Chapter Two: Mist Ring Battles and Monster Manuals

Xanxus had brought in his damn high-backed chair into the gymnasium and sat himself on it as though he hadn't a care in the world. Standing beside him, Squalo did his level best to not roll his damn eyes at his boss. He succeeded mostly because the door was opening on the other side of the room and his nerves were already on edge. Xanxus had told him the reactions of the little challenger's guardians to Yamamoto revealing he was a ghoul. It had appeared as though the leader brat knew and, of course, Reborn had as well, but the others had been as pale as Squalo himself. Except for their sun guardian, but that insane kid hadn't even blinked at Lussuria's banter so, well. Who the fuck knew with him.

Even Dino had been surprised by the reveal, which did a little bit to soothe Squalo's injured pride, but not much. He'd been the one to lose to the monster, after all.

The teenagers walked in together, chatting, and too fucking at ease for the evening. It had bothered Squalo, before, to see them so relaxed, but now it was like nails on a chalkboard. Yamamoto was easily the most carefree of the bunch, one hand behind his head as he laughed at something the sun guardian was shouting.

"...extremely good!" The teen was patting a bag that hung from his shoulder. "I should have brought it the other night, but I forgot in my eagerness to make sure Octopus head over there made it to see your match!"

"I can't wait!" Yamamoto said with a laugh. Then his head turned and, shit. He lifted his free hand to wave, "Squalo! Hey! Are you busy after this?"

Squalo stiffened. He glanced down at Xanxus who was clenching his jaw to keep his serious expression. Dammit. Xanxus was laughing at him. "Of course I am," Squalo shouted back.

He knew that he shouldn't have responded at all when Xanxus glanced up at him and said, pitching his voice to carry, damn him, "Really? Doing what? Another two hour shower to get blood out of your hair? Oh, wait, that was last night."

Squalo was going to murder Xanxus.

That is, if Yamamoto didn't do it first.

The kid was glaring daggers at Xanxus and muttered something that, because of the distance, he couldn't quite catch. He did, however, hear the sun guardian's shouted response of, "That is extremely trashy behavior! He should not have accepted your offer of a date if that is the case!"

"Oh my god," Squalo whispered.

"Bel is going to be so fucking pissed he missed this," Xanxus said, barely moving his lips.

"VOI!" Squalo lifted his fist, "Exactly WHAT are you saying about me over there, you shitty brat!?"

Yamamoto's eyes flashed black and red as he called back, "What's that bastard doing knowing about your showering habits, huh? You're not seeing him are you? Is that why you didn't want to go on a date with me?"

Squalo couldn't help the shudder of fear that crawled down his spine at those eyes. It was a learned response, if not an instinctive one. He flexed his left arm, nearly drawing his sword, as he took a step back. "Fucking hell," he breathed. "Fuck."

"...Did you actually forget he was a ghoul?" Xanxus asked, arching an eyebrow. He had his chin on his palm, looking as derisively casual as ever, but Squalo knew his boss better than that. His other hand was down by his side, near his gun. Even if it was an unconscious gesture, Squalo felt a little better knowing that a ghoul's eyes didn't just affect him.

"Well?" Yamamoto shouted. At first Squalo thought the kid wanted to know the answer to Xanxus's question, but then he remembered. Oh. Right.

"Xanxus is my boss," Squalo sneered. "I'm not fucking my boss."

"Anymore," Xanxus added under his breath.

"I'm going to throw out all of your whiskey," Squalo hissed back at him.

Xanxus narrowed his gaze.

"You sure?" Yamamoto asked, "Cause the last guy I brought home to my dad was cheating on me and, well, I bet you can guess what happened to him." He grinned, showing far too many teeth. Another shiver ran down Squalo's spine, but he wasn't quite sure if it was fear alone that caused it.

"Takeshi," Sawada cut in. He was turning away from one of his other guardians, the Italian one that had fallen to Bel's insanity. "That's enough. Reborn says the mist guardian is here." He dropped his voice below hearing level and added something else. Yamamoto sheepishly scratched at the back of his neck and nodded to his boss.

