Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! or Harry Potter; the honour belongs to Amano Akira-san and Ms JK Rowling respectively.

(PS: Erm, check out my new stories please. That is, if you want to. ;))

Chapter Four: Quatre*

"Nngh…" Colonello opens his eyes, and blearily looks around. His instincts tell him it is about one in the morning, and he is on a roof.

Wait.

Why is he on a roof?

Before he can reach for his gun, the memories of last night come rushing back to him. He blushes, recalling Skull's words. How could the guy say such sappy things with a straight face?!

And speaking of Skull, where is he? Colonello peers around for him, to no avail. He then looks down, and spots a thick blanket covering him. He also feels a pillow against his head. He blushes again (dammit, why is he acting like a fucking schoolgirl with a fucking crush?!), but shakes his head, getting rid of some of his…wayward thoughts, and goes back down, pillow and blanket in hand.

"Yo, Skull, kora!" Was the first thing Colonello says a few minutes later, when he spots Skull cooking.

"O-oh, er... Hi, Senpai…" The blond frowns. He knows he sounds out of character, but that was because he wants to be friends with Skull (and maybe more… A traitorous part of his mind whispers, but he shoves it away, because he likes girls, kora!)

"Hey, what's up with you? Is it because of last night…?" He trails off, seeing Skull tense at his question. The stuntman hastily piles omeletes onto two plates, takes one, and then dashes away, bangs covering his eyes. Colonello's eyes widen, but Skull is already gone, and he is left stretching his hand forward like an idiot.

He looks at the plate of food on the dining table. Is this...for me? Seeing as there is no one else in the mansion, he slowly sits down, grabs a fork, and starts digging in. His eyes widen again.

"It's good..."

Skull dashes down the hallways to his room, only stopping once he closes the door. He flushes in embarrassment. He must have looked like such an idiot in front of Colonello! It couldn't be helped, he tells himself, everything would have been awkward, anyway. Satisfied, he takes his fork and knife, and starts eating. Yeah...it would've been awkward...

Skull awakes to the sound of retching. He shoots up, wondering what the emergency is. Intruders are a no-go, as no member of the Mafia is stupid enough to make any sound while sneaking in enemy territory, never mind the Arcobaleno Mansion.

So that leaves the Arcobaleno themselves. He gets up, and pads quietly down the hall, following the horrible sounds. He pauses in front of a bathroom door, which seems to be the origin of the sound. He knocks.

"Hey, anybody in there?" The retching stops for a while.

"…Lackey." The tone was flat, thinly veiling the undercurrent of irritation underneath.

"Erm…hey, Lal-Senpai…" Skull mutters nervously. He expects the CEDEF member to open the door to whack him on the head, or at least yell at him through the door, but there is only silence. The stuntman freaks out, knowing that Lal definitely would have said something by now.

"L-Lal-Senpai? Senpai?!" Still nothing. When he hears a heavy thud, Skull barges into the bathroom, thankful that Colonello is out. Even if Lal is in danger, his magic can take care of the problem easily enough, and he is sure that the strict, no-nonsense soldier wouldn't appreciate the blond fretting over her like a mother hen. Hermione is like her in that sense as well, Skull vaguely muses, but banishes the thought as soon as he sees Lal lying on the ground, coughing up blood.

"!"

Lal convulses on the floor, one hand gripping the sink in a unsuccessful attempt to stay upright. The other is cupped around her mouth, blood tricking out in between the cracks of her fingers. She raises her head to glare at him.

"S-Stupid Lackey…" Another harsh cough soon follows the unfinished sentence, however, causing more blood to trickle out. Skull stares, horrified.

"Senpai!" He props her up with one hand, grabs a handful of tissues, and wipes the fluid dribbling out of the blue-haired woman's mouth.

"Senpai, are you okay? I think you're sick. We should go get a doctor!" Lal glares at him again, the message of Yes, Captain Obvious, easily conveyed. This time, however, Skull does not relent, meeting her gaze. She sighs.

"Go—*cough* away, Lackey. It—*cough* can't be cured, *cough* anyway…" A series of coughs wracks her frame, scaring Skull even more.

"Senpai, what do you mean?! It shouldn't be…"

Skull's eyes widen as he takes in the symptoms. The blood, loss of weight (only now he realizes the ribs showing, stretched against the skin, and he wonders what was wrong with him, to not notice his colleague—no, family's problems) coughs…

"…Oh." He whispers. Lal looks at him for a moment, then sighs, an uncharacteristic weariness overtaking her features.

"Yes, Lackey *cough*, oh."

Skull wants to cry.

Tuberculosis.

How did he not know?! But Skull already knows the answer.

It is because Lal is too proud. Too, too proud. She must have hidden all the symptoms of her illness, simply because she didn't want anyone to pity her. He knows that feeling all too well, like that time when Sirius died, and everyone was just giving him those damn pitying looks. And then right after that, he had to be sent back to the Durselys, to the slurs, the beatings…

Skull mentally shakes himself, getting rid of his dark thoughts. He is jolted back to reality by Lal's harsh bark.

