Life is so Trivial~

[omniscient_insight]

A voice test post for Byakuran!

Blah Blah blah and to ensnare Shou-chan . This will be fun especially the teasing Shou-chan part. Oh people can see the things that are crossed out? Isn't that something? Guess I've been found out~

Comments

[bloodnpepper]

The Millefiore HQ in Italy was a lot like a hospital: sterile-looking, but filled with harbingers of death. In a few hours' time he would finally be able to escape its white walls. Shouichi knew that he should be happy for that...but the young Millefiore captain was anything but. As he stood outside of his superior's office with the last set of reports he'd ever bring the man in person, Shouichi's hands shook slightly and he could feel the stirrings of a stomachache in his gut.

'Get a grip, Shouichi...'

Everything was going according to plan, so the dread he was feeling made absolutely no sense. Shouichi took a deep breath and carefully schooled his features into what he hoped was a neutral expression. They were so close...if he showed any weakness now, it would throw away years and years of careful planning.

And the future of this world.

"Byakuran-san, I'm coming in," he called out, opening the door to the Millefiore leader's office.

[omniscient_insight]

Another uneventful day, Byakuran considered as he laid on the couch. His position lazy and relaxed, his head lolled back as he stared up at the ceiling, and his arms draped the back of the chair with legs wide. The supreme commander was definitely spreading himself all over the furniture.

The same old boring reports came in. Killed another person, but not a ring bearer. The perimeters are all secure, because there were hardly any threat. No sign yet of the Vongola, because they were being cowards. It was utterly boring, and also....frustrating.

When he heard the knocking, the white haired man turned his head slightly in the direction. Who was it this time? Another subordinate bringing in more useless news? But then he heard the familiar voice. It was Shouichi. The Millefiore leader seem to become more lively now, actually sitting up as the door opened revealing the red head. "Shou-chan, perfect timing."

[bloodnpepper]

Shouichi stepped in, and raised an eyebrow at his superior. Byakuran's uniform was all wrinkled, making it more than obvious that he'd been lounging on his couch again. "Perfect timing for what?" Shouichi asked, closing the door behind him. It didn't seem as if Byakuran was in the middle of anything important, but then again when was he ever?

"I brought you a copy of the Tri-ni-set research."

...Not that he would ever read it; he'd just ask Shouichi if he needed to know something, even when the man was halfway across the world. Shouichi came closer and dropped the file on top of the short stack of reports on the floor, then crossed his arms in front of him nervously. "I'm leaving for Japan this afternoon," he announced abruptly, wondering if the man before him had forgotten. It sure seemed like it...

[omniscient_insight]

When Shouichi asked, Byakuran could only smile his usually cunning grin. It revealed nothing, of course."...that's for me to know, and you to find out."

The Millefiore leader listened as Shouichi said he brought a report of the Tri-ni-sette. Oh? He didn't need to look at it. He knew everything about it already, but he humored his right hand man and held his hand out for the report. He'll probably skim through it to refresh his memory. If he was bored enough.

However, Byakuran's purple eyes widen a bit as Shouichi announced that he was leaving for the Japam today. "Was that today?"

He had completely forgotten. The other's face became serious, and there's a visible frown."And this is how you come in? Handing me reports? Reports, Shou-chan?

"No. You're supposed to run in here and throw yourself against me, and say 'I leave this afternoon. Give me something to remember you by, Byakuran-sama'. And then what do you think I would give you?" Byakuran finished, a slight smirk tugging at his lips even if he was being completely serious.

[bloodnpepper]

As Byakuran held out his hand for the report, Shouichi uncrossed his arms and bent forward to pick it up again. His superior's next words stopped him cold though, and disappointment felt like a brick that had been unceremoniously dropped in his stomach. So the man had forgotten.

"How could you--" he started to ask, but again was stopped, this time by the serious look on his superior's--no, his best friend's face. He might have forgotten, but that didn't mean it didn't upset him. Shouichi felt the brick disappear.

And turn into butterflies. Uncontrollable ones trapped inside a shaken jar.

