Disclaimer: Soul Eater and Katekyo Hitman Reborn belong to their respective owners.
Warning: OOC
Chapter 1: The School
Tsunayoshi "Tsuna" Sawada, otherwise known as the up-and-coming tenth boss of the Vongola Corporation, stood at the bottom of a seemingly endless stone steps that led up above the large desert town situated on the hill. He sighed as sweat from the simmering heat glided down the side of his face. In his hand, he held a single pack of a few personal belongings. Honestly, did his mother misread the address again?
This place was rightfully named "Death City", Tsuna thought, what with the glaring sun up above and the heat waves that passed by, one could easily be dead by the middle of the afternoon.
His tutor Reborn had recommended (read: forced) the DWMA to the fourteen-year-old brunette, as it was necessary for the head of the Vongola Corp to become an experienced weapon meister, and attending this academy was only the first step in becoming the boss.
"Though I've already told them way too many times that I don't want to be the boss," grumbled Tsuna. A little lion cub with a Vongola-logoed helmet and golden eyes made a sound of agreement. Or maybe it was just looking for attention. Absently, Tsuna scratched the lion cub, which he'd dubbed 'Natsu', behind its ears. The miniature pet was Tsuna's own unique Vongola Death Weapon, or VDW. One of the ever-growing number in existence.
Tsuna shook his head. This was not the time for day-dreaming; Reborn would punish him with a hundred laps for spacing out.
He'd hoped someone would come by so he could ask for directions. But that probably wouldn't be such a good idea. Being an heir to an important company, Tsuna had been sheltered for most of his life. Talking to strangers was not in his comfort zone. When he did talk to someone outside of his family, his face would heat up, his voice would falter, he would stutter…you get the picture.
Right as Tsuna began to move, someone collided with him, and both parties crashed to the ground. Rubbing the back of his head, Tsuna started when a hand was extended to him. Without thinking, he took it, and the other person pulled him to his feet.
"Ahaha, sorry 'bout that," a cheery voice apologized. Tsuna quickly analyzed the stranger, who he discovered was a tall teenager, nearly a foot taller than Tsuna himself. This boy had short, messy black hair, sharp honey-colored eyes, and skin tanned from work or play out in the sun. He wore a sky blue shirt with rolled up sleeves over a white t-shirt and tan pants. By the boy's side stood a tan and white akita dog with blue eyes and a blue jewel crest on its forehead. A band of blue stones hung around its neck. It wagged its tail happily at Natsu, who cowered behind Tsuna.
"Nice to meet you," the tan boy greeted Tsuna. His grin was nearly contagious. "I'm Takeshi Yamamoto, but you can call me Takeshi. And this is Jirou."
"M-my name's T-Tsunayoshi," Tsuna replied. "P-please just c-call me Tsuna." Bending down, he picked up the scaredy cat Natsu, placing the VDW on his shoulder. "And this is Natsu." He decided against telling Takeshi his family name to avoid giving away too much about himself. Takeshi seemed to notice, however.
"Ahaha, did you forget your last name, Tsuna?" Takeshi exclaimed. Tsuna stammered something illegible to Takeshi. "Anyway, Tsuna, where are you headed to?"
"I'm l-looking for the D-DWMA," Tsuna told him. Somehow he knew he could trust the cheerful Takeshi.
"Well what'dya know! I'm going there too!" Takeshi remarked. He slung an arm around Tsuna's shoulder, grinning. "How about we go there together?"
"R-really?" Tsuna couldn't believe it. Was everyone in America this nice? But Takeshi didn't seem like he was from the U.S., and he had a slight accent. "U-um, i-if you don't m-mind my asking, w-where are y-you from, Takeshi?"
"I'm actually from Japan, if that's what you're asking," Takeshi said. "I was sent over here as part of my dad's company's Meister exchange program. He works for the Vongola Corporation, or something like that."
Tsuna screamed internally. How could this boy say the Vongola Corporation so offhandedly? Aloud, he answered, "U-uh yeah, m-me too." Tsuna glanced around. "So, d-do you k-know which way to g-go?" Takeshi looked startled for a moment before laughing sheepishly.
