Disclaimer: I don't own KHR.
1. In which the Vongola tenth generation are dragon tamers.
The view from the highest point of the town was always a sight to behold.
Towering proudly over the other buildings, the beautiful garden was submerged in thick, white clouds. Bright, scintillating stars dominated the dark sky above Tsuna's head, and for a moment there, the magic in the air almost seemed tangible. It didn't help that the rooftop itself was made to resemble a forest. The place looked like something out of a fairytale.
"Gather around the platform, class! It's almost time to start," Nezu-sensei shouted.
Twenty-seven students made their way to the clearing situated at the center of the rooftop garden. A wooden structure of approximately three stories high stood before them. The group of fifteen and sixteen year olds could barely contain their excitement, chattering loudly amongst their peers.
"Please let me get a Class B dragon. Please let me get a Class B dragon," the girl standing in front of Tsuna chanted frantically, her eyes closed behind black spectacles, small hands clasped together in prayer.
"If I get a green one, I swear to god I'll never skip class again," the tallest boy in class proclaimed. His friends chuckled boisterously, and the one closest to the teen snorted.
"Really, Ishikawa? You do know you hold the worst attendance our school has seen in years, right?" the dark haired youth reminded his friend, grinning. "Hell, this is the first time you've attended class in weeks!" The teenagers fell into new bouts of laughter.
"Shut it, Shibata!" Ishikawa retorted, pretending to be offended by his best friend's teasing. "It's not my fault that school is mind-numbingly boring. If I had the proper motivation, like I don't know, an awesome dragon, I'll never miss school again."
"Then I guess the school is going to have to continue hunting you down. Dude, there are less than a hundred people in this country paired up with a green dragon, what are the odds? Plus, you've skipped school for almost a month now. I bet you barely remember what to do. So if anyone here is getting lucky, it's not going to be you." Another boy, this one with a mild case of acne, chipped in after he managed to stop snickering.
"He's right, Idiot. You should have at least gone to class yesterday. I told you Nezu-sensei was going to review the summoning," Shibata scolded the lanky teen.
"Jeez, what are you? My mother?" Some of Tsuna's classmates who were listening in giggled and Tsuna smiled too in spite of himself. Ishikawa Hiroto sighed. "I know. I was gonna come but I overslept. It was two by the time I woke up. Shit, what if I mess up?" the teenager said nervously, dropping the false bravado.
"Cheer up, Hiro-chan!" Masuda, a popular boy in their year, cooed mockingly as he patted the forlorn teen on the back. "Look at it this way, however you screw up, you can't do worse than Dame-Tsuna!" Tsuna flinched at the sudden mention of his name, his face burning red in embarrassment when Masuda's statement earned him laughter from almost everybody on the rooftop. Mentally, the brunet wished for the ground beneath him to open up and swallow him whole.
"That's enough, class," Nezu-sensei ordered, though his lips were also tugged up into a smile. "Look, we can finally begin." The students fell silent and followed their teacher's gaze to see the silver moon hanging high up in the night sky, a fully illuminated circle undaunted by passing clouds. "Now, does everyone remember the number they were given yesterday?" There was a chorus of 'yes' and simultaneous nodding.
From his peripheral, Tsuna saw Shibata turn and say something to Ishikawa who had started panicking at the words that just left Nezu-sensei's mouth. He decided to look away before someone called him out on being a busybody. The brunet reached into the pocket of his navy blue jacket and pulled out the folded slip of paper he had been handed the day before. He opened it and stared at the digits written next to his name.
27.
Well, the number didn't mysteriously change overnight.
Tsuna wasn't even surprised that he got this particular numeral. After all, he was last in everything else, why would this be any different? At least he wasn't first, or he would be having a mini heart attack right about now.
"Amaya Kasumi, you're up first," Nezu-sensei announced after he checked the list he was holding. "Are you ready to go?" The girl in question perked up at the mention of her name.
