Open Sky Yet Not [KHR Fanfic]

Target 24: Reconcile (3)

Rokudo Mukuro felt it ironic how he hated the mafia, but had agreed to join the 'family' of one Vongola Decimo. He had planned on using the boy for his own motives, something similar to turning the entire mafia upside down and he was just waiting for the right moment.

Well... that was until he felt how Ienari's flames had been so... sickly orange-brown - the sense of discord was slowly permeating through - as time went on.

Rokudo, unlike the rest of the so-called guardians, were more experienced with flames because of obvious reasons. So it wouldn't come as a surprise if he was the first one to be able to summon them at will. (He had been somewhat startled when Hibari managed to do so but then again, the Skylark was prone to violence so it was only a matter of time before he tapped into it.)

Then he had felt curious,  curious of what his 'Sky's' mindsape was like for his flames to off-kilter like that.

When he had succeeded into entering Ienari's mind (it had been so easy was the Decimo even on his guard like he'd always been?), his smirk was put on a momentary pause.

Dark - darkdarkstormy - clouds loomed over the land, the sky nowhere to be seen as if it doesn't - couldn't - exist. Everything was so still - he wondered if there were any life in this place at all. The plants withered, the soil dry, the air was so heavy that it added to gravity, making it difficult for Rokudo to walk in the mindscape. 

He frowned as he looked around to confirm if there wasn't a sign of life, the sign of Ienari. And he did find the blonde... after about five more times of scanning around. 

The invader of the mind's original inhabitant slowly approached the... the child that was no older than eight, who was huddling into a ball and shivering all over. 

He knew that the mind of a person reflects the thoughts, the truth of a person despite the person trying to hide it. However, he didn't think Ienari's mindset was stuck at the stage of a child. A traumatized child from the looks of it.

He should really be enjoying the sigh of Vongola Decimo in this kind of dire strait, but... the sight of an absolutely devastated child with no sign of life in his eyes reminded him of... well, it reminded himself of the days he lived as an experiment. It brought a mix of hate and pity for the child-Ienari.

"Kufufu..." He chuckled eerily and decided to see what would happen if he tries to get the child's attention, however --

"No no, get away from me!"

Cliiink...

"Leave me alone. Leave me alone. Leavemealone...!"

-- Ienari suddenly reacted hysterically to Rokudo's presence, clutching his head and shrinking into himself, so the moment Rokudo reached his hands out, chains erupted from the desolated grounds. Rokudo had to move back to prevent himself from being entangled and watched with mixed fascination as the thick steal chains weaved with each other around Ienari, turning into a cage.

Crackle...

Rokudo snapped out of his daze in alarm and saw flames starting to burn on the land even though it had been barren with nothing for the flames to feed on. He took a step back in wariness, hearing the discording cackles of these sickly Sky flames made him feel dread and the urge to leave.

"Kufufu..." Rokudo chuckled, slowly forcing himself out before these flames could inflict damage to his mind. "You're more interesting than I thought, Vongola Decimo."