A/N
Happy Thanksgiving guys! If you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, then, well, happy day or whatever you do! Have a surprisingly quick update! The next chapter might take a bit longer, as the holiday means a lot of family time, and I won't have as much time. Of course, it might be as long as normal and this note is for nothing, but fair warning.
Enjoy~
Chapter Nine
Stupid Misunderstanding
His eyes were closed, and the last thing he felt was his back sliding back down the wall, obnoxious laughter echoing through his head. Then there was black.
Gokudera glanced over his shoulder at the trees. He was concerned, but he'd be damned before he admitted it. It was nagging him; like a little voice in the back of his head. You weren't moving that fast. They could have just gone over. They should be here already. So why aren't they? Where, where, where?! It would give the Storm no rest. He was even worried about that stupid baseball fanatic. The idiot had given up his primary weapon in a tight spot. Why the hell would he do that? They all knew it was impossible to face one Mosca - let alone multiple - with a box weapon alone. It was suicide.
The smoldering Guardian was pulled from his misgivings by an arm around his neck. Josh was laughing, playfully resting his arm across the other's shoulder. It reminded Gokudera of the missing person even more.
"So," the science buff drawled, "where are we heading to now, boss man? You're the one who stopped."
"I'm not the boss!" The Storm flared immediately, fighting the urge to hit the teen. He paused when he saw a smirk on the blonde and black-haired boys. "Shit! Damn you," he spat. He couldn't believe how he hadn't noticed their little ploy.
Jonah came closer and leaned on Gokudera's other side. "Oh? So you're not in charge of this whole thing? Then who is? Hmm?"
The bomber elbowed Josh in the gut, and kicked Jonah in the leg; feeling satisfied when both males yelped in pain and sprang back. He was not some arm rest, thank you very much. He set them with his best glare, and they both shuffled awkwardly at the rage directed at them. Getting him to almost say information about his beloved boss – unforgivable! He had snapped at the insult so quickly, automatically, he hadn't actually processed who had said it.
He looked over the two a last time, before turning his back. He could hear an audible sigh of relief, and resisted the urge to chuckle. Now wasn't the time for humor. He needed to figure out the meaning behind his fellow Guardian's actions. . . .
"Ne, Gokudera."
Clearly, it wasn't going to be happening here.
"Fucking—" The silver haired teen took a deep breath, before turning around slowly. "Okay, here's the plan. You three are going to stay right here while I do something. And I fucking mean it this time!" He looked sharply at Josh, who smiled sheepishly and made an 'X' over his heart. "I've got some . . . stuff I need to get done quickly. So just, I don't know, sit over there or something." The bomber gestured vaguely to an open area. "Try not to die while I'm gone."
"What kind of stuff?"
How didn't he expect this? "Important stuff that is none of your business," he hissed at Jonah.
Finally departing, Gokudera did just as he said he would. He left them sitting on the side of the hill, none the wiser to his plans.
Chrome nearly had a heart attack when she turned around and someone was suddenly in front of her. The boy had ironically appeared out of nowhere. Well, considering what she had put him through, she was one to talk.
Of course, this boy didn't know that it was her manipulating him into going to the meeting point. But he was not meant to stray any farther. She had sent Mukurou to him to give him a message, using her illusions, and had meant to scare him. Normally, people wanted to forget the terrifying things she showed them with her powers - not seek out the source. This teen certainly was an oddity.
She mentally winced when she stuttered her question. She shifted back and forth on her feet, uncertain what to do. The boy smiled winningly and reached out a hand.
"How rude of me; frightening a lady like yourself! Where are my manners? My name is Akane, and I am very sorry if I startled you."
Chrome was pleasantly surprised by Akane's chivalrous behavior. She gently shook his hand before withdrawing. "It's alright. Still, students are not allowed to leave the gym yet. Can I please ask you to go back inside?"
Akane looked puzzled by this. "But my dear, are you not a student as well? Come to think of it, you're not wearing the uniform."
Chrome was prepared for these kinds of questions. "No, I am not a student at Namimori - I go to Kokuyo. I'm here for the M.O.E. project. I'm the student representative for our school, so when it started, I was called over." Reaching behind her back, she urged Mist flames to condense in her hand. A second later, she flashed an official looking pass.
