Hello! Another chapter here! We don't want to end with I-Pin crying, right? And also, there are a lot of unanswered questions which I guess left some of you hanging so here you go! :)
DISCLAIMER: All characters are owned by Amano Akira-sensei.
I-Pin followed Kusakabe back to the school building. She was now wiping her eyes with the handkerchief he offered. She didn't expect to break down in that way, but at least she was able to release all her pent-up emotions. They went up the stairs until they reached the fourth floor. As they walked down in one of the corridors, she heard loud banging sounds in one of the classrooms.
"Nevermind that," Kusakabe told her. He led her to the room opposite to the noisy one and opened the door for her. It was a familiar sight as she entered. There was a sofa set in the middle, with a low table in the center of it. A desk with an office chair were situated near the windows. A few bookshelves decorated the left wall while cabinets were stacked on the right.
"This is..."
"...the new headquarters of the Disciplinary Committee. We still used the original floor plan, that's why you are able to recognize it. And although, we all have graduated from middle school, Kyo-san loves the school so much that he still opted to make this as our headquarters. Believe me, it was not easy, with all the complaints from the students and teachers. But in the end, the administration accepted our offer to take over this corridor so we won't disturb everyone."
And by "disturb", I-Pin bet, it meant "randomly punishing random students." The second-in-command of the group said it with teary eyes that she did not know whether to praise the committee for their efforts or to pity the school because they are still subjected to Hibari's sense of discipline. But that aside, she did not know that they still have a headquarters here. At around this time, she was eight years old and was now attending school with Lambo. She almost never went to Namimori Middle School because Tsuna and the others were not here anymore. She also enrolled in Haru's middle school, Midori, after her elementary years. So in a way, she never had any news from Namimori Middle School at all.
"Also, this is the room where you slept for two days." Kusakabe informed her.
Two words caught her attention. Two days? That much time passed and she was asleep? Seeing disbelief in her eyes, Kusakabe motioned her to sit down on the sofa (which, she realized, what she has been sleeping on), and he started to answer her unspoken question.
"Yes, it has been two days since the party and you were asleep the whole time. And from the looks of it, two days is very critical for someone who time-traveled to the past" he started.
It hit her that the timeline is now really messed up. She did not recall anything about an explosion during the first party, and from that, she knew pretty well that everything now was not as it seems. There were still a lot of things that she wanted to know so she asked further.
"What exactly happened after the Pinzu Time Bomb exploded?" she inquired.
"After the explosion, everyone in the party panicked. Everybody was escorted as orderly as the guards can out of the location. During the chaos, I looked for Kyo-san because I have not heard from him after the dance number. I assumed he was at the headquarters so I went here. When I entered the room, he was already administering first aid to you. I asked him what happened and he told me to keep quiet and just help him treat your wounds.
You were pretty beat up when I first saw you. You're clothes were very ragged and dirty and you were shivering despite the fact that Kyo-san already put his coat around you. I asked him to take you to the hospital but he said no. You're the one who made the explosion so keeping you out of the Vongola's sight for the moment was important. In addition to that, you wouldn't want to let the rest of the Family know that you're from the future, right? It'll disrupt the flow of time even further. They might have the technology to help you go back in time but Kyo-san still insisted that you stay here."
I-Pin could not believe that the first person who responded to her was the same person which managed to beat the living daylight out of her.
"Also," Kusakabe with a tint of red on his cheeks, "please forgive us!" He was now bowing very low to I-Pin. "We had no choice! We have to take off your clothing because it was making your breathing difficult. We did not see anything bare! I swear we were innocent!" he continued saying while still bowing down.
Now that he mentioned it, I-Pin was now wearing an over-sized white shirt and a pair of jogging pants. She wondered where the gown that Haru made had gone to. She also checked to see if there are bandages beneath her clothes and indeed there were. She shied at the thought but now was not the time to think about that. That's less of a concern. The next thing came into her mind was Tsuna and others.
"Kusakabe-san, how are Tsuna-san and the others? What happened to them?"
"The Vongola Family are fine. There were no casualties on their side. As for their reaction to the explosion, at first, they were very agitated and vowed to eliminate whoever did that. But all investigations stopped when Kyo-san stepped up and said he caused it because he 'was so mad that he was forced to crowd with such weak herbivores.' After that, everything went on as usual."