"Lackey! Don't start to cry or do something pathetically weak just because I'm dying! You useless Lackey! I can't be cured by any normal means, anyway! Just go away! I might infect you!" However, Skull blankly stares at the CEDEF member, the seeds of an idea taking root.

Any normal methods…

"Senpai," He slowly says, "I am going to try something." But before the blue-haired woman can say anything, he continues.

"This will hurt." Lal nods slowly, confused but resigned. Why couldn't he see that she can't be cured?

And then he whips out a bottle of something, fumbles with the cap, forces her mouth open, and pours its meager contents down her throat. She vaguely registers that the 'Longbottom's Cure-All Medicine' is printed on the label in large, black font. But that thought is banished when she smells the mixture.

God, it tastes terrible, but Skull (she is so going to throttle the Lackey after this) clamps her mouth down and holds her nose, so she has no choice but to swallow.

She immediately regrets it.

Pain flares through her body, making her scream for the first time in many, many years. The pain is worse, much worse than any torture she has ever gone through, as she feels like her blood and bones are set on fire. How could she have been so foolish to trust the Lackey? But when she chances a glance at the purple-haired male, his expression is one of anguish, like he hates the fact that she is in pain. If Lal could, she would have frowned. Why would he feel that? Her thoughts are disrupted, though, when a new wave of pain washes over her, making her scream again.

Then, all of a sudden, the pain stops. She lies on the ground, panting, about to whip out her shotgun, when she realizes that she isn't hurting anymore. The lingering pain that she had ever since she was diagnosed with Tuberculosis is gone. She snarls at the Lackey, more than a little confused.

"What—*pant* did you do—*pant* to me?" The Lacke—no, Skull, he probably saved her life, after all—grins, ignoring her demand.

"It worked!" He yells. "It worked!" he hugs Lal, whispering:

"Thank goodness you're alive…" Lal stiffens, then relaxes into the embrace, saying nothing when she feels something wet soak her shoulder (seriously, and he is supposed to be comforting her...).

Skull does not know this, but she hasn't been shown any sort of affection for a long, long time. She'd distanced herself all her life, especially when she had been diagnosed with her illness (which is cured, and oh Lord, she still can't wrap her mind around that fact), and got turned into a baby. She actually didn't want to die, not at all, but she hid the overwhelming fear behind a strong mask. SHe is a coward, and she tells him this, but Skull says disbelievingly:

"Seriously? You're one if the bravest people I've ever met!" At Lal's skeptical expression, the purple-haired male continues. "No, it's true! I'd break down a long time before you if I was in your place. You are brave. You are. There's no denying it. So don't look so sad," At this, Lal starts, and Skull beams. "It doesn't fit you." Silence.

"Thank you…" She whispers, feeling tears prickle at her eyes. She feels Skull smile.

"Anything for my family." Lal stiffens again.

Family?

With a jolt, Lal finally realizes that she is accepted. Accepted for who she is, not her actions, because 'family' is a heavy word in the Mafia, and damn her if she's going to throw this chance away. Her body shakes, hiding her crying, prideful to the very end. Skull, seeing this, starts to panic, terrified with the possibility that he had done something wrong.

"A-Ah, Senpai! Are you okay? Please stop crying! Did I do something wrong? Do you need something? …Please stop crying!" The usually stern woman laughs, effectively cutting off the stuntman's rambling.

"Stupid Lackey." She says, but Skull smiles warmly, stunnning Lal with it's radience.

"Yeah."

And she falls in love, hard.

Lal wakes up in her bed at around five o' clock in the morning, staring at the ceiling. She catches a pleasant mix of cinnamon and warm chocolate and sugar, and when she turns her head, she sees Skull. Skull, who is sleeping next to her bed, arms folded, as if guarding her.

Lal jolts, waking Skull up. He rubs his eyes sleepily, but when he catches sight of her, he brightens up. "Lal-Senpai! How are you feeling?" Lal turns her head away, muttering "Fine." Skull, if possible, seems to smile even wider than this. "Thank goodness!"

They talk for an hour, when finally, she says: "Wait." At his questioning glance, she flushes slightly, and mumbles "You...you don't have to call me 'Senpai'. Just 'Lal' will do." Skull grins, nodding.

"Sure...Lal." Lal blushes. "Yeah."

And as they talk, Fon stands outside their door, an uncharacteristic scowl on his face.

*: Quatre is 'four' in French.

As readers of FYD can see, I made it so that Skull doesn't Obliviate everyone after helping them, because it seemed quite forced to me. You like? :)

Did I succeed in not writing Lal as a schoolgirl in a Shoujo manga?

Questions, comments, answers. They're all accepted!