So I honestly can't believe I'm able to put this story up, if only because I literally have dozens and dozens of half-written fics and stories piled up. I have absolutely no idea where I'm going with this story, I just wanted to try my hand at the twin AU. Also, I practically wrote this chapter in one go, and I just had a brain fart and suddenly all these words were farted out, and I haven't written in so long, so forgive me for all the mistakes.
I didn't plan to publish the first chapter so soon, but it's Tsuna's birthday today, so I suppose I could put this up.

This first chapter is Tsuna from ages 6 to 12. From the third chapter is the start of the canon plot. Second chapter will be a summary of what Tsuna's life is like.

Disclaimer: Katekyo Hitman Reborn does not belong to me. Everyone would be gay in that case lol.

Six and Lost

He was six when he landed painfully on the sidewalk outside of his house, a bag thrown at his face, covered with multiple bruises hidden underneath his clothes. The door slammed shut, and his brain tried to catch up to what had just happened. It took a full three minutes before searing hot tears slid down his cheek, and he swallowed back a pitiful sob as he stood up, the bag gripped loosely in his hand. He stood there for another five minutes until his feet began to drag themselves away from the place he called home for six years, mindlessly wandering around town for the next few hours, trying to understand why life was so unfair.

His first night on his own was spent sleeping under the slide in a random playground. He had curled into himself, clutching onto the bag like a lifeline, and cried himself to sleep. After a few nights, someone discovered him in the park, and he had run as fast as his short legs could take him, and found a place hidden away from most eyes, under a large bridge on the skirts of Namimori. There it would serve as his new home until he walked into the abandoned Kokuyo Land, and that would become his home for another ten years of his life.

0o0o0

"You fucking brat, get back here!" Screamed a heavy man with his meaty fist curled up and promising a world of hurt, running after a small child with a head full of spiky brown locks.

Tsuna panted at the effort of running, a large loaf of bread clutched tightly in his arms, and swiftly turned into a corner. Squeezing his small, thin body into a small opening in between two buildings, he held his breath as the man ran past his hiding spot, and didn't let it go until he couldn't hear him any longer. Sighing after a few minutes, he left the opening and slid his prize underneath his shirt, in case someone tried to steal it from him, and quickly made his way back to Kokuyo Land, slipping past the "no entry" sign, and quietly stepped into one of the abandoned buildings. Weaving through several halls and rooms, he arrived to a small hallway much further into the building, and opened the door to a small office room. He locked the door behind him, then walked over to another door that opened to a tiny broom closet, and pulling on a switch that shone light to the small, three by five closet.
There, Tsuna finally allowed himself to relax, and he plopped onto the worn futon he found in one of the other buildings a few weeks ago. He carefully took out the bread, and his mouth watered at the smell of it, but he shook his head, trying to clear any thoughts of gobbling it down, and put it on the shelf that held an assortment of items. He grabbed the small dagger on it, and meticulously began to slice the bread into smaller portions, leaving one small slice out, and putting the rest into a small cardboard box. He needed to carefully ration his food, because there was no guarantee when he'd be able to steal more. He picked up the measly slice, and nibbled on it slowly, but as always, it was gone quickly, and he was barely able to quench the roaring of his empty stomach.

Lying on his back, he stared at the ceiling of the closet, trying to calm down his still-panicked heart, before it escalated into something worse. The sharp pain in his head told him he wouldn't be so lucky today, and he sat up quickly as he began to cough harshly. Taking small gasps of breath, he waited the coughing out. After a few minutes it died down, but he was left breathless and in pain. He curled into himself, wrapping the thin blanket tightly around his frail body, and he eventually blacked out.

Loud, mocking laughs filled his ears, and he curled into himself, covering his ears in hopes that he wouldn't hear anything.

"Did'ya hear them, dame-Tsuna? Useless, weak, pathetic, I heard it all from kaa-chan. And know the best part? Tou-chan agreed too!" Hirotaka, younger by three minutes, jeered in his older twin's face, basking in joy at the other's expression of hurt. "Useless-Tsuna, weak-Tsuna, pathetic-Tsuna, there's too many names to call you! Like I thought, dame-Tsuna is the perfect name! I bet kaa-chan and tou-chan call you dame-Tsuna too!"

