Quick note before the chapter: Thank you so much to my three editors! Love you guys so much! Hope you enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 43
When Isago woke up, he was relieved that he was in his own room. He couldn't see what he was doing in the darkness, but he was very sure that he had entered the correct room and fallen on the correct bed. There was a pang of sharpness that hammered into his front forehead as he winced, getting up from the bed and staring at the messy room where he had thrown his coat and his shoes randomly.
"Dammit, I'm never drinking again-" Isago felt the throbbing and drumming on the back of his head before he realized that his shirt was open- arms still looped in the clothes but nevertheless, it was open, showing his marvellous six-pack abs that were so faint that he had to suck his stomach to see them in bodybuilder mode. He clutched his head before his eyes wandered on their own to the other side of his queen-sized mattress. He regretted it instantly when he saw Reborn sleeping casually on his other pillow, in his midnight pyjamas.
His heart thudded faster as a result.
You know that moment where you see someone you know on the streets and you try to unsee them? Yes, that was Isago right now. What was this situation? After the Sawada residence, he had made sure to give Reborn his own room so that the hitman didn't have to babysit him anymore-
Then he remembered. And for the next ten minutes, Isago buried his head inside his hands, chin trembling as his cheeks reddened at his own shame. He felt like screaming. What in the world- he took calm and quiet breaths and forced himself to shut down and have his mind go blank to get rid of the unnecessary questions from piling up in his mind. First was first, he revealed that this world was an anime. He was actually stunned at how well Reborn took that information.
But well, Mukuro was a reincarnator, and even if the news surprised Reborn, he was known for his poker face. The infant must have mulled over all the possibilities and signs in their past before accepting his explanation. Even though Isago wanted to keep this all a secret so he could use it against Reborn if anything went wrong. He felt like he was stripped naked from the slip up- and his drunk self even had the nerve to blabber about how handsome Reborn was while chomping on his head.
It was so out of character that Isago wanted to cry.
He was more of an inner-party girl in his past life, but his drunk self had brought it back up like a truck that rammed into his side. Reborn was handsome though- although Isago had only taken a glimpse from Lucas and Lucille giving him the information from the ten-minute span Lucas was in the future. Usagi didn't notice, but in that future, Reborn was standing beside Isago on top of a tower that was located in the sky. The wind and the blue background had taken him back to how Vongola Primo's guardians were positioned in some pictures in the anime.
Did his future self try to recreate that?
Other than that, his ring was glowing along with- Reborn's sun Mare.
How was that possible? Aurelio was considered his official guardian yet the Mare didn't choose him? Isago needed to plan onwards and find another ring for Aurelio then. The pacifiers would be the perfect plan since he was originally going for those in the beginning. He couldn't see into the future since it was his current timeline that they had journeyed to. In all the other timelines that he was an adult, he was from Vongola. Which meant that he was physically creating another strand of timelines after he had gotten the Mare ring.
In order to secure his own future, he would need the ten-year bazooka but again, he was hesitant to send any more of his guardians into the future. After all, Byakuran was on a hunting spree for him. That man had reached the same conclusion as Isago after that moment the Mare flashed a certain colour on Isago's hand. He knew that Isago would go for the Mare rings in a certain timeline. What Byakuran wanted wasn't anything else- he wanted power and a version of Isago that was the same as the one he had made love to. The one that he was so infatuated with.
So it was a battle between collecting the Trinisette and Isago building enough manpower along with the Sky Mare in his possession. Isago knew- he had a feeling after seeing into several timelines that Byakuran was going to recreate the time machine. The good thing was that in the Vongola timeline where Isago had destroyed the machine, Isago had already memorized the blueprint for the time machine. Even though he didn't need one right now, a time machine was always helpful.
This entire game with Byakuran… was a complete butcher on time.
He drew a long and exasperated sigh before sliding out of his covers and walking towards the wardrobe while ignoring the rhythm of blood throbbing behind his head. He reached in to get a fresh shirt and looped his arms into the sleeves before starting to button up.
"I was very amused with your passionate confession last night, Vivo."
Isago froze halfway, then continued his work with a blank face. Best solution: play dumb.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Reborn," Isago turned around and folded the collar neatly while giving Reborn a strange look. There was an entertained glimmer in Reborn's black eyes along with the smirk that Isago just wanted to wipe off right now. "I woke up with you by my side. I can conclude that I was throwing a fit from my first drop of alcohol."
"So if I troubled you," Isago smiled innocently and bowed like a prince. "Please forgive me."
"What a pity," Reborn lowered his eyes as if disappointed. They both knew that they were acting though. It was a battle to see who won out at the end. "Then you wouldn't have remembered your request to- 'suck me'?"