"About that, I don't actually know my way around here," he admitted. Tsuna nearly fell over in disbelief. He settled for a sweatdrop. "Sorry."
Tsuna sighed. "T-that's alright, Takeshi," he said. "L-let's find someone w-who can—"
"U-um, if y-you're looking f-for the DWMA, i-it's up the steps." Both boys jumped at a girl's soft whisper that seemed to come and go like a breeze. Tsuna and Takeshi looked around, but saw no one there. Only a bit of mist floating away.
They glanced at each other warily before sprinting up the steps, pets following close behind. After a few minutes, they reached the top, out of breath and leaning on their knees. . Inconspicuously, he returned Natsu to an orange box hanging from his belt. It seemed Jirou had disappeared as well.
Takeshi chuckled nervously. "I didn't think your voice could get that high, Tsuna," he said.
"Um, T-Takeshi," Tsuna spoke up, "t-that wasn't m-me…"
The two were silent for a moment, taking in what that meant. A ghost? A witch? A kishin? All of them were evil, but a witch was probably the worst (they could easily take care of a kishin, and neither believed in ghosts). And it didn't help that the voice was a girl's. For all they knew, all witches were female. But the view before them completely erased those thoughts from their minds.
Before them loomed the DWMA in all of its glory. In the front grounds of the academy, three round white skulls with holes took up the space, the first of the three having red spikes protruding from the eye and nose holes. Behind the skulls were numerous black towers with red cone spires. White wax candles jutted out of shafts, spaced equally apart. Three black orbs floated above the school in a triangle. Tsuna had read the campus was symmetrical, but this was ridiculous.
Students in all sorts of uniforms and costumes milled about, conversing with others and…weapons? Tsuna then realized some of the weapons were actually more students. Those must've been the Demon Weapons Reborn had taught him about. Tsuna had never met a real one before, though. He'd thought they would all be gruesome in human form, but they turned out to be just 'normal' kids.
"Oi! Are you the new kids?" called a voice from the under the pitch black veranda. Both Tsuna and Takeshi glanced over at the speaker. A boy with pure white hair and red eyes stood slouched over against a column. He wore a black hoodie with yellow sleeves and baggy black pants. A headband with the word 'SOUL' and a picture of lips failed to keep his white hair out of his eyes. "You'd better get in quick. It'd be uncool to be late on your first day. 'Sides, there's a crazy prefect that patrols the school and beats up random students."
"R-right…"
"Soul, don't scare the new kids," a girl next to him scolded. What kind of name is 'Soul'?! wondered Tsuna. The girl smiled at Tsuna and Takeshi, and Tsuna promptly blushed. She wore a long black cloak over a white and red school uniform, with neat white socks and black boots. Her sandy-colored hair was pulled back in pigtails, and bright green eyes gazed at them openly. "My name's Maka Albarn, and this is my artner Soul Eater. We're part of the EAT class that actively goes out on missions. Maybe we'll see each other in class."
"I'm T-Tsunayoshi, b-but please just c-call me Tsuna," the brunette informed them. He then turned to his acquaintance expectantly.
"Yo! Name's Takeshi Yamamoto," the other introduced himself. "Me and Tsuna's dads work for Vongola Corps, and we're here for the Meister Exchange Program."
"That so?" Soul said with slight interest. "That's cool. So where'd you move from?"
"Italy," Tsuna answered at the same time that Takeshi said, "Japan."
"Vongola Corps?" Maka echoed. Then she placed a fist in her palm, appearing as though she'd remembered something. "Oh! Isn't that the famous company that manufactures Death Weapons?"
"How's that possible?" asked Soul. But Maka only shrugged.
"It's a well-kept secret, whatever the process," she told her partner. She glanced at Tsuna questioningly. "I heard it's stationed in Italy, run by a man who moved there from Japan, though…"
Understanding her insinuation, Tsuna quickly grabbed Takeshi's arm and began to run off. "U-uh, we'll s-see you later, then!" he called behind him, leaving Soul and Maka staring in confusion after the two Vongola boys.
