The long awaited Neo Vongola Secondo series is now here with the first arc~ I hope you enjoy.
Warnings: Just like in Let Down and Proud, the main couple is shounen-ai (light boyXboy), so if that isn't your thing, turn back. Do not complain about it in the reviews.
Also, this is a continuation of Let Down and Proud, so if you want some of the things here to make more sense, I suggest you read those first. Thank you :D
Disclaimer: I've noticed that I neglected to put that in my other Neo Secondo stories (whoops.) But here it is now. I do not own KHR. I own the plot, Ienari, Dante, Sadako, Aiko, Leonora, Madoka, Emma, and any other Neo Vongola characters that are not in the original KHR.
Extra note: They're all speaking Italian with the occasional Japanese honorific thrown in, depending on who is being referred to. If the person is of Japanese descent, then they're more likely to use honorifics and be called with one. If they're of Italian/American/Other descent, then they're more likely to use the usual Mrs., Miss, and Mr. and be called as such. Those in Vongola try to make sure they address specific descents properly to be respectful.
Personally beta'd. Feel free to point out any mistakes so I can fix them.
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Ienari whistled as he walked down the extravagant halls of the Vongola manor, his hands in his pockets. The early morning sun shinned down on the Vongola property, illuminating the drops of rain left from the storm the night before. From his place within the manor, he could already tell that today was going to be a hardcore training day, judging from the perfect weather. It was a common occurrence when the Neo Secondo teens received a day off, even if unintentional. Their training was double what they would normally receive on the day right after a break, and Ienari knew he was in for a beating.
Currently, Ienari was making his way towards Dante's room. The mansion seemed quieter than normal, but he then remembered that many of the Neo Primo guardians were out and his mother, Kyoko, had taken her friend Haru back to Japan to visit with family and friends. It was also quite early in the morning, around six o'clock, so he didn't expect much of the staff to be up and running around just yet. The Neo Secondo teens, however, would be getting up soon to prepare for their training at seven thirty. Most woke up around seven and quickly dressed before eating a light snack, but there were a few that were harder to get up and active.
This would explain his trip to Dante's room. Although, yes, Dante was his boyfriend and he wanted to spend a lot of time with him, it was also his job as a friend to wake him up and get him active. Even before they began to go out, Ienari would march into his room in order to wake him up. Being his boyfriend only gave him so many more options to wake him and get away with.
Rounding another corner, Ienari spotted Sadako walking towards him, her focus on the ground in front of her feet. He noticed her attire, a light gray tank top with a white track jacket over it, white short gym shorts, and her trusty brown combat boots. She looked up and met gazes with him, a smile spreading across her lips. They met at the middle of the hallway. "Going to get Dante up?" She asked.
"Yep." Ienari returned the smile. "It's such a hassle, but it's funny to listen to his mumbling."
Sadako giggled. "He mumbles in his sleep? That's so cute!" Ienari felt himself mentally agreeing with her. "Anyway, I have a message for you from Reborn."
This seemed to confuse Ienari slightly. "A message from Reborn? Why didn't he tell me in person?"
"What do you mean? He's on a mission." Sadako tilted her head in disbelief. "Did you seriously not remember being told that last night?"
"Um, yeah." Ienari sighed, remembering what he was so focused on the previous day. It was the day where Dante got engaged for a few hours to Mavis Vermillion, the daughter of an allied family. His mind was wrapped around seven ways to get Dante out of the engagement—four of them would make Byakuran proud—and once it was cancelled Ienari just focused on his relationship with Dante, and how he should tell his father so events like this could be prevented in the future. Currently only Reborn and Aiko knew of their relationship, and he knew they wouldn't tell unless given permission, so it was up to him to confess to his father and mother.
He just had no idea how. He felt like such a disappointment to them since he couldn't be the next boss—he didn't even have Sky flames! Their strength is the pride of the Vongola blood line!—and now having a son who was "different" would probably be a huge shock and disappointment to them. He didn't regret his relationship with Dante, not one bit, but it was hard to tell others. Reborn and Aiko both guessed, so he didn't have as much trouble.