Isago had the urge to slap himself but instead, he grinned mischievously.
"Did I? I must have mistaken you for a lollipop. Lambo was on my mind all day before the alcohol incident."
Reborn pursed his lips while he shifted his elbows to rest on his knees.
"I remembered clearly that you mentioned my name in that sentence, Vivo."
"Really? Then my mind must have been jumbled. Reborn, you should know best that you cannot take a drunk person's words seriously."
"A pity," Reborn said as his eyes glinted with evil. "Drunk Vivo took advantage of my affections for him and bed me against my will. You were quite tasty, Vivo."
There was a pulse on Isago's forehead as he quirked a stony smile onto his lips.
"I doubt that the world's greatest hitman would allow his former student to push him down," Isago laughed before leaning against his wardrobe with calculating eyes. He crossed his arms in front of his chest and hummed a tone similar to what Byakuran always did out of habit. It felt like an underlying insult to Reborn, and Isago was content that Reborn didn't realize it.
"If that really happened, then we wouldn't call ourselves unwilling, correct?" Isago held Reborn's gaze and gave him a coy smile. Reborn's face twitched into small laughter. "Aside from that, I tend to be very possessive of my partners. If that really happened, your neck would not have been so bare."
Isago gestured to Reborn's untouched body. He hadn't even started bringing up the topic of Reborn's fragile infant body which probably couldn't take his teenager weight full-on without choking to death. Was the hickey thing fake? Absolute bullshit. He didn't want extra information on his bedding stories or habits from his other-selves. The most he would do was to peep in after they had done the deed to see if either Byakuran or Tsuna would leak information out.
"You probably can't see it from afar, Vivo. But you definitely left marks," Reborn chuckled darkly and Isago took his steps carefully, feeling a bit off from Reborn's tactic. He didn't leave hickeys from last night's chomp, right? Isago didn't remember but he was also sure that he would have never done something so preposterous. When he edged towards Reborn's side, Reborn's hand shot out and with a yelp from Isago's mouth, his tutor pulled him over him.
There was a stunned silence as Isago's widened eyes directed at Reborn's actions. The baby was smirking gleefully at the entire situation and took Isago's frozen state to his advantage. There was something ablaze in Reborn's eyes.
"We were both drunk, Vivo," Reborn hinted while his voice reminded Isago of the low cello that he heard yesterday night. No, Isago could not see Reborn as a love interest in his current form, but his adult form? The moment Isago linked that purr with Reborn's true body, there was a slight tint on his cheeks. Reborn's eyes shimmered victoriously at Isago's reaction.
"It's not unusual for two grown adults to leave a business unfinished in a haze."
There was a funny smile on Isago's face as he tried pulling himself off of Reborn, but the hitman's strength even in his infant form was powerful enough to force him down. The only way Isago could get out of this situation was to use his flame state but wouldn't that declare his loss in front of Reborn? But again, even if Isago was competitive at the things he wanted to win, he knew that Reborn was better at him in this area.
"Reborn," Isago's smile turned into a serious frown that did not affect the hitman. "You do know that you can't take my words from last night seriously, right?"
"Which one, Vivo?" Reborn tempted Isago with the same tone he had just moments ago. It struck a reaction from Isago and he could feel Reborn's constant flames tempting his own flame.
"I know that you are fond of me, but I can't afford to lose to Byakuran in this timeline," Isago said and his gaze trailed towards Reborn who let him go slowly. There was definitely hatred for Byakuran. Yes, definitely. He needed to kill him. There was a sparkle in the hitman's eyes which made Isago hesitate on pulling away immediately. It just felt dangerous, and Isago could sense the hidden bloodlust crawling out of the hitman's body.
"Not this version, Reborn," Isago murmured apologetically and Reborn's lip twitched. It was like countless knives stabbed against his own will when he said that. He had no idea why- but he felt extremely apologetic about the fact that he was leading Reborn on ever since that night when Reborn had confessed to him.
It really wasn't on purpose, but now that he recalled all his flirtatious actions, it was impossible for him not to realize that his favourite character had made an impact on him. He should have shut it down earlier. He should have made up his mind before he got the Mare rings. If he knew sooner that all his timelines were in utter chaos, he would have never been tempted by Reborn in the first place.
"You're a cruel one, Vivo. You know that what you did yesterday made it harder for me."
"Blame it on the alcohol, I'm sorry, Reborn."
"Vivo," Reborn started and flickered his gaze back to Isago's face. There was something that Isago couldn't tell on his face before the hitman spoke. "You're already in love with me."
"...Considering that I haven't fallen for anyone before, you might be correct."