Akane blinked in confusion before smiling once again and taking the card. He looked it over, before handing it back. "Right, right. I didn't know M.O.E. was interconnected between schools! Ha, well, actually, I didn't really know it existed before today. I'm sorry; I can't say I understand the whole sha-bang. Could you explain it to me?"
"Ah, that's not really my job," Chrome apologized, "but I bet someone in the gym could help you."
"Really now? That's strange; I couldn't find anyone in there." Akane finished with yet another charming smile. They were both aware that this was transgressing into a battle of wit and clever word play. The first one to slip up and say a true word loses.
"Oh, that is my bad then. I'm sorry, there should have been someone posted there. I will look into it, but for the time being; won't you return to the gymnasium?"
"That's alright," the teen drawled, taking a step closer, "but tell me; surely, you aren't out here all alone? It must be awfully lonesome."
Chrome stiffened at the sudden tactic change. She was in the Mafia; there was no way she didn't understand what he was playing at. She tucked her head a bit and tried to look shy. "Well, yes, I am by myself out here. It is not very fun."
"Maybe I can keep you company out here? I can't just leave a lady alone outside, can I?"
Jackpot. "That would be nice," Chrome whispered, pretending to be undecided. "How about . . . you wait for me to change shifts, and then we can talk inside?"
Akane looked truly at ends with this. When he began flirting, he hadn't meant it to be serious. It was just his luck that this girl was both pretty, and actually seemed to be interested. He knew in the back of his head that this was another strike in their bandy battle, and he was currently backed against a cliff with a blade at his throat. He needed to think quickly.
The drama king slung one arm around the female's shoulders. "Oh, but it's not so bad out here. Besides, why would I go back inside if I could stay here with you?"
It took a lot of self-restraint on Chrome's part to not materialize her trident and stab him right there. After years of elegant galas thrown by Mafia families, and some rattier, undercover warehouse flings, she had come to know that close contact was a very, very bad thing. She couldn't remember the number of times she was almost stabbed when someone was being a touch too intimate. She had to remind herself that this was a simple school boy, not an assassin.
Sadly, not everyone remembered this. Before Chrome could intervene, all hell broke loose.
Mukurou* materialized in a bright flash of light, panicked. He shrieked and his talons went straight for Akane's eyes. Said boy let go her faster than if Chrome had caught fire. He ducked his head and covered it with his arms instinctively. The two ran/flew in circles, one chasing; the other fleeing. The human had started flailing his arms in an attempt to wave off the bird. Chrome watched the fiasco with dismay. It had been going so well. . . . She felt a spike of emotion from Mukuro in the back of her mind.
Coming to the conclusion Mukurou wasn't going to stop anytime soon, Chrome summoned her trident. She waited until the two came closer, before swiftly stabbing the weapon between them. Her bird managed to stop before running into the flattened side, and his prey quickly gained ground.
"Wh-What the hell? Where-?" Akane stammered, subconsciously inching closer to Chrome for protection.
Mukurou gave an agitated hoot before making a show of landing on the Mist's shoulder. He fluffed up his feathers and glared until the male shuffled in the other direction.
Chrome puffed out her cheeks and looked at the owl. He was usually so well behaved; she found it odd that he had acted on his own like that. Then she noticed it. One eye was crimson, with kanji instead of a pupil. Mukuro-sama? The illusionist didn't have time to pry secrets right then, as her own were in danger.
"That owl, I saw it earlier . . ." Akane trailed off, puzzlement showing in his eyes, which drifted back to her face. "It belongs to you?"
Chrome debated whether or not she could get away with lying. "Yes, he's mine." The statement brought a little bit of pink to her cheeks.
Akane kept his distance, distrustful, but he had not completely closed off. "Why was it in the classroom? How did it even get in?" His voice held a touch of childish wonder in that last question.
"H-He kind of does his own thing; I'm not really sure where he goes sometimes." She wasn't lying. The box animal was controlled by Mukuro at times, and when that happened she honestly didn't know what was going through his head. Like just now, he had not shared his thoughts before inciting an attack.
Akane was sharper than he looked, picking up on her half-truths, but didn't press it. "It's eye; it changed color, didn't it? It was blue before, but now it's red."
Ah, he had noticed. She wasn't sure she could explain that away, it was a pretty obvious detail. She opened her mouth to reply when a crash resounded behind her. She whipped around and caught a glimpse of eyes in a shadow. She flicked her trident into a ready position; there was someone nearby. She couldn't trap them until she could see them though, not without entangling the student behind her.
