A/N: Disappeared for a while. Going to disappear again for a month. Because I'm a jerk. Had writer's block, decided to update. A big thanks to those of you who reviewed while I was away. I'm grateful. Really. NOT BEING SARCASTIC HERE JEEZ. But back to the story eh?

Warnings: OCs (OH GOD BURN IT), OOC mebbe, probably. People. Writing. Words. Too many words.

Disclaimer: I disclaim things. No KHR for moi. Nah.

...

Chapter 3

Reine was hiding in the rafters. They didn't clean the rafters very well. It was incredibly dusty and filled with cobwebs. It was also discomfiting to see large husks of what used to be insects littered across the beams. He swept away some of the dust, wrinkling his nose when he felt something crack under his fingers.

He needed a shower. But he couldn't leave until his young ward and friends were done cleaning up the gym.

"Haha, it's such a mess isn't it?" Yamamoto Takeshi was laughing. He was always laughing. Reine felt somewhat unnerved by it actually.

"Dammit, stupid teachers telling the Tenth to clean up their shit!" Gokudera Hayato kicked one of the nets sitting in the corner.

"W-Well, it can't be helped, Gokudera-kun. A-and I made us lose the game anyway…." Tsunayoshi sighed tiredly. His young ward had been doing that a lot lately. Sighs were a sign of negativity. Or something like that. Should he do something? He had heard from Reborn (and overheard from Sawada Nana and the Poison Scorpion) that giving out chocolate and flowers were usually helpful…

"Hey, Dame-Tsuna."

"R-Reborn!"

The hit man appeared from the window, the light shining behind his back. It was timed precisely for dramatic effect, Reine was told. The hit man smirked and Sawada Tsunayoshi paled when he saw that the infant tutor was swinging around a very familiar looking armband. Hibari Kyoya would not be happy. He threw it down to the young student, who caught it on instinct. The teenager looked at it for a moment, confused, before screaming and dropping it.

"W-What were you doing with that, Reborn?! Where did you — Hibari is going to kill us!" Tsunayoshi dropped his broom and clutched his head, staring blankly up at the ceiling. Reine decided that he hated the rafters. He just had this suit dry cleaned too.

"Don't worry Tenth, I'll protect you from that bastard!" The bomber's eyes were shining — no — sparkling. How was that even possible?

The baseball star patted Tsunayoshi on the back, "Now, now, I'm sure this is all just one big misunderstanding-"

"Herbivores…" There was a very palpable aura surrounding the Disciplinary Chair. So much that he wondered if perhaps the young man was a flame user. Sometimes Reine wondered how he managed to escape the prefect relatively unscathed. "For property theft and loitering — I'll bite you to death."

"B-But we're—Hieee!" The young mafia heir ducked from a swing that Reine was pretty sure would have decapitated him. Scary… Was Reborn really sure about making Hibari Kyoya a family member?

"Bastard, I'll blow you to pieces!" Gokudera Hayato pulled out grenades from what seemed to be nowhere. At least Reine had a pocket to pull from — but the bomber seemed to have them all the time, no matter what he wore or what he was doing.

He didn't have them in his— no…no that would be far too uncomfortable.

Yamamoto grabbed Tsunayoshi's and Gokudera's arms. "This is bad — let's make a run for it!"

"Che, coward!" But the bomber complied, throwing a smoke bomb to facilitate their escape. Even with the smoke, Reine could sense at least where Hibari Kyoya was. That killer intent was phenomenal. Soon enough, Reine heard every single one of them vacate the premises. Running and trying to avoid Hibari Kyoya no doubt.

He turned on his coms device. "Reborn, was this truly necessary? Should I interfere?"

He could imagine the smirk on the hit man's face when he spoke. "No, Tsuna needs to learn how to deal with his family members and keep them in line after all. Plus, I was getting bored."

Reine felt the strong urge to smack his palm against his forehead.

Just as he was ready to make his escape and follow Tsunayoshi (using the GPS tracker Reborn had so generously given him), he heard a few voices down below.

"What the— the gym is still a mess!" The gym teacher…and the basketball team?

The children complained. "Wasn't class 1-A supposed to clean it up?"

"But you gotta remember, Dame-Tsuna's in that class!"

"Ugh, what did that idiot mess up the gym or something?"

"Probably. I mean what else is he good at?"

They snickered. The gym teacher groaned and sent the team off. "Go do warm-ups outside, boys. I'll be out looking for a few miscreants who thought they could skip cleaning duty."

"Gonna give them detention coach?" asked one particularly vicious teenager.

"You know, sometimes I wonder if that's enough nowadays…Now shut up and get moving! If I don't see you all sweating by the time I get back, you'll be cleaning the entire school with toothbrushes!" The team scattered and the coach left, muttering under his breath. When all were gone and the gym door closed, he made his way down the rafters.

He sneezed a bit, trying to get the dust off. The gym had a considerable amount of dirt and the mats and vaults were still strewn about the area.

Tsunayoshi was going to get into trouble again…

He peeked outside, seeing that the teacher was nowhere in sight and the boys were far from the gym, too busy exercising to notice him. Chores weren't listed in his orders.

Protect Vongola Decimo and any acquired family members from harm.

It wasn't particularly specific. Perhaps he should just continue pursuing the boy— then he heard the other students talking, trying to avoid warm-ups.

"Hey, what do you think's gonna happen when coach catches Dame-Tsuna and the other brats?"

"Probably gonna make him clean the school with a toothbrush," the other snorted.

"Hah, that No-good idiot would probably make the whole school dirtier!"

"Good point, they should just kick him out of school. I mean he's a total failure — how did he even get into here anyway?"

"Dude, I heard he got 0's three times in a row, even after retaking the same test!"

"What? — No way! I didn't know anyone was that stupid!"

The teenagers began to laugh to themselves.

It's not like the principal would allow that. Expulsion was a measure specifically reserved for truancy, delinquency, poor academics —

Now that Reine thought back to it, Tsunayoshi did miss school at times because of Reborn's tutelage. Several times Tsunayoshi and his friends had destroyed the school, beaten down students, and carried dangerous weapons. And the boy also did poorly in every class, thus the name 'No-Good Tsuna'.

Another act out of line could very well make the administration consider expelling the child — if they weren't discussing it already. Certainly expulsion would damage Tsunayoshi's chances for higher education and would decrease mental acuity and even general health. And certainly, Gokudera Hayato and Yamamoto Takeshi would be upset, emotionally unbalanced and armed and most likely to cause trouble and get hurt as well. And then the amount of stress inflicted upon the Sawada family could very well be irreversible. And then Tsunayoshi, being under emotional duress, may not be able to protect himself from then on and would never be able to properly learn under Reborn and therefore fail as the Vongola candidate and then there would be no Decimo and there would be a terrible civil war worse than Cradle…

So in the end, he really was obligated to do Tsunayoshi's chores.

It was disheartening to go over it again in his mind and realize that such an outcome was not as farfetched as one would think. Especially if you take the remaining Varia into account…

He picked up a broom that lay neglected on the floor. He took off his blazer and rolled up his sleeves.

…

...

"I swear — ditching class duties to go mess around in the field!" Tsuna found himself being shoved towards the gym by Coach Osaru back to the gym.

He tried to say something, "B-But, H-Hibari-san-!"

"No, buts! Get going and clean this mess up — the moment I find you slacking I'm going to the principal!" Tsuna tried to explain again, what with the Disciplinary Chair attacking them, but the coach wouldn't let him get a single word in. "God, I don't know why they let in brats like you in here. Stupid, lazy, good-for-nothing-"

He really, really wished they hadn't decided to split up after all. At the time, it seemed like a good idea, seeing as Hibari couldn't be in three places at a time…right? (Yeah, haha it's not like Hibari's that crazy…) But then, well, just his luck of course to get caught by a teacher for 'slacking' off by avoiding certain death. And of course, because God up there loved him so much, he got caught by Coach Osaru. He swore up and down that the man had it out for him.