It made sense in that way, how Isago always felt calm and comfortable with Reborn. Why his heart moved at the weirdest instances when it came to this hitman. Though it was hard to say because he couldn't see Reborn attractive when he was in the body of a baby. There was no way. When Isago thought of the reactions he had towards adult Reborn though…
Baby Reborn was undeniably cute. But it wasn't the attraction kind of cute. Isago studied Reborn's form, his black hair fell elegantly against the bed sheets along with the sensual gaze that was directed at Isago. His chubby cheeks looked soft, but Isago knew there was a beast under that innocent skin of his. He was concerned for his own safety after Reborn gained his form back.
"Then leave your decision for later," Reborn remarked so confidently that it made Isago falter. "Vivo, give me a chance after I gain my form back."
It was so sudden that Isago had to laugh at that.
"You-" Isago chuckled, squeezing his eyes shut before opening them as small sparkles that resembled stars burst in his golden orbs. Where did the bitter and salty hitman go? Where was the baby that thought he was cursed till death? "That's the exact thing I was trying to prevent."
There was a sweet smile upon Isago's lips before he pushed himself off of Reborn and straightened his collar before heading towards the exit. On the way, he grabbed an extra coat from the coat rack near the exit and glanced back at the hitman. Reborn watched him with hawk-like eyes, flames extending out to him with a calm question.
"I need to work, Reborn."
q(≧▽≦q)
"Welcome," Isago's eyes glimmered at the presence of the top three inventors waiting for him in the room. All three of them stood up, although a bit surprised at Isago's age, they instantly exchanged glances and greeted him with equal respect. Reborn sat on Isago's shoulder which was an obvious indication that Isago was indeed- the sky that the world's greatest hitman had harmonized with.
In front of the three, there were assortments of their favourite dishes lined up row after row. Isago took a quick minute to speculate each inventor's personality that showed on how they dressed. One of the three was a girl, a quiet one who pushed up her glasses before quaking under Isago's stare. There was a moment that she fiddled with the bottom of her clothes, a black top along with a skirt that covered most of her legs. She wore black stockings and a pair of high knee boots before clearing her throat and introducing herself as Lukeli.
"Nice to m-meet you!" She tried and the end of her voice broke, though she immediately repeated her sentence again, this time without any stuttering. She had dark blue hair that formed a bob and her face was tanned. She was around 150 cm, cute style but Isago could also tell that she had the bravery to voice out her own opinions. Good. Because that was something he needed in an inventor. He greeted her with a warm smile, and that somehow made her smile back.
The second inventor was named Elucid, a man who was taller than Isago or the adult Reborn himself, but he had a warm grin and started asking questions on what kind of boss Isago wanted to be. They were short questions, but Isago answered them in detail, making sure that they were reassured. Indeed they were. It was like seeing a heavy boulder lift off of their shoulders while Reborn watched over Isago's persuasive techniques.
"You have very strong goals," Elucid's red hair flickered as he took out a large map and spread it over free space on the table. His yellow eyes held youth and excitement before pointing to a couple of things he wanted to change with the blueprint of Isago's base. Isago peered in, listening carefully and adding his own questions and tips. The third inventor remarked how fortunate they were for devil Reborn to have blackmailed- persuaded them to join a fair boss.
Isago chuckled when Reborn thanked them for the title, smiling evilly before the five people started to build upon their new home.
( •̀ ω •́ )y
Isago's schedule soared up with more work the moment those three inventors left. He had no appetite, but Reborn had forced him to eat some of the cake that for some reason, was on the menu when Isago hadn't ordered it. There were also crepes that Isago was munching on while writing an extra report with his free hand for Aurelio who had requested a few days ago. The chocolate banana crepe melted in his mouth as he grinned at the sweetness, taking in another bite before he heard a knock on the door.
Thadeka was standing in the hallway, wearing Notte Eterna's uniform. It fit her well, the pencil skirt hugged her curves even though Thadeka was more on the slimmer side. Isago instantly compared his past self to Thadeka, slapping his past self's face for not trying harder to lose weight. Thadeka's dark hair was longer than before, brushing past her ears as the cards and a few documents were neatly packed in her hand. Usagi peeked out from behind Thadeka, giggling with her surprise entrance that Isago had already felt with her flame's scent lingering behind Isago.
"Isago, can I have some of your time please?" Thadeka lowered her head politely while Usagi came into the room without asking and held her hands behind her back. She sat herself on the seat beside Isago and across from Reborn, slightly awkward before Isago grinned up at the two girls. There was a flash of pain that lingered through Usagi's eyes but Isago saw her blinking it away, this time having only pure affection.
