Hello, I'm back!

This week was kinda busy, so excuse the quality of this chapter and look forward to the much better chapters-to-be's.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! I own Karasu, Alana, Jung-won, Pocky, and characters soon to come!

Enjoy!

Warriors Don't Cry

Chapter 9: I Hate Hikes: Alana

The young blonde laughed loudly as she ran through the fields barefooted. To her joy, her feet were caked in mud. They were dirty! Imperfect! It was something that her mother never allowed her to be because she was her 'perfect little flower'.

She tripped and rolled down the hill before coming to an abrupt stop. Her blonde hair was probably matted and covered with grass by now. Oh, how her mother would throw a fit! She sat up and shook her head to be rid of the dizziness.

She stared up at the sky filled with clouds.

The blonde remembered her mother saying that the clear skies were the most beautiful but she personally thought that the clouds were what made the sky interesting.

The girl passed the rest of her time counting the clouds and trying to make out the shapes that they made.

She wasn't aware of a different prescience before it was too late.

In her surprise, the blonde was yanked up and came face-to-face with a dark-haired stranger. He coldly inspected her before speaking.

"Who are you?"

"It's going to be a fun hike! You're going to have so much fun. Besides, an adult will be with you!" I imitated my sister before huffing loudly and pointing to a certain clumsy blonde. "Well I don't consider him as an adult!"

"Shut up Chipmunk, it's bad enough that the Bucking Horse has to chaperone us. I just came because Juudaime and Juudaime's sister is coming." Octopus-head growled out.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah, as if I didn't hear that before. Besides, why don't you call Karasu by her name?"

He bristled. "Because Juudaime's sister is Juudaime's sister." He said stiffly. I shrugged and pretended not to care about that comment. In reality, his insistence in not calling my buddy by her name is pissing me off.

Karasu was the type who preferred being called by her own name. I would know that out of everyone including, no offense, Tsuna-fish.

I'm just surprised that she's even putting up with his eager-to-please attitude.

I heard a laugh behind me. I grimaced and Gokudera mirrored my expression. Great, the Baseball-nut came along for the ride too.

I heard a whimper that brought all attention to me.

I slapped my forehead and dropped my pack. I opened it roughly and glared at the little puppy in the pack. "Dammit, Pocky! Didn't I tell you to stay home?"

The evil thing yawned cutely and blinked innocently at me.

I scoffed. "And I thought you would know by now that look never works on me."

Pocky harrumphed and turned away.

I grabbed the tiny pup by the tail and held him in front of my face. While he swung back and forth like some pendulum, I wagged my finger at his face. "You're going to be in big trouble when we get back home buster."

Dino, Baseball-nut, and Octopus-head were by my side at an instant.

"What are you doing with that midget puppy, Chipmunk?"

I glared at Octopus-head. I suddenly got defensive over Pocky. No, I'm not going soft on the little fur ball. It's just short people stick up for other short people, no? "He's just a pup. He'll grow. And to answer your question, he snuck into my bag."

Pocky sniffed in distaste at him and barked in agreement. Stupidera and him didn't exactly get along from the start. He's terrible with kids and animals.

The Octopus-head ignored Pocky and walked on ahead like the jerk he was.

Dino took Pocky from my hands and cooed at him. I rolled my eyes. "Great, now my chaperone has fallen into my evil puppy's spell."

Pocky bit the blonde's nose.

"I think the puppy is cute." Baseball-nut stated cheerfully. "I guess they're right when they say the dogs look like their owners."

I gave the Baseball-nut a look. "And what is that implying?"

"Well, the puppy is Karasu's, isn't he?" He asked. I jerked back at the unexpected statement. Wait, he thought Pocky belonged to Karasu after watching him follow me around all that time? How oblivious can he be? Never mind that, he was talking about Karasu? My buddy? It didn't take a genius to interpret what he was trying to say.

If you don't get it, use your freaking brain.

Pocky=Cute, Karasu=Pocky

The conclusion:

Karasu=Cute

"You're terrible at being subtle." I told him bluntly. "If you like her, I suggest that you tell her yourself instead of telling me."

Yamamoto (I'm going to acknowledge him now that he doesn't seem as nutty or stupid anymore) laughed in his oblivious manner and gave me a calm smile. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

The creepy thing was that I almost believed him.

"Drop it if you want then," I told while shrugging, "Just don't regret it when another guy finds the guts to confess to her before you, not that I care or anything."

Yamamoto appeared to go deep into thought at my words. Hey, I'm giving him a fair warning. Karasu might not be the prettiest girl in the world (no offense, buddy) but she's pretty likeable and easily approachable to the male population. Well, at least it was like that in America. It's none of my business, not my love life. I trust Karasu enough to handle these types of things by herself. If she needs me, she'll ask.

"HEEEEELP!"

Both Pocky and my heads snapped up at the cry of terror.

"Juudaime!"

