Kichou, InK4bLoOd, animegirl457, ben4kevin, Wowserz in muh pantz, EK12, AbandonWolf3, SilverMajix, kay-kw33n, NecromancyAngel, Fenrir16, Once-upon-a-saturday, Lilgreyblob, HibarixZhen, & dustbunniehailey for the kind reviews! March Rosenqueen Ah...that's true ^^; There seems to be a large lapse between most of my updates now, how to close TT^TT...and no, he most certainly does not know. Yet. c: You're welcome! YuujouKami & he's going to get into a lot more of awkward situations, because I dictate what he does. Being the author feels amazing ;3 TotalAmuto I have to say that I haven't really thought about HDWM Tsuna. I want to find a way to include it though! NateMarshallLee Your review made my day. I was in my Computer Graphics class when I read yours, and I couldn't stop grinning. About the angst - whew. I hope not, I don't have gusto to write that. Thank you for your support! ^^ SelfcreatedCharacter That game with cards - Foltern - actually hurts like a bitch in real life. I've played it several times when I was bored in the summer with my neighbors, and holy jkfhdskf. They don't go easy on me ; ; And yes. Blackmail certainly does fit Hibari ;D soulXmaka4evalove Thank you :) I'm thinking on what to do with his eyes. I kind of want some HDWM Tsuna too, but I'm not too sure on how to incorporate it yet.

Wheeee. An update ;D Happy Valentine's Day (or forever alone day, whichever one you pick) to everyone! I was initially going to make this a Valentine's Day-themed chapter, but it doesn't fit in correctly with the timeline ; ; ... and the omake I was going to make was skewed in the time-sense as well. So...just a regular update...just on 2/14.

Don't hesitate to ask any questions! Most of them, if not all, help me notice what I've missed. Sometimes they're minor things like typos or grammar errors, sometimes bigger - plot holes, etc.

Well, enjoy!

Glossary

senpai - elder, senior, upperclassman, superior, etc. [Japanese]
alouette - skylark [French]
Europaeus Pestifera - made up name, roughly equalling "Poisonous Hedgehog" - which I can assure you, there are none. [Latin]

"…And that's what happened," Tsuna finished in a hushed whisper. Enma's eyes could've doubled as bowling balls.

"W-Wow. You seem to have gotten on his bad side," Enma mumbled, toying with a wrapped band-aid.

"Well, at least he's not that mad anymore. I mean, if he sits next to me…that has to mean something, right?" Tsuna asked, his brow furrowing slightly as he stood up and pushed back his chair. "I'm going to wash up, I'll be right back." The redhead nodded and turned to Basil, the two engaging in a chat immediately.

"Tsunayoshi! Tsunayoshi!" Hibird chirped from atop the brunet's hair. Tsuna reached up a tentative hand to pet the songbird, stroking it when there was no resistance. In fact, the bird seemed to nuzzle into his hand affectionately instead of shying away. Tsuna smiled softly, the small gesture warming his heart.

"Hibird, you need to tell me the secrets of your master," he murmured. Hibird cocked his head to the side, as if trying to understand what he said.

He was about to push open the door to the washroom when he spied something out of the corner of his eye. The employees-only room opened, and Hibari stepped out, closing the door behind him with utmost care. The brunet walked over curiously. Hibari wasn't an employee here…right?

"Hibari-san?"

Hibird POV

Master! "Hi—"

Hibari's eyes widened fractionally as he snapped out a code consisting of subtle taps and clicks to Hibird with his fingers. The yellow fluff ball automatically shut up as his master clapped a hand against Tsuna's mouth and hauled him into the men's washroom. Fortunately, it was empty. Tsuna gasped for air as soon as Hibari released his hand. The skylark snorted at the reaction. How pathetically weak.

"Why did you—" Hibari's hand covered his mouth again as he stood stock still.

"Are you sure nobody saw us?"

Tsuna instantly recognized his brother's voice, wondering who he was talking to. He had excused himself to the washroom a while ago

"I would've heard it."

Tsuna tried to remember who the second voice belonged to—he was sure he heard it somewhere before...

His thoughts were suddenly thrown out the window as Hibari grasped him around the waist and hauled him to a stall. His position was reversed as he sat on Hibari's lap, hastily propping up his legs against the door as the skylark prodded them with a tonfa. The door opened a split second later. Tsuna strained to see from his vantage point—there seemed to be two pairs of feet, both clad in similar Italian calf shoes, but one had a silver clasp. To his knowledge, Giotto owned no shoes with clasps, so it was easy to figure out which one he was. But his companion was another matter; it wasn't like Tsuna paid any attention to the shoes people were wearing (unless they were customers), so he had no clue to who it was.