"Sorry, sorry. I just…" Yamamoto heaved a heavy sigh. His eyes met Squalo's as he said on the end of that sigh, "He smells so good."

"Might want to change the shampoo you use," Xanxus said, his eyes glinting with sadistic humor. "Maybe that will help."

"Fuck you," Squalo snapped, "And fuck him. And fuck this stupid ring battle anyway."

The doors on the far side opened again. Squalo stifled a sigh in relief as the newcomers took the attention off of the weird-as-hell conversation. It was some teen boys that wandered in and trailing in their wake was a girl in a short skirt, an eyepatch and holding a long ass trident.

Mammon scoffed from his perch on Mosca's hand. He had certain opinions about illusionists with weapons and there was no way, considering the literal mist that clung to the girl's shoes as she walked in, that she wasn't Sawada's guardian.

Sawada seemed surprised to see her and asked her about someone named Mukuro but she didn't give him a straight answer either way. There wasn't so much clear distrust as confusion on their side and Squalo did roll his eyes. Who thought it was a good idea to introduce the guardians to their boss on the night they'd fight for the fucking rings?

Chrome was the girl's name and she looked half starved and terrified as she stood across from Mammon on the wood floor. Squalo folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the side of Xanxus's chair, settling in to watch.

He didn't get many opportunities to stand to the side and watch Mammon work, in particular, or illusionists in general. Squalo wasn't made for illusion and, though he could break some of the basic ones, tended to avoid them. There was plenty of bad shit in his brain that he could imagine was real without the possibility of those things actually becoming real enough to fuck with him.

Squalo's eyes kept glancing to Yamamoto. A ghoul kid. A ghoul who stood amongst humans, laughing and joking and reacting just like they did. A ghoul with a romantic and, well, probably unhealthy and potentially fatal interest in Squalo himself. A ghoul that he would not have realized was one at all if not for those flashing eyes and that jarringly red kagune.

Yamamoto met his gaze and winked. Squalo jerked his attention back to the battle in time to see the girl be flung down to the ground and skid back across it. She clutched the trident tightly in both hands, gasping for breath, her one visible eye wide and wild.

Mammon sneered at her and, with a flex of his power, he turned the trident into shards of metal.

The girl shuddered, curling around empty hands and letting out a wail like a wounded animal. As mist gathered around her strangely convulsing body, Mammon spoke, "It's common for female illusionists to do this," he said with a flick of one baby hand, "They don't like their bodies to be seen when they die."

The mist kept gathering, though, and thickening. Squalo glanced to Sawada, but there was no defeat on the boy's face. Only earnest attention that was entirely focused on the smoke. It was quiet enough that when Sawada spoke, Squalo heard his words.

"He's coming. Mukuro's here."

Laughter, not Mammons nor anyone else's, drifted through the air.

The mist parted, revealing a young man in the place where the girl had been. Mukuro, if that was his name, grinned to the Arcobaleno in the air in front of him. His eyes were unnatural, but not with that fear-inducing black and red of a ghoul. Squalo couldn't tell what it is from where he stood, but they didn't look like they matched.

The battle continued in earnest then. Mammon's will clashed spectacularly against that of Mukuro's. The floor spun and tore, the world broke apart and spiraled around them. Squalo kept his feet firmly planted and held still, focusing on the way his knuckles of his robotic hand dug into his ribs as he kept his arms folded across his chest. If he could stay grounded in reality, he'd be able to see the fight but not experience it.

From the way Sawada and his guardians were reacting, it was clear that they were being wrapped up into it. "Tch," he muttered under his breath, "Don't they have any idea how to survive an illusionist's match?"

"They have a damn ghoul on their team," Xanxus muttered back, "Do you think they have any idea how to survive in real life at all?"

"Stupid brats," Squalo said. Really, Xanxus winning the rings and being the Decimo would be doing them a fucking favor. But could they understand that? Of course not. The mafia world would chew them up and spit them out again, unrecognizable to how they were before it.

