Disclaimer: KHR belongs to Amano-sensei and her publishers and OP belongs to Oda-sensei and his publishers. Idea's mine :)
Beta-read by SuspiciousKiwi :*
√ -√v-√ -√v—
Skull was The Weakest Arcobaleno.
That was the part people usually stopped trying to learn about her. The weakest of the seven. Lackey, they called her… Useless, unreliable, not worth the trouble of taking care of her…
And yet…
Skull de Mort was Arcobaleno.
She was The Strongest Cloud in existence.
Skull was anything but Weak.
And yet…
They never saw that… So sure of their power and knowledge… so arrogant.
They forgot that Skull was civilian, they took her sensibilities for weakness.
They forgot that Skull was an entertainer, they took her act as truth.
They forgot that Skull wasn't a fighter, they took her gentleness for weakness.
They forgot that Skull was Cloud, they took her little rebellions as her character.
…
But she was a Cloud.
She was the Cloud.
So when The Man in Iron Hat came with an offer she couldn't refuse… All of her instincts screeched with alarm.
Many people tried to shackle her. To break her instincts and make her into guard dog they could parade around.
So she made sure that no one would want that Cloud. Not others, that were being led by the goose by Man in Iron Hat.
Especially after she actually met them.
Arrogant…
Eager…
Too blind to see the trap they were all walking into…
Too drunk on their power to see how the Sky was manipulating them all, until it was too late.
Skull wasn't like that…
She was not part of them.
And they knew it…
…
Where they expected quiet, violent individual, Skull gave them cheerful, pacifist.
Where they expected her to jump on the occasion to destroy and kill, Skull reigned those instincts in and theoretically shied from the blood.
Where they expected her to be quiet and willy, Skull portrayed herself as loud and clueless.
Where they expected her to be as ready to portray her strength as they were and take part in the dick measuring contests they've had, Skull bit her tongue and simply went with the flow…
Finally where they gave up on her and started jeering at the 'false Cloud' she took place of a getaway driver on their mission… And showed them the freedom driving could give person.
…
When the trap finally sprung…
When they woke up from where they fell unconscious…
When they were raging at the betrayal, Skull sat back quietly seething.
She knew she'd be shackled.
She knew there was no escape.
She knew there was nothing she could do to avoid it…
And yet she hoped that if she'd be useless enough they'd drop her. That she could be free…
It didn't happen.
She was sitting among raging Elements, looking in despair at the shackle around her neck.
The pacifier…
Like being in the body of a toddler wasn't an insult enough.
They had to stick a pacifier on her…
And by The Gods, did it pacify them… Sucking on her Flames… Her Soul!
So she was not raging. She was not going to give more of herself that she absolutely needed…
Or so she thought until the other Elements turned on her. Not on that fucking Sky bitch… Nooo… On her! Like she was the one to lead them into this, like she was somehow at fault when they did anything to claim the title of The Strongest.
She snapped…
She let loose her up to the moment always controlled Flames…
She burned out a circle around her…
(Nothing grew in that circle even 40 years after they were cursed)
She turned all of her frustration, all of her anger on them.
Later when she turned her memory back to that day she remembered Flames… Purple Flames fanning those of other colours and turning them against their users. She remembered black eyes turning wide when she broke The Sun's hand… She remembered scared indigo eyes of the Mist, when Skull was running towards her. She remembered the amount of Rain Flames needed to help Fon keep her down…
And she remembered how fast newly minted Arcobaleno forgot about that display.
…
After the curse… After fuckin Giglio Nero announced that new Arcobaleno were chosen… Skull remembered mostly running.
The tales of her as The Weakest already were spread out, so most of those wanting their own Pet Arcobaleno turned towards her. And Skull…
Clear-headed after that one raging incydent, run to the only place that could help her hide and plan.
She run to Lastochki… All of the Swallows knew how it was to have no control over their lives. The Swallows knew exactly how it felt to have shackles on them. And they helped their sister in need.
They taught her how to refine her act.
They taught her how to travel as a child.
How to pretend to be a dwarf.
They introduced Skull to Bratva.
They introduced Skull to Arbakov Rodina.
They introduced her to other big players in Vory world.
And together they made sure that entire Russian Underworld would know that Skull de Mort, the Cloud Arcobaleno was one of them.
So when she re-appeared in the Western World, she knew that Giglio Nero had only The Sun Arcobaleno as an ally… Reborn he called himself. As pretentious and unsubtle as always.
