Under a Clouded Blue
Summary:
"My ambition in life? To conquer the world because destroying the mafia is so last season and I never got around with it the last time anyway…kufufu."
In which Rokudo Mukuro is reborn into a parallel world and finds himself in the position of every other SI/OC. Did he mention Hibari Kyoya being his younger brother?
To hell with what Sepira's spirit has to say about him making sure everyone —even bloody Byakuran— plays the role they did in his previous life. But if that dead woman promises those imported chocolate bonbons from Kawahira's store— "Sure. Why not?"
Featuring the evil mastermind and guardian angel of the canon!character's fates (the hell?): Rokudo Mukuro/Hibari Kuroo.
DISCLAIMER: Amano Akira owns it all. Except the plot and a few characters of course.
WARNING: Mind the language and grammar, I don't have a beta.
A/N:
Half of a chapter from Kyoya's perspective, for all those who adore the little five year old demon. And this is more or less a wrap up of what I call, the "France Arc", lmao.
17. Au revoir, France.
Surprised?
No.
That was an understatement.
If anything, Kuroo was shocked.
Sure, Casimir had always been quite a sketchy person right from the start. But him turning out to be an illusionist Kuroo actually went on to acknowledge?!
Kuroo stared blankly at the man whose smile only grew wider.
"I am surprised you ended up being a very capable illusionist." Casimir chuckled. (Oh, the irony.) "I had assumed Izanami was too weak to pass on the family trait to her son."
"Family trait?" Kuroo raised a brow.
"Our bloodline has always brought out illusionists, though ones not as strong as I," he paused for a moment, "and now, you."
"What's the big deal of attacking Squalo and me?" Kuroo frowned, cutting to the chase.
"I have a proposal for you, nephew. This was just a, ah, test to see if you were worth it."
"And what if I'm not interested?"
Casimir chuckled again. "Oh, I don't think you'll want to brush this aside too quickly." His blue orbs met Kuroo's stormy bluish-grey ones. "But first, be a dear and undo these bindings, won't you?"
Kuroo was tempted to just leave his tonton and walk away with Squalo in tow, but paused. Perhaps this was a part of Sepira's premonition?
He snapped his fingers again, the iron bars dissolving into nothing.
Casimir sat up while nursing his wrists.
"Well, what is it?" Kuroo asked.
The man gave a smile that unsettled him. "I want you to be—"
"Did he die?" Hibari Kyoya asked with a sniff as he leaned against his brother for support. His fever had come down by the evening, thankfully.
Kuroo snorted. "No, Kyo-chan. He's just unconscious."
"So he's sleeping?"
"Sort of."
They had managed to make it back to the château in Casimir's car with no further drama, Squalo sprawled out in the backseat while the two took the front.
Squalo had tripped and banged his head.
Again.
The story was simple and easily accepted by Izanami and Alison who immediately ushered the unconscious boy onto the bed in the guest room.
Kuroo had been instructed to wait by the silver haired teen's side and call one of the adults when he woke up.
So here he was now, with Kyoya who had somehow found him.
"Will he wake up?" Kyoya asked as he shifted to press his whole weight against his brother. It was tiring, standing up.
Kuroo wrapped his arms around the younger's shoulders to steady him. "Hopefully soon."
"Does he have to wake up?" Kyoya wrinkled his nose.
Kuroo laughed.
"He should just sleep forever." Kyoya mumbled. "I don't like him."
And of course he had every reason not to like the loud boy. He was always making Kuroo busy, taking him away from Kyoya.
Kyoya didn't appreciate waking up in the afternoon only to find out that his brother wasn't in the house.
"Don't let mother hear you." Kuroo lightly pinched the younger one's cheek. "She'll think I'm the one teaching you such things."
"Sorry." Kyoya didn't sound sorry at all.
"Come, let's sit on the couch." Kuroo suggested as he tugged the little demon away to more comfortable arrangements.
"Is Kuroo tired?"
"I am, it's been a long day."