Even Yamamoto wouldn't make it. Not with how the Vongola treated ghouls.

In the Varia, though…

Shit. No. Squalo shook his head. He was not going to think about that. The Vongola had cut all the ghouls out of Varia when they'd frozen Xanxus and they'd refused to employ the Varia at all while they had one with them.

So no ghouls in the Varia. Not even talented shark-slaying sword teens who-

"Fuck," Squalo breathed.

"That's… putting it mildly," Xanxus said, getting his attention. Squalo blinked and looked back to see.

"What the fuck?" He gaped.

Spreading out from Mukuro's shoulders were four blood-red wings. They stretched out far past the teen's reach, unfurling in the air with a flourishing shimmer across the surface. They looked more like dragonfly wings than the typical feathery appearance of an ukaku, but Squalo had seen plenty of kagune to know one when he saw it.

Even knowing it was an illusion -it had to be one, because Mukuro's eyes were still human- Squalo felt his heart begin to beat harder in anticipation for a fight. He forced his muscles to relax. He took deep breaths to calm himself down.

Mammon laughed mockingly. "That's as much as you can come up with for a ghoul's kagune? Let me show you what I have seen." Blood red organs burst from the floating infant's back, gleaming like they were slick, glinting like they were made of metal, not flesh. If they had been real, that was. It was an illusion, just like the wings that Mukuro sported.

Mammon's wings, of course, were enormous, and they weren't the only kagune he brought into being. The scaled tentacles of a rinkaku sprouted from lower back, turning into claws and blades and spikes as they lashed through the air like something alive.

Squalo forced himself to relax more. It was all an illusion. He'd seen a rinkaku only the night before, after all. He knew they didn't move like that.

But shit, it was a good one. He saw, out of the corner of his eye, Yamamoto taking in deep breaths. Was it jarring for a ghoul to see even an illusion of kagune that impressive?

The boy's expression was just as intent as Sawada's, though, neither smiling nor white with fear. Narrowing his eyes, Squalo almost thought he saw Yamamoto's nostrils flare, as if he were scenting the air.

Mammon's scream made Squalo jerk back to attention. He stared as the infant's summoned kagune turned on him and began to tear him to shreds. Mukuro was grinning, his eyes still human, his wings trembling, almost vibrating in place in mimicry of the speeds of a dragonfly's wing. As Squalo watched, Mammon was torn apart.

There was blood and flesh, as realistic as anything Squalo had ever seen, splattering the wooden floor that still bent under the influence of Mukuro's will. The baby's scream reached a fever pitch and then cut off abruptly.

The following silence felt like a weight on Squalo's shoulders. Mukuro bent, picked something up, and smirked. "Two halves make a whole," he said with wry humor, snapping Mammon's ring half into place with his own. He laughed as the world began to settle again, the wooden slats moving back into place, the ground evening out, the blood and gore vanishing.

One by one, the illusions faded, until all that was left were the red wings sprouted from Mukuro's back. He looked at Squalo for a moment before giving his attention to Xanxus and saying, "Such a pity he managed to escape. I bet he would have tasted excellent."

Before Squalo's eyes, the image of Mukuro faded into the one of the girl. He took a step back, his shoulder bumping into the arm of Gola Mosca, when he saw that the girl's right eye was red and black, but her left eye was humanoid. She clutched her trident with white knuckles, her ukaku fluttering like real wings behind her shoulders, and said softly, "Infants are very tender." Her eyes dropped down towards the ground where Mammon's false remains had splattered. "And I'm… hungry."

"What the-" Squalo began.

"Fucking fuck." Xanxus ended for him. He sat up straight in his chair, not even pretending to be nonchalant anymore.

"She's got one eye," Squalo couldn't bring his voice above a whisper. "One ghoul eye and… one human eye. How is that even… what the fuck…"

"Chrome?" Sawada's voice made Squalo jump with its suddenness. "Chrome, come over here."

