... *Crying in a corner* I'm sorryyyyyyyyy! Its been over a year since I last updated, and I feel so baaaaaaad. I hope you all like this chapter. It's centered around the mysterious Cora, but I promise the next chapter will go back to Tsuna.
SerinasHarmony: Lol, reading your guesses on who 'Cora' could be was interesting. Here's a little teaser - they are and are not a canon character, and not any of the three you guessed. Give me a review of who you think it is from reading this chapter and that teaser.
N-R436 (Guest): Ho ho ho~ I've waited for a review like yours. You make very valid points there, and I'm thankful for you pointing out Ugetsu's name as that always trips me up. I am well aware that the Arcobaleno we know are not the same as the ones meant to be in the 1st Gen.'s time, but that was explained in the story so far. This is a parallel world, as such there is a possibility of them coexisting at the same time. Also, even with Tsuna having taken care of the curse, the Arcobaleno are still connected to the TriNiiSette and are able to use the abilities it gave them. As for Daimon, he has not gone through with his betrayal, as Elena is very much alive. For that, he is much more playful and family oriented in my story. Thanks for the review! I love it when you guys give me such reviews, whether sugar or spice. It helps lots for my stories.
Chapter 12: Cora's New Mission
1st Gen. Era, Parallel World, Italy
3rd PoV
Outside Vongola Manor
The manor, despite seeming to be winding down for the night, still held a majestic glow to it. The troops of the gathered families were awed, but continued on with their mission. Some, like those from the Relitto famiglia, weren't as impressed. They were known for wrecking down such places of majesty, hence their name, but it did give them pause. It was Vongola they were attacking, after all. Who wouldn't be nearly crapping their pants at going against them? Not to mention, there had been some panicked pessimists who were spouting off that the Arcobaleno were here too. Hell, those from the Ratti family were still squirming around due to those speculations. The Donnola members with them had to snap them back on track or risk being caught.
Not that they already weren't.
See, despite them using the cover of the approaching night, they had not accounted for the Vongola to already know they were coming. Heck, even if they didn't, the visiting Arcobaleno would have gotten wind of them before they even entered the mountain's range. So, unfortunately for them, they were brutally out matched significantly when they launched the first attack. Barely half of them survived, and even less were able to retreat before capture. Those that didn't, well, they learned why it was highly advised not to get into the cloud guardian's interrogation room. Worse yet, there were two of them and they were being assisted by two pineapple mists.
Those poor, unfortunate souls.
All this information was easily gathered, with great amusement, by a silent figure. They had been watching since the beginning, unseen and un-sensed as they leaned against the trunk of a tree. Once everything was over, the figure left. Not even five-seconds after disappearing, another turned up.
Reborn looked around, frown on his face as he found nothing. He had felt a presence, faint and only for the briefest of moments, but it was gone now. Even Leon, his ever faithful chameleon partner, could find no strange scent in the air. Tilting his fedora in annoyance, he slipped back towards the manor. The others needed to know there was such a powerful unknown.
…
1st Gen. Era, Parallel World, Italy
Cora's PoV
Unknown
Letting off a hum, I finish up preparing a nice cup of chocolate espresso. Taking a sip, pleased it was done right despite the subpar cocoa powder and coffee beans, I sit down on the couch in my room. I sat there for a few minutes, relaxing from all the idiotic things that have been happening around me. Yes, I may love chaos, but not if I'm not the one making it. It just wasn't as fun. Still, it had been quite amusing seeing the massive ass-kicking those minions got from the Vongola a few nights ago. It is astounding what a few hours of forewarning can do. If not for that, Vongola would have for sure gotten more injuries than it had.
Still no casualties, of course, since they had such a great medical team.
Though, I have to admit, I may have slipped a bit near the end. I had not been expecting several wildly shot bullets to come my way. Thankfully, I had my scent hiding herbs, or else Leon would have for sure found my trail. Small he may be, that chameleon is skillful in many things. Well, what could one expect, when said chameleon was a magical being and trained under Reborn?
A beeping from my coat's pocket drew me from my musing. I pulled it over, as it had been draped over the back of the couch, and pulled out the drone I had found earlier. It seems someone was waking it up from sleep mode. I let a smirk curl on my lips.
