Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn, I only own the character of Rowan Hastings
Chapter one: Mwanzoleo
It was mid morning and the Vongola's Decimo was in the middle of his daily routine, he was deep in thought as he shifted through papers and scowled as he was stuck shuffling the same papers with nowhere near progress.
"No-good Tsuna, what's bothering you?" Reborn asked as he materialized.
"Nothing, just a bit nervous for some reason" Tsuna answered, it was true he was nervous. The letter he received was short in its request, a meeting with Rowan Hastings. Who writes letters nowadays anyway? Before either of them continued Gokudera was at the door with a bemused look on his face.
"What is it Gokudera?" Reborn asked. Gokudera Hayato cleared his throat before answering.
"Miss Rowan Hastings is here to see the Tenth" He announced. Tsuna was shocked he was so sure the letter was from a man. Who is this woman and why is she asking to see me?
Rowan Hastings had long midnight black hair which swayed as she moved her alabaster skin so pale she was almost translucent. Her ruby red lips quirked into a smile as she glided into the room, she stood in front of the Tenth with an expectant smile and waited for him to greet her.
"Good Morning Miss Hastings" Reborn said.
"Please have a seat Miss Hastings" Tsuna said as he was snapped out of his reverie, Gokudera was still at the door half expecting to be seated with them.
"We'll call you if anything Gokudera" Reborn ordered.
Gokudera looked like he was about to argue but he was stopped when Rowan looked at him. Her eyes were like pale electric currents that sent chills and shocks throughout his body. Breaking eye contact Gokudera bowed and left the room. It surprised him that she hasn't spoken a word since she arrived and yet she commanded everyone's attention.
"Now Miss Rowan may I ask the purpose of this meeting?" Tsuna asked in full Decimo mode
"I'm here to return something to you" Rowan answered her voice languorous hinting at some mix origins.
"And what is that?" Tsuna asked trying to remember if he had lost anything or lent anyone anything of importance.
"Haru Miura" Rowan replied. Her answer freezes Tsuna in his seat.
Three hours until I go back to Vongola headquarters, to see the people whom I had almost forgotten, so deep in my past that I barely remember their faces. Or maybe it was my own defense to eradicate the guilt, the familia carrying out such 'noble' work unlike me.
My hands have spilled so much blood, my fingers have taken so many lives, my lips have told so many lies. Will they accept me back? Six years of living as someone else only to return back to being Haru Miura, won't be easy but it has to be done.
Flashback
The streets of Milan was cold and unfamiliar, the sound of music and the smell of cigarette smoke and wine filled the air as Haru walked numbly. Her mind was in a disarray and her body moved on it's own. She found herself in a bar looking dejected.
"You look like you could use a drink" A voice said from beside Haru.
Turning to her side Haru gave a little gasp and an involuntary 'hahi' escaped her lips. The woman was beautiful, her porcelain skin on a feather and crystal dress giving her an almost Goddess like appearance.
"Who are you?" Haru asked. The woman smiled and her eyes gleamed merrily.
"I can be whoever you want me to be" She answers.
"Then be my savior " Haru said unsure of why she said it.
"As you wish" She whispered.
Haru was ushered into a private room decked out in rich hues of red and gold. Haru's savior motioned her to sit.
"Tell me about yourself" The lady requested. And just like that Haru spilled all the pent up frustrations that have been held at bay. The lady listened and whispered something to the attendant at her side.
That night Haru had her first taste of absinthe. The lady gathered two glasses from the server and an ornate slotted silver spoon. There was a sharp sound as she uncorked the bottle, she poured a small amount of absinthe into each of the flared glasses, then she places a sugar cube in the slotted spoon and sets the spoon atop a glass. Slowly she drizzles cold water into the spoon, letting it drip through the sugar. As the water hits the syrupy absinthe, it whirls into ribbons, a tiny maelstrom of green.
"My name is Rowan and I shall take you on a journey of dreams" She said as she passes me the drink. It tasted of liquorice.
The next day Haru woke up in a strange bed and a panoramic view of the ocean.
End flashback
"Are you holding her captive?" Tsuna demanded.
"No, she came to me for help and I did" Rowan replied.
"Why now?" Reborn asked.
"Because it is time for her to come home" She answered easily. "That is, if you still want her back" She added.
"Of course we want her back, Haru is family and we will always take her back" Tsuna answered almost in anger.
"Six years is a long time Decimo, she has changed and so have you" Rowan said her answer sounding suspiciously like a riddle.
"The Vongola family is different, it is stronger than any blood bond for we choose to be a family by own on choice, and our own free will. If Haru wants to come back we will readily accept her as we had in the past" Tsuna replied and Rowan now understood why this man was leader.
"Where has she been all this time? We searched all over for her" Reborn asked.