"Byakuran-san!" Shouichi shouted, sharp and high, a red blush streaking across his cheeks. It took a few moments more before he could say anything else, Shouichi shaking his head all the while. "You're--you're unbelievable."

He was Byakuran, still Byakuran, and Shouichi slid one arm around his aching stomach. He firmly told it that there was no way he was going to miss this man or his antics.

[omniscient_insight]

It was always fun to see the Ginger get flustered, his cheeks turning red and his sensitive stomach making him hug his body. It was amusing to the leader, but at the same time he found it endearing too.

Byakuran stood up from his place and walked over to the sun Mare ring holder. His hand causally in his pockets as his body neared the other. He stopped, his face a few inches away from Shouichi's."...but you didn't answer my question. What do you think I would do, if you approached me like that?"

The sky of Millefiore waited for his best friend reply, but the right ones didn't seem to come out. Finally, he presented Shouichi with what he truly meant."I suppose if Shou-chan was so spirited about out parting, I would have to give him this as a reward..."

Tada~ Behind his back was a pair of large headphones. But they were more special than that, they were signed by the members of the band Shouichi liked.Blood and Peppers. Byakuran smiled."...But I guess for putting up with me, Shou-chan deserves this."

[bloodnpepper]

Shouichi looked up when Byakuran suddenly got to his feet, and took a step back when the Millefiore leader started to approach him. For all the good that did, considering his superior's complete disregard for personal space. The blush on his cheeks darkened as the man got too close, and then again at his words.

"I..."

Before he could give a proper answer though, his best friend had pulled out his 'parting gift' from behind his back. Shouichi could do little more than gape at it, speechless at the sight of his favorite band's signatures. All of them even, unless he was counting the autographs wrong.

Which wasn't too unlikely since he was suddenly feeling extremely light-headed.

"How...how did you get this?" Shouichi barely managed to choke out, reaching for the headphones. His hand went past them to grip Byakuran's shoulder however, as the rest of the world seemed to do a 360 without him. "I feel dizzy," he blurted out.

[omniscient_insight]

Well it wasn't too hard for Byakuran to get the autographs. He was in a position of influence after all. If he wanted something, he knew how to get it. Well most things. He really wanted the completion of the Tri-ni-set, but it seemed that wish was beyond his power.

He watched Shouichi carefully, feeling as if something wasn't right. When the Sun guardian reached for the headphones, he completely missed them, placing his hand heavily on Byakuran's shoulder. Quickly, Byakuran went to stablize him, wrapping an arm against the other's back and supporting his weight."...Shou-chan, how about you lay down for a bit?"

He brought the other to his couch, lowering his best friend on to it, and setting the headphones to the side."Have you been working yourself to exhaustion again? That's no good. Shou-chan, should take better care of his body."

[bloodnpepper]

Shouichi felt Byakuran's arm come around him, and didn't fight it. His vision was doubling a little, from exhaustion or excitement over the earphones he wasn't sure. Sweat broke out on the young captain's forehead and the flush on his face was now for a different reason. When Byakuran lowered him onto the couch, he sighed.

He started to shake his head at the question but...that was a bad idea. Shouichi groaned at the feeling of vertigo. He squeezed his eyes shut and rested his head against the back of the couch.

"I've been rushing to get everything taken care of before I leave for Japan." He sighed again as the nausea passed, and Shouichi took his glasses off to wipe the lenses clean of his sweat. "I thought I can hold out until my flight, and catch up on sleep there. It's a pretty long flight..."

Shouichi put on his glasses again, and pushed them up the bridge of his nose with his index finger. He looked at Byakuran sheepishly. "Ah, I'm sorry about that."

[omniscient_insight]

Byakuran stayed by Shouichi's side watching the other. He looked attentive, but he wasn't truly listening. His mind distant as he thought of other things. The Millefiore leader's face unreadable as he gazed at his friend, sweating glistening on his forehead, and his skin looked kind of pale. Shouichi looked so frail like this.

