A Royal Blackmail

Chapter Eleven

Byakuran shivered, his body numb with coldness. He'd been outside for three days now, too scared to try to find shelter, and immobile because he was just hurting so much. The physical and emotional toll of his exile from the Varia was great - and now, he was riding out the consequences. But it wouldn't be much longer at all that he had to bear with that pain.

A blanket fell over his shoulders, and he shuddered, hugging the material close and looking up. A man with long, wavy, teal hair and some makeup around his eyes was staring back at him, wearing a rather concealing black cloak that made distinguishing most of his features near impossible. "Hello," the male said after a while.

"Hi...," Byakuran quietly answered. The man sat down, and held out his hand.

"The name's Kikyo," he stated as the albino hesitantly shook his hand. "Forgive me, stranger. I'm not the brightest I could be right now - I was told I recently got thunked on the head and lost just about all of the memory I had. Sucks, really. I 'aven't the slightest as to who I was, nor much regarding my skills. Only thing I know is that once upon a time, I was treated really badly... but some man saved my life. I'm not lettin' that go t'waste, y'see, so even though I been livin' on the streets, I've been doin' my best to help people. People like you, sir. Tell me, why're you wearin' one of those Varia jackets if you're out here?"

Byakuran was a little distracted. Of course, he knew Kikyo - Kikyo had been his second in command, after all, but he was rather suprised to hear Kikyo talking in such a... different... manner. But then, it sank in that he'd been asked a question, and he shook his head. "Oh- uh, I got... I got kicked out," he said. "The Varia didn't want me anymore."

"Aw, man, that's the worst," Kikyo said in a suprisingly gentle voice. "What's your name?"

"Byakuran," the albino answered reflexively.

"Byakuran, eh?" Kikyo said, cocking his head. "... Oho, I know you from somewhere." Now, there was a knowing glint in the teal gaze. "Come with me."

Byakuran felt as though his former subordinate wasn't telling him everything he knew, but he let it pass, seeing as he had no where else to go - and he'd much rather get out of the cold. He allowed Kikyo to pull him to his feet, and he followed the younger male along through the trees, impressed by how the cloak the other was wearing managed to make him look not unlike a shadow, with his teal hair tucked carefully into the hood.

"So then, Kikyo," the winged male began carefully. "Are you hiding out somewhere?"

"Yeah, 've got a couple friends with me in this kind of run down cabin out in this here forest," Kikyo replied. "We keep it as clean as we can, but there are a few complications. Rats 'n' the like. A man of your caliber should be able to tolerate such miniscule details, though."

"... Kikyo, stop acting," Byakuran sighed eventually. "That accent isn't fooling anyone, let alone me. Who are you with?"

"Oho? So quick to perceive. I was merely making sure that you were the same Byakuran I knew," Kikyo chuckled. "After all... becoming a Varia, of all things."

The albino looked down. "Long story short, I broke out of Vindicere, and since I didn't know where you were, I had to come to a Vongola establishment. The Varia took me in and made me one of their own, but one of their members spoke out against me, and the boss chose to believe him instead of myself."

"My, my, that's the Vongola for you, no?" Kikyo sighed, a sympathetic look on his face. Frowning, the albino stopped in his tracks, and his former second in command looked back at him.

"No," the winged male said. "They're different in this world. The Varia have... the Varia know love. They're good people... in a really... twisted... way..."

"... Oho~ My Lord Byakuran," Kikyo purred, "you seem to have been brainwashed a bit. No worries, sir, once you're around your own people again, you'll-"

"No!" Byakuran said again, this time taking a step back. "Kikyo, you were one of my loyal followers. Please understand me, now, the plan to create a new world has long concluded. No longer are we going to be people out to destroy this world and mold it into something new. I'm not the same as any of my parallel selves. This is the only world in which I've... decided to also take the path of love."

"Love?" Kikyo said, grinning. "You once said love was an illusion created by our emotions mixed with the hormonal urge to reproduce. You would acknowledge it as nothing more. What changed, really?"

The albino took a deep breath. "Shouichi."

The teal-haired male paused, his eyes widening in suprise, before he broke into a venomous smile. "Oh, I see now~," he hummed. "I always thought there was something between you and him. If that is what you've decided to do, then, I trust you'll be fine without me?"

"What? But... Kikyo...," Byakuran murmured as the other male began to walk away. "Did you ever feel even a scrap of loyalty to me?"

The Cloud gave one last glance over his shoulder, as well as what seemed like a woeful smile, before he continued on his way. Somehow, it seemed as though this wouldn't be the last time the winged male saw him. Byakuran sighed, looking down. While he was frustrated to have lost a potential friend and home, he was glad to have been true to himself - that is, the Byakuran of the only parallel world where he and the Varia possessed love.

But oh, how he missed them.

Byakuran thought back to his mischief with Bel and Fran, how he'd carried on a lovely, fun conversation with them... how he'd borrowed their room for a while... And that thought led to Lussuria, who was always taking care of him and seeing that he was comfortable. He really did miss that. Then, Xanxus himself, who took the emotional and mental energy to forgive him and believe he'd changed. Squalo, too... it was a cry in shame that he had had that moment of weakness, that moment of utter pathetic fear, in which he almost gave in to his selves in other worlds.

The albino slumped against a tree, his eyebrows creased in frustration.

There really was no place like home.

Fran slumped down into the couch, a slight trace of indignance buried in his usual deadpan. "I cannot believe you," he said to Belphegor, although his staring into space kind of confused the prince.

"... I'm sorry. Didn't think Froggy would be ashamed of the prince after so long," the blond eventually snapped, and Fran looked up at the other, suprised by the bitterness in his tone.

"No, senpai, not that. You broke the window of the car, that's all. Totally unnecessary," he said. "Besides, for all you know, I could have publicly rejected you right there."

"For all I know, huh?" Bel said in a sour tone, before storming away. Fran facepalmed.

"Dang, Fran. That was not cool," he scolded himself.

"VOOOOIIII!"

The halls rang with the loud scream, and Fran swore under his breath, slapping his hands over his ears. "Jeez, if they fight again, I'm going to go Belphegor on them all and set melted ice cream buckets on top of the doors," he mumbled.

In fact, this was not the case.

In the kitchen, with Lussuria, Leviathan, and Mammon as witnesses, Xanxus had gotten down on one knee before his shark. Squalo had voi'd as his natural response (wondering what the hell the boss was up to now), but when the ravenette pulled a ring out of his breast pocket, he had been shocked into silence.

"Superbi Squalo."

The shark's heart began to hammer in his chest as the boss held the ring towards him, showing that it was engraved with the words 'shark trash' in the silver metal, with a heart on either side of the somehow affectionate nickname.

"Go shopping, because you and I are getting married, and I will not be the one in the dress," the boss said in a flat voice.

Squalo blinked in surprise, before coming down to the other's level, and leaning in, giving Xanxus a hearty kiss on the lips. He wrapped his arms around the boss's shoulders, holding him close. Lussuria turned away from the two as he gave a gentle smile, glad that his boss and the Rain guardian were at last going to be properly united. Levi left the kitchen, a mixture of sadness, anger, and frustration swirling in his mind. Mammon smirked as the thought of Squalo in a wedding gown crossed his mind.

Belphegor entered the room, then, however, and upon seeing Xanxus and Squalo, he gasped, "Ewww, old guy love!" before running away.

Sure as hell Xanxus and Squalo weren't going to be able to get away with an elope.

-End Chapter

:P 'Tis finally finished! Happy Halloween (tomorrow) for everyone who celebrates it!

Review if you want to read that wedding!