Xanxus's hands clenched around the arms of his chair. Squalo tensed beside him. Even if the shitty little punk was fighting to be the next Decimo- Even if he was going to try and take Xanxus's title from him-

No one deserved to die to a hungry ghoul.

Chrome jerked her head around to look at Sawada. Her eyes were wide, her mouth hanging open as she began to pant. Squalo twitched, suppressing the instinct to attack. She'd just won the regulated battle, after all, and if he attacked her, who knew what the Cervello would determine of his match and hers.

But Sawada was smiling at her, holding out his hand. "It's okay. Come on."

She took slow steps towards them. Squalo leaned forward, watching her intently. Ukaku were quick, faster than rinkaku even, and the slightest muscle twitch would be the only warning they had if she were to attack.

As she approached, though, it wasn't Yamamoto who approached her- as Squalo might have thought considering he was ghoulish like her- or even Sawada with his hand out to her. It was, instead, the sun guardian. He grinned down at the girl, rummaging in the bag he held and shouting, "Here! This is to help with your extreme thirst!" He held out a plastic sports bottle.

"...But I'm hungry," Chrome disputed. But she reached out and took the bottle anyway. She sniffed it, took one small drink and then with a gleam of manic delight, tore off the lid entirely and drank from the top. Blood welled at the corners of her mouth and dripped down her chin.

"Have you gone hunting yet?" the tall teen said, "It is the most extreme experience!"

"Oh my god," Squalo whispered, watching in horror.

The girl shook her head, mumbled something and got a sympathetic look from both the sun guardian and Yamamoto. Sawada was looking on with mild exasperation, one hand on the arm of the storm guardian. At least that kid looked like he was going to be sick.

"We can go hunting together if you like!" the sun guardian said to Chrome. "It's my turn to go for the family this week!" His eyes, as he looked down at the girl, were red and black. Squalo leaned back. Lussuria was going to lose his goddamn mind.

"There is something so wrong…" Xanxus began and then made himself stop. Squalo glanced down at him and saw that his boss was pale and watching on in shock.

"At least the Sawada kid is normal," Squalo said, "I mean. You've met his dad, right? That guy is human."

Xanxus's lips were pressed into a thin line. "He is." But his eyes were fixed not on Sawada. They were still on the girl. The girl with one ghoul eye. Squalo knew what question Xanxus wasn't asking.

What makes a ghoul have one human eye?

"Squalo!" Yamamoto shouted. Squalo's stomach clenched as he realized the teen wasn't just shouting but was walking over to him. He gave a quick glance to Xanxus, but didn't even get a mocking smirk back. Xanxus wasn't in the mood to tease him about the infatuated ghoul teen anymore.

Taking a few steps forward, to get some distance between his brooding boss and a potential explosion of violence that was inherent to a ghoul, Squalo said, "The fuck do you want?"

Yamamoto bounced on his toes in front of Squalo. He was far too damn cheerful and at ease. "Have you had dinner yet? Do you like sushi? I know I asked already but you didn't say. Will you come with me to dinner?"

"What makes you think I want to have dinner with you," Squalo asked sharply. "After what I saw tonight?"

Yamamoto's smile faltered, "What do you mean? Mukuro said that Mammon escaped. No one died or anything…. Not even any giant shark beast."

"No. No one died. But someone did talk about eating infants and then drank blood in front of me, so excuse me if I'm a little put off my dinner."

"Chrome's new to the lifestyle," Yamamoto said, "She's still figuring some things out. She doesn't eat babies."

Squalo stared at him.

Yamamoto fidgeted, "Well maybe she does, but she doesn't go out and kill babies to eat. That's… You can't go do that. It's against the rules. It's immoral."

Squalo scoffed, "As if ghouls have any fucking morals."

The sheepish Yamamoto vanished in an instant. He took a step towards Squalo, eyes narrowing. "We are just as capable of morality as any human is. We're the same in a lot of ways-"

"Do. Not." Squalo growled, "Compare-"

"Humans to ghouls? You to me?" Yamamoto cut him off. "You're a swordsman. I'm a swordsman. You have a heart and lungs and blood like I do. I have a brain and eyes and bones like you do. The only differences between us is that I have something more."

