Authors Note: Told you chapter 3 would be up shortly!
The beginning of this chapter was originally the end of the first chapter, but I cut it since I wanted the first chapter to end with Tsuna's death ('cause I'm evil like that!).

Also, I do realize that "Network" is a kind of too "new" word to be used in this fic, but in lack of other words I will continue using it. Oh the wonders of being too lazy to look up other words!
I'm also too lazy (and lack proper internet) to do any kind of research, most facts are from my head/imagination. Also, swear-/curse-words were probably not the same during that time, but I'll be using our "regular" swear-words. Please bear with me.

Katekyo Hitman Reborn © Akira Amano

"Boss? Are you alright?"

Tsuna groaned and slowly opened his eyes. A violet eye filled with worry looked down at him.

"Chrome?"

The girl nodded and helped the brunette to slowly sit up. Tsuna looked around. They were in a forest, obviously, judging by all the trees surrounding them.

"Where are we?"

"As far from your village I could take us, Boss."

That meant that they probably were on the other side of the country. Or halfway, depending on what condition Chrome had been in before moving them.
Tsuna gently placed a hand on the girls head and smiled warmly.

"Thank you, Chrome. You saved my life."

The girl blushed and giggled a little in embarrassment.

Chrome was a young girl who looked about two years younger than Tsuna. She had purple hair shaped like a fruit of some kind – Though Tsuna never could figure out what fruit it was – and a bright violet eye. Her right eye was covered with a big cloth as it had been severely damaged when she was created.

"How are you feeling?" Tsuna asked. He knew that Chrome always used a little too much energy when she travelled through her mist.

"I had lots of energy stored up, so don't worry," Chrome answered with a small smile, "How are you feeling yourself, Boss?"

Tsuna stretched and heard some satisfying cracks from his bones.

"I'm fine, just a little sore. I'm not used to use illusions, even with fire. I guess that's why I passed out."

"If I hadn't arrived when I had, you would've…"

"I know, Chrome. But you arrived on perfect time and saved me, so let's not think about that anymore."

Chrome nodded in agreement, and they both stood up.

"How's the Network?" Tsuna asked, massaging his wrists as he could still feel the burning rope on them, "It's been at least six hours, judging by the sun, so something must've happened by now."

"Two witches have moved from the village next to yours, to escape the witch hunter who'll probably arrive in two weeks."

"Understandable, better safe than sorry. Anything else?"

Chrome hesitated, looking down at her hands playing with the end of her green skirt. Tsuna frowned.

"Something has happened. Tell me."

Chrome stayed silent.

"Chrome Dokuro, I command you to tell me what you're hiding!"

Chrome looked up at Tsuna then, her eye wide from the forceful tone he was using. She couldn't refuse him when he commanded her, since she was a part of him. She swallowed before slowly answering.

"After hearing about your burning, Mukuro-sama slaughtered a village. He killed one of the Vindice who showed up. The other Vindice captured him and sealed him away in one of the holy lakes."

A heavy silence settled between them and Chrome shivered. After a moment Tsuna stepped forward and hugged Chrome tightly.

"I'm sorry Chrome. I know that we both hate it when I do that, but I had the feeling that it was something important. And it was," Tsuna sighed, "That idiot. He should've contacted you first. We won't be able to help him."

Chrome sniffed and returned the hug, burying her face in his chest. She accepted his apology without any words. She understood him.

"And he killed a Vindice?"

Chrome nodded, and then looked up in surprise when Tsuna chuckled.

"If I had known that he was so powerful, I would've made him grow his own herbs long ago," the brunette said with a grin.

Chrome smiled slightly.

"He was always full of surprises," she said quietly.

"Is, Chrome. He IS full of surprises, not was. He's not dead yet, and he'll get out of there someday. It's not like him to be in one place for too long."

Chrome nodded, and silence fell over them again but this time it was more comfortable. Tsuna squeezed Chrome a little tighter before he let go of her and stepped back.

"We should get going. I'd rather camp by a lake or a river, and not in the middle of the forest," Tsuna said, grinning, "Besides, I haven't eaten fish in a long time."

. . .

To have pets is not unusual. To have unordinary pets, like a phoenix or a griffin, was quite unusual but not so much. Even a few regular people, without Powers, had magical pets. To have hybrids, a mix between a human and an animal, was most unusual but not unheard of. Hybrids had no real place they belonged as they weren't allowed to have villages of their own, so they either belonged to humans or ran around wild until they died from either nature or hunters. Most often the latter.