Time to start trolling people.
Just as the drone let off a last beep before fully turning on, I allowed my 'Cora' facade to fall over me flawlessly. Like my character would, I curiously poked at the drone. It shifted before crawling around my hand for a bit, as it was in the shape of a baby's palm sized spider.
Shrugging, I throw on my coat, which I actually liked how fluffy it is, and headed for the door with the spider. Hm, I'll name it Traffy, after Luffy's nickname for Law. Traffy, the curious little spy it was, wanted to immediately scurry away from me. I didn't let it, grabbing it from the air as it tried to jump away, and placed it on my shoulder under the coat. It crawled around before settling in a way where it could look around as much as possible. I patted it, as if it were a real spider, and continued on. Whenever there was someone near by, I would purposefully bump into random things or trip to keep in character, but always made sure Traffy was safe and would see important things. Stopping near a window, which had a wonderful view of the mansion I was in, I waited for the incoming man to reach me.
"Master Cora!" The man called once he turned the corner and saw me. He was panting and had a very distraught look on his face. From the crest he had on his suit, he was from the Ratti family. Well, what was left of them. A great deal of them had perished or were captured during the raid. "Sir, Master Doffy is calling for you." Sigh, what does he want now? Giving the man a dismissive wave, I start heading for the idiot's room. Swiftly passing through shortcuts that had little to no cameras or guards, I made it to the room in record time. I went right in without knocking, ducking to avoid a man-turned-projectile. Seems the idiot was still mad about the other night.
"Ah, Cora, sorry about that." Doflamingo said, crooked grin still in place though extremely stiff. "It seems I have such incompetent minions. There's something I need you to do, that every other minion I've sent has failed in." I straightened up slightly in curiosity. Great, another chance to mess with this fool. "Go to the Vongola, infiltrate them, and send me word of what it is they are hiding."
"Hiding?" I asked/wrote. I knew they were hiding something, had an inkling as to what, but very much wanted to know. This was the perfect excuse to do so, as well as to mess with the Vongola more.
"Yes. The only certain thing those damn rats were able to give me is that the Vongola has acquired some kind of weapon. I want you to find what it is and bring it to me if you deem it valuable enough for us." He ordered. I tilted my head in silent question, earning a smirk from him. "If it's not worth it to take, destroy it." I nodded and left the room, heading for mine to gather some clothes. I didn't really need to, but it would keep suspicion off of me from the other minions. Reaching my room, I pack everything that I had with me along with a few other things 'liberated' from this mansion. Throwing it over my left shoulder, I make my way out of this place and towards the Vongola.
All the while I could feel Traffy scurrying around on my right shoulder.
…
10th Gen. Era, Original World, Japan
3rd PoV
Namimori Branch Vongola HQ
Down in the lab room, where the three scientists were working, Shoichi let out a small sound of delight that drew the other two's attention.
"Spanner, call Reborn. I've got a connection to the drone!" Shoichi yelled, moving his laptop over to the screens Verde had been working on. He hooked it up, making the center screen get static. It took a moment for the drone to wake up from its sleep mode, but they eventually got a visual. What they saw, however, they were not expecting. "W-who?" Shoichi mumbled, quickly bringing up all other systems of the drone. Everything was the same as before, so at least the drone wasn't tempered with, but that still did not tell them who the golden-blonde haired man was. He had fair skin with a slight tan and was staring down at the drone with curious sharp, reddish-brown eyes. A dark red beanie was on his head and he wore a white shirt with pink hearts. Some tattoos, or was it makeup, were over his eyes and mouth. The man tilted his head curiously and poked the drone.
"We don't have time for this, get the drone out of there." Verde drawled, annoyed at the handling of his creation. Spanner nodded as he returned with Reborn, grabbing the controls for the drone. Wanting to get away from the probing finger, as well as see where the drone was, he made it scurry around the man's hand. They were in some sort of large bedroom which, from the decorations, was most likely in some wealthy person's home. Spanner decided on jumping off the hand, to no avail as a hand swiftly grabbed the drone from the air.
