The Ghost in the Attic, an KHR fanfiction.

Pairing: 1827, RxOC

WARNING!

The following is UNBETA-ED, SUBSTANTIAL OOC-NESS, read at your sanity's risk.

DISCLAIMER: KHR does not belong to me.

#~#$-$#~#

"Juudaime, if you have any difficulties, please do not hesitate to call me! I am your right hand man after all!" Gokudera said again for the nth time. He had already offered to let the Tenth live at his residence a lot of times but the Tenth's stubbornness proved to be unshakable as always.

"Maa maa..." Yamamoto smiled as carefree as he ever was. "But, Tsuna, Gokudera is right. If you ever need any help, call for Gokudera or me here, all right?" His expression turned serious when he spoke the last line. Tsuna is really prone at trying to do everything himself and not trying to be a burden for anyone.

"Don't worry." Tsuna smiled gently, trying to convince them that he was fine despite whatever that had happened.

A month ago, he was the 10th head of Vongola. Now, he is just a man who can't even afford a decent housing.

Tsuna looked at his new house again. 'It really is the definition of a haunted house, isn't it...haha...' He thought to himself and laughed nervously inside.

"And Gokudera, please call me Tsuna, since I'm not...the Tenth anymore." Tsuna looked away sadly.

Seeing Tsuna's pained looked, the two ex-guardians and childhood friends immediately stiffened and cursed themselves for not protecting Tsana better.

"Yes, Juu-Tsuna!" Gokudera corrected himself, feeling guilt for making Tsuna remember what happened...

After reassuring the pair that he was fine for the umpteenth time, Tsuna finally managed to take a step inside his new home.

As he stepped inside, the emptiness in his heart amplified. The basic furnitures were moved in a few days ago. Previously, he was still living with his best friend, Enma Shimon, a mafia boss like himself. He spent the previous month in warmth. His ex-guardians, most of them, came to visit him. His big brother always visited him when he had the time. All of his friends, no his family, were there for him. Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, Lambo, Fuuta, I-Pin, Kyoko, Haru, Dino, Enma, Reborn (who showed concern in his sadistic ways) and a lot more...

Without them, Tsuna would still be rotting on the streets. But now that they are gone, the emptiness inside him seems to be heavier. 'No, it was always there, just that...I tried not to think about it.'

'When I enter my home again, there won't be any 'Welcome home' anymore...I won't ever to able to see Dad laying out drunken on the floor anymore...I won't ever be able to eat Mama's food anymore... I won't be able shout at my guardians for destroying the mansion anymore...And, I never thought that the day I would miss paperworks would come but now...I won't ever need to sign bills for damage during missions for Gokudera, Yamamoto, Ryohei, Lambo and ... Them and him.'

Then, Tsuna broke down.

#~#$-$#~#

After crying for a few hours, Tsuna woke up in the middle of the night. Not knowing how he had ended up on his bed because he had sort of remember that he spent his time crying himself to sleep on the floor.

"Ugh, I'm pathetic." Tsuna said aloud.'When am I going to stop getting hung up over him?'

A sudden bout of recklessness and frustration overwhelmed him. Tsuna flung his blanket, pillows and everything he could get hold of.

"Why can't I forget him?"

"I want to forget him!"

"And I want to forget them!"

"What's wrong with me?"

"He was justing playing with me!"

"My feelings, were all just a joke for him!"

"He...He..."

Tsuna collasped, crying once again.

"What's wrong with me, why can't I forget him? People always said I was strong...but I feel so damn week!"

"I can't get him out of my hed, because I still loves him..."

Kyouya...

Tsuna was previously unaware of this, but a pair of eyes was watching him coldly from the ceilings.

Then, when he felt someone's stare, Tsuna looked up and saw a woman looking at him with a pair of cold eyes.

However, the essential thing was, the woman was see-through, and it wasn't even the entire body but just a head.

"Eh?"

Tsuna promptly fainted.

#~#$-$#~#

When Tsuna woke up again, it was already morning and he hypothesized that the apparition was just a figment of his imagination. Then he set about going through the newspaper looking for jobs and left the house.

And after a day's work, Tsuna was still - jobless.

Although he have his degree, but he was still technically 'jobless' for the last 4 years. A mafia boss isn't exactly an occupation he could write inside his credential.

Tsuna sat down and started eating the quick-meal he bought from the convenience store.

When he finished his dinner, Tsuna went up to his room's balcony to look at the night's sky. But when he looked at the balcony, Tsuna went pale and froze at his spot. There was a woman, the semi-transparent woman he saw the previous night.

Noticing Tsuna's presence, the figure turned to look at Tsuna with a lifeless look.

"Ah..."Tsuna was speechless. 'A ghost! Is it going to kill me?'

