoulder, making the girl flinch. "You can trust her. She's...Not Mukuro."
Tsuna still looked hesitant, and Gokudera was still glaring at the two others.
"Boss, is it that I'm not worthy of the position as Guardian of the Mist?" Asuka couldn't help but feel slightly offended that she was speaking confidently with Tsuna. "I wish to battle as the Guardian of the Mist, but if Boss doesn't allow it no matter what, then I'll abide by his decision..." Actually, she was very, very, offended.
"E-Eh!? You're asking me to decide just like that?! Such...Such an important thing!"
Reborn hopped onto Yamamoto's shoulder. "But, besides Chrome, there are no others who can battle as the Guardian of the Mist."
Tsuna's conflicted look soon subsided. "Then...We'll leave it to you."
"Is that really okay, Tenth?!"
"I don't really know how to put it, but, it seems like it wouldn't work...If it wasn't for her."
Chrome relaxed and let out a relieved sigh. "Well," the girl looked back at Asuka. "Good luck. And don't get too injured. Mukuro will probably haunt me if you do." She nodded, and went forward.
Asuka watched as she stood tall and confident. It was a positive contrast to the girl she was trusted with. But she wondered just how long she could keep that demeanor up. Mukuro had told her about her affinity with the Mist, but her weak constitution and health kept her from fully unlocking and utilizing her potential.
"This time, the battlefield will be the entirety of the gymnasium. The objects in the building can be used in any way you desire. Furthermore, the field has not been outfitted with any special installations. There is no need for perplexity."
"Eh? Nothing?" The rest of them looked confused.
"The specialty of the Mist means they do not need anything extra. Creating something from nothing, and nothing from something; thus bewildering the enemy. Rendering the true form of the family intangible with visions of deceit. That is the role of the Guardian of the Mist."
And it also makes them a pain to deal with, she thought. She never did like magicians or wizards in stories and games. But if they were an ally. Well, that was a different story.
"Then the battle of the Mist: Mammon vs. Chrome Dokuro. Begin!"
Chrome immediately began, striking her trident onto the floor, which in turn seemingly shattered into pieces. Gravity seemed to stop working, and her body was lifted above the illusion. She watched as the baby, Mammon, seemed to sprout tentacles from their face. She cringed at the disgusting display, and grimaced even further as they wrapped around Chrome's body. Could they be any more...distasteful?
The floor suddenly returned to its original state, and Chrome looked as if she was being strangled. But 'Chrome' then turned into a crate of basketballs, another Chrome appearing behind Mammon.
"W-Wha?!" Gokudera rubbed his eyes, unable to comprehend the illusions.
"How... How did that happen?!"
"It's an illusion."
"Illusion!?"
Reborn nodded. "Both creating illusions without yielding a step, deceiving each other without stopping for a breath. This kind of impressive battle is something you won't get to see very often."
"...When you say illusions...It's true that before…!" Tsuna's face morphed into one of shock. "Mukuro's state of hell!"
"Tenth! She's Mukuro after all!"
Ever since the beginning of the battle, Asuka had begun to see the similarities between Chrome and Mukuro, but they were far too different still. Chrome had confidence, though it was small. But Mukuro exerted arrogance. He was the epitome of hubris. She was far too shy to even have one tenth of the amount of confidence Mukuro had. Though, it could be changed in the future.
Her eyes lit up in curiosity as a chain dropped from beneath Mammon's cloak. The frog on their head seemed to split, and a bright salamander like creature emerged from the shell. A luminous glow radiated from Reborn and the other baby (Colonello, was it?), matching Mammon's.
"As I thought, his true identity is the Arcobaleno, Viper."
Arcobaleno. She had been curious. Ever since back when Mukuro mentioned that name. What was it? Fon had also mentioned it once, but he was vague and only said he and Reborn were two of the Arcobaleno. She had looked it up once, and it meant rainbow, but it held no clue to what she was trying to figure it. And what Mammon mentioned just then. A curse? What curse? Did it have something to do with those glowing pacifiers? And how they seemed to act like mature adults? How the others never questioned it, she didn't know. Babies with dangerous weapons and contacts. Babies who had strange animals. Babies who spoke fluently and walked with more grace than her brother. It didn't make sense. She wanted to know.
Now was not the time to ponder the wonders of the universe.
Once again, Chrome created an illusion, this time, with fiery pillars that burst through the floor. One appeared near her, and she flinched as she felt the heat radiating off of it, but she started shivering when they suddenly froze up into ice. Her breath condensed into cold puffs as she buttoned up her coat. If she had known they'd use ice, she would have changed out of her school uniform.
She froze as she saw ice encasing Chrome's legs. She was thrown back by Mammon, who then proceeded to shatter her trident. She silently cursed, remembering what Mukuro had told her in regards to Chrome's illusions. He was the one helping her stabilize them, as well as the organs he created for her. The trident acted as an anchor to keep the illusions up, and now that it was destroyed, surely, the illusions would fall. Her hand immediately reached for her phone the moment Chrome coughed up blood. She quickly dialed up Kusakabe and told him to have a ride for the hospital ready in five minutes. It wouldn't do if she let her die.
Her grip on her phone tightened as she saw her abdomen. It looked empty. It was empty. She felt sick, but took a deep breath to keep her dinner down. A sudden feeling of vertigo rushed over her, causing her to lean on her cane, and her body suddenly hurt. For some reason, it felt as if her insides were burning, and the others only took notice when she started to cough as well. There was no blood like there was for Chrome, but it stung.
"Nee-chan!?" She could feel Tsuna's shaking hands on her arms, when suddenly, mist started to appear around Chrome's body. A familiar feeling tugged at her mind. If it didn't hurt so much, she would have scoffed. To appear when his vessel was on the brink of death. It was almost endearing.
