A/N – Well, if there is one thing I'm sure no one expected it was me and plot-bunnies… (shifts eyes nervously). To be fair, I've had them for over a year already, probably even as I was writing the chapters for my main KHR story… I'm not going to lie, but finding the motivation to even think of writing stories is making writing it so much harder. I will finish Time Paradox eventually but please don't expect too much from me.

I really love the stories with Iemitsu bashing in them. It's just that I got a bit tired of always seeing the same reasons for the bashing, so I figured, you know? It's time I try and write the other side of it. (It doesn't really feel bad to do some Nono-bashing instead, because I'm sure that the Vongola Ninth had something to do with Iemitsu not going home as often as most dads do.)

Also, I'm supppeerrr glad my previous drabble was so well received. I like to think of my writing style as something I was able to refine (it's definitely better than when I started writing fanfictions in ninth grade) but I'm sure that this doesn't come near any kind of decent writer – who most likely took classes in creative writing. Hmm, most I've ever done with that is re-write a fairy tale or two… notice the difference? Anywho, I am well rested, it's now weekend and I should really be preparing for my deadlines and exams in a little over a week! *cries tears of despair* Let's wing it, as I do all my exams! … Don't judge, I'm sure some of you guys are the exact same…

Warning: Nono-bashing (heh) and Iemitsu, because Iemitsu is Iemitsu and deserves a warning of his own, mainly because he is very OCC. Yeah, not lying at all. Also, no Iemitsu-bashing from any of the characters in this story. (He's no hero in this story though, because he is Mafia after all…)

Disclaimer: I swear on my non-existent grave that I will not steal anything from KHR!

This is also a bit of a drabble. At least that is what I am starting this story as. Can you guess I wrote this A/N before I started this story? I do this with most of my stories actually. Is there anyone else who does this? And in the process feels like an idiot because they never finish a story in one day? This is a drabble, which might turn into some sort of 'serious' story.

Iemitsu never wanted a wife or child. Due to his rough upbringing he didn't think himself capable. But Nana made him change and when he found out she was pregnant, he couldn't find it in himself to be disappointed about it. So he changed his opinion.

Iemitsu never wished for his family to be involved in the Mafia, much less the bloodiest Famiglia of them all. So, as something that went down without anyone's knowledge, Iemitsu fought Nono – the Vongola Ninth – for the right to keep his child and wife out of the Mafia. As someone with a position such as Iemitsu, his family's involvement would be inevitable. However Iemitsu refused to sit by idly and fought. And won. And although it wasn't in the deal (Timoteo was sly like that), Iemitsu agreed to let Tsuna become a 'last resort'. (He figured it wouldn't come to that) (He thought wrong)

Seeing Tsuna slowly sink deeper into the Mafia and the Vongola broke Iemitsu in ways he wouldn't wish on anyone in the same position as him. So it is with a heavy heart he tells the love of his live his real occupation. Tsuna was roped into so many things and it would only be a matter of time before Nana would as well. So he sits down one evening and tells Nana all about himself. They decided to keep the conversation a secret from Tsuna as the boy fights for his growing family. The only thing Nana can do is keep going as she always did. Life continues on.

Despite everything, Iemitsu is proud if not slightly sour at the outcome of the situation. But he wouldn't trade what he had now, for anything.

Chapter ᴓ

"Hey, Iemitsu! Nono is calling for you," Coyote Nougat yelled as he strolled down the hallways looking for the brat. Iemitsu, immersed in the books he had brought from the library of the Vongola Mansion, was lounging in the common room, sitting across from Brow Nie Jr. and hadn't heard Coyote. Or was ignoring him. Knowing Iemitsu, both options were a valid choice. Brow only looked over the edge of his own book at Iemitsu, who had without a doubt heard Coyote. Brow could see Iemitsu's eyebrow twitch and his face twist into an irritated and annoyed expression at being called by the Ninth. At fifteen, Iemitsu Sawada was pretty much something like an uninvited guest in the Vongola Mansion. Nono seemed fond of him, so he always let Iemitsu stay. Though by the looks Nono gave Iemitsu, there was most likely something more going on than 'rebelling' against his own father, as the teen had stated was the reason for always coming to the Mansion.