What if Reborn's message was about confessing his relationship?!
"Ienari-kun? You okay?" Sadako questioned as she waved a hand in front of his face, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Dang, you were out of it. You even got a little pale. Are you okay?" She asked worriedly.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Ienari rubbed his temple. "My thoughts just wondered to what Reborn's message could be. He's scary when he wants to be."
Sadako nodded in agreement. "True. Anyway, he said he wanted to talk to you about a few things when he gets back from his mission tomorrow. He said it was serious, but we would all be informed eventually."
"Great…" He nodded, his thoughts screaming that it was about his relationship. "Okay, gotcha."
Sadako nodded and started to walk around Ienari slowly. "I gotta go. I need to wake up Leonora and Emma. See you at training." She said as she patted him on the shoulder before she jogged off.
Ienari watched her leave for a second or two before he turned and continued towards his destination: Dante's room. It was only a few doors from where he was. Taking his phone out of his pocket, he checked the time. It was close to seven, which surprised him slightly. Time moved too quickly, especially when lost in thoughts.
After a minute of walking, he stood in front of Dante's door. He knocked, just in case by some miracle Dante was already awake and could answer the door. When he received no response, he opened the door and went inside. Although he had just been in this very same room yesterday, it looked so different. Instead of the slight cleanliness it held before, papers and clothes alike were thrown onto the floor and in various piles. A few small boxes were out of his closet and at different spots around the room, like on his love seat, next to his TV, and near his bathroom door.
"He probably lost something. That's so like him." Ienari shook his head, a knowing smile on his face. As he made his way towards Dante's bed, he picked up the papers and clothes in his path. A few pictures ended up in his grasp and he smiled as memories flooded his thoughts. Dante had a habit of taking pictures of events, even if they were insignificant. Ienari had recommended that he make a scrapbook, and he even got him a scrapbooking set, but he hasn't seen him work on it yet. Some of the captions on the back of the pictures made him smile.
"First visit to the Vongola Mansion. HUGE!"
"Ienari's fifteenth birthday. I think he liked my present the best :P"
"My sixteenth birthday cake. Ienari's mom made it. It was amazing!"
"Neo Secondo group hug! I wonder how I didn't notice Reborn taking this picture."
He separated the photos, papers, and clothes into their respective places before finally making it to the side of Dante's bed. Dante was curled into a fetal position, a pillow in his grip and his blankets pulled up to his waist, revealing a green sleeping tank top. Ienari put his hands on his hips. "Dante, it's time to wake up." He stated simply.
Dante made no response.
Ienari sighed. "Well, I tried the non-devious way." He smirked as he reached for Dante's covers. Ripping them way from the other teen—revealing black sweatpants and pinkish-purple fuzzy socks—he tried once more. "Dante, it's time for training."
This time Dante rolled over away from Ienari, mumbling, "I don't wanna train…so tired…" he held the pillow closer with a smile. "Nari…" The raven sighed in content.
Ienari felt heat rise to his cheeks at the thought of Dante dreaming of him. He would never actually admit it, but he was guilty of the same crime. Of course the dreams never went above hugs and kisses. Maybe. However, as much as he could stand here and tease sleepy Dante, they had training. He reached over to grab his shoulders and shook them gently. "Dante, seriously, we need to go."
Dante slowly opened his eyes and glanced at Ienari. "Nari? Wha…? What time…is it?" he slowly sat up and ran a hand through his hair.
"Around seven—that's why we need to hurry." Ienari clapped his hands. "Now chop, chop solider. You have three minutes to get dressed."
Dante scooted over to the edge of the bed. "Only three minutes? Seriously?"
The orangette smirked as he winked his hands on his hips. "If you hurry, you might get a prize."
Dante jumped up with a smile and ran for his closet.
