Why did I even agree to talk to Gokudera? Why did I pity him? Was it because he looked like a kicked puppy? Gokudera brought me to a café. I only ordered green tea. If I were to get coffee like I usually do, Fon would be upset with me. The caffeine content in coffee made me lose focus during meditation sessions. "Why did you drag me all the way into town?" I asked, hiding any annoyance I had for him. He gripped his cup of coffee.
"What's the real reason Kanade didn't go to the funeral?"
"I already told you earlier. I won't repeat myself."
"You weren't here yesterday. She could have gone to be there for you." He obviously still liked me.
"Why are you mad Kanade didn't go?"
"I wouldn't have abandoned you. She doesn't deserve to be your girlfriend if she can't even let you cry on her shoulder." It's hard for her to actually be there when she's dead.
"You hardly know anything about me, Gokudera."
"Huh?"
"Kanade knows me better than I know myself. She knows how I react in any given situation."
"That doesn't mean I can't get to know you!" Part of me was afraid he'd never get over me. Tsuna, Yamamoto, and Reborn were running towards the café.
"Listen, Gokudera, I know you mean well, but I'm not interested in you."
"I know that. Maybe if you hung out with me, you might be interested." The three walked in the café without Gokudera noticing.
"I don't want to get to know you."
"Why not?" He raised his voice.
"I don't like persistence. It's annoying."
"And how did Kanade ask you out?" Gokudera basically spat at me.
"She didn't give me a choice."
"And you were okay with that?!"
"I was." Gokudera groaned with frustration.
"You…"
"Gokudera!" He jumped and turned towards Tsuna.
"What are you guys doing here?"
"We knew you were going to bother Shiori when you didn't walk home with us." Tsuna said. Reborn jumped onto the table and looked at me.
"I'm sorry for your loss. Gokudera must be adding to the stress you already have." I could only nod. "Let's go, Gokudera and stop bothering Shiori. She just lost a loved one and questioning things you can't fix will only make things worse. You're making a fool of yourself." Gokudera hung his head low and left with Yamamoto. I let out a sigh and finished my tea.
"I'm glad you guys got here in time."
"I'm glad we made it in time too." Tsuna replied.
"He just can't take 'no' for an answer. Do you think you two can talk some sense into him? He won't listen to me."
"We've already tried, but I guess giving him a sterner talking to won't hurt."
"Thank you, Reborn." I stood up and stretched. "I'll see you in school, Tsuna. Make sure you get your homework done." I left and went straight home. Thankfully, there were no interruptions and Fon wasn't mad I was late. In fact, he was watching everything go down from afar.
"Do they know about Xanxus?" Fon asked over dinner.
"No one does and I'd appreciate it if you kept that between us. Xanxus wouldn't appreciate it if people knew."
"What kind of person is Xanxus when he's with you?"
"I'm not sure you'd believe me."
Fon shrugged his shoulders. "I have no reason to doubt you, Shiori." I put my chopsticks down.
"Well, Xanxus is just as grumpy as usual. Though, when we're alone he isn't as angry unless Squalo starts yelling or if someone walks in the room. He tries his best to keep me safe and went as far as leaving Squalo to protect me while they had an important meeting that turned ugly. He makes everything better and I'd like to think I have the same effect on him."
"I'm surprised, but I guess if you can go from your usual kind self to a cold hearted killer, Xanxus can be kind." Fon was more understanding than I thought. Most would just scoff and refuse to believe me. It was refreshing. "By the way, I couldn't help but hear about your trouble with the Hibari family."
"And?"
"Are you the one behind the disappearances?"
"Yes and if you have a problem with it, I suggest you live somewhere else." He shook his head.
"I know you wouldn't kill without reason. I was just wondering. The rumor is they go out on a mission and disappear. Nothing is left behind. You were the only one I can think of that can successfully murder someone without leaving evidence." I finished up my meal.
"I'm glad you think so highly of my ability. I knew the first would be left undetected because of the kidnappings. I'm surprised they sent more after the others."
"I'm more surprised they haven't tried to kill you." Fon replied.
"They've tried, but they don't know who they're messing with." Fon smiled at me.
"That's right. Depending on your training, you will be one of the strongest in the Vongola family. You're already strong with Nikita's training. Unfortunately, you were gifted with a strong flame with the potential to kill you." I leaned against the table.
"What's the chance my flame will kill me?" I asked with slight worry.