"Sounds like Shou-chan had a lot of preparations to take care. It must have been a lot for one person to take care of. Why didn't you ask any of your subordinates to help you?" The white haired man questioned, his purple eyes looking away from Shouichi as his hand idly played with the zipper from his Millefiore uniform jacket.

"But you were always careful with your work. Not wanting anyone's eyes to look at it. Sometimes, I wonder if Shou-chan is hiding something." Byakuran replied heavy in thought, before looking back at the red head the light in his eyes returned. A smile curved his lips." But that's just silly, right? Shou-chan wouldn't hide anything from me, would he?"

[bloodnpepper]

Shouichi's breathing hitched at Byakuran's questioning, but aside from the very, very quiet gasp there was nothing. He might not have mastered his breathing just yet, but Shouichi had had years to train in controlling his facial expression. He'd kept this charade up for nearly five years now after all.

"The only secrets I'm keeping, are the ones between the two of us," he whispered quietly, just a hint of darkness and anger in his voice. Not enough to sound defensive, but enough for Byakuran to know he felt insulted. The man would think it strange if he wasn't, even though in reality Shouichi had no right to be.

Because Byakuran was right, and hitting far, far too close to home.

"And unlike you, I don't pass on my work to my subordinates," Shouichi added, bringing his voice up to a casual tone again. He ran one hand through his hair and gave a small shake of the head. "There's a difference between 'asking them to help' and making them do all of it, Byakuran-san."

[omniscient_insight]

Byakuran smiled, his face resembling that of a fox. But what Shouichi said was true, they did have secrets that only they knew."...And Shou-chan has been keeping those secrets really well."

He back off for now, but he hasn't been able to deny his intuition. He knew that his best friend wasn't being entirely honest. Still he didn't have any proof, and he still needed the red head. He still needed to utilize his abilities for his own benefit.

"So mean, Shou-chan, but guilty as charged. I've dirtied my hands already with building the Millefiore family to what it is. Don't you think I want to take it easy now?" Byakuran explained to Shouichi, his expression nonchalant. "What's the point of having people at your beck and call, if they aren't answering my silly whims?"

[bloodnpepper]

Shouichi turned his head away, under the pretense of inspecting his new headphones. He didn't want to hear this, didn't want to be there when Byakuran spoke of his sins out loud. If the man didn't say anything, and if Shouichi ignored the reports and body counts, then he could pretend they were merely the leaders of something else, of a college club that had grown entirely far too big.

Even while he conspired with the enemy against him, he didn't want to fully admit to himself how evil his best friend truly was.

"And they really are silly," he awkwardly agreed, with a lot less humor than he'd hoped to inflect in his voice. Shouichi cleared his throat and reached for the headphones he'd been staring at. "I think I'll rest in my room before my flight. So if you'll excuse me, Byakuran-san..."

[screwsnutsnlolipops]

Spanner stood in front of the leader of the Millefiore's office. He really doesn't want to deal with the man he must rather stay in the garage and work on his new toys. Still he knew well enough to defy an order would result in have a personal visit, he preferred to avoid that. So that thought brought him here as he stared at the door.

In his normal jumpsuit he was covered in oil, dirt and general filth; that happened when you worked on machines though. With a lollipop between his lips he rose a hand and knocked on the door before opening it.

"...need me?"

[omniscient_insight]

"Come in, Spanner-san~" Byakuran called to the door.

He was lounging on his couch as usual. He doesn't acknowledge the mechanic as he walked in, his attention was on a handheld game that he was amusing his self with. Of course, the conqueror of worlds wouldn't be doing real work.

Slowly he turned to the blonde, noticing his messy appearance. A sore thumb within his pristine, white and sterile office. Regardless, he still regarded the other with a smile. He was a friend of Shouichi's, and also he was building those useful moscas for him."I just wanted to know how your progress is coming with King Mosca. And also, you'll be accompanying Shou-chan to Japan, right?"

