Chapter 28: Settling in for the Evening
"Well then," Reborn stood up from his seat. "Skull, you're going to go to town to buy some sleeping bags. Colonello and Yuni will do some shopping. Fong, Lal and I will be in charge of making dinner."
The hitman looked at everyone at the table. "Dismissed."
Skull's POV:
'That Reborn, always looking down on me…..' I thought darkly as I looked down on my scrap paper. Reborn had given me an address to a shop before I left and I was already lost.
"E-Excuse me," I asked, walking up to a tall, slender lady. "May you tell me where this place is?"
The tall lady paused for a moment before turning around. Her features made me pause for a bit. Jet black hair, red eyes, not to mention huge tits…. I immediately froze and gulped nervously. 'Adelheid!'
"Hmn?" she looked at me. "Oh, it's you Skull. What do you want?"
"C-Can you help me find this shop?"
"…" Adelheid took the paper from my hands, her sharp, red eyes scanning the sheet. "Go straight, take a left, turn right…."
"WAIT!" I yelled, fumbling with my pockets.
"What?"
"Let me write this down…" I scrambled to get another piece of scrap paper and my pen. "C-Can you repeat that again?"
The tall, black haired woman gave me a look before starting over. Only this time, she talked slowly, like how you would treat a child. "Go straight to the post office….take a left at the bakery…turn right at the flower shop…and this shop should be on your next right."
I scribbled everything down, thanking Adelheid quickly before following her instructions. I let out a sigh of relief as I made it to the destination. 'Finally,' I thought as I entered the shop. I then looked at the different sizes of sleeping bags on the wall and sweat-dropped. 'Now which sizes do I get?'
Yuni's POV:
"Is this all we need, kora?" asked Colonello as he held up a basket.
Colonello and I were shopping at the Mafia Supermarket. We were both treated with respect once we entered the market, making us uncomfortable. After a bit of persuading, we managed to make the manager and employers to treat us normally.
"I think so… Would you like me to call Uncle Reborn to make sure?"
The tall blonde man nodded as he leaned against the wall. A few ladies giggled, gazing and taking pictures of him. Some of them even fainted when he raised an eyebrow of confusion. (Lolz, maybe fainted with a nose bleed :P)
I muffled a giggle as I took out my phone from my bag and called Uncle Reborn. The phone rang once before being picked up.
"Hello Uncle Reborn," I greeted, overhearing some shouts and noises in the background.
"Ciaossu Yuni." he replied.
I smiled a bit as I spoke. "Are you short on any ingredients?"
"…Don't think so." Replied Reborn. There was a bit of static before I heard Lal's voice from the phone.
"Yeah, I need a few ingredients. I need 3 packs of unflavored gelatin, 1 once each! Also, I need apple juice and some cuties (those small mandarin oranges). That's all."
"Wait…Okay." I wrote down all the ingredients on my pad of paper. I then bid goodbye to Lal as I turned back to Colonello.
Colonello raised an eyebrow, seeing a list in my hand. "So, more shopping, kora?"
I smiled. "Yes, seems like your wife needs some ingredients."
The blonde grinned. "Really? What's she making this time, kora?" I handed over the list as he scanned over the ingredients. His baby-blue eyes lit up as he quickly went to gather the ingredients.
Finally, I let out my suppressed giggle. My smile never left my face as I ran to catch up with Colonello.
Fong's POV:
"Lal, can you help chop up the onions?"
"No problem," she replies, taking a knife from the drawers.
"Reborn, can you boil the water?"
The hitman nods at me and turns on the stove, placing a pot filled with water on top. I sighed as I dished out the ingredients on the table, organizing it so that the last few dishes would be easier to make. We were almost done with dinner, each of us doing two of our best dishes. Let's just say that it was very….entertaining to watch each of them cook. My attention soon turned to All's "son". He was silently writing something on the kitchen table, totally focused.
'I wonder what he's writing…' But before I could approach the child, I suddenly hear the front door opening, making me pause in my tracks.
"I'm back, Reborn-sempai!" yelled a muffled voice.
"Back so soon, lackey?" smirked Reborn.
Skull fell in to the room, dropping the five sleeping bags on the kitchen floor with a 'thump'. He panted, muttering a curse on how big they were. Noticing his two sempai in the room, he quickly got off the ground. "I didn't know what size to get, so I just bought everyone extra-large sized sleeping bags." He then huffed proudly. "It took a lot of strength to bring all them here!"
Reborn just smirked, capping the pot before walking towards Skull. He picked up the five sleeping bags, piling it on his left shoulder, carrying it easily.
The look on Skull's face was priceless. I smiled to myself as I spoke up. "Reborn, be kinder to Skull."
The hitman just glanced at me, giving Skull a mocking look before backing off. He placed the sleeping bags in a neat pile on the ground and went back to cooking. I sighed as I heard the door open once more.
"We're back, kora!"
Yuni and Colonello then walked in to the kitchen, carrying the extra supplies we needed for our stay.
