Ceyrai Says: I was supposed to write this as a oneshot, but it kinda got out of hand (21,000 words, and it wasn't even done by then) so now we have this multichapter.

This story is a bit cliche'd, really, but I've always liked the premise of Kyoko and Haru finding their place in the Vongola. I was also inspired, among other things, by the Haru and Kyoko-centric fic They Also Serve by Lys ap Adin (and the Generations anthology it is part of, co-written with Branch) and the Kyoko-centric The Sun Always Rises by Lacewood. It's probably a little more idealistic than what those wonderful authors have written though – I like to think of this as a mix between the idealism of canon KHR and the grimness of the real underworld.

General Notes:
Pairs: 27K, 5986, mentions of 3387 and 1896, some not-quite 2786
Universe: Canon
Warnings: English and Italian swearing. Mentions of violence (but what would you expect of a Mafia story?).
Disclaimer: For all the chapters thereafter – I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, nor any other copyrighted items mentioned.

Additional Note:

Haru's third person address: It appears inconsistent, but I assure you, each instance was thought of carefully. It depends on the situation, who she is talking to, and how mature she is at the moment.

Snow White and Rose Red
you can't make her ungrow her fangs

Chapter 1 – Once Upon a Time
she does not know how to start

Kyoko ver 14.0

That day a few months back when Kyoko learned of Tsuna's (mis)adventures as a reluctant Mafia boss-to-be was not exactly the turning point of her life as part of the underworld – if anything, it was only her initiation, and nothing more.

"Are you sure?" Tsuna presses her, earnest brown eyes pleading with her to say – what? No, I'm not really that sure after all; No, it was just a passing thought; or No, you're right, it's too dangerous and I'm not fit for it.

Or maybe, Kyoko muses, it is more of Yes, I'm sure, because I'm in it for the long haul and I am not making a half-assed decision now.

So she tells him what (she thinks) he wants to hear, and a relieved look passes briefly on his face before taking on the usual anxious (he is always so worried, so unconfident of his power to protect them - her) expression and saying, "But Kyoko-chan…"

Namimori Junior High's hustle and bustle that late afternoon of March is but white noise to them, the depth of their conversation pulling them into another world – in the junction between the mundane and the Mafia. His hand twitches on the table, as though he wants to grab her, to shake some understanding into her.

But Kyoko understands, in her own way. She is doing this for herself, for her selfish desire to stay in the Family, to be by the side of people (her oniichan, Haru, Bianchi I-Pin Lambo Yamamoto Gokudera Reborn Chrome Tsuna, always Tsuna) she loves.

She does not know how to support them, does not know how to start – she is not physically strong or exceptionally skilled or particularly talented, just another pretty face who dangles like bait for Vongola's enemies – but she does know she is determined to learn.

And she knows that Tsuna needs her, despite his desperate attempts to keep her safe (push her away). She thinks, sometimes, that it is awfully presumptive of her, but she knows with the way he looks at her (guilt, pain, desperation, longing, love) that he does. He does.

And she needs him too.

"Kyoko-chan," Tsuna groans, burying his face into his palms, "I'm not… I can't… I don't want you to enter this world I can barely stomach. Please."

She knows he needs her, but she knows more than that. She knows how he hates the Mafia world, hates the fact that he has no choice but to be in it – and she wants to make that choice easier to bear by being there, knowing it will help in the smallest of ways.

And she needs him too, maybe more than he needs her.

She has always been selfish in this respect, so why stop now?

"Tsuna-kun," and she puts her hands on the sides of his head, around his tufts of soft brown hair, resolve burning like the Flame she wishes was hers too, "I go wherever you go."

He raises his head, realizing the depth of her words.

If you enter the Mafia world, I will enter with you. If you choose a normal life – one which Reborn would never let you choose – I will be there with you. If you are to bloody your hands and endure pain not fit for a kind soul like yours, maybe a selfish soul like mine can share the burden.

The day Kyoko enters the Mafia world is not the day when she learns of it, nor the day she debuts into its society, nor the day she first takes up her proverbial arms against Vongola's enemies.

It is the day when Tsuna squeezes the hands wrapped around his head, and closes his eyes, understanding the things she knows.

Haru ver 13.4

Gokudera is horrified when he first sees Haru with a gun in her hands.

Everyone has parted ways throughout the base, aching to train once more after the excitement of Byakuran's cyber-infiltration, Squalo's arrival and subsequent abduction of Yamamoto, and the revelation of Tsuna's honesty to Kyoko and Haru. They are not sure what to think of the latter development, but have resolved to think of it as a good thing for the meantime.

