Varia Arc

Ages:

Tsuna - 15

Mia - 15

Chrome - 13

Kyoya -17

Disclaimer: I don't own KHR.

Tsuna's dad was home.

Tsuna spared only a glance at his father before trudging up the stairs. She stared after him worriedly. Tsuna had exceeded her expectations over the whole thing. Half of her had expected him to freak out as it was his usual reaction to anything mafia-related and the other was just to straight up punch him. She followed him to his room where he sat on his bed, hunched and miserable. Her hand reached out over his shoulders as she sat next to him and placed her head on his shoulder.

"Are you going to confront your dad later?" she asked him.

"Yeah, I want to punch him in the face."

"Seriously Tsuna."

"I am serious. That bastard owes me and mom an explanation."

She swatted at his arm. "You shouldn't call your dad that!"

"Whatever." Could you believe the nerve? She gave him a look that he avoided. He tried changing the topic. "You want to get changed?" he nodded at her slightly singed and dirty uniform. She grimaced at her state of dress.

"Shit. Yeah, could I borrow your shirt?" She had no idea why she asked him for his shirt when she could have borrowed Bianchi's stuff instead. He didn't say anything though when he lent her his clothes. After a bath she came back to his room, freshly dressed. Tsuna was sitting on the floor reading her 'Return of the King'. She leaned on the door sill, smiling fondly at the sight. Tsuna saw her and stared. She frowned.

"What?"

"Your hair is short." He set the book on the table.

"You just noticed?" She plopped herself beside him. His hands were immediately on her face. She almost sighed in comfort, her eyes actually fluttering shut at his gentle touch. She felt him stroke her hair with his other hand. It felt really good. His fingers were long and they combed through her tresses perfectly.

"You almost lost your head earlier." There it is. Mother-hen Tsuna mode has finally activated! The disapproval was so strong she could have smelled it and there face pinched as she opened her eyes. He was staring down at her intensely. God, why can't he just let the moment roll?

"But I didn't and that's all that mattered."

"You were reckless and almost got yourself killed."

She scowled at him. "What was I supposed to do? Let him skewer you?" She hadn't thought of her feelings at the time but she was deathly afraid of losing him. Just the thought of it alone scared her. It scared her more than her nightmares or dying itself. "I didn't want to lose you!" She hadn't meant it to sound so desperate but it did. Tsuna had always come out of things okay and the thought of dying never crossed her mind because he had their friends and Reborn with him. That is, until now.

For a moment, she thought that his eyes glazed orange and she stiffened at the expression he had as he gazed at her. She couldn't name it only that it made her highly aware of herself like her short hair, the freckles that peppered her nose, the pimple on her forehead and the burrito that she ate earlier that afternoon. His gaze dropped from her face. Heat pooled in her lower abdomen and she looked away before it burned her. She really hated it sometimes. He could make her feel vulnerable and uncomfortable with with just one look. She didn't like feeling vulnerable. His hands fell from her face and instead wrapped around her waist. He pulled her closer and buried his face in the crook between her shoulder and neck.

His breath was heavy with warmth when he said, "There's no winning against you." His breath on her skin made her shiver a bit.

Flustered and heavily confused, Mia could only let him stay there. Her hand went to comb his hair when he decided to speak again, "I feel the same way Mia – I don't want to lose you either." His grip on her waist tightened. "So for the love of God please don't do anything stupid."

She cracked a smile at that. "It's not my fault danger is attracted to you."

"Yeah, but you love it."

He made a little humming sound in reply. "Mia?"

"Hmnn?"

"Just so you know, you still look pretty cute with short hair."

Mia had been woken up in the middle of the night by a bear of a man that was Tsuna's dad. She had been sleeping on the bed, the covers drawn up over her head when light filtered through her blanket from the door and she frowned, slightly disturbed. Then, out of nowhere she was suddenly yanked from her cozy cacoon and was dangling upside down by the heel.

"Tsuna! How about you and I go fishing?" he was grinning. "Tsuna?" He looked down at her. "When did I have a daughter?! Or Tsu-kun, is that you?!"

Agitation rolled off of her in waves and completely dispelled her sleepiness. She suddenly realized, with a jolt of panic, that her shirt – which was considerably loose – had fallen to reveal her stomach. "Ah!" she squealed in an attempt to cover herself. "Tsuna!"

Tsuna had already begun to wake by then and when he heard her cry for him he quickly grew angry. "Dad! Put her down!"