"Of course, my overly polite rain. How may I help you?"
Thadeka smiled radiantly before placing the documents in front of Isago. The machine was already completed and Adriano had sent the thing over to Cervello. They were more or less happy about him keeping his promise and sent over a few girls to serve his family. They were around the age of 19 and were waiting outside the large apartment for their new boss' decision.
"I do think that they are an excellent addition, Isago," Thadeka's soft tone rang out as Usagi nodded. "However their loyalties are another factor to consider."
"I'll accept them," Isago nodded before flipping through profile information about them. They pledged their loyalties to Isago even though they were brought up by Cervello. Isago knew, however, that Cervello was using them as spies to keep tabs on their future boss.
"Keep an eye on them, but treat them as family," Isago instructed the girls and Thadeka continued her request. It was simple really- because Isago had fainted from getting the power, all his members felt terrible for not being there for him. There was guilt, along with the feeling of being incapable. Thadeka wanted to make sure that Isago would not be endangered with her cards.
Sure enough, the sun came up from her cards and Thadeka sighed in relief.
"Other than that, Thadeka," Isago lifted his gaze from the cards and Thadeka nodded once at his call. "I have a few tasks to give you. How is Shoichi's situation coming along?"
"We're texting each other a few times per week," Thadeka answered before explaining her observations. "He is a very intelligent child, just a bit low on self-esteem."
"Cunning also," Isago added with a hum. He felt Reborn blink at the new person that Isago was trying to recruit. "Make sure you don't reveal any hints of us being in the Mafia. You can joke about it. He's a genius, so don't hold any hidden motives when you're talking to him."
"Yes, Isago."
"The other tasks…" Isago started before drumming his fingers on the table and flashing Thadeka a wide smile. "Are you interested in becoming a teacher?"
Isago briefly explained the plan to her. Aurelio was going to bring a couple of children from the slums. There was also a request from Aurelio to get rid of the man who was buying the children in as slaves. Aurelio was indeed another genius. Within a few hours, he had attained information about the man- a person who worked with the Leili brothers in the past. He had sold the information about the Leili brothers onto the black market which was why Varia had captured them so fast.
Using the money obtained from Varia, he started building his own mafia group- although the man was a pedophile who had a sickening taste in young children. It was surprising to Isago when he first heard of it- the case that he worked on in the past was coming back to him at full speed. Nevertheless, it was a good way to buy his new members' loyalties. But when the number of people in his family increased, he needed more staff.
Thadeka's role in this job was to act as a temporary teacher and teach them the ways of basic elementary math. For the rest, he would hire and recruit members who could teach them harder education. Thadeka was actually overjoyed since she longed for nothing more than to teach children. There was a reason why Isago chose Thadeka for this role, first was for her to get close to the new recruits and give them a positive impression of Isago. It was also because, in another timeline, Thadeka had mentioned that if she had the chance, she wanted to become a teacher. The other one was because this would increase Thadeka's resolution.
Thadeka was the type to grow stronger when she had more people to protect. She wanted a family and was overjoyed when Isago gave her one especially when it was expanding. She wanted something to protect. Quite ironic because Isago was forcefully taking people from their lives and inserting them into the bloody war that the mafia had. And Thadeka knew about it too. That was why she was extremely important to Isago. She had the mindset and personality to remind him that what was important second only to goals and power was his own family.
A perfect rain that could hold him in check if he grew too ambitious.
The thing with timelines was that Isago hadn't begun fully using his power yet. There was so much he had to figure out before he opened his ability to peer into other worlds. It was really like an on and off switch. If Isago wanted to see into a timeline, all he had to do was activate the flame into his ring and guide him to another timeline. He would leave all the timeline things to a few days later though.
"Our base will be finished within a week, so I will send them to the second floor when we can accept them into our family," Isago finished and Thadeka excused herself, Usagi lingering behind because Isago had stopped her. Before they started anything, Isago turned to Reborn and the hitman chuckled, understanding what his sky needed before Isago even voiced it out. The hitman left the room, but Isago could feel the sun flames seeping from outside the door.
There was an awkward silence that he broke because he was well aware of the strained relationship they had. Usagi's watery eyes blinked back when he called her in a gentle voice, giving her a wry smile.
"I don't hate you," Usagi blurted out as her cheeks tinted with pink. They never had a proper conversation after she woke up from the poison's effects. Isago wanted to talk to her on the day that she got up for the ten-year time travel, but all the fainting happened for Isago and Usagi had no chance to talk to him. "I- I still love you, but I don't regret it."