"Hahaha! Where're we going, Tsuna?" Takeshi asked his acquaintance. Tsuna didn't reply, and Takeshi frowned. When they'd reached a less-populated area of the school, the tall teenager stopped in his tracks. Tsuna jerked backwards when the person he was dragging behind him abruptly halted. Placing a hand on the shorter male's shoulder, Takeshi inquired, "Something wrong?"
Tsuna looked at him with a confused expression evident on his face. "What do you mean, Takeshi?" he said, taking Takeshi aback. The black-haired teen scratched the back of his head, then shook it.
"Never mind," he replied.
Somewhere in the Academy, a heavy bell tolled eight times, signaling the start of the school day. Shaken out of his strange reverie, Tsuna exchanged glances with Takeshi, and then a panicked expression dawned. They were going to be late on their first day! Reborn would kill him!
"Let's go, Tsuna!" Takeshi called from several meters away, having gotten a head start. Glancing around, Tsuna saw that other students were already heading inside.
"W-wait up, Takeshi!" Tsuna shouted. "Eh?" He took one step forward, but froze when he felt a malevolent presence watching him. The temperature seemed to drop ten degrees, and when he breathed outwardly, he could see his breath. A heavy weight hung over his heart, suffocating him.
Then, as soon as it came, the overpowering presence disappeared, and Tsuna breathed easily once more.
"Tsuna?" The brunette looked up to see Takeshi waiting for him.
"That's right! We're late!" he cried. Readjusting his backpack on his shoulder, Tsuna took off after Takeshi into the school. What a way to start the school year, he thought to himself.
From a balcony overhanging the school, a young woman in a nurse's coat, with blond hair braided down her chest watched through narrowed golden eyes slit like a snake's as late students scurried around after the school bells rang. Two in particular caught her attention, however: the first a shorter boy with overly spiky brown hair and matching chocolate eyes, and the second a tall and athletic teen with short black hair and tan skin.
Her tongue flicked in amusement, and she allowed her pretense to drop for a moment. The effect was almost immediate. The brunette froze where he was, startled, and he scanned the area for the maddening aura the woman emitted. So, the Vongola's Hyper Intuition had passed to him, had it? This would be fun.
"Lady Medusa," a voice broke the woman from her amused thoughts. She promptly shut off her Madness, her eyes watching his retreating figure before glaring at the newcomer. He was a young man with indigo-colored hair parted in a zigzag that ended in a tuft resembling a pineapple. He had one dark blue eye and one bloody red one, though the latter was hidden behind a lotus eyepatch. The billowing black longcoat he wore reached the ground where his tall boots rested.
"What is it, Mukuro?" the woman asked, not even bothering to mask her irritation towards the boy.
"I was wondering if I could return home for the day," Mukuro answered. "Nagi hasn't been feeling well lately, and I felt her presence here at the school earlier. I wanted to—"
"Check up on her?" finished Medusa. "Forget it—" Mukuro gritted his teeth in silent anger—"I have a more important task for you. Have you heard of the new students, the ones who're part of that Vongola Exchange Program?"
"Heard of them, yes," Mukuro answered, "seen them, yes. But know them? I can't say I do."
"Well, then, there's your objective."
"My lady?"
"Observe those students," she clarified, "the brunette in particular. I believe it is time to put my plan into action."
Bowing with one arm in front of his body, Mukuro smiled cordially and answered, "Very well, Lady Medusa." He turned to leave, smile leaving his face, but Medusa spoke up once more.
"Oh, and Mukuro dear?" she purred, a sly smirk on her lips. Mukuro paused and waited for her to continue. "You can always bring your dear sister to my office. After all, I am a nurse."
With that, Medusa cackled so similarly to a witch that an onlooker might mistake her for a witch. Mukuro, on the other hand, merely scowled to himself and left the balcony.
He would do whatever it took to get that woman out of his and his sister's lives, even if it meant observing some half-rate meister. Even if it meant killing those closest to him.
A/N: So, what do you think? I'd started this some time ago and only just got around to finishing this chapter today, so it may feel a bit rushed near the end.
Anyway, please review and tell me what you think.