Chapter 9: Waltz of the Stars

2000 hrs, Friday; 8 January, Year 2100

Tsuna stared in wonder at the exquisite interiors of the club. It was called ACT3, an awfully weird name for such a posh club. Then again, Tsuna thought, everything these days had weird names. It came to her as no surprise. Suddenly, she found herself being tugged at her wrists by Haru.

"Tsuna-kun! This way!" she said, dragging Tsuna closer to the stage. The performance had not started yet, but the place was already bustling with hyperactive fan girls – this, despite being dressed up so nicely. It was so ill-matched to their behavior.

What came as a not-so-pleasant surprise to Tsuna however, were a few old and well dressed men, probably very rich, sitting down in plush velvet sofas at the side of the room. They were talking and laughing merrily, toasting with wine. She had always thought that the demographics of the Project Guardians band were teenage girls, so why a posh club in the posh side of town, and rich old men sitting in posh sofas at the side of the posh room? Tsuna's mind ventured far, and then she decided that she did not want it to go too far, because it could give her rather unpleasant thoughts.

Looking elsewhere, she could see a group of girls by the bar, crowding around a man who was sipping some alcohol. Like Sasagawa's hair, his was white, although it was a much purer white than Sasagawa's. The man turned around abruptly, startling Tsuna and making her jump a little. Had she been caught staring? His eyes seemed to fixate on her, and he let out a sly grin. He seemed angelic, almost, except for that slight aura of mischief surrounding him. He was rather handsome, but Tsuna wondered what the strange tattoo over his left eye was.

The room darkened, bringing Tsuna's attention back to the stage. Haru was bouncing on her heels, trying to look over the mass of people that blocked their view. They were far too short despite wearing such high-heels, and they could only catch a glimpse as the musicians walked up the stage, adjusting the microphones and picking up their instruments.

Tsuna could see Gokudera at the keyboard and Yamamoto holding a guitar.

"Unh – "she let out a small noise as she was pushed into Haru by a rather plump girl, making the two stumble. From their new angle however, she could see Mukuro and Hibari standing up front without any instruments. They were the vocalists.

Mukuro exuded a charismatic aura, and as he waved his hand at the audience, loud screaming from the crowd could be heard. Tsuna wanted to plug her ears from the sheer volume of it, but it did not help one bit when she did. Soon, the cries died down.

Tsuna jumped a bit when Hibari was the one who started, strong but with much emotion, astonishing for a man who could be so cold.

"The sakura blossoms, it flutters down, on my hand where there's nothing…"

And then, when Mukuro's turn to sing came, shivers went up Tsuna's spine, and she found herself inexplicably happy. She was smiling, and she felt as though she had never been more carefree in her life.

"…fleeting and gentle, I'm afraid it might break, the flower that is just like you."

It was just a normal song, but Tsuna could feel something in her heart resonating with his voice. Something that was strange, odd, and not meant to be. The rest of the crowd seemed more energetic hearing his voice, but Tsuna was feeling the opposite.

Break.

Her knees felt weak, but Tsuna was still grinning, grinning like an idiot. She held her chest as she crumbled to the floor, her other hand holding her throbbing head. She tried to look up, but her vision was just blurry – she could not see a thing.

"Tsuna-kun!"

Haru cried out over the noise as she bent down to attend to Tsuna. Tsuna found Haru surprisingly strong, being able to haul her up with ease, pulling an arm over her shoulder. Haru navigated the both of them out of the crowd.

Soon enough, after stumbling out of the throng, they managed to reach the ladies. Tsuna bent over the sink, turning on the tap and splashing her face with water at once. They were out of range of the music now, and Tsuna felt immensely better, although her head still throbbed, even if a bit.

What the hell was that? She thought as she panted, trying desperately to gather herself again.

"Tsuna-kun, are you alright? You just collapsed like that; you really, really scared Haru a lot!" Haru said, as she spread her arms, emphasising her words.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Tsuna replied, grabbing a napkin and wiping her face.

"Eh! Don't do that, you have to wipe the make-up off properly," Haru cried, taking out a small bottle of solution and her small but trusty make-up pack. "Here, I'll reapply it for you."

When they were done with that, Haru had suggested for the both of them to step out of the club to get some fresh air. Tsuna declined, telling her to go back and enjoy the concert, but Haru would not hear of it. She grabbed Tsuna by the wrist again, and the both of them made their way out through the back door.

Tsuna puffed out a breath of white air, while Haru dug her bag for some painkillers.

"Here," she said, offering a pill. Tsuna gave a small smile, thanking Haru before taking the pill. She was then passed a bottle of water, with which she downed the medicine.

"God, you really scared me there," Haru started, when she saw Tsuna had taken the pill.

"I know, I'm so sorry. You should really just leave me – I can find my way home. I'll return the clothes to you tomorrow. Just go – enjoy yourself – "

"Go? I could never leave you out here alone, it's so scary! Plus, you're my responsibility for tonight!" Haru puffed out her chest proudly.

"But!"

"You're the one who should have enjoyed yourself. It was why I brought you here in the first place, oh – and you can't go yet, there's still somewhere I'd like to take you, but we can only go when the concert has ended!"

"What is it?"

"Secret!"

Tsuna raised a brow. She then offered a shaky smile.

"Ahh, r-really."

With Haru, she knew that surprises were not really to be trusted, but out of courtesy, she stayed and chatted with Haru as the both of them took a walk down the street, eventually sitting on a bench opposite the entrance of the club.

Time quickly flew, and Tsuna could see more and more people streaming out of the nightclub, chattering excitedly. She could only guess that the concert was over. The pair stood up and made their way back in again.

"So, where is this place you want to take me?"

"You'll find out!"

