Miura Haru was a lonely girl. Her Dad has brought her up with the best of his abilities, but sometimes, he just wasn't there, too busy with his job, he had never noticed how he was neglecting his own toddler daughter, and more often than not toddler!Haru would be left with the old lady next door who owned the Kawahira realtor's shop –or so she had said once, not that Haru had understood a bit of what she had said.

Ever since she was young, she had watched how other children have a Mom and a Dad, which made her confused and jealous because she didn't have a Mom –and why didn't she have a Mom? Did her Mom not want her? Did she do anything wrong?

She didn't ask her Dad -because the last time she did, he looked so, so sad and heartbroken that something inside her clenched painfully and after that particular episode she never asked him about her again. She only knew that her mother died during childbirth, an nothing else. She didn't know what she looked like, or if she had wanted Haru or not, or if she had loved her for the nine months she had kept her in her belly. Hell, she didn't even know what her mother's name was! But even if she was curious and desperate to know about her belated mother, she never dared to ask her Dad about her in fear that he would close off from her.

And so, Haru would watch other children with envy as their parents dote on them from the corner as they lived their happy lives, taking everything she could never have for granted. Sometimes, she would despair about why other children can have nice things –a happy family, while she drowns in her loneliness with just the old woman from the next door to watch over her. It just wasn't fair!

But years after years of tormenting herself with loneliness, she has finally learned her lesson that envying others won't do her any good. It would only hurt her even more, and make her bitter. And Haru didn't want to be bitter.

So what if she can't have what they have? She'll find her happiness with her own effort. And so, Haru began to hide her loneliness and envy behind bright eyes and oblivious smiles. She didn't want her Dad to worry about her even more than he usually did, so she started putting up a mask of cheerfulness.

…Until she didn't even know anymore what was the mask and what was the real her.

~O~

Haru liked reading. She liked to spend her time in the library reading books –especially fictions and novels. She loved reading about the fragile Princess who might've a weak body, but had a strong sense of character; about the heroine who was bullied by her hateful relatives, but even then she broke away from their claws and succeeded in life; about the cross-dressing protagonist who had been chosen by the Holy sword as the champion who'll slay the dragon, and even after facing with everyone's contempt and mockery of being of weak gender, she proved her worth and faced the dragon head on; about "Alice" who explored a fantastical world and experienced such great adventures….. The words in the books were so well written that she would often lose herself in the imaginative world of the story, and when the story ended, she'd often be satisfied, but disappointed because she wanted it to continue longer.

Sometimes, she fancied herself as one of those protagonists –finding friends, facing dangers, having crazy adventures- and wished she had friends like that –friends who'd be loyal enough to stand for her when she needed them, but crazy enough to tease her about silliest of things. She wanted a friendship like that.

But reality was always cruel.

Her fellow classmates didn't like her, at all. They thought she was weird –overly cheerful and airheaded. They didn't understand her obsession with cosplaying. They didn't understand why she would rather stay in her imaginative castles than face reality. They didn't understand why she would cosplay as a knight and would fancy herself as one of the Knights of the Leftover Princess than to spend her time chatting with others about normal things.

And since they cannot understand her, they made fun of her, and made her miserable. After all, that is what most children her age thought about. This is how the world works. This is how Namimori works.

Signing up for the Summer Camp had been an impulsive decision on her part. From the day she had joined North elementary School, she had always admired the 'Class Princess'- Ami. Among the snot-nosed brats who would start bawling if they scratch their feet and had 'boo- boos', she was the only one who's dust off her skirt and just walk over the teacher to ask for Band-Aid if she got a light injury. She was always calm and collected and looked at everyone coolly, and Haru really admired her for it. She hadn't realized till then that what she thought was 'cool' was actually just the other girl's arrogance and disdain.

Ami was always surrounded by many kids –especially girls- whenever she was in the class, so Haru never actually got a chance to approach her. Hearing that she was going to the Summer Camp, Haru decided to join too, thinking that maybe she'd get the opportunity to approach her. And so, Haru came all the way here in hopes of making new friends and finally getting rid of the loneliness that seemed to plague her ever since she was young.

But her hopes shattered when Ami and her friend –Satsuki- rejected her friendship with cruel words. She didn't back away, and tried again and asked if she could join their team, only to be shunned by them. Haru hadn't thought she could get hurt even more than she already was –but apparently, she was wrong. Words really did hurt more than any flesh wounds.

Maybe she was cursed to be alone for her whole life. Maybe she really didn't deserve to have friends –wonderful, wonderful friends who'd stay with her through thick and thin…

-And as if to prove her wrong, one Hibari Kyoya dropped down from the Sky before her like an angel –or a Vampire as she had claimed him to be- and held out his hand and declared the words that changed her life forever-

"You are coming with me."

A/N:-….My God this is short. This is a one time thing. I swear i won't do it again. The next one will be longer I swear -and yes, i'm talking about both the Interlude and the chapter. Just... forgive me this once, please?

I'll even toss out an OMAKE for you. here~

OMAKE-

"So, I had been wondering…" Colonello mused, only to be interrupted by Verde's comment.

