Note: I'm sorry if this appeared in people's inboxes thrice OTL...some people have had a problem with receiving this update (broken link?)
No, sorry, this isn't another update.
Some people have requested it to be reuploaded because they couldn't see it (so I'm extremely sorry for clogging up everyone's inboxes. I swear this is the last time TT^TT)...
ben4kevin, kay-kw33n, AniManGa19930, Pudding Earl, Kichou, HibarixZhen, fujoshikanojo94, The Only Love For Soujiro Seta, qXyrin, & greenwolf19, thank you for your praise and support /heart. March Rosenqueen I imagine so too c: Ohoho ;) I am wondering that too. Awww..itsk, fujoshis unite on 2/14 to be un-forever alone! ;^; Hope this chapter won't disappoint ^^" xXScarlatto-OokamiXx His ™? Yes, yes ;) loveanimes1996 Aww D: Dw come here, we can spend a belated 2/14 together n_n I know, but I always imagine Alaude as you know...a parallel to Hibari. And Giotto, to Tsuna - only in HDWM a lot more often. Ahaha, "making sandwiches with my brother!" I bursted out laughing in my Spanish class... `-` Now my classmates think I'm weird. Oh well :'D hiuhThanks! And hehe. I love Elena :) ezcap1st I know, right? :'D Ellen Thanks, love! And yes, they will be c: nanami92 I believe so C: Come by and drop me a line every now and then, I love talking xD &thank you! ;w; Jasmin Liertha I know. Sometimes I squeal myself when I'm writing. sofluffy. There probably is...in Japan. :(! 8D! I agree. Elena shipping 1827 is quite a hilarious spectacle. berrysplashQT Yes! xD &thanks ;D Hope this update won't disappoint ^^ Katsuchara That heart c: ... I wish I could do that without fanfiction censoring it out ;( Wait let me try it out. [ ] - That's where it was supposed to be. It didn't work ;(! &thank you! ;D Elis1412So accurate! xDDD Stalker of Reactions I've wondered about playing it too, seeing that Pocky is obtainable where I live. But...who to play it with o/o looking for a love interest other than 1827 :(...
I wanted to update/write a fic for April's Fool day...,_, Like. Have an a/n that stated "I'm sorry, I'm discontinuing this fic etc etc" D: ... and then retract it. B-But I forgot...;w;
This chapter is a little shorter than usual (around 3k) but I hope you enjoy it anyways! ^^
The last part where there are multiple line breaks is due to the slight changes in POVs (if that helps, Jasmin ;D)
Glossary:
Je reviens tout de suite - I'll be back right away [French]
Cela fait un bail que nous ne nous sommes pas vus - Colloquial way to say "It's been a while (that we haven't seen each other)" [French]
Bonjour - Hello [French] (lolduhc:)
Onii-tan - Similar to onii-chan but a cuter form. Mostly used by toddlers seeing that they can't pronounce "chan" as well [Japanese]
Bvlgari - Expensive watch brand (Accentuated by Italians)
"Je reviens tout de suite," Daemon said to the French couple. Giotto, who was several tables away, stuck his tongue out at him. Daemon could almost imagine what the blonde wanted to say. "Stupid showoff. I can beat your pants off in Italian." Well, it wasn't like he could help growing up in France. And for the record, he was not one of those "snobby, rich, old aristocrats."
He was just about to visit another table when a familiar 5'7 tall stature stepped in front of him.
"Bonjour. Cela fait un bail que nous ne nous sommes pas vus."
His lips curved into a smile, a genuine one that didn't contain a single hint of smirk in it. "Bonjour, Elena."
Tsuna covered his work clothes with a jacket before he exited the café with Hibari following after him. He had originally planned to go alone, but for some reason, Hibari had decided go with him. He could not entirely say that the skylark seemed willing though. He had tagged along with Giotto on all of his breaks up until now; when he told his brother that he would rather go somewhere else on his own; there was a brief look that passed his older brother's face that he couldn't quite decipher. It looked like a cross between relieved and wistful.
It was a short walk, a 5 minute one at the most. It was shadowed with silence, with Tsuna feeling too awkward to start up a conversation and Hibari not caring enough to. Peals of laughter reached his ears before he could see the children who had released them.
