Xanxus didn't know who snitched to Daniela, but he was shooting his subordinates in the name of...training...on principle when he got back. The reason being someone had squealed to his grandma that he apparently had a girlfriend who he hadn't dropped out of boredom or for security reasons for the past six months and he had yet to introduce them.
He was not in denial, and they were not dating dammit.
"You mean to tell me you've been seeing this girl for six months and haven't taken her on a proper date?" she demanded.
"She's not my girlfriend. We occasionally screw each other and she throws things at my men when they break into her house."
Though nothing could have prepared him for the way she somehow gained dominance over Belphegor. He wasn't sure what she had done to the bratty prince trash, and he wasn't sure he wanted to know. All he knew was that Bel was unusually behaved around her and didn't dare pull out his knives until they were at least a block from her house.
"Grandson. You are going to introduce me to this girl so I can see for myself who you have been dating. And you are going to take her out on a proper date," said Daniela.
"Yes grandma," he said automatically. There was no convincing her when she used that tone.
To his mild relief, Grace and Daniela hit it off immediately. To his mild horror, they got along too well and he immediately started hitting the good booze after realizing the unholy light in Daniela's eyes at meeting a young, kindred spirit.
"I am going to find the liquor cabinet and claim ignorance to anything you two do," he said flatly.
"Oh good, you already know there is going to be chaos," smirked Grace.
Daniela chuckled a bit, but she was also planning to get a DNA sample to see if the girl was related to Reborn in any way, because that sounded exactly like something he'd say.
Xanxus deliberately turned a blind eye when he heard reports of explosions, chaos and an unholy amount of glitter for some reason.
On a related note, he noticed a major change in Grace's wardrobe and apartment the next time he visited, as apparently Daniela had insisted on taking her shopping for a proper "girl's day".
Some time later...
Grace had an odd expression once she realize Xanxus was taking her out on a proper date to a high class restaurant.
He had a slightly grumpy expression on his face, but it wasn't because of her.
"So what's with the sudden change?" asked Grace.
"Grandma insisted. She said it was ridiculous that we've been fucking for four months and we hadn't actually gone out on a proper date."
"Daniela is awesome," said Grace grinning. She sipped her wine, enjoying the subtle flavors that played over her tongue.
It was during the play that she brought up something that had been bugging her after talking with Daniela.
"So...are we dating?" she asked. Her tone was...confused...for the most part.
Xanxus thought it over and realized that at this point she could be considered his unofficial girlfriend. She wasn't complete trash like the idiots he had to deal with, and he knew once her flames went active they would have a full bond.
"Fuck... I guess we are."
"Is that going to be a problem?" asked Grace. "I'm not really sure what people who are dating actually do...most of the couples I've see are more interested in snogging each other."
Xanxus snorted at that.
"Do we really need to do all that lovey-dovey crap? Personally I prefer staying at that hole-in-the-wall you can an apartment picking apart movies that deal with that overly sentimental bullshit."
Grace considered that. She honestly liked it when Xanxus came over just to crash on her bed and just snuggle. It made her nightmares back off and she could actually sleep for a change. And his friend were weird, but they were nice in their own way once they realized she wasn't about to run away screaming.
Belphegor in particular seemed to treat her like an older sister, and gleefully showed her how to throw a knife properly now that she had contacts that made her sight better. She had could catch anything he threw at her, but throwing them back required a lot of practice.
Xanxus wrapped his arms around her and she settled into his hold with ease. She felt strangely relaxed around him, despite knowing his profession.
"Yeah, I never really got the point of spending so much money on frivolous things like flowers or expensive chocolates. I mean they don't really last and it doesn't really convey a sense of sincerity, you know?" she replied.
Xanxus realized he enjoyed the dates where they had a bit of fun, like going to an amusement park. He was pleasantly surprised his girlfriend was such an adrenaline junkie and silently made a note to bring her to Mafia Land sometime. She would get a kick out of their roller coasters.
"Ever try driving a motorcycle?"
"My godfather left me his bike and he showed me how to use the gears, but I've never driven," said Grace.
Xanxus smirked, and gave her an impromptu driving lesson. It didn't take long for him to regret this decision, because Grace seemed to treat gravity like a suggestion, though she was a natural driver.