I gave one look and chortled in laughter. "Man, you're twisted Reborn. What tutor ties their pupil onto a rock under a freezing waterfall? You want him to die? Even my sensei wasn't that harsh!" Okay, maybe she was but that isn't important.

Karasu, in the other hand, calmly sat under the same waterfall in a meditative position. Yeah, that's my buddy. Cool and awesome. She didn't even react to her brother's screams.

"What are you doing Reborn? I thought you said we weren't going to train today!"

"It's boring to have a heart-to-heart talk in the mountains. So I decided to have some fun." Reborn replied.

I cackled, earning a few looks.

"Though Karasu isn't weak and clumsy as she was before so she's not as amusing." Reborn added with slight disappointment. I snickered. This was nothing compared to the time Butcher Knife teacher forced us to sit still under a cold waterfall in our bikini swimsuits that she bought us as a 'gift'.

Ugh, I think I caught a fever the day after, or was it the flu?

"Don't use me as your toy!" Tsuna-fish snapped testily.

I wasn't one to pay attention to boring conversations like these so I tuned them out. I noticed Pocky shivering next to me. I picked Pocky up and plopped him into the front of my baggy sweater to keep him warm. "You definitely owe me for this. Remind me later."

Pocky barked in reply.

My conversation with my dog was interrupted by Tsuna-fish's panicked squeal (*snort* squeal). My attention was drawn to the hundred (or more) foot turtle that came out of nowhere. I think it was Dino's pet turtle, Enzio. "Huh, isn't that a strange sight? It didn't say that there was going to be any giant turtle in the travel brochure." I heard Karasu state dryly.

I knew she was kidding but…

…My god, she just pulled a Yamamoto!

Pocky whimpered and buried deeper into my hoodie, not helping the situation at all. I glared at the top of his head as best as I could from the awkward angle. "Wimp."

I heard the Octopus-head say something about a 'spirit of the mountain' or something like that. Seriously, I never knew Bomber Boy could be so superstitious. I snickered when he shaped his fingers into something that looked like a hand-sign from Naruto (Yeah, I'm a Naruto fan, what about it?) and begged, "Please calm down!"

I rolled my eyes and suggested sarcastically, "Why don't we run to the other side of this unstable-looking bridge that looks as if it's going to break any second before asking the turtle to calm down? Hmm? Doesn't that sound like a good idea to you?"

Karasu, still sopping wet, pushed both Tsuna-fish and Octopus-head forward. "Alana has a point. Let's go!"

Before we even got halfway, the bridge began to shake. Even I had a bit of a hard time regaining my balance.

Dino stopped and turned. My stomach sank. Oh no, he's not going to try being a hero now of all times, is he?

"I'll buy us some time here. You guys go on ahead."

He is.

"You know what, why don't I try holding the turtle off and you go on ahead with the others?" I suggested desperately. Dino, not getting the hint, shook his head stubbornly like the crazy buffoon he was. "I promised Jung-won that I would look after you during this trip. I'm not going to endanger your life after promising her!"

Yeah, I know that Unni was scary but if nobody stopped him right now, I know for a fact that I would be endangered along with everybody else.

"Someone stop him!" I begged. "He's worthless without his men!"

"Stop talking nonsense! Leave it to me!"

Pocky mustered up the courage to look up but I gently pushed his head back into the hoodie. "Believe me, it's going to be painful to watch Pocky. You'll thank me later."

At that moment, Dino somehow managed to cut off the bridge's rope.

"If there's even a later."

I took this as my cue to start screaming bloody murder and to allow gravity to drag me down. I wrapped my arms protectively around Pocky. He should survive to tell everyone how I, Alana, had died. Huh, I thought my death would be more epic than this. "Dino, you stupid IDIOT!"

My back hurts. My head hurts. Everything hurts!

But I think Pocky is fine so everything's good.

I sat up and shook my head. I pulled a stunned Pocky from my hoodie and placed him right onto the ground. "See? What did I tell you? We're okay, buddy."

I turned then gaped at the horrifying sight beside me.

Karasu had landed safely but had to use Stupidera as a cushion. Not that I mind the pained expression on his face but she was fussing over him now. "Are you okay, Gokudera-kun? I'm so sorry for landing on you!"

"N-No problem, Juudaime's sister. I don't think I broke anything." Stupidera, I grudgingly admit with minuscule respect, lied with a straight face.

Karasu sighed in relief. "Good."

Yamamoto seemed to not notice this exchange and sat up. "Seems like the tree branches broke our fall."

Dino, looking like a little like a boy who just did something stupid (which he did) in front of a girl he liked, apologized, "Sorry! My hands slipped!"

I launched myself at the blonde but was held back by Karasu. Obviously, Stupidera seemed to have the same idea and was restrained by Yamamoto. "Bastard! My hand slipped isn't enough!"

"I second to that!" I hollered. Karasu shushed me. "Alana, he's the only adult here. If you kill him now, what chance do we have in this forest?"