"Paris, , Dubai, Utah, Costa Rica, Prague. Just to name a few" Rowan said.
"Why were we not able to find her" Tsuna inquired.
"She didn't want to be found" Rowan smiled. "But she has left hints, and it was up to your guardian to act on it" She added
"I don't wish to be rude Decimo but my purpose here was to hand you back Haru and since you have agreed it's time for me to take my leave" She said motioning to stand.
"Haru will arrive in two hours, if there are any more questions please don't hesitate to ask her" Rowan said before she departed.
Tsuna smiled and felt happy, Haru was coming back. Everyone will be happy, his mind drifted to the feast Kyoko and the rest will prepare for Haru
"Oi No good Tsuna this isn't the time to be daydreaming. In the short time Rowan was with us we found out nothing about her. Nor about the past six years, She's hiding something" Reborn remarked.
Lambo just came back from a mission with Gokudera and was feeling a bit down. He felt like nothing he does is ever good enough for the family. No there was one person who pushed him to be better.
Reaching under his bed he took out a box full of postcards, it started a month after Haru left. The first postcard was from Cape Town in Africa with the words "The Meringue Basket with Sorbet from Savoy Cabbage is to die for"
Deep in his heart he knew it was from Haru and he was glad she was safe but the postcards stopped coming four months ago and Lambo feared the worst but it was Haru, she was gutsy and strong. She'll come back.
But just in case, he will go ask Kusakabe san if there is any news.
Gokudera was in the kitchen sipping coffee while Ryohei and Yamamoto yapped on about boxing and baseball. Those two muscle brains have not changed in ten years and in a sense Gokudera was thankful for that. They didn't need another 'Haru incident'
"Hey Octopus-Head you seem distracted to the extreme" Ryohei said
"Tch, having you around is distracting" Gokudera replied.
"Maa, maa no need for shouts" Yamamoto said trying to placate the two guardians. "But he is right you seem preoccupied" Yamamoto continued.
"Did you see the woman who entered the tenth's office?" Gokudera asked. Both of them shook their heads earning them another tch from Gokudera.
"What's up with her?" Ryohei asked.
"I don't know but something feels off" Gokudera said his eyebrows furrowed. "Eh, you interested eh?" Ryohei said nudging Gokudera with a sly grin.
"Not in that sense idiot" Gokudera yelled.
"Maa, maa I'm sure Tsuna will let us know about her if we ask" Yamamoto said trying to pacify the two hot heads.
"Tch"
"Yamamoto, Ryohei, Hayato Tsuna wants to see all of you in 20 minutes" Bianchi announced.
Gokudera didn't wait for twenty minutes to pass as he made his way to the Decimo's office with Yamamoto and Ryohei in tow.
"Why are you two following me?" Gokudera hissed.
"The woman must be something if she's gotten under your skin Tako head" Ryohei answered as Yamamoto nodded in agreement.
Upon entering the office the trio were surprised to find that Hibari and Mukuro were already present, and they were only waiting for Lambo to begin the meeting.
"Why the sudden meeting arcobaleno?" Mukuro asked as he lounged on a chair.
"We have a sudden development in an on going case but I wont go into details yet" Reborn replied.
Lambo entered the office looking forlorn and Gokudera felt a pang of guilt as he remembered how he treated the youngest guardian.
"Now that all of you are here, I would first like to ask if any of you had any contact with Haru in the past six years" Tsuna asked looking at his guardians. Everyone looked surprised except Lambo who looked anywhere but at Tsuna.
"Lambo, did Haru ever contact you?" Tsuna asked, suddenly all eyes were on Lambo and it took all his might not to cower in a corner.
"I didn't have proof it was her, and after awhile I asked Kusakabe-san to look into it" Lambo responded.
"What do you mean by it?" Hibari asked annoyed that Tetsu had held information from him.
"I received post cards from different places and they usually had one or two lines in it, about a particular dessert at a certain restaurant" Lambo replied.
"Have you found her Tsuna?" Yamamoto asked.
"Well she was more or less handed back to us" Reborn answered.
"By Rowan Hastings?" Gokudera asked. Reborn then started to explain the meeting that took place earlier that morning.
"That's great we have Haru back, Kyoko and the rest will be pleased to the extreme!" Ryohei exclaimed.
"But be warned, Miss Hastings has said that Haru has changed she might not be the person we all knew her to be" Reborn said leaving the occupants in the room brooding over the possibility of such a drastic transformation of the cosplaying, dessert loving Haru.
Sorry for the long wait, I hope this chapter doesnt let you down. And if you're wondering why Haru was so easily open to Rowan, that will be revealed in the next few chapters. As for the pairings, that will be known soon maybe in the next three chapters. A big Thank you for everyone who reviewed and put me on alert...Thank you so much =)