"Alouette," Giotto's voice said, the word clearly laced with affection. "I'll go back first." There was a pause where there was the unmistakable sound of a kiss (Hibari almost gagged at how uncharacteristic his brother was whilst Tsuna remained oblivious) before the door opened and someone walked out (presumably Giotto).

Tsuna was deep in thought. His brother was involved with someone with the code name of alouette. The word sounded eerily familiar. So preoccupied was he that he almost squeaked in surprise when Hibari moved and shoved him away, almost making him do a face plant against the stall door.

"You could've warned me before you did that Hibari-san," Tsuna mumbled as he stomped his feet a couple of times to shake away the unpleasant tingles. Hibird flew from his head to his master's, sitting upright and as stoic as a sentry. Tsuna realized that the fluff ball hadn't even made a single tweet since Hibari seemingly snapped his fingers in some complicated pattern to quiet him, which led back to...

"Why were you standing over at the—" Hibari glared sharply at him, effectively cutting him of in the middle of his sentence.

"Don't pry into my business, herbivore." The skylark undid the lock and left the stall, leaving Tsuna sputtering as he rushed out after him.

"Wait, Hibari-san!"

Said man turned around, eying the hand tugging on his sleeve pointedly. Tsuna flushed slightly and immediately let go.

"A-Are you still mad at me?" the brunet stuttered nervously as he tugged on his bangs, a habit that he had picked up from a customer back in Namimori.

Hibari snorted. "Why should I be?" Tsuna stood there awkwardly, wondering if he should bring up the afternoon's events or not. The skylark rolled his eyes and left without waiting for his answer. Tsuna blinked as Hibird seemed to lift a wing to wave at him. Ah—well, Hibari-san doesn't seem to be mad anymore, I shouldn't push it…the brunet left the washroom with the word "alouette" on the tip of his tongue.

Tsuna sighed as he hung up. His father's enthusiasm always wore him out. He glanced sideways at Hibari, whose eyes were skirting the pages of what seemed to be a crime novel. Tsuna didn't even realize he was staring until Hibari was staring back, the barest hint of mirth visible in his relaxed expression. The brunet let out a short (ahem, masculine) squeak of surprise before retreating to the bathroom to take a shower. Hibari blinked slowly with amusement before returning to his novel with Hibird comfortably nestled in his hair.

Tsuna yelped as the shampoo got in his eye, fumbling around until the water rinsed the irritating substance out of his eye. As the warm steam collected around him, Tsuna thought back to Giotto. He had sent a status update (safe, not in a wreck on the side of the road) to each of his older brothers (they had both insisted on it, even Dino, was currently the CEO and owner of the Chiavarone Company and therefore rarely had any spare time. Giotto was a bit ridiculous; they lived in the same dorm. There was no need for him to fret).

Alouette… The brunet's brow was furrowed deeply, indicating the mess his thoughts were in. He had been thinking about Giotto's rendezvous with "X" ever since his encounter with Hibari. From the deepest recesses of his brain located in the "childhood songs" category, came the barest snippets of a tune. It was a broken tune, one that he couldn't quite piece together yet, but he would figure it out in time, maybe a couple of days depending on the circumstances.

So deep in thought was Tsuna that the sharp prick of pain subjected to his forefinger wasn't noticed until a thin trail of red streamed amongst the tiles of the shower floor. Agony bloomed in his finger as his eyes searched for the perpetrator.

"Hieeee!"

"Hieeee!"

Hibari paused from turning the page. His outwardly calm composure was not affected by the sheer surprise he felt inwardly at the disturbance. There were rarely any disruptions in the quiet peace that he could only find solely in his room.

"H-Hibari-s-san!"

The raven-haired male's eyes flicked towards the traumatized brunet, whose finger was bleeding profusely.

"B-By any c-chance, is t-that your hedgehog in there?" Tsuna stuttered out as his body started to quiver slightly. He clenched the towel tighter around his waist as Hibari blinked at him and connected the dots.

"Did he pierce you?" Hibari asked, slowly setting down his book as he stood up. Tsuna nodded. The elder started to walk towards the brunet, gesturing for him to return to the bathroom as he followed suit behind him. Tsuna's confusion showed in his questioning steps as Hibari nudged him to the sink. He unhinged the lock on the side of the mirror to reveal a cupboard behind it, taking out a first-aid kit as Tsuna looked on apprehensively.

