Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn for it belongs to Amano Akira.

Enjoy the story. R&R, plz!

Chapter 4: Distaste

Darkness was what could be seen easily inside the chamber. Only a small portion of the room was lit by the light from the screen, which was currently showing the scene of the blond prince haughtily ordering his guards to execute the Minister that had gone against his wish and then laughing maniacally at the horror on the other's face. It was truly one ominous scene that effortlessly sent chill to the viewers' spine. And Checkerface was no exception.

No matter how many times he had watched the movie, the man always found himself slightly tremble -and at the same time, awed- at malevolent aura exuded from the main character's acting. No wonder the boy won that Golden Dragon Award-he was a genius actor.

Or maybe he was not acting at all.

Snapping his fingers, the masked man summoned a small hand mirror from the darkness and the object flew straight into his hand. With careful touch, he traced the outline of the mirror, marveling at the intricate details etched at the mirror's rim. Soon, image of Tsuna appeared in the mirror's reflection

It was such a pity that he had to do it, but he was left with no choice. A small sacrifice was needed for the sake of the greater good.

"Shirosaki Tsunayoshi, you are the chosen one, destined to continue writing this sinful story, and also, end this sinful story of Evil once and for all."

And the room was engulfed in the orange light, mixed with chuckle that forebode the incoming darkness.

-o0o-

Tsuna's morning at school eventually passed by, most of which was spent pretending to pay attention to the teachers' boring lectures and doodling randomly in his notebook. From times to times, he would turn his face to the nearby window- he was lucky that the teacher appointed him a seat near the window- and gazed forlornly at the blue sky. Therefore, when lunch break had come, it came as no surprise that virtually nothing from the subjects managed to get into his head.

He was so gonna call his tutor after this, Tsuna sighed.

Once the teacher had walked out of the class, the young superstar immediately found his table being surrounded by his classmates, who were more than enthusiastic to "make some memorable memories" with him. Nevertheless, Tsuna had more important matters to deal with, rather than playing Mr. Perfect Idol with a bunch of attention seekers, so he politely made his way out of the crowd and approached the second table of the second row. The brunette silently thanked god that that person hadn't left the class.

"What a pleasant surprise to see you here! Aren't you supposed to be studying in Havard now, Irie-kun?". Tsuna asked playfully, successfully catching the other's attention.

Seeing Irie Shouichi- his technical assistance- here of all place shocked Tsuna no end. The redhead was a genius in technology, having invented many equipments and devices used in Tsuna's concerts and having been offered a scholarship in Havard, so the fact that the prodigy was studying at Namimori High School, an average school of all places, undoubtedly surprised the brunette.

Having heard Tsuna's voice, Irie jolted up his body, surprised eyes looking up from his book and locking with Tsuna's equally ones, though in Tsuna's case, he was surprised that the redhead still hadn't fixed his easily shocked tendency.

"Oh it was just you, Tsuna-kun. You gave me quite a fright there."

"It is lunch time, and you still bury your head in this book? Whoa, just how much of a book worm can you be?"

The redhead blushed a bit and closed his book. "T…there's an interesting part that I really can't wait to read it."

"Calm down, I was just joking. So… I'll ask you once again…", Tsuna's eyes turned hard on Irie, "Why are you studying at Namimori High School? Is it because of Byakuran?"

Under the brunette's intense gaze, the glass-wearing teen found himself trembling in fear and eventually, holding his belly for his stomachache.

"Eh… eh…actually… I was…uhm…you know… ouch, my stomach."

Fortunately for Irie, a group of girls had come forward and talked to Tsuna.

"Tsuna-kun, are you friends with Irie-kun?"

"Yes, we are", Tsuna answered politely, but maintained his stare on the engineer, "Actually, he is the one who takes care of technical issues at the backstage. If it weren't for him, my concerts wouldn't go as smoothly as it usually does."

"Really? Irie-kun, is it true? That means Irie-kun always gets the chance to see Tsuna-kun up close at the concerts. How could you hide that from us?"

Upon finding out that piece of information, Tsuna's fangirls turned their eyes on the nervous redhead, eyeing him as if he were a piece of meat on the plate. The girls' looks were so scary that the redhead turned his pleading eyes to Tsuna.

"Tsuna-kun, is this your punishment for me?"