"Oh." Kyoya nodded as he settled comfortably next to his older brother. "Tell me a story."
Kuroo bit back his sigh. Clearly, his brother didn't understand what he meant when he said he was tired. "Can't we just cuddle and doze off?"
"But the loud boy is sleeping too."
"I don't understand your sense of reasoning." Kuroo huffed. "Did you play with your tonfas today?"
"There was no one to play with." Kyoya sulked, mood turning sour at the reminder that he had been alone for most of the day.
Kuroo smirked. "Kufufu, so you missed me." He pulled the boy into his embrace and mumbled into his soft hair. "You're much better when you're quiet and sulking, honestly."
"Hmm?" Kyoya tilted his head up with a questioning look.
"Nothing. Just sit still, and doze off."
"But I want a story." The stubborn raven ground his teeth together, a sign that he might start biting something (Kuroo's hand, in this case) soon.
"Hmm…alright." Kuroo began after a moment's thought. "I met a puppy today."
"A puppy?" Kyoya perked up. He had a thing for little animals.
"Yes. A golden fluffy puppy." Kuroo continued. "Very clumsy and annoying, he knocked me over— why are you grinning?"
"A strong puppy." Kyoya seemed to approve.
"No. Just foolishly clumsy. There's a difference between being strong and being a total wimp who goes around clumsily pushing other people down."
"But puppy pushed you down." Kyoya shook his head. "Can I meet the puppy? Keep it as a pet?"
"Not yet. But you will meet the puppy when you're older." Kuroo hummed in thought.
"But puppy will be a dog."
"A strong one, Kyo-chan. You'll enjoy playing with it, I promise."
"Can I keep—" Kyoya's eyes shifted over to the bed. "He's waking up."
"Go call mother or tante, won't you?" Kuroo rose to his feet, helping his younger brother up as well. "He will be pretty loud when he wakes and you know you don't like that."
"Okay."
Kuroo went over to the teen's side as he listened to his brother's footsteps pitter-patter away.
"Good morning."
Squalo who had had his eyes opened for a few seconds already, snapped to attention on hearing Kuroo's voice. He tried to sit up but groaned and plopped back onto the bed.
"It's not morning, you fucker."
"And it's not a good idea for you to be sitting up at all right now." Kuroo said.
"The fuck happened..."
"You drank a little too much of the punch, got tipsy and fell face first on to the ground." Kuroo chirped. "I found a phone, called tonton and so here you are now, safe in the comforts of home."
There was a pause as Squalo took it all in, and probably thought it over too. "Voi, don't lie to me. I did not get drunk."
"I promise I'm not lying."
"I was knocked out." Squalo said with a frown.
"Yes, by hitting your head hard against the concrete."
"No, by someone from—"
"Squalo!" Tante exclaimed as she barged into the room looking quite fierce.
The said teen muttered a string of colorful curses in Italian under his breath.
"Going about drinking punch at a birthday party and getting drunk, stupide!" The woman scolded. "Imagine what would've happened if Kuroo wasn't around! You'd be lying on the floor with no one to help you return back home! I thought you were more responsible than this."
"I. Did. Not. Get. Drunk." Squalo said through gritted teeth as he threw Kuroo a look that promised pain.
The raven simply offered a shrug in reply.
He walked out of the room as tante continued on with her rant. Best leave before he too got dragged into the mess, he thought.
Kuroo ran into his mother on his way out, his younger brother balanced on her hip and playing with her hair.
"Kuroo, be with Kyoya for sometime won't you?" Izanami said as she shifted Kyoya into her oldest son's arms. "I'll have to talk with your cousin."
"Sure." He replied with a pleased smile as he wrapped his arms protectively around his younger brother. "Take all the time you want."
"He's a little hungry, so go get him something from the kitchen." She instructed. "But nothing unhealthy alright? He's still recovering from the fever."
"Okay."
"Can I eat an apple?" Kyoya asked as he rested his head on the crook of his brother's neck.