"A band-aid would do, Hibari-san." Tsuna's confusion upped tenfold when he was more or less ignored. The elder doused an antiseptic pad with lukewarm water and squeezed a small drop of soap on it before grasping Tsuna's finger. The brunet tried to refrain from wincing but failed as Hibari washed the cut. Unbeknownst to him, the small tremors that shook his body periodically were growing more frequent. A not-so-visible change was the small drop in Tsuna's body temperature—all of which Hibari noted as he inspected his handiwork before—

"H-H-Hibari-san! W-What are y-y-you d-doing?" Tsuna stammered as he blushed about eighteen shades of red.

—closing his mouth around Tsuna's forefinger whilst stooping down a little to keep his hand below his heart. Tsuna's thoughts swirled as they tried to assemble themselves into a presentable order when Hibari began to apply suction. At the same moment, Tsuna's vision blurred a little before returning back to normal. The two continued their ritual for a few more turns, with Hibari spitting out the blood every ten seconds. Tsuna struggled to ask questions that demanded answers, but his thoughts were incoherent as black spots danced in front of him, slowly swallowing up his vision.

Hibari caught the falling brunet before he acquainted himself with the floor. He spit out last drops of blood, the familiar coppery tang taking over his memories for a split moment before he forced them back. He set the unconscious Tsuna down gently, his eyes searching the shower for a sign of Roll as he did so.

He found his pet curled up in a ball in the soap bar container.

"P-Pii!" Roll responded as he was picked up.

"You've caused trouble, herbivore," Hibari rebuked, albeit in a soft manner. Roll seemed to express chagrin as it stood up on its master's hand to peer at Tsuna.

"Piiii…"

Tsuna blinked as his eyes slowly refocused. He found himself to be slipping in and out of consciousness as his need for warmth grew greater with each lapse. There was one, unclear memory of Hibari rinsing his mouth with mouthwash—but the action was so down-to-earth that he dismissed it. He couldn't imagine someone like Hibari doing normal things, although he reasoned that he'd have the chance to witness pretty much most of Hibari's schedule now that they were roommates.

His teeth began to chatter as he came into consciousness again—what was that purple thing that was on Hibari's shoulder? His eyes couldn't quite make out what the blob was. It wasn't long before his eyelids drooped again.

The next time he regained most of his senses was a pure heavenly experience. It felt like he was next to a radiator during the coldest of winter days. The heat tightly cocooned him, providing a shield between him and everything else. Something was wrapped around his waist, but the alarming thoughts eluded him as he nuzzled closer to whatever was next to him. Breathing in the comforting scent of lavender and green tea, he fell in a deep sleep.

Hibari shifted irritatedly. Every time he managed to get an hour of sleep, the herbivore's breathing woke him up again. He had moved to get his earphones, but the herbivore just. wouldn't. let. go. He had given up on disentangling himself ages ago, and had resigned himself to only three hours of sleep. He had watched the sun rise, watched Hibird go out for his daily flight, and he was now currently watching the clock to turn eight.

Hibari grimaced in annoyance as Tsuna snuggled closer again. He was definitely not above using violence to wake the sleeping herbivore up (even if his condition was partially his fault) but it hadn't worked. The boy slept like a log.

Hibari gently pushed Tsuna's head away from his chest, feeling his forehead at the same time. Good, his temperature had risen back to normal. His eyes narrowed as he studiously studied the boy's features. Tsuna's eyelashes were so long that they cast shadows on his cheeks. Unconsciously, his hand cupped Tsuna's cheek. Hibari marveled at how soft the skin was, how smooth, how untainted. His lips curved in the barest semblance of a smile as his fingers twisted in Tsuna's hair. So he really did wake up like this. He let the silken strands sift through his fingers before retracting his hand. He was not one to let himself be in denial for too long. His interest in Tsuna was admittingly…high. The only logical reason was because that Tsuna was the complete epitome of an herbivore, a small animal…and he possessed a soft spot for small animals.

Beep beep. Beep beep.

Finally. Hibari expected the herbivore to rouse himself, but instead, he mumbled "Mmn…five more minutes…"

This herbivore…irked the hell out of him. Hibari pulled the blankets off of them in a swift move, eyes widening in surprise when Tsuna suddenly attached himself to him like a leech.

"Herbivore…Tsunayoshi!" Hibari said as he grasped Tsuna by the shoulders and shook him, raising his voice a notch higher for the first time in several years.

"Mmwhhuh?" Tsuna's eyes fluttered open, bleary as they stared at Hibari. The skylark could almost see the gears turning in Tsuna's head as he continued starting at him.