He waited until the pedestrian signal switch to safe before crossing the street and heading towards the daycare with Hibari in tow. Several of the toddlers stared up in awe at him and Hibari. A little girl soon ran over and tugged on his pants leg.
"Who are you, onii-tan?" Huge, trusting eyes stared at Tsuna. The brunet stooped down to the girl's height, noticing that a small crowd had gathered around them already.
"Weren't you taught not to trust strangers?" he asked with a smile. The girl's eyes grew wider as she nodded.
"Be careful next time. You can trust me though. My name is Tsuna—there, I'm not a stranger anymore." The girl smiled as she patted his cheek affectionately.
"I'm Akiyama Minako!" she chirped.
"Sawada-san?" someone called. Tsuna stood up to face a very, very, very pretty lady. Even though he wasn't interested, his cheeks tinged a light pink.
"That's me—just call me Tsuna, though. And you are—?"
"Oh, how rude of me. I'm Sasagawa Kyoko. Giotto-kun told me you might be coming." That brought a smile to Tsuna's face. Of course his brother would know and send notice ahead of time. But…Sasagawa? The name sounded awfully familiar.
"Sasagawa-san," he said politely, dipping his head. His eyebrows were slightly scrunched in concentration as he tried to recall the name.
"Ryohei is my nii-chan," Kyoko offered helpfully. Tsuna's eyes widened almost comically. They were nothing alike! Kyoko giggled at the reaction. "And call me Kyoko-chan please, I don't mind. To be honest, Sasagawa-san makes me feel sort of old." She turned to face Hibari. "Good afternoon, Kyouya-kun." Tsuna was shocked again. They knew each other? Well of course, he should expect Hibari to know a lot of pretty girls… For some reason, the thought fostered a strange feeling that he couldn't quite put a finger on yet.
"Kyoko," Hibari replied tersely. Tsuna almost fell over himself in surprise. They were on first name terms as well—and he was with Hibari long enough to know that he was on first name terms with just a select few people, and not all by choice—just who was this woman?
"Tsu-tan, let's play!" Minako chirped as she tugged on Tsuna's pants leg again. Tsuna smiled warmly.
"Of course—"
At that moment, all of the children started introducing themselves to Tsuna, some tripping as they struggled to reach him. The brunet just laughed through the mess. It took nearly 10 minutes for the introductions to finish. Tsuna just prayed that he would at least remember some of the names. Hibari retreated underneath the shade of a tree to observe from an omniscient vantage point as he put his earphones in.
The children, in short, were a flurry of activity. Only 20 minutes had passed and they had played a combination of games—hide and seek and tag being two of them. The children were particularly fond of the game "House," so they appointed Kyoko as the mother and Tsuna as the father. Tsuna alternated turns with Kyoko when it came to tea parties—the female children positively squealed when Tsuna served them. The children seemed to be made up of energy, entirely dragging Tsuna along with their pace as they filled the area with their bubbly laughter.
There was a short story-telling time too. The children scrabbled over Tsuna as they fought to see who would sit in "Tsu-tan's" or "Koko-chan's" lap. Minako eventually came out as winner for Tsuna and another girl for Kyoko—Ayumi, if his memory served correct. Kyoko told of a giant bunny that was in search for a friend, while Tsuna told of a brave young boy that conquered dragons and creatures of the like to save his town. He was dubbed the "monster tamer." The children took quite a liking to his story. When they asked what the boy's name was, he replied with a pained smile: "Fuuta."
"Koko-chan! Koko-chan! Haruharu is stuck in a tree!"
Tsuna turned his head to where the child was pointing—it was a sakura tree not far from where Hibari was resting. A brunette girl swayed on a branch near the top.
"Kyoko-chan, please help me down!"
The sakura tree was soon surrounded by every child that was on the daycare grounds. Hibari had stood up, having been irritated when children started stepping on him.
"Ah…Haru-san?" Tsuna shielded his eyes against the sun as he looked up. "You can climb down using the branches. They will support your weight."
"H-Hahi! I can't see where to put my feet!"
