Disclaimers: Don't own KHR or its characters.
Warnings: more swearing, more fluff ;P appreciate it while it is still here ^_^+
A/N: Again, I cannot thank you all enough for your fab reviews! :D Glad you guys liked the 10069 thrown in! And… our little Froggy is finally here! :D
'The Shifter Simply Weird' is my beta reader and she is ah-mazing~ xD LOTS of thanks to her!
Namimori High School, 3.09pm
"Whoa… hey look, that kid has green hair."
"Seriously? Where? Oh, wow. That actually looks like his natural color."
"He's not wearing a school uniform either – is he new?"
"At this time of year? I don't think so."
"Why else would he be there then? Or is he dating someone from Nami?"
"Ahh that'd be a shame. He's quite cute isn't he?"
"Oh shoot. He's looking this way."
Fran glanced at the gossiping girls before he sighed and turned away, continuing to walk.
Stereotypical morons. As expected of a typical high school.
"Kufufufu… you sure are attracting quite some attention, little one," A familiar voice rang from somewhere above, and Fran turned his head to the source.
Poking his head out from the window of the second floor of the main school building was Rokudo Mukuro with a fine smirk on his face, his mismatched eyes glinting.
"Master Mukuro," Fran nodded in acknowledgement, before he continued, "You hairstyle impersonates a pineapple even more impossibly so than the last time I've seen it."
"Kufufu, and you're the same as always," Mukuro chuckled, "Wait a sec."
Mukuro pushed the window open wider before he climbed up onto the window sill and jumped down onto the floor, landing gracefully with a cat-like stance before he slowly stood up and smiled at Fran.
Fran clapped unenthusiastically, "Ah. Sugoi, Master. But I was really hoping I would see some splat-action on the ground. Pity." Fran's face was just as expressionless as his voice.
"As if," Mukuro smirked, before he reached out and ruffled Fran's sea foam green hair, "So what brings my little one here to Nami? You're transferring?"
"Ah. Right." Fran looked up as if he had just remembered something. He pulled out a piece of notepaper from his pocket and handed it to Mukuro, "Can you help me find this person?"
"Hm?" Mukuro looked at the name written on the paper, "Gokudera Hayato. Ah, the Smoking Bomb of Dynamite. Why do you want to see him?"
"The redhead told me to come see him before I transfer to this school."
"Hmm, M.M. … does this mean you are getting involved with Dynamite?"
"Guess so." Fran shrugged, not really caring.
"Kufufu, how interesting, considering how much Lancia hates me," Mukuro smile's widened, "They do know that you're my apprentice don't they?"
"Mm-hm," Fran mono-toned.
"Ah… I see," Mukuro nodded, smirking, before he got out a pen and started sketching a miniature map on the back of the piece of paper. He handed it back to Fran, "…sophomore's floor, class S-3. Look for the person with the silver hair. He should be there; I heard he's helping Sawada Tsunayoshi out with some homework."
Fran nodded, expressionlessly giving Mukuro a thumbs-up, "Thank you, master."
Then, the younger started walking away, before he stopped and turned towards Mukuro once again, his green eyes staring.
Mukuro raised his eyebrows, "What is it?"
Fran leaned his head to one side, before he mumbled, "You should really button up your shirt, master. A kiss mark is clearly visible and, personally, the mental image of you being uke is unfortunately very traumatizing."
With that, Fran turned and walked off, leaving Mukuro blushing fiercely with one hand covering his neck.
Namimori High School, 3.14pm
"Oi. You. Silver haired person over there. Are you Gokudera Hayato?"
Gokudera looked up when he heard his name being called by a monotonous voice, and what he saw was a male teenager with almost shoulder length pale green hair, slightly younger than himself, leaning against the door. He had smooth porcelain pale skin, a petite body, and deep green emerald eyes that rather reminded him of his own. He also wasn't wearing a uniform, but instead, a casual black t-shirt with dark jeans.
Gokudera mumbled an apology to Tsuna before he stood up and walked towards the stranger, "What do you want?"
"M.M. told me to come see you," Fran replied expressionlessly.
Ah. Right. She did say he would come today didn't she?
Gokudera scanned the boy from head to toe, before he frowned.
I didn't expect him to look so… fragile.
"Er – hello~" Fran waved his hand in front of Gokudera's face, dragging his monotone voice.
Gokudera swatted the hand away, "…okay. What's your name then?"
