That Which Obscures The Sky
Summary: When Reborn comes to Namimori on Vongola Nono's request, he was NOT expecting to find a Sky all for himself. This was not in his job description and the hauntingly familiar face wasn't helping him any. The question now is, what will he do?
"What is your relationship with Fon?" Reborn asked right away now that he had the prefect's full attention. As soon as he gets out of the way the more mundane questions that have been bothering him, he figured they could dive into the heart of the matter, the fact that they had sparked. He needs to see if the boy even knows what it actually means, if his bond with Kusakabe was accidental or if it had been done with intent. He needs to know if Hibari, if he didn't know and were only now to find out, would want to sever that bond or if he would even want to bond with Reborn.
Reborn was not going to jump in head first before checking the waters. He's not a naive novice. Hibari may be the very first Sky he's ever sparked with, but he was far from the first Sky Reborn had had to deal with, even if Hibari was very unique given his ... Unusual Flame 'condition'.
"He's my uncle by blood and my legal guardian since the age of five," Hibari answered easily enough, sharp eyes studying the infant form before him. "I take it by the color of your Pacifier that you are the hitman Reborn, the Sun Arcobaleno."
It wasn't a question but the statement surprised Reborn into silence, stopping his next question - about whether Fon was his Storm - on the tip of his tongue. Silence hung between them for a long moment before Reborn finally spoke again. "You know about the Arcobaleno curse? I take it, then, that you are at least fully Flame Aware?"
"Flame Active since before my fifth birthday, actually," corrected the teen, sitting up and facing Reborn so they could have a proper serious conversation. "And of course I know about the Arcobaleno curse. My uncle one day returned as a chibi and our whole clan freaked out about it. My grandfather even all but disowned him because he was a blemish on the proud Hibari name or something. Such a herbivore," the last was said with an eye roll and a disgusted huff. "Fon explained it a bit better when I was older, but I knew almost from the first day that he was an Arcobaleno and what that ultimately means."
"Is Fon your Storm Guardian?" Reborn asked next, because he'd just received a lot of answers in one go. Hibari had said 'clan' and not 'family' or even 'Family'. Kusakabe's family had been loyal to a clan until the very last of it had disappeared, whether they were active in the underworld or not, but they were now loyal to Hibari. Reborn will have to look into this Hibari Clan. He had a feeling there was an important story behind this. This also answered a question he'd been wondering for years: Where was Fon now? Well, he didn't know where the martial artist was now in a literal sense, but he did know where he had been and what he had been doing for the past eleven years. Raising his nephew, it would seem.
"Yes. Do you ask because you two are one hundred percent compatible and you know that usually implies you will have the same Sky or is it something else?"
"Yes," Reborn replied easily, because there was no point in lying. It was much too obvious. "Before we got turned into babies, Fon had rejected the Sky Arcobaleno rather coldly and harshly, had accused her of trying to thrall all of us but only he seemed to have been aware of it. Was it because he was already bonded to you back then?"
Bonded Elements could actually tell the difference between a Sky's normal pulsating that invites people in and thralling, which draws people in, whether they like it or not. Bonded Elements can also resist this pull, because they have already anchored their Flames to a different Sky. Reborn wasn't sure about Harmonized Elements - a step below actual bonding, because it was one-sided, the Element bound to a Sky but the Sky not bound to that Element; a typical link between bosses and their Guardians - and he didn't really care. He cared about the fact that Fon had, three days in since they'd all met up, asked Luce of Giglio Nero in a harsh tone and a coldly serene smile if she could stop because she was not his Sky and should she continue trying to thrall him, he will leave and he will notify the Vindice because thralling was actually against their laws and was equally as bad as breaking Omerta in their eyes. Luce had backed off, looking honestly shocked and a bit intimidated by the sudden hostility, but it still took her a while to stop trying to thrall the other Arcobaleno.
None of them except Fon had noticed the thrall, not even Viper who had honest to god ESP or Verde, who scanned and monitored just about everything around him. Reborn had been the first one to detect the thralling was still on afterwards because he now knew there was something to look for, so he did, and once he found it, he rejected Luce's Flames as violently as he could so that the backlash would finally make her back away. Hey, she might be pregnant and Reborn usually didn't attack women unless they attacked him first, but he was not going to put up with thralling for one second longer than he's already had to suffer that stupidity.