Tsuna gulped as he glanced to Hibari for help. The elder stared back with a grimace on his face (courtesy to the female toddlers pulling at his pant legs), but made no move.
It wasn't like Tsuna was a gentleman; but if his father found out that he had neglected his preaching, then he would surely reprimand him severely. Therefore asking Kyoko to climb the tree and attempt a rescue was out of the question. He wanted to help Haru down from the tree, but he wasn't particularly excellent at climbing trees himself either. The ideal help in this situation was Hibari…who was currently glaring daggers due to the crowding.
Without another word, Tsuna grasped a tree limb, gulping again when it swayed a little. Kyoko started to clap her hands.
"Yay, Tsuna-kun is going to rescue the princess!"
Tsuna sweatdropped as the children began to cheer. They shouldn't take this situation lightly, because he could very well fall down himself before even reaching Haru. He steeled his mind before finding a firm foothold.
"Tsu-tan! Tsu-tan! Tsu-tan!" Minako started to chant. Other children began to join her.
"TSU-TAN! TSU-TAN! TSU-TAN!"
Tsuna managed a shaky smile before starting to make his way up the tree. His mind was very much like a blank slate, his limbs seeming to be set on automatic as he advanced through the leaves. When he appeared directly under Haru a few minutes later, he looked up, only to almost lose his grip at what he saw. His cheeks flushed a deep shade of red.
"H-Haru-san, how did you get up here?" he asked as he started to ascend again, willing himself to forget the sight of pink striped panties.
"Oh, I was retrieving a ball for To-kun—hahi!" Haru's foot slipped, causing Tsuna to lunge out and support Haru's weight, using his hands as a substitute branch until Haru found her footing again.
"Go Tsuna-kun!" Kyoko cheered, causing the children to get riled up again. Tsuna sweatdropped before hauling himself up to the last branch.
"Hahi! Thank you for saving Haru!" the girl exclaimed as she accepted Tsuna's extended hand.
"N-No problem," Tsuna gritted out as he concentrated on not slipping. They inched carefully to the trunk before Tsuna released their hands. "I'll go down first so if you happen to slip or fall, I'll be able to catch you." If I don't fall first, that is. Haru nodded.
With Tsuna carefully watching Haru's movements (and successfully managing not to look directly up—they advanced downwards. The children's ceaseless cheering were drawing some curious stares from passing cars.
Tsuna almost cried in relief when he saw that he was almost there. The feeling abruptly ended when his foot touched air and he slipped. He cursed himself for being foolhardy as he braced himself for impact. Well, the ground isn't that far away—maybe I'll get away with just a broken wrist or something? Ah, but that would definitely affect my job. Speaking of which, I wonder if I got it. The trial the period's about to end…wait, how the hell am I even to think about all of this while I'm falling?"
Tsuna cracked open an eye, the other following immediately as they were met with Hibari's slate blue ones. The skylark held him in a princess hold. His mouth went dry with the look Hibari gave him—the infamous I'll bite you to death look—however, his eyes seemed to convey something else as well.
Tsuna put two and two together.
The children's eyes grew rounder and rounder as Haru safely ascended from the tree and flicked over from her to Tsuna.
"Tsu-tan is a princess," Minako said solemnly. The other children nodded their heads in agreement.
"Tsuna-kun also rescued Haru-chan from the evil, people-eating tree," Kyoko said as Tsuna shot her a helpless look. "Which makes him a prince."
Ayumi, who had grown quite attached to Hibari in the short amount of time, announced "Hiba-kun is the prince! He saved Tsu-tan!"
"Haru-chan can be a queen," another child piped in, whose name Tsuna faintly remembered—Shiori?
"Um, then who is the king?" Minako asked, sparking a heated discussion that didn't include the two hosts.
"Ne, ne, maybe Yodami-kun can be the king!" Kagura—a toddler with shocking blonde hair—chimed in.
The tan, dark-haired child sputtered indignantly. "Haruharu is too old!"
"Haru doesn't need a king! She's strong enough on her own," Haru said defiantly.
"You can't be a queen without a king!" Kagura insisted.
Meanwhile, Tsuna wriggled in Hibari's grasp.
"You can put me down now," he said after a few more vain attempts to escape the skylark's grip.