He always seemed to make Tsuna do ten times more work just for the sake of torturing him. And Tsuna being Tsuna, was rather no-good at athletic work in general - so it was twice as torturous than the more well-rounded student.

"-And don't even get me started on your terrible grades, how in the world you could fail something even the girls can do-" And he always seemed to force his images of others onto everyone. All girls were weak and stupid. Smart kids were sniveling weaklings. Student government was just a fancy way of slacking off for delinquents and children ought to listen and stay out of sight, not talk back. And athletic stars could do no wrong.

He was rude and cruel and, and…Tsuna really wished he hadn't been caught. This man…he could probably deal with it if his friends were there but—

"People like you ought to be expelled! That would make everyone's lives a bit easier—"

Sometimes those words hit a bit too close to home for him to take it in and brush it off like he usually did. He was used to hearing this kind of thing, he could handle it…

"Useless idiot, no-good brats like you should just disappear and stop infecting the other students with your lazy, pathetic—"

But it was hard to swallow sometimes. He had just started getting up - he didn't want to hit rock bottom again so soon. He didn't need to be reminded that the possibility of losing his friends for being...for being no-good was always there. He didn't need to be reminded of it.

Soon enough, the gym's doors were in front of him. Tsuna was all but ready to be shoved in and yelled at some more when he finally took his eyes off of the ground.

"E-Eh?"

The coach, having finally stopped yelling and taking a good look at the gym, gaped. "W-shat the-?"

The gym had never seemed better. Hell, the entire place, even the mats in the corner were sparkling! There was a soft, lemon fresh scent from air fresheners that Tsunayoshi distinctly remembered not being in the supply closet. Were the windows cleaned too? It seemed as if the room was a lot brighter now…

"H-How…you…Sawada!"

The no-good student jumped and turned around. The coach, if anything, seemed angrier than before. "Is this some kind of joke? Were you intentionally sending me on a wild goose chase and wasting my precious time-"

"Tsuna!"

"Tenth!"

At this point, Tsuna could have cried tears of joy. He turned around to see his friends (a little worse for wear seeing those scratches and bruises) running towards them. Gokudera came over first, scowling angrily and looking all but ready to punch the teacher in the face.

"You…were you harassing the tenth, you bastard?!" While Tsunayoshi did appreciate someone standing up for him, Gokudera wasn't really helping…

The coach turned into an ugly shade of red. "W-Why you — brat, I'll have you know, I'm a coach and I won't have a delinquent like you-" Immediately Yamamoto — thank God — came in between them.

"Maa, maa, let's just keep calm and —- whoa, the gym looks great!" The Coach turned even more angry and Yamamoto quickly changed is words. "I— er.. It looks even better now that we've cleaned it up, right Coach?" He proceeded to laugh loudly.

The man grunted, "I suppose…" He seemed to have been mollified a bit. Probably because Yamamoto was the baseball star of the school and excelled in everything physical. Again, good athletes could do no wrong in that man's eyes.

"Well, I'm glad that you like the job we've done here, so me, Tsuna and Gokudera are going to go change and head home!" Smoothly, Yamamoto slung an arm around the two students. He then turned out and shouted, "Hey guys, gym is clean!"

The basketball team quickly moved in towards the coach. Seeming to have been put in an awkward position, Coach Osaru seemed to have given up on yelling at them and groaned. "Er…Fine. Go home — and don't you dare skip out duties again or else you're going to be scrubbing the toilets with your teeth!" Then he turned his ugly mug to the rest of the team, "Did I say you could stop? Get back out there and do fifty lunges!"

The bomber pulled out a stick of dynamite from his shirt. "Like hell I'll let you get away with insulting-"

Tsuna jumped forward and covered his silver-haired friend's mouth. "O-of course, sir! We won't do it again, sir! We'll be going now!" And before anything else could happen, he grabbed his two friends and ran off towards the locker rooms. Eventually, when the man was out of sight, they stopped to take a breath. Or more like Tsuna did. Because damn his non-existent athletic abilities.