[screwsnutsnlolipops]

In his normal pace he entered the office and shut the door behind him, not sure what was going to be asked or not. With how some of the people were here they would try to listen in whenever they could. Honey eyes moved from the door to the man amusing himself with the game. If he didn't know better he would think Byakuran was an idiot most of the time, many that met him at first might think so...but assuming that was a big mistake.

The last think he cared about was how clean he looked in the man's office he didn't have to come up here. He could have been working right now. At the question he shrugged softly and rubbed his neck. "Ah...it's coming along, I was working on it when you called." He paused to think, did he say he was going? "Yeah...why?"

[omniscient_insight]

Byakuran listened to Spanner but for a while, he wasn't listening to his words. Later they flowed into his mind as if the intake was delayed. Rather, Byakuran was in his thoughts as the mechanic spoke. His mind racing with thoughts of this grease monkey being close friend to Shouichi. It was true. The blond was the best mechanic. It was no wonder the Mosca line soared the way it did because of his enthusiasm and expertise. Spanner was definitely an asset he couldn't lose.

Still....

"Well I am the supreme commander, it's my job to know what each and everyone person under my legion is doing, don't you think so, Spanner-san?" He questioned the other, but the white haired mafioso wasn't expecting an answer, or listening for one.

"And since you're going to Japan, my eyes won't be able to watch you. I trust Shou-chan to keep all of you in line while you are there, but..." Byakuran tossed his handheld game to the side and stood from the couch, his body straight and still facing away from Spanner."There's nothing wrong with using a scare tactics to ensure your loyalty to me~."

Byakuran knew that Spanner held loyalty to Shouichi, and a large degree to his work. But the mafioso wasn't sure about where he stood. Was the mechanic loyal to him and his goal? He was building moscas for him, but that wasn't enough.

[screwsnutsnlolipops]

The blonde simply stared at his 'leader' as he moved the lollipop between his lips from one side of his mouth to the other side. He knew the other didn't listen to him fully he in all honesty could have gone into full tech talk, but he doubted it would really matter to Byakuran. All he cared for an answer was a simple and to the point one plus the mechanic wasn't fond of wasting time or his breath.

When the other stood he remained still, hands in his pockets as he watched with an unamused look on his face. Spanner's main reason for allegiance was that he got to be near Shouichi and he got access to funds which allowed him to make new machines. Despite this he wasn't stupid enough to admit he didn't care much for the white haired man.

Spanner gave the other an interested look when he spoke of scare tactics. Threats from Byakuran were not something to be lightly in any aspect. So for a few moments he remained quiet. "...Scare tactics?"

[omniscient_insight]

"Mmhmmm~" Byakuran hummed sweetly. His mouth curving into a small smile and his eyes closed into slits. It was hard to read Byakuran with such a face. Especially if during situations like this. He then laughed cheerfully. "That's what I said, Spanner-san, scare tactics!"

He turned his body fully to the blond, amethyst eyes peeking through his dark lashes. His purple eyes boring into the mechanic intensely, showing that he was extremely serious in his claim. The Supreme commander strolled over to the mechanic, hands still in his pockets and he makes no move to touch Spanner. However, he does circle around him as if he was the vulture, and Spanner , his prey."...I would hate for something unfortunate to happen. Something that would prevent you from doing your passion."

He then stopped in his tracks, standing directly behind the mechanic." It's not every day that people get to do what they dream of. Most people never accomplish their goals. That's why the people who do, should be more appreciative of the opportunities they've been given."

[screwsnutsnlolipops]

This. This kind of thing was what he hated about Byakuran at times. He truly was more of a neutral party to the mafia he only worked here because Shouichi was involved. He didn't have a large degree of loyalty for the Supreme commander. If he had anything it was a degree of fear and the fact his friend was friends with him for quite sometime. Those were his only saving graces besides that and the job he might have joined somewhere else. Though even that was unlikely he knew the power of the family many had already fallen and there would be more to indulge Byakuran's madness.

Unmoving he stood there eyes looking forward as he was circled like a cat playing with a mouse. He knew physically he was outmatched. Spanner was a mechanic he got machines to do his work, he didn't like doing things himself it wasn't his style. So if the other did decided to do something he wasn't exactly sure what he could do, except use his wit which was a little lacking at the moment.