"Hieee!" Connection made. The next few moments were chock-full of skin-to-skin contact as Tsuna hurriedly attempted to disentangle himself from Hibari (which had led to more tangling before they finally freed themselves).

"W-What happened last night?" Tsuna said, his eyes huge as he realized he was on Hibari's bed.

"Nothing. You were just poisoned by touching Roll," Hibari stated apathetically. "The symptoms include lowered body temperature and shivering. You should be immune to it by now, so it doesn't matter if he pierces you again."

"Hedgehogs are poisonous?" Tsuna asked incredulously. That explains a lot…b-but you could've shown more concern!

"Europaeus Pestifera. It's the only species of hedgehog that is poisonous."

As if cued, Roll…well, rolled across the bed to him. The hedgehog looked rather harmless with its spikes retracted.

"Piii," the purple hedgehog mewled, nuzzling into the side of his hand in a gesture of apology.

Hibari didn't bat an eyelash. Herbivores flocked to herbivores. It all made sense.

With characteristic tenderness, Tsuna tentatively stroked Roll, a smile lighting up his face as he did so.

"He's so little."

Beneath his callous exterior, Hibari felt the slightest shift in emotion as he watched Tsuna coddle his hedgehog. The foreign feeling was alarming. Hibari immediately reacted defensively, distancing himself from the herbivore who caused the strange flutter.

"Hibari-san, how may I thank you?" Tsuna called out as Hibari grabbed a towel.

"You don't need to," Hibari growled. The brunet's eyes widened at the sudden change in attitude.

"H-Hibari-san?"

The skylark closed the door behind him, the click reverberating throughout the room. Tsuna sat, stupefied. I-It was partially his fault anyway! I should be the one that's angry!

He tried to convince himself that Hibari's mood wasn't his fault as he slipped out of Hibari's bed—

Wait.

Hibari's bed…

Slow as he was, there were really no alternate explanations to explain why he was in Hibari's bed and not his own. He was so...insensitive. He had inconvenienced the skylark, again. He had a feeling that he was going to pay for it…

He was right, dammit. His feelings were always right.

"Oya, oya, looks like Kyouya-chan is a little sleepy today, kufufu."

Hibari smirked instead of looking irritated. "That's because Tsunayoshi kept me up all night."

Tsuna's jaw slacked. So did Mukuro's. H-How could he!

"My darling brother! Y-You were t-tainted by t-that beast? Get the fuck over here Hibari Kyouya, I'll make sure that you'll see all six realms of hell!" Giotto snarled.

"Finally, someone got their hells right," Mukuro muttered.

Tsuna spent a good part of his morning explaining what had happened. After this certain experience, he was more wary around his senpai, and usually went out of his way to avoid any further trouble.

Three days later

Tsuna tilted his head in confusion. "Pocky?" Lambo handed him one of the strawberry flavored biscuit sticks.

"Table 4 requested that from me…with Hibari-san," Tsuna said as he wondered silently if he would have time to pick up a few during his break. Why would they want only one pocky stick?

"Have you ever heard of the pocky game?" Lambo queried.

"Yeah, me and Giotto-niii used to—" Tsuna's eyes widened as realization dawned on him. With Hibari? It was true that the older male had been less apathetic and more teasing towards him, but he wasn't quite sure whether he liked the change or not.

"Hibari is already informed. He's waiting for you by your table." Lambo wished him luck before joining Yamamoto in a cosplay request, leaving the brunet behind with a gaping jaw and a sudden urge to jump off a cliff.

Tsuna's knees felt like buckling. "U-Um…Hibari-san?" The older male turned around, his eyes containing a hint of amusement as he noticed the biscuit stick Tsuna was holding between his fingers.

Tsuna timidly placed one end of the pocky in between his lips and stood on his toes to poke Hibari's mouth with the other end. The skylark caught the stick and nipped at it. Tsuna's heels came back down to rest on the floor as Hibari gripped his hips, bringing him closer at the same time. One of the customers whispered a ~Kya! So hot!~ before Tsuna took another small bite. Oh god why with Hibari-san…there wasn't enough stick between him and the elder! It would only be a matter of time before their—

You can cross that bridge when you get there, his mind told him. He failed to notice how Hibari's eyes were rooted on him as he took a bite. Tsuna really, really liked pocky. He'd be damned if this was going to ruin it for him. He took a bite.

Crunch. Hibari's bite.

Crunch. His bite.

Crunch. Hibari's.

Crunch. His.

Crunch.

Crunch.

Crunch.

Crunch.

