Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn, to that Amano Akira has every right. I'm merely borrowing them for my own entertainment and make no money out of it. I do, however, own Arica D'Angelo, yay! (And any other characters you don't recognize.)

A/N: Yay, I could update another chapter! I have a sleepover at my friend's house so I could use her internet, kufufufu. Nah, she gave me permission so it's not all that evil… Anyway! Thanks for the follows and reviews!

laffup: thanks for pointing out that 'winch should be wince', I'm so sorry about that! My spellcheck isn't really all there you know. The other day it told me it's not 'you are' it should be 'you am', and I was like wtf o.O so yeah, sorry about that. And also about the yakuza thing, I know it's soooo cliché but I wanted people to wonder what she'll do since she doesn't have a weapon and all that, and why I explained about the one foot behind the other and so on. Oh and an easy way for her and Goku to run into each other – that's important. Like I said before: everything I write about is important, no matter how small or cliché it is.

chibianimefan18: of course I'll continue updating! I don't give up on something very easily and I've already figure the whole story out so there's no stopping me hehe. (I'm thinking about a sequel if this one goes well; I already have the plot for it too) Love your name btw; I adore chibis – they're just so darn cute!

Now that that's over with, on with the show!

Chapter 4

Arica stood back and watched the scene unfold. Seeing that the men weren't about to leave anytime soon when they got up and readied to attack him, the bomber brought his dynamites to his mouth, lighting them with the cigarette. He threw them at the three men who now realized what they had gotten themselves into, cowering in fear. A huge explosion shook the ground and the buildings surrounding them, making Arica shield her eyes from the smoke, heat, and debris.

When it settled down, she peeked over her arm before lowering it to look at the small crater in the ground, the three men lying unconscious inside it, their clothes smoking. Arica walked forward to get a closer look at them and felt a little relieved to see that they were still breathing. At least they wouldn't have to deal with dead bodies – not that she would've been sad to see them go. The silvette was still at the entrance, now leaning against the wall and enjoying his smoke.

"Stupid woman," he scoffed as she neared him. "Don't you know better than to run away when there's trouble about? Now I had to waste perfectly good dynamite to save your ass."

"I'm not a coward," she told him calmly, watching the puffs of smoke drift away on the light breeze. She ignored his comment of 'No, just stupid', and added, "Besides, I didn't ask for your help. I could've handled it on my own."

"Che, yeah right," he retorted after looking her over with a raised eyebrow. She didn't have a weapon anywhere in sight! How could she have taken on three grown men twice her size? He dropped the finished cigarette and stepped on it before pushing away from the wall and walking away from her. "Consider this repayment for the lunch."

She didn't know where the words came from, but once again her mouth found a mind of its own just like at lunch when she blurted out that question to him. "Just accepting it was repayment enough." Gokudera froze and glanced over his shoulder in question. She shrugged and elaborated, "Tsuna told me you never accept anything from anyone, not even chocolates from your fans on Valentine's Day. So by accepting the lunch, it showed me that you were already starting to accept me into the group."

After another moment of silence he started walking again. "Don't make it sound like I like you or anything. Next time you won't be so lucky. You're on your own." Then he disappeared down another alley and Arica was left alone with the still unconscious bunch behind her. She wasn't sure what to think but couldn't stop a smile from forming.

Suddenly noticing how dark it had gotten, she rushed back the direction she had come and saw the time on a wall clock inside a now closed shop. Damnit, she only had five minutes to get home! The streets were nearly deserted so it was easier to sprint all the way back home when she didn't have to worry about bumping into people. She reached the front door and literally fell into the house, her legs and lungs were burning and the cold tiles were a pleasant welcome to her hot skin.

She didn't even notice Ricardo standing in front of her until he spoke. "Ten seconds. Nice."

"Try not to sound too disappointed," Arica panted, trying to catch her breath. "If it makes you feel any better, I was attacked in town by a bunch of hoodlums."

"Why would that make me feel any better?" he said, the scowl prominent in his voice since she still didn't have the strength to look up at his face. "Do the blades need cleaning? I don't want you to get an infection."