Isago drew a bitter sigh before turning out to glance at the sun that was beginning to rise from the mountain. There were a couple of things that he needed to finish before the end of today- definitely with the twins' mother. The twins were training at Verde's laboratory- another thing that he had to do since Verde wanted to see him. Aurelio's request was pending on his paper, but he concluded that after a few days, he would be able to launch the attack on the slave buyer.
"Usagi, I…" Isago hesitated for a second before he lowered his head. "I'm sorry."
"It was fun being with you, Isago," she whispered before tears started to dribble out of her pink eyes. "I really loved you, but now I will accompany you as your guardian."
"My only storm guardian," Isago stood up and reassured her, kneeling in front of her as he took her by the hands. He didn't move his eyes from her while he smiled gently. "Usagi, sometimes we don't need an affectionate relationship to be close. I hold you closer than my brother who has lived with me for years and-"
"-And you are irreplaceable to me," Isago closed his eyes as he reached out with his eternal flames, calming her down with part of her rain. He could feel her pain, her reluctance and her desire to just throw herself into Isago's arms but she held it back. She held it back because she already knew that Isago was untouchable. He didn't belong to her. That was what her red flames were trying to tell him.
"I will always love you," Usagi smiled bitterly. "Isago, my sky."
When she left, Reborn walked into the room with his hat covering half his face.
"Vivo," he called out as Isago closed his eyes and sunk into his seat.
"Usagi would have died early if I didn't force her into my family," Isago murmured, feeling all the weight on his shoulders before opening his eyes that were shimmering like the sea. "In countless timelines, she died by the hands of her cousins."
"I'm not going to risk that," Isago chuckled before pushing himself up in his chair. It was late in the morning, but he had finished ten documents and a meeting already. The leader of the mafia was nothing more than deskwork. Reborn nodded approvingly at Isago's words before he leaped onto Isago's shoulder and they headed towards Verde's lab.
(●ˇ∀ˇ●)
Tsuna had changed a lot.
He walked through the halls with Gokudera behind him and although Tsuna was wearing his old hoodie that now seemed a bit small for the boy, there was a soft aura of confidence that was radiating from his shoulders. His chest was held high but not his chin yet. There was not an imposing glimmer that indicated his power and position in the mafia yet, but his long strides on the dark red carpet told a different story. How long had he been in the Vongola?
Yes, around a couple of months. Tsuna lifted his round eyes towards the windows and smiled slightly when he saw the blue skies behind the puffed-up white clouds. In his gut, he had a feeling that everything would go smoothly today.
(●ˇ∀ˇ●)
"Welcome, test subject," Verde said emotionlessly while his eyebags answered everything that Isago had to question. Reborn's head turned to the front where Viper was kicking around in his seat. Heavy ropes bound him and Isago could tell Verde had invented flame absorbing ones after capturing Viper.
Isago! Lucille's voice chimed into his mind and Isago cast his gaze towards the two machines that were at the back of the room. Lucille and Lucas were in a flame extender each, Lucas crossing his arms as he slept while Lucille was swishing his arms and giggling at the bubbles that escaped his mouth.
The two flames that flickered in and out were enough to signal Isago exactly how much they had improved. Lucas grunted his greeting back but there was a slight giddiness to his flame. Reborn on the other hand, hopped off of Isago's shoulder to observe the machine that the entire market was raging off of. So far other than Cervello, there was one on the black market and of course, the Vongola had purchased it for their upcoming leader.
Not knowing that the creators were Isago and Verde.
Bei Li stepped into the laboratory at the same time, greeting Isago with a confident grin.
"Verde, your materials are here," Bei Li shrugged before turning back to Isago and slinging an arm around his neck. Isago lifted his eyebrow at Bei Li's smug smile and asked what he was working on recently.
"Your most handsome guardian thought of some ways of making money and collecting information in the underworld so-" Bei Li said while jazzing his free hand before pulling out a couple hundreds that lined in front of Isago with a poof. Isago tilted his head and asked what his most handsome guardian did. "I became a host. Kudos to me for thinking of that idea, right? There are some girls that really love me, but the scar on my face scares them."
"I've got you covered," Isago laughed before pushing the handful of hundreds out of his face. "One of my new inventors is working on the beauty machine. Within three days it will be made. As for the money, keep it to yourself. All I need is your report if there is any information from the underworld."
Bei Li widened his eyes for a second, mouth agape before flashing Isago a broad smile.
"Boss, you're not only rich but generous!" Bei Li cackled and relaxed his shoulders as he slid all of the money into his pocket without trying to argue with Isago. He pulled off of Isago and his long legs crossed over the other while he balanced his weight on his feet. "My best decision was to follow you."