Tsuna gulped at their proximity—Hibari's smell filled his senses, the scent rousing some primal instinct within him instead of comforting him like it usually did (not that he would ever admit that in front of Hibari). There was just enough room for two small bites.

Crunch. Their lips were a hair's breath away from each other.

Tsuna prayed that he would live down the humiliation Hibari was sure to give him after this.

Crunch.

Their lips met softly as Tsuna settled comfortably against Hibari. The brunet had always thought that he was more comfortable performing his customer's requests with Hibari than the other hosts. He reasoned that it had turned out that way because people asked for him and Hibari more than anyone else, so he had eventually grown used to it.

Tsuna's eyes flitted to the clock. Giotto was always better at this part—

His eyes widened as Hibari's tongue made it through his still slightly parted mouth. T-This wasn't part of the game...The first one to pull away was the one who lost! But Giotto had never included making out in the rules...

Tsuna placed his hands against Hibari's chest, intending on pushing him away, but instead was drawn closer. Hibari's eyes smirked—since his mouth was occupied—as Tsuna's cheeks started to take on a pink tint not unlike the icing that had covered the pocky sticks. Tsuna fought valiantly to keep Hibari out of his mouth, but lost, seeing that the elder had more experience than him. The brunet stopped squirming in Hibari's grip as their tongues pressed against each other almost violently.

In all honesty, it wasn't like he despised contact with Hibari—quite the opposite, actually. It was just what came after it that kept him running away.

Tsuna tilted his head to get a better angle, resigning himself to fate as Hibari kissed him senseless. He reciprocated as often as he could—but that wasn't enough to win. Long after the sweet taste of pocky stopped lingering, Tsuna was shocked by the hand that suddenly cupped his cheek. Ever since he had started working at the cafe, his personal values had skewed a little—kisses were no longer special and body contact was nothing to worry over. But something simple like the cup of his cheek—it was something that he still considered intimate, and for Hibari to initiate such a move—the surprise was enough for him to break the kiss.

Hibari covered up his own surprise with a smirk as he let his hand fall to his side. His instincts were something he prided himself in—and any decisions he made on impulse were rarely wrong, but he was infinitely sure that he had not thought about touching Tsuna's face before he had done so. This type of unconscious action was something he was wary of.

"I really thought you were going to go farther than that," one of the customers pouted. Tsuna's blush grew more prominent as he struggled to find words. "Seriously, are you two a couple?"

S-So straightforward. "N-No..." the brunet stuttered as he blinked his eyes at the blondeness of her hair. She didn't seem foreign with the fluency of her Japanese, yet her looks seemed to be part French.

"And here I was thinking that Hibari-kun finally opened his heart to someone." She sighed dramatically. The two girls who were with her seemed slightly abashed by her bluntness.

"Elena," Hibari said, narrowing his eyes without malice. It was the first time Tsuna saw him speak to someone that didn't work in the cafe without growling. "Please go bother the older pineapple peon instead."

"Oh~ I will," the woman said deviously before turning her attention back to Tsuna. "You're so adorable...let's see..." She picked up the menu again and flipped to the recent page. "It says here that you're working temporarily for a week until your position is decided, blah blah blah...hmmm...so your name is Sawada Tsunayoshi." Elena tapped a fingernail against her cheek. "Such a big name for someone so...small."

Tsuna's cheeks colored again. Strangely, it didn't seem like Elena was belittling him. Instead, her eyes were scanning over him rather approvingly.

"May I call you Tsuna-chan instead? Or Tsu-tsu? Or—"

"Tsuna-chan is fine," Tsuna blurted out before she came up with even worse nicknames. Elena giggled and stood up, flouncing over to Tsuna with an elegant lightness in her step. She pressed a light kiss against his cheek before ruffling his hair.

"Well, Tsuna-chan, I'll be seeing more of you!" She waved goodbye as she walked out the door.

"Cavorting omnivore," Hibari muttered under his breath. Tsuna just stood there, unable to form any words as his mouth opened and closed.

Elena chuckled lightly as the wind fluttered lightly against her hair. Tsuna-chan...you will most definitely fall for Hibari-kun. I'll make sure of it. But first...she had to visit that idiot first.

Yay. Go Elena ;D
If you're ever curious on story statuses, they're usually on my profile or on my blog. My blog will usually state which fiction I'm working on, and is updated more frequently. There's also snippets of fictions that I never got to publish/drafts. Come visit me once in a while! ^^ (hopefully I can figure out how to install a chat box soon).

h t t p : / / i m i t a t i o n - a n g e l . b l o g s p o t . c o m

/gives everyone hugs and cupcakes
You're never alone on V-Day! D: