In a world of shadows and crime, where power, money and reputation ruled above everything, Famiglia equated family.
It was a reality some took as blessing, some as curse, but most had simply become resigned themselves to.
Not because they wanted to, but simply because it truly was all they could do. What would lamenting bring? Why torment themselves with dozens of questions, of possibilities, which they already had the answers to? Answers that hadn't and never would change. Reality was a cruel task master, but it was constant in this regard.
To have a family meant to have a weakness, to be vulnerable and attackable.
It meant to invite pain and suffering.
Loss.
Very few Mafiosi could actually say that they ever had a family, even fewer that their families were still around. It was a rarity, often reserved for the more powerful of their brethren, those with the ability to command others and the resources to protect their spouses and children. The normal Mafiosi had mostly abandoned the pursuing of their own little families and had accepted that Famiglia was family, and for them, it would stay that way forever. For those among them who never had a family, and who not only didn't plan on creating one but who saw them as more of an obstacle then a gift, life in the Mafia was a blessing, and the bonds of camaraderie all they needed and desired. Well, and then, there were the ones who loved the Mafia, who loved their life and their Famiglia, but who so desperately desired their own family, a lover and little ones, maybe even the picture-perfect small house with well-loved back-garden, white picket fence and the dog to go with it, that it turned into a deep-seated whispering ache. They desired it above all else, even above riches and reputation, and deep within their hearts hoped for a life fraught with more than violence, platonic companionship and danger.
They wanted a home to be welcomed back into.
Sawada Iemitsu belonged to those men who never believed they would ever have a family, but who silently desired exactly that wish more than anything else, who stared longingly at the pictures of happy families and wished they had their own little one to hold, who laid awake at night and detested the occasional whore in their bed, longing to reach out and caress their wife's face and pamper it with sweet kisses.
It was this hidden dream, the one ambition he had already buried in a lonely grave bound so tightly with obligation and regret that it had seemingly suffocated, that kept him going.
A beautiful wife to come back home to, to welcome him and unconditionally love him.
A wonderful child who would grow up the perfect mix off their parents, beautiful and intelligent and just too freaking adorable for words.
Yes, just dreaming about those things brought a silly smile to his face. But Iemitsu was well aware that this was nothing more than his imagination. He was the boss of CEDEF, the Consulenza Esterna Della Famiglia, also known as the External Advisors of the Vongola Famiglia. It was his job to terminate all internal and external threats to the Famiglia while staying independent except in times of war, when Iemitsu became Vongola's Second-in-Command, or when the decisions of the current Vongola Don proved to be detrimental to Vongola's overall health and success. It was a full-time job, and he was always on duty. Bringing a family into such a situation? Exposing loved ones knowingly and voluntarily to such a risk? Endangering their lives?
He was called many things, and idiot was most certainly among them, but he was not such a careless son of a bitch as to put his hypothetical family's safety in jeopardy. No, Sawada Iemitsu had always resigned himself to a life spent in the fold of the Famiglia, with no direct family to speak of after his parent's death.
It was the sacrifice of his deepest desire for the Famiglia he loved and swore to protect.
And it could have been his greatest regret.
It would have been his greatest regret.
Until he met her.
Yamata Nana.
Iemitsu had been visiting Yamamoto Tsuyoshi, his old and retired partner, who had settled down in the sleepy little town of Namimori and who was now the proud father of a two month old little baby boy called Takeshi. It had been a long while since the young man had been on holiday, not since he had first acknowledged the position as CEDEF Head, and he immediately took the chance of an extended holiday Nono offered him and choose to visit with his adorable little godson Takeshi, a one year-old boy he had only seen through the rare, secreted away picture.
It had been while since he had actually sat down and chatted with his old partner, and Tsuyoshi as well as his wife Maya were only too happy to let Iemitsu sleep in their guest room. The young man spent his first free week playing completely adoringly with his darling godson and doing sightseeing with the small family, who took delight in introducing Iemitsu to the town and especially Tsuyoshi's restaurant, Takesushi.
Iemitsu had been blind-sided by his friends cooking skills and had wasted no time sampling everything the man could magic up in the kitchen. It was such a ridiculously carefree enjoyment …
… he hadn't thought that this holiday could have gotten any better.
That was, until one day during the first week of his stay, he was proven wrong. He had been sitting at the bar, nursing his sake while talking with Tsuyoshi, when his world had gained a new perspective, a new and breathtaking array of incredible colours that made everything … so much more. It was the day he first set his eyes upon her.
The most beautiful woman in the world.
He had been stunned. His hand stilled, sake cup halfway to his lips.
Iemitsu blinked.
Speechless.
His whole world had narrowed down to the lovely angel who had garnered his interest with her bell-like laughter. Never before had he seen such a creature, a mirage of otherworldly perfection.
Long light brown hair cascaded straight down a slender back that exposed just the barest hint of enticing pale skin. A slim petite figure gifted with perfectly shaped modest curves dressed in a simple pale-rose summer dress and the loveliest face he had ever seen complementing that image of ethereal grace. Such delicate beauty she portrayed that it made his heart stop. He was captivated by her pale-pink lips and large light brown eyes, completely enthralling him.
It took only one look.
Sawada Iemitsu was in love … or, well, in lust at least.
… there had been a lot of beautiful woman in his life, but none had what this mirage just radiated. Pure unadulterated happiness. And she wore it like she was born from it, an inner light that captured his attention entirely.
He hadn't even registered Tsuyoshi's knowing glance, to taken in by that woman.
She was sitting with her friends, laughing and gesturing animatedly.
For a second, doubt flitted through his mind.
This was not the kind of woman to have a One-Night-Stand with.