"Tsuna?" He took at look at his son then at her. Maybe Tsuna had gotten impatient for his dad to get the message and just jumped kick him. His father flew out of the room and Mia dropped to the floor. She stared at him from the ground as he slammed the door shut and locked it.

"Good riddance. The hell was he thinking? Can't even recognize his own son…" Tsuna muttered to himself. "You okay? I'm sorry about that."

"You just…" She looked from the door then to him in disbelief. "That was your dad."

"He was manhandling you," he retorted. She was still in shock when he picked her up and placed her back on the bed. "Don't mind him alright? Just go back to bed." He lied back down on his futon on the floor. It was hard not to mind. Tsuna was apathetic to the whole thing which was really out of character for him. The last thing that she thought, before sleep overcame her, was how sorry she was gonna feel for his old man.

His dad was weird and seriously awkward. Tsuna really did not want to talk to him especially about his personal life. But like all parents, his dad persisted and eventually they touched upon the subject of his love life.

"You're quite the sly one huh Tsuna?" his dad nudged him, waggling his eyebrows. Tsuna was glad that Mia was still asleep upstairs. This was embarrassing. He suppressed a sigh. "Not just two but three!"

"I'm not dating any of them dad!"

"Really? Kyoko and Haru seem like very nice girls. Mia was it? Was she the one from last night?"

"Yeah." Tsuna wanted to go burrow into his covers. This was not a conversation he wanted to talk about with his dad. Especially with his dad.

"Your mom told me a lot about her. You nervous about asking her out because you two are best friends?"

"Th-that's none of your business dad!" Tsuna spluttered, embarrassed and red-faced. Definitely not a conversation he wanted! His father let out a laugh.

"You should live life a little Tsu-kun! Go at it while you're still young." His dad then wiped away an invisible tear. "My little tuna has grown so much. He's got not just one but three girls!" he beamed proudly at his son. "But I can't wait to talk to Mia – your Mom absolutely adores her you know that? Wouldn't stop talking about her when I asked."

At that Tsuna smiled. "Mom got way too excited."

"I'll tell you something good Tsuna. If you can't find the words to tell her how you feel…" he shoved his face closer to Tsuna who leaned back at the absolute seriousness that his dad was radiating. His dad's amber eyes bore into him.

"What?" Tsuna had to ask because it seemed like his dad wanted him to ask.

"Just grab her and make sweet, sweet magic with her!"

"Dad w-what? Sweet magic?" Why was he even still there? Why was this man even his dad? He should have stopped talking to him the moment he brought Mia up. Though the idea of just winging it certainly had its appeals but no. The way his dad say it made him think of things about his parents that he was really better off not knowing.

"It works I tell you! Your mom and I – "

"Stop! I don't wanna hear any more!" Tsuna cried as he flung his arms around. His father barked out a laugh. He let his dad finish before he dropped the drama bomb. "Hey dad?" he asked carefully.

"Yes Tsuna?"

"When were you ever going to tell me and mom about the Mafia?" The silence that erupted between them was heavy and tense. To his credit, he did not crack under the intense pressure – though he wanted to. Iemitsu Sawada owed him answers.

"Figured it out didn't you?" His dad leaned back. Tsuna's heart skipped a beat when his dad didn't deny it.

He slightly blushed. "Not really. If it hadn't been for Mia I probably would have been ignorant the whole time."

"Smart girl you have there," his dad commented.

He smirked a little, feeling a rush of fondness at the girl. "Oh yeah, she's a real smartass." He glanced at his dad who was watching him. "Don't change the subject dad."

"Alright, alright." His dad surrendered. "But you won't get anything from me right now."

"What? Why the hell not? Don't you think I deserve to know especially at what I'm going through?" He tried his best not to keep his voice even and not blow up at his dad. Calm down, a faint voice whispered in his mind. It sounded a like a lot like Mia. He breathed sharply through his nose.

His father distantly looked away. His expression turned stern and business-like. Suddenly the man that Tsuna had always known as his father changed into someone completely different but for some reason it didn't frighten him as he thought it would. Iemistsu Sawada as his father he couldn't deal with, Iemitsu Sawada the Mafioso he could. He straightened his back and stared back at his father the way Reborn taught him to hold himself. They sized each other up.

Finally, Iemitsu spoke. "You have more important things to worry about."

"Oh yeah? What?"

"Like appointing your Guardians for one."

"Tsuna, he's right." They turned around. Mia looked like she had just rolled off of bed. Her short hair stuck out in all sorts of odd angles. Though she appeared that way her face expressed alertness that could only have been worn in emergencies. On her shoulder was Reborn and in her hands the Vongola Rings. The first thing he thought when he saw her was of how right she looked wearing his stuff. Also, she was wearing Bianchi's shorts. A very nice bonus. She nodded towards his dad. "Buongiorno, sir."

"Ah! Sorry about last night Mia-chan I didn't mean to frighten you." Iemitsu rubbed his head.

"Try to be more conscious in the future Sawada-san. Tsuna might not let you off so easily next time," she replied stiffly. Her eyes brows were high as she looked at him as if she was suddenly a teacher reminding a student that their behavior will not be tolerated. Tsuna turned his head away, snickering.

"Eh?!" Stumped, his father could only gap at her. Mia ignored him and went to address Tsuna.

"We have at least until ten days before the Varia arrive," Mia told him. That immediately sobered him up and he stood up. He stopped in front of her and he looked down at the box. Guardians. He remembered Mia explaining it to him. A queasy feeling grew in his gut as he thought about it.

"Wait, you said Varia?"

She nodded. "That guy, Squalo, the crest on his uniform – I remembered it now. He's part of the Varia."

"Are you sure? Aren't the Varia supposed to be the strongest organization in the Vongola?"

Mia nodded once. She was putting up a brave front in front of Reborn and his dad but he could tell that she was feeling unsettled. He himself wasn't feeling any better. She opened the box and pulled out a chain, at the end of it dangled the center ring. The boss ring. "Reborn said it would be easier to wear this way," she explained. Handing the box over to the hitman, she held the chain for him to wear. He let her slip it on. Her hands remained over his chest.

"My Guardians…" he had avoided thinking about it until now.

"Some of the rings had been delivered to those who are worthy of protecting the next boss, Sawada Tsunayoshi." Reborn handed the box back and they shared a look. "You know what to do with the last one," he told her.

Tsuna's forehead wrinkled. "Do what exactly?"

Mia patted his cheek and smiled reassuringly. "I'll be back this afternoon. Till then go train hard okay?"

He caught her hand, worry beginning to overwhelm him. "What are you going to do?" He had forgotten that they were in plain sight of his tutor and father but he didn't care.

"Calling a friend." And with that she slipped out of his hold to disappear back upstairs. Reborn remained with him.

"She's something, I'll give you that," His dad said. He could have teased him about their relationship but he didn't. Tsuna was grateful he had enough sense to respect them at least. That little action elevated little of his aggravation towards his dad. He nodded in reply.

"Tsuna, your chosen Guardians will be waiting for you at Namimori General Hospital. You should get ready," Reborn told him.

"We'll talk more later dad." He glanced over his shoulder. "I've got things to do." Then he went to follow Mia upstairs. Once Tsuna disappeared, the tutor and the father looked at each other.

"Tsuna's changed a lot." Iemitsu noted with a touch of sadness.

Reborn snorted. "You bet your ass he did."

"Oh come on Reborn, you're still not mad right? I swear, I hadn't known!"

Reborn threw a slipper at Iemitsu's face with the force of a cannon ball. Nodding in satisfaction at the sound of a nose breaking and a rush of profanity, the hitman replied in a cheery tone, "Mad? I was before but I'm not now."

"Oh honey! What happened to your face?" Nana appeared, the sound of her husband cursing drawing her to the living room. She put her hand to her mouth at the sight of her husband's bleeding nose.

"Papa accidentally hit himself trying to kill a fly," Reborn dutifully told her. He could feel Iemitsu emitting huge waves of resentment at him while his wife fussed over him. It was too bad that Nana was in the room otherwise he would have ripped the little monster apart with his bare hands.

Meanwhile, when Tsuna came up to his room, he could hear Mia speaking hurriedly into her phone.

"What do you mean she left? When?!"

He opened a crack in his door and peered inside. He choked when he found himself unable to look away. Smooth skin came into his view. Mia had her back to him and was parading around his room wearing a pair of skinny jeans and a white bra. The shirt that she was supposed to wear was clutched tightly in her hand. Her injuries and bruises had faded a long time ago, leaving her usual smooth complexion. Without meaning to his eyes drug up the image of her curvy back. From her shoulders down to cuddlesome waist… and to think he had the privilege to be intimate with her! Times like this it felt great to be alive, Tsuna decided as he mentally brofisted at the world.

"You have any idea where she went?" Mia asked.

Who was she talking to? He wondered. Mia didn't seem to like the answer she got as she growled, vexed. "Who picked her up?"