"What are you talking about? I'm just stating a fact, Irie-kun". The young idol smile sweetly- so sickeningly sweet that Irie thought it was a smile of a devil. "Anyways, I'm hungry now. Care to join lunch with me at the cafeteria?"

Irie wasted no time to agree to Tsuna, grab his lunchbox and quickly lead him out of the classroom, much to the fangirls' dismay and Tsuna's amusement. On their way to the cafeteria, the redhead informed the brunette of what happened recently.

"Byakuran-san had asked to invent a few things for you, though I had to go to Spanner to get some help. Those things were rather complicated, but we did manage in the end. Has he given you those things yet?"

"No, since I got back to Namimori, he hasn't contacted me, but what are those things that he asked you to make for me?"

Hardly had Tsuna finished his question when a familiar ringtone was played, signaling a new message. As he read the content, Irie wondered why the idol looked annoyed, judging by the slight twitch of his eyebrow and his narrowed eyes.

"Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Urgh, his message is filled with so much emocons that makes me wanna puke."

The technician didn't have to wait long before Tsuna shoved his phone screen into his face. True to what the idol said previously, the short message was infested with emocons and although he was no strange to this habit of the albino, the redhead's eyes were always hurt after reading his friend's messages.

＼(^o)( 0)(o^)／＼(^o)( 0)(o^)／＼(^o)( 0)(o^)／

TSUNAYOSHI-KUN, AFTER SCHOOL, I'll SEND BLUEBELL-CHAN TO PICK U UP TO THE AGENCY (ﾉ=v=)ﾉ. I HAVE A PRESENT FOR YOU. LOTS OF LOVE AND MARSHMALLOW FROM ME TO YOU ~ L(´ー｀;L)!

(ﾉﾟ^q^)ﾉﾟ-(ﾉﾟ^q^)ﾉﾟ-(ﾉﾟ^q^)ﾉﾟ-(ﾉﾟ^q^)ﾉﾟ-(ﾉﾟ^q^)ﾉ-ﾟ(ﾉﾟ^q^)ﾉﾟ

━━━ヽ(◕∇◕) 人(◕∇◕) 人 (◕∇◕ ) 人 (◕∇◕) 人 (◕∇◕) 人 (◕∇◕ ) ノ━━━

"Oh gosh, at least I don't have to deal with him everyday like you. I guess I'll spare the present's details until the end of the day", Tsuna locked his phone and heaved out a sigh, "Come, Irie-kun, take me to the cafeteria."

His trip to the canteen was rather uneventful, with occasional chats of random things between Irie and him and, of course, the constant squealing and sounds of phone camera clicking from the brunette's fans, which the star returned with a charming smile. When both of them had arrived at the place, as Tsuna expected, the cafeteria was packed with students rushing to buy food and find a seat to have lunch.

"Only for today. Tomorrow I'll bring my own lunch and eat at somewhere quiet."

As soon as he stepped into the vicinity, most noise had died down, a deafening silence filled the atmosphere and all eyes were turned to look at the duo-mostly Tsuna- that just entered the cafeteria. People parted their way to let Tsuna through, respect and admiration in their eyes. Tsuna, like a royalty, walked down the path just created, maintaining a composed and thankful look on his face while Irie just walked behind the brunette nervously, trying to shrink away from the attention. Arriving at the serving area, the brunette skimmed the menu and, after a short moment of consideration, chose a simple serving of sandwich and salad. Of course, after receiving his portion, he didn't forget to flash his superstar smile at the lunch lady, who, in response, blushed and giggled.

The duo didn't have to search for an available table because soon after they left the counter, an empty table was presented to them by two students that claimed themselves to be part of "Tsunayoshi-sama's welcome committee". After Tsuna and Irie have been comfortably seated, countless students immediately swarmed around the table, some asking Tsuna to be part of their clubs, some asking to take pictures with him and some just trying to establish to some relationship to Tsuna.

Not far away from Tsuna's table, the baseball club was having their own conversation about the recently transferred student.

"*Whistle* just look at that enormous crowd. It's barely one day and he's already spreading his popularity that far."

"What's so special about him? I mean, he just sings a bunch of gibberish songs and stars in a few cheap movies, and he got famous."

"Gibberish songs that top the Oricon charts and earn him millions and cheap movies that earn him awards! You're just jealous, dude!"

