Title: Family Owned
Word Count: 483
Pairings: N/A
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: Katekyo Hitman Reborn belongs to Akira Amano
Some things seem more believable in a certain time or place.
It's not that Kyoko didn't understand what Tsuna told her about the mafia and his family; she didn't want to. At the time, sitting on the grassy bank a decade in the future, it was easy to be caught up in his sincere smiles and earnest words. Now that everything is back to normal she can't find it in herself to believe that sweet and clumsy No Good Tsuna could be a mafia boss (powerful, strong, the anti-hero).
She notices how he's still shy and speaks softly whenever he meets new people. But she also notices how he doesn't stutter as much and how he's no longer failing all his subjects. His smile was no longer nervous (bright like the sky).
When she goes to bed at night she tells herself stories about fantasy worlds where she's not just average Sasagwa Kyoko but a princess or a faerie queen. She wants something to believe in (but she doesn't want to tell herself the truth).
By the time she enters her second year in high school she has accepted that her big brother and Haru were drifting apart from her. She doesn't even know why. Big brother comes home late at night smelling of smoke and sunlight sometimes. One time, she heard him muttering under his breath in another language. Haru doesn't go cake shopping with her anymore. Kyoko wonders why Haru carries around a tiny, silver water gun in her purse (cold, heavy, and detailed like plastic should not be).
She watches as Tsuna begins to grow taller. She notes how his eyes have gotten much older. Tsuna and the group of people who are close to him seem set apart from the others of their year. They seem older, wiser, and more haunted than their peers. They huddle together during lunch, and speak softly in a language that sounds like the wind blowing through a graveyard (pretty, pretty bones rattling).
She's not sure when Tsuna stops trying to get her attention with sweet smiles and breathy laughs. She doesn't remember when he stopped courting her. She isn't sure what she did to show them that she was no longer trustworthy. Kyoko tries approaching them during lunch, but they shut down. They look at her with empty eyes. Tsuna doesn't even attempt to speak with her (ripping wings from faerie queens).
For the first time in a while, Kyoko picks up her phone and calls Haru.
"Tell me (what I don't want to hear) about the mafia."
"Are you sure?"
"…Yes."
"This isn't a conversation that should be held on the phone. Come to Pink Scorpion down your street. We'll talk there. They have good cake. It is family owned, you know."
"I didn't know your family owned a bakery."
"Which one?"