"T-Thank god," he sighed, "Osaru-sensei is so scary…"

Yamamoto laughed and crossed his arms behind his head. "Yeah, it's a good thing we got away."

The silver-haired teen beside him scoffed, "Che, that pompous bastard — how dare he speak to the tenth that way!" Then he did a complete turnaround and smiled, "But Tenth, that was amazing. The gym was sparkling and beautiful — just as I would expect from someone as great as you!"

"B-But it wasn't me… I was running with you guys and then I kinda got caught by Osaru-sensei," he confessed, rubbing the back of his neck.

The silver-haired teen then frowned and scoffed, "W-Well, that gym wasn't that nice looking anyway. I'm sure the tenth could have done it a thousand times better." Then his scowl turned a bit more contemplative.

But it was Yamamoto who asked the million dollar question, "So then...who cleaned the gym?"

…

...

Reine was running. Dodging knives and cake and people and children was not an easy task. A part of him felt almost grateful for having met Belphagor. Another part was repulsed at the thought of anyone remotely similar to him.

He could hear the terrified screams and frenzied footsteps as the Demon Chair of Namimori barreled through the crowd, either dodging or smashing items out of the way. He really should have just gone back to the apartment after he was done.

...

TEN MINUTES AGO.

...

Well, after Reine managed to clean the windows, he threw himself on the floor. The gym had been bit dirtier than he thought. He laid back and covered his eyes with his arm. He could feel his head throbbing a bit — the smell of disinfectant was beginning to get to him. It was at that moment that he heard footsteps coming. Before he could get up and hide, a certain baseball player stepped in.

— What Yamamoto sees —

"Shoot, this is bad—!" Yamamoto Takeshi ran in, slamming the door shut and placing his back against it. He knew that this wouldn't be enough to hold Hibari back but there it was worth trying. And maybe the door would slow Hibari down enough for him to escape and— "…Eh?"

Standing in front of him was a some guy. There were three bottles of disinfectant duct taped together and then taped again to the head and hiding the face. He was wearing a clean dress shirt with a tie and dress pants. Really uncomfortable and formal looking. Aside from the gun harness (were those things toys?), he looked ready to go to a business meeting. Like how the kid looked everyday actually.

The most Yamamoto Takeshi could think to do at the moment was laugh awkwardly and say, "Are you, uh, a part of the kid's game?"

The smell was unbearable, but it was all he could think of. They were already taped together and ready to be put away. Not exactly comfortable or inconspicuous, but it would have to do for now. He bowed stiffly, "Pardon me."

"Ah, w-wait-!"

Reine didn't wait for Yamamoto Takeshi to get closer. The tape was already beginning to slide off… He grabbed his jacket, throwing it over his shoulder. Using the mats and vaults he piled up, Reine jumped out the window.

The moment he touched the ground, he pulled the bottles off of his face. He rubbed his cheeks, feeling the sting of the tape from pulling it quickly. Not the most comfortable disguise. Perhaps he should walk around with a mask instead.

Things were becoming out of hand. He should be more vigilant — cautious. But when he reached out to pick up the fallen bottles, a foot stomped down on the container. Reine took a sharp breath and looked up.

Hibari Kyoya did not seem pleased. At all. "For trespassing, deliberately littering school property and disobeying school dress code—" Well, the prefect was also breaking school policy with his uniform and tonfas. "—I'll bite you to death."

...

PRESENT

...

The prefect never gave up. And while this may someday be invaluable to Tsunayoshi's family, he really, really wished the prefect just went home and left him alone.

"Stop running, omnivore!"

Reine would be content at being called an herbivore. Maybe then the Disciplinary Chair would lose interest. He considered playing dead. Then he recalled when a young, foolish yakuza member decided that he wished to be beaten to death by the infamous Demon Chairman of Namimori Middle. Even after the man was down, Hibari Kyoya had decided that defeat was not enough, and ruthlessly beat his opponent into the ground.