"Fran." He answered simply.
Gokudera raised an eyebrow, "What, you don't have a last name?"
It was supposed to be a sarcastic question, but Fran shocked Gokudera when he replied in the same simple manner, "No. Don't have one."
"…fine," Gokudera mumbled, deciding not to dwell on the subject, before he continued, "When are you transferring to this school?"
"Tomorrow. Freshman year."
"Did M.M. tell you what to do?"
"Yup. A hundred times approximately. And then Lancia repeated. Then that punkish purple head repeated. Then M.M. again. And again. And again… really, what is up with you red scarf people?" Fran went on.
Gokudera noticed that Fran's expression never once changed during the time they have met – it was just that permanent mask of listlessness. It reminded him so much of Mukuro's unbroken mysterious smirk that was always painted on his face…
He taught this kid, sure enough. Gokudera thought, their vibes are similar somehow.
"Here," Gokudera pulled out a scrunched up photograph from his pocket and handed it to Fran, "This is Belphegor – Prince the Ripper of Varia"
Fran observed the class photo of the prince, that blonde bang and that insane smile stretching so widely it looked like it was about to split Bel's face in half. To Fran, he looked very much like a brainless maniac.
"You know what to do?" Gokudera asked.
"Yes." Fran nodded, before he tucked the photo into his back pocket, turned, and walked off silently – not bothering to say goodbye.
Gokudera watched him until his back disappeared from sight.
Fran.
Mukuro's student, huh?
…that means he will be flawless in what he does. Mukuro is well-known for a reason, after all.
But Mukuro is infamous for being a traitor …I can trust neither him, nor his student.
Namimori High School, 7.08am
KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.
"Hibari… it's me," Yamamoto called.
He waited for a while, and when no reply came, he decided to just push open the door and step inside, his heart fluttering excitedly.
Yamamoto had been in this room many times before, but now, instead of having to just sneak glances at the prefect from time to time, he could actually go up to Hibari and hold him. Just the thought of Hibari's soft, petite form wrapped in his arms with that faintly sweet smell was overbearing. The memory of yesterday was still clear in Yamamoto's mind. The kisses, the embrace… Yamamoto was in heaven. He was positive he wouldn't have left if Kusakabe didn't come in and interrupt them.
All night long, Yamamoto spent his time rolling around on his bed, not believing the fact that Hibari had accepted his feelings. This was not a dream, not one of his silly imaginations anymore. This was real.
Stepping into the Prefect's Council, Yamamoto's eyes immediately searched for Hibari – and there he was, lying on the dark leather sofa with his jacket draped over his torso, sleeping soundlessly, his chest rising and falling calmly, that expression for once peaceful and almost innocent.
Yamamoto couldn't stop the smile that appeared on his lips, and he carefully made his way towards the sofa, making sure he didn't make any noises that would disturb the Skylark. Then, he knelt down next to Hibari, silently observing the prefect.
Those eyelashes, those cheeks, those lips. That dark, smooth hair that was soft like a well-groomed black cat's fur. That pale skin, in equal tone throughout his body, from his face down to his delicate limbs. It was a wonder how Hibari could look so vulnerable and weak whilst he was sleeping, when everyone in Nami High knew how fierce and violent he could be when he was awake.
For a second, Yamamoto thought he should move back, knowing that he was sitting way too close to Hibari – their faces almost touching.
But then, Yamamoto realized something.
This time, he didn't need to move back.
Hibari belonged to him.
…the realization was like warm water rushing through his body – and looking at Hibari's face once more, Yamamoto almost couldn't believe that it was true.
Unable to resist the temptation, Yamamoto leaned closer to the Skylark before he gently kissed the prefect's soft cheek, his fingers reaching out to toy with a strand of that soft hair.
Hibari's eyes slowly fluttered open when he felt something warm on his face, before he sleepily turned his head to the source of that sensation.
As his vision focused, the first thing he saw was Yamamoto's smile – that warm, genuine smile, complete with those dark chocolate eyes that were looking at him and sparkling, as if they were looking at the best thing in the world.
"Morning, Hibari," Yamamoto murmured softly, caressing the prefect's cheek, those eyes not once looking anywhere else but into Hibari's own, touching something very small and incredibly sensitive inside of the Skylark.
And in that moment, Hibari realized that Yamamoto Takeshi really was someone rather special to him. After all, there had been only one other person…
The Skylark didn't want to think about it.