Iemitsu was strange, even by Vongola standards. The boy was without a doubt Japanese, but neither of his parents were. It didn't state anywhere in his records that he was adopted either and Nono had told Visconti very clearly that he needed to dig very deep if he wanted to find information on Iemitsu Sawada. But even Visconti, who worked with the police in Italy ( a bit of an 'iffy' thing to do as a Vongola Guardian, but not unheard of ), was unable to find anything about Iemitsu other than where he lived, pictures of his parents and him and his school grades.

Iemitsu slumped down the comfortable chair he had settled down in and grunted as Coyote slammed the door open. Both Brow and Iemitsu looked at him. Brow opened his mouth and spoked softly. "I believe Boss told you to gently open the doors. Do you want to sit in the 'Corner' again?" he asked and Coyote huffed, though it was very obvious the man had some sort of trauma from the 'Corner'. Iemitsu snorted but refrained from commenting on it. Brow looked from Coyote to Iemitsu and sighed as he closed his book and put it down. He stood up and stretched, he grunted in satisfaction at the pops in his spine and walked out the door. "I'll get the tea ready," he said as he walked towards the kitchen on the second floor. Coyote stepped aside to let the Sun Guardian pass and then turned his attention back to Iemitsu, who had his attention to the book again. He walked over to Iemitsu and stopped when he was in front of the fifteen-year-old. "Come one squirt, Nono is waiting for you," he said. Iemitsu looked up at the tall man and sighed, shut his book and stood up as well. "…Fine," he grumbled as he brushed passed the older man, out of the room.

Nono was all smiles when Iemitsu entered his office and Iemitsu reeled back in disgust. "That's freaky, stop it old man," Iemitsu said and not even a second later, Coyote hid him across his head. "You stop it with the rudeness, there has to be a limit to it!" he said in a raised voice. Iemitsu was clutching his head but only glared at the Storm Guardian. He clicked his tongue and flopped down on the couch in the Ninth's office. He then proceeded to ignore every attempt Timoteo made at small talk as well as the withering glares Coyote was sending him.

Five minutes later and Coyote had stormed out of the office, leaving a bored Iemitsu and a bemused Boss in the room. Brow, who had been carrying the tray with tea and cookies, raised his eyebrow at his colleague and friend as said man came running his way. He hid a smile behind his hand as he heard the man grumble. He knocked on the door to the office, which hadn't been closed when Coyote left, and opened the door completely. He didn't say anything as he put the tray down and poured the two occupants a cup of tea. He left the bowl of cookies as well, well aware that they'd be gone within minutes and made a mental note to make some sandwiches as well. Everyone had noticed how Iemitsu was eating more when given food. They also noticed he never asked for extra food. Which was a little worrying but they all let it be and simply prepared more food whenever Iemitsu came over.

Everyone always seemed to find it ironic; a fifteen-year-old-boy and a forty-seven-year-old-Mafia Don, who had a 'tea hour' every week. To be honest, it was more of a therapy session than just some small talk. Timoteo was well aware of the fact that Iemitsu was a silent child by nature; deviant, but quiet. There was next to no information on Iemitsu and so the only way for him to get it was by asking Iemitsu himself. Which was no easy task; the boy usually ignored the direct approach and he was definitely not as stupid as his grades made him out to be, because he always caught onto Timoteo's schemes. Often a little too quickly, it made Timoteo suspect something more than just intuition was at play.

"So, how was your week?" Nono asked and Iemitsu grunted. Well, at least it was more than the silent treatment. Iemitsu, who had his eyes closed and his arms behind his head as he was lying on the couch, opened one eye and looked at the Mafia Boss, sitting across from him. Timoteo was sipping the hot tea carefully and took one of the cookies Brow had brought them. As Iemitsu observed the older man, Nono let his thoughts waver for a moment. He was getting a little worried about Iemitsu. His Hyper Intuition was acting up and while not as strong as Primo's bloodline, he relied on it a lot because it had saved his life more than once. The bruises on the boy's upper arms didn't go unnoticed either.