"You are one in a million, Bei Li," there was a glint in Isago's eye and Bei Li puffed up his chest even harder. If it wasn't for Verde's interruption, he would have applauded himself again for choosing Isago. Bei Li laughed, patting Isago with a mischievous smirk and exited out of the laboratory to collect for material for Verde's fifth Flame Extender.
Isago's hyper intuition hinted at Viper's usefulness when he walked past the baby who slammed onto the glass panel, cursing with his flabby cheeks.
"Why don't you have Lucille fight him while you're monitoring his flames?" Isago suggested and Verde glanced up at him, instantly typing a few words into his keyboard and smirking.
"Resourceful, aren't you, Isago?"
"I thank all my experiences at being a leader."
Verde nodded approvingly before hitting the enter button and a black panel slid past the glass cage for Viper. For a moment there it seemed like the outside rooms were moving, a smooth transition sound of sandpaper grazed through Isago's ears as a new room slid in front of them, brightly lit up with Isago's zero point ice.
"Watch," Verde instructed before two hands came out from the sides and smacked the ice into pieces. Reborn walked towards the two, eyes also on the ice before flickering them back to Isago. The crushed ice slowly started to grow again, returning back to its original size while maintaining an orange and blue glow fading in and out. Another experiment happened with the click of Verde's fingers, laser, weapons, flame burning- almost everything Isago could imagine, the ice returned back to normal.
"Congratulations, I've found another property of your flame," Verde swished his seat around as he pushed his glasses up his nose with a small chuckle. "Your naming sense was perfectly on point due to your hyper intuition. Your flame is truly eternal."
Isago raked his fingers through his hair, pushing back the front before tilting his head to the side and said, "Aside from trapping enemies, the speed of my ice can increase. Are there any more techniques that I can utilize to my flames?"
Verde smiled with amusement.
"Speed at this rate is already considered insane to normal flame users since your flames are working by themselves. I want you to try and control that ice in the distance," Verde snapped his fingers and lifted his chin at his screen. "There hasn't been another technique you can use from previous flame users since you are the first of your kind."
"You'll have to make one yourself, Vivo."
Isago didn't answer but his eyes flared to red before the ice inside that space started to grow- grow so large that on top of Verde's computer, there was a red light blaring with warnings. Isago let his grasp off the block of ice, and the zero point stopped growing. When the ice fully came to a stop, Isago pulled back and grinned.
"I just had a really good idea."
"Ice bullets, Vivo?"
Isago locked eyes with the hitman, suddenly feeling a rise of sun flames pushed against his sky, caressing the tips. Isago ripped his gaze off of the infant, then back to his main inventor, Verde who was smirking very...knowingly.
"I'll do the modifications," Verde gestured to Isago's gun on his waist. There was a moment before Verde's eyes slanted into slits then he turned his head off of the two men. "So you've found your sky and lover. What a lucky man you are, Reborn."
"In which I'm not exactly fond of becoming the latter without resistance," Isago cleared his throat and gave Verde a stony look. "You do know that probing into someone's private life is disrespectful, Verde?"
Verde laughed.
"I meant no harm, test subject."
"As long as you are aware, Verde."
Reborn blinked, a coy smile crossing his lips as he looked towards his sky.
"I'm not opposed to it, Vivo."
"You said to give you a chance after you regain your form back?" Isago glanced back at the sun then rolled his eyes to the front. "So don't make a move on me until that happens."
"That's not giving me a chance at all, Vivo."
"You'll just have to work with it."
Verde's green eyes gleamed. "What's this? The World's most popular hitman having a hard time with his love interest?"
"He's different, Verde," Reborn chuckled and placed his hands behind his back. There was an attractive smirk on Reborn's face as well as a relaxed hold of his shoulders. "He's someone I can't touch until he consents."
"Our sky is a very hard nut to crack," Verde shoved his hands into his pockets before glancing over his files again. "I wish you luck, Reborn."
"You're not doubting your eyes," Isago answered before turning back to the screen. "When can I receive the weapon?"
"A workaholic too," Verde noted before glancing back at his fellow arcobaleno. "You're better off with the one-night flings you've had in the past."
They're annoying, Lucas said.
Agreed, Isago replied back with more of a mocking tone. When are your extensions done? Tethla Young's body is here.
Mother's? Lucille sang out as his hand patted the glass he was behind.
Bitch's, Lucas corrected and his brother giggled.
Bitch's!