Tsuna was not too enthusiastic about it, but followed Haru anyway. They soon found themselves outside a door. A security officer stood outside.

"Pass?" Haru's hand once again disappeared into her bag, and she pulled out what seemed to be a card, flashing it at the officer for a brief moment, before it went back into the bag. The officer nodded and knocked on the door.

"Two visitors."

Tsuna heard a little shuffling, until a voice that sounded an awful lot like Yamamoto's replied.

"Come in!"

Haru opened the door, and Tsuna peeked around it. She yelped a little, seeing all of the six band members scattered around the room.

"W-w-w-w-wha – " Tsuna stuttered looking at Haru, then back into the room again. Haru just pushed her inside in response, closing the door tight behind them. She smiled.

Yamamoto, being the first to recognise Tsuna, waved his hand at her.

"Yo, Sawada! Looking good tonight!"

Tsuna blushed, hearing his words.

"Uh, thank you…" she did not know how else to respond.

"Oya," a voice came from her right this time. "It's the midget, is it not? You aren't looking too poor," he gave a cunning smile.

What the hell is that supposed to mean? Tsuna huffed, glaring at Mukuro.

"Was my singing that bad?"

"Eh?" Tsuna was confused at the sudden question.

"My singing. You collapsed, didn't you? I could see. Your vision was blurry, your head was throbbing and your heart was – "

Before Tsuna could react, she could feel Mukuro's breath on her face. He was bent over, hands on either side of his hips, scrutinising every nook of her face.

"– beating harder than ever."

Instead of feeling intimidated, Tsuna questioned him back, feeling a surge of courage course through her veins.

"How do you know?"

Mukuro was about to open his mouth to reply, when a voice cut in.

"Oi. If you want to flirt with the maid, do it elsewhere," Gokudera's voice was gruff and distinct.

"I agree," a second sing-song voice cut in. Mukuro stiffened at the sound of the second voice, and Tsuna turned around slowly, to see the same angel-faced man she saw earlier on in the evening. Mukuro got back up, a scowl on his face.

The rest of the people in the room seemed to glare intently at the man, except Lambo, who looked at him casually. Even Yamamoto – his face held a look of caution on it; Gokudera and Hibari had their hackles raised.

"Byakuran," Mukuro stated simply, his smile returning to his face. "What brings you here?"

Byakuran replied cheerfully.

"Oh, nothing much. I'm just checking on you guys. Your concert was fantastic, although your voice was rather revolting, as I could see from this young lady over here," Byakuran raised his hand and placed it on Tsuna's head.

Mukuro was provoked by that action, raising his own hand quickly and wrapping it around Byakuran's wrist.

"Do keep a hand off the midget. She's rather fragile and I'd like someone to serve me tea tomorrow morning."

"Oh? But I'm interested in her," he looked down at Tsuna, then back at Mukuro. "She probably can do more than serve tea and make beds. I could offer her something more."

"Ha-hi! She's my employee as well! We're short on maids at my agency, and she's going nowhere!" Haru now cut in, rather outraged by the rude man.

Byakuran just whipped out a card and slotted it into her bag, ignoring whatever Haru said.

"If you do need a new job, do feel free to go down to the address written on the card, or maybe you would like to give me a call." He turned around, ready to leave when Mukuro grabbed his shoulder, and whispered something into his ear. He gave a derisive laugh, then made his way out again.

Mukuro turned, walking back to his original seat. There was a certain air of anger hovering around him, and an almost murderous aura. Tsuna could feel herself being stifled, but she found a warm hand on her shoulder next.

"Don't sweat it!" It was Yamamoto. He offered her a kind smile, before continuing. "Byakuran's always like that, you know, all…smiley and mischievous…"

"…and cunning," he added in an undertone. He then gave her two pats on the back, and walked back to his seat. Haru was still steaming, her hands clenched up tightly and her lips drawn into a pout.

"That man makes me so mad! So mad! So, so very mad!"

"We know," Hibari interjected, "so be quiet."

"You! You too!" Haru shrieked. "Come, Tsuna-kun! We're out of this place!" Haru grabbed her hand roughly, dragging her out of the door and stomping away. All the six men in the room stared at it briefly, before going back to doing their own things.

"Yeeeeeeaaargh!" Haru let out a long cry, banging the side of the car. Tsuna jumped, never having seen Haru this frustrated before.

"Those people! Oh, Tsuna, I'm so sorry. I just meant for you to get to know them better and – and, oh, just to have a good time. But tonight was ruined! Ruined I tell you! I swear, I'll pay them back next time! And, I'm so sorry. Oh god, I'll take you somewhere else as a repayment, really. I'm so sorry, so sorry…" Haru's voice trailed off.

"No, no, it's alright really. You've done more than enough for me tonight," Tsuna replied sheepishly. She was unsure of what to say, especially after the previous bizarre situation.

"I promise you, I will," Haru unlocked the car doors, getting into the driver's seat. Tsuna followed suit.

The journey home was a bit tiring, and Tsuna found her eyelids drooping slowly. She could hear Haru's soft breaths, occasionally an angry huff when a driver cut into the lane, and the lights – all the lights flashing past.

As Tsuna was lulled into a deep slumber by the rocking of the car, she had one last lingering thought on her mind.

"She's my toy, Byakuran. I'm not willing to share."

What exactly did Mukuro mean?

A/N: Ye gods, I'm sorry if there are any errors in this one, it'd be nice to tell me if you spot any. I'm so tired, I might have missed out on some. I'd like to apologise for the late update but I've been out of the country and pretty busy now, so yeah.

And before anyone thinks wrong, no, the rich old men aren't…perverse, if I can find any other term to put it. You'll find out soon enough. :D