"Morning," Hibari mumbled back, a tiny blush appearing on his cheeks as he turned away from Yamamoto's hand before he started lifting himself up into a sitting position, yawning quietly.
"Haha, slept late last night?" Yamamoto smiled.
"Yeah…" Hibari mumbled, rubbing his eyes tiredly; Yamamoto finding the action particularly adorable. Hibari continued, "…you're not going to your classroom?"
"Ah, there's still some time," Yamamoto climbed up and sat onto the sofa right next to Hibari, "…and I want to be with you."
Hibari didn't know how to respond to that honest yet completely shameless answer. Instead, he turned away and hid his blush. The Skylark's cheeks hadn't had this much blood rushing to them in months.
It was quiet after that – but only for a short while.
Hibari almost jumped off the sofa when all of sudden Yamamoto slid both of his hands easily around the prefect's slim waist.
"W-what are you-" Hibari stuttered, biting his own tongue afterwards for it.
"Whoa… you're really thin Hibari," Yamamoto ignored the alarmed look on the Skylark's face and continued to run his hands gently up and down Hibari's sides, "Your waist is really small."
Hibari elbowed Yamamoto's stomach harshly, "Hands off."
"Ow… haha, sorry," The smile on Yamamoto's face didn't waver at all, before he leaned closer and murmured right in Hibari's ears, "You're just too cute. I couldn't res- ow, ow! Okay, okay, sorry~."
Hibari sighed in relief when Yamamoto finally moved back after being elbowed in the face, but the Skylark was far from satisfaction. The sparkly look in those chocolate eyes of the baseball player with that teasing smile was frustrating him. The younger was even laughing happily after being hit in the face – who the hell does that?
Apparently, Yamamoto Takeshi did.
"Ahaha, ahh, you're really strong for someone so small," Yamamoto smiled.
"Of course. I'm not a weakling," Hibari mumbled, before he frowned once again when he looked at Yamamoto's face, "…why are you smiling?"
"Hm?" Yamamoto raised his eyebrows, "Why wouldn't I be?"
"I just hit you. People usually don't smile when I hit them," Hibari said, matter-of-factly.
"Ahahaha, well that's probably normal," Yamamoto smiled brightly, "…but I'm an exception."
"How?" Hibari asked, out of innocent curiosity.
Yamamoto leaned his head to one side before he slowly inched himself closer, "…don't you know?"
Starting to sense where this was going, Hibari avoided looking in Yamamoto's eyes, "How should I? I'm not-"
Hibari's words were trapped in his lips when Yamamoto bent closer and softly pecked on them, startling the prefect, before moving away far too quickly.
Lingering between the lips-distance, Yamamoto murmured, "Figure it out, senpai."
Then, Yamamoto swiftly stood up from the sofa and started heading towards the door, Hibari staring at him in confusion.
Just before he exited the room, Yamamoto turned around and flashed Hibari another of his signature bright smiles, "I'll come back here after school, 'kay?"
Then, Yamamoto was gone, leaving Hibari sitting there, slowly taking in everything that just happened.
That was… unexpected.
Hibari never thought that Yamamoto would be the type that would kiss him and touch him so spontaneously, and he didn't expect Yamamoto to have the ability to tease him either.
Those hands fast-moving, one moment by his side, another moment wrapped around his waist; that little playful whisper; the kiss that was so brief it left him wanting more.
Hibari rolled in his lips, a blush forming on his cheeks.
This is bad…
I'm losing control.
Namimori High School, 7.48am
'EXPEDITION – OKINAWA'
The words scribbled largely on the board by Reborn's handwriting pretty much summed up all the topics of conversation going on in the classroom that morning. It was the time of year when everyone prepared themselves for the upcoming expeditions, the classes in each year group merged for discussions, and the level of excitement was almost brimming over the edge in the crowded room.
"BEACH! We're going to the BEACH~!" Ken shouted cheerfully, grinning widely as he waved his expedition letter around.
"Ahahaha, he seems pretty excited," Yamamoto laughed at Ken's immature flailing.
Chikusa nodded, his face showing absolutely neutral expression as always, "Mm. Ken and I have never been to a beach before so this is all very exciting for us."
"Ehh? Really? That's a shame – beaches are very fun," Tsuna said, before he turned to Gokudera, "Gokudera-kun, have you been to a beach before?"
