A/N: Here is chapter 12 for all you beautiful peoples! Thank you so much for all your support *throws hearts all over for all of you*. Thank you for all the favs/follows/reviews~ DarkTill-Indigo, Frib, Pandakat312, KumaGuard, Neko x3, Cookiezfreak, Unni17, Amuto4Lifee and Nikki. I am SO sorry if I left anyone out because my email inbox is stuffed with over 2000 emails *sweatdrop* and I don't always see all of the notifications. GOMENASAI!

Frib: Thanks for reviewing! I'm so glad I could inspire you to want to finish your own stories haha XD. When I have some free time I'll definitely go check them out. Hope you enjoy this chapter~

Neko x3: Here's your next chapter, I hope you enjoy it as much as the rest of the story :D I'm glad it's "just like him", it means I have accomplished my goal of writing in-character, yay! Thanks for the review!

Nikki: OMG, I know! XD I looooove the kawaii Skylark to bits! Haha let's hope Reborn stays ignorant for a little longer; I don't want Arica to die young *cries*. Anyway, thanks for dropping a review and hope you enjoy this chapter!

On with the show!

Chapter 12

The silence was a good thing, but a bad thing as well. It caused Arica's thoughts to drift. She had thought Hibari would have had more of a reaction towards her wounds – the bruise around her neck – and maybe ask questions about the marks on her arms. But he didn't. He simply ignored her as they worked and she would throw him a glance every now and then to see if he had something on his mind, but his eyes and expression was as blank as always, not even a flicker of emotion in sight.

Hibari felt her eyes constantly shift to him and it was starting to get annoying. When she wasn't paying attention, the Skylark would look up at her and find something he wasn't expecting. Sadness. And with each glance he took it only became more and more pronounced. The atmosphere was beginning to shift along with her mood and it was starting to agitate even him. Finally, Hibari couldn't take it anymore.

"What is it, herbivore?" he snapped and saw her jump slightly as she was jolted from her current train of thought.

"Huh?" Arica asked, a little dazed, blinking at him incomprehensibly as the sudden question confused her.

Eyes narrowing to a dangerous glare, the Chairman clarified, "You're sulking and it's getting on my nerves. What is it?"

"Oh," Arica responded dully. She hadn't even noticed that she had been doing that. Her thoughts had drifted way too far… "It's nothing. I was just…thinking." She tried to smile, but it couldn't have been faker at that moment.

"Hn," Hibari said in a way that meant 'that's obvious' and continued to simply glower.

Arica started to feel uncomfortable under the hawk-like gaze and after a few minutes she sighed, setting down her pen. She didn't know what to tell him; she didn't know what would answer his question. Where does she begin? She couldn't tell him. Why did he care anyway? It was none of his business. But Arica felt relaxed in Hibari's presence. When most people would have run away as soon as his killer intent came within their immediate vicinity, Arica would be the one to just stand still and watch him walk past. She would probably even go towards him.

Before she knew what she was doing, the girl had started speaking, clasping her hands together on the desk, her head bowed as she stared at them. "I don't know what to do. Nothing makes sense to me anymore. Hell, I don't even know myself anymore," she started with a small nervous chuckle before turning serious once more and continuing. "All my life I've been taught to not show emotion, to not let it get the better of me. This –" she touched her purple throat lightly as she spoke "– I endured without so much as a tear shed, without so much as a spark of fear in my being. I went through hell and back through that place and I had locked those feelings away forever."

When the brunette had started speaking, Hibari nearly told her to stop because he had no desire to listen to her sappy life story, but…the Skylark found himself listening more and more after every word that left her mouth. He didn't know what 'that place' was that she had referred to, but that didn't matter. Her eyes had adopted a faraway look and he knew she wasn't paying attention to the coherency of her words any more.

