Title: Passion

By: Metamorcy

Rating: K+

Pairing: Reborn X Skull

Summary: When someone manages to badly injure Skull, Reborn doesn't take it too kindly. Sequel to Bullet but can be on its own.

Disclaimer: Seriously? Don't own, just the idea

A/N: Another one of this pairing. Skull is really cute :)

Beta'ed by WhiteAngel128 and saphire644

Skull jerked, wanting nothing more than to open and blink his eyes, and yet he found out quickly that he couldn't. He froze at that in question. His eyebrows twitched in frustration while he tried to move his body, but couldn't even get it to budge, and only pain met him repeatedly like an annoying buzz. There was a ringing in his ears and he felt like he was spinning when he knew he wasn't. In his confusion, he bit down on his bottom lip, only to find out there was already a fresh cut there from the sharp stab of pain that followed. He winced. 'W-What…happened? Did I…get into a fight?'

Slowly, his fingers began to shuffle in an effort to move and could feel the prickly sensation fade slightly as he struggled. It faded gradually until he could feel his little digits with the sensation began to spread upward and away. His arms could move next, then his shoulders before starting at his feet this time to get those working. As he continued to work on getting his body working again, he listened for anything that might give away his situation, the fear of being trapped in a dungeon by an enemy mafia famiglia was apparent in his mind.

It was clear that something had happened, but he couldn't remember right now. Skull had a strong feeling that his head had been busted open from the dull throbbing in the right corner, which would explain his memory loss. Though the mafia hadn't messed with him for a few months, there was always a possibility that it could still happen. It was obvious that he was the weakest of the Arcobaleno members and the best to kidnap if an enemy wanted to attempt to manipulate the others. Except they forgot one little thing, no one in the Arcobaleno group really cared for him, and the only person who did had been dead for a long time. He was useless after all in everything from being a tactician to using a gun. The only good thing about him was the fact that he was pretty much invincible and could handle any attacks that came at him with little to no issues. But that immortality came with a price. Though he couldn't die, if he was captured, torture made things horrible and agonizingly painful, knowing that the pain would last forever. Luckily for him, he hadn't met such a fate yet, but it was only time before something like that happened.

Getting his body back in order, he clenched his eyes together, the pain still unbearable, but made his way through it. It wasn't as bad as some of the results after his failed stunts. Finally, he managed to get his eyes to open, blinking them rapidly in an effort to clear his vision, but all he got were some blurs. He was positive that the damage to his head had done more to him than he originally thought and it would definitely explain the ringing in his ears. Skull strained himself to tilt his head to the side, peering back and forth in the room to make out his location. It was dark, the curtains were closed shut to prevent any light from coming in, and he was in some sort of comfortable bed with some covers on top. The blankets were thick and white and when he moved, they made a soft rustling sound that he could barely hear over the ringing. The pain was beginning to grow dull by now, he was adjusting to it from his experience of similar agony he had suffered from his various stunts and the beating he would sometimes get for opening his stupid mouth.

Slowly sitting up, he felt a sudden wave of nausea hit him and collapsed back down, releasing a small groan of frustration. But that one movement had his vision clearing up, allowing him to plainly observe his surroundings. At first, he had thought he was in a hospital or dungeon, but it looked more like a normal bedroom, not his, but a random bedroom. The covers were actually much softer, a wonderful quality, expensive by the looks of it, than he originally thought. The sheets underneath were silky against his skin, so nice and soft that it was almost unnoticeable. There was a nice dark brown dresser at his right side, right next to a closet, and a nightstand to his other along with a highly decorated lamp on top. The shade had nice and colorful designs going around, noticeable enough to tell even in the dark. His eyes could make out a digital clock with large black numbers and blinked. 'So it's mid-afternoon. How long have I been out?'

Skull tried to think back on what he had been doing previously before waking up in some strange bed, but nothing came to mind. He just couldn't remember what happened, at all. 'Just what the hell happened to me?' Grumbling out inconsistencies under his breath, he took another look around the room before at himself. He winced at the sight. Bandages, he was covered in bandages, to the point where he couldn't really see what was underneath them. 'I must have been badly injured…Shit…' Swallowing, he reached down to begin tugging them off, wanting to see just how severe his injuries really were. He already knew he had some brain trauma, but what else was there?

"Lackey, don't take those off."

Immediately, the purple-haired man froze, his fingers just grasping the end of a long strand of bandages. His eyes snapped up to the entrance of the bedroom where he could see the door had been just opened, a light from the other side slipping in. By the color and shading, it was from the sun at another window and a man the ex-cloud Arcobaleno couldn't recognize stood at the doorway, leaning against the side. His shadow stretched across the floor, eerily staring at Skull, and the voice was commanding him to listen. But that fedora and those words gave the stranger away.

"R-Reborn?"