"Sportsmanship should be respected more than that stupid music. That Tsuna just uses his dumb innocent cuteness to get views and attract fans."

"I guess you have been demoted from your position as the school's idol, huh, Yamamoto?"

Yamamoto Takeshi, Namimori High's baseball star, didn't answer, but instead, opted to observe Tsuna's interaction with Irie. The brunette was currently smiling and poking the other's face while the redhead was blushing furiously and probably stammering. A rueful look flashed in his amber eyes before he turned back to his friends and smiled cheerfully.

"Maa maa, guys, come on, give the guy some break. I'm sure he works very hard to get what he has today."

-o0o-

Once the final bell had rung to signal the end of school, Tsuna hurriedly packed his stuffs and made his way to the door, expertly maneuvering his way out of the crowd and successfully getting to the school entrance. Upon his arrival, he saw many students gathering around, taking in whispery tone as they gazed at a blue-haired girl standing next to the black limousine.

"Oh god, it's Bluebell-chan. She looks so adorable!"

"Her blue dress is so beautiful. I wonder where she bought it from."

"I absolutely love her single "Deep-sea girl"! When is she gonna release her next album?"

Tsuna mentally sighed at the students' discussion. This was what you got when a popular star came to school.

"I hope that Bluebell won't do anything unnecessary that makes my school life more hectic?"

However, Tsuna's life was never the way he wanted.

Once catching the sight of the brunette, the girl's expression turned from sullen to happy at once and soon, Tsuna found himself in a tight embrace of the bluenette.

"Tsuna, how glad I am to see you again! Why didn't you call me when you returned to Japan? I missed you so much!"

And like what Tsuna expected, the touching reunion quickly triggered a heated debate among students.

"So it IS true. Tsuna-kun is dating with Bluebell-chan."

"I know it. Since the moment I saw them together in one of Bluebell's music video, I know they are a thing."

"They look soooo adorable together as a couple."

The brunette just pretended that he hadn't heard anything of the current discussion and simply smiled warmly at Bluebell's affectionate greeting. He wouldn't admit it out loud, but he had quite a soft spot for the small girl. To him, she was like a little sister he had never had.

"I'm sorry, Bluebell. I just returned yesterday. I was planning to give you a call once I return home today, but I guess it is not needed now."

The girl made a cute pout at Tsuna, which the brunette returned by ruffling her hair, and then, the two of them, along with Irie, went to where the car was parking, leaving behind a still chattering crowd of fans.

-o0o-

"Tuna-chan, welcome back!"

Tsuna refrained himself from cringing at the distastefully colorful display in front of his eyes, but failed epically. The pristine white wall of the office was now decorated with his photos taken at the Dragon Award Ceremony and rainbow-colored banners of "Welcome Back" and "Congratulation!". Byakuran had gone too far this time.

"Byakuran, you know how much I hate being called that. And please, stop abusing emocons in your messages and making my eyes hurt from your… unfathomable fashion taste."

"Awww, come one, Tsunayoshi-kun, don't be such a meanie. How I missed the old Tsunayoshi. You used to be such a sweet, gentle and loving boy!", Byakuran continued his dramatic speech, accompanied by dramatic (fake) sobbing and heart-breaking background music!

"Please get to the main point. Didn't you call me here to give me some presents that you have asked Irie-kun to make?"

"Yup~, a present from me to celebrate your success as the actor!"

From out of thin air, Byakuran produced a (hideously) colorful box in his hand and presented it to the curious Tsuna. Before the brunette could proceed to open his present, Byakuran spoke up in his ever mischievous tone.

"This little present is not just for fashion, you know. Think of it as a charm that will protect you from the devil! Don't worry, you'll figure out how to use them, Tsunayoshi-kun~!"

Upon opening his box, Tsuna saw a strange-design wristband, a ring and…an orange pacifier.

Tsuna sighed. Byakuran and his vague description as always. He was soooo gonna need the instruction manual from Irie after this… and some aspirin for his headache!

TBC

Erm, everyone, can I ask you a favor? Could you please give me some constructive reviews on my writing style? I just re-read my fic and somehow I find my writing rather lackluster. In your opinion, what aspect should I improve?

Final words, thank you so much for you constant support and reviews. They means to me a lot as a writer.

Til next time.