Reborn was the strongest, greatest hitman in the world. Just about any famiglia or organization would want him to be theirs, but besides a vague 'partnership' with Vongola that consisted of a contract which states he would give their missions priority, Reborn was freelance and he had always planned to stay that way. Which meant he wasn't about to let a Sky thrall him into their Family.
Now, however, he was standing before some random boy - or as random as he could consider Hibari, given he's in charge of Namimori and Fon's nephew, apparently - who turned out to be his 'destined' Sky and he doesn't know what to do, what to expect.
Hibari considered him for a moment before answering. "I was almost five when I became Flame Active. Fon had already been an Arcobaleno for a whole year by then." That would be a no, then, except he could tell Hibari wasn't done. "However, the moment I became Active, the bond between us snapped into place, so my father and Fon suspected that Fon and I created an initial bond long before then. Chichi even went as far as to suggest the bond had initiated the first time jiji held me in his arms. We have no way to confirm nor deny such a theory, so we left it be at that. Fon's definitely my first Guardian, though. There's no doubt about that."
Well, even if there was no way to tell when, exactly, Fon and Hibari bonded, Reborn could shed some light on when it hadn't happened. Bonds need to be strong and stable, which means some time has to have passed, in order to resist and be aware of a thrall like Fon had been with Luce, over a decade ago. Luce was a very strong, very pure Sky. Fon's bond to Hibari must have been at least a year old if Luce's Flames in a thrall were nothing but an uncomfortable annoyance to him.
"Did Fon know I would be your Sun?" Another important question.
Hibari tilted his head, considering his answer again. "I would guess he had his suspicions. I mean, we kept an eye out for a Lightning, but never for a Sun, so he probably thought so, yes. As soon as he realized I was his Sky, at least."
"Only a Lightning?" Did Hibari seriously already have a full Guardian set? Reborn had only ever seen him with Kusakabe, though.
The teen seemed to understand his confusion and smiled. It wasn't exactly a nice smile. It almost looked a bit ... resigned? No, not quite. Bitter? Close, but also not the right word he was looking for. Sardonic, perhaps. Yes, that seemed to be almost it. "My Sky is my tertiary Flame, Akanbou. I am my own Cloud, as my Flames are one hundred percent compatible with each other, and I am my own Mist, though the compatibility between my Mist and Sky is ninety five percent. I know who my secondary Mist is and our compatibility is four percent, but I am still my own Mist Guardian. I cannot bond with another Mist the way I could with the other Elements I do not personally possess."
"You never mentioned a Rain," Reborn pointed out and the teen nodded.
"I have a Rain. It's the first Guardian that bonded to me after I became Flame Active, not counting the fact that the bond between me and Fon solidified only then, as well."
"Are you going to tell me who it is?"
"I imagine you will meet him sooner than you might think," revealed the prefect with a teasing smirk. The smirk then disappeared, Hibari returning to a dead serious neutral face. "Now, ask the questions that you really want answered. You are a carnivore. I do not appreciate you skirting around the subject like a mere herbivore."
Reborn grunted, finally sitting down in front of the Cloud/Mist/Sky and crossing his arms almost defensively across his chest. "What do you want from me?"
Hibari seemed a bit taken aback by his question. Confused, too. "I do not understand what you mean."
"We sparked. There's an almost one hundred percent probability that we are completely compatible with each other, Flames-wise. You've clearly been collecting your Elements." Reborn didn't say more, letting vague implications hang in the air and observing how Hibari would react to them. Reborn wanted an honest response here, not some practiced bullshit that might entice him to bond with his compatible Sky just because their Flames happen to match.
"I guess that you're asking something along the line of 'what now?'," the teen commented with a hum, propping up the elbow of his right arm on his knee and leaning a cheek on it, studying Reborn. "That depends on you, I would guess."
"On me?" Asked the smaller skeptically and Hibari snorted.