"No, it's fine; I didn't use them. One of my friends from school was close by and interrupted before I could do anything," she assured him, finally pushing herself up to a standing position.

He gave her a curious look as he spoke, "Oh? Well, maybe I should meet these friends of yours; they seem very…interesting."

Arica grimaced as she thought how much different Tsuna, Yamamoto, and even Gokudera was from Ricardo. She also didn't want to risk the chance of them getting involved with Ricardo and the mafia. Who knows what he'll force them into doing if he saw some potential in any of them. This brought her back to Gokudera and his bomb slinging skills. Yes, Ricardo would definitely drag him into something.

"No thanks," she answered and pushed passed him to the kitchen to see if everything was set for dinner. It was something to keep her busy and out of his clutches. "They're nothing special, really. It was just luck and the element of surprise that he was able to beat them." That wasn't anything near the truth, but she felt a strong sense to protect the bomber from this man – all of her new friends if it came to that. "And you don't need to worry about anything; he hates my guts," she added before he could say anything else about her 'whoring herself out to other men', like he had put it the previous day.

He left her alone after that and she kept herself busy helping the cooks and even doing some homework, and thinking about the mysterious silver haired, green eyed bomber.

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Hayato collapsed on the couch it the living room of his small apartment, took out a cigarette and flipped on the TV. He leaned his head back against the couch, taking a long pull in hopes of clearing his mind as he closed his eyes.

What's going on? He's been feeling strange ever since that stupid woman showed up at their school. A new student never fazed him in the slightest – he never even cared to remember their names. But when the teacher said her name it was like someone had slapped him wide awake and forced him to notice her. Of course, he tried to fight against this feeling, but eventually he had to give up. It was made even worse when his boss invited the stupid woman to sit with them.

He has never had these feelings before in his life and it made him feel lost, confused and uncomfortable. He absolutely hated it, thus he hated that girl. Today he had threatened her, something he would never do to an innocent bystander, least of all a woman, but when he saw her, something just snapped and it was like he didn't have control over his body's actions. He told her to stay away from Juudaime, but was that really the person he wanted her to stay away from?

She made him uncomfortable – or at least that's what he thought the feeling was – so he labeled her as some sort of threat. She looked too petite and fragile to be a spy for the mafia like he would've thought, but then again those are the sort they thought would be least suspected of the job. The bomber thought back to what the girl had said earlier: 'I could've handled it on my own.' That was enough to send off alarm bells in his head, but he just couldn't imagine her picking a fight with those guys, unarmed no less, and win. He had learned she had a smart mouth, so she was most likely just trying to seem less pathetic than she looked.

Then there was the lunch. When she gave her lunch to the Tenth on that first day, Hayato didn't know what he was feeling. His emotions were all jumbled up, and only a few he could identify: irritation, anger, protectiveness, reluctance, fear. He should've made sure the food was okay before he let his boss eat it, but he was too confused by his emotions, trying to understand why he was feeling that way, to react properly. There were a bunch of other feelings, but he didn't recognize any of them.

'Just accepting it was repayment enough.' What the hell did that mean? Even after her explanation he still didn't understand it. Why did she have to say it in that way; it sounded way too mushy for his tastes. Then again, he remembered that small spark, deep, deep, deep down inside that he felt for a second after those words. A spark that suggested he felt happy that she was happy. But that's ridiculous; he hated her! Whatever he told himself, though, deep down his subconscious told him that this feeling had been a constant one in another lifetime or something.

The Vongola Storm guardian gave a frustrated growl as he pulled at his hair; he was so confused! He vigorously scratched at his head, like he could claw the thoughts from his mind. He turned off the TV since he wasn't even paying any attention to it and stood, entering the bathroom and turning on the shower. Once he had stripped, he let the hot water wash over him in hopes that it would wash away the thoughts and stress since smoking didn't seem to work. He placed his arm against the wall and leaned his forehead on it while the water pounded his back, his fists clenching.

