A/N: Sorry for the long delay everyone, but Katekyo Hitman Reborn has taken over my life. It's both good and bad, as now I have twice as many fics on my list. D: Anyways, now that I'm waiting for mangafox to update, I've decided to continue, since I've got nothing to distract me now. Kinda. There's still that pile of doujins. Anyways, I dunno if I'll start those fics right away or if I'll do another PoT fic that I've really been wanting to start.
So this chapter starts off with Hao's daily life and what he does for fun, as I couldn't save this stuff for the post-end of the fic. We get to see a little more of his back story here. The flashbacks are in a specific order according to the situation, so do you're best to figure out which happens when.
Unseal chapter 5: Back then
"I can't believe you seriously ditched me in the middle of a thunder storm."
Hao rolled his eyes. After returning from his walk, he was greeted with a pillow to the face and a string of curses directed at him. Afterwards he was forced to sit outside the shower door. Since that was now getting boring, he decided to lean on the sink and trace pictures on the mist-covered mirror. He just finished his lion and dog, and was now getting started on his bunny when a sudden thought came to mind. He looked at the half-finished bunny and sighed.
A hand was extended to him, and he stared at it cautiously. Were they serious? After what they did?
He looked up to the face the man in front of him, the to look at the boy next to him. They looked to be the same age, but he didn't have the time to think about it when he felt movement next to him. He looked down to see a girl staring up at him, eyes wide and sad. He looked back to the extended hand, frowning.
"And if I refuse?" He asked. He didn't know why, he already knew the answer.
"Do you really think you can?"
I wonder how those three are doing... He shook his head. No! I don't care, this is their fault anyways. He crossed out all the animals drawn and huffed, sitting on the floor.
"What are you doing?" The question made him jump, and he quickly stood up.
"Wondering who to curse in my boredom, anyone come to mind?" He asked with a smile. Hiyoshi frowned.
"Yeah, and the bastard's right in front of me." He turned to walk out the door, towel over his head and already dressed. Hao frowned back.
"Jerk."
xXxXxXx
Hao was bored. Not only that, but he was being ignored.
He decided to follow Hiyoshi into his classroom for once, instead of waiting outside and walking around the school. It wasn't like he had had to stay by the boy's side all the time, as long as he was within the seal's range he could go where ever he wanted. He decided to do just that.
Without even waiting for a response from the one seated next to him, he stood up and walked out the door. No on could see him, so everyone (minus Hiyoshi, who was used to it by now) was rather surprised when the classroom door opened and closed by itself.
He settled with walking around the small grove of trees to the left of the school, where he could view everything clearly. He had to admit, the scenery was rather nice, despite the building being in the city. The trees planted around the school gave it a natural feel, along with the small patches of flowers growing in random places. It was nearing the end of winter, so most of the snow had already melted, though it was still rather cold. What prompted those boys to have a watergun fight inthat weather...
"Everything in nature is beautiful, don't you think boy?" An old man said, sitting in a wooden chair by the window. a small, white-haired boy looked up from the pile of blocks to gaze at the man.
"Yes." He said simply, returning to his task of stacking the multicolored cubes. The old man glanced at him, the went back to stare out the window.
"Do you like people?" He asked suddenly. The small tower toppled over, the blocks scattering all over the floor. The boy hesitated.
"I..."
Hao snapped back to reality, shaking his head furiously. Why had he decided to think about that? What about this scenery reminded him about the years he spent in Hon Kong with the old man? he didn't want to think about it.
He stiffened. He heard the ruffling of leaves and soft footsteps approaching him. They weren't of a human, those steps were far too cautious.
"Who's there?" He asked aloud. The approach stopped for a second before the person fully revealed herself.
"cautious as always arent't you?" The woman said, now standing next to him. He grunted in response, not bothering to look at her. "What, no 'Hello Húlí, how are you?' this time?"
"Step off vixen." He growled. She backed up a bit, much to his amusement. "What is one of the underlings doing here?" He finally looked at her, red pupils thinning. The fox flipped her hair over her shoulder.