"Ah, not really," Gokudera shook his head, "I drove past one before, though."
"Oh? Gokudera's never been to a beach?" Yamamoto turned to look at him with wide eyes.
"Yeah. Never really got the chance to." Gokudera muttered, looking down at his feet.
As if that asshole of a father would ever treat me to something like that.
Yamamoto noticed the broken look in those emerald eyes almost immediately. He shuffled his chair closer to the silvernette, "Gokudera… is anything wrong?"
Gokudera looked up and stared at Yamamoto. Those dark chocolate eyes were looking into his with real understanding and concern – as if he knew what Gokudera was going through.
No. That's not fucking possible.
"Nothing," Gokudera turned away.
Yamamoto was unconvinced. Clearly, there was something really bothering the silvernette, and Yamamoto wanted to help. But before he could even speak another word, he was interrupted by a soft chuckle from the back.
"Kufufu… I have just come up with the most perfect plan," Mukuro smirked, his mismatched eyes gleaming. The depressed, pained looking Mukuro yesterday had seemed to disappear altogether, and Mukuro was as striking, strong and intimidating as ever, his usual dark vibe oozing out of him like steam. It was as if the Mukuro yesterday didn't even exist – not that it was a bad thing, but it was strange all the same. It was a wonder how he could have possibly recovered that quickly.
"Ah… what is it, Mukuro?" Tsuna asked, sweat-dropping, knowing full-well that all of Mukuro's 'plans' never resulted to anything good.
"Ken, Chikusa and I are rooming together, and Smoking Bomb, Yamamoto and Tsunayoshi are rooming together, right?" Mukuro smiled.
"Duh. Of course I'm with Tsuna," Gokudera muttered, "Now cut out the bullshit and spill out your 'amazing' plan."
Mukuro's eyes gleamed with mischief as he smirked and murmured, "I'm going to bring some alcohol."
"Ehhh?" Tsuna's eyes widened, more sweat forming on his face. This doesn't sound like a good idea at all…
"Ahahaha, cool! This will be my third time," Yamamoto laughed lightly, the topic of Gokudera's issue forgotten as it was pushed to the back of his mind.
"Tch. Third time. Big deal, baseball freak," Gokudera rolled his eyes.
"Hehe, well, Gokudera's in Dynamite so it's natural to have more experience," Yamamoto said.
Gokudera smirked, "No shit."
"Ahaha, that's awesome. You'll have to take care of me then," Yamamoto smiled.
"Yeah right. You wish, baseball idiot. I have Tsuna to take care of," Gokudera spoke as he wrapped his arm around Tsuna's neck.
Tsuna rolled in his lips nervously, "Uh… but… I never drank before, and we really shouldn't-"
"Don't worry, Tsuna! I'll be right by your side!" Gokudera gave Tsuna and cheerful thumbs-up to which the brown haired boy responded with an uncertain smile.
"Ahhh, I'm getting kinda jealous of Tsuna here, haha," Yamamoto chuckled lightly.
Gokudera was about to reply to that when all of a sudden Mukuro suddenly cut in, "Kufufu… don't worry, Yamamoto. I'll be helping you out."
The mismatched-eyed rebel slid his arms around Yamamoto's neck from the back and rested his chin on top of Yamamoto's head.
Yamamoto smiled up at him, "Hehe, thanks Mukuro."
Mukuro smirked, murmuring, "My pleasure."
For some reason, as Gokudera looked at the scene, he felt rather annoyed at the proximity between Yamamoto and Mukuro. Maybe it was because he sort of considered Yamamoto as his almost-friend now, and he knew how dangerous and untrustworthy Mukuro was.
Yes. It had to be that.
Or maybe it was just that Yamamoto's attention had been on him for some time – what with how he took care of him when he was sick and all that – so it was just a bit strange now when it was a different situation.
It was not like the silvernette was jealous or anything, of course not.
Gokudera's emerald eyes glanced at Yamamoto and Mukuro smiling at each other, and the frown on his face deepened.
Of course not.
"Oi, oi, Yamamoto! Get your hands off our Mukuro-sama!" Ken complained.
"Hahaha, I'm not doing anything. It's Mukuro who's hugging me," Yamamoto smiled innocently.
"Shut up! Don't make excuses!" Ken started attempting to peel Mukuro off from Yamamoto, but it seemed as though the Kokuyo gang leader was quite enjoying the moment.