A couple more moments of silence passed as Iemitsu merely stared at Timoteo with a calculating gaze. He then sighed and chose to sit up rather than lie down and folded his hands as he sat on the couch. "I think I'm going to break at this point," he quietly said and Timoteo stopped sipping his tea. In fact he completely froze when he heard Iemitsu speak. The boy had been coming over for nearly two months now, but never had he started a conversation of his own. So it was understandable that Timoteo was more than baffled when Iemitsu started speaking. "I'm not stupid, despite what my grades may be. I know what the reason for these 'sessions' is and frankly speaking they're a bother," he said as he put his face in his hands. "How so?" Timoteo asked and Iemitsu looked up. Timoteo's breath stilled at the broken look in Iemitsu's dark honey eyes. "Being here completely messes up my pace. This place pulls at me for reasons unknown and it throws me off. I feel that the longer I keep up contact with you and the more I come over, the faster I'm going to break," he said and before long Timoteo had put down the cup and merely sat there waiting.

Then, as if a dam had broken, Iemitsu started crying. It didn't look good on the boy, to see tears stream freely down his cheeks. Timoteo's heart ached at the notion of how much Iemitsu must have been hurting. He wanted to reach out, but knew that if he did that now, Iemitsu would collapse in on himself and shut out anyone who wanted to come closer. So, with a heavy heart and glistering eyes, Timoteo sat back and waited for Iemitsu to continue his story. Even as the tears were streaming down his face, Iemitsu hadn't looked away from Timoteo, nor had he blinked. The broken look in his eyes was still there, but there was now some hope in them. "Help me," he said as he closed his eyes in defeat and Timoteo gave him a smile. A genuine smile, the kind of smile Iemitsu had been aching for from his own father. One that he never thought he could ever receive. "Of course," Timoteo said and as he stood up and strode towards Iemitsu. Said boy blinked and looked up at the hand Timoteo was holding out for him. He grabbed it and Timoteo pulled the boy into a hug. "You're already family, Iemitsu and in this family, we help each other. Even when it's not needed," he said with a wink and Iemitsu laughed at that. It was a nice sound, Timoteo decided.

Enrico didn't like Iemitsu all that much when the teen first came to the Mansion. Even though he wasn't even that much younger than Iemitsu, he could feel that he was inferior to the fifteen-year-old in some way. He wasn't sure what it was, but there was a mood around Iemitsu that kept most people at bay. Even the staff, though concerned whenever he appeared with bruises and cuts, never looked the teen in the eyes. Almost as though they were afraid something would happen if they made contact with him. Enrico had scrunched up his nose at that thought. Surely someone couldn't bring misfortune by merely existing? He didn't really like Iemitsu, but he didn't wish the teen away. Couldn't really wish him away, because twelve-(nearly thirteen!)year-old-Enrico was aware that his father liked Iemitsu. As in adopted-in-all-but-papers-like. That annoyed the boy, but he already shared his father with his two younger brothers. He guessed it wasn't all that bad to have an older brother. Being the eldest wasn't often as fun as most people made it out to be. Point was that although he wasn't fond of Iemitsu, he didn't hate the teen.

Enrico wasn't sure what had changed, but it was creepy to see Iemitsu smile at others. The staff too were not spared from the male's brilliant smiles. Thought they still avoided contact, they no longer looked at the man in fear. It was more curiosity than anything. So Enrico, ever the curious twelve-year-old, took it on himself to find out what changed the previously cold boy. Before he could ask Iemitsu though, his father called him and his younger brothers to the office. He groaned and glared at Coyote as the man told him the news. Just when he was going to ask Iemitsu as well! Darn it!