"Where the hell did you learn to drive a bike like that? From that damn idiot Skull De Mort?" said Xanxus, trying to steady himself.
She gave him an odd look.
"How do you know the name of Sirius' favorite stuntman? Are you a fan too?"
Xanxus glared at her, and she merely smirked at him.
"Next time, I drive."
"Sure, let's go with that."
"A ball?"
"Grandma insisted," said Xanxus, making a face. "And honestly, I'd like to have a date I can actually stand and not have to be stuck with my men all night."
That and this way he knew he'd at least get some quality booze, since he knew Grace would be nice enough to share and Timoteo had only banned the servers from giving him the good stuff.
"I barely know how to dance, and I've only worn one dress," said Grace. "Hell, the last time I went to anything formal it was a complete and utter disaster."
Ron had been such a whiny bitch that she had left very early, rather than suffer through it any further. It had been an utterly miserable experience and she refused to talk about it.
The other girls learned not to bring it up because she got hex-happy. The same went for talking about boyfriends.
"Most people don't bother dancing at these things, and I'm sure Grandma would be happy to go dress shopping. I think she mentioned something about digging up some of her old jewelry."
More like Daniela was eager for a dress-up doll and showing up all those fussy women that were sure to come. The fact she'd definitely get entertainment from her son's reaction to Xanxus having a girlfriend was just bonus.
"When is this ball anyway?"
"Two weeks," said Xanxus.
"Halloween, really?" said Grace, grimacing. She always had the worst luck on Halloween.
"If it's too boring or loud we can leave."
"I'm fine, it's just I always have bad luck on that date."
"Anyone dumb enough to start something will meet my guns. I've been meaning to test them out anyway."
This was why she liked Xanxus. Always so thoughtful.
The night of the ball
"She's late," grumbled Xanxus.
"Voi, you know how the Eighth gets. She probably wants her to make an entrance."
"Don't remind me."
Mammon was rather curious as to who this mystery female who had caught the attention of their boss was. Most of his guardians had met her and approved of her greatly.
Daniela's limo drove up, and per protocol, her guardians left first, followed by the former Donna.
What stepped out after her was a vision of beauty, elegance and power.
Xanxus felt his mouth run dry at the sight of his girl, as Daniela had gone the extra mile with her. Not a hair was out of place from the elegant braid that held her hair up from her neck. There were a few elegant, antique pins in her hair holding it together that he didn't recognize but he could tell instantly they were worth more than anything the other women would be wearing combined.
Mammon's jaw openly dropping said volumes, as Belphegor snickers sounded very pleased.
Her dress was made of black silk and had a more conservative cut than what most of the mafia women were wearing. There was a hint of cleavage, but it was well hidden by the black lace that trailed up her neck and held up the dress. When she moved, you could see a hint of long legs that seemed to go all the way up and a very discreet dagger sheathe. She had a pair of heels on that made her look elegant and deadly at the same time.
Her nails were done in a French cut with a violet polish as a subtle warning of her flame type, and she had a smoky green eye-shadow on that made her green eyes pop. There was a faint dusting of make-up that brought out her natural features, and she wore a necklace that drew attention to her bust. There was a low silver chain that wrapped around her thin waist and acted like a loose belt, though closer inspection revealed it was stronger than it looked and if necessary could be used as a garrote. She also had some light lipstick (or more likely chapstick) on, as there was a subtle sheen on her lips.
In short she would be the most stunning woman at the ball and Xanxus was going to have trouble keeping his hands off her.
Daniela looked very pleased with herself, as Grace was an absolute delight to work with. The only jewelry she contributed was the earrings, as Grace apparently had some old family pieces she could use. There was a small but deadly amount of poison hidden in the earrings.
"You look fucking beautiful," said Xanxus honestly. "Shall we?"
He held out his arm. Grace walked with a smoothness she never thought she'd be able to pull off considering she almost never wore heels like these before. She looped her arm around his, and used him to partially balance herself...Xanxus absolutely didn't complain.
He was the envy of every man there, his own men included. Xanxus had a look of dark amusement seeing more than one woman slap their date due to their eyes lingering on his too long. When she got up to get their drinks, there was a discreet mad scramble to the bar.