So playing dead. Not a good idea.

Reborn also warned against allowing the prefect to win. That would just hurt his pride and make him angrier, the hit man said. So that was also not allowed either. But he could not continue running through the streets for long — not with the possibility of being seen by Decimo and more of his family. He couldn't use his weapons in public either. None of that seemed to apply to Hibari Kyoya. Seeing as the Hibari family held Namimori as their personal territory, it wasn't so surprising for the townspeople to turn a blind eye to the prefect's transgressions.

It was a bit unfair.

"Hey, watch it!"

"What the hell's your problem-!"

"Ouch!"

As he ran, he kept on brushing shoulders and hitting bags. Thank goodness the shopping district wasn't any larger than this. He soon neared the end of the strip, away from the crowd. He looked around him - hoping for some where to hide. In between the next two buildings there was an alleyway. As good a hiding place as any. There was a large group of high-schoolers crowding the sidewalk walking in front of it.

This would work.

He jumped through the crowd. They stared. Then whispered excitedly with one another about being on a set of a movie. And in the commotion, he slipped away. He could feel the young man's impatience spike — the feeling of doom hung heavily over Reine's head. He didn't stay put to hear what happened to the high-schoolers when Hibari approached them.

Ignoring the subsequent screams of terror, he ran down the alley and found…?

A small plaza?

He stopped for a moment. He didn't recall passing through here before — he supposed that wasn't too surprising. It was small, dark and cramped. And why would his ward ever go into such an isolated area? Perhaps it was part of the old shopping district — nothing but a dusty cul-de-sac.

There was only one store open with a rusty sign reading 'Utakata Tea Shop' placed above the entrance. It seemed relatively cleaner than its neighbors. There were lights on inside but it seemed as if no one was there.

The moment he heard the footsteps start again he didn't hesitate to run inside.

"U-um…w-welcome-?" Without bothering to greet the woman at the register, he ran to the far corner of the shop and hid under the table. He pulled the table cloth a little lower to cover him better.

A few seconds later, he heard the door opened again. "A-ah, H-Hibari-san! T-T-To w-what do I owe the p-pleasure?" The woman's stuttering intensified.

"Hn." Footsteps moved towards the register. "Where is he?" The prefect sounded irritated. The table Reine was hiding under was near the back door, probably leading to the kitchen. It was a good escape route when things go wrong.

The woman squeaked. She sounded at a loss as to what to do. "H-He? U-um…w-who?"

The dark-haired young man huffed. "Then I'll find him myself." Reine pulled his head down under the table. The prefect probably sensed him already. He had to find another place to hide… A pair of black shoes came into view. He pulled out a smoke bomb in his pocket-

A door slammed open and a new voice spoke. "Hey, Hibari-bocchan!" The voice was flat and bored. The black shoes backed away and were faced with a pair of rainbow flip flops. "What you think you're doing? Harassing poor Jun-kun over here."

"I-Iroha-san-!"

"A bug crawled in through here," the prefect smacked his tonfa against the table. Reine jumped. "I'm here to deal with it personally."

"Eh, then I'll get the bug spray out and when it's outta here, it's all yours." The woman sounded so calm in the face of danger. "But your scary face is going to make the tea leaves wither. Get your fancy ass out of here and—"

Frantic taps across the floor. And soon enough a pair of brown loafers appeared behind the flip flops. "W-what, I-Iroha-san is trying to say i-is that your weekly order f-for barley tea isn't in y-yet. W-we'll deliver tomorrow a-at school! I-I'll even bring mochi for you — f-f-free of charge!"

Peeking from beneath the tablecloth, Reine could see that the prefect calmed down a bit more. Though he seemed…reluctant to accept this proposition. For a moment, their eyes met and Reine nearly flinched. The Disciplinary Chair scowled but surprisingly, he turned and walked away.