(*^▽^*)
Isago felt confident despite all the men in the room. His eyes flickered to the side, counting the number of people as he sat in front of the grotesque man who puckered his lips when he read the documents in front of him. This was the man who was buying slaves. It wasn't easy to infiltrate the place- scratch that, it was very easy since Aurelio had defined the characteristics of the guy. Greedy, arrogant, and disrespectful. He had a brown moustache under his nose and his eyes were gleaming although small. The crinkles around his eyes bore evidence of his age. He wore a tight-fitted suit and a white collared shirt inside while his outside was filled with purple and lavished yellow that resembled the gold. His pants were sweatpants, which didn't suit his style at all.
The buttons around his stomach were starting to burst due to the fact that it seemed as if the suit was one size smaller than it actually was. He had curly hair that seemed to be covered with yesterday's grease. Isago didn't like it at all because it seemed like this person did not know the definition of a shower. He didn't show it on his face, but the utter disgust he had was equal to the amount of amusement that was lingering in his body. This man resembled a perfect villain. The overly fat blueberry character turned out to be whatever he portrayed himself to be.
As expected from a shounen anime.
Once again, Isago was reminded that this was an anime that he existed in.
There was a stench coming from the room – or coming from the man himself. Isago realized that he was quite small compared to this…oversized blueberry. The man shook from his laughter under Isago's scrutinizing gaze, lifted his head and with a jolly but clingy tone, he said, "An alliance, huh?"
"Of course," Isago smiled politely without taking his eyes off of the person. The man had requested Isago to give him all his weapons and a thorough body search. It was all in Isago's predictions, which was why he brought a couple of fakes to this place. He walked through the halls before arriving at this office, his eyes cleaned with an underlying evil. "Are you willing?"
The man laughed, his voice caving into the deeper parts yet it sounded more like the squawk of a suffocating duck. He opened his blue eyes, seemingly as if to size Isago up, then with his fat, short fingers, he ripped the paper in half. The sound of the paper shrieked out their own complaints as their dust from the insides fell down without another sound.
"You? A child? Hah! Another one of those fakes who want to go after my wealth! You do look well for your age though-'' The man leaned forward with his repulsive face, and Isago wanted to doubt his eyes because it seemed as if a sliver of drool leaked out from the man's mouth. "Do you want to become one of my...subjects? I'll treat you rather well unlike those bastards from the slums. Now that I take a closer look at you, you're rather delicate- no, perfectly in between, not too slim and not too muscular either…"
Isago felt a shiver of disgust run down his forearms as the man smiled with a distorted flash of his yellow and crooked teeth while eying him up and down as if he was some kind of sex doll. There was a degenerated twinkle in that man's eyes before he walked towards Isago with a perverse strand of saliva in between his mouth. Isago could hear the man trying to inhale his scent while a flush crept from his neck.
"How about it? I'll pay you twenty hundred euros per day. You will become my favourite child. I could always use a pretty boy like you-"
A certain sun flame outside curled up with irony.
"Thanks, but I've already reached my objective," Isago smiled tightly and waved his hand, the Mare ring sparking with orange and blue before the whole room was enveloped in white.
(*^▽^*)
Isago sat on the seat, humming as his hands flipped through the notes of embellishments and child slaves. In front of him, was a gorgeous and lavish table painted in a rich brown that resembled the colour of chocolate. On the right corner, there were inks and feather pens, quite old and out of fashion for the century. Isago grinned despite the vacant stare that he had. It was nevertheless to say that talking to that man was traumatizing. In front of him, blood dripped from the tables, splashing onto the ground as the bodies of the men were almost unrecognizable.
Holes pierced through their faces, their eyes ripped wide open with the horror and the terror that they went through in that one second. There was a cruel smile on Isago's face as he glanced at the man who was just studying him with that repulsive gaze of his. He was on the ground, purple clothes ripped to the point where they mingled with his flesh. It now seemed like a deep colour of black - his blood and organs mixed along with the one-size smaller suit. Bones poked out of his body yet they were melted by the flames that Isago had in his condensed lasers. Though Isago was not well-versed in torture, he knew enough to give the person pain before their deaths.
There was a coffee table before the desk, and a couple of cut-off fingers dropped from the edges of the squared structure. They landed with a splatter, drops of blood flew to the other uncolored side of the ground. The intricate designs on the walls were no longer there, they were now coated with a thick liquid that smelled exactly the same as their repugnant breaths. Through the noise of his younger sun guardian slashing his way through the mansion, the door opened, revealing Reborn who leaned against the doorframe with his small build.
"Vivo," he called, amused before Isago lifted his eyes off of the documents. "I'm a bit angry."
"Should I have left him to you?" Isago questioned before jerking his thumb across the white sheet of paper. It was pretty because the red tint followed his finger, on command and drew a serene line across the bottom. Isago's eyes shimmered at the colour, then moved back to Reborn who was shifted in his position. The sun's flames moved, though irked about the blood on the ground. His feet stepped onto the ground, not minding it the second time before he hopped onto the desk.