Squalo shook his head. He struggled for the words and stumbled over them when they finally came, "That's not- It's not just about-" He dragged his hand across his face. "You don't understand-"

"So what is it?" Yamamoto demanded. "What is it, huh? What don't I understand?"

Gritting his teeth, Squalo said, "In Italy, ghouls are monsters." Even though his instincts told him not to look away from Yamamoto, he couldn't look the boy in the face as he spoke and instead stared off to the side at the floor. "In Italy, ghouls wear masks made from the skin of their victims. In Italy, ghouls do hunt children and eat them. They are humanoids with the minds of beasts and the morals of the devil.

"When you compare me to a ghoul," Squalo said, "I do not think of you. I think of the creatures that have torn apart my subordinates, classmates, or friends. I think of the monsters that crawl through the sewers and drag down men and women, children and infants, down to their deaths, screaming and pleading. The idea of two ghouls in the same group, working together…" His gaze flicked up towards Sawada and his guardians. They were watching, of course. The sun guardian had his hand on the one eyed ghoul girl's shoulder.

Quietly, he ended, "If ghouls are capable of working together… if they banded together like you have? Italy would burn."

The silence stretched on long enough that Squalo glanced up. Yamamoto's eyes were wide. He had one hand pressed against his sternum as a fist held so tightly his knuckles were white. His mouth was open slightly, but he didn't speak. Squalo could see the horror sinking in and grimaced. Ghoul or not, Yamamoto was fourteen. Italy's problems were for an adult to handle, not a kid.

"What are you going to do about them?" Sawada asked, stepping forwards, his eyes on Xanxus.

"What was that, trash?" Xanxus drawled.

"The Italian ghouls," Sawada said. He was frowning, slightly, and stood ahead of his little group of guardians. Yamamoto half turned away from Squalo to look at his boss. "If you become the leader of the Vongola, what will you do about them?"

"The Vongola have a policy," Xanxus said, "Instigated by Vongola Settimo upon the death of Vongola Sesto, that all ghouls upon identification are to be slaughtered. As the Decimo, I would be expected to carry on with that policy."

"All ghouls…?" Yamamoto whispered. His eyes flicked towards Squalo, but he looked away before he could identify the emotion in the teen's eyes.

"And would you?" Sawada pressed.

"What would you do, trash?" Xanxus retorted.

Sawada didn't even blink. "Take Hibari to Italy."

Yamamoto burst into laughter.

Squalo jerked back, surprised by the sudden laughter. Yamamoto was grinning now, eyes bright and almost eager. "Could we, Tsuna? Could we take Hibari to Italy?"

Xanxus laughed too, but it was rough and cruel. "That scum might be strong enough to take down Levi's men, but against the monsters in the streets of Italy he'd be just one more human corpse."

"Out of all my guardians, Hibari is the one that you don't think is a ghoul?" Sawada's lips twitched in amusement. "He'll be so annoyed to hear that."

Squalo sucked in a sharp breath between his teeth. He glanced to Yamamoto, "What, him too?"

"Him too," Yamamoto grinned.

"How does this town even fucking function?" Squalo shouted. "Three of the eight of you are fucking ghouls and you're, fuck, you're helping each other and working together… How are you able to do this? How does this even happen?"

Yamamoto smiled up at him. He grabbed Squalo's arm, tugging on it, "Come to my house for dinner. My dad can explain if you really want to know. He's been here for years. He knows all about Namimori."

"I-" Squalo started to argue but, well, fuck it. He really did want to know how the fuck it was possible. He shot a look to Xanxus, but his boss only arched an eyebrow and said nothing. "Fuck it. Fuck it. Fine. I'll go to your shitty house and eat your fucking sushi." He paused and then added with a glare, "Human food. Made with fish, not human flesh."