"...I understand." He paused before he threw a glance back at him. "...You should trust Shouichi more though, he isn't as weak as you think sometimes."

[omniscient_insight]

At the comment, Byakuran was silent. White bangs covering his eyes, before he lifted his head, looking at the machinist from over his shoulder. He wouldn't have gotten as far as he has if he hadn't planned ahead. If he didn't exploit people in anyway possible. Using emotions, trust, friendship, love...he has used all to get him closer to his ultimate goal. That included Shouichi too. His best friend, and much more."You're wrong, Spanner-san, I trust Shou-chan fully. It's you, and the others I don't trust."

He knew that Shouichi will remain loyal to him no matter what." And Shou-chan is not weak...I know that well enough. He's actually a lot stronger than you assume. That's why I trust him to command the melone base. That's why he knows more than any of else.

"I have total faith in Shou-chan, so don't make accusations of something you don't understand."

[screwsnutsnlolipops]

Spanner just continued to stare at him with a blank expression he knew not getting rise out of him annoyed the hell out of some people. This was just the way he had always been it was better to be calm in danger than freaking out and exhausting oneself. In that expect he knew he was higher than Shouichi who was prone to freaking out over small things. The comment he made was all the same still even with Byakuran covering what he had said he clearly struck a nerve of some kind.

With a shrug of his shoulders he just nodded. "Mn...yeah. If you trust him to command than trust him...he can take care of those under him." It wasn't filled with any kind of emotion. In his own failing way he was trying to reassure him that he wasn't going to do anything to the tech.

[omniscient_insight]

"Lecturing me, Spanner-chan?" Byakuran hummed. It was clear he didn't like being told something he already knew.But for some reason he believed Spanner.Knew that he wouldn't do anything to Shouichi, not that it really concerned him so much. He was close. Too close to finding the thing he's sought for over ten years. Across hundreds of worlds. Of course, the technician could not understand his caution.

To be so close to something, meant that there will be hiccups. Byakuran had prepared himself for most things. He's ruthlessly created an organization to protect his search, and also prevent anyone from hindering him. Still, his suspicion wasn't from those outside of Millefiore, but those within. It was probably why there were somethings Shouichi didn't know about.

The supreme commander ambled away from the blonde, gaining what he need and becoming bored."...That's Shou-chan's job,not yours."

His words sounded sweet, but they had some bite. As if saying,know your place. He flopped back on his couch, picking up his handheld."Hmmm~ I head Spanner-chan was an otaku. He's going to have fun in Japan."

[screwsnutsnlolipops]

"Not lecturing...stating a point." Spanner was going to make it clear what he was doing especially with someone so good at twisting words to his own meanings. He couldn't say too much though if he wanted to remain neutral though it seemed that wasn't enough for Byakuran now. That alone is annoying he had told the man this before he even joined, but he knew the reason for this fact. With the others big plans for the mafia he didn't want any loose ends, which meant Spanner might be considered one.

"...Yeah. I'm just the mechanic." There was only a bluntness no bitterness though it might seem that way.

At the otaku comment he just gave the other a small smirk. "So? If I wasn't you wouldn't have the robots you do." That had a little of a bite. "I'll have fun in Japan with Shouichi." He didn't mean for that to come off as 'ha' but he's sure Byakuran will take it that way.

[omniscient_insight]

"That is true. You are the best at what you do, Spanner-san." Byakuran could at least give credit where it was due. If he had not gathered the best, then he wouldn't be at this point right now. However...Byakuran didn't want him to forget who was in charge here. Who was funding his little projects.Who gave him the opportunity to work away in his workshop."It's good you have inspiration to go off on...it goes nicely with the money I give you to build those machines."

Byakuran added, but smoothed it over with some idle chat about the Eastern country. "I heard Japan was an interesting place. It's a bit surprising that the Vongola heir originates from that place. Perhaps there's some hidden gem there~"