"If you have another episode where you're not in control, you will die. You get internal wounds when you fully use your flame. That means your flame isn't doing what it should."
"That's just great." I rolled my eyes with annoyance. I didn't like how I could accidentally kill myself.
"Fortunately for you, all you need to do is teach your flame not to attack your body. You have an abnormal amount of power where your flame is confused."
"That's all?" He nodded. "I think I can do that."
"It'll be difficult for the two of us. People can naturally use their flame and while you're a natural at using your flame in practice, your body somehow lacks the ability to defuse it. You might just have a blocker." I tilted my head. A blocker? Didn't Mammon tell me something like that? I hummed. "What is it?"
"Mammon can help. He knows what my mind looks like and interacted with me there. He said something about me being asleep."
"If my training fails, I'll contact Mammon."
A couple of days passed since then. Fon has been making me use my flame slowly to see when my flame turns on myself. In the meantime, I bought three targets to put in the backyard to work on grandpa's techniques. Fon was interested in my little hobby. "You come from a family of archers?" He asked with curiosity.
"I do. One of my ancestors was apparently a shogun that stood beside one of the emperors. His job was to train future archers. Grandpa taught me how to shoot two arrows and knows how to fire three."
"That's amazing. Do you know how to shoot three?" I shook my head. Fon was more interested in this than he was with helping my flame issue. "I can only shoot two. Though, I have to hold the bow in a strange way. Grandpa said I'm like his mother in regards to how I hold the bow and shoot."
"I wasn't expecting you to come from a strong family. I just thought it was Nikita that made you strong. I guess the blood of shoguns run through your veins." I couldn't help but laugh. Fon was adorable. "What's funny?"
"You're more curious about this than anyone would be."
"I love history and archery is something that takes extreme skill and dedication. It's beautiful to watch." By now, Fon's eyes were sparkling. He spoke more about how he loved archery and how neat it was my family is from a long line of archers.
On the way to school, I noticed how beaten up Gokudera, Yamamoto, and Tsuna were. It made me curious about what happened, but I knew it was mafia related. In class, we were paired up to work on math. I was ultimately paired up with Yamamoto. It wasn't like I didn't want to pair up with him. I was just used to pairing up with the guy in front of me. Yamamoto pushed a desk against mine with a big smile. "It looks like we're partners."
"We are." He sat down and once everyone was situated, the teacher handed the papers out.
"So, how do you do this?" He asked.
"Didn't we just go over this in class?"
"I don't know. I wasn't paying attention." My left eye twitched. "Were you not paying attention too?" Why was he excited about that?
"I don't pay attention in class." Yamamoto started to laugh. "That doesn't mean I don't know how to do things either." I look at the problems. They were simple enough.
"Do you know how to do it?"
"I do."
"You really are smart." I fought back a sigh. If I could survive those yakuza idiots, I can survive Yamamoto. After a few minutes of showing Yamamoto how to solve the problem, he groaned.
"I still don't get it. How did you go from adding to then multiplying? I didn't see the teacher do anything like that when I did pay attention."
"This is the easier way to solve the problem. When you get this way down, you won't have any trouble figuring anything else out for the year." I explained softly.
"That's amazing, Shiori!"
"It isn't much." For the rest of the class period, I talked through every step and explained to Yamamoto why each step was needed. We ended up finishing, but I wrote down a separate problem on the back. "Here. Try to solve this."
"I'll try." The bell for lunch rang three minutes later. "I think I got it." He handed the paper to me.
"You made a mistake."
"I did?"
"It was a simple adding error. Other than that, you would have gotten the right answer. The important thing is you got the technique down."
"You think so?"
"I know so. Just remember the saying." He smiled brightly.
"I'll never forget it."
"Good." Yamamoto went back to Tsuna and Gokudera.
"You got them all right?!" Gokudera yelled looking at Yamamoto's paper. Why is it I can handle Squalo's yelling while Gokudera's gets on my nerves?
"There's a saying?" Tsuna asked. I paled and prepared for the worst.
"Adult protagonists make too much sound." I hit my head against the desk, getting everyone's attention.
"Shiori?" They then turned to Yamamoto. "Did you say that correctly?" Tsuna asked.
"I did. Adult protagonists make too much sound." Tsuna looked over and saw the guy who sat in front of Shiori shaking her shoulders.
"Ah!" Tsuna yelled with shock.
"Is she alright?" Yamamoto asked.