"If that's what you want." Kuroo nodded.
"Sepira said apples keep doctors away."
"No point keeping the doctor away when you're sick, Kyoya. The apples should be eaten so that you don't fall sick, did you know that?"
"So when I'm sick, I shouldn't eat apple?"
Kuroo gave a small laugh. "You're becoming very talkative. Is that a trait of growing up?"
Kyoya furrowed his brows. "Is that bad?"
"No." Kuroo smiled as he pressed a soft kiss on to his brother's forehead in one of his rare displays of affection. "No. That's not bad, that's just fine."
"Okay." Kyoya hummed in contentment.
"Now, let's go get an apple for you."
"I want you to be my apprentice."
Kuroo walked down the gravel pathway leading to the DeLauro winery within the château's grounds. Dinner was to be served in about two more hours, Kyoya was asleep and Squalo was off in some corner probably tending to his sword— which meant that he had two hours by himself.
The rays of the setting sun filtered through the trees that lined the path, giving off a somber feeling.
Kuroo stifled a yawn.
It had been a long day indeed.
And now, he had to meet with his tonton.
"An apprentice." Kuroo mumbled to himself.
Did he mean an apprentice in the art of illusions? Or something else? Casimir had not given him a straight answer, just a, "Drop by the winery in the evening. You'll know where to find me once you get there."
The old winery stood tall, holding a unique presence about itself despite the obvious wearing down with age.
Kuroo pushed open the wooden doors and stepped in.
The place was quiet except for the creaking of doors shut, and his tonton was nowhere in sight.
He walked around for a bit, passing by the metal tanks and the old equipment for processing the grapes from the vineyard. Then, on finding stairs leading down to the cellar, paused before taking it.
The cellar seemed as old as the building, with no new technological additions and replacements unlike the first floor. It was filled with many sturdy large oak barrels stacked up by the wall, leaving little space on the side, all the way to the end of the cellar passageway.
Except, it wasn't really the end of the cellar.
Kuroo's sharp eyes caught sight of a very light flickering image of a door on what was supposed to be a wall, a dead end.
His feet carried him over to it.
When he placed his hand upon the door handle, the illusion that cloaked it momentarily disappeared, allowing him access to whatever lay behind the door.
Kuroo hummed as he shut the door behind him before taking a good look at the room he had just entered.
It wasn't too small of a space but neither was it big, and was surprisingly brightly lit with lighting in all four of its corners.
There were also a great number of shelves that covered up two of the walls— fully stacked with what appeared to be files, and a few books.
A large white board took up the space of the third wall, with pictures of people and maps pinned up on it (most of which were crisscrossed in red) and neat writings below them.
He walked over to it to get a better look.
"Liking my abode?"
Casimir's voice snapped Kuroo back to reality.
He turned around to see his tonton leaning against one of the shelves, eyes watching him like a hawk. How Kuroo had not seen him earlier, he did not know.
"It's," Kuroo paused, "not too shabby."
Casimir laughed at the reply. "Of course not." He straightened his posture before walking over to his nephew in five long strides. "I would never allow my workplace to be shabby."
Kuroo turned his attention back to the board with a hum. "So...you're a hitman."
"Assassin." Casimir smoothly corrected, unfazed by how quickly his nephew had joined the dots. "I'm not tied to any syndicate, I just take up contracts from here and there to kill."
"And you want me to be your apprentice." Kuroo dryly completed.
"Exactly."
"You do know I'm just a child—"
"I would highly doubt you were a child" (Kuroo eyes briefly narrowed at the statement) "because you seem all too brilliant. But because prodigies actually exist, I can draw to a conclusion that you're one of a kind." Casimir's smile was sharp. "And my nephew as well. So I thought why not?"
"...what makes you think I'm even capable of killing?"
"You've been trained in martial arts ever since a young age, you fight without flinching, injuries don't exact much of a reaction out of you." Casimir listed. "And when you spar with your cousin, you land your hits close to sending him six feet under the ground. Only, you hold back."
