Notes

My first post on tumblr! It's the drafted sequel to 'Bargain' for Giotto x Haru that I didn't like how it turned out. I know a few were curious and now I finally have a platform to post my incompleted or 'drafted/discarded' work! :) Hopefully I'll have time to post other incompleted work or any work that I have written, but didn't have any plans on actually posting on my blog.

As for my current WIP, I'm currently working on Ambigram!

Monday, December 31, 2012

Genesis - Katekyo Hitman Reborn - Chapter 19

Summary: There was a reason why Reborn got Haru involved with the Mafia. Even if she was useless to them in fights and even if she couldn't provide as much emotional strength as Kyoko, she was vital and without her, there would just be no Vongola. G86/GiottoHaru

My lack of KHR knowledge might make some things untrue or some characters OOC!


I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!


Please forgive any mistakes, both character-wise and grammatically-wise. I don't have time to re-read or edit things.



Genesis: Chapter 19

HappyFace1886




Haru stared at the tear in the material she had been handed. From the corner of her eyes, she had seen the older girls dutifully stitching the material together. However, years of experience with cosplaying and mending her family’s clothing had taught Haru that they were doing it wrong.

...well, wrong was too harsh of a word.  More like it was old in her timeline and new for this timeline. With the oncoming factories and industrialisms probably taking over the era, the old way of sewing and such were slowly disappearing.

The way the girls were doing it was efficient, but the new hole would appear very soon.

With a look of concentration, Haru began to mend the clothing the way she was used to. Maybe it was the way she enthusiastically waved her arms as she did so, but she soon had the attention of the other girls who were watching her carefully. When her work was completed, Haru looked at the shirt with a look of satisfaction.

Good, this should last the shirt a very long time.

She looked up when she felt eyes on her and all the sets of eyes that had been peering at her curiously turned away instantly. Haru sighed in dismay. Still, there was nothing she could do. When she was about to resume her work, a shadow descended upon her and she saw Adelina’s mother peering down her nose at her.

“Erm... hello?”



Haru sighed as she sat against the wall, having been sent outside while the rest of the clothes she had been mending were snatched from her hands. The only one left to her was the one she had already finished mending and it was the very thing she was staring at right now dejectedly in her hands. A sound from the corner of the building she was leaning against made her head shoot towards there and she sighed in relief at the sight of Adelina.

The twelve year old girl was her sole friend in this cold neighborhood.

What are you doing here, silly demon?

I told you, I’m no demon.” Haru said, scrunching her nose up.

Adelina smiled at that. In fact, Adelina seemed to smile happily a lot whenever Haru denied that she was a demon. “Yes, yes, I remember. What are you doing here?

At this, Haru sighed again, her breath coming out in a puff of white. “I got sent out.

Why?

...because I’m fixing clothes with demon magic.

Adelina’s eyes widened. “Were you?

Of course not!” Haru exclaimed. “The way I sewed would make clothes last longer!

Hm... was that how your town does it?” Adelina inquired curiously, sitting next to Haru while blowing warm air into her hands. She noticed the shirt in Haru’s grasp and took it from her, observing the stitched lines carefully.

“Erm... kind of,” Haru said, unable to tell the truth. Perhaps that would be true if the future, her timeline, was considered her ‘town’. “Anyway, that’s how I was taught and it mends last longer if done this way. Way done here is good... but will have to work again soon if fixing clothes with that method.

Adelina suddenly looked at Haru. “Are you confident?

Hahi?

Are you sure those clothes will last?” Adelina asked, arching an eyebrow challengingly.

Of course!” the clothes Haru wore in the future had lasted for so long with the sewing techniques she implemented, especially her cosplay costumes. Not to mention, when she hung out with her friends and acted as wild as she wished, she didn’t have the constant need to spend money for more clothes. She trusted her methods and it was disheartening that everyone seemed to shun them.

Adelina’s eyes twinkled mischievously. “Shall we test it out?



Erm.... Adelina, are you sure about this?” Haru asked as the clothes she mended were put on two very familiar little boys.

Why should we put on clothes with demon magic on it?” the dirty blonde haired boy complained, glaring at the oversized shirt that had been forced on them.