Just as quickly she turned to look at him, the figure return her gaze back to the sky, losing interest in the new arrival. 'Another new owner, will be gone soon.' The figure concluded.

After staying rooted in the ground for a few minutes, and seeing that the ghost is not adopting any aggressive measures, Tsuna relaxed.

He was used to crazy things, you had to be, for a mafia boss. Especially when you have a set of crazy guardians.

Then, Tsuna stared curiously at the ghost who was staring deeply at the sky, staring so deeply than anyone he had ever known. The expression betrayed no emotions but Tsuna could somehow feel that she was so sad, so very sad...

Feeling courageous, Tsuna spoke up, "Why are you looking at the sky like that?"

The figure turned back, showing a hint of surprise on her expression before it went back to the lifeless mask. She narrowed her eyes and returned back to her sky viewing.

Thinking that the ghost will not be replying him, Tsuna decided he should go to bed...At another room but he stopped when the ghost spoke.

"A reason same as you, I suppose." The figure spoke in the air. The voice was so surreal and soft, coming from a non-solid entity. And she looked at Tsuna in the eyes.

Then, she disappeared.

#~#$-$#~#

The weeks following after, Tsuna was showered visits and concerns from his friends. The amount of food and stuffs his friends gave him during those visits were enough to last him for a year.

Tsuna chuckled fondly at his friends. 'How am I going to live without them...'

Furthermore, Tsuna also spent the time deepening his relationship with his fellow resident, the ghost, Ayase. She finally told him her name after a few talks, which he found it scary the first few times, but soon, he found the talks to be pretty interesting, even if they are a little one-sided.

'No wonder the house was so cheap...It had changed hands a lot of times due to...Ayase's existence.' Tsuna realised. Ayase was a ghost who pretty much do what she wants without a care for anything else - like the presence of living human beings who will be scared of her. Although harmless, she scared the previous occupants with her appearance.

Ayase can't appear during the day so Tsuna can only speak to her during the night. And so, he can't wait for the sun to set and tell the news to Ayase that he finally found a job, a waiter at a cafe.

He had grown close to Ayase these few weeks despite her reluctance to interact. He really enjoyed their evening talks.

Then, the doorbell rang. Thinking that it was one of his friends, Tsuna hurriedly opened the door without thinking. The moment he saw his visitor however, Tsuna's face lost its colours.

The reason is , the person standing on his doorsteps was Hibari Kyoya.

"Tsuna, I..."Hibari started talking but Tsuna wasted no time to shut the door. He laid his body against the door, scared that Hibari will possibly try to break down the door.

"Go away!" Tsuna shouted, knowing that the other person was still on the other side of the door. Tears were forming at his eyes, he was at the edge of a large pour-down.

"Tsuna, let me explain, I-"

"Go away! I don't want to hear it, I don't want to hear your voice at all! Leave me alone!" Tsuna broke down and ran up to his room.

He could still hear Hibari's calls in his room but they only made Tsuna cried harder. Then, Hibari's voices stopped.

"He has left already, right?" Tsuna asked himself. His eyes still red from crying.

"He's there." Ayasa said as she appeared.

Tsuna stayed silent.

#~#$-$#~#

The next few days, Hibari always showed up at Tsuna's house. Hibari would show up at 6 in the morning and trailed before Tsuna a short distance away when he goes to work. When Tsuna is working at the cafe, Hibari would situated himself at a table and watch Tsuna . After Tsuna got off from work, he would follow Tsuna back home and knelt outside the door until 4am. And Hibari didn't spoke a word throughout, as if listening to Tsuna's command.

During this period, Tsuna pretended that Hibari was thin air and continued his daily chores.

"How long will you keep this up?" Ayase asked Tsuna.

"When he gives up." Tsuna replied.

"Hmm." Ayase looked at Tsuna then turned towards the window. 'Will he truly ever?'

#~#$-$#~#

True enough, Hibari never stopped.

"You know, it had rained heavily a few times since he started stalking you." Ayase commented, observing Tsuna's facial changed.

"I don't care." He forced himself to speak but Ayase caught a fleeting look of concern.

#~#$-$#~#

When Tsuna looked out of the window from his chair, Ayase appeared, staring at the same sky as him.

Then, for the first time, Ayase initiated the conversation.

"Long ago, I was the daughter of a very prominent boss of a mafia. My parents loves me very much and doted on me. Soon after, due to my father's position, my mother and I was caught up in a car accident. My mother passed away protecting me and since then I had a weak constitution. After that, my father grieved and became even more protective of me. I was not allowed to go out and play with the other kids nor was I able to attend school. I was lonely." Ayase stopped and though she was transparent, there was an unmistakable wistful in her eyes as she thought of her next sentence.

"Then came the year I was sixteen and he entered my life, my home tutor. He was kind and everything a young and lonely girl like me would fall for. I fell in love with him." Ayase smiled sadly.