"After having gone through that hell, I knew nothing else could ever make me cry again. And now? Now I cry when someone sees these marks. I'm paralyzed with fear when they look at them. I see pity in their eyes and I feel worthless and weak. They say they're my friends, yet I break down so easily when the people who supposedly care for me see the remnants of the pain I had suffered. Friends try to help each other, yet I throw it back in their faces by bawling like a baby and running away from the consequences." Arica gave another bark of mirthless laughter as she shook her head in disgust. "How pathetic can I get? How do I make it through the pain, but crumble under the sympathy? How does that make sense?!"

"You're not weak." Both teenagers were surprised as the words seem to echo through the office.

Arica's head snapped up to gape wide-eyed at Hibari who wasn't looking much better. Something glittery caught the Chairman's eye and he saw that tears had started to build in the herbivore's eyes. It was the second time he had ever seen her cry. And he didn't like it; it didn't suit her. On the other hand, he didn't know what to do with crying herbivores. This gave him the resolve to speak further.

"Just because you're able to feel emotion doesn't mean you're weak. You were strong enough to lock up all those emotions and face danger head on. But you fear what others see and think of you – I experienced that on the roof earlier – especially those depending on you. You fear they would think you're weak, thus you broke down when Sawada Tsunayoshi and Gokudera Hayato saw your injuries. Pride is no weakness, nor is it a flaw when you're strong enough to maintain and control it."

Arica was stunned as she listened to the boy speak. It was the longest speech she had ever heard and it was from the calm and aloof Hibari Kyoya no less! That was also most likely the most amount of words she'd ever get from him… She hadn't even known he was listening until he spoke. Arica had thought he was ignoring her since there had been no reaction, no sign of paying attention. Then for him to start trying to…what was he doing, exactly? Encouraging her? Whatever it was, it actually meant something to her, coming from him.

Hibari inwardly grimaced as he finished the marathon of words. What had gotten into him?! He wasn't really big on spouting such sentimental nonsense, but he had. It was like something compelled him to do it. He was actually trying to cheer the herbivore up! However, everything he had said, he realized, was what he himself had gone through in some way.

For example, the fight with the pineapple herbivore. The illusionist had beaten him, crushing his pride and the name of Namimori Middle. Hibari had been able to handle the beating – more or less – but having been rescued by Sawada Tsunayoshi and his crowd of herbivores really landed a blow to his self-image and he had also briefly thought he had grown weak. But he had overcome those silly, herbivorous thoughts, knowing he was as much the carnivore now as he had always been.

Arica blinked and she felt something warm slide down her cheek. Her hand flew to her face to wipe away the lone tear. She hadn't even realized they had been building up for a while; she was so caught up in the awe he had inspired in her. Breathing a small chuckle, Arica shook her head in disbelief at herself as she stared at the wet smudges on her fingertips. "Now you've seen me cry twice, congratulations. I hope you remember and cherish this moment forever as a memento for this rare occasion."

She was back to her joking, supressing all the memories and feelings as best she could as they came rushing back. The façade was back in place, but Hibari would always know the truth behind it. Or some of it anyway. This seemed to be the way for her to cope now. She realized she had only started acting like this right after she had run away from Tsuna's house.

"You know," she continued, a mischievous glint in her still damp eyes as she smiled at him. "Giving me a pep talk like that, cheering me up, saying just the right thing at the right time…that's something I'd imagine an ideal older brother would be like. That's it: you're keeping your title as my Onii-san."

Someone who cared for her, who understood her feelings, who would let her ramble on about her miserable existence and not ask unnecessary or stupid questions. That is what she had wanted in an older brother if she had ever received one. Hibari obviously didn't particularly care for her nor did he probably like her rambling all that much, but it was still better than nothing and exactly what she had needed. That was why she had been drawn to Hibari so quickly, even before she barely had a proper conversation with him. Her subconscious somehow knew that underneath all the glares and scowls, there was a somewhat soft heart.

He knew it was hopeless to demand she stop calling him that, so Hibari merely sighed. "You can go home now; I don't need the assistance anymore."

"What? But there's still a boatload of papers here!" Arica protested, pouting a little. "I don't need to be home until around six o'clock!" I don't want to be home until then, she added to herself.

"You're noisy. Go away, or I'll bite you to death," the Cloud grumbled, levelling another glare.

