Just like Anarchy

6918

Anarchy: the state of lawlessness and disorder. When Hibari falls terminally ill, Mukuro's world becomes such as; crumbling, falling, and shattering.

The name of this fic happened to come from a picture I saw on tumblr. It had Mukuro in the background, obviously, and I just saved a word file on my laptop titled "Just like Anarchy". I think it's been untouched for about three months, until I had a brainwave during band class and went home to write it out.

So. Here's my second 6918, also a tragic story. I think I've written three tragedy 6918 fics in total, two of which are now on FF :D I feel happy now~ Progress has been made!

Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

Just like Anarchy

"And the weather today consists of a high of eighteen degrees with a slight chance of shower in the afternoon. Overnight forecasting estimates a low of six degrees and a possible chance of fog in the morning. Tomorrow morning will be an estimated high of nine. It is cautioned that drivers take care as we continue to remain in this dreary, wet weather. That's it for the weather report; now back to you, Sakamoto-san."

Hibari mashed his thumb onto the remote, effectively turning the small television set off with a small beep. The open window let in a breeze of fresh air as he leaned back into the pillows on his bed, closing his eyes and letting the cool wind brush past his face. He hated being in this room. It was small, cramped, and smelled largely of disinfect. It was far too constricting for someone like him.

The door to the room suddenly rattled opened, and a young man with long blue hair tied back in a low ponytail walked in, carrying a small shopping bag with him. The raven turned, eyes narrowing as the other walked up to him, dropping down into the stool next to his bed with a smile on his face.

"Mornin', Kyoya. Feeling any better today?"

"No," Hibari shot back scathingly. "I told you to stop visiting me, damned pineapple."

Mukuro chuckled, taking off his coat and tossing it over to the end of the bed, fixing his tie. "Don't be mean, Kyoya. I brought you a bento and green tea; do you want to eat it now or later?"

Hibari looked away. "I don't want to eat anything you brought for me."

Mukuro's smile didn't fade away at the cold words. Instead, he laughed again, placing the shopping bag on the nightstand next to the wide bed the raven was currently resting on. "I'll leave it here, so you can eat it when you're hungry." The blue-haired man stood up, pulling his jacket back on. "I have to go to work now, so I'll come visit you around five in the afternoon. Be good, Kyoya!"

Giving Hibari one last, bright smile, Mukuro waved and left the room, humming softly. Hibari watched him go, waiting until the door closed and he was sure the other wouldn't come barging back into the room like he'd done before, just to give him a quick hug, a mischievous grin on his face. No matter how many times Hibari had told him to stay away, Mukuro never did. The stupid pineapple visited every day, before he went to work, sometimes during lunch, for nearly four hours in the evenings until visiting hours in the hospital was over.

Hibari curled up under the white blankets, furiously burying his face in the crisp, clean sheets. The hospital room was just as clean and white, the walls staring blankly back at the raven.

It didn't feel good at all.

The door opened, and Hibari jumped, half expecting to see Mukuro come back in again. But it was only his doctor, who gave the stoic raven an incline of his head as a morning greeting. The old man placed a small cup of water and seven different coloured pills down on the nightstand next to the bento. Hibari watched him leave, glaring at the pills.

It was the same every morning.

Reaching out, he picked up the bento and opened it up. It was hamburger steak, his favourite, with a side of plain rice and some vegetables on the side. Silently, he dug in, munching away at the takeout while staring out of his open window. The hospital staff had long ago learned to accept the fact that Hibari would never eat hospital food, and that Mukuro's bentos were the only thing he'd ever digest. They had struck a deal, saying that Mukuro could continue bringing him food if Hibari would take the pills they prescribed and partially because of Mukuro's pleading, Hibari accepted the offer and now took the medication he would have viciously declined before. He hated to admit it, but when Mukuro pulled his "worried for you" act on him, he couldn't help but grumble and give in. But he wasn't really complaining about Mukuro bringing him his meals. For Hibari, the reason for rejecting the food offered by the staff was simple: those bentos he ate everyday were the closest thing that resembled the breakfasts he used to eat with Mukuro.

When they were still together.

Before all this happened.

Mukuro sighed and rubbed his eyes, staring blankly at the computer screen. He had sent off his documents to his boss, Byakuran, several minutes ago, but couldn't bring himself to move around at all. He was exhausted from staying up late for three days in a row while running back and forth the visit Hibari at the hospital. He didn't mind, though. So long as Hibari was comfortable and hopefully getting better, he'd bring the raven whatever he wanted to eat.