She returned with two hard whiskey and a bottle she had filched because they were too busy trying to flirt with her to notice her pick pocketing the bottle. A few subtle words and the light tilt of the lips and they were putty in her hands.
Xanxus immediately pulled her to his lap. She didn't complain, as her feet were murdering her trying to balance in those heels.
He had to glare at Coyote when he sidled up to the table while she excused herself to the bathroom.
"Xanxus, the ninth would like a...word...with you and your date."
This. This was why he hated balls. The fucker didn't even pretend to acknowledge that he was the Ninth's son, and treated him like an outsider even now. At least that braying asshole Iemitsu had kept his distance, though the way he kept looking at Grace pissed him off immensely.
When Grace returned, she noticed Xanxus' annoyance.
"What's wrong?"
"The old man wants a word with us."
"Well, I've had enough of those fools eyeing me like a prize to be won," said Grace annoyed. "Shall we go see if Daniela would be interested in listening in?"
Xanxus perked up at that. Technically she was retired, but there was no reason Daniela couldn't be in the same room. At least then he'd have someone on his side for once.
Daniela was all for it, mostly because the ball would be boring once Xanxus and Grace left anyway.
None of them noticed Iemitsu leaving as well.
Xanxus was pissed, Grace was barely hiding her fury at the implications that someone close to Xanxus had apparently been feeding information to his 'father', and Daniela was frowning at the way her idiot son was handling things.
What was more puzzling was why Iemitsu had felt the need to keep tabs on Xanxus in the first place.
"So...this is the woman you're planning to replace your Cloud officer with."
Wait, what?
Grace's open confusion was almost as amusing as Xanxus' deadpan expression.
"Are you fucking kidding me. Is that what this is about?" said Xanxus incredulous. "She's not even active for fuck's sake."
That seemed to throw the Ninth for a loop, just a bit. Iemitsu puffed up in arrogance and the second he started speaking, Grace narrowed her eyes on him.
Something about him seemed far too familiar and the more he kept talking, the stronger that feeling got. Then it hit her.
Without even a second thought, Grace stepped away from Xanxus, took ten steps towards Iemitsu, and kneed him so hard in the balls that he abruptly shut up mid-sentence and made a pained groan.
Daniela cackled, while Xanxus looked like Christmas had come early and Santa had come bearing the booze of the gods.
"I had wondered why my cousin often bitch...I mean complained about your incompetence. If you're this much of an idiot then it's no wonder she's so overworked trying to clean up your mistakes," said Grace dryly.
Iemitsu wheezed, mostly because of the stinging hex she had happily laced her blow with.
"Your cousin?" said Timoteo, confused. What did her cousin have to do with Iemitsu?
Grace calmly walked back to her boyfriend, who looked absolutely gleeful. Daniela was having trouble breathing herself, she was laughing so hard.
The door opened, revealing the failed ex-Arcobaleno Lal Mirch.
Who took one look at the woman on Xanxus' arm and sighed in exasperation.
"For the love of god...Grace, what the hell did you do?"
"Hello cousin," said Grace with far too much cheer. "Remember how you said you'd love to give your boss your full opinion of his stupidity, but that you couldn't because it would be considered insubordination?"
Lal took one look at the groaning form of Iemitsu, who was still trying to recover, then at Grace. She glared at her.
"And you couldn't have waited long enough to at least let me watch?" she complained.
"That's what pensieves are for, and I wasn't sure if your loyalty extended to protecting him from an overdue demonstration of feminine wrath."
Lal pouted. Daniela wheezed, as Xanxus looked between the cursed woman and his girlfriend.
"Wait...so the cousin you mentioned occasionally was Lal Mirch?" he said incredulous.
She had mentioned her cousin was ex-military, worked for a special intelligence unit, and that her boss was an idiot of unbelievable amounts.
"Why, is that a problem?" asked Grace honestly.
"Fuck no," said Xanxus. Especially after the way she dealt with that bastard Iemitsu.
"Oh and Lal, I'll send you a copy of the memory later for you to enjoy," said Grace. Lal perked up at that, since it meant they wouldn't have to pay through the nose to the miser.