Taming the Skylark (A Katekyo Hitman Reborn fanfiction)
Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn; Amano Akira-sensei does. Though, of course, the OC is mine.
Teaser: "I'll bite you to death." Everyone knew what this meant; except for Senritsu Nanami, who believed that it was only her underclassman, Hibari Kyoya's roundabout way of saying, "Notice me, senpai!" With him chasing her around the campus and, from time to time, even in the streets of Namimori, was she on the right track after all?
Three weeks had passed—and despite not wanting to admit so, that time felt long and dreadful for Nanami.
After her blatant display of mockery towards Hibari, avoiding him had proven to be much more difficult. His assaults have become more aggressive than they already were and using petty tricks did not work on him anymore. One time, she used the homeroom teacher as a shield and things did not end well. Both of them were sent to detention, which apparently had been Hibari's goal, seeing how it led to a locked-room death match. Nonetheless, Nanami managed to escape.
However, fatigue was starting to get to her. As proof, she even woke up late—a feat that almost never happened to her.
Shit, I'll be late! She ran and barely made it past the closing gates by sliding in between. This nearly gave the attending officer a heart attack as he exclaimed in horror before rushing to her with profuse apologies.
"Pathetic."
As soon as Nanami heard his voice, did God hear a wish for the day to end. From the school monument, Hibari strode towards the entrance with scampering students serving as his background. A hint of amusement could be perceived past his usual expression of impassiveness. Finally, his prey had arrived.
"How can the head of the Disciplinary Committee arrive this late?" he scoffed.
Nanami resisted the urge to snort indignantly. She grumbled beneath her breath. "Whose fault do you think it is?"
Without any warning, Hibari pulled out his weapons and lunged at her. Nothing surprising. It was already their daily routine.
"Wait, Hibari—" she tried to calm him down, but it was definitely not her best attempt. Hibari could see this from the way her eyes gaze at him in disinterest. As if she had a talent in ticking him off, his bloodlust was further fueled.
"I won't wait. Latecomers need to be bitten to death."
With a heavy sigh, Nanami was forced to dodge and defend for the umpteenth time. "It's been three weeks! Aren't you getting tired of chasing me?"
"No." —was his immediate answer. Nanami suppressed a tear of frustration. "I refuse to let go of my prey. After all, I've never failed to catch one," he added with a confident smirk.
"Well, I can do you a favor and break that record."
SWOOSH! Sadly, Hibari's daily hit points remained at zero.
"You know," Nanami started in a different tone taking Hibari by surprise. "I've been wondering how you could get away with your crazy antics back in Namimori Middle."
Hibari stopped his assault, interested in the brunette's sudden change of topic.
"No. . . Not only there," she continued. "You attacked me in front of so many students. You never attended a single lecture since the term had started. Yet, you remain unsanctioned. How is that possible?"
Nanami could only think of one answer. She stared at Hibari in disbelief. "Are you threatening the teachers?"
"Not quite," he answered nonchalantly. "They just know their place as my subjects."
Nanami had no way of confirming the truth. With a hand on her aching temples, she let out a tired sigh. She wondered, how many times had she sighed since she met him?
"Avoiding you is pointless then. Even if you challenge me all year, you won't get expelled," she concluded.
Hibari scoffed. "I doubt it would take a year."
"True. It might even be longer."
SWOO—! Hibari's eyes widened the moment Nanami caught his weapon barehanded. He swung the remaining tonfa towards the girl who easily evaded into the air.
"You want to become the Head Disciplinary Officer, right?" Nanami asked, wearing the same smile that effortlessly sent shivers down the spines of the entire student body.
"I accept your application."
Passing-by students shrieked at the sight of Hibari Kyoya pacing back and forth the school entrance while emitting what they called the Aura of Death. Despite the serious look on his face, he was actually beyond pleased. It had been a year since his last real fight. He couldn't wait to get it started.
"You're early," commented by a new entrant. It was Nanami.
"The appointment we set yesterday. . . I assume you haven't forgotten," he said and took out his weapons. The glint in his blue-grey eyes showed excitement.
"Yes, but you won't be needing that."