"Master wants you back in Hong Kong, there's no order of the demon in charge isn't there to overlook everything." She told him. The small smile never left her lips, but it was anything but taunting. Hao's eyes softened.
"I don't plan on going back any time soon, and I'm sure you've heard-"
"That you're sealed, right?" She cut him off. A sigh. "You know master can easily get rid of the contract, yet you refuse to ask for help."
"What makes you think I want any?" He said curiously. "I can take care of it myself, you know that. Besides, I'm sure they could find someone else to take my place."
Húlí sighed again. "Yán luó, no one has the same skill as you." He smirked a little. "Besides, there's no one powerful enough to take you're place as the third. Even if there was, we'd need you anyway." Then he frowned.
"Give me one good reason to go back to that place." He said, with no emotion at all. "Tell me one thing that ties me to that place, one being there that I could care more about."
She seemed to think for a while. "Isn't there anyone there you like? What about Gǒu?"
"That stupid dog too nice, it stopped being cute the moment he said 'okay' when I threatened to rip his throat out."
"Wūyā?"
"The crow's an idiot."
"Qín liú."
"Stuck up."
"Tùzǐ ?" Hao thought for a moment.
"As much as I have nothing against the girl, she's far too quiet. And innocent, Qín liú hit me over the head with a radish the last time I cursed in front of her."
"That was you're own fault." She replied. "And Shé?" At the mention of that name, Hao let out a crazed laugh.
"That bastard snake? He's probably glad I'm gone! He's tried everything to get rind of me, since he knows he can't touch me while Shīzi Xiānshēng..." He trailed off, smile dropping from his face. Húlí came around to look at him.
"And Shīzi? What about him?"
Hao growled, turning away.
"I hate him."
xXxXxXx
"Where did you disappear to?"
Hao looked up from his seat under the cherry tree. Hiyoshi sat down next to him, glad that they were hidden from view of the other students.
"Went for a walk." He said in a small voice. That talk with Húlí brought back many forgotten - unwanted - memories. He couldn't bear to be near her anymore, so he sent her away. Along with a message to the rest of the court to stop bothering him and not interfere with his buisness.
"I see..." Hiyoshi said next to him. A long, uncomfortable silence settled between the two before he sighed. "I'm not going to ask what's wrong, since it doesn't concern me. "He paused. "But if you need to talk, I'm all ears."
"Is something wrong?"
The small boy looked up to see an old man watching him, a gentle smile on his face. He shook his head, wiping the tears from his pale face with the thin fabroc of his jacket. The old man chuckled.
"Talking will make it better, you know." He said. He extended a hand, and the boy took it witout thinking. "If you want, I'll listen."
Hao smiled. "Let's talk at home."
xXxXxXx
"I see... I think."
Hao rolled his eyes. "See? I told you it was going to be confusing." Hiyoshi huffed.
"I get it." He said. "So, they're trying to get you back?"
"Seems like it." He traced the llines of the table out of boredom. "They can't touch me unless they get the first advisor's approval, and he won't do anything without mine."
"But why is that?" Hiyoshi asked. "Isn't he in a higher position than you? Why can't he just take you back?"
"Because he, unlike the second, respects my wishes. If I stay quiet, so will he. It's just how he is." He gave a frustrated sigh, falling back to lie on the floor. "It's infuriating! This is why I hate him, he's so annoying and doesn't seem to get the meaning of the term 'personal space' at all! What's worse is, no matter how much I tell him off for it, he just smiles and laughs it off!"
He knew it must seem funny to watch a demon ranting like a store worker with a clingy boss, but he couldn't help it. He finally, aftet hundreds of years, had someone to talk to that wouldn't laugh at him, and it all just came out at once.
"So, what you're saying is, it's like me and Atobe?"
"Exactly." He said, sitting up and pointing at the boy. "Only in you're case, you two need to be locked in a closet to vent all that UST." He laughed at how red his host's face got at the comment, until a pillow met his face.
"Shut up!"
"Boy, is there anyone you love?"