"Totally, Nezu-sensei!" Amaya replied, brown eyes shining in excitement.
The middle-aged teacher gave his enthusiastic student an encouraging smile and gestured to the cardboard box located at the foot of the ladder fixed to the platform. "Don't forget the Spring Water. If you've got everything, you may proceed."
Tsuna watched as Amaya's friends gave her their blessings, a little envious. He wondered if it was still possible for him to get friends like that. Probably not, by the look of things. He was a month into his first year of high school and it didn't seem like his luck was going to change.
The brunet sighed, and tried not to feel down. He directed his attention back to Amaya who was scaling the ladder ebulliently. It didn't take long for his sporty classmate to reach the top. Tsuna observed quietly as the long haired girl approached the lone small table found on the surface of the raised structure, reviewing the process of summoning in his head. Unfortunately, he couldn't really see what Amaya-san was doing due to the height of the platform.
He stood on his toes, angling his head upwards to get a better view. Oh, Amaya-san was taking out her knife. She was almost done.
"I summon thee, great drakon!" Amaya's voice echoed and silence ensued. Everyone was waiting with bated breath, eyes scouring the sky for a gleam of a scale, a vague figure of a beast. A gasp came from someone standing a few feet to the left of Tsuna. As if someone pressed an unmute button, hushed whispers broke out.
"Where? Where is it? I don't see it!" the students near the girl who spotted it demanded.
Before the wide-eyed girl could reply, they were distracted by the sound of beating wings.
"It's here," someone breathed.
Tsuna felt his heart stop as he caught sight of silver scales. Wow. This… this was a real live dragon. A Class B, his brain supplied.
The pictures and drawings in his textbook didn't do it justice.
This one was rather small, standing only at two and a half meters, with short limbs and dark, intelligent eyes. Judging by its large wings and sleek figure, it was fast and built for flying. Tsuna grinned as the dragon swooped down swiftly, at a speed much higher than the average Class B, and confirmed his suspicions. He was right! It must be his lucky day.
Even from where he was, Tsuna could tell that Amaya-san was thrilled. Her lovely face was flushed with exhilaration and her eyes were twinkling with obvious delight. As the silver dragon rained red sparks over the girl's head, she stood firm and unfazed, confident that it would be a successful summoning.
And it was.
Amaya-san was unharmed when the flames dissipated.
The class erupted into cheers.
Tsuna was so pleased for his athletic classmate that he congratulated her when she climbed down from the platform, something that he would usually refrain from doing, being the socially-awkward loser he was. Apparently, he wasn't the only one feeling especially adventurous today because Amaya-san smiled sincerely and thanked him, when her normal approach was to avert her eyes whenever he came close. Shocked as he was, he smiled back and let her return to her friends.
He was glad he did it.
Soon enough, the second person was making his way up the ladder, followed by the third, and then the fourth.
As predicted, his classmates called out a variety of Class B and C dragons – one of them, the bespectacled girl who was praying earlier, even called out a Class A, extremely rare for a small town like Namimori. The girl in question was now blushing bashfully at the attention she was receiving, surrounded by a group of people.
Black, grey, white, silver, brown, copper; dragons of different shapes and sizes graced the rooftop. No one had failed at calling a dragon yet, though Nakamura, one of the few people that physically picked on Tsuna, managed to fail his summoning, surprising the class of twenty-seven. The teen was quiet as he got down from the platform. Water dripped from his hair and red-stained clothes, and he was covered in minor burns. Without looking at anyone, Nakamura left, ignoring the cries of Nezu-sensei and his circle of peers.
Around him, his fellow classmates began to gossip, some went as far to remark that the bully deserved it. Everyone had watched in disbelief as Nakamura openly expressed his dissatisfaction at getting a Class C dragon, honestly baffled at the teen's nerve and rudeness. When the midnight black dragon threw its head back and fired at Nakamura, Tsuna was horrified to see that the fire did not vanish like it did for his previous classmates.