Challenge #1: Checking the uniforms!
Hibari stared blankly at the clipboard in his hands before shifting his gaze to the girl who stood at the other side of the gate, greeting students with a warm smile.
"Herbivore," he called loud enough for Nanami to hear. "What are we doing?"
"Checking uniforms, what else?"
A loud SNAP echoed and instantly sent some students running. Nanami silently mourned for the clipboard which Hibari ruthlessly broke into half. "Why are we doing this?" he rephrased. Judging by the tone of his voice, his patience would not last long.
Nanami walked towards him but stopped at a safe distance. "You want to become the head officer, right? This is the test."
Hibari gave no response except for a glare that screamed murder. Nanami suppressed a laugh, but it was more out of pity for his fragile pride than anything else.
"What? Did you think I would actually fight you? In the first place, as a disciplinary officer I cannot allow su—ah, the girl over there!" Having her attention diverted to a student wearing a skirt shorter than the standard, Nanami left Hibari to chase the girl. Saying something along the lines of protecting her from lowlife perverts, Nanami successfully had the student swooned, who then heeded to her words.
Hibari was ready to break something else other than the clipboard. An arm or a neck—anything that belonged to a certain female. His tonfas magically reappeared in his hands as he marched toward the unsuspecting Nanami. However, someone had bumped into him.
"Hey, bro. You're in the way." The man's uncaring grunt instantly earned him a ticket to heaven. Worse, he blatantly ignored Hibari's glare but screamed upon seeing the president. Cursing beneath his breath regarding her unpredictable patrols and such, the man hastily tried to remove the piercings on his ears but was put to a halt by a hand on his shoulder.
"You," Hibari muttered, his chilly voice alerting the man. "You have violated the dress code."
With a single swing of his tonfa, the unnamed male student flew towards the blue spring sky. "Remove those accessories or I'll bite you to death."
"You already did," Nanami said with an exasperated look on her face.
[ Nanami: 1 Hibari: 0 ]
"What an easy victory," she commented with a grin as she examined the paper that contained the results of their bout.
With one swift movement, Hibari snatched the paper from the brunette. "What's this ridiculous score sheet?" he snapped and glared at the man who handed the paper to Nanami. He shrieked and hid behind her.
"I-I don't think this is a good idea after all, president," he whimpered in Nanami's ear. "This person is not fitted for the committee!"
"This is the only way I can keep him under watch," she answered discretely. Hibari was too dangerous to be let loose in the school (and there was no way she could handle his bloodlust for one whole year).
Nanami made a sudden turn and grabbed the man's shoulders. "That aside, Ogata-kun, you're the vice president. Show some pride and stand tall!"
Ogata screeched and Nanami sighed. "Hey now—"
"President, dodge!" Nanami's eyes widened, recognizing the danger that was approaching her in high speed. She pushed Ogata to the ground to dodge the tonfas.
"Don't ignore me." Hibari's eyes narrowed threateningly, every word that left his mouth was dripping with murderous intent. "What is this about?"
"Like I said, this is a test I prepared for you."
"If this is my test, would you care to explain why you're included in this?" At that moment, Hibari wanted nothing more than to erase the shit-eating grin that appeared on her face.
"Oh, I thought you'd be more motivated to have a challenger around," Nanami jested. With an index finger raised, she explained further. "There will be a maximum of five rounds. The first one to get three point wins."
Challenge #2: Confiscating forbidden items!
"This will be difficult, huh?" Nanami mused to herself. It's not like I get to confiscate items everyday.
It was her class's homeroom period and she was given permission to roam around the campus. While humming a song, she walked around the freshmen's corridor in hopes of catching clueless lambs who were still new to the rules. Indeed, her expectations were met.
She opened the window to call their attention; instead, the entire class turned to look at her. Nanami paused and gave them a polite smile before turning to the students in question. "Girls, bringing cards at school is forbidden. I'll have to confiscate that."
The girls panicked and immediately returned the cards in its box. "Senpai, we're very sorry! We won't do it again!"
They kept apologizing and one almost broke into tears. Sweat drops started to form on Nanami's forehead. "Okay, okay. You can play but not here. Got it?" she smiled.