"Mukuro-san?"

The blue-haired man cricked his neck and twisted around in his wheely office chair to look at Tsuna and Yamamoto, his coworkers, who were addressing him in concern.

"Are you alright, Mukuro-san?" Tsuna asked, worried. "You look pale."

"I'm fine," Mukuro replied. "Just stayed up late."

"Maa, maa, you should get some sleep then," Yamamoto scolded. Mukuro rolled his eyes in good humor; he and Yamamoto and been acquaintances in high school, and the man was always worrying about others before himself.

"Can't; I have to go pick up dinner." Mukuro grabbed his laptop and shrugged his coat on. "I'll see you gentlemen tomorrow."

"Bye, then," Tsuna said, waving. Mukuro nodded at the two men and exited the office, glass door swinging shut behind him. Yamamoto huffed, scratching the back of his neck.

"Mukuro's gotta stop working himself to the bone. He's at his wit's end by now."

"What do you mean?" Tsuna asked, surprised. Yamamoto sighed, continuing his way down the hallway, the shorter of the two running to catch up.

"You know why Mukuro's been so busy nowadays?"

Tsuna shook his head, befuddled. Yamamoto continued quietly, a sad look on his face.

"He's been going to the hospital in all his spare time."

"Why?" Tsuna asked, startled. "Is he sick?"

"No, no, he' not sick. It's Hibari Kyoya who's ill."

"Hibari Kyoya?" Tsuna repeated with his eyebrows furrowed. "Hibari-san…but isn't he Mukuro's boyfriend? The man who came to the office's Christmas party last winter…and called us all herbivores?" The dark-haired man chuckled at the memory, but the smile died out quickly.

"Well, it's ex-boyfriend now," Yamamoto said quietly. "Hibari got sick a while ago. Mukuro hasn't said much about it, but apparently it's in the terminal stage. Hibari broke up with him the minute he found out there was no cure and that the only method of treatment would only slow the illness down for a short amount of time."

"Hibari-san broke up with Mukuro?" Tsuna gasped, stunned. "But…but why?"

Yamamoto shrugged. "I don't know; Hibari's a strange guy. But I guess he doesn't want Mukuro to be broken hearted when he…you know. Just goes to show how dedicated Mukuro is though." Yamamoto cracked a little grin, shaking his head. "He still hasn't given up on Hibari after such a long time."

Tsuna blinked, feeling awful for his coworker. "I hope Hibari-san gets better soon," he said softly. Yamamoto nodded.

"The world's a cruel place. For their sakes, I hope so too."

Mukuro leaned against the elevator walls, rubbing his eyes and stifling a yawn, his laptop under one arm and two bento dinners in the other. It wasn't take-out this time. He had made it himself the night before, packed it and brought it to the hospital's cafeteria to microwave it for Hibari. When the doors opened, he walked out and headed down the familiar white halls down to Hibari's room. To Mukuro's surprise, the door was slightly ajar when he arrived, and voices were resonating from the small room. Not wanting to intrude, the blue-haired man hovered at the doorway, wondering if he should head back. Then, Hibari's sudden shout made him freeze in his tracks.

"I'll bite you to death!"

"Hibari-san, please consider this logically, at this point in time you are—"

"I don't give a damn," Hibari snarled at the other man in the room, who happened to be the doctor. "If you do anything unnecessary, I'll destroy you."

"Hibari-san, will you listen to me!" the doctor snapped, and Mukuro had to admire the man's nerve. Not many people yelled at Hibari and lived beyond ten seconds. There was a tense pause in the room. Then, the doctor sighed audibly and drummed his fingers nervously on the edge of the nightstand.

"Listen, Hibari-san. Your illness has spread again. It was firstly located near your stomach, and later on it moved on to your liver. Now, it's in your lungs. Your time has been cut short by a considerable amount. We estimated you had about two months to live before, but with this…"

"What's the matter with you?" Hibari spat. "Say it. Tell me when I'm going to die."

His words were like burning stakes being driven into Mukuro's heart.

"I—two weeks, Hibari-san. At best, you'll last two weeks."

There was another long silence in the room. Mukuro was frozen to the ground outside, barely breathing. He couldn't believe this. Why weren't the treatments working? Why was Kyoya dying? Why? Why?