You get to skip out on chores and play in the woods to your heart’s content.” Adelina said promptly while adjusting the other shirt on the hazel eyed boy. The two had been given the shirts worn by the older villagers –The blonde boy wearing the one Haru’s had mended while the hazel eyed one wore a shirt mended in the normal method by the village girls– and underneath them were their normal winter clothes.

The hazel eyed boy’s widened and gleamed with delight. “Really?

Blonde hit Hazel on the head. “Idiot! It’s a trick!

Blonde was then hit on the head by Adelina. “Stop hitting him, you idiot. And it’s no trick. You guys get to skip out on your chores today, as long as you wear these clothes.

Blonde looked at the shirt suspiciously, but the need to play was overpowering. With reluctant excitement, he gave Adelina a nod and grabbed Hazel’s hand. “Let’s go. I heard that the fishes are frozen right now!

Don’t go too crazy!” Adelina yelled while the two boys ran off. Haru stood behind her, feeling confused.

What now?

Adelina looked at her with her hands on her hips. “Now we wait.



A few hours passed and there was a look of triumph on Adelina’s face, a look of revulsion on her mother’s face, and a look of bewilderment still on Haru’s.

Standing before them were two boys caked in mud, snow, and everything imaginable. They were looking at the floor while Adelina’s mother had her arms crossed, irritation and fury obvious on her face. “Adelina, what is the meaning of this?

Look mama,” Adelina said, pointing at the hazel eyed boy. “He tore his clothes. But what’s this, the clothes the demon made didn’t rip off.

Of course not!” the woman replied impatiently. “That’s because the demon put her magic into it and-.

A-Ano,” Haru began and looked at Adelina hesitantly. The younger girl gave her an encouraging look. “It’s because I used a sewing technique from my t-town. The way done here will r-rip easily.

C’mon mama, you have to recognize the patterns too!” Adelina piped in and then whipped out a dress from nowhere. Haru looked at her in amazement, wondering where she had gotten that from. The dress was exquisite, made with fine bold colors and the embroidery was absolutely breathtaking.

The expression on the woman’s face changed. “Nonsense Adelina. It is the work of the devil. She’s trying to trick you.

Adelina scowled. “She was taken in by the demon and under the blessing of the Father. I’d say that she’s more of an innocent lamb taken in by the demon. Shouldn’t we be taking this girl in instead to protect her from evil?

There was silence from the woman and Haru looked at the two hesitantly. Would they reveal more about what happened in the past?

Adelina, please-.” But whatever the woman was going to say was silenced when the blonde haired boy grabbed the dress from Adelina. He looked at the stitches before looking at his own clothes.

Hey, the patterns are the same.” He exclaimed in realization, comparing it to the sewing patterns on the hazel eyed boy’s clothes.

That’s right. Grandmama made this dress from Mama,” Adelina explained. “That was the old way of sewing. Right now, we’re using this way, but I think Haru’s way is better. Grandmama was very good with the needle, probably the best in the village.

“That’s right,” Adelina’s mother said quietly. “Haru... was it?

Haru looked at the older woman cautiously, lifting her head up in acknowledgement.

The hard lines of the woman’s face faded a little, but there was still a look filled with caution and hesitation. “Do you mind... teaching me the pattern?

Haru gave her a brilliant smile. “Hahi, of course not!



Satisfaction practically oozed out of Haru as she took a sip of tea next to the fire place. The next hour had been so enjoyable with her teaching the older lady had to use her method of sewing. There hadn’t been as much talking, but it had been nice seeing the older woman’s features slowly relaxing around her.

Happy?” a sarcastic voice inquired.

Very,” Haru replied cheerfully.

There was a nod from Adelina as she sat beside her, throwing in another log into the fire. The flames roared with delight and slowly began their ascent to their new fuel. The two sat in amiable silence before Haru lowered her cup, giving Adelina a grateful smile.

Thank you for your help.

It was nothing.” Adelina said briskly, a manner that made her resemble her mother a lot. “Those old coots need to stop letting superstition take over their lives.

Haru tilted her head. “What do you mean by that? Do you know why they call me a demon?