In an instant, their moods did a 180. "Hai~!" The girls cooed in sync. Nanami inwardly sighed. She'd been had.
Meanwhile, a certain male still refused to attend class. Hibari remained asleep inside the empty disciplinary office until a little canary bird entered through the window. "Hibari! Prey! Prey!"
Hibari slowly rose from the couch and rubbed his eyes. "Where is it?"
The bird flew outside and Hibari peeked through the window. "There?" he asked, noticing that the bird was gesturing to the room below their floor. He smirked.
At the base of his tonfas, chains emerged and Hibari had the spikes on its ends be burrowed in the room's walls. He jumped outside and stopped just at the right floor. The people inside the room shrieked upon seeing him hanging from above. He opened their window and invited himself inside.
"For bringing pornographic materials and crowding at schoolgrounds, I'll bite you to death."
[ Nanami: 1 Hibari: 1 ]
Challenge #3: Patrolling inside the school!
It was already lunch time when Nanami received the results of the second challenge. In spite of her flight-no-fight moments with Hibari, she actually hated losing. She groaned and ruffled her short brown locks, annoyed at herself. She hastily finished her bento and marched towards the freshmen building. There, she happened to run into familiar faces.
"Tenth, let's eat at the rooftop!" Gokudera exclaimed, trailing behind Tsuna who just exited the classroom.
"Gokudera-kun, I'm not sure if we can eat there. This is not Namimori Middle, you know," he replied with the usual worried expression.
"Don't worry!" With a thumbs up, the silverhead proudly exclaimed, "I can blow up the door if it's locked."
Tsuna's reply was nothing short of a shrill cry. Afraid to have caused terror to his boss, Gokudera was about to apologize when the shaking Tsuna pointed at something behind him. What greeted him was the sight of a demon.
"Blow up what, you say?" Nanami taunted as she grabbed Gokudera's shoulder.
"We're sorry!" Both freshmen apologized (and begged for their life) profusely.
"You can eat at the rooftop," Nanami said. The two blinked in dumbfoundment. Where did all the bloodlust go? "But only at the South building. Expect it to be crowded, though."
She was about to excuse herself when two other students approached them. One was someone she knew, while the other had, God forbid, regent hairstyle!
"Sawada-san, the leader won't be joining us for lunch," he said. Feeling an intense gaze being directed at him, the man stared at its source: a brunette girl with a red band on her right sleeve.
"You are . . . the president," he declared with eyes slightly widened. He then abruptly bowed, which took Nanami by surprise. "I'm Kusakabe Tetsuya. I believe I'll be joining the Disciplinary Committee soon. Of course, as Hibari-san's subordinate," he added the last one in a different tone.
Nanami was taught not to judge by the cover, but a guy with such barbaric hairstyle just had to be that man's ally. "I don't see Hibari around. What is he doing?"
"The leader is currently resting in the Disciplinary Committee's Office. As his henchman, I was told to fulfill this task instead."
"I see." Nanami paused. "—Wait, what?!"
[ Nanami: 2 Hibari: 1 ]
Challenge #4: Patrolling outside the school!
As if losing wasn't bad enough, Hibari just had to add insult to her injury by letting her win by default. More than willing to return the favor, Nanami vowed to crush him with all her might and have the rightful claim to victory.
Classes have already ended and as soon as she finished her council duties, Nanami proceeded to patrol around the places where students usually have their part-time jobs. She even talked to some schoolmates and asked about the status of their workplace.
"If anyone is bothering you, do not hesitate to call the police at once, okay?" And, again, they were entranced by her protective nature.
Having fully examined the area, Nanami headed to the arcade—the usual hangout spot for the boys. Beating a group of freshmen in a shooting game, she made them promise to go home after a game or two.
"Ane-san!" they cried out, completely taken in by her cool demeanor.
Strength and charisma—those two were the foundations of Nanami's absolute power over the student body of Namimori High. All while hiding a satisfied grin on her face, the brunette left and headed to her next destination.