Raising her hands in surrender and sighing, Arica got to her feet. "Okay, okay! I'm going, geez… I'll bring the clothes with me to school and drop it off when I have time." The brunette waited until she was halfway out the door before grinning over her shoulder and calling back to him, "See you tomorrow, nii-san!" She only caught the Skylark's eye twitch before something hard – a tonfa – hit the hastily closed door behind her.

Hibari scowled as he heard the girl's laughter fade down the corridor. He stood to retrieve his lost tonfa and paused for a moment, glancing around the room that suddenly felt too empty. Going back to his chair, Hibari leaned back in it, closing his eyes to revel in the silence left behind in her departure. But the silence grated on his nerves. It was so quiet that his ears nearly hurt and it made him agitated and paranoid – more so than usual. The silence was unwanted at that moment.

Not a second too late, a loud rumble of thunder tore through the air, breaking the hated silence, and was soon followed by a downpour of plump raindrops creating an almost impenetrable curtain of grey through the window. Briefly, the thought of the Italian herbivore that had just left flitted across his mind. He knew it was coming even before it happened and Hibari pinched the bridge of his nose to prevent the headache that was now definitely inevitable.

The door slammed open and there, as if having been called by that brief thought, stood Arica, a full blown grin on her face, arms thrown wide. "I'm baaaack~" she practically sang as she skipped over to the grimacing, murderous-looking prefect. "Did you miss me, nii-san?"

Maybe the silence hadn't been too bad after all in hindsight…

It was just past four and the rain hadn't let up yet. The two 'siblings' were sitting across from one another at the Chairman's desk, silence enveloping them as they once more worked on papers. It was strangely comfortable, even for Hibari. It was silent, but not the silence of the dead before she had come bursting through the doors again. He liked this kind of silence.

Hibari was rather impressed on how quickly and efficiently she handled her half of the workload; quickly scanning a letter before scribbling something on a piece of paper in front of her. After another few minutes, Arica put down her pen and gave a little cry of victory. "Done! Gods, I thought that would never end!" she breathed in relief as she stretched her arms above her head. "Here." She picked up the piece of paper she had written on and held it out to him.

Hibari silently took it and a brow was quirked as he read it. She had made note of all the important requests and complaints the Disciplinary Chairman had gotten from teachers. They were all listed from most important to menial tasks and feedback. Then, completely unrelated to any subject – maybe she got bored? – Arica had made personal notes and comments in the margins. One telling him that, 'The Home Ec. teacher had to have anorexia or something since there was no way she could be that skinny.' And another the Skylark really didn't care to know of was that 'the gym and biology teachers are clearly studying the human body together.'

He was just about to say something before he got interrupted by the school's anthem floating in through the slightly ajar window. Both teenagers' heads turned to stare as the falsetto voice grew louder; Hibari with a poker face and Arica with a curious frown. A second later, a yellow ball flitted into the office and circled Hibari's head once before heading over to the brunette.

Arica giggled softly as she realized it was a little yellow bird and held out her hand for it to sit on. "Aww, how cute are you! What's your name, little guy? I'm Arica," she cooed, gently stroking its soft, downy feathers with her free index finger.

"Hibird, Hibird," the puffball chirped, hopping up and down happily, its little beady, black eyes staring at her curiously.

Arica blinked in surprise at how the bird had seemingly understood her, but soon her smile was back. "Nice to meet you, Hibird."

Hibari watched the scene unfold with interest and mild disbelief. It wasn't like Hibird to take to strangers so easily. Truthfully, it wasn't like him to take to anyone so easily. Many have nearly gotten their fingers sliced in half by the sharp little beak when they tried to touch him. Not even Kusakabe dared to touch him without Hibird going to him first and getting permission. The only people that the little creature trusted seemed to be Hibari and sometimes Tsuna, and apparently he liked Arica as well.

The carnivore's lips twitched but he fought it down violently. He narrowed his eyes lightly at Hibird and said, "Traitor." No sooner had he said it and the puffball took flight once more to circle around its master's head a few times before coming to rest on his shoulder.