"Well obviously," Yamamoto said gleefully. "Come on, let's go!" He pulled harder and Squalo stumbled forward. He hissed in annoyance but Yamamoto didn't even bat an eye at it. As they passed Sawada, the teen gave them an exasperated look and a smile.

"You'll be at Hibari's match tomorrow, right Takeshi?" Sawada called after him.

"As if I'd ever miss watching Hibari fight," Takeshi laughed, "Bye Tsuna!"

"Remember he's fucking fourteen!" Xanxus's voice followed Squalo out the door. He felt his cheeks burn, but Yamamoto was eagerly chatting back to him about, of all damn things, baseball.

When he got back to the hotel the first thing he was going to do was strangle Xanxus.

Reborn was not looking forward to the discussion that he knew was awaiting him when he finished accompanying Tsuna back to his house. Gokudera was with them, which was perhaps the only reason why the inevitable hadn't started yet. He glanced at Gokudera over Tsuna's head, as he was perched on the boy's shoulder.

Ever since the rain battle, Gokudera had been skittish about being out after dark. He hadn't reacted too badly to Yamamoto, yet, but he had been avoiding him by pushing himself with his training. He seemed to have abruptly realized that ghouls lived in Namimori and was making up for not realizing that by driving himself to his limits. He still hadn't properly healed yet but still went out to work with his bombs for hours.

"So," Gokudera said into the silence, "Hibari's a ghoul." He'd gotten his color back once they'd left Namimori High. Ryouhei and Chrome had left together, him grinning and her shyly smiling. Ken and Chikusa had left on their own as well, taking off to wherever they were staying. Reborn knew they'd get home safely, of course. Despite Gokudera's worry about ghouls, Hunting never happened within Namimori proper. "Somehow, that doesn't surprise me."

Tsuna laughed softly, "Yeah. I don't think he sees much point in pretending to be human all the time… Or very well."

"I've seen him eat, though. At least once. And he didn't throw up or anything."

"It was that special sashimi, right?" Tsuna said. "Like Takeshi?"

"...fuck." Gokudera whispered. "How did I not even…"

"The ghouls in Namimori are different than ghouls in the rest of the world." Reborn said, "Even I had trouble spotting them in the beginning. When I first arrived I thought that there were almost no ghouls here at all."

"Haha, really?," Gokudera laughed weakly. "But I bet you figured it out pretty quickly. I mean, in retrospect, Hibari's pretty obviously a… a ghoul." He laughed again. He rubbed his hands up and down his arms as if he were cold. "Goddamn," he giggled, "Him and Yamamoto and that boxing idiot… and the girl too. Chrome? Fuck. They're all… And I didn't even…"

He started hyperventilating then, hugging himself tightly with his arms. Tsuna reached out to Gokudera in concern. "Hey, deep breaths, now. You're okay. They're not going to hurt you."

"They're ghouls," Gokudera shuddered. His eyes were wide, so wide. "Don't you have any idea what they can do? What I've… I've seen them do? Tenth, in Italy, back home…" He shook his head vigorously, making his hair whip against his face. "The bodies…"

Tsuna put an arm around Gokudera's shoulder, "Let's get you home first, okay? I bet Mom's got some food waiting for us and if we ask nicely maybe she'll make some hot cocoa for you."

Gokudera's laughter was more than a little unhinged. "Tenth, you don't understand- You don't-" He stopped as Tsuna put his other hand over his mouth.

"Hayato," Tsuna said, gentle but firm. "You are safe here. I promise you. No one will hurt you here. Do you believe me?"

Gokudera nodded his head slowly. When Tsuna lowered his hand, he whispered, "Sorry. I'm sorry. I just- I forgot about them." His eyes darted to either side of them as if he were searching for ghouls in the shadows. "How did I forget about them?"

Reborn held back a sigh. He shifted on Tsuna's shoulder, drawing the boy's attention.

"I'll go ahead to Mama," he said, "and let her get started on the coffee."

"Cocoa for Hayato," Tsuna said with a little frown. "Coffee for the three of us." I have some questions for you, his eyes said.