"So that's it, then," Hibari said, his voice perfectly even. "I'll die before the month ends, and I don't think any more of your medication would change that."

"…I don't think so either," the doctor said tiredly. Hibari snorted.

"Then why did you suggest it?"

"It's my responsibility as your doctor to do all that I can to save your life," the man argued back. "If there is a path, I will take it."

"I wouldn't," Hibari snarled. "If that path involves pumping me so full of drugs that I can't even tell the difference between day and night, then it's no good. I'm only here because some idiot insisted I remain under surveillance so that I wouldn't do anything stupid. I'm not doing any more beyond that. This place is full of herbivores. It's making me ill."

"I urge you to think more about it," the doctor insisted. "Consider the idea, at the very least."

"No." Hibari replied stubbornly. "I will not be tied down like this."

There was no response from the doctor, but suddenly, the sound of the footsteps was right at the door and before Mukuro knew what had happened, he was facing the old doctor and a surprised Hibari sitting on the bed. The doctor's eyebrows went up, but then his expression turned back into a tired, worn-down one, and he simply shook his head at Mukuro, saying quietly to the taller man, "Try to convince him, will you?" before exiting the hospital room.

Mukuro stepped in, feeling numb, and closed the door after him.

Hibari glared, like Mukuro had eavesdropped on purpose. "What are you doing here?"

Mukuro help up the bento wordlessly, not trusting his mouth to speak. Hibari huffed, looking at the wall and holding out his hand. "Give it here, I'm starving."

Mukuro complied, walking over to sit on the chair next to the bed as Hibari opened to bento, picking up his chopsticks and mixing the rice and sauce together. Neither of them said a word as the raven ate, munching quietly and swallowing with a small gulping noise.

Hibari looked terrible. In the past five months, he had lost a considerable amount of weight to the point where he literally resembled a twig. His face was pale and he had dark shadows under his eyes, there were white hairs mixing into the otherwise inky black hair and strange discolorations on his neck, arms and hands, like bruises. Mukuro longed to reach out and rub the black marks away, wanting more than nothing to see his Kyoya healthy again. Hibari seemed to sense the other's thoughts, because he turned and said shortly, "Why are you still here? I've told you long ago to stop coming."

"Why won't you take the medicine?" Mukuro asked, ignoring the other's question. Hibari's eyes narrowed.

"It's pointless," he said offhandedly. "I refuse to turn to such a useless method of survival."

"Are you so eager to die?" Mukuro said, his voice rising as he spoke.

"Why does this matter to you?" Hibari snarled. "Even if you and that herbivore doctor want to drug me until I'm out of it, I won't live long. Would you rather me live like this for another week or so? So high out of my mind, and not even conscious enough to hold a conversation with you? I refuse to die like a sedated animal. I have my pride!"

"Have you ever thought my pride then?" Mukuro roared, jumping to his feet. "Everything I'd feel when you leave me behind? How badly it would hurt?"

"That's why I told you to go!" Hibari shouted. "Go, and don't come back! I don't need you here! I never needed you!"

"LIAR!" Mukuro yelled, grabbing Hibari's wrist. The bento spilled all over the bed, rice falling onto the floor and sauce staining the pristine white sheets with a bright, angry red. Hibari struggled, eyes on fire, and slapped at Mukuro's face. The blue-haired man jerked back, his coat sliding off his shoulders and his personal belongings falling out of his pockets. A wallet landed on the floor with a thunk and a cell phone smashed on the tiles. Hibari pulled back again, determined to free himself from Mukuro's grip, but started to cough viciously, his thin figure shaking with the painful effort. It was heartbreaking to see. Mukuro fell to his knees, shoulders trembling, and just rested his forehead on Hibari's extended leg.

"Why…why did it have to be you…?" Mukuro whispered. "Why, Hibari?"

Hibari said nothing. He coughed again, though a little less violently, and watched the other cry, feeling the grip slackening on his wrist.

"Why is this world so cruel…? Why did it have to be you…you're strong, Kyoya, so why do you have to be taken away from me?"

"Shut up," Hibari said softly, reaching out with his other hand to touch Mukuro's hair. "Stop whining like a herbivore."