"Hibari, Hibari," it chirped apologetically as it nuzzled its head into the prefect's neck. Hibari couldn't help the miniscule smile that crept onto his thin lips.

It didn't go unnoticed by a certain pair of blue-green eyes, however. "So he's yours?" Arica questioned, snapping Hibari back to reality. A mischievous glint sparked to life in her eyes and the smile grew more sinister. "Who would've thought… Now I know Hibari Kyoya, the most feared person in Namimori's weakness. This is priceless!"

The Skylark glared at her but it was accompanied by the miniscule heating of his cheeks and the papers he still held in his hands were brought up to his face. "You're being loud, herbivore. Go sit over there," he grumbled, waving his hand dismissively towards the couch. "You said earlier you were tired." Not that he paid much attention to her yammering, but still.

To his utter annoyance, slender fingers peeked over the top of the page and pulled them down to reveal his scowling face. Arica gave a small squeak of delight and the prefect merely turned his face away from her. "You're blushing! No, don't hide your face; you look so cute when you blush, nii-chan!" Arica gushed, sounding every bit like a girly-girl who just saw the most gorgeous pair of shoes. It made her mentally shudder after it left her mouth and it even left a bad taste.

"I'm not blushing, herbivore. You're imagining things," Hibari snapped, giving her the hardest glare he could muster at that moment.

The brunette backed up a step or two, her hands up in a placating manner as his steely gaze pierced through her. "Alright, alright, I won't tell anyone," she smiled, but was caught off-guard by yet another yawn. Her brain had somehow managed to register the Clouds earlier words about her saying that she was tired and was only now reacting to them. She stifled it behind a hand and blinked a few times. "Wow, I am tired… I guess having been busy ever since we came here took my mind off it a little. This day really took its toll on me it seems." The couch in the middle of the room caught her eye and she pointed towards it before asking, "Would you mind if I…?"

The Cloud gave a noncommittal grunt as he realized it hadn't yet stopped raining, thus he couldn't tell her to go home. He had the feeling that she'd try – and succeed – in convincing him to let her stay there even longer. Why didn't she want to go home? There had been signs of fatigue hours ago when he had found her on the roof and even more after their short little match. He was actually a bit surprised that she hadn't collapsed sooner.

Arica moved over to the black, leather couch and lay down with another yawn before closing her eyes. Hibari watched her shift a few times to get comfortable and after a few minutes her breathing had levelled out and she was still. The prefect continued to stare at the strange little herbivore he had only found the day before. Even though they hardly knew each other, she interested him; much like Sawada Tsunayoshi did, but also…not. Her strength was at least admirable considering how delicate and frail she seemed.

That thought brought him back to what he had witnessed earlier. Steel-blue orbs slid to her neck where the scarf had never been replaced. The garish purple bruise was only slightly visible from that angle, but it didn't matter since he had already seen the extent of it. Hibari found himself wondering where and how she had gotten it, who gave it to her. From her previous ramblings he couldn't pick up much except that it might be something that happened regularly. Was it at home, at school, in town? No, she had said it wasn't at school when he had noticed the bruise beneath her eye…

As if drawn towards her, the Chairman got up and swiftly, silently made his way over to the sleeping form. Hibird floated from his shoulder and gently went to rest in the brown locks sprawled over the armrest. The ball of fluff made himself comfortable and joined the girl in slumber. Hibari shook his head a little before his eyes returned to Arica's sleeping face. As he watched, her nose would twitch every now and then, as well as her lips and the Skylark couldn't help but think of a sleeping puppy once more.

The dark splotch caught his eye, however, and a minuscule frown wrinkled his brow. Close-up, it looked much worse than he had originally thought. It couldn't have been at school since it had to have happened over the weekend – plus, he hadn't seen it the previous day when he had run into her on the roof. It couldn't have been caused that morning during the fight with the Storm guardian, because it had been too prominent by then. It could only have happened the previous night, by which time she should have been at home, or on her way home from school after meeting him.