"Kufufufu… I feel so loved~. Oh, who should I choose? Yamamoto, the friendly ace baseball player… or Ken, the wild blonde animal I picked up from Kokuyo. Oya, oya… decisions, decisions," Mukuro sighed dramatically as he parodied the role of a cliché 'damsel in distress'.
"Mukuro-sama, get off him!" Ken was still trying to pull Mukuro back.
Chikusa sighed softly, standing up before he started to peel Ken off from Mukuro as well, "Ken, let Mukuro-sama be."
"Go away Kakipii~!" Ken yelled, not going to give up anytime soon.
Tsuna stared at the scene, not sure whether he felt amused or petrified by the image that looked disturbingly like a foursome to him. "Ah… Gokudera-kun, is it just me or is there something very wrong about this picture?"
"Nah. I see it too," Gokudera said, before he continued, "It's okay, Tsuna, they're just being retarded – as usual." But even as the silvernette said that, he couldn't help but keep on glancing at how Mukuro was leaning his head on Yamamoto's neck, those lips almost touching the baseball player's skin.
Tch. I didn't even realize they were that close. Gokudera thought.
At that point, the door of the classroom suddenly slammed open, and in strode the head prefect of Nami High's prefect council. The room dropped to dead silence with his entrance.
"Ah, Hibari!" Yamamoto noticed the Skylark right away and looked up at him, smiling brightly.
Hibari saw the baseball player, before he turned away – hiding the very faint blush on his face.
But he wasn't fast enough for Yamamoto, Gokudera and Mukuro's sharp eyes.
And when Yamamoto's smile widened with that sparkling look in those eyes as he saw that blush, Mukuro immediately worked out the situation.
"Kufufu… oya? What's this?" Mukuro murmured softly, teasingly into Yamamoto's ear, "Is there something special going on between the head prefect and our baseball ace?"
"What?" the word slipped out of Gokudera's mouth even before he thought about it.
"Alright, sophomores, listen up," Reborn stood up at the front of the class, "Hibari Kyouya-senpai is here to collect your medical forms for this expedition, so pass on your forms to the front desk."
The students did as they were told. During this time, Hibari stood there at the front of the class, glaring at Yamamoto. At first the baseball player didn't get it, but then Mukuro – who was still clinging on to him – gave him the answer.
"Oya, oya… I think I'm making someone very jealous with the position we're in, Yamamoto," Mukuro spoke with a smirk.
"Oh! Right…" Yamamoto immediately removed himself from Mukuro, who reluctantly let him go, before the baseball player looked up at Hibari and smiled apologetically. The prefect crossed his arms and looked away.
Ah, of course. Hibari and Mukuro aren't on very good terms, ne? Yamamoto thought, remembering the fight between the rebel and the prefect.
"Oi, baseball idiot, what is up with-" Gokudera started, but was interrupted by Mukuro.
"Kufufufu… who would've thought the famous Hibari Kyouya would fall for a sophomore," Mukuro smirked.
"Wait- what?" Gokudera was confused.
"Ehhh? Seriously, Yamamoto?" Tsuna looked at his friend with wide eyes, "Hibari-san and you…"
Yamamoto laughed lightly, shyly scratching the back of his head, "Ah, well… yeah."
Tsuna's eyes grew wider, "Whoa. I never thought-"
"Kufufufu… thought so," Mukuro chuckled.
"Ehh? What? Kakipii, I don't get it~," Ken whined to his best friend. Chikusa sighed before he whispered into Ken's ear, explaining the situation. Ken's eyes were shocked after Chikusa was done, "Whoa, DAMN! I never knew!"
Chikusa nodded at Yamamoto neutrally, "Congrats."
"Ahaha, thanks, Chikusa," Yamamoto smiled.
"Wait! Stop! What the fuck is going on?" Gokudera frowned, looking from Yamamoto to Hibari in confusion. "What's up with the baseball idiot and that prefect?"
"Ah, Gokudera…" Yamamoto smiled lightly before he motioned for Gokudera to lean closer.
Gokudera, for once, did as he was told, and listened as Yamamoto murmured into his ear.
"You remember the crush I was talking about, right?" Yamamoto said, still smiling.
"Yeah," Gokudera nodded – and as he looked at Hibari, it hit him. "Wait. You're not saying-"
"Haha, yeah…" Yamamoto's smile widened, his dark brown eyes warm and sparkling as he turned towards Hibari and spoke the next words, "…it's him."