A handful of the girls screamed, and Nakamura himself let out a frightened yelp, grabbing the bowl and dunking the spring water over his body.
Perhaps another person would be elated to see his or her tormentor in pain but not Tsuna. Maybe it was because he sympathized. Who knows? Nakamura might not be the only one to fail his summoning. In fact, Tsuna would bet a huge sum of money on that possibility, knowing himself. He felt snakes slithering restlessly at the pit of his stomach as the twenty-sixth student, Yamamoto Takeshi, ascended the ladder up to the raised structure.
At this point, just about everyone was talking animatedly about their dragons, too engrossed to pay attention to the baseball ace's summoning. It seems even popularity had its limits. It was no surprise that people would rather talk about themselves than someone else. Tsuna, on the other hand, had his eyes fixed on Yamamoto, and was one of the first to realize that there was something different about his classmate's summoning.
"What–" Tsuna's voice was drowned out by someone else's.
"Oh my god, is that what I think it is?"
Huge. The dragon that answered the school idol's call was huge and slender. It was the biggest one so far, probably as tall as five meters, but that wasn't the detail that astounded the rest of them observing from below.
"Expected of Yamamoto huh?" someone said breathlessly, though really, as good as Yamamoto was, no one could have expected this.
Blue. Class S. No one in the history of Namimori has ever summoned a blue dragon.
"Wow! I can't believe this is actually happening." To Tsuna's left, an enamored girl gushed.
This was the second year someone defied expectations. No one thought it would happen again after Hibari-senpai summoned a purple dragon last year. Were Class S dragons in mating season? Just unbelievable.
Tsuna stared, transfixed, as the magnificent dragon roared and breathed blue fire, engulfing the seemingly nonchalant baseball ace entirely. As the flames diminished, the remaining embers dancing playfully on Yamamoto's skin, the class applauded synchronously, too shocked to do anything else.
A successful summoning with a Class S dragon, Tsuna never thought he'll be fortunate enough to witness that. He beamed, happy for his classmate, as the feeling of dread started to build inside of him.
He was next after all.
Before he knew it, Yamamoto was back with them, scratching the back of his head sheepishly as his pals slapped his back and praised him. Strangely enough, he saw the school idol throw him a curious look.
"Freaking incredible, Takeshi! Always one to impress, huh?" Masuda exclaimed with an easy grin, though Tsuna could hear the slightest tinge of bitterness in his classmate's tone.
"Yeah! I reckon you're gonna receive an offer of transfer to Vongola high! Man, that'll be so cool!"
Tsuna would give Yamamoto his congratulations since the basketball was one of those who didn't bully him or ignore him in fear of social suicide, but he currently had his hands full trying to clam his erratic heartbeat.
"Oi! Oi! This should be interesting. It's Sawada's turn!" Thanks, Tsuna thought dryly, he really needed that reminder.
"Dame-Tsuna, do try not to mess up," Nezu-sensei called out exasperatedly, rubbing the bridge of his nose.
And there goes any self-confidence he had mustered up.
He retrieved a bottle of Spring Water and climbed the ladder cautiously, too nervous about his upcoming summoning to let the snide remarks of his classmate bother him. When he reached the top, he heaved himself onto the platform, staring at the table set up with wide eyes. This was it. Tsuna walked up to the table, and looked down at the items provided for him. A stone bowl, with archaic runes engraved around its edges, was placed in the center and there was a rather dirty rag thrown next to it. The bowl was clean. Yamamoto-san actually cleaned it for him. Tsuna was slightly touched, any other guy in his class might not have.
Tsuna reached into his bag and pulled out the standardized knife that the school made all of them purchase. Setting the blade down on the table top, he opened the bottle of Spring Water and poured everything into the bowl. Tsuna gulped. He really hoped he didn't need to use this as a fail-safe like Nakamura did. He observed silently as the clear liquid started glowing under the beautiful moonlight, diligently counting up to a minute. He mustn't screw this up. When he finally reached sixty seconds, he quickly reached for the glinting blade.