Mukuro looked up, rising up on his knees a little bit so that he could pull Hibari down to him. The raven didn't resist; even when their lips met, and Mukuro kissed his ex-boyfriend like there was no tomorrow. Hibari mumbled something, tugging Mukuro up so that the man was sitting on the side of his bed now, arms wrapping against one another, drawing closer and closer. It had been months since they had broken up, but it was clear that neither of them wanted to let go, even though Hibari had venomously stuck Mukuro down over and over again every time the other said that he'd stay by the raven forever. Tonight, all those thoughts were lost as the two held each other close, not wanting to let go.

When they parted for air, Hibari looked tired. Mukuro just sighed and kissed the raven on the forehead, whispering quietly, "Kyoya, just let me stay with you until the end."

"No," Hibari shook his head. "You need to go, Mukuro."

"What if I don't want to?" Mukuro asked, holding Hibari's face in the palms of his hands, staring deeply into the dark eyes he loved so much. "I refuse to leave you behind."

"You'll have to either way," Hibari mumbled, "So stop tying yourself down. I'm best suited to be alone anyway."

"That's what you think," Mukuro mused, hugging the smaller man again, tucking Hibari's head under his chin. "Nobody needs to be alone. I'll be here for you for as long as I need to be."

They stayed like that for a little longer, until Hibari huffed and pushed Mukuro off him, grumbling about visiting hours being over already. Mukuro picked up his fallen things, staring regretfully down as his broken cell phone. Maybe it was time for a new one.

Just before he left, Mukuro walked over to kiss Hibari once more, and then whispered something quietly into the raven's ear. Hibari blushed and glowered at the taller of the two, daring the blue-haired man to explain himself with the statement he'd just said. Mukuro only gave him a soft smile, ruffing Hibari's hair before pulling his coat on.

"Give me your answer when you're ready, Kyoya. I'll wait forever if you need me to."

With that, the two lovers parted once more.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

Mukuro stirred uncomfortably, a noise resonating in the back of his head. Why was it so loud? He groaned, trying to locate the source of the sound, sitting up tiredly at his desk. The room was dark. Even his laptop had gone into hibernation and the streets outside were noiseless.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

It took several moments for him to realize what it was.

His telephone was ringing.

Mukuro's heart leapt in uncontrollable fear. He shook back his sleeve to check his watch. It was 1 am, in the middle of the night. Nobody should call at such a late hour, except…His first coherent thought was Kyoya, and then, Shit, Kyoya!. Tripping over himself in his haste to reach for the phone by his bed, Mukuro swept a bunch of his things off his nightstand, but no phone.

Damn it, did he leave the cordless phone out in the den?

Throwing open the door of their room, Mukuro almost ran into the wall in the darkness of their apartment in his confused state. Where was the telephone?

He stumbled into the hall, past the living room, where the cordless could not be found, and finally into the kitchen, hands splayed over the wall for the phone on its cradle.

Ring. Ring. Ring.

His hands closed over the plastic freezing against his burning palms. But before Mukuro could lift the telephone, the noise cut off, leaving him in a silence that was even louder than the previous beeping. Mukuro's heart pounded in his ribcage. What was he going to do now? He had no caller ID, there wasn't a redial button on this phone, and his cell phone was broken. What if it was the hospital? What if something happened?

"Kyoya," Mukuro whispered desperately, grabbing at his hair. For a moment he stood very still. Then, in a split second, he made up his mind. Mukuro turned and ran out of the room, running to find his sweater to throw over his unchanged office uniform and his keys, barging out the front door without even bothering to look behind him and lock it. It slammed shut behind him, sealing the apartment in quiet once more.

The apartment remained quite still for several moments after Mukuro left. Then, the answering machine resting on the coffee table suddenly beeped to life.

"Hey, Mukuro? It's me, Byakuran. Sorry to bother at such a later hour, but I need you to send over the accounting documents as soon as possible because we'll need them for the conference. Call be back when you can. Thanks."

There was a click, and then, the apartment became deathly still once more.

He was driving down the street, which was nearly deserted in the early hour. Mukuro pressed his lips together, his foot increasing the pressure on the gas pedal little by little. His hands were sweaty on the wheel and his heart was hammering against his ribcage. Countless thoughts were racing through Mukuro's head at the moment. Was Kyoya alright? What had happened? When was he going to get there?

Mukuro swallowed, his throat dry. What if he didn't make it in time?

He continued to speed down the road, watching the traffic light in the distance change from green to yellow. Mukuro bit his lip, going way past the speed limit already. Just before he reached the end of the road, the light switched to a red, and he cursed.