Gokudera didn't really understand what he felt in that moment. It was like the world around him numbed out for a split second, and all he felt was – nothing. Nothing at all. Empty. Vacuum.
Nothing.
"I see…" Gokudera mumbled, before he moved back and turned towards the front of the class, looking at Hibari.
So… that's the baseball idiot's boyfriend, huh?
…
I see.
Namimori High School, 9.23am (Break time)
"Ahh… so Fran-kun, you're from Italy? Or France? Either way, that's so cool!"
"Oh, Fran! I heard you know Mukuro-sama in the sophomore year?"
"Wow, really? He is so hot! Can you get his number for me?"
Fran sat there on his desk being shot with questions one after another – most of which he didn't even get the time to answer; not that any of them were worth answering anyways. They were the usual, typical questions that were asked repetitively everywhere he went:
Where are you from?
How old are you?
Is your hair color real?
Are you single?
Can I have your number?
You know Mukuro, right?
Can I have his number?
How I hate being the new kid… The green haired boy thought, mentally rolling his eyes as the girls around him continued to babble on about nonsense crap that he couldn't care less about.
But as Fran was about to be bored to death, his emerald eyes caught someone walking past the room. In one glance, he knew it was the person who was in the photograph that the Smoking Bomb had given him: Prince the Ripper – Belphegor.
Abruptly, he stood up.
"Ehh? Fran-kun, where are you going?" one of the girls who were surrounding him wanted to know.
Fran glanced at her, before he spoke in monotone, "Somewhere where your voices and conversations can't annoy me and further bring down my intellectual level."
The girls blinked at him, "E-eh? What?"
Fran didn't stop to explain. Instead, he just walked off, heading towards the direction that he saw the blonde prince walking.
However, when Fran actually stood there in the corridor, the prince was nowhere to be seen.
Hn… I thought I saw him just now. He couldn't have-
SMACK.
"Ah-!"
Fran felt his skull throb when all of a sudden the closet door on the side of the corridor slammed open and smacked him right on the back of his head.
"VOII! Bel, you moron, you just hit that kid with the door! I told you not to kick it!"
"Ushishishi~. Whatever, Squalo, the prince didn't mean to~."
Fran turned towards the two voices behind him, both of his hands clutching the back of his head.
One of them was a tall, rather slim figure with short, spiky silver hair and blue eyes so pale it was almost grey. His skin was pale, and he was wearing a uniform which identified him as either a junior or a senior.
The other one was no one else but Belphegor – Prince the Ripper himself, and he looked almost exactly identical to the photograph Fran was given. Blonde bangs that covered half of his face, revealing only that freaky smile that reminded Fran of the Cheshire cat. He was also rather tall and lean, with a small tiara hanging lop-sided on his head.
"Voi, kid, your head didn't crack or anything?" Squalo asked.
Fran shook his head, hands still massaging the throbbing area.
"Ushishi, see? He's fine, let's go already~," Bel snickered, beginning to drag Squalo off with him.
But before the prince could leave, Fran reached out and grabbed the back of Bel's shirt. "Wait."
"…ehhh~? What do you want with the prince?" Bel bent backwards and talked to Fran with his head hanging upside down, grinning like a maniac.
Fran leaned his head to one side before he spoke expressionlessly, "You need to take responsibility."
Bel raised his eyebrows before he properly turned around to face Fran this time, "Ushishi… responsibility for what, green head?"
"It's Fran," Fran mono-toned, before he continued, "And you have to take responsibility for hitting me just now."
"Che. Oh really~?" Bel chided in a sing-song voice, letting go of Squalo and moving closer to Fran, "Do you even know who I am, little frog-colored-hair kid?"
"It's Fran," Fran repeated, "And of course I know who you are."
The prince snickered, "Ushishi~ then you should know that I'm-"
"You are a stupid idiotic moron who's pretending to be a prince," Fran stated, his face completely indifferent, "Oh. And by the way – you're failing. Miserably."
Squalo, standing from behind, raised his eyebrows. Heh. This brat's got some guts.
Bel cocked his head to one side before he smirked maliciously and grabbed Fran by his collar, slamming his against the wall.
SLAM.
"Ushishishi~," the prince snickered, moving his face closer to Fran, murmuring threateningly, "Repeat that. The prince dares you."
Fran looked at Bel right in the eyes, before he spoke in monotone, "You are a stupid idiotic moron who's pretending to-"
SLAM.
