Title: Serendipity
Author: sllebswap
Characters/Pairing: Miura Haru and Dino
Type: OneShot/Drabble Collection (InComplete)
Genre: Romance/General/Humor
Word Count: 1641
Rating: T (Contains content not suitable for children)
Disclaimer: Kateikyoushi Hitman Reborn belongs to Akira-san.
Summary: CEDEF Agent Miura Haru and the Cavallone Boss have known each other for a very long time, haven't they? Loosely, interconnected one shot/drabble series. D86.
Chapter Last Revised on: 07/10/16
When I just wanna make you smile
After Tsuna-kun had finally taken the time out to explain what was going on and why exactly they were suddenly stranded ten years in the future, Haru had been plagued by relentless guilt for her previously childish and willful behavior. Her friends were fighting so hard to keep them all alive and also to find a way back to the time where they rightfully belonged, and there she was throwing a tantrum and making things even more difficult for the boy whom she had self-professed to have feelings for.
But the thing was; if you liked someone, then wouldn't you trust them wholly, too?
When Haru was crying bitterly in Bianchi's arms, her disappointment in herself knew no bounds. I'm the worst, she thought with no small amount of self-inflicted rancor, I can't even do a simple thing right, making more trouble for Tsuna-kun and giving him more things to worry about when he already has so much on his plate to deal with. I'm the worst.
Bianchi-nee-chan had told her that she had to be strong, and Haru was really trying her best. At the very least, she resolved not to cause any more problems for Tsuna-kun and the others so that they could concentrate on the battle ahead. So she cooked. She cleaned. She looked after the younger children. And she smiled. A lot. Big, bright smiles that reassured the little ones and that also served to motivate Tsuna and his Guardians. They would fight to protect that carefree smile, as well as those of all their friends and precious people.
And so Haru smiled like the sun. She smiled until her cheeks ached. Until her eyes watered. Then she sucked it up and smiled some more, even when it hurt her. Cosplay was a lot like play pretend, no? You put on a mask, and then you do your best to act like the character the mask represented, and it just happened that Haru was very, very good at cosplay.
"Yo."
"Hahi?!"
She nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of the speaker. Whirling around sharply from her position in front of the kitchen sink where she had been in the process of washing some fruits for I-Pin and Lambo, wide doe eyes were greeted by a semi-familiar presence, the latter's expression exuding faint chagrin even as one of his hands gave a casual wave. He had not meant to scare her.
It was the Cavallone Decimo, but to be more precise, it was the him that was ten years older. Haru's startled gaze cleared slowly once she got over her surprise.
"Dino-nii…?"
She had only seen this future version of their ally briefly before he had gone to help train Tsuna and Yamamoto to use their box weapons, and had not expected his presence here and now. Curiosity got the best of her, and perhaps even a touch of loneliness as well. With the exception of Kyoko-chan and maybe Bianchi-nee-chan, most of her time in the Base was spent with the children. She adored the kids and enjoyed playing with them, but there was only so much intellectual socialization that one could hope to achieve around the youngsters…and there really weren't anyone else to turn to. Everyone was busy doing their best to become stronger, and she really should not bother them…
The smile that she had plastered on her face threatened to falter momentarily before she held it up by sheer force of will.
"Does Dino-nii need help from Haru? Are you looking for someone, desu?" she enquired chirpily, eyeing the much taller male as he slowly wandered deeper into the kitchen, towards her. In return, the Mafioso observed her cursorily; for one single moment, his golden gaze glimmered with a keen intuitiveness that disconcerted Haru – but then that moment was gone again as quickly as it had occurred, even before she could figure out how to properly react to it. He flashed her a small, disarming smile, and she blinked owlishly at him.
"Hello, Haru…-shi. No, I'm not looking for anyone in particular. I was simply passing by. How are you?"
The polite honorific seemed like it was only added at the last minute, but Haru was still too busy being surprised by the speaker's presence to ponder the meaning behind the unintentional pause. There was something about the effusing warmth in his tone that soothed the jarring sensation of aloneness that inundated her, and…she was drawn to it. Haru tried not to think about what it meant for her if a random act of regard from someone whom she had not even known too well was enough to stir her emotions. She paused, smile fading, uncertain what to say to his casual question, and her reaction was all too telling.
His shrewd gaze softened, ever so slightly. Dino took a seat on one of the stools by the kitchen counter and wordlessly gestured for her to join him. She blinked again, then slowly dried her hands on a washcloth, and wandered over.
"Dino-nii… Haru is Haru. Dino-nii hasn't called Haru '-shi' for a while already." She was referring to the version of him in the past, of course.
"Mm, is that so? Alright, then." His tone was light, almost faintly amused, as if privy to some inside joke that she did not know about. She looked at him with a vague sort of wonder; had she become very good friends with Dino-nii sometime in the future? The casual ease in which the Cavallone Don was interacting with her seemed to indicate as much, and his comfortable demeanor around her somehow worked to lull her nerves as well. Haru's eyes widened slightly as she remembered something.