"What's happening?" Akane stayed surprisingly calm, drawing closer to the Mist Guardian. He turned and kept his back to her, watching the other side. The sign of trust would have been shocking, but she took it in stride with the situation.
"You should get back inside," Chrome cautioned, maneuvering to let him face the door.
"No way!" She could hear the smile in his voice. "Leaving a lovely lady like you, to fight alone? How could I stand for that?"
Having someone want to protect her made her feel warm, and the corners of her lips slid upward, but she remained completely focused. Mukuro flapped his wings and circled over them, waiting to hear her input.
Can you check out behind the crates? Chrome prodded mentally. The other Mist responded promptly, gliding over to do as she asked.
"Really, you should head back. I don't need protecting."
Her statement seemed to make Akane pause. "That's a little sad, don't you think?"
The sudden sentiment caught her off guard. She mulled it over in her head. "Only if you make it," she replied softly.
This made him chuckle. "I suppose that's true enough. What's wrong?" he added when he felt the Guardian stiffen.
"He's not there . . ." she whispered, staring where the bird had disappeared.
"What do you mean?"
"I-I don't sense him there anymore." Chrome gingerly touched her head, her one eye moving franticly. She wasn't addressing him, merely thinking aloud, it seemed. She winced and scrunched her features in effort.
Raddling noises brought their attention back. An armored man peeked over the wooden boxes by the wall. He wore a tinted mask, like the people from the front yard. The stripes on his shoulders appeared to be a light blue instead of grey, however.
Chrome didn't have time to analyze this further before he leveled a gun at them. She thrust her trident into the ground right as he pulled the trigger. The ground surged up, and Chrome shoved Akane down, only a moment behind him. Her ring ignited with a wispy indigo flame as she concentrated. Strangler vines flourished, snaking towards the gunmen. They curled over the rife, jerking it away, and continued up his arms.
Once sure that the creepers would hold the man, Chrome pulled the student back to his feet. He was disoriented, but she choice to ignore it and pushed him towards the door. He protested, but she tuned those out as well. The door to the gym was blocked off, so they pulled back to another door in the Home Education hallway. Chrome thrust Akane though the door and crouched in the doorway next him.
"I'm sorry," Chrome started. She looked sincere, like she really was sad that Akane had seen that. "Go back to the gym." Then she stood and turned to go back outside.
"Wait a second!" Akane lunged and managed to grab her trident's staff. "You can't back out there! You'll get killed!"
The Mist Guardian smiled gently and put her hand over his. "I'll be fine, you shouldn't worry about me."
Akane looked over her face for a while. It was truly only a few moments, but they felt like whole minutes. That one violet eye - how did she lose the other? In a situation like this, where she had protected someone? And her reassuring smile, like she had been through hell worse than this many a time, and had come back. It made him sad, because she shouldn't have to protect everyone, while he ran and hid.
"I have to find Mukurou; I have to go back," she added with a more serious expression, as if she had read his thoughts.
Before he could reply, the door creaked. Their attention snapped to it as it swung towards them. Chrome reacted with lightning reflexes, ramming her trident into it. She butted in against the door frame to keep it open, though the staff groaned under the pressure.
Akane stood to help brace the weapon, but when his fingers touched the metal, Chrome's let go. His eyes met hers for a brief second before she was pulled out. Her arm hit the trident, knocking it down, and the door slammed and locked behind her.
***NOTE: Mukuro is the person, Mukurou is the box weapon. It will be referred to as who is in control of the body at any given time.
Stuff you may or may not care about!
BOOM, NEXT CHAPTER. And I lied when I said this was going to be some huge, monstrous chapter, it felt right to end it here. Plus I was afraid it would be too big otherwise. So yeah. Have some Chrome.
(minor rant warning)
And to make it clear before someone points this out, NO DON'T YOU SHIP THEM, HE'S NOT CANON I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN. I don't mind OCs for the sake of plot, which is what I use here, but I can't stand making your OC part of the canon plot line like they were a huge part of major battles, or shipping them with a main character and that being the focus of the story. I don't hold it against you if you make those kind of stories, I'd just not prefer to read them. There are bunches of exceptions to this, so, just, don't go hating on me because of it okay?
(s'all good now)
There was a little bit of Gokudera there, just as a bit of a teaser :P Who am I kidding, over half the chapters I post here are like teasers XD
