Night

At this point in time, Kyouya has it down to an art form. He finds two more greens and then one other yellow.

The happy surprise is a little girl with wide eyes the colour of soft purple.

She's standing outside a five-star hotel and holding a tiny child's suitcase while a woman with shoulder length hair and a fancy deep green dress pays a taxi driver. Another adult is taking out two larger suitcases, the man in a business suit with a golden watch on his wrist.

Kyouya adjusts the backpack on his shoulders and slides up beside the small family, keeping pace with them into the building. The family believes him to belong to an adult in the hotel and the strangers around think he's part of the family, so absolutely no one stops him as Kyouya crosses the marbled floor.

In fact, the only person to even look at him in question is the girl, who shies away like a startled fawn when Kyouya meets her gaze. She tries to hide behind the adults when Kyouya keeps watching her and gets shakier when Kyouya approaches. The parents don't seem to mind a strange child staking their daughter around their knees.

The little girl lets out a squeak when she ducks left around the mother and encounters Kyouya. He simply grabs her hand and doesn't let go despite her enthusiastic flailing.

The parents receive the hotel key cards and one is placed inside the man's wallet while the other is held by the woman. As the four of them head for the elevator, the girl makes a nervous sound, unsure if Kyouya is a threat or just really friendly. He takes her tiny suitcase so she can't run away even if she gets out of his hold, and they both follow the adults.

In the elevator, the girl tries to merge into the metal wall, their linked hands stretched as far as their small arms can reach. Kyouya keeps staring, absolutely certain in the way only a child can be, that his theory is correct. The girl could be another orange with the way she's so nervous, but it's more of a wariness at being in sight rather than just having a scared disposition.

Kyouya decides that he's found a new colour. The lift lets out a tinny sounding 'ding' and the doors open. The girl lurches forward, swinging in an arc because their hands are still linked and have reached the maximum length, then grabs onto the back of the woman's dress.

Kyouya stays still just long enough for the girl to have to let go since the mother moves forward, and only then does he follow the parents. He tracks them to their hotel room, a penthouse suite, and then politely sets the tiny suitcase at the threshold while the parents open the door.

He uses their connected hands to reel the girl in and then forces a hug. She squeaks again and snatches her limb back as soon as Kyouya lets go, immediately grabbing her suitcase then darting past her parents and into the hotel room.

When she's out of sight, there's no one watching to see Kyouya take the man's wallet.

.

The male herbivore's wallet has a lot of cards and receipts and cash, but the important part is the driver's license, which lists an address* almost a day away. So Kyouya simply decides to save time and effort by keeping the girl with him.

He picks an empty guest room in his house, writes 'Girl' on a piece of paper, and tapes it to the door. He steps back to survey his work and nods proudly.

.

Kyouya returns that night, because for some reason herbivores dislike the dark and get twitchier. He waits until the only staff member in the lobby looks away and then paces to the elevator, taking it up to the top floor and then walking down the short corridor to the girl's room.

He uses the man's key card to get in and silently slides past the bathroom, closet and kitchen to find the open lounge room/dining area. A shut door has soft snoring behind it and he logically assumes that the family is all sequestered away in the bedroom.

Fortunately, he's wrong. A three-seater couch which is pressed up against one wall holds a small lump under a quilt, and a pillow is peeking out of one end. He silently crosses the room, places his backpack on the floor nearby, and moves back to a shadowy corner.

He places his hand on the wall and drags his fingernails down. It takes a few moments but the lump stirs and then freezes. Kyouya moves to the kitchen, barely able to see over the marble-top island bench, and watches as the girl flips the blankets off in one brave move and tries to find the source of the noise.

He waits until she's under the blanket again and taps, slow and deliberate on the counter. The lump quivers but there's no motion to get up again. Kyouya moves around the room, always getting closer and always making some kind of noise.

Eventually he reaches the couch, making his steps heavier as he goes and causing the lump to curl in even more. Then he grips an edge of the blanket and in one smooth movement, he rips the quilt away and clamps his free hand over the girl's mouth to stifle the scream.

She explodes in a firestorm of indigo.

For barely a moment he sees a faded shield of silver, spiked and bloody, come to existence between the girl and Kyouya.

.

The amount of terror coursing through Nagi in that instant not only activates her flame, it latches on to something -someone- that can help her.

Deep in a basement laboratory, Mukuro's eyes snap open at the strange tug on his mind.

.

Kyouya snatches his hands back in shock at the sudden manifestation of a shield and her single, piercing scream draws the two adults who immediately flick on the lights when they slam open the bedroom door. Kyouya calmly and clinically unzips his backpack and takes out his tonfa, swiftly taking care of the two herbivores.

When he turns back, the girl is sitting up on the couch, dead silent with one bright red eye that seems to glow.

...

Omake – Merging

Chrome stands in the corner of the meeting room, a small paper plate with little treats in one hand, and people-watching out of habit. She slides a glance around and stills when she realises Kyouya is watching her.

She slowly reaches over and gives to the plate to a confused Mukuro, then steps back and dissolves into the wall.