This was not the kind of woman to use and leave after having gotten his desires sated.
This was not the kind of woman to deserve something as dirty and corrupt as a Mafia-made and Mafia-born killer.
This was a woman who deserved more than he could ever give her. Someone who deserved undying and untainted love.
Something he could never give her.
But in the end, ultimately, Iemitsu was a very selfish man.
He throw back the rest of his sake and stood up, a new light burning brightly in his eyes, a challenge discovered and acknowledged.
The Young Lion of Vongola had found a new prey.
And he would devour it.
Completely.
Predatorily, he turned around. Tsuyoshi's eyes narrowed at him, knowing his friend far too well, but Iemitsu only gave a roguish grin before he stood up in one graceful move, his tall well-muscled form moving purposefully, sexually, and strode up to her table. His steps were measured as he approached her, his sharp blue gaze fixed unwaveringly on the enthralling woman who had finally noticed him, keeping her rooted to her seat and her entire focus on him as her large brown doe eyes found his, surprise and … sincere appreciation filling her eyes.
Eager appreciation.
Interested appreciation … very interested.
He smirked dangerously.
She blushed, red blooming along her delicate cheeks, unknowingly teasing him.
How well this lovely colour suited her. He couldn't wait to elicit an even deeper colour to rise up on her porcelain-coloured cheeks … a passionate colour of pure arousal.
Iemitsu's smirk widened as he stopped, standing right in front of this delightfully flushed mirage, her chattering friends slowly drifting into an awkward silence that he ignored as easily as he ignored their very presence. He had no reason to be ashamed or afraid; indeed, the shy smile lurking around her pale-pink lips only made his courage soar. Iemitsu had seldom been so sure that he was making the right decision, but this time, he just knew.
He knew that meeting, that knowing her, would be the best decision in his life.
His flames purred in agreement.
Giving her a bright grin that he knew made him look a bit like a fool, he bowed deeply and took her hand, placing a chaste kiss on its soft back, his lips lingering just that one second too long to be misplaced for anything but what it was.
An unmistakeable declaration of intent.
Straightening, he watched as she took her hand back, carefully cradling it to her chest, suddenly avoiding his gaze while blushing beautifully.
That was a good sign. A very good sign.
" My father always told me that beauty lied in the eye of the beholder", he said lowly, proud of the way the deep red shade wouldn't leave her face, instead creeping down her neck. " For you, it doesn't matter, because every beholder will see the same: the most beautiful women in the world."
She giggled, niggling at her lips.
Pick-Up lines, especially cheesy ones, were always a good way to break the ice.
" I'm Iemitsu", he introduced himself.
" Nana", she answered softly.
Nana … what a sweet name. It suited her so well.
" Well, my fair lady Nana, would you do me the honour of allowing me to take you out on a date? It would be my greatest pleasure to kidnap you for a night that you will never forget", he proposed confidently.
She eeped.
He smirked at her furiously blushing face, absolutely entranced by the beautiful rose-coloured shade dusting her cheeks and only highlighting her beautifully shaped lips, which settled into a small shy smile as she finally looked up at him, her brown doe eyes glinting with excitement.
He wanted this creature, this playful tease of shyness, curiosity and innocence.
Something inside him demanded it, and he was only too willing to comply. She was a vision, reacted nearly too sweetly for words and seemed like … exactly the women he could fall for.
Mio dio … it felt like he was … falling in love. This was impossible, seeing as he didn't even know her. It must be simple attraction, and Iemitsu had no scruple indulging.
" Yes, I would like that", her gentle voice finally answered.
Iemitsu gave her a bright grin, thrilled to no end, and once more kissed the back of her hand, proud of the tiny giggle he had elicited.
" Then I will meet you here, tomorrow at seven. Would that be agreeable, my fair lady?"
" Y-yes, I would like that very much!"
" Till then, sweet beauty."
He turned around, and flashed an exasperated Tsuyoshi a triumphant thumb up.
Hopeless? Him? As if!
He was deliriously happy as he went into the back room and upstairs to the guest room of Tsuyoshi's home, his thoughts dancing restlessly around Nana, euphoria coursing through his veins. She had said yes. Yes! To him! Merde – he needed to prepare, post-haste.
He had a date to plan!
… it had been ages since he had been on his last date.
How do you plan a date that a woman would never forget?
In the end, their first date was a complete success.
He didn't even know how the heck it happened, really, all he had planned was a nice dinner at the only Italian place in town and a long walk around the park so that they could get to know each other under the beautiful night sky – but somehow, their romantic, if somewhat cliché date had deviated quite a bit, and he still wasn't sure about the technicalities. Huh. Nevertheless, somehow they had found themselves jumping around in the park's fountain, bare-footed, playing in the water like children and splashing at each other, all the while laughing. He hadn't laughed like this in … speaking honestly, Iemitsu couldn't remember ever having as much fun as he had at that moment.
It was so natural.
And looking into her beautiful brown eyes, seeing the kindness and genuine pleasure, made his flames purr. This … this was unlike anything he had ever experienced. This was life without the oppressive chains of obligation, and no matter how long or short, he wouldn't give this up.
Some things are worth fighting for … and seeing her laugh so freely, seeing her sparkling eyes and the mirth as he flopped down on his behind made every last bit of trouble that would be coming for him worth it.
He wasn't sure that he could have imagined a partner who completed him more perfectly than she did. Honestly?
Most probably, no.
She was beyond perfect.
Their fourth date was … well, intriguing.
That's the nicest description Iemitsu could think of for saying 'I-nearly-royally-fucked-up-and-got-maybe-rescued-by-an-innocent-little-civilian-girl-which-I-totally-misjudged'.