Laughing so hard, he fell to the ground, the harsh sound clawed at Tsuna's ears, and he felt like they were bleeding. Picking himself up, he ran out of the house, rounding the corner and diving into one of the many bushes in the backyard, hiding himself behind the branches and let himself cry softly. He hated crying in front of Hiro, it just made the taunting worse, so he found haven in the bushes in times like this. Looking up through the thick branches, he saw his mother lifting his brother up, a true smile on her face as she cuddled her son. Whenever she looked at him, he was always met with a tight smile and sharp eyes, and even sharper words, nothing like she was now. More tears slipped down his dirty cheeks as he watched his family, more happy without him.

Eyes blinking wearily, he tried to discern his dark surroundings, before remembering where he was. Sighing, Tsuna wiped off the leftover tears on his damp cheeks before getting up, stretching and letting out a loud yawn. There was no window in the closet, but he knew that it was dark out by now, and he slipped on his thin sweater, making his way out of the building. He stared up at the night sky, appreciating the view of the stars, and made his way back into town. He'd preferred going out at night since less people were awake then, making it easier for him to sneak around. It was at this time of day that Tsuna would go around through the trash, picking up random items he thought would prove as useful, and if he was lucky, food that people would throw out. It was disgusting, yes, but what else could he do? Shivering, he pulled his hoodie around him more tightly. Fall was ending, and winter was approaching more quickly than ever. He had been lucky enough to be able to steal a good amount of clothing from random clothing lines over the last few months, but he was still unsure how he'd find food properly in the winter, as the outdoor markets would close for the season and food would freeze before he could get to it at night. Shaking off the thoughts, he focused on the present, and moved on to the next trash bin, willing his stomach to quiet down. After a few hours, he returned with a bag full of whatnots, and organized the items on his shelf. Munching on a bag of burnt popcorn, he tried to plan what he'd do over the next few weeks.

He'd quit school many months ago, when he had first been kicked out. There had been no point in attending when all he'd get were bullies and painful reminders of the life he had had, not to mention the curriculum was mediocre and simple. Contrary to popular belief, Tsuna was actually quite smart, but his grades were low due to Hiro, being the ever-jealous person he was. He couldn't stand his brother getting higher grades than him, and would often beat him into purposefully failing his tests and assignments. Since he had quite a large amount of time on his hands, Tsuna often went to libraries to pass the time, reading up on more advanced subjects such as algebra and physics; he'd long since read the other books the library had offered, and was considering picking up a few other languages since he was running out of things to read. Of course, he had also gone through many books to help with his current situation and survival, which proved to come in handy many times, including the knowledge of lock picking.

I should really find a source of money, maybe a job? That way I can at least buy my food.

Tsuna sighed. Who would hire a six-year-old though? What kind of jobs could he do with his condition? He had little to no endurance at this point, his thin frame due to constant hunger not helping in any way. In fact, he probably looked like the wind could carry him away, not to mention he was too short for jobs like cleaning. Brushing off any crumbs, he readied himself for more sleep.

I'll just look through for job postings in town I guess.

Waiting for sleep to claim him, he drifted off to dreams of feasts and a loving family.

0o0o0

"Please, I beg of you! I can do it!"

Currently Tsuna was on his knees before a stocky man, who had on a disgruntled expression.

"No can do kid. You're too young."

"Please! I really, really, need this job!"

A few hours earlier he had seen an ad looking for a newspaper boy, and he had grabbed the opportunity immediately. It was a perfect job, not too physically strenuous, nothing that required him to be taller. But the man in front of him seemed to think otherwise.

"I swear I'll do a great job, and I'll never take a sick leave, and I'll always be on time and I'll never complain and I'll –"

"Alright, alright, slow down there kiddo. If you want it that bad, I'll give it to you. But not a single word of complaint got it? You'll come in here at five every morning, and I expect you to finish one round in an hour."

Tsuna nodded his head eagerly. "I'll do it!"

"Alright, now get going kid. Your parents are probably worrying about you."

Gritting his teeth, he smiled at the man and bid him farewell.