Hibari smirked. "I thought princesses needed saving."
Tsuna spluttered incoherently and went pink in the face. "Just let me down."
Hibari abruptly dropped the brunet's legs, causing said brunet to throw his hands around the elder's neck to prevent himself from gracelessly falling on the ground (thankfully, no one had seemed to witness the exchange). Tsuna offered a glare (pout) at Hibari before releasing his arms and checking his watch (the latest model from Bvlgari, courtesy of Giotto). He should head back soon if he wanted to get a bite to eat before another shift. He offhandedly noted the fact that any awkwardness that had existed between him and Hibari during that night had seemed almost completely dissipated.
"Sasa—Kyoko," Tsuna called. "I—We have to go."
Kyoko nodded and waved goodbye, but Haru ran full sprint towards him and hugged him. Tsuna stood stock-still in her vice grip, managing to ask, "Yes, Haru-san?"
"Even if the children don't agree, you're still my prince for saving me!" Haru reached for the brunet's hand as she scribbled some numbers in his hand. "Oh wait, let me write Kyoko-chan's too," Haru said after hasty consideration. "Come visit us again! I'll be waiting for you, Tsuna-san!"
"H-Hai."
The children, who had caught wind of their departure, clambered to wave goodbye to the two hosts.
"Bye-bye Tsu-tan!"s and a few rare "Bye-bye Hiba-kun!"s (mostly Ayumi) filled the air as they left. Tsuna smiled warmly, the softness lingering on his lips minutes after.
They walked back in the general direction of the cafe in companionable silence until Tsuna broke it.
"Is there any specific place you want to go to?" he asked.
Hibari suddenly pivoted on his heel into a different direction. Tsuna took that as a "yes" and followed him, taking in the unfamiliar scenery as they passed by various stores. He had to essentially study the map from the café to the daycare to not get lost on his way there; that was how bad his directional skills were.
No less than 2 minutes later, they walked inside a hamburger joint. Tsuna couldn't conceal his surprise at the Hibari's choice of meal as he calmly walked up to the counter and placed an order.
Well…this made the skylark appear more of a mundane human like the rest of mankind.
"Uh...I'll be having the same as him," Tsuna said when prompted with the question of what he wanted to order, looking sheepishly at Hibari as he shrugged. To be truthful, his mother was a culinary genius and there wasn't a day that passed in his life back in Namimori when he didn't have her delicious cooking. He didn't go out with his "friends" (Enma) to eat often either. Actually, he didn't go out unless he absolutely had to.
The wait time was exceedingly short, and Tsuna could bet that it was at least partially Hibari's influence. They walked to a table by the window in silence after they paid, each taking a seat as they set down their tray. Tsuna reached for several napkins that were stuffed in the paper bag that held his food, eyebrows scrunching together when he saw numbers scrawled across them. Raising his gaze, he realized that Hibari had received the same treatment but had disregarded everything altogether and was concentrated on his meal. His gaze traveled back to the cashier who had packed the bag for him, blushing shyly when she smiled prettily and waved at him. However, his attention was snapped back to Hibari when a heavy pressure sat on his foot.
"Eat," the skylark said with a scowl. Tsuna hastily complied.
They ate in silence. Tsuna was pleasantly surprised with how good the food tasted, especially the fries. He imagined that he would come back to this place just for those fries—damn, they were heavenly. Suddenly, he was struck with a question he thought he might know the answer to. He fiddled with the French fries as he wondered how to ask it.
"Speak, herbivore."
The brunet jumped. Hibari smirked to himself. It was always fun to mess with the herbivore like this.
"Ah, I was just wondering…is hamburger your favorite food?" the brunet said nervously.
"Yes." Tsuna blinked, dumbfounded at finally receiving a straightforward answer. Wordlessly, Hibari cleared their trays, fighting the smile that threatened to form on his lips as Tsuna grabbed the fries that he hadn't yet finished.
"W-What? They're good," Tsuna said, averting his eyes as his cheeks colored when Hibari continued staring at him. The skylark's lips twitched before he frowned. What the hell. He turned sharply and dumped the trays in the bin. I just did not think that herbivore was…cute.
What was wrong with him?