Kuroo's furrowed his brows at the new-found knowledge that Casimir had been watching him.
"Most importantly, you're apathetic to all things sans anything that involves your little brother and possibly your parents."
"You're creepy." Kuroo replied.
Casimir laughed. "Like you're any normal."
Kuroo took his time to leisurely walk around the room, inspecting it and running his fingers across the collection of files and books.
"What if I say no?" He turned around as he got to the other end.
"I have my ways for making you say yes." Casimir shrugged.
"Are you threatening me?" Kuroo narrowed his eyes.
"Oh no, of course not." He shook his head. "I'm just...stating facts." Casimir continued. "Besides, this will be a brilliant opportunity for you to start learning how to get used to having blood on your hands. Your father is part of a rather infamous yakuza, the next heir to it, in fact— and seeing how you're his firstborn son, you'll eventually be spilling blood when you're older."
(Casimir was going to make sure the only answer he would be receiving was a "yes".)
Kuroo paused.
This was undeniably true.
But then, if he agreed to Casimir's proposal it would only mean he'd end up having two uncles breathing down on him.
The raven head sighed as he brought up a hand to massage his temple. "Today has been a rather hectic day. I need to sleep over this."
Casimir smiled. "It's alright, we still have a lot of time to sort this out."
"Aren't you worried I might go tattle about what you do behind your family's back?" Kuroo asked as moved to head out of the room.
His tonton's laughter echoed.
"Oh, believe me. You'd be long dead before you could even say a word."
And somehow, Kuroo knew Casimir really meant it.
Mother said they would be leaving for home in three more days. She also said that Kyoya should be more patient and eat his lunch without fussing.
Which was exactly what he was doing right now.
His aunt Alison had cooked him up a nice omurice since Kyoya preferred eating what he was already accustomed to. And she had even neatly written "herbivore" with sauce on it (because he ate herbivores for lunch).
It was a perfect way to start his afternoon, really!
But...
But Kuroo was missing.
Again.
"Kyoya," Alison sighed as the sound of silverware sharply scratching against china echoed for the nth time, "don't be so rough with the utensils."
"'M not." Kyoya huffed.
"Kyoya."
"Voi!" A certain silver haired teen exclaimed as he sauntered into the dining hall. "What's for lunch?"
Kyoya perked up on hearing his voice. His steel-grey eyes fixed on the entrance even after Squalo had entered, gleaming with hope.
"See for yourself." Alison replied, tearing her attention away from the young raven head. "And don't forget to clean up after you're done."
Squalo muttered something in Italian before disappearing into the kitchen.
And Kyoya's shoulders sank when he realized his brother wasn't going to walk through the doors anytime soon..
"Where's Kuroo?" He asked when the silver haired teen took his seat.
"Huh?"
"Where. Is. Kuroo?"
"I don't know." Squalo rolled his eyes. "I haven't hidden him away so stop glaring at me."
"Hmph."
"Ah," Alison spoke up as if suddenly remembering something, "Kuroo's gone out with Casimir for some work so he'll be back late tonight. And I need to go pick a few things with Izanami, so Squalo—"
"Kuroo's gone?" Kyoya's face only soured at the news.
Squalo began. "I have a very bad feeling about what you're about to say—"
"I'm leaving Kyoya in your care."
"Fuck!"
"Language!"
"I'll bite you to death, herbivores."
So about an hour later...
"This is boring." Kyoya declared as he watched the silver haired teen delicately run a cloth through his— what was it called again?— big shiny silver knife.
Squalo felt a vein pop. "Voi, sword maintenance is not boring. It's a task that requires great skill and patience." The teen launched into a monologue that Kyoya decided to tune out.
"Can I touch it?"
"This is not some flimsy plastic toy."
"So can I touch it?"
"I meant no the first time."
"Why not?"
"You're asking too many questions."
"Kuroo said it's not a bad thing."