Adelina gazed into the flames bitterly. “It’s because you live with a demon.

Giotto-sama?

If Adelina was confused by the honorific, she made no comment. Instead, her shoulders tensed at the name and she hugged her arms, unwillingly to look at Haru. It had been so long since she had heard that name being uttered, so long since anyone had spoken the name so casually as though there was nothing wrong with it. She clutched her arms tighter and spoke sullenly. “....it was my fault.

Hahi?

Adelina shook her head quickly. “Nothing. It’s nothing.”

Haru’s eyes, however, gleamed with anticipation. Was this a clue? Had she found someone who could explain to her everything that happened?

But the look of pain in Adelina’s eyes said that if she did know anything, she wasn’t planning on sharing it anytime soon. And the fact that there was pain in the first place was a cause of concern. Was it something that had really hurt Adelina as well?

Haru tightened her fingers around her cup. She could only hope that once she uncovered this big secret, it didn’t cause more pain for the people around her as well.




::tsuzuku::



Chapter 18                                       Chapter 20

Monday, December 24, 2012

Teach Me Love - Chapter 17

Summary: "Show me this so-called greatness of the power of love," Hibari ordered. "Fall in love with me." Haru could only stupidly gawk at him. Just what the heck did she get herself involved in? HaruxMultiple Pairings

My lack of KHR knowledge might make some things untrue or some characters OOC! XD

I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn because if I did, there would be a lot more Haru loving!

Please forgive any mistakes, both character-wise and grammatically wise.  I don't really have time to re-read and edit things.



Chapter Seventeen: Impatience

HappyFace1886



Haru clenched her eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable blow to come. However, despite the passing seconds, nothing happened. Slowly opening her eyes, she gasped at the sight of Gokudera’s back in front of her. In a panic, she looked over to see if he was hurt and was further surprised at how the claws was an inch away from Gokudera’s chest.


“Decimo!” Gokudera said with wide sparkling eyes at the sight of his boss in such an admirable pose.

Their attacker let out sounds of pain through gritted teeth at how the brown haired brat was clutching his wrist so tightly that blood was dripping out. Fuck, did he break it? The kid was tiny too! Where the hell did he found such strength?

“Don’t touch Haru,” Tsuna said coldly, his grip tightening at the memory of how he had almost allowed Haru to get hurt. That had been way too close for comfort and where had this man come from? “Who are you?”

The man growled and shot his other clawed hand at Tsuna. With no choice left, Tsuna released the man and ducked to avoid the blow. Gokudera turned around and jumped away with Haru in his arms, tilting his head back to make sure the bastard in black didn’t touch Decimo. “Hey, woman, who the hell is that guy?”

“Haru has never seen him before in her life!” Haru exclaimed before wrapping her arms around Gokudera to look over his shoulder. This pressed her intimately against him, allowing Gokudera to feel the lush curves of her body. Gokudera’s face immediately flushed and he faltered in his steps.

“What are you-?”

“Gokudera, watch out!” Tsuna yelled before tackling against their assailant before the man could plunge a claw into Gokudera’s shoulder. The man went flying to the side and Gokudera threw a set of dynamites at him. Haru screamed, burying her face into Gokudera’s chest when the explosion caused the ground to shake.

“Stop distracting me, idiot!” Gokudera yelled though he protectively held Haru, making sure none of the debris hit her. Oh gods, he needed to get her away from him! She was not good for his heart right now!

“Haru is doing no such thing,” she said indignantly, before wiggling out of his grasp so that she was standing on her own now. “There! Now you can’t say Haru is doing anything!”

“Did you really think such a measly blow would be enough to stop me?” the man crooned with a long slithering tongue, suddenly appearing in midair beside them. He took them by surprise, having used the smoke from the dynamite as cover.

With an angry curse, Gokudera pushed Haru to the side and ducked to avoid getting fatally injured by the man. The claws scraped his cheeks and almost clipping an ear off. However, knowing the man was in midair and didn’t have much maneuverability, he ignored the wounds and kicked upward into the man’s stomach.

There was a loud grunt as the man flew upward. His eyes widened when waiting up above for him was that brown haired kid, his hands glowing an eerie orange-red flames that resonate with power.