The boy looked away from the papers on the table to the old man. He ley in his bed, staring up at the ceiling. The boy, now a bit older than when he found him, was confused.
"Love?" He didn't know what it meant, he'd never heard it before, nor was it in any of the books he was given.
"It means to care deeply about someone, so much that you don't want them to leave you're side." The man said, coughing. He thought.
"I love old man I guess." He said, and he was answered with a chuckle.
"That's a different kind of love." At they boy's confused expression, he sighed. "The way you love me is a family kind of love. I raised you, so we're family."
Family. He knew that word, he'd seen it many times before. but what did he mean?
"I suppose it's too soon for you to decide, there's no one to love but me." He coughed more, a hand over his mouth. "You'll learn soon though, I promise."
xXxXxXx
"I see, so he refuses to send for help?"
Húlí bowed her head. Why did Yán luó have to be so stubborn? She knew he hated the council, but was being sealed within the body of a middle-school boy better than this life?
"I'm sorry Shīzi, but he didn't want to listen. It seems he still holds a grudge against us for..."
Shīzi held up a hand, silencing her explanation. "I understand." He said. "He has every right to, he's not the one at fault here."
The fox demon nodded, turning around end exiting the large room. Shīzi sighed, running a clawed hand through his red hair. He looked at his hands and chuckled. How was Yán luó able to take human form so perfectly? He still didn't know.
I suppose it's one other thing to admire about him, He thought with a chuckle. He won't even let me call him his name...
He glanced at his arm, tracing his fingers over the thin scars left behind from when they had first met - first fought- scars that refused to heal.
"Get away!"
The boy was anything but big, but he had to recognize the amount of power held within such a small body.
"You know as well as I do that this is something you can't help." He tried to step forward again, but reeled back when he felt a sharp pain from both his arms. He looked down, seeing the flesh torn open in three different sections. He looked back to the white-haired boy, blood dripping from the claws he kept hidden so long. His expression, however, showed he was less than pleased. He stared down at his hands in horror, shaking. It seemed like he'd never used them like that before.
"I..."
"Thought so." Shīzi said, snapping the boy's attention back to him. "You're the once we're here for, not the old man." At this, the boy seemed even more one guard, his fear forgotten. "Either way, he needs to go."
"No!"
They were blown back by a sudden rush of cold air, far too powerful for any normal demon.
"It's ice, huh?" He said, standing up. "Yup, he's the one."
"Boss, what do we do?" A tall, lanky man said beside him. He had a large grin on his face, as if he were waiting for the orders to kill.
"You and Qín liú take care of the old man inside. This one," He looked back at the boy, who was now ready for a fight. "I'll keep him down."
The two addressed nodded, taking their original forms and running off. He looked back at the boy, who watched the snake and bird run off. Not the best idea, as he was soon tackled to the ground and it turned into a struggle. Moments later he froze, as sound from inside the house caused him to go pale. His face went from shocked to deadpan, as if some kind of bond had been broken. Shīzi stood up, watching as the other followed. He held out his hand.
"You're coming with us."
Ah, right, another reason to be hated. The only reason they went looking for him that day was because they heard there was 'a snow demon with amazing power living with a human'.
xXxXxXx
Ok so now we got to see bits os Hao's past of before he joined the court, but it took forever cuz I started reading manga. Who else here just loves present-day Byakuran? Anyways, I plan on doing those two new KHR fics right after I finish this, and somone please remind me becuause I'm sure I'll forget. Next chapter we'll return to the main plot, since I pushed a bunch of stuff back for this chapter. All names will now be in simplified, since I can't do traditional.
Names translations:
- Wūyā (乌鸦) - crow
- Qín liú (禽流) - bird
- Shīzi (狮子) - lion
- Gǒu (狗) - dog
- Shé (蛇) - snake
- Tùzǐ (兔子) - bunny
- Húlí (狐狸) - fox
- Yán luó (阎罗) - mountain(I think, I can't remember)
Okay I just thought of a new one-shot that I may or may not write today and blah blah blah I'm sleepy so I'll end it here.