"Here you go," Yuni hands Lal a bag. "You're ingredients are in this bag."
Lal just nodded, calling Colonello and her son to come help her. Colonello chuckled as he helped his son wash his hands, purposely putting a few soap suds on mini-Colonello's nose. Then, the pair quickly put on aprons before standing in front of Lal. The tall blonde then whispered in to his son's ear and they both saluted Lal.
"Ready for duty, Lieutenant Mirch." Said Colonello teasingly, making mini-Colonello giggle.
I smiled as I watched the scene unfold in front of me. Things were really lively with the entire group around.
"Fong, the water's ready." Said Reborn, interrupting my thoughts.
"Hn? Very well, I'll get started." I replied as I rolled up my sleeves. I soon busied myself cooking, focusing only on the ingredients and the recipe.
Mini-Colonello's POV:
(Ok, in this one, Mini-Colonello would be calling Lal 'Mom'/'Mommy' and Colonello 'Dad'/'Daddy'. Just a heads up :D)
"Careful there, it's hot," Warned Mom as she helped me tip the boiled apple juice in to the saucepan. I breathe a sigh of relief, happy that I didn't burn myself from the hot pan.
Dad chuckled, seeing my relieved expression. I grinned sheepishly as I helped whisk in the gelatin mixture (which we had prepared earlier) with the boiled juice. Dad then lifted the saucepan and placed it in the fridge. As we waited for the liquid to cool, Daddy decided to challenge Mommy to a "sparring match."
"Come on, kora! It'll be a good way to pass the time!" Dad shot back, trying to persuade Mom.
"No." she replied curtly.
"But he won't mind! Right, son?"
"What's sparring?" I asked.
My parents both stared at me for a few seconds. Giving Daddy a glare, Mom replied bluntly. "…It's a fight."
"Yeah, kora! An epic battle!" Dad ruffled Mom's hair, earning him a glare and a punch to the stomach.
I was curious in knowing how a sparring looked like…but Mom seemed to disapprove the idea. At the end, curiosity got the best of me.
"I won't mind, kora!" I finally replied, smiling.
Mom kept her poker-face while Dad cheered. He carried me up as we both headed towards a clearing in the woods. Mom grabbed some water bottles and a few other items before following after us. After awhile, we arrived at our destination. Seating me on a smooth rock, Daddy stood on one side of the clearing and Mom on the other. Then the battle started, my parents clashing with each other.
Author's POV:
"What's wrong Colonello?" taunted Lal. "Did you just weaken?"
"No way, kora!" shouted Colonello, keeping up with Lal's speed. "I'm warming up."
"The looser will have to obey one of our son's command!" shouted Lal, landing gracefully on her feet.
"Deal, considering that we know who is going to win." the blonde smirked, dodging another one of Lal's attacks.
"Try me, idiot!" hissed Lal.
Punches and kicks flew between the couple as mini-Colonello watched in awe. After five minutes of non-stop sparring, the winner was finally decided. Lal was panting heavily, pinning Colonello underneath her. The blonde managed a weak smile before admitting defeat.
Mini-Colonello carried two water bottles to his parents, who thanked him as they took generous gulps. After giving his parents a few moment of rest, he decided to pop a question to his Mom.
"Mom?"
"Hmn?" She glanced at her son.
"When did you fall for Dad?"
"PFFT!" Lal spit out her water in surprise. Colonello burst out laughing, laughing so hard that his eyes started to leak tears and his sides started to hurt. (Somehow, I could totally imagine this happening o.o)
"Haha, that's the best, gasp, question ever!" said the taller blonde between laughs. He wiped the tears away from his eyes, his smile never leaving his lips.
Lal soon recovered from her shock. Looking at her son, she asked, "Why do you ask?"
Mini-Colonello looked thoughtful for a moment. Then he shrugged. "Just curious…"
"Yeah, when did you fall for me?" asked Colonello, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.
"I-I… I can't remember!" said Lal quickly.
"Come on, kora! You must have some vivid memories why!" whined Colonello.
But no matter how much the two blondes pestered her, she wouldn't say.
"Fine then, what about you, Dad? When did you fall for Mom?"
"Not telling, kora!" huffed Colonello, turning childishly to the side. "Not until your Mom tells us why."
"…I command you to tell me." Smirked mini-Colonello deviously. (Gasps! Reborn has an influence on him :P)
"Fine," grinned Colonello, shooting a sly look at Lal. "I fell in love with your mom ever since we met in COMSUBIN."
"COMSUBIN?"
"Oh. COMSUBIN is an Italian combat force. I was a trainee there and your mom was my trainer. She's the one who taught me how to fight." He turned and winked at Lal. "You were such a hot trainer, kora!"
"Y-You bastard!" yelled Lal, blushing. Colonello just wolf-whistled and laughed as he stopped Lal's incoming slap.
"Ciaossu. Seems like you're having a good time."