Not to mention she really didn't show any enthusiasm in going home…

Hibari snapped out of his thoughts momentarily when the girl shifted in her sleep, turning away from him and causing her shirt to ride up a little. Now something else caught the Cloud's eye and he crouched down beside her after he was sure she hadn't woken up. When her shirt lifted to reveal an inch or two of skin, the tail-end of yet another purplish yellow mark had been exposed by its hem. It marred the creamy skin in the same shade as the one on her neck and gave the impression that it had been received at the same time.

Hibari's blood boiled. A student of his Nami-chuu, a young girl no less, had been assaulted. Whether it had been at her home or on the streets, it didn't matter; the peace had been disrupted and he didn't like that at all. Around the neck, the waist and ribs…could there be any further down? he thought as he let his piercing gaze drift down her body. Smooth, sun-kissed, slender legs emerged from beneath the hem of the black skirt, luckily still covering what needed coverage.

The skin was unmarred and unblemished – as far as he could tell from feet to mid-thigh. That indicated no case of rape. There could still be evidence higher up, but he highly doubted it and obviously the Chairman wasn't going to go around peeking up girls' skirts. He hadn't seen her limping or sitting awkwardly or fidgeting in her seat and she had moved easily enough when they had fought, also no signs of having been violated… And he doubted she would be stupid enough to dress in that skirt if she was afraid of it showing.

The only mystery to be solved now was where and who. He had a strong feeling it happened at home, so that was practically sorted out, and it seemed to be happening on a regular basis. As for whom, he had no idea yet. A father, a brother, maybe even a mother? There were so many possibilities. It couldn't be a brother, though, because the way she was acting and speaking clearly told him she didn't have one…

"What are you doing?" a sleepy voice asked and Hibari's head whipped around only to meet questioning green orbs. He got to his feet and took a step back as Arica slowly sat up. She yawned and rubbed at her sleepy eyes before staring him down suspiciously and continuing, "Were you checking me out?"

Hibari's eyes narrowed at the completely absurd words that left her mouth and he crossed his arms over his chest as he bit back a curt reply of, "Don't be ridiculous, herbivore. Why would I want to do something like that?"

Arica quirked a mocking brow at him. "So you were just coincidentally so close to me, staring at my legs with that intense look on your face? Hentai," she accused bluntly, not batting an eye.

The prefect manage to hide his surprise at being accused of such a thing, only showing his utter annoyance and letting it crackle in the air around them. He gave a low growl before turning on his heel and stomping away without a word. To his surprise, the sun was already well on its way towards the horizon and the clock confirmed that it was already past five; time for them to head home.

Arica chuckled at his actions and stood to stretch and straighten her clothes. "I'm kidding; of course I'll never think you'll do something like that, Onii-san," she smiled and petted Hibird, who had managed to stay seated on her head that entire time.

"Hn. I'm leaving," Hibari said and gathered his now dry clothes and some other papers. It was clearly meant to tell her 'get your things and go home already,' and thankfully the herbivore had something between her ears and caught the meaning behind the words like they were intended.

"Well, it is getting late. Time sure flies when you're having fun, huh?" Arica mocked, grinning at Hibari as she gathered her own clothes. The ripple of irritation in the air told her that he had in fact heard her and didn't agree with the 'fun' part as much. With one final laugh, the brunette headed for the door. "I'll see you tomorrow then, Onii-san. Good night."

Hibari didn't reply, only listening to her retreating footsteps and then watching her disappear in the distance through the Reception Room window. The silence grew heavier with each step she took and the Skylark finally decided that it was time to head home as well. An interesting herbivore indeed.

Arica's strange mood retreated with every step she took in the opposite direction of the school, as if it was another person altogether retreating back into a shell while her normal personality came back out. As if she was coming down from a high of some sort. Arica stopped for a second just to take a deep breath of fresh air and shake herself before continuing down the path home. It had been the strangest experience of her life. Maybe it had something to do with using that ability of hers, making that other one come out. Perhaps it was a side-effect or perhaps there was even a third part of her mind that had been awakened by the other. Either way it had been weird, but strangely pleasant.