Perhaps by taking the blame, he wanted to eliminate any possibilities or leads that would lead to me being the caused. But why?
"Did something happen to Hibari-san after he said he was at fault?" she wanted to know after seeing Reborn was not too kind to him in the Vongola Forest.
"Nothing bad happened to him except that he was not allowed to come near the Vongola Mansion during the Commemoration Party as long as he lives. It was not much of a punishment. Kyo-san even liked the idea," Kusakabe answered.
She sighed in relief. She would honestly feel guilty if ever something bad ever happened to him. Then, she thought of another problematic situation: if her future self is here and the eight year old I-Pin is in the future, then how did the Family react to the missing-in-action I-Pin? She asked Kusakabe whether the Family noticed that she was gone.
"That...uhm...is the thing that we are still worried about. When they were checking whether all the members were unharmed or not, the Neo-Primo was looking for you. Luckily, Lambo-san said that you might be out at some place quiet because you were too afraid of crowds. Two days have passed and you are still not back which made the mansion restless. Sooner or later, they will send out a search party and I'm sure that it'll take them less than a day to find you as your 18-year-old self, given the Vongola's extensive network.
He's right. I have to tell them that I'm okay. At least the older me is. I don't know about the younger me but I'm also sure she will be fine, she consoled herself. But what can she do when her movement's a bit restricted? Plus, she's been knocked out the whole time while other people tried to solve her problems. She felt she really owed the Discipline Committee big time.
"Kusakabe-san, I feel really happy that you guys helped me in this trouble. I don't know if I could pay back the kindness you've given to me," she said, this time, with her bowing her head.
"Oh no, don't thank me. I never did much. I was just passing formation from the mansion to here. Kyo-san did most of the things when it comes to you. I was out most of the time and he never lets us in without permission, so basically, he was really the one taking care of you. He was here with you the whole time, never leaving your side until you wake up. I only updated him the Family's activities for two days" Kusakabe said to her.
He was here the whole time? Tending to my needs? Why? Was he guilty because he did this to me? Come to think of it, he looked very tired and his eyebags were more apparent. But I got mad at him for a very simple reason. What should I do? her thoughts are now filled with the moments she wished she saw when Hibari was by her side. When she felt her cheeks starting to turn red, she slapped herself, which surprised Kusakabe.
"I-Pin-san?" he asked to check whether she's okay.
"I'm fine, Kusakabe-san. I'm just preventing something bad to happen again," I-Pin assured him.
If the Cloud Guardian was really there in these past two days, then she cannot thank him enough. She would like to go to him now, thank him, say sorry for being a nuisance and then apologize for her rude behavior. If only she could...
"He is really kind, in his own way," she said to Kusakabe. "But I'm afraid that as of now, I cannot face him properly. It seems that the Pinzu Time Bomb Technique, which my master sealed away, reactivated. It only activates whenever I feel shy or embarrassed and unless I deal with this first, I can't do anything much. Maybe when left unsealed, even the slightest uneasiness will be enough to trigger it," she added with a tone of regret.
The room remained still and when she looked outside the window, the sun was starting to set.
"You know," Kusakabe finally spoke up, "there must have been something that happened which undid the seal of your technique. And it involved Kyo-san. But as much as I want to to ask you about it, I think you still need to rest. I'm sure you are quite tired, and this talk added more stress to you rather than easing some of your worries. For now, I-Pin-san, you should sleep. If something comes up and if it's urgent, we'll wake you up."
She is indeed exhausted by today's events and another round of sleep will do the trick. Perhaps it will help her clear her head and make her think of a plan to solve her problems, both the unsealed technique and the time travel mess. She thanked Kusakabe for the talk and that he was very helpful with everything. She then lied down on the couch, surprised how comfortable it was to sleep on, and pulled the crumpled blankets at her feet over to her body.
"Thank you, Kusakabe-san. And good night," she said as she let out a yawn.
"Good night, I-Pin-san. Sweet dreams."
She closed her eyes but before she relaxed, she felt there was something amiss. Her mind quickly told her what it was and she bolted up just in time before Kusakabe leaves the room.