Inhaling deeply, Tsuna sliced open his hand in one swift motion. He winced at the stinging pain before holding his hand above the bowl, allowing his blood to drip into the Spring Water. Red dispersed quickly in the shimmering liquid.
"I summon thee, great drakon!" he bellowed. The cold wind whipped at his hair mercilessly, as he skimmed the skies for something, anything.
Seconds ticked by torturously.
There was nothing.
"Dame-Tsuna, just come down already! Nothing's gonna show up!" Someone started to yell.
"Yeah! God, it's already this late. Stop holding everyone up! We want to go home." Rika, a popular girl in their year, remarked impatiently.
No one has failed to call a dragon in ages. He would be the first in four centuries.
Tsuna bit his lip, his eyes burning.
He should be used to this. It wasn't as if he was a stranger to failing.
The brunet clenched his fists, knuckles blanching white.
Why wasn't he then? Knowing he was going to fail and preparing himself for it didn't make him feel any better. He felt horrible. At that moment, he really wanted to cry.
No.
He must be seeing things.
A glint of orange.
"No. Fucking. Way." Masuda effectively summed up the situation.
Maybe it was passing by, Tsuna thought, it couldn't possibly be-
The majestic beast slowed as it approached the platform, landing on the wooden structure cautiously.
There was no denying it now.
Tsuna had summoned an orange dragon. The beast stared at him with burning amber eyes, appraising him. He stared back, still in a state of shock.
'You mortals are smaller than I expected,' a deep, animistic resounded in his head, causing Tsuna to jump. Then, the brunet saw the dragon steal a glance at his classmates. 'Or maybe it's just you, child.'
"W-What? I'm still growing!" Tsuna protested without thinking.
'Indeed. You are very young, little human. Just like a cute fledgling.' The first year could have sworn that the dragon's eyes flickered with mischief. 'Aren't you different though, from your peers? You aren't built like a fighter, nor do you seem particularly bright. I fear I must have gotten the short end of the stick.'
Tsuna couldn't reply. The dragon's words were true. Of course they were. He wasn't an ideal tamer, or even anywhere close to being a competent one. This majestic creature had every right to refuse him, to wait for a worthy summoner – one that wouldn't trip over thin air, or fail tests, or pant after climbing stairs. There was absolutely nothing Tsuna could say because he understood that he was probably, in dragon terms, a Class F human, while this dragon was practically royalty.
The first orange dragon to be seen in four hundred years.
'However, the strength of a tamer does not come from the physical traits one is given at birth, but the strength within. And with my eyes, I can see that you shine the brightest here, my dear fledgling. I've waited a long, long time for you to appear,' the dragon said, its voice firm but kind. The beast rose up to its full height, and Tsuna knew exactly what was coming. With an earthshaking roar, the dragon breathed orange fire over his head and Tsuna stood unwavering as the flames made contact with his skin.
It was warm.
Tsuna smiled.
When the embers died away, a strong orange flame remained at the center of Tsuna's forehead. The dragon looked at him with something akin to pride.
'My name is Veles. Remember it well.' The dragon – Veles – said, launching itself into the air with its impressive wings.
"S-Sawada Tsunayoshi!" Tsuna shouted back, face flushed red with excitement and joy.
'I'll see you again soon, Sawada Tsunayoshi.'
The next morning, two men showed up at Tsuna's doorstep.
ILG: So, that's it. Yeah, the ending is kinda bad but I really needed to dump this little fic of mine somewhere before I'm utterly incapable of writing in another fandom. Anyway, hi and I'll probably be posting more stuff here. I plan to make this my go-to place to trash stories that never made the cut. Another thing, my stories tend to have a lot of OCs that play insignificant parts because I like to make stuff realistic. That's just how it is. And oh oh! Just wanted to ask, anyone visits the Haikyuu fandom?