His irritation disappeared quickly though when he saw Iemitsu stand in his father's office, looking more nervous than he had ever seen the older male. And was that…was he blushing? Enrico raised an eyebrow, or at least tried to, but ended up scrunching his eyebrows together. What was going on? "Father, what is it?" he asked politely, warily glancing over to Iemitsu. Timoteo, who had of course noticed the one-sided rivalry between his eldest and Iemitsu, smiled at Enrico. "Enrico, Massimo, Federico. As I am sure you know, Iemitsu here," he waved towards Iemitsu's direction and the teen gave an awkward smile and waved as well, "has been coming over for the past two months now. It's been decided that he is now going to stay here. He'll be trained as an elite officer and will most likely take of CEDEF. Be kind to him, okay?" Timoteo said and Enrico gaped at his father. What. His head immediately turned to Iemitsu and he saw that the blush was intensifying. "What are you embarrassed for?!" he asked with incredulity. If anything, being trained as an elite was something amazing right?

Iemitsu jumped at Enrico's exclamation and looked at his feet when all eyes turned to him. "…It's nothing," he mumbled. The children didn't get it, but Timoteo smiled sadly. He still hadn't heard anything about Iemitsu's family-life from the boy, but it wasn't hard to guess that the boy hadn't really experienced anything like family love before. So Timoteo smiled and turned to his eldest. "It's fine Enrico. If you have any problems, just ask him okay? You'll also both be tutored at the same time," he said and although Enrico wasn't as glad with that decision, he couldn't find it in himself to deny his father the request. So he went for the next best thing and crossed his arms as he grumbled softly. Federico, who was still too young to really understand the situation, cocked his head to the left and as he squeezed the stuffed animal in his arms, his dark eyes went to the oldest teen in the room. He opened his mouth and what happened next was something no one forgot. "…Brother?" Most of the Ninth Generation Guardians burst into laughter and Iemitsu was wheezing uncomfortably as he tried to say that 'no, not brother…just…' and Enrico felt himself just taking it in stride. When even Massimo started calling Iemitsu 'brother' Enrico sighed and rolled his eyes. "Just give it up already…brother," he said with a slight smirk at the end. He looked at Iemitsu with amusement in his eyes. The red, spluttering and embarrassed mess that was Iemitsu maybe wouldn't make a bad addition to their family after all.

It was nice and all, to finally have Iemitsu been accepted by into his family, but Timoteo was sure his family wasn't going to be as accepting of the idea. When he arrived the next week, after not showing up during the weekend, he looked more than a little sore. Timoteo showed concern in every one of his gestures and where Iemitsu would have grumbled before and ignored the older man, he now only smiled in defeat and Timoteo wasn't sure which was worse.

Regardless, the amount of time Iemitsu spent within the Vongola Mansion grew and before long it felt second nature to wake up, do work and see Iemitsu randomly pop-up whenever he was working on his paperwork. Their weekly session still happened, but Iemitsu was more open about himself. About things he liked; foods, trainings. To things he didn't like; waiting for a long time and his father. That was one thing Iemitsu refused to speak about; his real family. Well, blood-related family, because Timoteo was fairly sure 'family' meant 'Vongola' in Iemitsu's eyes. That wasn't bad, not at all; it made Timoteo very happy. His Guardians were happy as well. However, everyone was well aware the subject was not forgotten and if the night walking Iemitsu does around the Mansion every once in a while is of any indication; neither had Iemitsu. They didn't pressure him. They were sure that with time, Iemitsu would open up to them. He was only fifteen after all.

Speaking of being fifteen; Iemitsu was technically supposed to go to school. He still went – Coyote made sure to knock it into Iemitsu that no Mafia should leave their education unfinished – if only because he didn't want to disappoint Timoteo. Wasn't that adorable? Enrico rolled his eyes whenever the subject 'school' was brought up whenever Iemitsu wasn't around. His father could be so dramatic. As old as the man was, Enrico was sure that he would never be old enough to embarrass those he held dear. Iemitsu's school behaviour seemed to always be discussed whenever said teen wasn't in the room and more often than not Enrico would walk in on his father being foolish again and snap a few photos for good measure, before silently walking away and leaving his father to deal with his… 'episode'. Timoteo kept wondering why Iemitsu always gave the man blushing glares of angry embarrassment.

Iemitsu's grades didn't necessarily get better; he only went to school for his attendance, knowing that if push came to shove, he'd get tutored by one of the Guardians. He usually went to class, stayed until roll call and then disappeared to goodness knows where. Timoteo sighed as yet again another disappointing report-card had made its way to his desk. He knew that Iemitsu was smart, but the boy just wasn't putting any effort. That was the one thing that hadn't changed since the first time Iemitsu appeared in their lives. It wasn't that he was lazy; Iemitsu was very dedicated to his training assignments. Timoteo just wasn't sure what kept the boy from doing his best at school as well. For a moment he considered hiring Reborn, but he thought against it. Reborn had made it very clear that unless it was a dire situation (whatever 'dire' might have meant to the hitman), Timoteo was not supposed to contact the man-turned-baby. Ever. Preferably.

So, with that idea out of the window, Timoteo sighed and walked towards the training room in the basement. His walking stick was ticking against the marble floor of the hall on the ground floor and for a second Timoteo stopped to look at the grand hall of the entrance. Even after having grown up in the Mansion; having explored all of its corners as a child, he still marvelled at the magnificence of it all. It was quickly put to the back of his mind and he strode forward to the elevator leading down one level.

"Put more power in your hits! You won't take any enemies down if you physical strength amounts to nothing, Iemitsu!" Coyote yelled. "Yes!" Iemitsu answered as he punched forward once more and destroyed the sandbag in front of him. He wiped the sweat of his brow and turned to look at Timoteo as the man entered the room. He looked a little out of place in his suit, but both males nodded their heads in respect and Timoteo merely smiled in return and gave a small nod as well. The training continued on.

After another thirty minutes of Iemitsu training his punches, Timoteo walked towards Coyote and whispered something in his Storm Guardian's ear. He closed his eyes and sighed, but nodded all the same. It was about time.

Iemitsu raised his eyebrow when Nono waved him over a little over half an hour after the man had arrived. He grabbed his towel and made his way to the man. "What is it, Nono?" he asked and Timoteo just smiled at him. "There is something I want to talk about," he answered simply. A little suspicious, but otherwise just blatantly curious, Iemitsu nodded and after saying goodbye to Coyote, walked back to Timoteo's office. He was doing his cool-down exercises at the same time and Timoteo kept giving him amused glances.

When the two arrived, Iemitsu sat down in the comfy chair, across from Timoteo. There was no drinks or cookies on the table and although a little weird, because Iemitsu knew that the man always had something to drink and snack somewhere in the office, Iemitsu didn't think anything of it. "It has come to my attention that despite being clever, you're grades don't show it. I know you're not lazy, nor do you not understand the subjects. So, I want to know why," Timoteo said. It was quiet and for a moment Timoteo thought he had screwed up but then Iemitsu ruffled his hair and sighed; frustration evident on his face. "I just learned that putting in effort is not worth it, because no matter what there is always something preventing me from getting a passing grade," the teen said and he sighed.

Timoteo raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "Care to clarify, because as I am hearing it, your low grades seem to be due to outside interference. Is that true?" Timoteo asked and as he saw Iemitsu hesitate before nodding, he had to hide his clenched fists under the coffee table. "I…see," he said. He didn't see, not really and Timoteo found himself planning out entire massacres. He calmed himself when he noticed Iemitsu giving him weird looks. "…Do you want to transfer to a better school," Timoteo asked and by the happy, if not hesitant, nod from Iemitsu, Timoteo nodded as well; satisfied with the results. It may not be the ideal solution, but if it meant Iemitsu graduating with good and fair grades then it was well worth it. It also wasn't bad that as an added bonus, Timoteo could put his black-mail skills to the test again after so long.