The hitman let out a little snort and pulled away from the edge of the doorway, striding closer to the bed. His arms were folded and his dark onyx eyes were staring down at the other, drifting over as if checking Skull's condition. The bandages covered most of the torso and arms with the neck wrapped lightly. It continued upward to the head, flattening the purple hair that was underneath. A few sticky bandages were on the cheeks where it looked like a bruise was forming underneath. The makeup was off and the jewelries were on the nightstand, leaving the younger man feeling quite bare.

Skull kept quiet to see if Reborn would speak about what happened, but no words were said, only silence. Grumbling once more, he rolled around in bed, wincing slightly as he bent his spine a little more than necessary. "Um…Reborn? Where am I?"

"My place."

"Eh?" Skull blinked as the shock settled onto his expression. 'Reborn's place? Really?' His purple eyes peered around the room once more in confusion. Why would he be here of all places? The hospital would be more obvious or at least Vongola mansion. The ex-cloud Arcobaleno tilted his head, this was the first time he had ever gone into Reborn's home before, he had never been allowed even once. "W-What…happened?"

Reborn flicked his fedora upward, the shade that rested on his eyes was much darker since the room allowed very little light than that behind. There was a glower from the other, Skull shivering under the gaze. "You got yourself captured, moron."

"O-Oh…" The purple-haired man just stared, thinking back and yet he couldn't figure out anything. His memory was still blurry. All he remembered was getting something to eat and then it went black. As he thought deeply, he hadn't noticed Reborn moving around until a foot slammed down into his face. Letting out a small screech, he flailed around in the bed until the shoe was lifted up, leaving a red mark. "R-Reborn! Why'd you do that for!? That hurts!"

"That's for being an idiot, lackey," Reborn growled and slammed the heel of his foot back down, this time on the torso, listening to Skull screech out in pain again. "You got yourself drugged and almost kidnapped. They were already beating you to death by the time I arrived."

Skull continued to stare, ignoring the fact that he had been drugged, though that would explain his difficulty in moving. "You…saved me? Why? I thought you hated me?"

The hitman grinded his foot deeper into the soft tissue, watching as the lackey winced. He out a little snort and turned away, not willing to answer that question completely.

"Wait, Reborn," The younger man called out, trying to catch the older one's attention. "What happened to them? I mean the people that drugged me?"

"I killed them and sent the corpses back to the famiglia. I also found some hanging around your apartment and killed them, too. Vongola is still cleaning out your place since there's blood everywhere so you'll need to stay here for the time being until they are finished."

"Gah!" Skull freaked out a little inside on that last bit, not exactly happy that such a thing had happened within his living quarters. Looks like he'll need to move again since he'd rather not imagine every time he stepped into his place on what had occurred. Pouting, he pulled the covers up closer to his face, trying to hide underneath. Regardless of his trauma, it was really nice that Reborn would do such a thing for him. It was even more amazing that the hitman had even saved him in the first place considering the man's lack of kindness and his cruelty towards him. He had expected the other to actually allow him to get kidnapped and beaten and allowed someone else to save him instead or just ignore his existence. The ex-cloud Arcobaleno peered at the older man and sighed. "T-Thanks."

"Hmm?" Reborn rotated around, one hand in his pocket.

"For saving me I mean. And for getting me treated, too. Thanks." A light redness slipped onto Skull's face as he spoke, knowing that it was completely embarrassing.

The hitman stood there for a few moments longer before stepping closer to Skull's side, peering down at the other. He gave a smirk and tilted his fedora to one side, tightening it around his head. In one swift movement, he leaned down and connected their lips together without a single ounce of hesitation. He could see Skull's eyes widened comically in response and Reborn smirked into the kiss, happy about the reaction he received. Using his free hand that isn't in his pocket, he cupped Skull's chin, allowing more access, and managed to slip his tongue inside. He listened to the other squirm slightly at the intrusion and, with skills only he could possess, he managed to get a different response out of the other, a small moan. Hearing that, the hitman broke away, licking his lips in satisfaction, and chuckled. "Perhaps you should rethink on whether I truly hate you or not."

Going for another kiss, this one short but sweet, Reborn pulled away and turned around, making his way out the room. Skull remained frozen to his spot, unsure on how to react to that. How was he supposed to anyway? His lips still burned from the touch and he could smell the strong scent of Reborn's cologne. 'It happened again. Damn him…'

Reborn gave a sinister smirk as he grabbed the door handle. "Don't move from your bed or you might get something else as punishment." Listening to a small 'eep' from the other, he gave a small laugh, closing the door behind, shutting out the only light source to the room.

The younger man on the bed shifted further underneath the covers, tossing them over his head, and squeaking in embarrassment as the words repeated in his head. Oh, just what the hell was going on? He could still hear Reborn's laughter in the background, echoing within his mind. 'Well…' Peeking out from the covers, he eyed the door, expecting Reborn to come storming in once more at any time and try something funny on him. 'At least, this isn't too bad… Oh who am I kidding?' Closing his eyes, he allowed sleep to take him over, hoping that nothing bad or good would happen. Well, if it's good then perhaps it would be okay.

Skull gave a huff. 'Doubt that.'

Hope you enjoyed! I might make one last for this pairing. Don't know when though