From then on, at five sharp, Tsuna would show up at the company building, as he waited to receive his bundle. It was heavy and weighed down on his small body, but thoughts of real food pushed him into doing his best, and soon enough doing his rounds every morning served as a sort of training regimen, building up endurance and strength for his frail body. Even as winter finally rolled in, he'd continue to work hard, even on hard days when snow would pile up high, he'd trudge through, never failing to finish up within an hour. He only got paid seven dollar per round, but he appreciated every dollar he earned, making sure to carefully save up some of the money. Sometimes his boss, the man he had first talked to, would take pity on him, and treat him to lunch, as he had quickly put two and two together and realized Tsuna was an orphan of sorts. But he never delved into it, and simply watched the boy struggle to survive; if he wasn't going to ask for help, then he wouldn't give it. Besides, it didn't seem like he had even needed it at all.

And this is how the next two years passed.

Eight and Barely Alive

"Hey kid, come with me, I have lots of treats at my place." Called out a grubby man, but Tsuna ignored him and continued on. He was on his way to his other job, which was further down on the sketchier side of town, which he got a month ago, as a dishwasher at a small restaurant. Though he was paid very little, the plus side was being able to take home any leftover food.

"Evening, Kimura!" Tsuna turned to return the greeting to a coworker, one of the cooks, as he stepped into the back entrance. He had unofficially changed his surname to Kimura when he got his job as a delivery boy. He couldn't legally change it as Nana was still considered his legal guardian until he turned eighteen.

"Evening, Ichinose-san." He replied politely. Putting his bag in the closet, he grabbed his apron and the stool kept for him. At eight Tsuna was still quite short, so he used a stool to reach the sink. Pushing his sleeves up, he got to work, ignoring the feel of the scalding water on his skin, and diligently washed each and every dish.

0o0o0

"Hey, Kimura." Said a voice next to him, and Tsuna looked up to the owner of the restaurant. "How's working going?"

He had been on his break, studying his Chinese notes, when the man had approached. "It's fine, Mori-san."

Nodding at his reply, he continued on. "So I need someone for Friday, could you come in?"

"Of course." Tsuna replied, mentally sighing. He had been quite tired lately with the addition of his second job, and it starting to take a toll on his weary body. While his attack had been growing less frequent over the years, it had come back more viciously over the month.
After another few hours, he was off, making the hour trek back home, plopping onto his futon in exhaustion and immediately fell asleep.

"G-Get away from there Hiro." His bottom lip was quivering and he bit down on it. In front of him was Hiro, who was dangerously close to the ledge of the second-story window. "You're gonna f-fall." His eyes widened at the smug look his brother sent him.

"I know"

And he was gone. There was a scream, and then loud cries, and Tsuna rushed over to the ledge, staring down in horror at the mangled body. Hiro's leg was bent the wrong way, and his skin was littered with angry, red scratches. Nana had ran out of the house at the cry, and gasped in shock at the sight, before she was quickly in action, flipping out a phone and calling the ambulance. Crouching down by Hiro, she bent down to what appeared to be Hiro whispering something to her, and Tsuna reeled back in shock at the furious look his mother sent him, her eyes hard and unfeeling as she stared up at her first-born child. There were alarms going off in Tsuna's head and he just knew something terrible would happen soon, but the thoughts were swept away as the Sawada household became hectic, with paramedics rushing in and whispering neighbors came out to see what the fuss was about. In a little over ten minutes, everyone was gone, and he was left alone in the quiet house. With no one left, he crawled into his bed and hid under his sheets. The house was always too big for him.
Nana had returned in a few hours, and she had immediately entered Tsuna's room. He was about to run up to her for comfort until he saw her expression, and he stopped, his body stilling, waiting in apprehension as to what would happen next, but in all the scenarios that ran through his mind, what would occur next was something not even in his worst nightmares did he ever dreamed would happen, and it would forever be imprinted into his memories.

In the course of one hour, he was tossed around, beaten, screamed at and was on the receiving end of countless insults and words that pierced his heart. And after that one hour, quick hands grabbed a bag and shoved a few articles of clothing in, and he was tossed out on the sidewalk outside of his house.

"Uhm, could I ask you for a favor?" Tsuna asked shyly, his voice quiet and withdrawn. His boss, Arata, stared down at him in mild amusement, a grin pulling the corners of his lip up.

"Well it'd depend on the favour." He replied in turn. An eyebrow raised as Tsuna suddenly pulled out some papers from bag.