…

"Cavalo!" Mia suddenly swore and then hastened to put on her shirt. Tsuna pulled back in surprise. Cabbage?

"Thanks for the help Eisen, call me if you need me alright?" He quickly closed the door before she turned around. Eisen? He wondered who the hell that was. A minute later Mia came out of the room. She paused when she saw him and smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry I took so long." He shook his head. She smiled and reached over to hug him. His arms immediately went around her waist. At that moment he thought at how snuggly she felt. "Remember, don't freak out – the boys will be with you. Listen to Reborn and I'll be back later alright?"

He rolled his eyes. "Buona dalere, I'm not going to lose my shit Mia." ("Good grief")

She flicked his nose. "Yeah, yeah, I'll believe that when you're as mofo as your grandfather."

"Hey!"

She giggled and pulled away as he pouted. "Don't worry about me okay? Just focus on this for now."

"How can I not worry about you?" he muttered. She smiled understandingly.

"Consider this even Tsuna – I'm worried about you too because this time, you're the one in danger." She squeezed his arm. That was true, he realized. Somewhere deep inside him he was glad she was feeling anxious for his safety. It made him feel fuzzy in the inside. "Now I gotta go, I've got a surprise to prepare."

"A surprise?" he raised a brow at her. She didn't reply but winked at him as she descended the stairs. He stared after her. Well, his Intuition wasn't going bananas. Hopefully Mia wouldn't go looking for trouble. Before he went to change he actually prayed a little for extra measure.

If there was one place that she knew where Chrome could be it had to be here, Kokuyo Land. She stood outside of its rusted gates, eyeing the whole place with growing skepticism. Her memories of this place were not fond but she had a job to do and that was locating her friend. With her she brought a plastic filled with food and drinks. She was worried for Chrome's appetite since the girl ate very little.

Taking a small deep breath she went in through the gates. Nothing had changed as far as she can see – everything still looked run down. A perfect place to be haunted. With that thought in her mind she sped up her walking towards Kokuyo Center. She wandered its halls calling out for Chrome. After ten minutes, she stopped to wonder if her guess was actually right. But it had to be though, where else would they go?

"The hell you doing here byon?" To her credit, she didn't jump and turned around.

"Kenny!" she cried at the sight of Mukuro's lackey.

"My name is Ken!" For someone who came from Vindicare Ken sure looked pretty darn good. He was back to wearing his Kokuyo uniform. She wondered if they kept spare clothing here. Beside him, another stepped out of the shadows.

"Chikusa!"

"How come you remember his name but not mine?!" Ken demanded from her. Mia ignored him.

"Where's Chrome?" she immediately asked.

Chikusa was the one who answered her. "In the auditorium."

"Kakipi! Why are you answering this blonde chick? She's a Vongola!" Ken rounded on his friend. He then threw a poisonous glare at her. Unfazed at all, Mia flipped him the bird in response. He slowly pulled out a set of teeth from his pocket but was stopped by Chikusa's hand.

"Mukuro-sama says that the girl is expecting a visitor," he said very calmly. His expression was inscrutable. Mia was reminded of an eerie mannequin at his questionable gaze. "He must have meant her." He must have been wondering the same thing why Mukuro wanted her to be there.

"Is Mukuro here?" she asked. They both stiffened at the mention of his name and their faces turned downcast. She frowned. "Explain."

"You don't get to order us!" Ken barked at her. She stared him down, her blue eyes darkening like pitfalls, daring him to bar his teeth towards her. Disconcerted, Ken faltered for a moment before he was glaring daggers again. Chikusa pulled him back once more; his grip on his friend's shoulder tight.

"Mukuro-sama gave us the chance to escape from Vindice," Chikusa explained shortly.

Mia let that quietly brew in her mind. So Mukuro went ahead and freed them anyway? Or perhaps they weren't free? She glanced at the two. After another look over, she confirmed that they did look awful. They had this haunted look about them as if they had seen horrors beyond this realm. Maybe they did. They were in Vindicare after all. She wanted to ask what happened to Mukuro but at the pained look on their faces she decided not to.

Mukuro obviously did not make it.

"How many of you are here?"

"Just us three."

"Here," she offered the plastic bag to them. "I've got some food."

Ken's face screwed in disgust. "We don't want anything from you Vongola trash."

Mia stared at him and shrugged. "Whatever asshole, all the more for Chrome then. Take me to her."

