Okay. I still couldn't fit in Dino finding out about his sister, but I've began working on the next chapter and I'm glad to say it fits. I don't think I could make Bel and Caia go to school together since the next chapter would be going back to mainstream canon. I could add that as an omake though. And sorry If Belphegor crying was a bit too OOC. This chapter is just another filler chapter. No relation to the plot at all. And more OOC Belphegor to come.

Thanks to Theta-McBride, NightlyRowenTree, OceanRuins, RaNDoem, AnimeKpop7, BloodyCrownz13 (who reviewed twice) and Prince

Since we are at 90 reviews, think we should give the 100th reviewer an omake all to himself?

Enjoy.

Chapter 25

Lussuria and Mammon, gave the blonde their own scoldings, which I'm pretty sure Belphegor was tired of by now.

Surprisingly enough, Bel didn't complain or argue as the infant and the martial artist continuously pointed out his mistakes.

"It's not like I actually died." He told me as Squalo passed by us, glaring pointedly at Bel.

I glared at him too, "yeah. You didn't. But you almost did. Everyone cares about you here, Bel. Don't you dare think it's okay to die because it isn't. Think about the people who'd have to pick up your ass when you decide to fall."

"Ushishishi." He laughed, and this time, I gave him an awkward hug. It was hard, because in just a few months, he began towering over me. "You're heavy princess. But you're short. Really short. Shishishi."

"Bel, stop insulting my height, you bastard." I told him, and he laughed even harder.

That was harsh. I was short for my age, that, I had to admit. Being stuck in the Estraneo affected my whole growth thing, and I ended up a little bit too short. I haven't grown taller since I was six. But I was gaining a few centimeters now, though still, I was short.

It took a week before Squalo was finally convinced that Bel could go on another mission. The blonde was getting restless, flying window to window with his wires and knives.

By the time Squalo finally came to the decision that sending him out of the base to perform genocide was better than massacre happen in our place, the kid had gone and destroyed a lot of windows, statues and doors.

Squalo sent him somewhere in America, where he'd probably be around for a week or so.

Bel left that morning. Spring was back in Italy, vaguely reminding me that it had been spring too when I was sold to the Estraneo. Two years had passed, and things had really changed.

I looked after Bel, until he was out of the building.

"Oi. Psycho, don't die."

Bel laughed. He fixed the tiara I had always worn on my head since he gave it to me. It just felt special. It was odd and girly but I liked the accessory and simply felt me with it on my head.

It was stupid to give objects meaning, but I found out that I couldn't really help myself.

"Ushishishi. You can count on that, princess."

I knew I could.

########################

Without Bel around, I promised Lussuria that I'd spend the rest of the day with him, to bake cookies and cakes, and play dress up.

I owe him a lot. On some missions, I get injured almost exponentially. Lussuria's been using sun flames to heal me, although he doesn't exactly know about the whole flame thing.

So I told him he could ask me whatever favor he wanted me to do. "Oh, a girl's day out would be perfectly fine for Luss-nee!"

I found myself unable to deny him. I didn't enjoy day outs, so I was perfectly sure I wouldn't enjoy those with Lussuria either. But I kept that thought to myself. I had learned that even though Lussuria had the body of a man, his heart was that of a girl's. I learned to accept that over time.

I mean, his kindness was pure, at least for an assassin's standards. He wasn't naive, no. He was far from that. He just knew how to tell enemy from ally, and was brave enough to trust the people on his side.

And he worked hard. And he was smiling most of the time.

Lussuria was a good man.

That didn't mean we had to live as good people though.

The first thing Luss asked me to do was to help him bake cookies. I have never made cookies before. I liked eating them, yeah, but I never really went through the trouble of making them myself.

So when Luss told me we'd make a batch for the Varia, I had more or less stared at him weird.

He instructed me to crack the egg in half. I did. By smashing it into the bowl. A dozen eggs have been sacrificed in battle by the time Luss pointed out that I've been doing it wrong.

"How was I supposed to know I had to crack it gently? If you're going to crack something, crack it hard and Varia quality, right?" I complained

"Honey, we're referring to eggs, not trashes of the underworld." He explained, surprisingly calm

"I've been throwing eggs all my life." I told him. "Not necessarily eggs, but still, I've been throwing a lot of things here and there."

"And what would the eggs be thrown for?"

"To destroy the filth of the underworld!"

Lussuria was only honestly speechless.