The flip flop lady scoffed, "Che, you indulge that brat too much." The flip flops stopped in front of him and a hand pulled up the table cloth. "Hey Mr. Bug, time to get out." She pulled away, letting him crawl out of the space. He brushed off of his shirt and pants — mostly out of habit than necessity. It was surprisingly clean under there. The rainbow flip flops — was a messy, blonde woman with dull grey eyes. Next to her was the brown loafers — a plain looking lady that shuffled her feet when he looked at her.

The messy woman flipped her hair and yawned, "I'm gonna go back to sleep, so Boss, you deal with the customers."

"U-um…r-right!" Boss? The plain woman hardly seemed capable of being a manager.

The messy woman turned to him. "Look, I don't give a damn why the brat was chasing you, just don't bring that kind of shit here. We got enough problems as it is." She yawned again and stretched. "Mmm…I'mma sleep now. But if I get up and you're still here, prepare to get your ass handed to you."

"…Very well." He bowed. He supposed it was prudent to be polite. "I am…grateful for your interference." The woman scoffed and rolled her eyes before walking into the back again. He supposed that he had been fortunate in appearing here. But the shop's significance was lost on him.

He took in his surroundings. There were various potted plants, mainly colorful cacti and a few miniature bonsai trees. Most of the tables were covered with yellowed tablecloths and doilies. The walls were covered in cracked flowery wallpaper and the floor was scratched, worn down wood. The register and counter seemed in better condition, but still worn.

"U-um…p-please don't mind I-Iroha-san…" a soft voice whispered from across the room. The plain woman was in the corner at the register, hiding her face behind a menu. Held upside down. From what he could see of her face, it was very, very red. When he looked at her, she hid her face completely. "I-I-I know I-Iroha-san can be a bit crass b-but she's a nice p-person."

Was he supposed to speak to her? He walked over to her. The woman held her menu tight, her knuckles turning white and the menu bending from the force. "Is — Is there a-anything I can h-help you with?" She spoke so quietly that he had to lean forward to hear.

The moment he did, the woman pulled back even more. What did he do wrong? He didn't think he did anything to her that would make her afraid. He chose his next words carefully. Be polite. Be clear. But most importantly…

He stared at her intently, and said in as clear a voice as possible, "Please tell me how you know Hibari Kyoya."

Rip out all the information they're worth! It doesn't matter if it's a man or woman or a baby, you drag out all the stuff worth learning about — voiiii!

The woman, despite him trying to be polite as possible, began shaking uncontrollably and pedaled backwards. She looked terrified. "H-Hibari-san? W-Why…?" He stared at her, cocking his head and frowning. What had he said that frightened her so? As he stared her, trying to think of the reason, the woman squeaked, "A-Alright then I-I-I'll tell y-y-you!"

She backed up all the way to the wall, looking ready to collapse.

He tried to ask if she was alright but she immediately spoke, "H-Hibari-san is a regular here! H-He doesn't like crowds so he comes here to nap sometimes! A-And he o-o-orders stuff here s-s-sometimes s-so t-that's why he c-c-comes h-here a-and not a lot of people come here because it's too isolated and h-hard to find and t-that's why this happens and, and his favorite order is barley tea and mochi- a-and t-that's about it! That's all I know! And- and please don't hurt me and—" the rest of her words trailed off into incomprehensible mumbles.

Reine pulled out his book, writing down what she said as quickly as he could. That would be enough. For now. He would have to do a thorough search of this woman's profile later and put her on file.

After she finished, he shut his book and bowed. "Thank you, for your cooperation. I will take my leave now." Without waiting for her to respond, fearing another outburst, he walked out of the shop.

That went well.

Or as well as he could make it. He wondered why she was so frightened. He had said 'please' and made sure to communicate his intentions clearly.

He shook his head. It happened quite often - perhaps it was normal for people to be fearful when one asked questions.

…

…

On the flip side of things, Nakahara Junko was absolutely terrified. The moment that man came running into her shop, she thought she was going to have a heart attack. Their eyes met for a moment and her stomach did flip flops.

Gold eyes….

Did he have contacts on or something?