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The Vongola staff members, or any family members in general, never really traveled down the hallway they were currently traveling, so the two males felt free to hold hands as they walked and talked. Dante was still slightly out of it; he had stayed up the previous night until around twelve, looking for a small gift Ienari had given last year on his fifteenth birthday.
"So that would explain why your room was a mess this morning." Ienari noted once Dante explained.
The raven chuckled nervously. "Yeah…" He rubbed the back of his head. "I noticed it looked much better this morning. Thanks."
Ienari playfully bumped into his side. "Of course. I'm sure you'd do the same, right?"
Dante squeezed his hand; Ienari squeezed back.
Their small talk and flirtatious banter continued all the way until they were near the kitchen. Once they were within earshot they dropped their hands, though their proximity to each other didn't decrease, and they changed their topic. They came into the large kitchen to find Aiko and Madoka sitting at the island counter. Aiko gave them a knowing look, though Dante completely missed it, and Madoka gave them both a cheerful smile. The two wore standard training gear, Aiko in a violet track suit and matching shoes with her silver hair up, and Madoka in a lose pink tee-shirt and yoga pants. Her hair was in its usual style of high pigtails.
"Dante, Nari! Hiya!" The dirty blonde girl waved furiously. "How've you been? I heard a lot happened yesterday with the guests I brought in. You guys okay?"
Dante smiled and responded as Ienari went to fetch the two of them each an apple and a nut bar to split. "We're fine. I'm tired, but I stayed up."
"Bet I could guess what you were doing." Aiko smirked as she folded her arms over her chest and sent a knowing smile to Ienari, who chocked. Dante patted him on his back worriedly, not entirely sure what was going on. Madoka watched curiously; though, she too was lost on the conversation.
"Aiko!" he gasped as he gave her an embarrassed glare.
Aiko gave him an innocent look, though her sly grin ruined it. "What?"
"Nothing like what you are trying to imply happened." Ienari took a large bite of his apple.
The silverette didn't seem convinced, though she let the subject drop.
Madoka tilted her head. "Um…I'm lost." She shared a look with Dante.
"I am too." He agreed.
"Don't worry about it." Both Ienari and Aiko said, dismissing the topic. "So what's the schedule?" Ienari asked.
"Oh!" Madoka jumped with joy as she clapped her hands. "We're going Hardcore today! Huge warm-up and stamina exercises, then we're training with our flames like always!"
Ienari clicked his tongue. "Damn. I was right. I knew we'd be doing double."
Aiko nodded in agreement. "We always do right after breaks."
The girls waited for the guys to finish their morning snack before the four of them headed over to the outside training grounds. It was basically a large area, like a field, behind the mansion. There was a running track as well as a storeroom for mats and other necessary things for stretching and training. Connected to the storeroom was a small room filled with weapons for the teens and other Vongola combatants to train with if they do not have their own personal weapons. Usually it was the teens and their mentors who used these training grounds, but from time to time others would as well.
As they made their way, they noticed those waiting for them at the grounds. Kyoya Hibari, Tsuna's Cloud Guardian as well as the head of the Foundation, was standing next to Lal Mirch, a core member of CEDEF and former Arcobaleno. Emma was also there, her hands on her hips and her foot tapping on the ground. She was dressed in a loose red tank top and white shorts that stopped at her knees.
"Tsk." She clicked her tongue when the four were close enough to hear her. "You guys are slow."
"I guess being moody does have something to do with being a Storm user." Aiko smirked as she crossed her arms over her chest. The two girls then had a silent glaring contest.
Madoka seemed undeterred by Emma's hostile attitude. "Mornin' Emma! You're first again, huh?"
Emma smirked, her gaze never leaving Aiko's. "Of course. I keep track of time."
"Oh shut it. It's not like it matters who's first here. Training starts at the same time every day." Aiko retorted.
Lal and Kyoya watched silently from the background. Lal sighed in frustration as she heard the two females bicker. "Lal, Hibari, good morning." Ienari spoke from next to her, making her jump slightly. She turned to look at him and saw that both he and Dante had taken a spot next to her.
"Morning!" Dante greeted as well.