Asking me to help with the other stuff didn't do him well either. When he asked me to batter them up, I did as I was told, mysteriously solidifying the mixture in the process.

The second time, they ended up decorating the room like paint, splattered artistically on the walls. He tried to clean them up, but it was like glue. Unremovable. When his hand touched them, they stuck too. Took us an honest hour to pull him out of it.

Luss had then given up on asking me to mix things, and he told me to just place it in the oven. He watched me do everything, and made sure everything was done right. I did everything right.

Supervision didn't help. The oven burned three seconds after I left it there.

The cookies, however, were able to get out unharmed.

But I tripped, so yeah, shit landed on the floor.

Luss sighed and patted me on the head, and told me to be a dear and just watch him work. I was more than happy to.

I didn't know how to bake. We left it at that.

He still had the guts to tell me to clean next.

We wiped the floor. He told me to use the clean rag on the right side of the bucket. Directionally-challenged, I I took the one on the left.

The floor ended up covered in fertilizer and mud.

"I told you to get the one on the right."

"I did Luss. But I figured that the bucket was facing me, so wouldn't his right side be my left?" I reasoned.

"Let's give up on cleaning, okay?"

I nodded. "Hell yeah. I'm tired after cleaning."

Lussuria looked at me pointedly. "No, dear. You got tired after making a mess and watching me clean it for you."

"Yeah, Luss-nee. I meant that."

In the end, Luss decided that the only thing I could at least do well is to dress up, since I don't appear to burn clothes by touch.

He guided me to this huge wardrobe, clothes if different sizes in it. I was particularly curious as to why some of the blue dresses looked like a perfect fit for Squalo, and some of the kimonos looked like they fit Xanxus a little too well.

Luss dismissed it off as a coincidence.

I wanted to see Xan's and Squalo's reaction if they wake up one day to find their wardrobe remodeled.

A wonderful idea that shit is.

Lussuria brought me in to this huge dressing area, pink painting the walls. He had this huge collection of clothes I'd bet would be enough to fill an entire museum.

He decided to dress me up in something pink.

I felt the familiar urge to claw at anyone forcing me into something pink, but fought the urge away.

I owe Lussuria. I had to repeat it to myself a lot of times.

But dressing up ended in a disaster too.

Lussuria told me to model, which I did just fine. He took a couple pictures too. That's when all of a sudden, the lightbulbs went off with a snap. The two of us stared at the ceiling, the room suddenly dark.

Then the lightbulb exploded.

And his epic collection caught fire.

I could only console the crying man as he watched his precious 'babies' burn.

I was practically a walking disaster.

He never made me do anything girly again.

########################

Bel returned two weeks later, bringing back with him a truck full of manga and anime merchandise he said was specially for the princess.

No, it wasn't because I was special, but maybe it was, I could never really know what he's thinking, the blonde being Bel and all, but I thanked him for the stuff anyway.

Squalo did a one over it though, and gave the blonde a comment.

"Extravagant, but not enough for a princess. You'll have to do better than that."

Bel gave him a toothy grin nonetheless, although I was pretty sure that what he just said was negative feedback.

I chose to ignore it. There were simply things I could not understand within the world of boys.

Belphegor looked really happy to be home, and he seemed like he was in a good mood too, since I was able to get him to play video games with me.

Bad mood Bel would've shut the door before I could ask.

"Hey, how's the mission?" I asked, trying to start a conversation.

"Nah, Squalo gave me more flies. They didn't even make me sweat." He told me. "And this time, I killed their retarded boss real quick. Like a small stab of a knife!" He boasted.

"I'm glad. I really don't want you dying on me."

He was silent for awhile, I was tempted to stare at him. He just sat there, his blonde hair covering whatever emotion he was showing.

"Bel.." I started.

"Does the princess care?" He asked, his voice sounding really sincere, but I couldn't be that sure when it's Bel. "Is the princess concerned for the prince?"

I didn't know whether to lie or to just say yes.

I decided to simply wing it.

"Well, yeah, Bel. I mean, you're a friend. And.. You take care of me too, although I swear sometimes you get too psychotic. And sometimes, you're too sarcastic, too creepy, too sadistic, too bloody, but that's what makes you Bel, I guess. And I really like the Belphegor that's twisted but nice in his own weird, awkward way. So, yeah sure. I care. Retard."

I had felt him looking straight at me, his grin still there, although the toothy smile felt so different from the usual smiles he sent.