She didn't have time to think more about it as the first thing he did was hide under the table. Next thing she knew, Hibari ran into the store. "A-ah, H-Hibari-san! T-T-To w-what do I owe the p-pleasure?" she stuttered.

And the rest was history. Iroha came out and saved her. And by some miracle, Hibari left. But not without glaring at the table the man was hiding under. Even if it wasn't at her, she flinched. She felt sorry for him. Getting Hibari's attention wasn't the best thing. She'd seen what happened, heard the rumors.

But anyway, when the young man left Iroha gave a scolding to the weird man hiding under their table. Then she left to take a nap. Leaving Junko with the weird man. Alone. Just the two of them.

She immediately jumped back behind the counter. B-Better than nothing right? She was going to be fine. Just treat him like another customer. Not like she had many customers b-but… So yes, be polite. But when he walked over, stood in front of her and stared… She was horrified.

What was wrong with his eyes? Were they real or fake or..?

They were scary…They seemed to be staring right through her and picking away at every secret she could possibly have-

Like staring at a cat. Or an owl. Or a lizard. You know…creepy things. She gulped and tried to be a good hostess. But the moment she did she regretted it. Because immediately she felt the atmosphere grow dark and when she looked up, he was glaring. Glaring! And he had a scary aura around him.

"Please tell me how you know Hibari Kyoya." His voice was blank, but he was glaring. Or maybe that was his face—no he was glaring! He was glaring at her! What do you want from meeee?!

(Unbeknownst to the speaker, Reine had entered 'interrogation mode'. Which was similar to Hibari's 'death mode' except a tamer — but still terrifying as eye witnesses said. Of course, Reine added the word 'please'. So obviously he wasn't being intimidating. At least — that was what went on in his head.)

She wanted to wail that out loud. And maybe Iroha would have come running to help her. But she kept her mouth shut.

No…I-I have to stand up for myself. B-Besides, I'm the owner and he's a customer! After you tell him, he'll go away and you'll probably never see each other ever, ever again. Just buck up now, Junko, you can do this!

When she looked up, he was staring at her again.

W-was he angry that she wasn't responding? And that dark cloud hadn't gone away at all. W-was he going to do something to her if she didn't do anything? H-help me… A moment longer and Junko cracked under the glare and practically barfed every thing she knew. As she spoke, she crept backwards and pulled the menu over her head to protect herself.

She barely even noticed that the man was leaving. The moment the door bell rang she collapsed in a heap on the floor. Why did it feel like she was interrogated by some scary yakuza person or something? Then it hit her. It wouldn't be all too surprising if he was a yakuza. A suit, scary eyes, getting chased by law-keeper Hibari.

The blood drained from her face and she collapsed over the counter, feeling her soul fly out of her body.

Mama…save me! Don't let that person ever come back here!

It was some time before she managed to get back to work. Clean the tables. Do the dishes. Cook. The usual. She couldn't focus on her studies and she couldn't sleep. All she could think of were gold eyes looming overhead. She was scared to look in her dresser that morning in fear of seeing two lights looking back.

B-But that was ridiculous! Nothing could fit in there! Or at least…that's what she told herself. After a few days of the same routine, the uneasiness began to disappear. Sweep up. Open. Wait at the counter. Cook. Sleep. Sweep up. Open. Wait…

The same thing as usual, day in and day out.

After a week, she managed to put the man out of her mind. Back to normal. Things were going along nicely again. She even got a bottle of sake as a present from one of her tenants on the second floor. How nice and not utterly rancid for once.

She was currently reading a book. It was a nice book about a little prince, trying to find his way home after falling into a horrible sleep. He meets friends all along the way and slowly gains the strength to beat the evil queen that keeps him from finding happiness.

When Iroha saw her reading it, she raised a brow and asked, "Isn't that a children's book?"

Of course, Junko blushed. She stammered, "B-But, i-it's a good book! I-It gives a good message and it's pretty…" She put her head down in embarrassment. Iroha sighed and patted her head.