"Voi!" Squalo yelled. "Shut up and do something else that doesn't involve asking questions!"
So Kyoya pulled out the tonfas from the inside of his sleeves.
Kuroo had showed him where to keep his tonfas cause it was more convenient having it on him than running back to his room every time he wanted to play with them.
He slipped off his chair and into the stance Uncle Fon had once taught him (when he'd stayed to watch Kuroo train) and began swinging his tonfas around.
"Those plastic?" Squalo asked, pausing his work.
He'd often seen the boy carrying those sticks around with him while never allowing anyone to touch it so he was curious.
"Strong," was Kyoya's simple reply before he turned around and viciously started attacking the chair he'd been sitting on not too long ago— as though in a demonstration.
"Hey. Hey!" Squalo quickly stood up, pointing his sword at the boy. "Stop that! You'll ruin the furniture!"
Kyoya stopped, a pout forming on his lips.
"But they're strong." He insisted, lifting his tonfas as though to show it to Squalo.
"All I asked was if they were made of plastic, goddammit!"
"You said a bad word." Kyoya frowned.
"And you made me say it." Squalo groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
Just when were the others returning? And how the fuck did they even take care of this demonic little five year old!?
"Calm down." Kyoya's eyebrows remained furrowed.
"That's big coming from you." Squalo huffed. "So when do you go off to sleep?"
"Hmm?"
"What time do you have your afternoon naps?"
"Why? Want to sleep with me?"
"What the—" Squalo facepalmed. "Gods, at least you're not your fucking brother. Fine. What do you wanna do then? Do you draw?"
"I can." Kyoya seemed to visibly brighten at the thought of drawing. "I'll bring my book."
Squalo blinked.
He hadn't expected the boy to easily comply— wait, why did this feel like déjà vu? But Kyoya was definitely not someone like Kuroo. The younger raven seemed more of the "normal kid" from the two.
"You draw too." Kyoya said as he reentered the room and offered a second drawing book to the silver haired teen. "I have extra colors."
"I don't want to—"
"And extra pencils and erasers. Come." Kyoya pushed the book into the other's hands. "Draw." He said, no, ordered.
"Fine." Squalo accepted it with a sigh. "Why do you have two drawing books anyway?"
"That one's Kuroo's."
"Heh." Squalo flipped through the pages of the drawing book. "He doesn't look like someone who would— VOI! What the fuck!?"
"Kuroo likes to draw." Kyoya chose to ignore Squalo's surprise. Honestly, it was more or less the same way everyone reacted whenever they saw Kuroo's drawings. No big deal.
"This— what— who!? Is he some fucking Van Gogh!?"
"Picasso."
After dinner, Kyoya stood outside, waiting for his brother for at least fifteen minutes before Squalo dragged him back in while half yelling about him catching another fever.
So here he was, sitting on the window sill of the living room, face pressed to the glass and carefully looking out for his brother.
Tante Alison and Izanami had left him to himself (after wrapping him up in a warm blanket) before heading upstairs. And of course, after telling Squalo to keep an eye on the boy.
The silver haired teen left the room in a short while, instructing Kyoya not to go outside because his brother would be upset if he did.
And Kyoya didn't want to upset Kuroo.
It was only later, when Kyoya was slowly nodding off, that his brother finally returned.
Kyoya's eyes had snapped open when his ears picked up the sound of footsteps outside.
He saw his uncle first before spotting his brother a few feet behind, seeming lost in his thoughts.
Kyoya got to the door and opened it before his uncle could. The man greeted him with raised brows and a look of mild surprise.
"Well, what do we have here?" Casimir bend over and ruffled the younger raven's hair.
"'scuse, I need to see Kuroo." Kyoya made a face.
While Casimir was nice, Kyoya wasn't really liking the man right now.
Casimir chuckled. "Such a vigilant guard dog." He straightened up and allowed the boy to run past him. "Just like someone I know."
Kyoya barreled right into Kuroo who ended up toppling to the ground, having not expected the sudden assault.