"Kusakabe-san, though I was thankful for everything that you guys did to me, how can you be so sure that I am indeed I-Pin?" she suddenly said and Kusakabe made a surprised look. "How can you be so sure that I am indeed the 18-year-old I-Pin and not some kind of enemy against you? Also, how can I be sure that all of this was not just some plot against me?" She was out of the mafia world for quite some time, but she still has her assassin intuition in her.
Kusakabe gave a tired smile before answering. "I thought this will go smoothly without you asking that because I don't know how to answer. But because the I-Pin-san I know is very smart and very questioning, you asking that is enough to convince me that you are you. Also, you are very kind and thoughtful towards those you treasure so much, so hearing that you are worried about the Family, it only gave more proof that you are indeed I-Pin-san."
She was touched by Kusakabe's observation about her personality. This man believed she's the real deal so she should as well trust him. But what about Hibari? She then asked him about it.
"Well, Kyo-san's account was the one that made me doubt your identity at first. I don't really have the exact details but all I know is that, as Kyo-san was taking you here that night after the explosion, he said he met someone along the way. Apparently, that person was able to provide him information about you."
"And he believed it right away?"
"Well, Kyo-san is Kyo-san. He believes what he believes and does what he does."
"That's why, for you, he's worth following, right?" I-Pin asked him with a smile.
"Yes. Very worth it. And if he says he'll help you, I'll help you too. So please trust us and call to us whenever you need anything." he assured her.
It was convincing enough for I-Pin. She apologized to Kusakabe for the abrupt question and once again, snuggled at the comfort of the sofa. Kusakabe then turned off the lights and wished a good night sleep as he went out of the room.
When he was out of the headquarters, Kusakabe Tetsuya let out a sigh. It seems that he already reached his limit when it comes to handling very tense situations, especially in these past two days. He was running back and forth from the Vongola Mansion, to the Headquarters, keeping Hibari updated with everything. He felt that he will not see the end of this until I-Pin's matter is fully solved.
He let out a sigh and changed the stalk in his mouth with a new one. He then leaned at the nearest wall and crossed his arms. Waiting for a few minutes, he finally spoke.
"What do you think, Kyo-san? She's okay and not as upset as you think," he looked at the man opposite to him, also leaning to a wall.
"Hmph," Hibari answered.
A man of few words, as always. "But, she seems to be troubled because of the reactivation of her bomb technique. Unless that will be solved, she won't be able to do much because she will be literally a walking time-bomb all over again. What do you plan to do, Kyo-san?" he asked the man again.
Hibari straightened himself and started to walk away. But after a few steps, he turned back again and said, "Find him. Report to me after you found his locatation." He then went his way.
"Hai!" Kusakabe replied, knowing who's this person he was to find.
The right hand man again felt an enormous pressure has been added on his shoulders. It's true when he said to I-Pin that he trusts Hibari, both in action and in words, but this time, he was clearly lost why Hibari would go such lenghts for I-Pin. Keeping her where he can see her, staying by her side for two days, and scolding her for being reckless. Never has Kusakabe seen Hibari show concern for anyone except for Hibird. He opened the door to the room opposite to where he came from and saw that it was in a mess so unexplainable that only Hibari could do it. This just added to his list of why's because never has Hibari so been upset because someone was upset with him, up to the point where he'll destroy the equipments of his beloved Namimori. What did I-Pin do to have this kind of effect on his boss?
Something definitely happened that night! he thought. Kyo-san will kill me if I ask about it. But what I'm sure is that what happened was enough to unseal the Pinzu Time Bomb. It may be something embarrassing. And if I ask I-Pin-san she might blow up by just recalling it, and then Kyo-san would know I asked about it. It's checkmate either way! There's also something about that bastard? How can he believe that thing so easily? Kyo-san does not even obey the Bucking Horse let alone that person! Arrgh! On and on he went, but no answer was enough to satisfy him.
For the time being, he will occupy himself by looking for him. Clearly, things will be okay, right? But then again, with things the way they are now, with I-Pin still stuck here in the past, it will take a very long time before things to be really okay.
Author's notes:
- Him as in the person Kusakabe will look for: I wonder who could he be...hmmm...
- That person as in the one Hibari met after the explosion: I'll give you a hint: Nufufufufu. :)