Those flames...

It looked so familiar...

Before he could figure out what it was, the boy’s fist came crushing into his abdomen. The force was so powerful that the man gagged, coughing out a mixture of blood and spit as he went flying down a lot faster than he had come up. The ground mercilessly pushed against him as he fell, the floor crumbling into pieces around him.

Haru watched in awe.

This was the power she was talking about, the want to protect and secure. This was what she wanted to show to Kyoya, of how when one was fighting for the one dear to them, they could summon power unimaginable.

Her ears then caught the sound of murmuring voices and a high-pitched whistle belonging to a police officer. “Hahi! We have to get out of here.”

“Wait, we have to find out who sent this guy.” Gokudera argued, glaring angrily at the unconscious man in black. However, Haru grabbed his arm, tugging at it insistently.

“No time for that! If we get caught by the police, how are we going to explain all this?” she demanded, dragging him before linking arms with Tsuna as well. “Let’s go!”

Before the two could utter a word of protest, she dragged them along to the exit of the park.



“Shit,” said a voice from afar, having watched the entire incident unfold before him. He spoke into the little mike on his collar. “The assassin failed. Those punks are a lot stronger than we thought. What shall we do Hideo-sama?”

“We’re going to speed up the plan.”

“W-What? Then when shall we-?”

“Now.”



Bianchi arched an eyebrow at the sight of Tsuna, Gokudera, and Haru all out of breath and collapsed in the living room of the Sawada family. And just when she thought she finally had some alone time with Reborn, what with Tsuna’s mother out shopping with Lambo and I-pin. Her eyes narrowed at the cut on Gokudera’s face.

“What happened?”

“Anego,” Gokudera panted. “We were attacked.”

“Attacked by whom?”

At this, Gokudera glowered at Haru. “We don’t know because the idiot here said it was more important to get away.”

“If we hadn’t moved along, we would be at the police station right now,” she argued back with a glare of her own. “And you have nothing to worry about because it looks like the man was after Haru, not you!”

“Someone attacked you because they were after Haru-chan?” Bianchi asked, trying to piece the story together.

Tsuna sat up from the ground with concern in his eyes. “The strange part was the attacker. He didn’t seem normal. He was a lot stronger than some random guy in the streets. Actually... he kind of reminded me of the Varia.”

“Tch,” Gokudera looked away in disgust. “But a hell of a lot weaker than the Varia, probably a low-ranking assassin.”

Haru looked at him in alarm. “An assassin was after Haru?”

“Why do you think he was after you?” Bianchi asked.

“Because when we were being attacked, the guy kept coming after me.” Haru explained. Despite the chaos of the incident, she had made sure to keep a keen eye out for what was going on. “At first, I thought he attacked me first because I was the weakest, but even after Gokudera-san and Tsuna-san pushed him away, he came back to attack me again.”

“But why would he be after you?” Tsuna mused to himself contemplatively and frowned at the possibility that Haru was attacked because of him. If it really was an assassin, the most immediate possibility was him due to his connections to the mafia. No, he couldn’t come to conclusions like that just yet. “What do we do now?”

“Hm, what do you think Reborn?” Bianchi asked, looking to the side to reveal the infant assassin standing on top of the couch. There was a loud yelp of surprise from all three teens as they hadn’t even noticed him there.

“H-How long were you there, Reborn?” Tsuna yelled and was promptly swatted on the head.

“I was there this whole time, dame-Tsuna.” He said curtly before turning to Haru. “Do you have any idea as to why an assassin would be sent after you?”

Haru shook her head. “N-No... Other than the Hideo-incident, I don’t think I know anyone that could send an assassin after me.”

“That’s it!” Gokudera yelled. “It’s that bastard who did this!”

“But he’s in prison, isn’t he?” Tsuna asked confused and Bianchi shook her head.

“Prison is nothing for many people. If you have the connections, it’s nothing more than a temporarily holding place until you get out.” She explained. “But would an average thug like Hideo be able to form enough connections to hire an assassin? Hayato, in your opinion, what skill level did the assassin have? How did he look like?”