I glanced towards the screen instead, focusing on the game.

"Thank you." I heard, and I jaw dropped, pausing the game immediately. I looked shocked at the boy, the blonde still looking at the screen.

"What the hell, Bel?" I asked. "Are you sick or something? I swear I just heard you say thanks!"

I sat in front of him, checking his temperature. He wasn't hot at all. Bel watched me, his grin growing wider. I felt shivers down my spine, the feeling telling me Bel was too close. It was odd. It was a feeling I was sure I've never felt before. We stayed there, frozen. I felt a bit weak, wondering if maybe I was the one that's sick.

He finally moved, knocking his fist softly against my forehead.

"You're hallucinating." He stood up, leaving me to stare at his retreating back, mouth hanging open.

I was sure I wasn't hallucinating. I was sure that Bel had said thanks, although I didn't know the reason why. I had the hunch it was about the caring thing, but Bel wouldn't say things for reasons like that. Or he would, I wasn't too sure either.

He was a really weird puzzle to be precise.

Though hearing the little shit say thanks made my heart race quite a little.

Probably of shock.

The next time he does that, I swear. I'd file a case against him for purposely giving me heart attacks.

######################

It was a few months after the whole Belphegor incident that I slowly found myself getting bored of the life in the Varia base.

I almost loathed the mere thought of that because I loved the Varia, they were family, and they accepted me despite the fact that no sane famiglia would ever accept someone like me.

I refused to believe that my life was getting dull, that the simple pleasures I used to appreciate had become so everyday-like that I felt them losing their value.

I refused to accept the fact that I was getting bored hearing the same noises and the same arguments and the same old stories.

But my feelings were something I couldn't deny. I couldn't deny the fact that I was getting tired of the repetitive fun days in the Varia household, and that I began to feel like there was a wider world out there I would rather be in.

It was too... Conflicting. I was so confused.

It was also the reason why I was sitting in Squalo's bed, wrapped around his thick blankets, the swordsman offering me a cup of hot chocolate as the thunderstorm raged on outside.

Squalo had become so much of a brother figure to me that I found myself comfortable just being around him. And he never told me off for that. He would instead offer me something like a cookie, a cup of coffee, a bar of chocolate, or anything he had. It felt nice.

"Okay, brat. What's the problem this time? Last time you were here, you were so guilty for drinking the last of Mammon's strawberry milkshake." Squalo asked. He wasn't shouting. His voice was soft as his voice could get.

"I'm getting bored. I know that I should be loyal, that I am part of the Varia and all, but I feel it. The desire to go and tackle something bigger than this." I told him.

Squalo laughed. "Well, that was something I've expected from you for a long time now. It's nothing new, brat."

"What do you mean?" I asked

"We know you're not someone we could keep forever. We always knew you loved being out there, no matter the pain you've gone through. We could see the desire in your eyes to be part of the larger world. Because, that's how you've always been. Even back when I was a kid. I've always felt like you wanted to be more than just a Cavallone."

"Isn't that wrong? Wouldn't that be disloyal of me?"

He smacked my head. "Fucking brat! Of course not! We know your loyalty lies with us and mere knowledge like that is all that's needed here in the Varia. You could go. Fly to wherever you want to be, for as long as you want. We know you see this place as home, and that's more than fucking enough. We know you'd come back here no matter what." He was shouting now.

"Aren't you being too trusting, Squalo? A little too naive? How're you so sure I wouldn't betray you guys?"

And he smacked me again, this time harder than the last. "Are you stupid?! Of course we know! Part of Varia quality is being the bravest of all. And being the bravest of all means knowing who your real fucking allies are. We know you are one of us. And if not, well, killing is a luxury we can afford, brat. We are the Varia."

I smiled. Squalo truly was the rain, that washed away everything. He roared, he destroyed all in his path. But he was still rain. And he was also my brother.

It made me feel considerably lighter to know that these people would have no qualms about me leaving the moment I decide I've gotten too bored with the dimension I'm in. They accepted me knowing that I wasn't the most loyal person, and they're ready for the day I'd go. I knew they wouldn't hurt. I knew they'd instead look forward to my return rather than mourn for my presence in my absence.

And I felt so glad I met the Varia because I couldn't imagine life not being part of this small insane, psychotic, odd, ridiculous but totally perfect family.

I would always be Varia. I'd always be part of this family. No matter the distance. No matter what happens.