"C-Could you maybe, sign these forms for me?" In his hands were application forms for Namimori elementary school. "I need g-guardian signatures to attend, and I don't really have anyone else to ask. If you don't want to, t-that's okay." He ducked his flaming face down, his long bangs covering his face. But he quickly snapped back up when he heard a sound of agreement.

"Sure." Arata ruffled Tsuna's hair, and took the papers. Tsuna had been working with the company as a delivery boy for almost four years now, and just like promised, Arata never regretted hiring the boy, and as much as he didn't want to admit it, he had grown somewhat fond of the small child. Signing a bunch of papers to put the boy in school? It was the least he could do, really. Despite the low pay and occasional harsh weather conditions, Tsuna worked hard, and Arata felt a sort of responsibility for him.

"But why're you all interested in going to school now? It didn't seem to bother you before." He asked in curiosity. The boy was smart, anyone could figure that out, and he didn't seem like the type to go to school.
Tsuna turned red, and he started to mutter under his breath.

"What was that?"

He seemed to turn even more red as he stammered out his response. "T-There's someone I l-like t-there." He trailed off in a whisper.

"Hooo? Well then, I definitely can't refuse now." Arata chuckled in amusement. Of course it'd be a girl. Briefly going through the papers, he quickly wrote his signature down. "There you go. Have fun." He shook his head in fond exasperation as Tsuna took the papers and scampered off. Kids.

0o0o0

Tsuna pushed away any last thoughts and made his way across town to the only elementary school it had to offer: Namimori Elementary School. He was undeniably nervous; he hadn't been around kids his age for a long time, and he wasn't too sure how he'd act around them. There was no way to connect to the other students, as someone with a situation like him was unlikely to be able to play around freely with no other thoughts past homework and friends, and it's not like he needed the education. No, the reason for him attending school was due to one person by the name of Hibari Kyoya. Tsuna had frequently seen the boy around town, who went of his way to track down no-good doers, beating them up ruthlessly and without emotion. It was beyond bizarre, but Tsuna developed a sort of admiration for him, and looked up to him as a role model. Hibari was, in a way, everything Tsuna strived to be: strong, independent, proud, confident and courageous. So here he was, attending school for the first time in almost four years because of a boy.

Walking down the noisy hallways, he ignored the other students and their parents, his eyes searching for one person, but he was disappointed as there was no sign of him, and made his way to the gym where everyone were to be assembled. Tuning out the long and monotonous lecture given by the principle, he began to make new schedules in his head to accommodate the addition of school. The rest of the day was uneventful and boring, and he felt a little cheated. The classes, as he had predicted, were mediocre and lacking, and it was almost unbelievable that he had had to put in so much money for something so worthless, but he settled with gritting his teeth while listening to the dull voices of his teachers, while putting the time to be of more use, and studied his Chinese notes instead. By now, he knew about four languages: Japanese, English, French and Italian, and he planned to learn a few more before redirecting his attention to other areas of study, such as business and engineering. Earlier, he had much more time on his hands to focus on studying, but with more work coming in and now having to attend school, he'd have less time to study.

0o0o0

It turned out, that being smart did not raise his popularity and fend off bullies. Ironically, it didn't matter if Tsuna either failed his tests or got perfect scores for him to be deemed "dame-Tsuna".

Tsuna had aced the first few tests and quizzes in his first month of school, but he soon realized his mistake; it seemed people didn't appreciate "dame-Tsuna" doing better than them, and proceeded to tell him such after school, words replaced by jeers and pushing. So Tsuna figured being the laughing stock of the class was better than being the know-it-all, and slowly his grades began to fall back down. Actions fueled by jealousy was far more brutal than that of mocking.

0o0o0

"Herbivore, you are crowding. For that, I will bite you to death." Came the foreboding words from a ten-year-old Hibari Kyoya.
Looking up in terror, the bullies around Tsuna scattered as quickly as they came, and soon Tsuna was left alone to face the wrath from Namimori's very own tiny prefect. Tsuna, despite looking up to said prefect, was still shit-terrified of the boy and his violent methods, and he curled into himself, arms raised in protection.
Hibari looked down at the terrified herbivore in disdain, but he didn't raise his tonfas. The boy was scrawny and tiny, a mess of brown locks halfway covered by arms littered with varying bruises. He looked to be the prime example of a quivering rabbit, and for that, Hibari decided not to bite the herbivore to death.