Fortunately, the man didn't accidentally squish the drone. Unfortunately, the man placed the drone on his shoulder with clear intent of not letting it go. All three scientist gave various sounds of annoyance. At least they weren't being blocked by the black feathered coat the man wore.
"Just settle it in a way where we can see as much as possible." Verde ordered. Not a moment after Spanner settled the drone did the man pat it as if it were a real spider.
"… Is he an idiot?" Shoichi's question was answered quickly enough as the man bumped into things and tripped on thin air as he walked down the spacious hall. "Right, a mute idiot." He added the last part as he noted the man hadn't made a single sound.
"It's an act." Reborn corrected, keeping a close eye on everything the drone caught. It was mostly faces of people, camera locations, windows, doors, and other such things. Hell, the man even tripped and revealed a secret passageway. "Whoever it is, is purposely showing these things to the drone."
"But drones have yet to be thought about in that parallel world." Spanner pointed out, making sure the drone was stable on the fumbling man's shoulder. It was a surprisingly easy task, considering the ridiculous movements.
"Then how does this person know its purpose, enough to help?" Shoichi wondered, clutching his stomach as it started to hurt from nervousness. At this, Verde looked at Reborn. The hitman was smirking in amusement, a clear indication that he knew something everyone else didn't. It got Verde thinking, and he was soon blinking in realization. He snorted, drawing everyone's attention to him as the blond man stopped by a window that showed the mansion's outside.
"I see you figured it out." Reborn mused, drawing a chuckle from Verde and confused looks from everyone else. Neither elaborated what they meant, more focused on watching the blond man get called to his boss's room. Apparently, the man was named Cora, from what the underlings were calling him. Once Cora made it to the boss's room, he had to drop as a man was thrown over him. He didn't even flinch at that and walked in, giving the drone it's first view of the boss. He was also blond, looking similar to Cora, but had shorter hair and a pair of red tinted white glasses. He also wore a maroon suit and tie, a black undershirt, and a pink feathered coat.
"Go to the Vongola, infiltrate them, and send me word of what it is they are hiding." Those words had the three not in the know choking in shock. Cora moved, lifting a notepad up. He must have asked something, as the other man nodded. "Yes. The only certain thing those damn rats were able to give me is that the Vongola has acquired some kind of weapon. I want you to find what it is and bring it to me if you deem it valuable enough for us." There was a subtle movement, which the drone caught as Cora tilting their head in question. "If it's not worth it to take, destroy it." Cora nodded and left the room, but they weren't really focusing on that. Too busy were they, arguing about what they should do, to really pay attention on Cora packing his stuff to leave. Well, most of them. Reborn was taking note of the fact Cora already had a pre-prepared bag that he stuffed some other things into. He caught sight of an item that he knew only one other person would ever have. Chuckling, the hitman sat back on a chair to watch the chaos that was soon to come.
…
1st Gen. Era, Parallel World, Italy
Cora's PoV
Vongola Manor
The manor was just as I saw it last week, though it was far more majestic in the day than that dwindling moonlight. Hitching up my bag over my shoulder, I go and knock on the grand double doors. It took a second, before the doors were opened slightly. A rather young butler looked out, scrutinizing me as if to see who I was. There was a brief flash of dismissal from him, most likely at the clothes I changed into, before plastering a polite smile.
"How may I help you sir?" He asked, polite in his tone. I simply lifted an old paper, a flyer of help wanted, and gave it to him. He took it, immediately recognizing it. "Ah, sorry about the trouble, sir. This is a rather old flyer. We no longer need any extra workers." He said, giving a politely apologetic smile. It, however, stiffened as a hand landed on his shoulder. A chuckle from the person had him paling, the door opening wider to reveal a blue melon headed aristocrat. Said melon took the flyer from the butler, reading it over with curious tilt of the head. He then looked me over, before suddenly smirking.
"Now, Aberforth, you shouldn't say such things to this nice young man. The flyer may be old, but it is still valid. I've been looking for some help, after all." Daemon said, letting off another creepy chuckle. Aberforth paled farther, looking nearly as white as a sheet, and shot me a pitying look.