Reborn tipped his hat slightly. I know you do. "Cocoa and three coffees, a regular cafe order." He got to his feet and jumped away.

As he left, he heard Gokudera asking, "Coffee this late? Tenth you'll never get to sleep tonight!"

Tsuna replied, "Hayato, there's something important that I need to tell you."

Reborn was gone before he could hear what Tsuna said next. That didn't matter though, he already knew what it was going to be. This conversation would be a test of Gokudera's flexibility and strength, to see if he could survive the truth of Tsuna's secret. If he buckled, well, at least they had time to find another storm guardian.

But if he accepted it, Tsuna's right hand man would be all the stronger for it.

"Wait a minute," Squalo said, gesturing with his chopsticks.

It was late. The sushi shop had been closed for an hour or more and that left Squalo alone with the Yamamoto father and son pair. He had a plate of sushi still in front of him. He'd been eating through it slowly. On the one hand, each bite was pretty damn delicious. On the other, he had about a million or more questions.

"You're telling me that you have hunting rules and regulations that are moderated by a fifteen year old ghoul?"

Tsuyoshi laughed, just as brightly as his son did. Takeshi was nursing a cup of coffee in both hands, looking at Squalo with eyes that sparkled. Shit. He had to stop looking at the kid like that. That was some deep infatuation going on there and Squalo was in no way going to jump in bed with an impulsive little ghoul boy.

Especially one whose father had, apparently, been a good enough assassin that he'd been scouted by the Varia multiple times. He had always turned the organization down, he explained, because it wasn't a safe place for a ghoul.

A safe place for a ghoul. What a concept.

Namimori was, according to Tsuyoshi, just such a place.

"They weren't formulated by Hibari-san," the older ghoul said, still chuckling. "Though he has made some addendums from time to time. The streets are a lot less crowded and children rarely skip class anymore."

"Addendums," Squalo said. He wanted a drink. He wanted several drinks. But he had a bad feeling about getting drunk around ghouls.

He glanced to Takeshi, who beamed over his coffee cup.

He felt even worse about getting drunk near that boy. God, he was cute though. A few more years and-

"What, do you have handbooks or something?" He tore his gaze off of Takeshi and looked back to the father. He had to keep his mind on track. Had to pay attention to the conversation. It was late and he was tired and he couldn't afford the distraction that was Takeshi's pretty, pretty eyes.

"As a matter of fact," Tsuyoshi said, "We do. New editions come out once every other year or so. There haven't been a lot of changes since Hibari-san took over, at least, not since the first overhaul." He shook his head, "That boy cut the manual in half within six months of being in charge. Whether it was his doing or that right hand of his, one must admit that he's quite efficient."

"And this is the same Hibari-san that Sawada spoke to after the storm ring battle?" Squalo asked Takeshi.

Takeshi put down his mug, nodding. "Yeah. He's the one who brought in that guy and got mad about the trespassing. Why did you even have a perimeter set? The fighting ground was Nami middle. No one goes near the school after dark, not even to hunt."

"We thought the fighting would draw attention." Squalo shrugged. "And in a way, it did. Hibari showed up."

"He's why people don't go near Nami middle at night." Takeshi said. "He practically haunts the place."

"...I thought one of the rules was not to loiter around closed areas after dark. How do you keep all this bullshit straight?"

Tsuyoshi pushed off the bar as he stood, "Let me get one of the manuals for you to look at. It's an older copy that we can spare. I like to keep them around to compare the two, just in case something needs to be discussed at a town hall meeting." He gave them a little nod, "I'll be right back." He said that with a little smirk and a knowing glint to his eye.

Squalo tensed up as soon as he turned his back and headed away from them. The man vanished away behind the bar, into the kitchen and beyond and Takeshi instantly leaned closer to Squalo. He was smiling broadly, way too broadly. "Guess what," he said, all but bouncing on his stool.

"...what?"