"Leave before I bite you to death. Loitering on school grounds after hours is not permitted."

Tsuna stared up in wonder as Hibari turned his back to him, walking away. Did he just escape a beating from the Hibari Kyoya? Not wanting to push his luck, Tsuna scampered up, grabbing his bag and fleeing from the scene.
The next day, he left a small bag of cookies in front of a sleeping prefect before running away as quietly as possible, not noticing that Hibari was already awake, his eyes sparked with a small amount of interest. The following day after that, Tsuna's bullies gathered up enough courage to attack the brunette once more, but to their absolute shock, Hibari was swooping down to them before they were even able to lay a single finger on the quivering boy, and this time, they weren't as lucky to escape the beating. Tsuna, in that time, had taken the opportunity to sneak away from the scene, not foolish enough to believe Hibari would let him off the hook a second time, and had almost reached the school gates before a tonfa was suddenly in front of his face. Squeaking in horror, Tsuna found himself face-to-face with an impassive-looking Hibari.

"Herbivore, I thought I made it clear that loitering was not permitted." He drawled in a bored voice. Tsuna, not daring to let out a sound, nodded his head furiously. Hibari raised an eyebrow at this. "Then why is it that I find you loitering here anyways?"

Tsuna started to gape like a fish, trying to find the right words. "I-I.."

Hibari scoffed, "Don't be late for class tomorrow, herbivore." With that, once more, he strode away, leaving Tsuna to continue gaping like a fish, because holy shit, did Hibari just let him off a second time?

And once more, the next day, Tsuna left a bag of cookies next to a dozing Hibari, and they soon found themselves in a particular pattern where Hibari would chase away the bullies cornering Tsuna, and in return, Tsuna would leave Hibari some baked goods the following day. This would continue for another year, before suddenly, Hibari disappeared. Then the next year would be filled with pain Tsuna would never imagine he'd be put under, with no violent prefect to watch his back.

Twelve and Lonely

Namimori middle school was unbelievably plain and simple. To put it honestly, it was one of the more lower-ranking schools in the district, paling in comparison to schools like Midori Middle and Yumei Private School. The school had unremarkable teachers and equally unremarkable students, and it was this school that Tsuna went to upon turning twelve.

It wasn't as though he was unqualified for Yumei Private, but the tuition was way past his range, and there was absolutely no way Tsuna would be able to cough up that kind of money, so Namichuu it was. With Hibari absent to this day, Tsuna had no real reason to continue staying in school, but at some point in the last year, he had decided that continuing school would at least allow him to aim for higher education, thus, a better lifestyle. If he at least finished high school, he'd be able to apply for better jobs, thus allowing him to possibly save up to attend post-education. Maybe then, he could consider majoring in international relations and diplomacy, something that would make sure his knack for linguistics and thirst for knowledge would come in handy. Needless to say, at twelve, Tsuna had succeeded in learning German and Spanish along with the other five languages he had previously studied. He had spent most of his time learning these languages rather than paying attention in class, ensuring that his grades would fall to the bottom. He had an unconscious habit of answering questions without hesitation, so by focusing on something else, he would miss questions in class and on tests.

Namichuu was….different. For one, none of his old bullies were in his class (by some miraculous powers), and no one in his class seemed to know him. As in, he wasn't dame-Tsuna, but instead, Kimura-san. People didn't look at him with mocking eyes or scorne, they simply ignored him and went about their ways. It was a refreshing atmosphere for him.

None of the students really stood out to Tsuna, though it seemed Sasagawa Kyoko was quickly becoming the school "idol", and Yamamoto Takeshi immediately got along with all the guys in the class. Taking his seat in the far corner of the class, Tsuna sighed, preparing himself for another meaningless year, albeit, and hopefully, without the pain. Oh, how wrong he was.

0o0o0

"Class, this is Sawada Hirotaka. He's a transfer student from Italy."

So again, I have no idea where I'm going with this new story. I have the plot planned out up to the rings arc, but I'm blank after that. Next chapter will be more of a filler until Reborn comes in later. Also, be warned, I have much angst planned out, so be prepared lol.

Reviews are much appreciated!