She knew that Viper was dead, but that there was that suspicious toddler-like Mist in that assasination group Tyr, The Sword Emperor led… They were called Varia and were understood to be no more than Vongola's attack dogs.
She knew that Fon went back to Triad to work as their neutral Enforcer.
She knew that Verde was defending himself and his freedom by murdering anyone that would go after him.
She knew that Reborn was barely holding onto his freedom and even that was mostly thanks to Vongola's help.
She knew that Colonello (the poor idiot who tried to take Lal Mirch's curse on himself) took an offer from Mafia Land and started taking care of security there.
She knew that Lal Mirch herself took up a position in CEDEF after Vongola's Nono offer, making her third Arcobaleno to become affiliated with Vongola.
She also knew that Russian Underworld kept her own affiliation secret. That no one knew Skull was considered neutral party for all russian conflicts.
She knew that to the rest of the Underworld Skull de Mort was unaffiliated.
And she knew that no one would stand for it.
So she did the greatest con in the worlds history.
She played them.
She played them all.
She kept mostly out of Underworld eyes, confined to Her part of the Underworld, but whenever she took a job in the Western parts she made sure to be outgoing, loud and that her success would be written off mostly as luck.
She absolutely refused assassinations and every job involving minors.
She made sure to leak some interesting information to the Vindice whenever she needed to leave Russia.
She even agreed to lead attack on Mafia Land once…
(Mostly to see how Colonello dealt with entire thing. Unfortunately Sinclair… that is Reborn was there too… What a shame)
That was the role she played for over 40 years of being Arcobaleno…
Until it was time to be a Cloud once again.
√ -√v-√ -√v—
Of course everything was fault of a Giglio Nero…
Don't get her wrong, Aria was pretty cool for a member of that Famiglia, but Luce was a bitch and her granddaughter didn't make better impression on Skull.
Not only she wasn't even trying to reach out to all the Arcobaleno but she also was stupid enough to believe in Reborn's bullshit and those visions of hers… As bad as her grandmother, seriously…
Somehow, the fact that she allied herself with Byakuran Gesso and gave him a way to kill of Arcobaleno (and destroy the world that supposedly stood only because of those Soul-sucking pacifiers on their neck) wasn't really a surprise. The fact that rest of her so-called comrades decided to protect ickle Yuni with their lives wasn't a surprise either…
But Skull refused.
She sacrificed enough already.
She would not let them hunt her like an animal.
She was The Cloud.
And if they want to get her?
Let them fuckin try.
So she made a big deal of how she considered Arcobaleno a family (it was a miracle she did not laughed in their faces when they tried to convince her to go with them) and send off Reborn and Colonello with stupid, little Giglio Nero.
Totally not because she was petty enough to want them to finally feel guilt. She was absolutely not that petty… Who was she trying to kid? Of course she was that petty.
She hoped they'll choke on that guilt.
Then she walked towards Byakuran fuckin Gesso and his forces.
"So you do see that you have no chance, don't you?!" He cackled madly, seeing Skull leaving the treeline and moving towards the hundreds of mafiosi supporting him.
"Chance? Boy, it never was about a chance" Skull managed to sneer out condescendingly.
"Oh? Isn't it? So what, you're going to sacrifice yourself for a Sky that is not yours? For the Arcobaleno? We all heard tales about you. The Weakest Arcobaleno. The Lackey. Useless… Civilian!" Gesso boy was spitting venom with every word leaving his mouth. Skull was not sure what he wanted to achieve.
Get her out of balance? Get her to surrender completely? Make her to charge at them like an idiot? Buy enough time for his forces to fully encircle her?
It didn't matter. Nothing mattered anymore. After all… Soon, she'll be free.
That did not mean that she wouldn't take as many of them as she could with her.
"So why are you scared?" She asked idly, absentmindedly tracking all Flame presences around her. Trying to ring her in. Because that what he was… The air around him was full of excitement and fear… His Flames were flickering with wariness. Hell, even his scowl looked more like a brave face being put on by a child than expression worn by someone who actually wasn't scared.
Before he was able to answer her though, Skull smiled. Full of teeth, predatory smile of a Cloud intending to bathe in blood.
She haven't come to him to talk.
Her right hand went up, towards the shackle around her neck and Skull simply loved the way that upstart's eyes warily followed her movement.
She was Skull de Mort.
The Woman Hated By Death.
She was The Strongest Cloud.
And it was time for her to Rage!