Takeshi reached up, his hand hesitating in the air above Squalo's shoulder. Or to be more precise, above a lock of his hair that was on his shoulder. Squalo narrowed his eyes but didn't move. Takeshi clearly took this as agreement and curled his fingers around the silver strands. His eyes flicked up from his hand to Squalo's face and he said, "You totally passed the dad test. He's never gotten the manual for any of my other boyfriends."

"...haven't the rest of your boyfriends been from Namimori?" Was Squalo's first question. "And just how many boyfriends have you had?" Was his second.

He had a definite feeling that he should be a lot more pissed off than he was. The kid as practically stroking his hair. And he was definitely inside his personal space. And Squalo was letting him.

"A few," Takeshi admitted, "But none of them were ever like you, and, well, I'm kinda hoping I won't have to have another boyfriend besides you."

What the fuck was it with this kid and those doe eyes. Squalo could remember those same eyes staring at him from across the water filled arena, calculating and cool, a killer's gaze. But here they were big as Sawada's and just as shining. "Tch," He clicked his tongue against his teeth, "You sure move quick, kid."

"Isn't that what you're supposed to do when you're after someone's heart?" Takeshi asks, his voice too soft. Goosebumps rise on Squalo's arms. The hair on the back of his neck stands on end. Suddenly his hand isn't trailing through Squalo's hair but is pressed against the side of his chest, between two ribs, right at the angle that's perfect for a dagger to slide in and stab him in the heart. "Line up the pitch and strike the second you're in reach. That's the only way you'll score a homerun."

It took far too long for Squalo to realize what Takeshi's actually said. His brain is spinning in multiple directions because Takeshi was a ghoul- Takeshi was fourteen- Takeshi was using baseball metaphors- Takeshi had fought him in a match and won-

Takeshi was far too close, his hand warm on Squalo's chest, his eyes bright, his smile broad, his expression earnest and hopeful and infatuated, and buried beneath all of that, sharp and dangerous- not just because he was a ghoul but because he was attractive and someday he would be devastating to look at, both on and off the battlefield.

There's a slap of paper on wood as the manual drops out of nowhere and lands on the bar. Squalo jumps to his feet, heart pounding, cheeks flushed, and out of his mouth are the words, "We weren't doing anything I swear."

Tsuyoshi raises both eyebrows at that statement, leaning his elbow on the bartop. Takeshi's pink from ear to ear, scratching at the back of his neck.

"Of course you weren't," Tsuyoshi says, with a slow, sharklike smile. "Takeshi is only fourteen, after all. And he's a good boy."

Squalo shoots Takeshi a sharp look. Good boy my ass, he thinks as he slowly sits back down. Takeshi props his chin in his palm, smiling still, still blushing and fuck. Squalo turns his attention to the manual. "So," he says, "Explain to me the rules for visiting humans again?"

Tsuyoshi chuckles and flips through the book to do just that.

Hayato sat with the mug in his hands. The porcelain was hot, almost too hot to touch. The cocoa was steaming. Miniature marshmallows melted on its surface. He sat at the table, to Tsuna's right, staring down at the mug in silence.

The other three at the table had coffee. He could smell it, had smelled it, when he walked into the Sawada household. Mama sat across from Tsuna and Reborn sat at the end of the table. Gokudera shivered as Tsuna bent his head into his field of vision and gave a little smile, "You sure you're okay, Hayato?"

"Yeah Tenth," He said, even though he wasn't sure at all. He glanced up but Tsuna looked just as concerned as he had sounded. His eyes were a warm brown color, just like normal. "I'm good."

Tsuna nodded to him. Then he turned his attention to Reborn and asked, "Reborn, I want to know about the Vongola's history with ghouls. What can you tell me?"

Reborn sighed heavily, as if the inevitable had finally arrived and all his attempts to change the future had failed. Gokudera glanced up to see resignation on the baby's face as he sipped from his small cup of coffee. "Not much, but this what I do know."

As he began to explain, Gokudera clutched his mug of cocoa.

If he thought Italy's ghouls had been awful when he was living there, it was nothing compared to the history that Reborn recounted. Gokudera was sure he would never sleep easily again.