“He had these claws he’d wave around and there was that ridiculously long tongue. He also these weird tattoos and lip rings. And... he wasn’t that bad,” Gokudera said grudgingly, remembering how the man had dodged all of his dynamites. “It’s just he was no match for Decimo. That’s how we were able to get out without much trouble.”

“Moderate skills,” Reborn noted and then a sly smile formed. “Interesting.”

Tsuna felt a chill go down his spine. Whenever Reborn had that particular smile, it didn’t bode well for him. “W-What are you talking about?”

“It’s nothing,” Bianchi said with a knowing smile before touching Haru on the shoulder. “It’s getting late.”

“Hahi, Haru has to make dinner!” she exclaimed when she saw the time and scrambled to her feet. “Thanks for coming with me today Tsuna-san,” she said with a light blush on her face. “And thank you two for protecting Haru.”

“Wait a second,” Gokudera said, grabbing her by the wrist. “You just got attacked and you’re going to walk home at night alone?”

“But-.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Bianchi said brightly. “I called Yamamoto-san the moment you guys came. He should be waiting outside to walk Haru home.”

“Eh? That baseball freak? Why-?” Gokudera was jerked closer to Bianchi, who whispered conspiratorially in his ear.

“You two had plenty of time with Haru-chan today,” she explained with a mischievous tone. “Give others a chance with her too.”

Gokudera’s face turned bright red as he pulled away from her. “What the hell are you saying?”

“Are you really okay?” Tsuna asked in concern and Haru smiled softly, looking down at the ground.

She had wanted to confess her feelings to him today, to finally set them free so that she would be able to move on with her life. With her confused feelings for Kyoya, she believed that it would be unfair to Tsuna, Kyoya, and even herself if she tried to form a relationship with anyone if she lingered on to past feelings.

Besides... Tsuna-san had Kyoko-chan.

“Thank you for today.” She said shyly, unable to meet his eyes. “Haru hopes that Tsuna-san will come with her again so that... so that she can say what she wanted to say today.”

Maybe it was the way she spoke or how his instincts pricked that, like earlier at the park, he wasn’t going to like what she was going to say, Tsuna grabbed her by the shoulders. In surprise, she looked up at him. “Don’t talk like that.”

“Hahi?” she asked confused, but Tsuna’s resolve had suddenly dissipated and he pulled away. He looked embarrassed and was shuffling his feet on the ground, crying out in pain and surprise when he was hit on the head again by Reborn.

“Stupid.” Was the only explanation from the genius infant.

Of course, Tsuna would have his chance and he would blow it off immediately.

“W-Well then, I’m off,” Haru said with a wave before leaving the house. The night air brushed against her cheeks and her eyes lit up at the familiar sight of the tall figure standing outside the gates. “Yamamoto-san.”

He turned around and grinned at her. “Hey, I heard you had a date with Tsuna today.”

She laughed nervously. “S-Something like that. It wasn’t a real date. Haru just wanted to clear things up with Tsuna-san.”

Yamamoto opened the gate for her. “And you were attacked?”

“Hahi? How did Yamamoto-san hear about that?”

He rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling slightly. “You guys were talking really loudly.”

“Why didn’t Yamamoto-san come in then?” Haru asked in surprise. Surely he didn’t think they were leaving him out of everything? Though she didn’t want to expose him to danger, Haru had planned to tell him about the incident. He would have found out eventually and she didn’t have him to be hurt because he was unprepared if the assassin decided to go after the rest of her friends.

“Maybe because if I did, I wouldn’t have been able to walk you home by myself.” he answered, tilting his head so that Haru could see the twinkle in his eyes.

His words caused her heart to speed up and she almost stopped walking. Instead, her face flushed and she looked at the ground, fidgeting next to him.  “W-What are you saying, Yamamoto-san?”

“Hm,” he hummed slightly and his grin grew. “Haru is so popular lately so it’s impossible to keep you all to myself. I have to act carefully if I want to be alone with you.”

This time Haru did stop walking and she stammered out. “S-Stop teasing me Yamamoto-san!”

“But you look cute when you’re embarrassed,” he teased, walking backwards slowly.