Beside her, Tsuna was holding his head. "...I-it's him...He's coming...Rokudo Mukuro is coming!" As he said those words, an annoyingly familiar laugh echoed through the building.
"Kufufu…" From within the mist, she could see his silhouette. "You're showing off quite a bit, aren't you?" The mist dispersed, and Mukuro was there, crouching on the floor with trident in hand.
"M-Mukuro...He's alive…"
He stood. "It's been a while. I've come back… From the other cycle." He then looked back at them, meeting eyes with her and giving her a small smirk.
When he turned back around, her body stopped hurting and stinging. Her head still throbbed with mild pain, but otherwise, she felt better.
"N-nee-chan? Are you… okay?" She turned to look at Tsuna, who was staring at her with worry.
"Y-yea, just… A bit tired for some reason."
Reborn frowned. "What happened?"
"My body started to hurt, like it was burning." She coughed. "But it stopped just now."
"I see." He tipped his fedora and looked back at Mukuro. "It was probably because Mammon broke the trident. That weapon was the base for his illusions, so when it was destroyed, all his illusions most likely went haywire. And since it was his illusions that healed your injuries from before, they presumably fell as well, causing your wounds to reappear. He probably recasted them just then, so that explains why you feel better."
"W-wait-" Tsuna cut in. "So it was Mukuro? He...healed Nee-chan?" He received a bonk on the head.
"Of course it was. Did you really think it was an actual miracle?"
Asuka straightened herself back up, wincing at the mild headache she was having. She had missed the conversation between Mukuro and Mammon, but she doubted it was anything too important.
"What a troublesome guy. All right, let's clear things up. You're merely an illusion created by the girl, right?" A sudden blizzard appeared, and she winced at the frigid cold against her bare legs. Shielding her face, she could just barely make out the tiny figure of Mammon flying towards a frozen Mukuro, when a pillar of flames abruptly erupted, directed encasing the baby. As the pillar subsided, she saw Mammon tangled in lotus flowers and vines while the ice around Mukuro disappeared.
"Even that Viper is completely overwhelmed…"
Reborn smirked. "That is Tsuna's Mist, Rokudo Mukuro."
"Then he's the real thing after all...But if that's the case, what happened to the girl!?"
"You cannot consider Chrome and Mukuro as separate beings. Because there is Chrome, Mukuro can exist. Because there is Mukuro, Chrome can exist."
But they weren't the same either. They were different. She watched as Mukuro tore the illusions apart with his trident, unbothered by them at all. Another feeling of vertigo rushed over her as the whole building was torn apart by a strange illusion. Her head throbbed at the mental assault on her mind. It didn't make it any better than Mukuro started to destroy the place with pillars of flames and lava.
"My head!"
Her attention drifted to Tsuna, who was kneeling and clutching his head in pain. She rushed over to him, despite her own headache. His eyes shot open and stared at the ground, as if in a trance.
"Tsuna? What's wrong?"
"M...Mukuro…"
Just then, as Mukuro continued deflecting an army of Mammon's with his trident, he was enveloped by a black cloak, the strange salamander creature expanding and wrapping around him. Spikes formed on the inside of the creature, and it enclosed around the cloak, seemingly impaling Mukuro from the outside. But the cloak burst, revealing multiple lotus plants and Mukuro, who was smirking.
"Descend into hell. Then, return again." In his hand, he held the two rings. He turned to the two judges. "I just have to rejoin these two rings, correct?"
"Not so fast!" Mammon's voice rang out, and black mist accumulated, forming his body. "I have yet to show you the full extent of my power!"
"You know this very well, don't you?" Mukuro turned to look at him. "What it means, when your illusionary powers are countered by another's." The salamander suddenly wrapped around his neck. "It means that you've completely lost control of your own perceptions." It started to strangle him. "How does it feel, Arcobaleno?" The room seemed to shatter once more and a crazed smile appeared on his face. "This is my world!"
Mammon's small body started to bloat. Asuka looked away in disgust, refusing to watch anymore. She could hear their pleads and shouts, and finally, a small explosion. The gym returned to normal, and she turned back to see Mukuro present the ring in its entirety.
"...The Ring of the Mist now belongs to Chrome Dokuro. With that, the winner of this battle is Chrome Dokuro."
She didn't bother to listen in on what he was saying to Xanxus. She just felt completely done with his shenanigans. As he walked towards them, she sent him a disapproving look, in which he returned with a smirk.
"You bastard! How dare you show your face here?!" Gokudera had already pulled out his dynamite while Tsuna looked sincerely scared.
"It's good to be vigilant. But I have no intentions of colluding with the mafia. The only reason I have of becoming your guardian is to set myself in a better position to possess Sawada Tsunayoshi." He promptly ignored the glare she sent him.
"A-ah… In any case, thank you…" Mukuro then looked at her expectantly.
"I'm bringing her to the hospital right after. You don't have to worry."
He nodded in response. "Well… A little… Tired now…" He suddenly fell over, but she caught him before he reached the ground. Well, she caught her. When she looked closer, he had turned into Chrome again. From the corner of her vision, she saw Ken and Chikusa leaving the gym. How troublesome. She checked her pulse and abdomen. The girl seemed to be fine, only a bit tired, though she'd need a professional to make sure.
"You too, Asuka." She turned around to see Reborn stare at her. "Don't sympathise with him. Even if he helped you." She looked away to lift Chrome up. But she paused for a moment to respond.
"...Not him. Just her."
"Tomorrow night's battle will be the battle between the Guardians of the Wind."
But then, one day, one day...
crack pairing asuka & squalo
i have plans to make asuka domesticate the varia and make them a perfect little dysfunctional family. 8/8