They brought her to a room that she recognized as the place where they kept her hostage before. Sitting on the couch, under the dusty light, sat her friend Chrome.

"Chrome!" The younger girl's head shot up. Mia had to process it for a moment that the girl before her was the same girl she met at Tokyo. Chrome was wearing a Kokuyo uniform, she held a trident that she knew belonged to Mukuro, a skull patch over her missing eye and her hair was pinned up in a god awful pineapple hair style.

Chrome hugged her, happy to see her. "Mia-san!"

"I've brought food." Mia showed the girl the plastic bag. Chrome led her to take a seat on the old moth-eaten couch. She peered into the bag and smiled.

"Did you make all this?" she asked.

"Sure did."

Chrome's smile widened at that. She set the food aside for later and faced her, her smile slowly disappearing. "Mukuro-sama said you would come."

"I have a business proposal to him, if he'll hear me out." She faintly noticed that Ken and Chikusa were lingering in the background. Chrome hesitated and Mia frowned. "What? What's wrong?" she asked. "Is Mukuro asleep or something? I can wait." Chrome shook her head.

"No," she whispered. "He's here."

Mia felt a faint shiver in the air as Mukuro settled himself inside Chrome's body. Not a moment passed after Chrome had spoken that a small breath passed through her lips.

"Miss Vongola." Mukuro greeted her.

"How am I supposed to do as you ask if you go and do it yourself?" she reprimanded him immediately. A little annoyed that he thought she was incapable. Mukuro chuckled a bit though there was a tint of exhaustion seeping into his tone.

"Kufufufu… are you offended?"

"No." She was worried he might ask something different from her.

"My request still stands Miss Vongola. It won't take long for Vindice to find Ken and Chikusa again. I'm sure you already have figured out what to do."

Mia pursed her lips. He was damn right she had a plan but she had expected him to be there, as in, flesh and blood. She wondered how he was going to do this if he decides to take her up on her offer. "Okay, here's my deal – In ten days, the Vongola's Varia will be coming here to Namimori to fight for the Vongola Rings. I'm asking that if you become Tsuna's Guardian of the Mist, Ken and Chikusa might be free from their charges." She wasn't sure if it would be possible but she had to try. Maybe if Mukuro becomes a Guardian Vindice would let them off the hook. Possibly. But she must have him as Tsuna's Guadian. She didn't know who else would fit the role. Tsuna might think of her crazy but if Mukuro was a powerful enemy, he would be one of Tsuna's greatest allies if he became his guardian.

"Kufufufu you do realize you're just making my dream of world domination possible."

Mia scoffed. "Please, Tsuna had taken your fruity ass down. He'll do it again if he has to."

Mukuro narrowed his eyes at her. "How can you be even sure of your proposal?"

Huh, so he was a bit sore about that. She found that amusing but she was also getting impatient. "Beggars can't be choosers." She argued. "There won't be another chance like this Mukuro."

"I refuse to bow down to any."

"That's a ballsy thing to say considering you're the one trapped in prison." she retorted.

Chrome's eye seethed in anger but Mia remained resolute and even cold towards him. "Face it, you're on your own there."

"Why are you asking me of this?" Mukuro asked her with barely concealed bloodlust.

Goosebumps popped all over her skin as a trickle of fear began to creep in. Hold it together, she thought. This was for Tsuna. She licked her dry lips. "I believe you're suitable to be the Mist Guardian." More than in a lot of ways. After she received the Vongola documents, she felt that their meeting with Mukuro might have been more than a coincidence. The silence that came between them after she said the words was heavy with thought. Mukuro stared at her, the flames of hellfire no longer burning in his gaze.

"Very well." Mia let out a sigh of relief. "However," Mukuro added. She frowned, not liking where this was going. "As you can see, I am locked away. In my place, Chrome shall be my proxy."

"What?!" she jumped to her feet.

Mukuro looked up at her coldly. "Beggars cannot be choosers," he recited her. Mia clenched her jaw.

"Why Chrome?" she asked, her voice barely shaking.

"In terms of compatibility, Chrome is most suited to channel my spirit for long periods of time. I have also discovered that she has great talent to become an illusionist. It would be like having two Guardians. I'd say that's killing two birds with one stone."

Mia wanted to punch him in the face but his body was somewhere far, far away - an impossible fancy at the moment. He was right about a lot of things but she was worried for Chrome. She didn't want to bring the girl into this. She had already dragged the poor thing through enough already.

"Chrome shall tell you herself," Mukuro said, his tone suddenly tired. Her eyes shot up.