Of course, Reborn was a very stylish figure.
"I'm more disturbed that you didn't mind the words that he directed at you."
"What can I say?" Isago's clear eyes gazed with a different shimmer as he stared at Reborn's face. He grinned slightly and playfully before lowering his head into a mischievous chuckle. "I'm conflicted if I should feel flattered or disgusted."
"They say flames portray the characteristics of the user," Reborn blinked as a small smirk crawled into his lips. "You're too much of a sky, Vivo."
"Too accepting?" Isago quirked an eyebrow before placing the pile of documents onto the table. He inched forward to the hitman and mirrored his cat-like curl. "I do seem like the type to accept a person into my family even if they flash me."
"Not even Baka Tsuna would have accepted that," Reborn tilted his head before Leon twirled his tail on Reborn's shoulder. There was an interesting glint as Reborn moved his fingers across his own hair. "I really wonder if you two are brothers."
"By blood, not characteristics," Isago shifted his weight into his left shoulder and gazed at the hitman who captivated his eyes. Isago didn't know why, but within the storm of chaos, Reborn was still able to appear so well kept together. Isago really did admire him. Thinking back, if Katekyo never ended in its anime, he would have done more research on Reborn.
"Vivo, despite saying that you don't want a relationship, your flames and eyes are telling a different story."
"Sometimes," Isago said without taking his eyes off of the infant. "I really wonder if everything around me will just disappear."
Reborn looked at his sky quietly.
"I'm not from the same world as you are- you know that," Isago whispered as his hand trailed towards the hitman before pausing midway and retracting his motion with a slight smile. "This may be only a hallucination in my vegetable state in the real world. Who knows? Maybe I would someday wake up and find that the whole world was just a part of my imagination."
"That's why I don't want to fall too deep in this world. It will hurt me too much."
"That explains why you don't have any attachments," Reborn said in a monotone but Isago could feel the sun's flames curl up to his own, caressing him. Reborn frowned a bit when Isago retracted his flames and completely diminished them. "Vivo, I am not a dream."
"I am well aware," Isago chuckled before shifting back into his seat and sighing. "It's been 16 years. Too specific and too long to call it a dream. I put in so much hard work that if I actually wake up from this, I'd rage."
He searched Reborn's face before closing his eyes.
"In actuality, it's not that I don't want to accept you- I'm just reluctant with the fear of losing myself in time," Isago flapped his hands on his stomach and laughed bitterly, opening his golden eyes. "I do like you, Reborn. I really do. But I'm still too immature to let my most vulnerable side out."
"After all-" Isago paused. "First love is the most painful."
Silence echoed into the room and the only sound was Aurelio's laughter as the countless screams bounced from wall to wall, coating the entire place with a spray of crimson liquid.
"You're alive," Reborn's voice grew tense and he stopped closer to Isago, grasping the sky's face with his two hands. Isago could hear the pounding of his own heart, but he drowned it out with his own acceptance. There was a frown that engraved deeply on Reborn's face while Isago felt a slight clench from the man's hands. "I'm alive with you, Vivo."
Isago drew a long sigh before he closed his eyes and grasped Reborn's hand with his own. He felt the warmth from Reborn before smiling softly.
"I know," he uttered. "I know."
AN:
I really think that Isago suits the Mare rings. I mean, Mare rings are non-blood passable, and Isago's existence will only be there for this timeline/period. He didn't exist in the first place, so his life is only a single period in the whole picture. Other than that, he's a reincarnation from another world and has a unique flame which makes him stand out since the Mare rarely chooses their owners.
He values freedom- similar to a bird who cannot handle its wings being clipped. He will start from scratch, and build his own wings if they are destroyed. Wings...remind you of the Mare ring designs?
I honestly created this character without having the idea that he would go for the Mare rings. But looking back, he really is the perfect owner for the sky mare. Not too greedy, but has enough ambition to accomplish his goals. No world domination here- and he knows where his borders are. He wants to be remembered, which is the only way he has to prove that he exists. The Mare ring was long forgotten ever since the first Mare user who I believed was one of the last two earthlings.
Other than that, I saw a comment telling me that my updates were slow. I'm so sorry that my pace is not fast enough for you, and I'm delighted to see that you really like my fanfic. Unfortunately, I have university along with a whole wad of tests, balancing two jobs at once as a broke university student paying 9k per semester, and my lacking social life. I don't know if my speed is considered slow in the average fanfiction updating pace...
I can show you a very slow update if you want...?