"Please don't." Verde deadpanned. "Your thinking is hazardous for our health."

"HEY!" Colonello exclaimed, offended.

"Well, I want to hear what he has to say." Lal quipped with a smirk. "My idiot pupil sometimes says ridiculously hilarious things."

Verde paused as he contemplated her words, and then shrugged. "Can't argue with that." he admitted in the end.

Colonello huffed. "So, as I was saying before I was rudely interrupted by someone," He glared pointedly at Verde, who just snorted and pushed up his glasses in a dismissive manner that only made Colonello bristle even more.

Lal got fed up with his antics, and impatiently threw a random antique vase lying by her side at her stupid pupil –making Viper bemoan at the damage and the money it'd cost and how they'd charge it into her account at "25 percent extra interest rate" (that Damn extortionist….)- as she snapped, "Get on with it!"

Colonello dodged the vase quite easily, and ignored the SMASH! sound it made against the wall as it shattered into pieces. Knowing better than to complain at his instructor-slash-love-interest's random acts of violence by now, he just rubbed the back of his head and said, "Well, you know little Kyoya and Nagi –our resident Sun, Storm and Mist Arcobaleno's love-children, right?"

The others shared a look, wondering, where he was going with this, and nodded skeptically.

Colonello cleared his throat and said, "So, I had been wondering….. among the three of them, who is the kids's Dad? I mean, Viper can definitely pass off as the indigo girl's Mom –because what else would they be?-"

A sound akin to the combination of an outraged hiss and a choked wheeze came from the back of Viper's throat as they spoke, "Why am I the Mom? Why can't I be the Dad?"

The others shot them an incredulous look. Even Skull stared at them, unimpressed, "Ne, Viper, tell us truthfully- between Reborn, Fon and you, who looks the most feminine and has the most chances of passing off as the one from fairer sex?"

Viper opened their mouth to argue, but shut it close when they realized that the lackey was, in fact, right. "….Fair enough." they grudgingly admitted.

"Well, that leaves Reborn and Fon then." Lal said as she contemplatively eyed the said cursed babies- the former of whom was stroking his pet chameleon while the latter's serene smile just froze on his face- and is it her imagination or was that his vein throbbing at the side of his forehead in irritation?

"Of course, I'm the Dad." Reborn said in a matter of fact tone.

"Ah, I don't know….. I think Fon's manlier than Reborn-sempai." Skull admitted, which earned him a bullet from Reborn's Leon-gun.

"Well, well, the lackey spoke the truth." Verde said with a smirk. "Fon's definitely the manliest one among the three of them."

"So," Lal's eyes glinting with mischief as she watched Fon's twitching form and Reborn's irritated one, as she asked, "All in the favor of agreeing with Fon as the 'Man' in the relationship, say "Aye"!"

"Aye!" Colonello, Verde, Skull and even Viper –though a bit reluctantly, exclaimed in unison.

Lal gleefully slammed a mist-constructed hammer on the table and said in a mock-sage tone, "And so, the motion has been passed."

Fon calmly placed cup of tea in his hands on the table and asked with a very serene smile on his face that obviously showed how calm he was about this –if one would ignore his twitching fingers and the vein throbbing over his forehead, that is- and asked, "Remind me, why are you all so keen on discussing my –non-existent- relationship with Reborn and Viper and the children I supposedly had with them?"

"Because Arcobaleno are adults cursed to stay in infant bodies because of which they have no way to let out their sexual desires, and in desperation have turned to the only solution they could find- aka gossiping like old women of neighborhood." Reborn deadpanned.

"That makes so much sense. Though," Fon said as he eyed Reborn, "why didn't you include yourself in the list of those who 'divert-their-sexual-frustration-by-gossiping'?"

Reborn smirked as he tipped his fedora hat and stated proudly, "Well, I use all that energy to cause chaos, so I'm not as sexually repressed as them."

"It really says so much about my sanity –or it's lack there-of- when I fully admit that what you said makes sense." Fon couldn't help but deadpan.

A/N:-

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And if you think I'm done yet, then I'm not. I won't live up to my reputation -whatever's left of it anyways- if I don't drop a bomb right before I disappear for the next few weeks, right?

EXTRA-

The silver eyelashes trembled as the person broke out into cold sweat, unconsciously clenching the blankets draped over him tighter with his fists. A moment later, his eyes flashed open, and he sat up straight as he exhaled slowly. He blinked once, twice, and adjusted his purple eyes to the dim light of his room. Soon, a smirk made it's way on his lips as he chuckled and said-

"Heh~ That other me has been very naughty lately, I'm surprised he wasn't caught by Tsu-chan for his latest stunt."

His hand pushed away a stray silver lock that fell over his eyes, revealing a purple tattoo under his left eye. He smirked and muttered, "Not that I don't approve."

His eyes flashed with mischief as he sighed fondly, "I really kind of feel bad that Tsu-chan is missing out on all the fun, though…."

"If only he knew what sort of mischief his Cloud Guardian is up to these days~"

So... Reviews? anyone?