“Yamamoto-san is acting r-really weird today,” she mumbled, feeling like her brain was going to explode. When she had planned on confessing to Tsuna-san today, she had expected the day to end in tears after Tsuna-san rejected her. She had thought she was going to her favorite cake shop and gorge on her most coveted sweets until she exploded.

She hadn’t expected Tsuna-san AND Gokudera-san to act weird around her, much less an assassin after her life. And now Yamamoto-san was saying things that didn’t make sense! Where was all of this coming from?

Yamamoto came to a halt, an unreadable expression briefly going through his face. Haru looked at him hesitantly, wondering what he was going to say now.

“I always thought I could move slowly,” he said quietly, slowly walking back towards her. “I thought I had all the time in the world...”

“Hahi?” she said, completely puzzled.

“But now Hibari is getting in the way,” Yamamoto whispered. “And it even looks like Gokudera and Tsuna might be as well.”

“Yamamoto-san,” Haru whispered, leaning back when she realized he was now very close to her. Her head was tilted backwards as with Yamamoto’s towering height, he was much taller than her. Before she could take a step back, his hand came around her waist. “W-What are you-?”

He leaned forward and Haru clenched her eyes shut.

Oh gods, what was he doing?

What was going on?

She quivered under his hold with the nervous tension thick in the air.

He pressed his forehead against hers and her eyes opened in surprise at the unprepared movement.

“I can’t wait anymore.” He said lightly, locking eyes with her to make sure she saw each and every moment that was to occur

And then he leaned forward to claim her lips as his.



::tsuzuku::



AU: HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Chapter 16                                                   Chapter 18

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Genesis - Katekyo Hitman Reborn - Chapter 18

Summary: There was a reason why Reborn got Haru involved with the Mafia. Even if she was useless to them in fights and even if she couldn't provide as much emotional strength as Kyoko, she was vital and without her, there would just be no Vongola. G86/GiottoHaru

My lack of KHR knowledge might make some things untrue or some characters OOC!


I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!


Please forgive any mistakes, both character-wise and grammatically-wise. I don't have time to re-read or edit things.



Genesis: Chapter 18

HappyFace1886




“Stupid girl,” Attilio said through gritted teeth while Haru nursed her aching head after he had swatted it chidingly. She winced and looked at the floor guiltily while he continued to berate her with his broken Japanese. Judging by how out of breath Attilio was, he must have been searching for her frantically.

Shame welled up inside her for having caused trouble and from beside her, she heard Adelina snigger. It wasn’t like she had meant to stray away from Attilio! But she knew she had acted stupidly. She was a stranger who didn’t understand Italian well and could have easily gotten lost or hurt if she hadn’t been fortunate enough to end up meeting Adelina.

“Never leave my sight again,” he ordered firmly and Haru bowed her head.

“S-Sorry,” she stammered.

Attilio sighed. “Now then, let’s get to work.”

She raised her head, looking confused. “Hahi?”

“What do you think you here for?” he asked with an arched brow. “You are my assistant."



And by assistant, he meant helping the villagers with random tasks while he went house-to-house dealing with both religious and non-religious ailment. Though the chores given to her were tiresome, Haru didn’t complain. In fact, she relished being able to learn how things worked around the village. Though honestly, she felt a little envious over how Adelina, who was younger than her, didn’t even break a sweat when doing more than double the work Haru was given to do.

...And it also felt kind of lonesome at how most of the villagers left her alone. They watched from a distance and Haru’s ears were tickled constantly by their soft whispers of gossip. What they were saying, she couldn’t tell because of their low voices and rapid Italian. The only one who regularly talked to her was Adelina and her two younger brothers.

Stop wasting time and help,” Adelina demanded from inside the kitchen, kneading the dough vigorously. Haru, who had been hauling firewood to the kitchen, staggered closer and dropped the pile, nearly falling with it. Adelina tsked and shook her head. “How did you ever help take care of your family?

Haru laughed good-naturedly, stretching her back as she stood. “Things different at home.

Adelina then eyed her warily. “How?

Well, my job was school.

Teacher?” Adelina asked with interest and Haru shook her head.

Student.”