"But he wasn't just a home tutor, the man I fell in love with was an assassin...Who was after my father's life." Ayase's eyes gazed over.

"One day, as I happily rushed to my father's room, I saw him pointing a gun towards my father and he shot him. Shortly after, without any hesitation, he shot me too. I stared at his retreating back as he left the room. Then, he set fire to the mansion and...I died."

Tsuna stared in concern at Ayase as she recount her tale.

"Did I hate him? Yes. Have I ever stopped loving him? No." Ayase chuckled softly.

"Because I can't forget the times I spent with him. Those moments are my most precious memories. That's why I can't forget him and why I'm still here. This house was built after the mansion was burnt down and I haunted it ever since."

"You still loves him." Ayase looked at Tsuna. The reason she treated him a little differently from the other occupants was because of the similar pasts they shared, though Tsuna is more fortunate.

"And he loves you." Ayase finished. "Give him a chance."

Then, unable to hold back his tears any longer, Tsuna cried.

#~#$-$#~#

After crying, Tsuna started his tale.

"I grew up in a loving household. My parents weren't exactly conventional but they loves me and I too loves them back. I was blissfully unaware of the mafia when I was young but then I turned fourteen and I was introduced to the mafia world when a home tutor came. He trained me to be a mafia boss and there were a lot of challenges to overcome. After I succeed the position of the boss of a mafia family, I met him, Hibari Kyoya. He was a mere recruit at first but his skills were exceptional and he worked up the ladder. One day I met him and I slowly fell in love with him. But Kyoya was just an undercover cop who wanted to gain my trust and destroy the Vongola from the inside. He didn't expect me to fall in love with him but he still made use of my feelings for him. That's not all..." Tsuna laughed at himself.

"Two of my most trusted members of my family were also plotting against me. Kyoya allied himself with them and leaked information to them. They in turn, provided the information to a rival family, hoping that the two mafia would destroy each other. This led to my demise of my parents. At that time, I knew that there was a betrayer inside Vongola but I never suspected it to be him nor them. Soon, they succeed. Someone overthrew me and the Vongola is being led to its downfall by him as we speak. Though a positive upside is that because of my fall of power, my guardians were able to live a normal life again." Tsuna laughed bitterly again.

"I still remember the words he said when he revealed the truth to me. How he said I was disgusting, so stupid and naive, so foolish, that I wasn't worth a second of his time..."

And the night continues with Tsuna mumbling and Ayase kind words.

#~#$-$#~#

It was a Saturday and Tsuna's day off from work. When he stepped out of the house, as expected, Hibari was there.

Tsuna looked at his disheveled appearance. "You...You can come in." Tsuna invited Hibari inside.

Hibari looked up at Tsuna with a lace of joy shone in his eyes at Tsuna's invitation and immediately followed after Tsuna into the house.

"Sit." Tsuna commanded Hibari when they entered the living room. Hibari obeyed immediately, which were a sight to behold considering Hibari's personality. But Hibari paid no heed to the commanding tone and was quick to take the chance to talk with Tsuna.

"Talk."

"Sorry." Hibari spoke softly, having no past experience in apologising.

"I don't need it!" Tsuna shouted, then calmed himself. "If that's all you're going to say, leave."

Getting up, Tsuna gestured for Hibari to stand up.

"Tsuna, I-" Hibari protested.

"I don't want to hear it! I don't need your sorry. I hate you! I wish I had - " Tsuna suddenly became agitated and screamed the words out with a hint of desperation in his voice. Alas, he was stopped mid-sentence.

Hibari kissed him.

Staring wide-eyed, Tsuna could not comprehend the situation for a moment before realisation struck him.

"Let go of me!" Tsuna struggled against Hibari's hold but the action was futile and allowed Hibari's entrance to Tsuna's mouth.

"Mmph!" Tsuna exclaimed.

Then Tsuna stopped resisting as he lost himself in the kiss.

Deciding that they needed to breathe again, Hibari released Tsuna and stared deep into Tsuna's eyes.

"I'm sorry that I hurt you. I'm sorry that I lied to you. And finally, I'm sorry because..."Hibari's voice trailed off a little.

"I love you." Hibari finished. Those three words were soft and hardly inaudible but everything just turned emotional and Tsuna broke down and cried.

Thumping his hand on Hibari's chest, Tsuna spoke, "You have no rights to say you love me after all this! You have no rights to! You can't just waltz back into my life like this! What gives you the rights to do whatever you want with my heart..." Tsuna sobbed.

Hibari allowed himself to be hit and let Tsuna vent out his frustration.

"I'll never apologise to you again." Hibari said in his usual cold tone of voice. "Because I'll never give you a reason to." The hint of warmth in the voice startled Tsuna and he looked up at Hibari.