Kyoya nodded in greeting.
Lal set her hands on her hips. "Morning pipsqueaks. You know how long they'll argue?" She gestured to Aiko and Emma, who were glaring at each other with such murderous intent that their actual flames sparked around them. Madoka, seeing how serious the situation was, tried to calm the two down. Her actions only added oil to the flame and the girls almost attacked the innocent girl.
"Guys! Stop it!" A voice called out. Everyone turned to look at who called out.
Sadako stood there with anger painted over her face. A scared Leonora stood behind her in a tracksuit that matched Aiko's, only hers was a deep plum.
Although the fighting stopped and everyone's attention was now focused on her, Sadako continued in an angry tone. "Seriously? You two can't make peace with each other for five minutes? Emma!" She pointed at the red head. "It's great to see you on time, but as my right hand you can't start fights with your fellow guardians! Aiko!" She then pointed to the silverette. "As the Rain you need to wash away people's problems, not cause them!"
"Ooh." Ienari cheered in a monotone voice. "It's good to see the boss take her position."
"Ienari-kun." Sadako turned her head to gaze at him. "Shut up."
Ienari held his hands up in a defensive position. "Hey, I was complimenting you."
Leonora, who had sneaked up to Lal, said, "Good morning, Mrs. Lal." She bowed her head in greeting, completely ignoring the commotion. She then looked at Kyoya and did the same thing. "Good morning Hibari-san."
"Good morning Leonora." Kyoya nodded. Lal ruffled her hair.
"Mornin' there. You're one of the few I can stand, unlike them." She sent a glare to Aiko, Emma, Sadako, and Ienari.
Madoka, now standing next to Leonora, mused, "You think Sadako-chan's angry 'cause it's her monthly?" Her finger was set on her chin.
Dante choked while Leonroa blushed and started to mumble incoherently; Lal gave a hearty laugh while Kyoya smirked. Madoka took offense to their reactions. "It's possible! I've heard that American girls have horrible periods, and it's the worse for them. Don't laugh at me Lal-sensei!"
"Um, Sadako-chan's Japanese." Dante pointed out with a blush on his face.
Madako set her hands on her hips. "Yeah, but she was practically raised in America, so I count her as American!"
"Um, Madoka-san, she only lived there from when she was seven." Leonora added.
"Well, she lived there for half her life so it still counts!" Madoka snapped with embarrassment. Leonora jumped back and hid behind Dante, who patted her head comfortingly. Madoka felt guilty scaring her. "Sorry Leonora, didn't mean to scare you."
"I-It's fine." Leonora whimpered, making Madoka wince.
"Herbivores." Kyoya stated firmly, gaining everyone's attention. "It's time to start."
"Ah, it is." Lal agreed as she folded her arms over her chest. "Listen up! Today we're training Hardcore! You know what that means, maggots, so hop to it!"
"Roger that!" Madoka grinned as she jogged over to the storeroom. Reaching inside she grabbed a few mats. Dante followed behind her and grabbed a few as well. They laid the mats out in the area that was surrounded by the track. Ienari went over to help Dante while Sadako and Emma went to help Madoka. After the mats were out, each teen picked one and began to do basic stretches to warm up their body. Once they were warmed up, they began to work Hardcore.
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A/N: Well, technically this chapter was supposed to be longer, but I'm going to try to limit each chapter to about 3,000 words, give or take. Of course, I'll try not to break up fights, but I will leave cliffhangers for dramatic purposes, so look forward to that~
I'm actually being smart this time and writing out the plot first before I actually write out the actual chapter, so there shouldn't be as much of an issue of coming up with plot. My only issue should be writing it and making it sound right. I also can't promise update dates, and I'll try to never give the false hope that I can, so I apologize in advance for slow chapter updates. Thank you for understanding~~~
My best friend and sister across the pond has been begging for this, and onee-senpai, I hope I haven't disappointed. Too bad you might have to wait a while for the next chapter, though.
Happy New Year's Eve, everyone!