"Drop me." Shiori muttered.
"Got it." Once Shiori was let go of, her head smashed into the desk again. "Again?"
"One more time for good measure."
"What the hell is that saying even supposed to do?" Gokudera asked.
"Add, parenthesis, multiply, total, multiply, and sum." That didn't make any sense. Yamamoto can't explain anything to save his life.
"Explain." Yamamoto hummed and looked at Shiori.
"Hey, Shiori, can you show everyone your trick?"
"I think she's unconscious." Tsuna muttered.
"I'm up." She muttered and stood up. There was a noticeable mark on her forehead. When she got to the front, she picked up chalk and wrote down the saying. "Listen up, kids. This is the only time I'll explain this shitty saying. Got it?" Everyone sat down in the nearest desk and took out their notebooks. They all knew how smart Shiori was and if she had a trick, they'd listen. None of them were getting the material. "Damn useless teacher can't even teach worth shit." Tsuna was the only one who heard her since he was in the front. She then wrote down a problem. "Alright, idiots. The first step is to add everything together where you see adding."
"What about doing things in the parenthesis first?"
"Shut up. You want to know or not?" The girl didn't answer.
"Good. After you add, you then complete everything in the parenthesis." Shiori went through the problem. "Then, you take the total you got and set it aside. And you see the left over numbers? Add them up." Everyone scribbled the instruction down. "Finally, you multiply the two numbers together and you get your answer." Once she wrote the answer down, people let out gasps. "Add and then complete the parenthesis to get the total. Then, multiply the sum of the rest of the numbers. Adult protagonists make too much sound." Tsuna was flabbergasted. Why didn't their teacher tell them about this method? It was easier to do and had a saying that would stick in everyone's minds. Tsuna looked at Shiori and saw a small trickle of blood run down her face from her forehead.
"Shiori, your head is bleeding." Tsuna whispered to her. She grunted.
"I'm aware. Don't worry. The three boys I tutored had a doctor on standby for me." Tsuna paled. If Shiori slammed her head over Yamamoto, there was no saying what she'd do with three guys dumber than Yamamoto. "I'm going to the nurse's office. Don't bother me about this again."
Reborn couldn't help but laugh from his hiding spot. Shiori was a great teacher. Sure, her saying might have been inappropriate, but it was something that even idiots can remember. "Tsuna."
"Reborn? What are you doing here?"
"I wanted to see you. Instead, you were pulling overtime with studying. Good job in getting Shiori to teach you an advanced technique."
"How advanced is it?" Gokudera questioned.
"It's a technique that even I had trouble with."
"Shiori must be really smart then." Yamamoto said with a dreamy expression.
"She's a genius, Yamamoto. It's expected of her. By the way, Tsuna, have you talked to Shiori about joining the family yet?"
"Not yet. I don't know when or even how to bring it up. I feel like if I do, she'll feel even worse about her dad." Reborn knew Tsuna had a point. There was no right time to ask.
"How about we wait until something comes up? You can do it once you win the fight against Xanxus or do it after her father dies." Reborn jumped off the desk. "I'm going to see Shamal. I'll see you at home." Reborn wanted to know how Shiori's father was doing. At the nurse's office, Reborn saw Shiori on her knees. Shamal had a pained expression.
"I'm sorry, Shiori. I didn't want this to happen." She stood up and took a deep breath.
"I'm leaving."
"Don't do anything you'll regret. Don't go to the Hibari."
"I'm going to see Kyoya."
"You can't stop them, Shiori."
Once Shiori left, Reborn walked in. "Everything alright?"
"No. Nothing is alright."
"What happened to Shiori's father?" Shamal sat down and stressfully pulled at his hair.
"Someone went in and overdosed him with an injection. He went into shock and is in the ICU recovering." Reborn shook his head.
"When will this madness stop?"
"It won't stop until she surrenders, Reborn. I've tried my hardest to help her and even went to see the Hibari head behind Shiori's back. It still didn't help." Shamal explained in a broken voice. He was frustrated and exhausted from the situation and the ring battles.
"What did he say?" Reborn questioned.
"They won't stop until she surrenders or dies. Any single move that they deem is out of line will result in her death. They're not playing around and I'm trying to make Shiori see that." Shiori is a genius. She knew what she was getting herself into. This was a battle of wits and endurance.
"Do you think they'll budge if I talk to them?" Reborn asked.