Reborn walked out of some bushes, dusting off his suit. He leaned against one of the trees surrounding the open clearing. "Fong sent me here. He said that your dessert is ready for the next step."
"Perfect timing, kora." Smirked Colonello.
Reborn smirked back. "Better hurry, rival. It's almost time for dinner and I'm hungry."
"Ok then, I guess we will stay here a bit longer..." started Colonello. Suddenly, a bullet whizzed past Colonello's cheek.
"Don't keep us waiting," warned Reborn threatening. He gave Colonello a hard look before heading back.
Mini-Colonello waited Reborn to leave before tugging on his mom's hand. "Mom, let's finish making the dessert. I'm getting hungry, too. "
Lal nodded, picking her son up in to her arms. Meanwhile, Colonello collected the water bottles and picked up Lal's bag.
"Let's go, kora!"
"Thank you for the food." Everyone chorused. The table was full of conversation as Fong, Yuni, Reborn, Colonello, Lal, mini-Colonello, and Skull ate their dinners.
"Delicious as always, kora," commented Colonello as he tasted all the dishes.
Reborn smirked. "Glad you like it."
"Thank you." said Fong in Chinese.
Lal just grunted, slightly distracted as she fed mini-Colonello. The small blonde obediently opened his mouth and chewed, slightly dribbling food down his chin. Colonello chuckled, whipping the food away from his son's mouth.
"Let's play a game."
The entire table fell quiet for a moment, everyone staring at Reborn.
"The rules are simple. Choose a dish, and guess who made it. Luckily, only Lal, Fong, and I have been the only chefs today. The people who guess right get Luche's Amaretto Cheesecake with Madeleine Crust recipe."
Reborn smirked as he gave Skull a look. "And the people who guess wrong don't get the recipe."
"Hey! What's that's supposed to mean!" yelled Skull as everyone chuckled in amusement.
The next hour flew by quickly, with everyone trying to name their dish. Reborn was one of the first to guess correctly, along with Fong and Lal.
"Whoops, guessed wrong." Said Yuni playfully, giving a small smile.
"Haha, me too, kora!" chuckled Colonello.
"Hmph, how was I supposed to know the difference between Reborn's and Fong's dishes?" huffed Skull, leaning back on his chair.
"Careful Skull," warned Yuni. "You're going to fall."
"It's o- WOAH!" Skull crashed to the ground, feeling the cool, wooden floor beneath him. "Owww…" he whined, rubbing his sore arm and leg.
"Always listen to Yuni, kora!" smirked Colonello, drinking his soup.
Yuni giggled, helping Skull up from the ground. Mini-Colonello watched them silently before tensing up.
"Bad omen…" he whispered.
"Hmmm, should we cut off the power source now?" asked Mammon, floating around a certain scientist's room.
"I need to finish this test before cutting off the power source." Verde then took off his safety glasses, smirking.
"This should do the job." The mad scientist pressed the button and the machine began to function.
"Hey, do you hear that fizzing noise?" asked Skull nervously.
"…What noise?" asked Yuni.
'BAM!' The fuse box in the basement suddenly gave out, causing the room to become dark. Everyone tensed, waiting to see what would happen next. One-by-one, each of the Arcobaleno got out of their seats and huddled together.
"Something's coming." Lal hissed, getting in to fighting stance. A small, tingly sensation crawled down the Arcobaleno's spine, causing them to shiver. Everyone quickly got in to position; their resolve to protect each other gave them courage.
'POOF!' White smoke covered the area, making it even harder for the group to see. Slowly it cleared, revealing… themselves? To be more precise, an illusion of themselves.
"Mammon, Verde." Growled Reborn, aiming his gun at a seemingly empty spot. "Reveal yourselves and start explaining before I snap."
An eerie chuckle filled the air. "Hmn, Reborn. I don't get scared that easily. Besides," Verde pressed another button, turning the illusions in to reality. "I want you guys to play a little first."
The figures suddenly attacked, forcing the Arcobaleno to defend themselves.
"Better hurry," the scientist taunted, "or else these figures will take your place in the real world, forever." Giving one final laugh, Verde's presence disappeared, leaving the Arcobaleno to fight with their double.
Ok, I finally finished typing this chapter! Yay! *throws a mini party with everyone*
But, I had to split this chapter in half. In total, this chapter would have been about... 5,000+ words. (Haha, sorry. Too tired to add the numbers up.) I'll post part 2 after I finish finalizing it.
Btw, I finally finished typing out my one-shot, Dandelion Wishes. If you have time, I hope you could read my story and give me feedback. Personally, I liked the idea, but my story was...ok. If you could find where I could improve, please PM me or submit a review.
Anyways, my exams started today. Good news is that I'll be able to get out of school early (YES!) and I probably will be able to type up the final ending earlier. Bad news is that I will have to study more, making me more tired, resulting in a not-so-good-story.
So please bear with me as I finish this story. Thanks for all of your support :D
Please review :)