But you’re so old!” Adelina exclaimed. Only the little ones attended school for basic knowledge.

Hahi! I am not old!” Haru exclaimed with wide-eyes before realizing who she was talking to. This was the past! Though she still didn’t know what year it was since this village was so tiny and old fashioned, the people here probably regarded her as an adult.

Aren’t you my age?” Adelina paused in kneading the dough, looking at Haru while flour caked her dress and her face.

Haru stared at her. “A-Aren’t you twelve?

Adelina nodded and Haru’s eyes almost bugged out.

I’m fourteen!

You’re really old!” Adelina exclaimed and Haru’s face flushed.

Am not!

But you look so young!” Adelina continued, wiping her hands clean before rushing towards Haru. She grabbed her face and pulled it closer. “I thought you were just taller than normal, but your face is a baby’s face!

Haru remained thoroughly confused before a plausible explanation came to her. She had heard about how foreigners always said people of Asian descent appeared younger than they really were. And then another thought came. Did Giotto-sama also believe her to be much younger than him?

...she wasn’t sure how she felt about that...

Haru pulled away from Adelina’s fingertips. “I’m really fourteen.

Adelina hummed in agreement before whirling her head towards the next room. “Ma, you were right! She’s old!

I told you, I’m not old!” Haru yelled in embarrassment before shrinking back at the sight of the older woman popping her head out from the other room. Unlike Adelina, most of the adults didn’t seem to like her. If anything, they glowered at her from afar and kept their distance.

Good, then maybe she has some experience with fabric,” the older woman said curtly. “Instead of her moving like an ant with the kindling and in the kitchen, she’ll be better off patching some clothes together with the others.

Haru winced at the words, but felt a bit excited at being able to work on something that was her forte. Mending clothes together would be a lot easier than manual labor. Since Attilio hinted that she was going to join him more often when heading to the village, she would slowly accustom herself with the hard work. For now, she needed a break.

And maybe she could also find some more information on Giotto’s past if she was working with a circle of other people.

...or maybe not.

When Haru arrived into the other room where the older girls all had sewing needles at hand, they had gathered up in a corner of the room and was looking at her with dismay.

She should have expected this.

With a sigh, Haru went to sewing.



Sunlight began to disappear earlier than normal due to the changing seasons, but to Haru, it felt as though she had spent an eternity at the village. The day had been anticlimactic with not much happening. Sure, the villagers called her a demon for some reason, but after being called that constantly, the sting of the word had faded and was now regarded with a simple frown by her. Other than that and giving her chores, nothing occurred.


They all appeared as though they wanted to stay far, far away from her. It made her wonder why Attilio wanted her to go to the village in the first place. The only one to actually talk to her was Adelina and even she was busy with her own work to talk much.


Haru’s shoulders slumped as she followed Attilio back to the cabin, listlessly trailing after his footprints. She arranged her scarf so that it wouldn’t fall off and smiled softly at the comfort it gave. There was a faint scent on it that made her instinctively relax and she snuggled up against it, happy with even the slightest of reassurance. She was just so tired with the heavy work that all she wanted to do was sleep. Sure, she ran around a lot with Giotto-sama, but he’d always make sure she had plenty of rest before running around crazily again.


Too busy sulking, she didn’t realize that the cabin had come into sight.


The door opened and warmth touched her cheeks, which had become chilled by the night autumn air. It was then Haru looked up and she couldn’t stop the delight from forming inside of her when she saw the happy smile, two-toned eyes looking at her with unconstrained excitement.


“Haru,” Giotto rushed towards her no inhibition and pulled her in for a tight hug.


Maybe it was because she had almost next to no contact with anyone the entire day, but Haru slumped into his embrace. Giotto was so warm compared to the cold outside word and she held him back, snuggling into his chest. A familiar scent tickled her nose and she realized that he smelled exactly like the scarf... which made sense since that scarf was his in the first place.


Haru smiled tiredly. Of course, she should have known.


Even at the village, Giotto-sama had never left her side.


“I’m home...” she murmured softly.


And right now, those words had never sounded as true as they did now.



::tsuzuku::



Chapter 17                                     Chapter 19