Most hybrids were loyal to their owners, though it was quite common for a hybrid to switch owners at least once during their lifetime either because of the age of the previous owner. The hybrids' lifespan were considerably longer than humans, and the ones who had Powers usually outlived their warlock owners too. For a hybrid to have Powers was not something overly usual, but it did happen every now and then that a hybrid was blessed with Powers upon its birth. Hybrids with Powers were more sought after than hybrids without, and most of the time the owners overlooked the hybrids personalities and temperament just because they could make use of their Powers.

It might make one confused that people accepted hybrids with Powers, while they burned witches and warlocks. But hybrids could be easily controlled with a few words because of their deep instinct to obey and protect their masters.

Hayato was a hybrid with Powers, and he had been through nine owners during his seventeen years. He had liked his first owner since the man had let Hayato see his mother a few times, something that was actually forbidden. To keep hybrids from organizing themselves and rebel against humans, mother and child hybrids were separated as soon as the child was born. But the first owner had let Hayato meet his mother once a month for five years, and for that he was grateful. Then his mother died from an illness, and soon after that his owner died by the hands of a thief.

The second owner had been a young ambitious scholar who wanted to make use of Hayato's Powers. Two year of painful training later, Hayato ran away. He was caught, punished, and sold to a third owner. Since then life had been nothing but hell for the cat-hybrid.

Until his ninth owner. She had been an elderly witch who owned a female cat, a regular cat, and she felt that she wanted some company for both of them. Being a cat-hybrid, Hayato could talk with cats as easily as he could with humans. He had been with the witch and her cat for about five months, before the witch passed away.

"Live your life and get stronger, my dears. Follow only yourselves!"

She had said that on her deathbed, patted him and the cat on their heads, and then she was gone, taken by her age.

"Let's meet again someday."

The female cat had said that the next day after Hayato had buried the witch, before leaving him alone by the grave.

Since then Hayato had lived on his own in the large forest that surrounded the small cottage the witch had been living in. He had put up safety spells and a small curse around the cottage to prevent anyone from getting close to it. He didn't trust anyone, be it human or animal, besides himself and the female cat. And the female was gone, leaving him to only trust and rely on himself. It was fine by him since he didn't really need on a family, or a pack, thanks to his cat-genes.

Hayato only went to the closest village when he needed new clothes, which he stole before quickly returning to the forest before anyone could see him. If they knew a hybrid was living in the forest, hunters would be chasing him before he even had the time to blink.
Food and shelter he got from the forest, having perfected the art of fishing with bare hands and sleeping high up in a tree without falling down.

He practiced with his Powers every day, always aiming to get stronger and surpassing himself. His Powers were mostly fire-related, with mid- to long-range attacks being his forte. With a small spell that he almost constantly repeated in the back of his head he could mix together fire and energy, and make the mix take a solid cylinder-like form. He used the cylinders for throwing and they exploded on impact, unless he ended the spell and made them explode mid-air.

Today he was target-practicing on small moving objects in the air, leaves that he kept floating thanks to the wind-magic his mother had taught him when he had been very little. The practice was going well until he released the spell on the cylinders a little too late. Fire spread quickly through the bushes and the grass, far too quickly because of the lack of rain during the last couple of days.

Usually Hayato had no problem with ending the fires he accidentally started, but since it was spreading so quickly in so many directions he couldn't keep up with it. The fire spread in a circle around him and he finally realized that his life was in danger. He tried making the fire clear a path for him, but found that he couldn't. Most of his energy was already gone because of the training, and smoke was now invading his lungs and making his head spin.

Hayato's ears flattened themselves against his head as he let out a low hiss at the fire. The fire only got closer, faster. He started running around in the circle he was caught in, trying again and again to make the fire open up at least a little for him but to no avail. He let out a frustrated yowl that turned into a painful scream as the tip of his tail caught on fire. He brought his tail in front of him and licked the tip, not minding the burning on his tongue.

'Great, I'm about to die in my own fire and all I can think of is my tail. Fan-fucking-tastic,'he thought sullenly, hugging his tail to his chest.

Suddenly he smelled something different. It smelled like fire, but it smelled pure and harmonizing instead of burning and destroying. Before he had any time to figure out where this strange fire was, he was flying. Or more like, someone grabbed him under his arms and lifted him high above the ground and the raging fire.

Hayato let out a surprised "Meow?"and turned his head to see who, or what, had saved him. He was met with a pair of glowing orange eyes, sparkling with amusement.

"Want to go to the river and cool off?"

So… Anyone wanna take a guess on what Chrome is? It will be explained in the next chapter, though I have no idea whatsoever when that chapter will be done. Though hopefully it'll be done before Christmas.

Thank you for reading!