Arica D'Angelo. That name…it stirred something deep within him, but he didn't know why… something vaguely familiar, but the more he tried to figure it out, the more it seemed to drift away, like the memory was there but every time he reached out for it, it would scoot away just a little further, taunting him. He stood like that for a while, trying in vain to figure out his thoughts and feelings until the water ran cold.

Sighing, Gokudera stepped out and dried himself before pulling on a pair of boxers and t-shirt. He made his way to the fridge to find some leftovers from the previous night and heated it up for dinner. After eating he decided that there was nothing that could clear his thoughts, except maybe sleep. If he dreamed about that stupid woman, he was going to commit suicide.

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Two days had passed since the day Arica was threatened by Hayato Gokudera. It was also the day he saved her – though she didn't really need it. That day she had also agreed to help with Ricardo's mission.

Technically, it was both of their Famiglias' mission, assigned to them by her father, but Ricardo insisted that he could handle it on his own. She didn't doubt this, but it'd go much faster if he had help. This didn't mean she liked to help him; far from it! It just meant that, in the end, she might get what she wanted if things worked out. Arica had also noticed Andrew and a bunch of her other subordinates acting a bit strange, but she didn't ask and Ricardo didn't seem to notice or just didn't care at all.

Today, they had a pop-quiz in math. Arica could tell Tsuna was about to faint in the seat next to her, he was so nervous. He was mumbling about 'not expecting this' and 'not being able to have studied.' Poor kid, she thought as she patiently waited for the teacher to hand out the question sheets. Math was one of her better subjects; it came almost naturally to her so pop-quizzes like these didn't bother her at all.

The test started and Arica slowly made her way through each question. She had to keep the frown from her face as she noticed how easy these problems were! She finished with about fifteen minutes to spare, so decided to see if anyone else was finding it as easy as she was. Apparently not.

Tsuna, the poor guy, was chewing on his pencil like a beaver, still stuck on the first page it seemed. The sweet and friendly girl Tsuna had a crush on, whose name Arica had found out was Kyoko, looked almost done, but seemed to have trouble with one particular problem. Yamamoto was scratching his head with his pencil, seeming in deep concentration. The rest of the class's occupants didn't look any better, half of them almost mimicking Tsuna's behavior. The only one that really stood out to Arica was the silver haired teen near the front.

Gokudera was leaning back in his chair like always, his hands behind his head and one leg propped up on the table. His eyes were closed as far as she could tell and she wondered if he was actually sleeping. The teacher, who had also noticed this, paused at his desk while making his rounds. He stared at the test on the teen's desk for a minute before scowling towards the boy and walking on.

The bell finally rang for second period and the tests were gathered with a promise that they will be returned on Monday. The entire class heaved a sigh of relief because the test was over with, but then came the dread as they thought of their marks. No one had time to discuss it as the next period began.

On the rooftop at lunch, the four friends sat and enjoyed their food, even Arica. Andrew had started making her lunch for her when he noticed how hungry she was all the time at dinner. He had asked her about it the previous day and she had answered honestly. As expected, he was mad at first and this resulted in an hour lecture of responsibility to one's self and healthy eating habits, but eventually he calmed down and gave her reassurance that the lunch she finds in the morning would be fine to eat.

"So how was the test for you guys this morning?" asked Yamamoto lightly while taking a bite of his usual sushi.

"Too easy," two voices answered simultaneously before both stiffened and glared at each other. The sparks flying in the air between them was almost visible.

Tsuna, not wanting his two friends to start attacking each other – be it verbally or physically – gave a nervous laugh before saying, "Wow, Gokudera-kun and Arica-chan are really smart; as to be expected! I wish I was that good in math; the test was a monster!"

Yamamoto quickly nodded his agreement with a large goofy grin on his face. "I'm going to fail this one for sure, haha!" he laughed while rubbing at the back of his neck.

The bomber's attention immediately shifted to the smaller male. "I think Juudaime has been spending too much time with that baseball idiot." Now he glares at said baseball idiot. "His aura of stupidity must be clouding the Tenth's brilliant mind!"