"You left me alone again." Kyoya looked pissed, his teeth grinding. "There was no one to play with."
Kuroo blinked once, twice, and then laughed as his arms came to wrap around his brother. "Kufufu, Kyo-chan. Were you waiting for me?"
"Hmph."
"Your nii-chan is sorry for being late." Kuroo hummed. "There were just a few people I had to take care of."
"Take care?" Kyoya wrinkled his nose.
"Yes." Kuroo smiled. "Come on, get up. It's cold out here. Also—"
"There's blood on your cheek." Kyoya pointed out as his eyes narrowed on the dark smear on his brother's face. "Did Kuroo fight?"
"It's not mine, but…ah. You wouldn't tell mother, would you?"
Kyoya paused. "If Kuroo tells me a story." He promised. "I won't."
"What's up with you and your recent obsession for stories?" Kuroo huffed. "Alright .Now, come on. Up."
That night, the younger Hibari was already asleep in his brother's arms before he could even begin narrating a story. Kyoya had waited long enough for his brother, after all.
Time passed by far too slowly for Kyoya, but they eventually got to the day when they were all packed up and ready to leave for home.
Kyoya was excited to leave.
(Because now, there wouldn't be anyone who would keep stealing Kuroo away for long hours.
Except for school.)
A little too excited that he hadn't gotten much sleep and was now being carried by his mother. He hid another yawn in her shoulder, tears forming in the corners of his eyes.
"Yacchan, are you sleepy already?" His mother cooed.
Kyoya made a face at the nickname. His mother didn't use it often because she knew how much he detested the name (it was not "strong"! It sounded very herbivore!).
But in moments when she pampered and coddled him, she always used it. And Kyoya usually excused her because he was too tired to retaliate.
"Home." He mumbled.
"Yes, we'll be back home soon."
"Nn, Kuroo?" His eyes were beginning to grow heavy.
"Oh, he's just saying his goodbyes to Squalo. I'm pretty sure they'll miss each other; they did get along quite well."
"Loud boy."
Izanami laughed. "Want to say goodbye to him too?"
"...okay."
The yelling which had ensued (because of something Kuroo had said, of course) dissipated the moment Izanami drew closer to the two boys.
Kyoya yawned again.
"Squalo, someone wants to say his goodbyes to you."
"Bye bye, Loud boy." Kyoya lazily waved at the silver haired teen. He paused as though in thought before saying his next words with a sleepy smile. "Your sow— sword is nice. Strong."
(The silver haired teen himself had taught Kyoya the word, saying it wasn't a "big shiny silver knife" but a "sword".)
Squalo, who had been frowning, wore a softer expression now. His hand reached out, rather hesitantly, and ruffled the little raven's hair. "You draw good too." He said. "Take care, kid."
"Oooh," Kuroo smirked, "look who's getting all sentimental."
"Voi!"
Kyoya rested his head back on his mother's shoulder.
It was loud, alright.
But somehow, it was peaceful.
A/N:
BET YOU WEREN'T EXPECTING AN UPDATE THIS SOON, HAH!
(And you can bet you won't be getting another update this soon, but I'll try xD hopefully, it won't be after three months Neko1290 :'D)
Also, a heads up that the next chapters will be quickly covering all the years of Kuroo's life (I wanted to skip out some, but it didn't seem like it would've worked) before we finally get to canon! He'll be 18/19 yrs old when it starts.
And yes! Thank you so much to all the reviewers Guest (Jul 15 c16), bloodshound, WXIN, SugarAlien, MayaHikari, dyingUta, Neko1290, SakuraLuck, uchiharyuko, OperaEagle IcelynLacelett, kalmaegi, AlunaGray and 707 Cx! I get giddy every time I read your reactions (づ￣ ³￣)づ
Also, a big thank you for the people who put this up on your favorites and follows! It's so nice to see emails popping up in my notifications about y'all :'3
Thank you so much for reading!