There was a snap of a chain of her shackle… And then there was explosion of Cloud Flames.
√ -√v-√ -√v—
Next thing she knew, she was in a state she found herself in after every 'deadly' accident of her.
With milky fog surrounding her form and shadowy figures encircling her.
Radiating disapproval.
Skull found herself grinning at that.
She was dead. And they couldn't kick her out this time.
She made sure to destroy her own body in her bid for freedom.
And since she was still there, wherever 'there' was, she had to succeed.
Otherwise she'd be already awake back in her own body and cursing The Death, as she calls the figures around her, up a storm. Trust her, that was not her first rodeo.
Staying dead was…
Not what she thought it would be.
There was no hell or heaven.
Her family didn't come to greet her and take her to their resting place.
She didn't even lost her awareness and became nothing.
No…
There was only Skull, Death and fog around them. For eternity and a half…
In fact… it was no different from the previous times she landed in here. Only that she actually stayed in the place.
That is until she felt that small part of her Soul that was connected to that infernal pacifier trying to suck her back. Back to the land of living… Back to that cage… Back to the fools that thought her as less… Back to being alive… Forever…
No!
She refused!
NO!
She was not going back down there.
She will not be shackled again!
She WILL NOT!
…
Then there was only Purple Flame around her.
And her WILL and her REFUSAL.
(Some say that The Strongest Will could make the reality itself to bow down.
There was no stronger will than The Strongest Cloud fighting to not be shackled down again.)
Seconds…
Years…
Eons later Skull lost.
…
She took in ragged breath.
√ -√v-√ -√v—
Back to life, huh?
There was something in her lungs. She could feel is as clearly as the way that there was no longer that cursed radiation that upstart released to weaken her and the others. Rather there was salty smell of the Sea. But… She died in the forest, didn't she? Whatever it was… She choked. And while not doing anything about it was tempting, she just had proven to her that even complete obliteration of her body would not keep her dead…
She started coughing the water out of her lungs…
Then there were warm hands on her.
Turning her around, keeping her up, above something wet and cold and so-not-comfortable.
She was wet… Wet and cold…
It took less than a thought to have her Flames up and running. Licking at her body and warming her back up… Healing up her wounds…
Causing amusing yelp of whoever it was that was trying to keep her above whatever it was she was laying at.
The warm hands released her body.
Her own arms snapped to keep her from face planting.
Her eyes snapped open…
She was on wet sand.
There was water coming and going in waves… Reaching towards her boots, before the heat of her Flames evaporated it.
Her hands were still in the fingerless gloves she was using whenever she needed better grip on a wheel… But… She could swear she had no gloves at her last stand… There was no time for her to even grab gloves when it all started…
Her forearms were hidden by her favoured leather suit from before… Before the I Prescelti Sette. Before the curse… Before the Arcobaleno…
What?
She hefted herself up and turned towards two very weak Latents she could sense close up.
The beach they were at was close to the tundra forest, which did explain why it was so cold… Was she in Russia again?
No matter, she'll learn about anything soon.
She focused on the people she sensed earlier.
There was a tall looking blonde, looking at her with wariness only Russian Underworld and not so long ago fuckin Byakuran Gesso treated her with. He had red something over his head, coat of black feathers and scenic makeup. All in all he looked like he wouldn't be out of place in her old circus.
The man was in stance Skull knew very well… It was the stance she was using around Arcobaleno more often than not - the one allowing her not only to avoid all the attacks but to also make it look like a total accident.
Then there was a boy. Hiding behind the man's legs. Little one hidden under too big cloak and with white furry hat. He looked… sickly. And not only because of white patches on his face.
Little One was looking at her in wariness as well… With undercurrent of awe…
Why would…?
Oh! She still had Flames out…
And Vindice didn't came yet?
Underworld, then.
Skull stayed low at the sand that was quickly getting dry and warm thanks to the Flames still flickering over her body. There was no reason to provoke the man to attack. There was no reason for her to kill them.
"Where am I?" The words barely left her throat when she winced at the hoarseness of them and quickly directed more Flames towards her throat in hopes that her vocal cords could be fixed without visit in Mafia Land hospital. She really didn't want to know what happened to the radiation and Millefiore Famiglia.
But every worry about her voice, Mafia Land, Millefiore Famiglia and possibly meeting stupid little Giglio Nero, Byakuran Gesso or her fellow sacrifices evaporated with the answer.
"North Blue."
What?
"What?"