It was a bit … just a tiny bit embarrassing. But at the same time, it was illuminating.
After that first exceptional date, the second and third went just as wonderfully, and Iemitsu had, true to his sometimes rather immature nature, become overconfident and a bit prideful. Of what, he wasn't even sure. Maybe in his delusion that three meetings could tell him the personality of a person, maybe in his ability to come out of everything smelling like roses and awing her. He didn't know, but like most things, this too came back to bite him the ass.
Said ass that consequently had been rather surprisingly saved by his date … or maybe not surprisingly.
He wasn't quite sure.
It had started relatively normally. He had planned a day in Tokyo, knowing that she wanted to visit a fashion exhibition but had no way to get into the big city; which proved no problem for him, seeing as he was quite mobile – he loved to sometimes indulge, and a fleshy rental car during downtime most certainly was included in that. And she had loved it – the trip and car. Mostly the trip, though. Even Iemitsu, not particularly known for his unfailing fashion sense, had to admit that the exhibits were masterfully designed and produced. And watching Nana 'Oh' and 'Ah' over the exquisite workmanship and brilliant ideas, he found himself smiling happily. Strangely enough, watching her being happy made him happy. It was as if she was the sun, and he had fallen into her orbit only to be permanently spellbound by her radiance. After the exhibition, they simply walked the city. He had no plans for a restaurant for once; this was Tokyo, and Nana, as she once explained, didn't have a lot of opportunities visiting it.
Something he would have to change, seeing her sparkling wide eyes taking everything in, curiosity burning bright.
But exactly there, walking hand in hand through Tokyo's streets, was where everything went to hell in a hand basket.
… damningly, he wasn't without blame.
But on the other hand – he wasn't sure he could have reacted in any other way than he did. It just wasn't how he was raised, and he didn't exactly want to change that.
A hurrying brat ran point-black into Nana …
… and nearly threw her to the ground, only Iemitsu's strength keeping her standing.
The brat didn't have as much luck, falling cursing to the ground. Iemitsu ignored him in favour of looking Nana over, who, while winded, assure him that she was fine.
Still, he felt furious.
Turning back to the brat that had run into her, a brat that looked at least like he was approaching his early twenties and had already picked himself up, his next word consisted of pure steel.
" Apologize."
Nana pressed into his side and he couldn't help but adjust their position, instincts long ingrained made him twitch ever so slightly that she was hidden half behind him, out of range of the rude brat who looked at him like he had lost his mind.
Really now.
It was a reasonable demand. What kind of man would ran into a delicate flower like Nana and simply goes on, ignoring the harm he could have dealt out? She could have been seriously hurt.
… she would have been hurt if he hadn't been there.
His ire increased exponentially.
" Eh?! Why the fuck should I?", the bratty punk exclaimed. " I ain't done anything wrong!"
Iemitsu bit his tongue to keep the profanities he wanted to unleash on the fool out of his date's ears.
It took more effort than he would ever admit.
" I think we both knew what you did wrong", he finally retorted coldly.
For a split second, those dark brown eyes shifted to Nana, before they returned to him.
And spit hit his cheek.
He froze.
" Iemitsu ..."
Nana's cautious voice was the only sound penetrating the furious white noise in his ears, and only the pleading look in her warm eyes made him reconsider his next action.
The natural response was to put the little asshole into hospital …
… instead, he forcibly relaxed and took a deep breath.
Only for her.
Only in front of her would his hands stay clean.
" Get out of my sight, you little brat."
Instead of complying, the punk did something utterly foolish.
He swung at Iemitsu.
Irritation welling up, the Mafioso simply ducked beneath the swing, making sure it couldn't reach Nana, stepped forward …
… and stilled.
He couldn't hit back.
Not here.
Not before her.
Iemitsu gritted his teeth, sharp eyes never leaving the lanky stumbling form in front of him. On one hand, he wanted nothing more than to punch the punk's lights out, but one the other hand – Nana. What would she think? He didn't want violence of any kind near her – least of all done by his hands, hands he used to touch, to love, to cherish her. She didn't know just how blood-stained his hands were, how cruel and cold-blooded they could kill another human being, and he never wanted to change that. He never wanted her to back away from his touch, or to associate it with something like pain.
Never.
Damn.
The brat came at them again, aggression colouring his face.
Beat the punk or getting a beating?
" Help! Please, help! Pervert!", his dainty beautiful date suddenly shouted, clinging desperately to him.
Iemitsu didn't know what to do, stunned into immobility.
All he could see was that delicate finger pointing at the frozen brat, invoking the wrath of the other passers-by who slowly came to a standstill around them.
Gapping, the punk stared at Nana – then around them. At a sea of thunderous or appalled expressions.
And he ran.
Honestly, it was self-preservation.
Japanese woman weren't known for their tolerance of perverts.
He was still slightly dazed at the turn of events while Nana graciously fielded the compassionate enquiries of the people who had stopped to take notice, until finally, they were alone again.
Blinking, her stared at her, shocked awe splashed liberally across his features.
She coyly lowered her eyelashes, her smile angelic.
And for the first time Iemitsu contemplate what could lie behind that smile - a line of thought that made his lower regions slowly stir.
She gave a tinkling laugh.
" I did just what my parents taught me to do when idiots didn't want to leave me alone. I'm a good girl, ne, Iemitsu? I listened very closely during those lessons", she smiled mischievously.
Slowly shaking his head, he grinned.
Good?
Bad ass.
Who would have thought?
He couldn't help but be torn between disappointment at his own preconceptions and the burning curiosity that suddenly filled him. Damn it, he really couldn't wait to see just how many riddles she would prove to be made of, and how long he would take to unravel them – if he could ever unravel them at all, that is.
And somehow, beside the blow to his dignity that this tiny dainty civilian woman had just saved his ass from either humiliation through a brat or a charge for assault, he felt utterly thrilled.
Sawada Iemitsu was always up for a challenge - and maybe, just maybe, Nana would prove to be the one challenge to catch him.
It was on their ninth date that he knew for sure: He was looking at the future mother of his children. At his soul mate, the centre of his universe.
And he was in way over his head.
They had been sitting on the swing in the park of their first date. She was in his lap, facing him.
The topic was one that had always weighted heavily on his mind.
Family.
Blood family. His own family, created from love.
" Children … do you want them?"
She hummed, her head tucked underneath his chin as his arm loosely held her waist.
" Yes. I want a big family", she answered.
" Big?", he inquired amused.
She looked up and he could have lost himself in her eyes. There was so much life, love and want in them. It took his breath in a supremely amazing way.
" At least three children", she nodded eagerly. " A boy and two girls. Oh, and a cat. I always wanted a cat, but Kaa-san never let me have one. I would like a house with garden, too, to watch the children play outside."
" No white picket fence?", he asked drily.
" Nope", she replied eagerly. " Just my husband and children all around me. A big happy family."
His heart shuttered. Everything she wanted, he wanted too. But he only wanted those things with her. In the last few weeks since he had met her, she had taught him happiness, and fun and simply wanting to explore his time on this planet. She had shown him love and want and desire and the passion of two souls resonating on a level he had thought impossible outside of maybe guardian bonds. But here they were, and the mere idea of being separated made his heartbeat pick up in an unsteady rhythm.
To lose her …
He didn't know how he would cope.
Ironic.
It was the inevitable conclusion to their personal little fairytale.
How could a murderer, a freaking criminal with blood-soaked hands, ever hope to be what that angel of a woman deserved? He couldn't.
He could never be what she deserved.
And her wish, her dream for the future only illustrated that, drove home the fact that while for him, it was a dream that helped him keep his sanity, for her, it was the future.
A realistic future.
And no sane woman would allow him to build it with her.
" I'm sorry", he breathed sincerely, eyes shadowed to hide the pain he felt.
And he was sorry. He was so fucking sorry to be unable to give her what she desired that no apology could ever truly convey how agonizing it was.
" What?", she asked nonplussed, surprised at his sudden mood swing.
He sighed and breathed in her scent.
" I won't be here. Not often, at least. And we both know that you deserve more than I can give you", he finally said, bitter regret colouring his voice. " I can't give you what you desire. And I think we both know that it would be better if -"
A hand lid over his lips.
" It's not up to you to decide that!", she interrupted him hotly; he blinked, having never seen her so aggressive.
He didn't even know that she could look so dangerous.
" It's my decision to make. You don't get to take that from me", she snapped. " And I won't back down."
" Nana, be reasonable", he implored, even though it broke his heart; when you love someone, you put them before your own selfish wants.
She vehemently shook her head.
" No, I'm done being careful and cautious. Just this once, I want to do what my heart says, not my head. And my heart chose you."
… why did she have to make this so damn difficult? He hadn't planned to break up tonight; fuck, he so didn't want to do this, but her dream had driven reality home.
Still, maybe because he wasn't prepared, her insistent denial slowly started to crack his resolve.
" … you deserve so much more."
She poked him sharply in the chest.
" Maybe. But it isn't always about what we deserve. It is about what we want."
And sometimes we don't want what's best for us, he finished in his thoughts.
This woman …
This unbelievable woman …
Nevertheless – he couldn't just give up. He needed her to understand without exposing secrets that would see them killed for breaking Omerta.
" I just think that you should thrive for more. A husband who won't be away for most of the year, working construction so far from home that it will definitely strain you, maybe even mare your reputation. A father to your children that will always be there, playing ball with your son and house with those sweet little girls … I want to be more – I want to be all that for you … but I know the limitations of what I can give you, and I feel so damn powerless being not enough."
Silence rung through the night as his words died out, choking in his throat. They stayed like this, and he felt, for the first time in years, a slight burning behind his eyes.
She must have understood.
" Iemitsu … you are enough."
His breath stocked.
" Please ...", he croaked, not knowing what exactly he was pleading for.
She poked him again. A small smile danced around her lips.
He didn't understand.
" No", she said with force, shutting him up. " Oh, you big oaf, are you still so blind that you can't see it?"
He blinked.
What.
Sighing, she leaned forward until they were mere inches from each other.
Her lips moved: " I love you."
… He had fallen for her – hard, fast irrevocably. It was something he had never denied. Something he couldn't deny.
And … it was utterly selfish. It made him an even greater bastard than he normally was … but he didn't want to give her up. He had tried to protect her from himself. He had tried to protect her from disappointments that were certain to follow – but she … loved him.
And despite his good intentions …
Inherently, humans are selfish. And Iemitsu was very much human.
His greatest selfishness, his greatest sin …
… would be accepting her love and revealing his own.
He would be a selfish bastard.
" I love you, too."
Slowly, his smile grew just as hers did.
" Good", she responded briskly, gripping his collar and dragging him down until their noses touched. " Now shut up and kiss me properly."
And he did just that.
It tasted like heaven.
It smelled like home.
And he was gone for her.
Iemitsu was so screwed.
Rose blossoms coloured the white fleece in a soft pastel pink. Soft glimmering candle light lit up the white-painted room.
Iemitsu felt nauseous. Sweat coated his brow, as his hands trembled.
Never before had he been as terrified as at this moment.
This was all or nothing. Either she told him to get lost or she would make him the luckiest man on this big green planet called earth.
Iemitsu prayed for the later with every breath he took.
A gentle knock came from the front door of his new house.
Show time.
Hastily drying his nervous hands on his dress pants, he strode to the door and opened it to a vision. Nana was beautiful, wearing a simple yellow summer dress, white sandals and her hair in a high pony tail, she was the very definition of natural beauty. No extravagant dress or jewellery could have made her more breathtaking than she was at this moment, simply being herself.
A pink thick blindfold laid over her eyes.
He released a deep breath. Just as he had asked her to do.
Carefully, as to not startle her, he took her by her hands and led her into the living room, sharing a quick kiss. Somehow, words seemed to have deserted him, but maybe they weren't necessary at this point – he needed to save his words for the right time.
He kissed her again, his heart jumping at the way she eagerly reciprocated.
" Ie-kun!", she laughed.
… that sound. The sound of her beautiful laughter – it took his doubts and worries, his torturing insecurities. No, there was no part of him that hesitated anymore.
He wouldn't let fears rule him. He would look forward. With Nana.
Together.
" Open your eyes", he whispered softly, loosening the blindfold.
She did, blinking at the room, her pretty eyes growing wide as she took in the setting, the way the candle light danced across the room and tinted the rosy petals a softer shade.
" Oh my … what ..."
He put a hand to her lips, halting the stunned words, and slowly went down on one knee, his hands barely hiding their tremor as he took out a small beautiful golden case and opened it.
Candle light caught on the delicate golden band, reflected in the seven clear-cut diamonds, forming a flower.
She took a sharp breath, instinctively covering her mouth with her hands.
His heart thundered in his chest.
Now or never.
" Yamata Nana, you are the most amazing woman I know. A kind, sweet, loving soul but with a gentle inner strength and a love and lust for life of the likes I have seldom seen. And for the first time, I was privileged enough to share it, to experience the wonders this world has to give, not only in the big but most of all in the small things. You are truly beautiful, inside and outside, and it is a pleasure as well as privilege to know you, and an even higher gift to be allowed in your heart. Since that day we first met, you let the sun pale in comparison, not able to compete with the light of your laughter. And I know that we haven't known each other for long, I know that you could do so much better than me, but I love you. And I want that dream with you, Nana, that wonderful dream of a house, a spouse, children. Even the cat. I want it only with you. Maybe I won't make everything right, and I won't be the perfect husband, but the only woman I could ever imagine marrying stands before me, and all I can think of looking at you is that I never want your laughter to die, that I never will allow this special sparkling in your eyes to dim. I love you … I'm truly deeply madly in love with you."
His breath shuddered as he took out the gold band, holding it to her ring finger.
" Would you, Yamata Nana, do me the honour of becoming my wife?"
A second of silence sounded as Iemitsu didn't dare to breath and Nana simply stared at him.
Mio dio, if she said no ...
" Yes – yes, I do", she breathed suddenly, red blossoming on her pale cheeks as she threw herself at him. " I want to marry you."
He felt like the breath had been stolen from his lungs.
She …
She had said yes.
She had said yes!
Beaming brightly he sprung up with her in his arms, whirling them around with a wide grin.
She smiled happily.
" Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you."
He kneed before her again, lovingly sliding the engagement ring on her finger. It fit perfectly. Iemitsu leaned forward, kissing the tips of her fingers reverently.
Laughing sweetly, she grabbed his face and shut him up with a searing kiss.
Standing up with a little monkey around his neck and wrapping his arms around her, they fell back on the bed, uncaring, lost in the moment.
Iemitsu could have cried in happiness.
This …
This was what he had always prayed for.
This … was his forever.
Iemitsu smiled gently down at his newly-wed wife, caressing her soft cheek as he sunk into her beautiful brown eyes, drowning in their magnificence as those pink petal-like lips stretched into a blinding smile of their own. He was caught, a slave to her radiance. And he willingly, no, eagerly gave away his freedom, his independence, for this utterly gorgeous woman beneath him. For the one who could bind him in chains and have him beg for more. He hadn't believed it possible … but here she was.
His soul mate.
His true love.
And she … was his.
In the eyes of the law and the lawless. She was his.
And it felt so fucking good.
It felt perfect.
The start of something that had felt unreachable not long ago. A future. Hope.
Home.
Iemitsu blinked.
He couldn't cry now, he just couldn't. Not tonight. No matter how emotional, how overwhelming this day was, tonight he would worship his woman for the first time as his wife, as truly his, and he wouldn't chance this for anything.
Dainty pale fingers reached forward and tugged him downwards, heated brown doe eyes devouring him as she leaned forwards and their lips met in a hot passionate kiss. Heat flooded him as he pressed down and enjoyed the feeling of her silken skin.
After that …
Bliss.
Married life actually satisfied him.
He loved waking up next to Nana in the morning and rousing her into the day with a long slow kiss that often evolved into something more physical, watching her get ready and enjoying a home-made breakfast first thing in the morning.
For the time being, he was still on an extended holiday, and he lived every second like it could be his last, taking in everything he could, loving her like a desperate man seeing the end of the world coming, the sky already bathed in blood-red.
He loved her. He loved their time together.
But he was no dreamer.
Reality never disappeared, and soon enough, his real life would come knocking, he could only hope that it would be a decent wake-up-call, but knowing his Famiglia … he didn't hold much hope. This was the way of Vongola, and sadly, he had become used to it.
Maybe Nana would be able to take it and not run of screaming?
… no one ever said that Iemitsu wasn't a fool, because only fools could keep dreaming of hope, couldn't they? But this fool knew the truth, he wasn't too blind to see, and knew how this story would end.
Happiness never lasted long.
Only … everything came differently than he had imagined.
Everything changed.
A baby.
… a baby.
They were expecting.
… a child.
His own child.
He would … have a real family.
His shoulders shook as he buried his face in his hands. The bright smile on his trembling lips spoke more than a thousand words could have.
In this life he led, this existence filled with crime and shadows and hateful dangers, he hadn't … he had never expected a family. A lover, maybe. A wife, fairytale-like notion but in the realm of possibilities. But a child?
Never.
Iemitsu trembled.
He was going to be a father.
He was really going to be a father.
Pregnancy wasn't easy on Nana.
From what he had read and heard, pregnancy was never completely easy, no matter how well it went, it always left a strain on the mother. But this pregnancy … it was difficult.
It weighed heavily on his beloved wife.
She was often bound to her bed, to weak or unwell to stand or move. Even the easiest things took more strength then she could muster up, and morning sickness made no attempt to dispense. Instead, it only grew stronger.
And then the news came as she started her second trimester. High-risk pregnancy. The doctor made them no illusions: It would be a miracle should she carry to term, and no matter what, he wanted her to deliver the baby in the hospital. Their child was too small, too still. It was alive, but the worry was there, and it grew every day while he watched his wife become weaker and weaker.
Iemitsu was a wreck, and despite his best efforts to keep it together for Nana, the strain in their relationship was there, and it grew day by day, expounding the stress they were under. What should have been a brilliant exciting time was tormented by worry and fear. It was a trial that tore at them until reality seemed like a parody of a bad movie … one they couldn't escape, stuck in repeat. Not even the reprieve from work he had gotten from Nono after having come clean and being put on paperwork duty helped … not much, at least. Really not much.
He only begged that they would come out intact … and not shattered beyond salvation.
He only wanted his small growing family to survive.
Their peaceful days and nights ended just before she entered her last trimester.
They had gone to bed, like every night, tightly wound around one another, when he felt it.
Flames.
Active approaching flames.
Hard.
Determined.
Hostile.
Breath catching, years of training, of life-threatening conditioning kicked in as a hand slipped beneath his pillow, catching the familiar cold metal of his gun and he carefully leaped over Nana, his instincts screaming, flames flickering bloodthirsty just beneath his skin.
Whoever was approaching – they had no good intentions.
He bared his teeth.
… they had to be coming for his family.
Over his cold dead body.
" Ie-kun, what-"
Iemitsu spun around, eyes wide and burning orange as he quickly grabbed his drowsy lover, gently but firmly lifting her in his arms.
The flames were coming nearer.
Unerringly so.
He paled as realisation set in … they were aiming for the bedroom.
Iemitsu wasted no time as he sprinted from the room, and not a second too late as the heat of red devouring fire exploded through the bedroom window behind them just as he jumped down the stairs.
Clarity flooded his mind as he hit the ground floor. Priorities. First: Nana, his child. Safety. Wardrobe, big enough. Second: Analyse your enemy. How many? Identifying marks? possible motives? Peculiarities? Third: Chose appropriate approach. Eliminate.
Priorities sorted, he did just that and sprinted to the wardrobe with Nana, setting her down. Her hands clenched in his shirt and she opened her mouth, eyes wide and afraid, but he hushed her, laying a finger against her trembling lips.
Steps sounded overhead.
They were closing in.
" Stay", he whispered, urgently.
Eyes brimming with emotions, she nodded, trembling, as silent tears run down her cheeks. He kissed her gently and closed the door.
Iemitsu crouched silently behind the door and slowly closed his eyes. His breath deepened, evening out. He didn't recognize the flame signatures. No superficial similarities to any Famiglia he knew. Maybe new recruits, maybe a new Famiglia that wanted to show off what they were made off by killing Vongola's Young Lion and his family. Could be a job. Could be a test. Young flames. The footsteps were quiet, not heavy. Either slight built or trained. Two. Storm. Lightning. Destructive.
Carefully regulating his breathing, he forced his body to relax and slowed his heartbeat. His flames shimmered down, raging just beneath his skin.
Ready to pounce.
Like a lion.
Ferocious.
Steps came down the stairs. Five feet away.
The storm approached first, degeneration eating away at their home.
Three.
Lightning followed. He could feel their flames, searching for his. A grim smile crossed his face.
Two.
The stench of cheap cigarettes was awful, no sense for good quality.
One.
They were guarded … but not guarded enough.
There.
Springing up, he threw the door violently into the lightning's face, hearing the satisfying scrunch of a breaking nose as he leaned down, side-stepping the storms fist as he quickly raised his hand and shot – the fool before him threw his own flames up in a shield, and Iemitsu took a perverse kind of pleasure at the look of horror as his sky-flame-saturated bullet cut through the red fire and hit the other man square in the forehead. He turned around before the fool even hit the ground and threw the door open – only to freeze.
Gun point.
Point black.
A muzzle pressed against skin.
Nana's skin.
His flames jumped. Hands moved. He crouched low.
And suddenly …
… suddenly blood splattered across his face and Nana's pink nightgown as Iemitsu pressed the trigger, directing the bullet that would have drilled a hole in his head into the fools own belly. Iemitsu blinked against the red in his vision and turned to Nana, ignoring the second soon-to-be corpse as the fucker laid moaning on the ground, rapidly bleeding out.
Good.
Those freaks had made his wife afraid.
They were traumatizing her. He was only neutralizing the danger.
The low-life screeched as he kicked it.
" … a-anata …?"
Iemitsu quickly turned around at the sound of that breathy teary voice – and she screamed. Nana screamed like a banshee.
His face was flecked with blood.
She lost the last remains of colour.
Mio dio.
" Nana, please-", he tried, his voice breaking as his wife recoiled, outstretched hand freezing.