"Hahi! Haru forgot to offer refreshments!" She jumped up from her seat before he could stop her, jogged by a previous memory as she automatically went about speedily preparing a beverage even without having to ask the golden haired Sky Flame wielder. It spoke for her familiarity and skill in the kitchen that she was able to whip up a fragrant brew in next to no time. He watched her bemusedly as she went about her self-appointed task. He had already known this; but the young girl flourished whenever she felt needed, and was given purpose.
"Dino-nii only likes black coffee with milk, no sugar, right?" she offered as she gently set the mug of steaming, aromatic caffeine before her guest. A tiny smile grew on her face, softer this time, less brittle, more genuine. "Haru remembers after that incident with the robot alpaca herd in Mafia Land."
'That incident' had occurred only months ago for her, but more than a decade for him. She would not be surprised if he had forgotten already. He accepted the drink with a faint grin of his own, slightly tinged with chagrin because he, too, had remembered that unfortunate day.
"Thanks. And I'd rather you'd forget about that. It hadn't been one of my proudest moments."
She could not help but giggle snort at his understatement, taking a sip from her own mug that was filled with hot chocolate.
"But Haru thinks that Dino-nii is really brave and cool for taking on the ninja squirrels' challenge to save the baby alpaca!"
The thirty-two year old Cavallone Decimo paused in the midst of nursing his coffee, one brow lifted.
"Really?" His tone was unmistakably wry. "If I recall correctly, I was green in the face throughout the entire roller coaster ride and proceeded to spend the next twenty minutes thereafter with my head stuck down a sick bag."
The teenager nodded, biting back her snickers and schooling her expression to an earnest one.
"It's precisely because Dino-nii still accepted the challenge even though he didn't want to that Haru thinks that he is really brave, desu!" She nodded emphatically once to further hammer in her point, her features glowing with sincere belief. Looking at her animated features, Dino could feel a pleasant warmth welling up in him, and he concealed his smile behind the rim of his mug.
"…I think Haru-kun is really brave, too, Too brave even, perhaps," he murmured, and she stilled at his seemingly innocuous comment. He turned to meet her startled gaze, his own rather serious. "Haru-kun is full of smiles for everyone, but maybe Haru-kun should smile more for herself also, ne?"
Her immediate instinct had been to deny. Deny, deny, deny. Besides-
How did he know?
"I- I'm not-" She was stuttering, flustered, not expecting the conversation to go down this avenue. But her protests were for nothing, because Dino-nii offered up no arguments whatsoever. He simply looked at her. Calm, passive.
Understanding.
Her mouth snapped shut, and then suddenly, her mug of hot chocolate looked infinitely interesting.
"It's alright to feel scared and uncertain sometimes, I think," he murmured after a short pause, and there was such gentle compassion in his quietly uttered words, and…somehow, that was enough. There was nothing else that needed to be said.
Haru's vision started to blur. Her shoulders trembled. She bit down on her lips to stop them from quivering.
But the tears welled up all the same, like an unstoppable tide, and this time, it did not feel to Haru like she had to choke them back down…that it was okay to let them go.
Dino-nii did not tell her to be brave. Dino-nii did not tell her to be strong.
Dino-nii simply sat beside her and continued to sip his coffee, and when warm drops of salty saline silently plopped onto the countertop, he glanced away, offering privacy for her to grieve.
But he did not leave her alone.
A large, ringed hand tentatively, almost awkwardly, patted the crown of her bowed head, and her tears fell faster.
Somehow, his kindness was enough.
It was enough.
::tsuzuku::
Questions That I Would Like To Answer Before You Ask:
FYI, TYL!Dino is thirty-two in this installment, whereas past!Haru is fourteen.
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The honorific '-shi' is usually used to refer to a person unfamiliar to the speaker. It's a more formal mode of address as compared to '-san,' '-kun,' or '-chan.'
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There will be a direct follow up to this chapter in the next installment. It was supposed to be an omake but it got too long in the end so I decided to split it. I'm still in the process of getting Dino's character down – or at least, the version of him that I will be portraying, and so far, it's going well enough. He's very different from Belphegor, that's for sure – but I foresee that it'd be a lot easier to write fluffy stuff with him once I get the ball rolling, heh.
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That unspeakable 'incident' in Mafia Land with the ninja squirrels and the robot alpaca herd was made up by yours truly. Perhaps I may write about it in full detail in the future – still undecided on that yet!
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Last but not least, I will try to update faster but between work, games and manga marathons, I'm easily distracted as usual. Heheh. Currently, I have seven chapters written out already (tentatively) but I'm still reviewing them a lot and making changes here and there. Thanks for all of your kind support and patience!
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Your reviews make me update faster; so please leave a comment if you like this fic!
-sllebswap