"O-of course Master Daemon. Should I l-leave him to you then?" Daemon nodded, a wide grin on his face. Aberforth shot one last pitying look at me before bolting back inside the manor. Daemon chuckled, grabbing me by my shirt and dragging me somewhere. I didn't struggle, too much, as I let him drag me to wherever it is he was taking me. It didn't take that long, as Daemon brought me to a simple office. It was nearly bare, holding a desk, two chairs, a sparsely filled bookshelf, and a potted plant in the corner by the window. Daemon dropped me on one of the chairs, the one across the desk, and he sat behind the desk. He took out a couple of papers from a drawer, rifling through them for a moment.
"We'll need to do the silly paperwork first, as the Skylarks will get hissy if I don't, before I can set you to work." Daemon declared, far more professional than I though he would. Well, it wasn't that surprising. From what I've heard, he still has Elena alive. That, and he was of nobility. He may have not liked the nobles, but was still raised as one. "Name?" I blinked, debating if I should speak or not. Hmm, fuck it. I'll keep in character. Cora spoke to others that weren't from the Donquixote.
"Rosinante, but I mostly go by Cora." I answered, voice deep with a slight rasp of a smoker. Daemon nodded, writing it down. He continued to ask me other stuff, basic things that anyone would ask really.
"Any prior fighting experience?" I stopped at this one, causing him to look up with a raised brow. I just shrugged.
"I've been in many fights, and can shoot a gun well enough, but rather watch from the sidelines unless I have to." It was true, too. Unlike my real older brother, I rather stick to the sidelines. I would only get involved if the situation was dire, or if I was angry enough. "Also good at spying, and I got a good hand for healing." This had Daemon amused, most likely thinking me an idiot for basically confessing I was a spy. "Oh, I'm quite clumsy if the situation isn't serious. I tend to set myself on fire sometimes." He snorted, throwing my feathery coat a pointed look. Yeah, I was still wearing it. I changed into a black button up, jeans, and simple ankle boots. I still wore the makeup and red beanie. Really, I didn't change much to blend in. Didn't matter, as neither Doflamingo or I have been seen by anyone other than those in the famiglia or allied to it. It is sure to give the little weasels still in here a scare to see me wondering the halls in open view.
"Nufufufu, and what's that on your shoulder?" Daemon's distinct chuckle drew me from my amusing thoughts. I looked up, tilting my head in fake confusion, before letting a look of remembrance light my face. I reached up to my right shoulder, grabbing the little tagalong I had and presenting it to him.
"This is Traffy!" I introduced cheerfully. "Found him a while ago and kept him. He was simply too cute, don't you agree?" I asked, getting a sweat-drop from him as he took in the disguised drone. When I had stopped to change, I had also taken the time to put a collar on it. It worked to both show he was mine and disguise him with a seal I had engraved on the tag. Since I was using my spiritual powers instead of flames, no one would be able to see through the illusion nor would the Arcobaleno and Vongola recognize me. The disguise I put into the seal? It was of a cute little Brazilian wondering spider.
"Isn't that poisonous?" He asked, a bit of uncertainty in his tone. I just tilted my head innocently, giving off a vibe of not knowing what was wrong. "Riiiight. Make sure it doesn't bite anyone important." I beamed, nodding in agreement as I put the drone back on my shoulder. It seemed to sag, as if the person controlling it was resigned to its fate of bing my pet. Heh, apparently they hadn't realized I had been quite serious when I placed that collar on it. "Hand over your bag for the mandatory check over." I gave it over, not hesitating at all. There was a seal on the bag anyway, so that it could hold important things in a pocket dimension where only I would be able to access it. It was especially helpful since no one would be able to tell there was a pocket dimension, or even know it was there in the first place. Daemon looked through it, finding only clothes, some random things, and an old flintlock pistol. He rose a brow at the pistol, but shrugged it off. He tossed me the bag, which I let smack me in the face, and gathered his papers. "Everything seems in order. I'll send in these papers to be verified. I'll have a contract for you by tonight, if everything is found clean. As for what you will be doing…" There was a creepy grin on his face at this, which wasn't as creepy as the one his slightly older parallel self could make. Regardless of how ineffective it was, I pretended to shudder at the hinted torture. "…Let's find out what you are best at."
Again, sorry for the lateness.