Those brown eyes were wild, fear and terror warring on her beautiful features.
That was his fault.
He had made her afraid.
" You monster!"
He never wanted her to look at him like this.
Never.
And in a matter of minutes all the deep-seated doubts, the hateful nagging whispers returned with a vengeance, yipping and yapping, scenting blood and despair.
They sensed the blood bath in the air, they felt it in their marrow and bones, the glee of being validated. And Iemitsu knew the truth, looking at his wife's face and seeing a stranger looking back with disgust, his hopes, dreams and desires lying in jagged pieces all around his frozen form, waiting for one more wrong move to completely tear him apart.
She had finally seen the blood staining his hands, and she looked sick.
At the end, there would only be one victim lost to the world, thrown on the floor and trampled to death.
His heart.
" Iemitsu, how unexpected, I do believe that you still have a few more months to go from your holiday. How is married life treating you?"
" … Nono, I-I need your help. Please."
" Oh child."
" I-they found us. Don't know which Famiglia, but undoubtedly assassins. Nana … I ..."
" Talk with your wife, Iemitsu. I'm calling clean up. Safe your marriage. Make sure your child is alright."
" Thank you … thank you. I will."
Scared but angry red-rimmed eyes glared at him from across the room.
There was no mistaking the naked emotions in those once warm beautiful orbs.
Fear.
Revulsion.
Hate.
They had been at it for half an hour already, and it didn't look as if she would stop – he knew he wouldn't. Stopping meant losing, and losing meant never seeing his wife or son again. No, there wasn't any god-damn chance in hell that he would give up.
This was his family, and he wouldn't stop fighting for them.
It broke his heart that Nana seemed to have no intention to keep hold on them, on what they had.
… did their family mean so little to her?
" I didn't agree to marry a criminal!", she screamed hotly, angry red splodges burning her tear-stained cheeks, hands balled into white fists.
But she had agreed to marry him – and he was still the same man.
His hand crashed into the wall … it was all he could do to keep himself from lashing out at her – that, and admonishing himself that she was the mother of his child – a child that was still within her body.
" It doesn't change who I am! I'm still the same man you fell in love with! The man you married just months ago!", he panted lightly, torn between anger and desperation – desperation for her to understand.
" No, Iemitsu, how can I?! How can I love a lie?", she sobbed brokenly, shaking her head angrily at him. " You … you are not the man I thought I loved, you are a man who heartlessly deceived me, and I will not continue to be your wife, to be a part of something so evil. I want a divorce."
Divorce?!
" Nana, please, let us talk-", he pleaded, reaching out to her.
She wrenched out of the way, putting even more distance between them.
" No! Get out!"
Iemitsu shook his head and took a deep breath.
He needed to keep a clear and calm head, no matter how violently the fear of losing his wife clawed him up on the inside. Why couldn't she see sense?
" This is my house, you can't just throw me out, and especially not now", he finally said tiredly. " If another assassin gets in and you are defenceless, I would never forgive myself. I won't risk either of you."
" Then you shouldn't have married me in the first place!"
" And our child? If I agree to the divorce, what will happen to our child?", he demanded, suddenly furious with her.
Why wouldn't she see reason?! He was aware that this was his mess, that the pain she now felt was inflicted through his lies and carelessness – but wasn't what they had worth the fight?
Wasn't at least their innocent little baby boy worth it to try?
" I don't want it! And I won't have it!", she screeched.
Iemitsu clenched his fist so tightly he felt nails piercing skin, breaking it.
What the fuck?!
" You can't abort anymore!", Iemitsu countered hotly.
Nana heaved, her eyes hard and unforgiving, her voice like ice, freezing and nearly emotionless as she spoke.
" Accidents happen."
Cold and cruel.
Heartless.
Was that the woman he had married?
The woman he had fallen in love with?
Unbidden, the bitter thought that thankfully he had found out know instead of letting her poison their boy without his knowledge wormed into his mind, and he swallowed heavily. No, he would not let a child experience scorn and hate from their own mother, least of all his son.
Because no matter what his wife said, the babe she carried was his, and he loved it already.
Even if Nana hated it, Iemitsu loved it.
And he would fight for his baby.
" … I will divorce you", he stated, his voice coolly and flat; it wasn't the man Nana had dated and married that spoke, but the man who had built a reputation as ferocious, merciless and loyal to his Famiglia – and this man cared in this particular moment nothing for the woman he loved. He only cared for the child he had sired. His blood. " And I will pay you to give birth."
She threw her head back and gave a dirty hysterical laugh.
" I don't want you dirty money! I want this monster out of me!"
Iemitsu shook his head in disgust. Just moments ago, he had been desperate to save his marriage, to salvage their family – now? The mere idea of letting Nana raise their child made him nauseous. She spoke so callously of killing her own flesh and blood, as if just an hour ago she hadn't lovingly talked to the baby bump.
No, painful it would be, but the idea of staying with her was sickening.
" Don't be thick", he snorted derisively, staying deceptively calm as his flames roared beneath his skin in outrage. " I will leave you alone, you can disappear and we never hear of each other again once you release all custodial rights to me. You will be compensated handsomely."
His stomach churned as he watched her, noting the way those brown doe eyes he had fallen for turned cunning. That she was actually contemplating getting paid for bringing her own child, a child she had wanted from the very first moment, into this world …
… but he wasn't about to complain.
In the end, it would be her mistake.
A few months ago, her hidden depths had turned him on, now, he counted on them to get what he wanted.
" I will never have to see either of you again?", she finally asked.
He shook his head.
" No."
She nodded decisively.
" … I will give birth, but after that, you will get out of my life, you and your monster spawn!"