The streets were all empty by now and it had gradually grown darker and darker as she walked. The only life she could detect was from a pub across the street up ahead. Neon signs lit up its front and loud, rambunctious voices and laughter could be heard spilling from the windows. The street lights were far apart and not very bright, but at least gave enough light to see where you placed your feet. All other shops had already been locked up for the night, the windows pitch black and not a soul in sight. Arica didn't feel at all scared or uncomfortable even though it would've been the normal reaction for a girl her age all alone at that time of the evening.

However, when she passed by the pub, something made her slow down. It was as if an invisible force was pushing or pulling her to a stop. For some reason, her chest felt heavy and a creeping sensation went down her spine, as if a spider was crawling down her back. Arica glanced around quickly to see if someone was watching her, but there was no one in sight, not even anyone outside the pub. It was like her feet were nailed to the ground and wouldn't move unless she found what was bothering her.

The brunette took a deep breath and started looking around once more, slower that time. Her eyes scanned over everything; every inch of the street and buildings' windows and doorways. Just when she was about to give up, she saw something in an alley next to the pub as her searching gaze reached that side of the road. Her mind screamed at her to check it out; that that was what she was supposed to see. Arica quickly made her way across the street and to the mouth of the alley where she came to a standstill and squinted her eyes to get a better look at the thing that had drawn her attention and body.

How she had noticed it in the first place in that darkness, the Italian girl had no idea. Perhaps it had been the strange flash of dirty white that seemed so out of place. The thing lay unmoving on the ground a few feet away from her and she still couldn't make anything out. Arica glanced around once more to make sure she was still alone before she took a cautious step forward. Then another and another. Soon she could make out the silhouette and realized that it was, in fact, a person sprawled out on the ground.

When she was about four feet away, the stench of alcohol hit her full in the face and she nearly took an involuntary step back. It was clearly a drunk then. Perhaps the pub had thrown him out or something and he passed out in the alley? Still, even so, Arica couldn't shake the feeling that she had to do something. She steeled her nerves – and stomach – and finally closed the distance between them while holding her breath. She crouched down next to the body and gathered all her strength to roll him over onto his back. When she did, the brunette fell back onto her butt, not even caring that she was sitting in a puddle of muddy, filthy water. Her breath had rushed out of her in a silent scream of surprise.

The person was definitely male and drunk, but was undeniably unconscious. Whether it was from intoxication or blood loss or perhaps both, Arica couldn't be sure. And, yes, there was blood. A lot of it. His shirt was stained red in several places, cuts littering the fabric as well as the pale skin underneath, as if he had been assaulted with a knife. Bare arms were also cut and decorated with bruises of various intensity and size. His face wasn't much better and blood caked around his mouth and nose as it had been coughed up and the nose been smashed.

The off-white that had caught Arica's eye had been the person's hair, which was soaked with a mixture of water, mud and some more blood. Filthy strands were plastered to his face by blood and water and Arica could still see tendrils slowly dissolving in the puddle his head lay in, the blood still leaking slowly from the head wound. The puddle of water was being stained darker still.

Arica's blood had run cold and her head spun. Her limbs felt numb and her eyes were frozen wide as she stared at the unconscious, beaten up body of the person, the stench of alcohol and blood not even registering in her mind anymore. When she finally managed to snap out of her stupor, the girl lunged forward to grab his shoulders and shake him desperately, tears in her eyes and her voice bordering on hysterics as she screamed.

"Gokudera!"

A/N: BAM! Didn't see that one coming did ya? Mwahahaha! Yes, I am evil and loving it! And what can make me even more evil? By making you all wait a month or two for the next chapter! I'm sorry, though, since it's kind of out of my hands. I have exams for a whole month and then I have no idea when I'll have access to the internet after that. Please bear with me!

Yes, this chapter was a little more serious than previous ones and as it reaches the climax it gets even more so, so brace yourselves. I really really want to finish this story so I can start the sequel! Yes, there will be a sequel people!

Question: Who reads these anyway?

Till next time loveys~ Ciao ciao