"Whatever floats your boat, Boss. I'm gonna take a nap. You enjoy your uh…book." What was with that tone? It was fine! Sure it was a small book and but it was an art book with the nicest illustrations and, and…who was she kidding?

I'm an idiot…

She shook her head, trying to swat away the dark cloud hanging over her. Then the bell rang. Immediately, she dropped her book, picked up a menu and turned to face the door. "W-Welcome..." the words died in her throat.

"Pardon me." That man stood at the door, his face covered in shadow. But she knew who it was. For a second, Junko could only stand there, scared stiff, as the man approached the counter. "May I stay here until the Disciplinary Chair leaves?" He gestured behind him.

"W-what?" she squeaked. She pulled the menu off her head for a moment to peek beyond the man. In the distance she could see the prefect himself stalking the area in front of her shop, glaring. And surprising enough he wasn't going in, only seething.

"He appears less violent when I enter…" the man commented off-handedly. More like extra bloodthirsty! He turned his focus back to her seeming more…self-conscious? She wasn't sure. "May I stay—"

"S-sure! T-T-take a seat a-and y-you can go!" she squeaked and ducked behind the counter. She heard him walk away and a chair squeaked. When she peered over the counter again, she saw him sitting at the table farthest from the window. He put his head down and closed his eyes. He seemed a lot less scary that way… Younger. More tired. She shook her head.

I-I'm the owner I-I have to put my foot down and tell him to leave. He can't just come in here and s-scare me. O-or make Hibari come over. They're both going to scare away the customers! N-not like I had a lot to begin with…But still!

Steeling herself, she stood up from her hiding place. She was going to walk over and tell him to go. Her legs were still shaking a bit. But she could do this. She walked up to his table. He still had his head down. She felt a pang of pity but slapped her cheeks. No! You have to put your foot down!

"U-um e-e-excuse me…" she started. He looked up.

"…Yes?" He sounded tired. But then his eyes sharpened and focused on her. They were really bright. Too bright. Was he glaring at her again? She tried to say it. She really, really did.

"U-um…u-u-um…." He stared. She started quivering. Then she bowed, "I-If-you'd-like-anything-else-just-tell-me-I'll-be-in-the-back!" she blurted, before running away and hiding in the kitchen. Slamming the door behind her, she slid down to the floor and curled up to hug her knees.

"God please, help meeee!" she wailed.

…

…

Name: Nakahara Junko

Gender: Female

Age: 21

Occupation: Restaurant owner

Affiliations: None

Extra Notes:

A very ordinary person. Poses minimal threat and is a useful source of information. She owns the teahouse, Utakata, and is willing to allow me to rest there when Hibari is pursuing me. As she shows little threat and has very little interaction with Tsunayoshi and his famigilia, I have deemed this area safe.

Also, the owner seems to be frightened by my presence. I have made a note in my mind to offer aid in return providing me sanctuary. Just recently, I offered her a first aid kit in response to her constant tripping around the restaurant.

…

Dear Diary,

I think I dug myself into a hole. Ever since then, that guy keeps coming back. Should I call the police? What should I do? I can't stop thinking about how he might run in and shoot me. O-Or hide in my closet and kill me like those psychopaths in the movies! Ahhh, I don't want to think about it anymore! He even gave me a first aid kit today. I-Is this some sort of warning? Like is he going to send the yakuza after me for seeing too much or—or because I serve Hibari food? I'm too scared to touch it.

Iroha thinks it's all a big joke. That jerk. And to make things worse, she thinks I like like him. And I don't! Who could have a crush on someone so scary?

That's all for now I guess.

I hope this isn't my last entry,

Junko.

...

A/N: Poor, poor Junko.

So love? Like? Dislike? Hate? Hate me enough that you come after me with your torches and pitchforks and demand that I burn this abomination to kingdom come? Maybe the last one. Probably the last one.

So yeah. That's it. Another OC appeared. If only to highlight Reine a bit more. Mebbe some Decimo interaction in the future. The very, very far off future. K bye. Love you guys who actually care about this. You guys are the MVPs. The Baes.