He bit back the snarl that wanted to creep across his face. No need to verify her and make himself the villain he certainly wasn't.
" That I'm only too happy to promise you", was Iemitsu's answer as he fished out his phone, preparing himself for a conversation with his boss he never wanted to have.
He had tried. He had failed.
Marriage wasn't his.
Family, meanwhile, was.
And now, he had his own little wonder, his own little family to care for.
He would not mourn that woman and what they could have been. It would be ungrateful for the miracle they had produced.
He was cutting all strings …
… and taking the greatest price with him.
He had been wrong.
His heart, he had somehow saved, beaten and bruised – it was banged up to all hell, but there, still beating. No, the true victim of her vicious vindictiveness, of their failings, was the only one he couldn't save. The only one truly innocent.
And it killed him.
Killed him that the cruelness that hag he once called wife showed their unborn son would be the only memory his little one would ever have of the woman who was his mother.
But for the baby, he couldn't regret, wouldn't regret. No. Despite the anger, disappointment, guilt and pain that tortured him day in and out …
… he would never regret his child.
" Thanks for the help."
" … I take it not everything went well?"
" She threatened to kill my child."
" Iemitsu!"
" Oh, don't worry. My baby will live, that concession I got out of her due to certain terms – I know what I saw in her, but how the fuck could something that made me fall in love disappear in the blink of an eye? I can't recognize her."
" Difficult situations can bring out the best and the worst in a person. It seems Nana-san had the unfavourable displeasure to fall on the wrong side of that scale."
" … I won't care about her anymore. She is the mother of my child, until the little one is born. I will return home with my son as soon as he is born. Could you contact one of our doctors? And a lawyer? I will have to make certain that she never has a claim to my baby."
" You didn't even have to ask. If there is anything else – call me. I'm here."
" I will. Thank you."
" I'm truly sorry."
" Honestly? I'm not. I can't be sorry."
" … you are right. How could you be? She is giving you the world's greatest gift, no matter how reluctant."
" And I already love him"
She didn't carry to term.
And she was … happy for it.
Disgustingly.
It was an ugly expression. Gleeful. Smug. Vengeful. It did actually made him question what he ever saw in her.
And she aimed it at a helpless infant, a new-born struggling for his every breath. Iemitsu didn't think, he simply ripped the babe out of her arms the moment he was let into the hospital room and saw how … how satisfied she watched as the babe laid pale in her arms, two months premature - and hurried his child out of the vicinity, out of her clutches. Her very presence sickened him, and he wouldn't allow that woman to poison his baby boy by making him breathe the same air as Nana, to make his little ones birth anything less than the amazing miracle it was.
… he had a son.
He had a son!
It took a moment to sink in that this tiny being in his arms was his, his family, flesh of his flesh, blood of his blood – his.
His son.
Iemitsu had to sit down.
He was a father.
Blinking, he looked down at his tiny miracle child.
Large golden-hued sunset-coloured eyes stared up at him, as his little baby boy continued to be silent, unconsciously tugging at Iemitsu's flames. He felt the struggle that couldn't be seen, his baby boy's fight to survive that not even the doctors saw – it was in the way his eyes were already open, not in a new-born-blue but in the unmistaken shade of sky flames, addictively pure sweet sky flames that made his own flames roar protectively and possessive in response. Stroking one finger down that soft pale cheek, he released as much flame as he dared, comforting and supporting his miracle child with a steady trickle of home, love, welcome, belonging and a call to keep going on.
He felt how they resonated, how the boy's flames recognized his own as parental and accepted them, burrowing deep within them, seeking protection and home.
The little one was so small, so tiny and pale. Iemitsu had seen pictures of Takeshi just after his godson's birth, and the boy had been at least five inches taller than his tiny baby boy.
His heart constricted in worry.
Sitting there in the waiting room, he simply held his son until a nurse came out of Nana's room and asked him to give the little one to her so that he could be thoroughly checked. Reluctantly, Iemitsu handed him over to the woman and stood up, accompanying her until the door was closed in his face.
He had never fully understood what his own mother had meant as she told him that until the moment she saw him, the first time she held him, she never truly understood what unconditional love was. Now, Iemitsu understood. He understood completely. Because from the moment he was born, the moment he first felt those tiny puffs of breath, he knew without a second hesitation that for his baby boy, he would let the world burn to ash. Nothing mattered but the little one, nothing.
This was unconditional love, and as much as he should be afraid of the intensity of this feeling …
… he wasn't.
He welcomed it, whole-heartedly.
His miracle.
Iemitsu looked into those unique golden eyes, eyes that brimmed with warmth and compassion and purest sky flames and he knew what to name his heir, what to name the single most important person in his world.
Tsunayoshi.
" Nono … I have a son. I have beautiful tiny son. And I already love him so much that my heart must be about to explode."
Bringing up a child in the Mafia was a terrible idea. Iemitsu was well aware of this. But his son had already been exposed to an imperfect world, and Iemitsu was not willing to abandon the sweet boy any more than he had already been abandoned by his own screw of a mother.
The little one had been born despite his mother's wishes, and he had lost so much before he even had a chance to know it. No, no matter how dangerous the underworld was, it was better than what could have awaited his son had Nana gotten her claws into the darling babe.
Tsuna had already learned one of the most horrible lessons life could give.
Never expect kindness.
This world they lived in … was a cruel cruel world and could be a cold unforgiving place.
The least Iemitsu could do for his own son was to be there, to be a father his little Tsuna could be proud of. And he would fucking die before he let that innocent little babe that had captured his heart so completely down in any fucking way.
He was a father now, and he would act like it, with his Dying Will if it should prove necessary.
For the little boy he loved so fiercely.
~The End~