"No. The Hibari head wants Shiori to suffer. And the brother…"
"What about him?"
"There was a bet made between Shiori and the family head's brother. If Shiori doesn't pay her father's medical bills, she'll become his personal slave." Reborn's hands started shaking. Why did Shiori even agree to that?
"We won't let that happen, Shamal. I'm having Tsuna ask Shiori to join the Vongola. The family will take her in."
I slammed open the door to the disciplinary office. Kyoya and his right hand jumped. "What do you want?" Kyoya asked.
"We need to talk." I looked at the other guy in the room. "Out." He paled and ran out. I shut the door and locked it.
"What are you doing?" Kyoya questioned.
"Like I said, we need to talk." I walked to the desk Kyoya was sitting at. "One of your relatives overdosed my father. I want to know who."
"I don't know who did that." I leaned on the desk and glared right into Kyoya's eyes.
"I'm aware. That's why I want you to call your father and ask. There's no harm in that, right?" Kyoya was obviously uncomfortable with my presence.
"I don't have a phone." I took a specific cellphone out from my pocket and slid it over to him. His eyes widened.
"Use this one."
"This is…"
"You see, Kyoya, information is a two way street. You tell me who and I'll tell you what happened to Kai Hibari." He took the phone and called his father, putting it on speaker.
"Kai?" Kyoya's father questioned with haste.
"It's me."
"Kyoya? Where did you find Kai's phone?" He looked up at me and was met with a cold glare. I smiled and shook my head.
"I found it on the ground near the station."
"I see. He must have defected. Did you need anything else?"
"I overheard from Shamal someone overdosed Shiori's father."
"You heard correct. Kyosuke did the deed." I could hear how proud he was.
"Kyosuke? He's the doctor, right?"
"Yes. Why did you want to know?"
"I wanted to know if the information was correct. Nothing more."
When the phone call was cut, I took the phone back and walked to the door. So, it was the bastard that broke my family up that did this. "Where are you going?" Kyoya questioned.
"I'm going home."
"You promised me information." I unlocked the door.
"I didn't promise you anything. I don't have to give you information and I won't." I left the room and was chased by Kyoya.
"Get back here." I stopped in the hall. Students were staring at us. I turned and smiled.
"Be a good dog and sit." Everyone gasped and stared at Kyoya. The one thing I knew the Hibari hated was unwanted attention and humiliation. I was able to leave the school with ease after that. I'm sure rumors will start and Kyoya will try to hurt me. That was only a small consequence to pay.
"Shiori!" Shamal ran after me.
"What is it?"
"Where are you going?"
"The hospital. I don't have much time and I'd rather be by my dad's side instead of waste my time with a school I don't need."
"Please go back to class. Your father is still in the ICU trying to recover."
"And be here if he dies? I'm leaving and you won't stop me." He had a serious expression on his face. He was silently pleading me to stay. I scoffed and walked away. Before going to the hospital, I went home to grab a bite of food. Fon was surprised I was home and after I told him what happened, he announced he would go with me.
In my special room, I took out my holster and put my gun in it. No one would see it. I then took a piece of cloth with me in case I needed to wipe any fingerprints. "Shiori?"
"You can't stop me, Fon."
"I won't stop you. It'd be impossible to."
"I'm glad you know where you stand."
"You're Nikita's daughter and a cloud. I can't stop you." We walked out. On the way to the hospital, I saw a familiar black jacket turn the corner. I started to follow, but Fon stopped me.
"Don't go to them."
"They're here? Why?"
"Focus on your father and then worry about them." I thought they'd tell me when they'd come. I didn't like that Xanxus didn't tell me. Squalo would have even told me. Why didn't they tell me? I shook my head and kept walking. I had to block them out of my mind for now. At the hospital, I went to the desk and asked about dad. Thankfully, I could go visit him in his usual room. I saw some men in suits line the walls. Inside the room, I saw Dino. He turned and was surprised to see me.
"Shiori? Shouldn't you be at school?"
"I was told about what happened and came. What are you doing here?"
"I came to check up on him." I could tell he was lying to me.
"Is that your answer for now?" He looked down.
"Yes. I'm sorry, Shiori. I can't tell you why I'm here."
"That's fine. I do expect an answer some time. I need to give dad all of my attention." I sat down and saw how skinny dad looked. He was as pale as the sheets. He was struggling to live. The door opened. I looked back and saw Kyosuke.
"It's only a matter of days now, little bird."