"A bigger one!"

Reborn found that this was the best time to pop back into the scene. "Karasu is right. We don't even know if we can go back home from here."

"Now that you mention it, that's true." Tsuna-fish stated before going into full on panic mode. "WHERE ARE WE?"

Yamamoto and Stupidera checked their phones. "Nope, no signal."

I plunged my hand into my hoodie pocket and took out my phone. I checked it and cursed. "Mine's dead."

Karasu took her cell out and sighed. "Mine's not working. Must've been because of the water from the waterfall."

"Don't worry bud, when this whole thing tides over, we'll shop for a new phone." I promised while patting her shoulder. She sent me a smile.

"Calm down," Dino said almost cockily, "my phone can get signal even in the middle of a dessert. It's a satellite phone."

We're saved!

"Wait…it's broken."

I pulled at my hair. That was a bit stupid of me to even think for a moment that Dino would be useful.

"We lost our pack of food." Reborn stated offhandedly. I paled. "No! My sweets!"

I curled into my moody ball and stayed in that position until I heard Karasu say something about a cave.

Sounds interesting.

"I'll look inside." Dino stated. Stupidera stopped the blonde. "No, I can't leave this to you. I'll go!"

"If anything happens, scream loudly." Yamamoto suggested while putting his hands on Karasu's shoulders. She didn't seem to mind the contact. Stupidera snorted. "Who'd do that, you moron?"

Was this my imagination or was he looking at Yamamoto more annoyance than usual?

Stupidera walked into the cave. There was a tense moment of silence before…

"GYAAAAAAAAA!"

"It's Gokudera-kun's scream!" Tsuna-fish said fearfully. Karasu, Yamamoto, and I tensed. "Something's coming." No kidding.

I was a little creeped out by the shining eyes from the darkness but stood my ground. Pocky, in the other hand, whimpered pathetically. I waited with baited breath as the mystery monster stepped into the light revealing…

A pretty woman carrying a crying, foaming Stupidera

I sweatdropped. Well, that was a bit anti-climatic.

"Bianchi!" Wait, Tsuna-fish knew her? Who was this lady? And why was her name so familiar? Karasu and I shared bewildered looks and reluctantly relaxed. Bianchi carelessly dropped Stupidera and kneeled to Reborn's level to hug him lovingly. "Welcome, Reborn."

"Ciaossu."

I cleared my throat awkwardly. "Not to be rude or anything, but who are you?"

"She's Poison Scorpion Bianchi." Karasu said after analyzing her carefully. "Remember, Alana? She was the same woman who helped Jung won-nim in one of her escapades. We also hacked into her files during our hacking test."

Tsuna-fish gave his sister a look. "You're a hacker?"

"And a pickpocket, and a burglar, and a swindler, and a poisoner, and-

"GAH!"

I shrugged, "Unni specialized in the art of stealing anything and everything without being suspected for doing it. We're just her pupils forced to carry on her terrible habits."

I flinched in surprise when Bianchi kneeled at my level and hugged me. "So you're Jung's little sister. You're cuter than she described you." Really now? I never knew my Unni even mentioned me in her conversations with other adults. I discreetly edged away from her. "Um…so you're Unni's friend?"

"Yes! We used to be enemies but became friends after she talked about the wonderful love story about your parents." Wow, Unni and I am going to have a huge talk when I get back home. I didn't think that my parents running into each other in a bakery in Seoul was that much of an epic love story but whatever floats her boat.

"Love is the strongest force of all, don't you think Alana-chan?" Bianchi asked joyfully. I slowly nodded. "Yeah…"

Turns out that Bianchi was Stupidera's older sister. Go figure. Also, it seems that he had a traumatic experience with his sister's poison experiments so he suffers from these stomachaches every time he saw her face or foaming in the mouth at the most.

As if Bianchi wasn't enough, Lambo, this earless Chinese baby, and a Tsuna-clinging girl named Haru came into the picture. I laughed my ass off when she introduced herself, as 'Tsuna's wife-to-be'.

One crazy event happened after the other.

We somehow started a forest fire (thanks to two idiots with explosives)

Reborn shot the dying will bullet at Tsuna-fish and did his fiery power thing

Tsuna-fish put out the fire…

…And at the same time, Enzio got uber-huge again.

Uh huh, I don't think I'll be going back home soon. I calmly plopped Pocky back into the front of my hoodie, grabbed Tsuna and Karasu's hands, and made a run for it.

"Sorry dudes, every man for themselves!"

See? Not my best, but it's not exactly the type of writing that I'd beat myself up over.

I guess I just used this chapter to introduce Bianchi, Haru, and I-pin (Girl Power!) and also test out Alana's patience with Dino.

Hopefully, this chapter wasn't that bad.

Oh, and next up is Karasu's chapter. Another character makes an entrance (no, not one of mine) and the incident will slowly start to reveal itself!

REVIEW PLEASE!