"How was the daycare, Tsuna?" Giotto asked his brother as they prepared to split up. Hibari and Tsuna had met Giotto's group on their way back.
"It was—" Tsuna was interrupted as he jealously guarded his fries; glaring at Mukuro (who was neither in Giotto's nor his group and had just appeared out of nowhere) in case he had another notion of stealing his fries. Everyone was struck with how moe Tsuna was (sans certain people).
"It was really fun," Tsuna finished. Giotto ruffled his hair, narrowing his eyes when he saw Hibari and Mukuro speaking quietly. Quietly. That was just…unsightly. It looked like they were provoking each other, but they were provoking each other quietly. What the hell were they up to this time?
"—right, Giotto-nii?" Giotto nodded his head absentmindedly. Cozart and Asari stifled their laughter. G looked at his friend, then immediately saw what he was concerned with. The redhead shook his head defeatedly. This probably wasn't going to go down well.
Tsuna cocked his head. Normally Giotto was an avid listener, but he could tell he hadn't heard a single thing he said ("So Godzilla was the one that climbed the Empire State building, right, Giotto-nii?")
"I bet you couldn't steal a fry from him," Mukuro said provocatively.
"I've already had my fill," Hibari replied, trying not to get his feathers ruffled for once.
"I'm thinking at how many ways I can steal one from him," Mukuro said, eyes gleaming as they took on the look of a predator who had sighted prey. "Preferably off of him…"
Hibari narrowed his eyes, hating how easily he fell for Mukuro's trap. "Shut the fuck up and leave me alone after this then."
The blue-haired host smirked as the skylark stalked over to the unsuspecting Tsuna. He was really too easy to manipulate when it came down to Tsuna, Mukuro mused. He normally was harder to budge than this. The host's eyes glinted. Oh, how much fun he could have…
"Tsunayoshi."
Tsunayoshi, not herbivore. Tsuna's mind clicked as he looked up, having just put another fry in his mouth. "Ye—mmpphh!" His eyes kept on widening as Hibari's tongue made its presence known when it stole the fry from his mouth. Just as Hibari was about to pull away in triumph, Tsuna fisted the front of his uniform and pulled him back, intruding upon Hibari's mouth as he made a move to obtain his fry back.
Mukuro's smothered chuckles soon turned into guffaws as G, Cozart, and Asari together held Giotto back.
"Who knew Tsunayoshi-kun had game?" Mukuro wheezed out, almost doubled over in his laughter.
People from inside the café were intently watching the free show.
There was a collective "oh, shit" when Giotto escaped the hold and hurled himself towards Hibari. The skylark pushed Tsuna away and sidestepped the attack, running to meet Giotto's second rush, taking out his tonfas the same moment Giotto donned on his gloves.
Tsuna stood, dazed and out of it as his slightly amber eyes reverted back to brown. He had been indignant when Hibari had stolen a fry from him in such a manner and wanted to reciprocate, but somehow he had lost his initial resolve and had kissed Hibari just to kiss him. It was...enjoyable…and he had wanted more…
G felt slight concern for Hibari. Neither were in their top form (that usually occurred when school started and the need for discipline began), but Giotto looked like he was out to kill. Both had plenty of experience, fuel, and will, but Giotto's resolve was stronger. Tsuna was his priority, after all. The turning point was when said priority jumped into the fray with no protection at all.
Hibari's back slammed against a tree from Tsuna's push. It hadn't even looked that strong, so how could there have been this much power? He watched as he pinned down his older brother. His intrigue at the herbivore rose again as he scowled and dug his tonfa out of the tree bark. He was able to kiss that pineapple bastard without having his feelings mixed up like this.
Why was he feeling this way?
Tsuna breathed hard as he sat on top of Giotto. He really needed to start to work out again if this tired him out.
"Reborn taught you a lot, huh?" Giotto said with a smile. Tsuna nodded, then delivered words that any older brother dreaded to hear.
"I think I like Hibari-san."
Please point out any and all errors that I may have made (spell check doesn't work in the doc manager D:).
Comments are appreciated, and don't hesitate to ask any questions!
Have a nice spring everyone! -from the person who's having spring break soon- ;D !