Gokudera himself does not know how to fit this turn of events into his survival strategy. Truthfully enough, it ensures that the girls do not go blindly into danger, now that they know how sinister the world has become. That makes them easier to protect.

Their emotional well-being is another factor, however. He realizes, as he always has, that emotions play a big part in (undoing) strategies, and knows that whatever Tsuna thinks, his revelation will have ultimately different effects with the two girls.

Kyoko is a quiet sort of strong, he thinks. A bit airheaded, but knows how to take things in stride. Before, there were times he could not fathom how a girl could remain so ignorant of things that are blatantly in her face, but the recent boycott has forced him to understand that she at least knows when things are amiss – and that she is less ignorant and more unflinching. His instincts are now surer about it – arming her with the knowledge of the Mafia just makes her stronger tenfold.

She suddenly is a bit more worthy of the Vongola Decimo than usual. Not just a fragile porcelain doll anymore. Perhaps she can hold the weight of the Family in her hands.

Haru, however, is more volatile. Though she knows more about their world than Kyoko does (at least for now), she tends to be more emotional and unstable. Gokudera has never liked her. She represents all that is unfit for the Mafia world – foolhardy, melodramatic, pushy, soft, kind, fragile – and she will be the first to fall in the dawn of trying times.

Uri has taken to Haru, because the girl is a magnet for tiny animals and children, the same way that Uri does not take to Gokudera, because he is the antithesis of Haru. His training session degenerates into a frustrated afternoon with the Box Weapon when it becomes a chase that ultimately ends in the weapons lab.

"Uri, you stupid cat, what the hell do you think you're doing!"

He turns a corner to see Uri, purring sweetly at Haru, who turns to him like a deer against headlights.

Her hands are shaking with the weight of a revolver, unsure of how to hold it. Something tells him that (soft and stupid) Haru with a gun is not a natural occurrence, and before he or Haru can think anything cohesive, he grabs it from her and sets it down with its fellows in the display case.

He can hear blood thumping in his ears. "What," he quietly asks, deliberately slow, "are you playing at?"

Haru is pale, everything about her quivering.

"Haru needs… I need to be stronger." Her voice is forcibly steady, and she looks him in the eye, steely and desperate. "I need to learn to protect myself, because Haru… because I'm a burden if I can't. Tsuna-san… Tsuna-san and everyone have so much to worry about – who am I to be worried about if the whole world is to be worried about?"

"So, Gokudera-san," she says loudly, choking back a sob, "give Haru the gun back."

He stares at her for a moment, before giving her his darkest glare. "Idiot," he growls with venom. She flinches almost imperceptibly. "Do you know how to handle a gun? Do you even know what kind of gun that is? Have you any idea what you can do with that thing?"

"I can kill people," she says almost immediately. "People who are bad and will hurt me and the people in our Family."

Our Family, Gokudera echoes in his mind. As though she is an irreplaceable, established part of it.

He respects that, for the first time ever.

"No," he says. "You will do no such thing."

"But Haru-!"

"No," he insists, green eyes flashing with frustration that wills her to understand.

She is indignant. "Who are you to-"

"I," he interrupts, "am the Tenth's right-hand man. I get a say on how the members of the Family are to be protected, whether by their own hands or not, because all of them are my responsibility. And you, Miura Haru, are not enough to protect yourself."

And the brunette is stunned into silence, cornered with the truth. Her knees quake beneath her, and Gokudera does not move when she drops to the floor. Uri rubs his furry head against her side comfortingly.

"But Haru… but Haru…" she chokes, tears spilling from her eyes, "Haru doesn't want to be a burden. Haru is weak. Haru needs that gun. Haru needs strength."

And words he does not believe spring from his mouth as he kneels down beside her. "You're strong, just in your own way," he says quietly. "You don't need physical strength to survive in this world. You just need to be yourself. Never change. Because that's why you're the Tenth's friend. He needs people like you, to keep him grounded, to remind him why he needs to be strong. Because he has something to protect, and that's you and Sasagawa Kyoko."

There is no reason to tell her that she is a burden, but a burden all of them are willing to carry, if only for the sake of Tsuna's sanity. Otherwise he thinks she is a useless pile of weeping girl that makes his chest tight each time she fights to catch her breath between sobs. And he wonders, as he pats her shoulder awkwardly, if she will ever be more than that.

Ceyrai Says: The first chapter is a bit slow and short, but it's just to set up the tone of the whole piece, which won't be very long. A taster if you will. Still, I hope their development fleshes out well despite the length. There will also be times that one girl's part will seem longer than the other's, but I assure you that I tried to make their parts as even as possible.

Just… don't mind the length of anything, length isn't relevant. Haha.

Please leave comments, compliments, and constructive criticisms!