"Wait!" But Mukuro had gone and Chrome was looking up at her, her expression determined.

"Mia-san… please," she pleaded with her.

Mia wanted to say no. But Chrome was obviously blinded with loyalty for Mukuro. She would never be able to dissuade the other girl from helping her savior. She swallowed a heavy lump. "Are you sure about this?" Chrome nodded unwaveringly. Feeling like she was making a very bad decision, Mia pulled out a chain from her pocket. At the end of it was the Mist ring. She wanted to cry as she presented it to Chrome but when she spoke her voice was mechanical.

"Chrome Dokuro, as you are Mukuro Rokudo's proxy you are hereby chosen in his stead to guard the next Vongola boss, Vongola Decimo, Sawada Tsunayoshi. This ring signifies that Guardian of the Mist, your duty is to be the illusion that prohibits knowledge of its true nature."

Chrome reached out of the ring but Mia did not let go. The girls shared a meaningful look. Chrome smiled at her, assuring her that she could do this. Her face said it all, 'It's all right. I'll be fine.' In just the short time she's met her, Chrome had grown to make her own decisions. As she looked into those determined eyes, Mia knew she couldn't bring herself to take it from her. She would never take anyone's choice from them.

But why did she feel that she was sentencing something so good and pure down a stairway to hell?

Mia did not understand why Dino brought her to Hibari. She needed to see Tsuna but he promised her that he would take her to him since she didn't know where he had gone with Reborn.

"I just needed help to convince Kyoya," he explained.

"Ah," Mia said, finally understanding what the problem was. "He won't accept the ring."

They were currently making their way to the roof where she knew Hibari would be napping at a time like this. She set her feelings aside at the moment to focus on how to convince Hibari because out of all the others, he was the hardest to persuade.

"Yeah," Dino said, a little bit exasperated. "Reborn made it my duty to tutor him. How am I supposed to tutor him when he's so stubborn?"

"Bribe him," Mia suggested. Dino glanced at her then looked away.

"I tried already. He hit me in the face." Mia winced at that.

"Hey, where's Romario?" she asked, suddenly noticing the lack of the henchman's presence.

"He's at the hospital taking care of a few things." Dino rummaged through his coat.

"So basically you're useless at the moment," she deadpanned. He pouted at her.

"Don't worry! I got a plan!" he assured her brightly. She gave him a doubtful look. "Hey, look – you're closer to him than the rest of us. You know how he is and you're the least likely to be maimed."

She stared at him with a straight face. "Thanks."

"Oh, I got something else to help you out!" And he pulled out the item. Mia stared at it in disbelief.

"You've gotta be kidding me."

He wasn't kidding. Hibari stared at her like she was some sort of bizarre creature as she stood in front of him wearing a pair of adorable doggie ears on her head. She wanted to go jump off the roof as her face burned with embarrassment. Behind her, Dino was grinning widely. Pretty boy wasn't going to be so pretty when she's done with him…

"Chairman…" she started and looked hopefully at him. Let her suffering end, please. "If-if you accept the ring you'll be able to fight some strong people and I can assure you they're dangerous." She touched her hair with a hint of sadness.

"Your hair." He pointedly looked at her.

"It was cut," she replied shortly, not wanting to talk about it.

From the back, Dino said, "Somebody tried to kill Mia yesterday and tried to behead her!" Hibari glanced sharply towards the blonde man. Mia glared at Dino.

"Damn it Dino!" she hissed. He shrugged, not sorry at all. He turned back to the prefect.

"She was lucky to have been able to walk away."

Hibari's eyes narrowed and he turned back to her. "Was he strong?" he asked her. "Stronger that Sawada Tsunayoshi?"

She bit her lip. "Yeah."

"Give me the ring."

She handed him the ring. He stared at it for a while and Mia feared he would throw it or something. He then did something she never expected him to do – he patted her freaking head. What. The. Fuck. He didn't realize it either as his hand suddenly froze and his eyes widened. An awkward silence ensued between them. Hibari pulled away his hand away and she could only stare at him.

"Do I remind you of a dog?" she asked him.

For the first time, he evaded her look. Eventually he replied, "Of the sorts."

Behind them, Dino dissolved into a fit of laughter. Hibari even had a small smile! Turning red with anger and humiliation, she spun around and kicked Dino at his side as he was still laughing. She cut him off and his laugh became into a painful groan as he held his hip.

"I'm leaving!" she cried shrilly.

Thanks for reading!