There wasn't any time to waste.

Flooring the pedal, Mukuro exhaled and shot through the red light.

In an instant, the oncoming van driving without headlights smashed into the compact car's side. There was a horrible screech; glass shattered everywhere and Mukuro's car was pushed until it was crushed into the post of the traffic light. The van and car rested limply against one another, metal crumpled against metal and utter silence hanging over the scene of the accident.

In the driver's seat, there was no response from the blue-haired man save for a single word uttered from a weak, dying breath.

"K…Kyoya…"

Then, everything went black.

Hibari opened his eyes.

There was a second or two where he couldn't tell where he was exactly, and his chest felt extremely tight, as though someone was winding iron bands around his torso. Swallowing, the raven turned his head slowly, his throat dry. Why was he awake? He almost never woke up during the night, mainly because of the drugs he took before bed. It never failed to knock him out until the morning. So why…?

Hibari reached over to his nightstand, wanting to pick up the glass of water resting on the cool surface. His hand grazed the glass, but he couldn't lift it up. It was as though all the energy he had was gone. Hibari heaved a breath. Why did it hurt to breathe?

His head was spinning badly now. Somewhere in the back of the buzzing noise in his ears, he could hear an ear-piercing alarm wailing. He rolled over, regretting the action almost immediately because of the pain that shot up in his abdomen.

Damn it, make it all stop.

Hibari was dimly aware of hands reaching out to him, trying to help, lifting his legs in a standard first aid recovery position and flat palms pushing down on his chest, trying to bring back something that wasn't beating anymore. The only thing he could really think of at the moment was that none of those hands were Mukuro.

Mukuro…Mukuro. Where was he? The man was here whenever Hibari didn't need him, but now, at the most crucial moments, the blue-haired man was mysteriously absent.

Somewhere in the back, a voice said, "We're losing him!"

No…that wasn't it, Hibari thought slowly. He had always needed Mukuro by him. Was he really so lonely without that man? He almost wished he'd insisted the other spent the night at the hospital with him.

He closed his eyes, feeling a little cold. It was tiring, staying up.

Perhaps he'll go to sleep for now, and wake up tomorrow morning so he could scowl at Mukuro again when the other came in at 8am, as usual.

The doctor wiped his forehead, staring down at the serene expression on Hibari's face. It was rare to see the young man so calm like that. The nurse standing beside him placed a hand down on his arm, her expression sad and pacifying. The old man stepped back, letting out a long sigh, feeling like he'd held his breath for hours. Behind him, the heart monitor remained unresponsive, just like the raven lying on the bed.

The phones were ringing off their hooks.

For about ten minutes, there was nothing but chaotic noise in the empty apartment. The answering machine beeped every once in a while, recording the voices that left behind their messages to two people that would never answer the phone for them again.

"Mukuro! It's Yamamoto, where are you? The hospital contacted me when they couldn't reach you. You have to go right away! They say something's happened with Hibari!"

Beep.

"Mukuro-san? It's Tsuna, from work. Yamamoto called me asking if I had your cell phone number. Is it out of batteries? You're not picking up anywhere. Call me back as soon as you can, okay? Thanks, goodbye."

Beep.

"Ano…onii-chan? It's Chrome. Somebody from the hospital called asking if you were home. I told them you've moved out a long time ago. Is there something wrong with Kyoya-san? You're not answering, so did you leave already? Call me later if you have any news. Bye, onii-chan."

Beep.

"Mukuro Rokudo. It's Alaude. What is going on? You better answer soon or it'll be too late. Make sure you call me back when you get this. And tell me what on earth is happening with my little brother."

Beep.

End of messages.

I just realized; there is a guy I know in my school whose last name is Sakamoto. Sakamoto was the news anchor in the tiny paragraph right at the very start. Huh. As I was writing this I was thinking, damn, that's a really bad coincidence. –sigh-

But anyway; what did you think? Maybe I'll move out of my tragedy fic stage soon. I'm getting depressed from this, haha. I should mention that I'm working on Chapter Two for Welcome to the Grimm Office and a oneshot called Archetype of a hero's rebirth for Reborn in regards to my recently completed Thieves and Beggars. I really want to finish that soon, so I'll do my best! If you enjoy reading my random fanfics, I hope you'll look forward to those :'D Thank you for reading! Comments are much appreciated.

-BlackStar