"Ah, c-calm down, Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna squeaked nervously, a bright blush spreading over his cheeks. "I don't think that's even possible…!" Arica had to agree with that. The things that delinquent could think of… "I'm just really bad at math."

"I could help you out if you'd like," Arica spoke up just as Gokudera opened his mouth to say the same. "I really don't mind; it's not like I have anything better to do with my time. I just sit at home all day doing nothing, so I might as well do something productive. You too, Yamamoto." Anything to get away from that hell hole she was forced to call home.

"R-really?" the boy said, eyes sparkling. "Thank you, Arica-chan, I'd really appreciate that!"

"Ahaha, that'd be great!" the taller teenager answered, grinning like the idiot Gokudera made him out to be.

"Hold up," Gokudera interjected, glaring at the girl. "The Tenth already has me as his tutor, along with Reborn-san. There's no place for you as well, stupid woman."

She could feel her eye twitch and she glared back. "Who are you calling stupid? Calling someone stupid means you're just as stupid. And, for your information, one can never have too many teachers or too much to learn. We can even make turns. Don't you also have places to go and people to blow up?"

"Why you–!" He started to get up when Tsuna once again managed to prevent an all out war.

"Go-Gokudera-kun, Arica-chan – please stop fighting!" he exclaimed as he jumped up to step in front of the temperamental bomber, while Yamamoto placed a restraining hand on Arica's shoulder – gentle but firm – just in case she snapped too. Which of course she wouldn't; she had much more self-control than that. "You can both help me. Arica-chan had a great idea; you can take turns! This would be a great help to me and Yamamoto."

"She can tutor Tsuna every other day," Yamamoto added, his expression a bit more serious for once.

"Yes, then Gokudera-kun can get some time to himself for once," Tsuna said happily to the bomber, who then muttered something under his breath. Arica couldn't hear what it was, but he didn't seem too happy with getting 'alone time'.

"We have another test in science on Monday, don't we? You can tutor him tomorrow and I'll come over on Sunday. Does that work for you guys?" Arica suggested, glancing between the grumpy bomber and the other two boys.

Tsuna groaned and moved back to his spot. "Aah, science," the boy whined as he sat down to finish his lunch. She took that as a 'yes', and raised a brow at the other teen.

"Whatever," he grumbled before also sitting back down to sulk. That translated into a 'yes'.

Yamamoto laughed as he moved away from her, back to his carefree self. "Maa maa, Gokudera, no need to be sad. It's to help Tsuna after all."

"Shut up, you baseball bastard, I'm not sad!" he snapped back, and then went on about how Yamamoto shouldn't address the Tenth so casually and how much of an idiot he is. Everything seemed back to normal.

She watched the bunch bicker and laugh as she nibbled on a sandwich. It was strange yet fascinating how they communicated and acted. The bomber seemed in an element of his own – disrespectful towards teachers, rude to students, foulmouthed, and carried dynamite enough to blow up a small town. Then this small, kindhearted, and wimpy-looking kid comes and says a few words and the other turns docile as a puppy. He would immediately switch his words around so he could defend the smaller one's intelligence and actions.

They were very interesting indeed and she felt the need to stay close to them; that something will happen that she needs to know about. Something told her that these kids weren't completely normal and she had to know what that was about because she didn't see anything special in them – except maybe the bomber. Even though she felt they weren't normal, she didn't think it was a bad or particularly dangerous abnormal either. Then something occurred to her: could they possibly know anything about the kids Ricardo and herself were looking for? Did they know something about the Vongola? Have any connections to them?

Only time would tell, she decided as the day went on.

A/N: this chapter seemed a little short to me, but maybe it's just me? I don't know, but there it is! Arica, Arica, Arica *shakes head in exasperation* y u no realize they ARE the Vongola? Haha, well that's my fault I guess, since I control her and everything, but still! The next chapter is about as long as this one but we learn more about the mystery that is Arica's life *dramatic music*

So stay tuned for the next chapter, though I don't know when it will be posted, maybe next week. Please hang in there (^o^)/ and review! Ciao~