Time seemed to fly after that and before long everyone was celebrating the teen's eighteenth birthday. Vongola style, of course. Timoteo had been a bit absentminded as of lately ,but no one seemed to know why. That didn't stop anyone from making Iemitsu's eighteenth birthday party a blast, though. Seeing as the legal age was eighteen in Italy, all of the Guardians made sure to force Iemitsu to down all the glasses alcohol they served him. With the intention to embarrass him of course. However, Iemitsu seemed to be a natural drinker and continued to happily down one glass of alcohol after another. No matter what brand or type of alcohol; Iemitsu drank them all without batting an eye. He kept his happy-go-lucky attitude the entire night and all were disappointed to note a lack of hangover the following morning. It was almost as if they had another Ninth in their midst, which made more than one Guardian stop. That was a thought all of them had had for a long time now and maybe, just maybe, Iemitsu would finally be able to tell them his past.

With turning eighteen came the decision to either continue his studies and keep training as he did through middle school, or stop studying, be happy with his middle school diploma and focus on his training. Timoteo noticed the hesitation and kindly reminded Iemitsu that Vongola wasn't going to go anywhere; it was his home and that wasn't going to change. So Iemitsu made the decision to do one study, a part-time job on the side and completely cut away any connection to the Vongola in the three years it would take him to finish his study. A study, one should add, that would take most students at least four years – if they passed their finals in one go.

Timoteo – and with him all the other members of the Vongola – had agreed to let Iemitsu be on his own and experience the outside world, because while Vongola was his family, he wasn't officially a part of the Vongola Famiglia. As such he had no chains binding him to the Mafia world. He had promised to come back no matter what and the sheer determination in Iemitsu's eyes even surprised Timoteo. Although the old man knew that Iemitsu would never break his promises. Before anyone even realized it, three years had passed and when Iemitsu returned to the Vongola Mansion, his bachelor's degree in Psychology and Sociology in his pocket, he had not expected Timoteo to be there waiting for him in the foyer. In fact, the whole Mansion was waiting for him, staff and Guardians included.

He blinked away his tears of happiness and returned the hug Timoteo had pulled him into. "Welcome back, Iemitsu," Timoteo said and Iemitsu grinned as he yelled "I'm back!". Iemitsu looked over the Ninth Generation Guardians, before letting his eyes glance over Timoteo's three sons. Enrico, only three years younger, was also graduating in less than a month and although the teen had grown surprisingly tall, the boyish grin on his face hadn't out-grown him. He grinned at Iemitsu, his brother in all but blood and hugged him after his father let go. "It's been a long time, Iemitsu. Are you ready for your training?" Iemitsu blinked at the grin on Enrico's face. Somehow it seemed a little more menacing than it had three years ago. Timoteo looked off to the side when Iemitsu glanced at him and all the Guardians avoided his eye-contact as well. Iemitsu looked back at Enrico and grinned just as predatory, if not more villainous than Enrico. "I hope you're prepared for Hell, because I never stopped training," he said as an imaginary tail and horns appeared. For the first time everyone present felt that Iemitsu was capable of a lot more than mere trainings.

A/N – Well? How did you like this? Turns out that it's going to be a small story after all. I have no other chapters written out yet, so let me ask you; who do you want to read about next? Xanxus? Nana? Or some more Iemitsu after all? These three characters are the only ones who could fit as a second chapter, though not in the same chapter, if that makes sense? You're just going to have to pick your favourite and I'll write their chapter.

You have no IDEA how often I wrote 'Iemitsy' instead of 'Iemitsu'…it's ridiculous. Tell me of any mistakes I have made in this, there are bound to still be mistakes left even after re-reading this. Also, a week has passed since I started writing this, so…exams! Yay! \TT^TT/

If you have any questions or things are unclear, feel free to ask me – either by review or PM; I don't mind~ SO, I hope you guys have a nice weekend and I'm going to study for my exams and hopefully do well…