"I may be a Sky and I may have a nearly complete Guardian set, but they were all accidental acquisitions. I gave them all a choice if they wish to stay with me. Fon would have stayed with me, Sky Flames or no Flames at all. He's my jiji, he's all that I have and I'm all that he has left, too. Kusakabe and I bonded after he became my second in command of the Disciplinary Committee. In fact, it was him who had insisted he wanted to stay by my side. I am a Cloud through and through, or so my Storm and Rain tell me. I was not the one who formed the Disciplinary Committee; they formed themselves around me and I simply gave them directions when they would not leave. My Rain, I gave him the choice to leave me a few years after we'd bonded, when I fully understood what had happened," Hibari shrugged. "He said he'd rather die at my side than leave me. I am a Cloud through and through. Being bound is a death sentence to me. Why would I incur such a fate on another? Besides, my Sky-ness, because Sky is my tertiary Flames, include only inspiring genuine loyalty, insight into how people fight or think and, ultimately, acceptance of even the weirdest characters. I am not kind and welcoming nor am I a pacifist, however, I protect those I consider my own. Whether you want to be a part of that, a part of this, us, is up to you. You can walk away now and no one will blame or pester you for it. The choice is all yours, Akanbou."
Reborn couldn't help but stare at the skylark, for once unsure what to think, what to say. A part of his mind took this time to process and note down the implication from Hibari's little speech that the boy's Rain was an experienced Flame user who had probably understood from the start what it meant to bond to a five year old child and had accepted it eagerly. Another part was bearing with his smug and overexcited Sun that just wanted to get on with it and bond with their Sky. Another part was also trying to ponder the implications of Fon and Hibari being the only thing the other had left, which implied a tragedy, something Reborn knew nothing about.
The biggest part of his mind was trying not to overexert itself with being stunned at the thought of being given a choice to leave now and 'forever hold his peace', so to say. He'd never heard of a Sky being so ... willing to let a perfectly matched Element go. Then again, Hibari himself had said it, didn't he? He was a Cloud first. His Sky Flames were tertiary. His Primary Flames are the ones his personality took after.
Hibari's thinking is probably based on how he himself would like to be treated had he been only a Cloud, without any additional Flames.
It made him a rather unusual Sky, but, then again, just his situation with his Flames was unusual.
Now that Reborn's been given a choice and the reality of that sank in, he devoted all of his conscious thoughts to said choice and what each option would mean in the long run. Funnily enough, the first thing that occurred to him as a good thing should he decide to bond with Hibari was that he'd get to see Fon again, maybe even have a chance to fix things between them so they can at least be on friendly terms, no matter how much he'd actually like that they could be more. Another tick on his positive list is that his life won't change much, unless it is by his choice. Hibari had put a lot of emphasis on the fact that all of his Guardians had been given a choice as to what they will do with their lives, whether they want to stay with him or not. Reborn needs that, or else he'd be tempted to kill the Sky that bonds him, binds him in place just so he can have his previous freedom. Another good thing that immediately pops to mind is that he has a feeling he'd actually like Hibari. The kid was sharp, smart and competent, not to mention strong, skilled and knows how to take care of himself. The latter qualities were really important as well, because no Element comes out sane should their Sky die. Reborn may love chaos and his own brand of insanity, but that doesn't mean he'd like to turn raving mad.
Actually, the only bad things Reborn could think of about bonding Hibari was the danger he himself presented to the boy. Should anyone ever learn Reborn has a Sky, especially one as compatible as he suspects Hibari to be with him, it would paint a huge target on Hibari's back and the whole of Cosa Nostra would come after him, either to kill or kidnap him so they would drive Reborn insane or have leverage over him. Hibari was young. He didn't yet know about just how far the mafia would go to get what they want. Namimori is peaceful, even though that's the case through probably Hibari's own efforts.
And the other thing, well ...
Reborn didn't even realize his hand had come up to grip his Pacifier until Hibari spoke up. "I don't mean to pry or persuade your decision one way or the other, but if the only reason you are hesitant to bond with me is the Arcobaleno curse-"
"It's not exactly a small thing,' Reborn half snapped, half drawled, eye twitching in irritation. "This thing is bound to me practically on a soul level. I'll wear it until I die and I'll die as an Arcobaleno, a cursed infant."
Hibari actually rolled his eyes at him and the Sun nearly bristled had the teen not cut him off. "I've known about the Arcobaleno for ten years, give or take a few months. Do you really believe I would sit back and do nothing while I watch my last remaining relative die a slow, possibly painful death? Do you think I would let one of my Guardians suffer such a fate? Or any similar fate?"
Reborn didn't say anything, even as an unexpected, long forgotten feeling sparked within his heart. How long has it been since he'd felt hope?