"Shut up, frog," Bel hissed, a smile creeping up his lips, "You don't want to mess with Varia's prince."
"Bel, let the brat go – you did hit him first," Squalo spoke from the back.
"Ushishi~ The prince doesn't want to~," Bel replied, the smile stretching on his face. He went back to Fran once again, who stood there indifferently in his place, "Why are you provoking the prince? What do you want, frog?"
"Again, it's Fran," Fran mumbled.
"The prince will call you whatever he damn well pleases to," Bel smiled creepily.
Fran ignored Bel before he spoke, clearly and loudly, "I want to be in Varia."
"…what?" Bel leaned his head to one side before he started snickering manically. He turned to Squalo, "Ushishishi~. Oi, Squalo~, this frog said he wants to join us~. Ushishishi~. What a joke~."
Squalo walked up to both of them before he looked at Fran, "Voi, brat, I don't know what's going on in that tiny skull of yours – but it's not that fucking simple to be one of us."
"I can do it," Fran looked right into Squalo's eyes, "Test me. Audition. Whatever. I can do it."
Squalo looked at those emerald eyes that were fearlessly meeting his own. Hmm… this kid's got something, alright. He's not intimidated at all…
"Ushishi~, with a scrawny body like yours? The prince doesn't think so~," Bel poked Fran's ribs.
"You're hardly any better, moron fake prince," Fran simply replied.
Bel's eyebrow twitch before he smirked as he murmured, "You're so gonna get it for saying that, froggy~"
SLAM.
"…eh?" Bel blinked in confusion when what his fist hit wasn't Fran's face, but the wall. Fran had already slipped out of his grasp in that split second and was now standing behind Bel.
And something was in his hand.
"Give me back my crown, frog…" Bel hisses as soon as he saw what Fran was toying with.
"Hm? 'Crown'? Looks more like a fairy princess' tiara," Fran stated.
Bel reached out to snatch it but Fran quickly turned himself and stood behind Squalo. The silvernette just stared at the freshman, amazed.
This brat really is something. That speed… even faster than Bel's…
"You give me Varia membership, and I'll give the fake prince back his precious tiara," Fran stated calmly, still toying with the crown in his hand.
Heh. And he's fucking fearless, I'll give him that.
"Squalo, do something to that fucking frog peasant," Bel spoke, the smile no longer present on his face.
Fran leaned his head to one side, looking at the prince, "Oh, what? The 'great prince' is calling for help?"
Bel stuck his middle finger up at the freshman, who blinked, completely unaffected.
And he even managed to challenge Bel… That's very rare.
Squalo smirked. He couldn't help but like this kid.
"Voi, alright you babies, stop playing around," Squalo spoke, before he turned to Fran. "Give the trash prince his crown."
Fran looked up at Squalo, "What about my part of the deal?"
"Meet me after school at the rooftop – I'll introduce you to the boss," Squalo said, before he continued, "Got it, brat? Now give Bel his crown."
Satisfied, Fran threw the crown back to Bel who grabbed it and glared viciously at him through his blonde bangs. Fran ignored the prince and walked off, not saying anything else.
"Oi, Squalo~, what the hell? The prince doesn't want that damn frog in Varia!" Bel complained as soon as Fran left.
"Voi! Shut up, trash! You're the one who lost! He kicked your fucking ass," Squalo said, dragging Bel by the back of his collar.
"But the prince doesn't like him~!" Bel whined childishly.
"Whatever. I don't care. Deal with it." Squalo said simply before he continued to drag Bel along the corridor.
"Che," Bel crossed his arms unhappily. Just thinking of Fran being in Varia, constantly annoying him and insulting him pissed him off. That sea foam green hair and those fearless yet emotionless emerald eyes…
Tch. Damn frog.
A/N: Okay, I'm crappy at updates T^T. I know, I know! I suck, big time. But really, you gotta blame school and all of its freaking exams – not that I'm using that as an excuse. But hey, slow updates are slow, but the chapters are longer than most fics!
So! Fran's finally here! ^_^ Hope you guys are happy about that! And expeditions are coming up in Nami High, and I have big plans for that part! –hint hint- ;)
I'm not gonna promise when the next update will be, but I'll try my best! I really have minimum free time with school life right now T_T
PLEASE REVIEW~! I need motivation to write this fic through my exams and all that crap~ :D