Hibari, on the other hand, despised crowds. He was strolling around the streets of Namimori when a loud thud caught his attention. In a dark alley, he found three delinquents ganging up on a boy who happened to be his schoolmate. Hibari watched them silently, his eyes held no interest whatsoever.
"C'mon, buddy! Lend us some money, will 'ya?" One of them jested. The boy tried to argue albeit scared, causing the gangsters to snap and they beat him to submission.
Hibari sighed derisively. Pretentious herbivores. Beating him like that won't even break a rib.
"You're disturbing the peace," he said and walked to the group, announcing his presence in the process. "Scram."
The delinquents gave him a sour look. Oblivious to the identity of their uninvited guest, they scowled, "Who the hell are you? Get lost!"
"Hm?" Hibari hummed in sadistic amusement, which cued the reappearance of his tonfas. "Resistance . . . is very much welcomed."
High pitched screams echoed from the alley, but it was all short-lived.
( . . . )
Nanami, having completed her patrol, was on her way home when a fellow committee member suddenly blocked her path. Her delighted expression was instantly replaced by a mortified one when the news reached her ears, and she wasted no time rushing to the hospital.
"Ogata-kun!" she exclaimed upon entering the emergency room.
Ogata appeared from the waiting area and approached the brunette. For a timid person, he looked more relax than Nanami had expected. She asked for the student's location and after explaining the situation, Ogata led her to another room.
"—huh?"
Nanami gaped at the sight that greeted her. For a moment, she almost mistook the victim for the other. The Namimori High student was being treated for minor wounds, while the perpetrators were knocked unconscious with dark bruises and stitches all over their bodies.
Cold sweat trickled down her face. "T-This is Hibari's doing?" she gulped, remembering Ogata's words. The two were then asked to wait outside.
After the student was treated and discharged, Nanami and Ogata talked to him. He revealed that those three gangsters had been on his trail for almost a year, and that telling the police did not help him get rid of them.
Nanami apologized for not noticing, but the student simply shook his head. "Don't be. I'm already grateful to the Disciplinary Committee for running to my rescue. If it weren't for Hibari-san, I would have probably died."
A momentary silence enveloped the room.
"What's important is that you're safe now," Nanami said with a small smile. If Ogata didn't know better, he would have not noticed that it was a forced expression.
The ride back home was undoubtedly silent. Nanami and Ogata had just dropped off the unnamed student at his apartment, leaving the two of them in the backseat of the taxi. The brunette's gaze was directed beyond the window, but her eyes were blank and reflected something else. The vice president knew what it was: guilt.
"President," Ogata spoke, breaking the ice. "The student said so himself. Don't be sorry."
Nanami turned away from the window, her head now hanging low. She released a heavy sigh.
"It's not that. I—I just wonder who am I doing this for?" she contemplated on her actions. The way she interacted with everyone: her words and actions were kind, but it felt shallow in actuality. She was like a doll moving on strings. Strings called 'self-gratification'.
"Am I saying all those pretty words so they will listen to me? Am I helping them just so they will need me? Am I trying to please everyone for them to acknowledge me?" she paused hesitantly before looking at Ogata. "Am I doing all of these for myself?"
"Senritsu-san. I know you're smart, but please try not to use your head too much," he said. However, his plea was left unheard.
"Am I a hypocrite?" Nanami asked.
"Then, let me ask you, did you rush to the hospital thinking that the student will be awake to praise you for being so caring and good-hearted?"
"But, I could have rushed there since it's my job and I have no choice anyways," she argued.
Ogata resisted the urge to yank his already messy black hair in annoyance. As far as he could remember, he was the whiny one, not her. "You're overthinking this," he grunted. "For me, there's no better leader than you."
Nanami's eyes slightly widened. Just like a sulking child, she pouted in attempt to hold back her usual sheepish grin.
The remainder of their journey was filled with peaceful silence and occasional bouts of sobbing that came from a certain president who was moved to tears.
Challenge #5: Sparring Match! To be Continued!
Author's Note: Hi guys! I don't know if you have noticed this, but I intentionally put some things that should have piqued your subconsciousness. Please pay attention to it since it will play an important part in the future! 'Til next chapter! :-)