Hibari continued to speak, seeing no interruption from Tsuna. "And the only three words you will ever hear from me is I love you."

Continuing, Hibari said, "I love you." He looked at Tsuna in the eyes.

Tsuna gazed into the eyes of the man he loves and he knew even without using hyper-intuition, that he could entrust himself to the man before him because, he was already Hibari's the day their eyes met.

"Kyou-san, I never knew you were ever so sentimental."Tsuna teased.

In true Hibari-fashion, a dark look of disgust showed on his face.

It was a happily ever after.

#~#$-$#~#

Side-story

Then one evening, Reborn came.

"The Vongola has fallen." Reborn informed his ex-student.

"I see..."Tsuna commented sadly.

"No matter, the Vongola had already stagnated for the past few generations. The Primo would have been glad of its fall. I bet with you that if he could, he probably would have been the one plotting its downfall. The only reason that secured the Vongola existence was you, dame-Tsuna." The tutor gave his rare compliment.

Tsuna smiled. "Who I was, and how I was able to have done all that was thanks to you, Reborn."

The hitman smirked and adjusted his fedora.

"I am the world's greatest hitman afterall."

#~#$-$#~#

"Ayase! Ayase?" Tsuna called out. It was unusual for Ayase not to appear at their usual meeting spot. 'Is something wrong?' Tsuna frowned in concern.

Hibari hugged Tsuna from behind and comforted Tsuna in his own way. "The herbivore will be fine." Hibari husked. Hibari had asked Tsuna to move in with him but Tsuna declined because he didn't want to part with Ayase. Thus, Hibari moved in and he was immediately introduced to the resident ghost, Ayase. Hibari didn't even flinch an eyebrow when he saw Ayase.

The next instant, Ayase appeared in front of them.

"Ayase, how are you?" Tsuna immediately asked in concern upon seeing the weird expression on his friend.

"I'm fine, Tsuna." Ayase smiled sadly.

"Really?" Tsuna questioned.

"...Yeah." Ayase reassured Tsuna and looked up at the sky.

"Lasciate riposare il nostro amore vero finché la notte esiste, per le stelle sono la testimonianza del nostro amore. In modo da guardare verso il cielo, ogni volta che mi manchi, amore mio." She whispered softly into the breeze of the night air, and smiled, reminiscing about the past long ago.

"Eh?" Tsuna was confused.

"Nothing, I'll be going now."

"Wait, Aya-" But Tsuna was too late, she was already gone.

Throughout the whole time, Hibari had a pensive look on his face.

"Kyoya, what do you think is up with Ayase?" Tsuna looked up worriedly to his lover.

"Hmph." Hibari grunted in reply.

Tsuna frowned and smacked Hibari.

"Just so you know, the only reason I gave you a chance was because of Ayase. So you owe a debt to her!" Tsuna said, knowing well that Hibari hate to be indebted to anyone.

"You told me her past."

"Yeah...?"

"It's related."

"Eh?" Tsuna tilted his head in confusion.

Then, a malicious grin appeared on Hibari's face.

"If you want to know my deductive work, you have to work for it..." Hibari whispered the words to Tsuna in a suggestive tone.

Tsuna immediately turned bright red. "P-Pervert!" He bravely called out.

That night, Tsuna learned what punishments arising from his certain acts of courage are.

#~#$-$#~#

After Reborn stepped out of the house, he suddenly felt a sense of sadness when the night air breezed past him. He looked up at the sky and remembered the sentences he said to her so long ago. Lasciate riposare il nostro amore vero finché la notte esiste, per le stelle sono la testimonianza del nostro amore. In modo da guardare verso il cielo, ogni volta che mi manchi, amore mio.

"Let our love stand true as long as the night exists, for the stars are the witness of our love. So look up at the sky, whenever you miss me, my love." Reborn muttered under his breath as he stared at the sky.

For I will always love you.

#~#$-$#~#

Ayase watched quietly as the man left the house.

Ti Amo, Renato.[A/N: The meaning of the italian name, Renato, is Reborn.]

A/N This was a one-shot I wrote some time back, never really wanted to upload it. But...ah well. Just felt like uploading stuffs today and so...yeah.

About the story, the role of Ayase was just to serve as a guide for Tsuna. Then along the way, I realised, why not gives the role of Ayase's lover to Reborn, it fits. The later part of the story...Just felt inspired and went along to write about the two, though it also serves as an epilogue for Tsuna and Hibari.

As for the next 'chapter', I felt it would be interesting to somehow round up the story so that's the end result...

I do know there are probably a lot of grammatical mistakes, which is out of my ability to correct. For all its faults, I did have an enjoyable time writing this. So I also hope that this will be not an '30 min of life that you can never get back'. I would appreciate it if you could spend a few minutes of your life to review and tell me why you like or did not like this.

Thanks for your time （：