"If you are only hesitating because of your current state, then please tell me. If you don't have any other misgivings, I will just introduce you to my ... 'secondary' Mist and we'll explain our plan for lifting the Arcobaleno curse. We already have a solution; we're just waiting for it to be made."
"You seriously have something that can reverse this?" He asked a bit disbelievingly, surprised to find himself on his feet and considerably closer to Hibari than he had been before. "How likely is it to work? Is it something that will bring the Vindice down on our heads?"
"Yes. A hundred percent. Not likely, given they're also involved." Well, that last one definitely surprised the hitman, though he guessed it shouldn't have. He just wondered what their role in the whole thing will be. "Do you want to meet the Mist first or-?"
Reborn didn't even hesitate. He put his small, tanned hand over Hibari's pale, larger one and let his Flames dance just over the skin. He felt the violet part, the indigo shift to make way for pretty, pretty orange and then Hibari's Sky Flames brushed up against his, as if asking if he was sure. The hitman wasn't sure if he wanted to scoff, laugh or cry at this show of consideration, but he didn't hesitate to nudge the Sky Flames back like a cat asking to be pet. There was no hesitation after that, none at all, as orange openly welcomed yellow and a low glow appeared around their touching hands. Reborn, for a second, felt a bit invaded, exposed before such a sense of peace and belonging washed over him that he felt like he was bathing in sunshine and feeling that warmth for the first time in his life. It actually made tears prickle at his eyes and he looked up at his Sky in something like annoyed wonder because he was Reborn damn it, the world's greatest hitman! He shouldn't be feeling these mushy emotions! He's not soft.
But all of his annoyance melted away when he saw how sleepy and soft Hibari looked at that moment, as though he were the one drunk on Flames and not the other way around, as it would usually be. Then again, Hibari's Sky Flames were minuscule in comparison to his primary and secondary Flames and Reborn's own overshadowed even Hibari's potent Cloud. It's quite possible that Hibari was experiencing a bit of a stimuli overload right now and it was making him deliriously sleepy. This could have, potentially, also happened when he and Fon bonded, but if Hibari's earlier stated theory is true, no one would have noticed because he'd be a baby and babies sleep a lot. Even Reborn, who was a fully grown man stuck in a baby's body often took naps. And even if it had happened when he was a bit older, Hibari liked napping. It's what he had been doing when Reborn had come up to the roof!
Still, this wasn't ordinary sleepiness, as evidenced by all of his Flames flickering over his eyes in an interesting dance that kind of hypnotized Reborn until the prefect swayed sitting up. That got the hitman to let go of his hand and huff at the teen. "Just go back to your nap, Hibari-"
"Kyoya," Hibari said and his words were kind of slurred even before the yawn interrupted him. "All my Guardians call me by my first name in some form. I would really appreciate it if you would, too. If you're comfortable, that is. Don't wanna seem ... greedy and overbearing and ... all icky Sky-like, forcin' my Guardians to act how they don't wanna an-"
"Just take a nap, Kyoya," Reborn interrupted with an unbearable warmth spreading through his small chest that had nothing to do with Flames or the Pacifier. "You sound drunk. You probably are Flame drunk. Just sleep it off."
"Mmhnm, okay," the teenager agreed easily enough, elegantly flopping down onto his side - how he managed to make that look elegant probably either bespoke of his upbringing under Fon or the fact that he was clearly indeed Reborn's perfectly compatible Sky - and curled up like a cat. "Will ya stay?" It was asked in a kind of childish way that Reborn had never thought he could ever associate with Hibari. And yet here it was.
Then again, he may be a Cloud, but he was also an orphan who had lost his parents and who knows who or what else if only a cursed infant was left to be his legal guardian.
And besides, it's best for newly bonded Sky and Element to stay close to each other for a while after bonding. It made it easier for the bond to settle and it didn't upset either side that they were later even countries apart.
Reborn didn't even get the chance to assure Hibari he will watch over the teen for a while because Hibari- Kyoya had already gone back to sleep. The Sun huffed fondly and settled down. Leon, being the caring chameleon that he was, turned into a blanket and settled on his own over the Cloudy Misty Sky. He wasn't sure if he'd gone insane to give himself such a weakness, but he already had one Hibari permanently lodged in his cold, black little heart, right? Another one won't make that big of a difference ...
So he just spent that whole day, on the rooftop with his new Sky, staring up at the sun and the drifting clouds.