Tsuna and Yamamoto were spending nearly all of their time outside of school together, trying to figure out how to tell Hayato about their parents' good fortune. Somehow, neither teen figured that the bomber would see it that way. Finally, Yamamoto put it in a way that Tsuna couldn't argue with. "Ha ha, no matter how or what we tell him, he's going to fly off the handle. We'll just have to calm him back down again and explain. The longer we wait, the worse it's gonna be."
With those dubious words of wisdom, Tsuna invited the bomber to his place after school, on the pretense of helping with homework. He also asked Reborn to make sure that everyone else was out of the house. When the Arcobaleno's eyes gleamed with mischief, they were both surprised by Tsuna's reaction. "Reborn, do NOT turn this into one of your training exercises. This is not about me being a Boss, this is about my kaasan being happy. You are NOT to screw that up."
Reborn had shadowed his face with his fedora, and Tsuna was sure he was going to get shot, so he was pleasantly surprised to hear, "As you wish, Tsuna." A spark of hyper intuition told the Decimo not to question the lack of 'Dame' being added to his name – he nodded to his tutor and headed out for school.
It was a pleasant surprise to discover that for once, a plan he'd made had gone through… the house was completely empty when the three boys walked in. ("Tch, why are you here, yakyuubaka?" "Maa maa, Dera, it's always more fun to study when we're together." "Don't call me that, dammit!" "Gokudera-kun, I invited Yamamoto to join us." "Well, if that's what you want, Juudaime… Just don't get any funny ideas, yakyuubaka.") A note on the table told Tsuna that Yamamoto-san had taken everyone out for dinner and movies and they wouldn't be back until late. He quickly hid that from the bomber, not wanting to get the argument started too early.
"Kaasan left snacks for us in the fridge; we can bring them upstairs and get to work." Tsuna and Gokudera each grabbed a tray and Yamamoto grabbed a six-pack of soda and they headed upstairs. The two co-conspirators exchanged a silent glance and nodded. No sense in waiting any longer.
"Gokudera-kun, I need to discuss something important with you before we get started on homework." Tsuna took a deep breath, trying not to freak out.
"Hai, Juudaime?" The bomber's attention was immediately on his boss, though Tsuna was glad to notice that he couldn't imagine the wagging tail anymore. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad. "I'm not sure if you've heard yet, but my kaasan is divorcing Iemitsu." He paused for a minute, realizing that since he found out, he hadn't called the man 'father' in any fashion.
Gokudera's voice broke him out of his mini-revery. "Good for her! It's about time." Despite agreeing with Tsuna in just about everything, this was the silveret's own opinion… he'd had far too much experience dealing with loveless marriages. "I… hope you're not too upset, though…"
"Who, me? No. No way! I'm really happy for her, actually." Tsuna's smile was bright as he considered it, then he sobered a bit, looking over his volatile friend. "There's more good news to be had, actually." He glanced at Yamamoto, then took a deep breath. "Actually, it seems that my kaasan and Yamamoto-san have hit it off really well."
"Hmm? That's good, Juudaime, she deserves to be happy." It took a minute, because the Storm was far too happy for the woman who'd taken him in and cared about him to process bad things right away. "Wait… WHO!?"
And there it was… "Ha ha ha, it seems that my pops really likes Tsuna's mom…"
"HOW DARE YOU LET YOUR PERVERTED OLD MAN GO ANYWHERE NEAR THE TENTH'S SWEET, INNOCENT MOTHER, YOU BASTARD!"
"Maa maa, Dera, we weren't even here at the time! We were still in the future." Yamamoto held up his hands in a placating manner and glanced at Tsuna.
"HIE! Gokudera-kun, please calm down! Yamamoto didn't have anything to do with…"
"I'll kill that son of a bitch! How dare he take advantage of Sawada-san when no one was here to protect her!?" Though his voice had dropped in volume, it still shook with rage… not his normal, 'yakyuubaka and turftop are pissing me off' anger, but a pure, unadulterated rage. Tsuna could see now how he'd survived for so long on his own.
"Gokudera-kun, it wasn't like that. Please listen to me…"
"What kind of right-hand man am I if I let her get taken advantage of? What kind of SON are you that you would let it happen and give them your blessings?!" He was yelling at Tsuna now, who looked totally shocked.
"Hey, now, Gokudera, that's enough." Yamamoto's voice was stern, his eyes narrowed. "That's not what happened at all. You're jumping to conclusions."
"What else could have POSSIBLY happened?!" The bomber was on his feet, shaking in fury. "We all jump to the future, even the KIDS, and there's no one here to keep her safe! And your goddamned father-"
"MY POPS DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!" Yamamoto was on his feet too, yelling back. His good humor only went so far, and he'd just gotten his father back.
"That's enough, from both of you." Tsuna's deep, calm voice and the flame flickering on his forehead stopped his best friends in their tracks. They turned to look at him, blanching slightly at the disappointed look on his face. "Both of you need to sit down now. Gokudera-kun, you will listen, and stay quiet, until we are done explaining."
The two boys sat, not looking at each other. Tsuna sighed softly, sitting on the bed. "Gokudera-kun, no one took advantage of my kaasan. As a matter of fact, because we weren't here to protect her, Yamamoto-san did so for us. I am forever in his debt for keeping her unharmed." His Hyper Intuition was telling him there was something off about the silveret's reactions, but he needed to clear the air between his friends before he could figure out what it was. "Do you understand that?"
"Hai, Juudaime…" The Storm shot a glance at Yamamoto and winced a bit. No matter what happened, they WERE still friends, and he had crossed a line. "I'm sorry, yakyuubaka. I didn't mean everything that I said about your father." He really couldn't help himself. "Some of it… but not everything."
The bark of laughter that came from the baseball idol eased tension in all their shoulders. "Maa maa, Dera, my pops isn't all bad. He feeds you, doesn't he?"
The silveret nodded with a bit of a smirk, and Tsuna took a deep breath. The flame on his head went out and his eyes cleared. "Geez, guys… really?"
"Ha ha, sorry, Tsuna. Guess we're all a little stressed, huh?"
The brunet nodded, offering them his gentle smile. "Hai, guess we are." He looked over at the bomber and tilted his head. "Gokudera-kun…"
But Yamamoto beat him to the question. "So is it just my pops you have an issue with, or is it any guy that gets too close to Sawada-san?" Tsuna turned to stare at the swordsman. How had he known?
Gokudera looked over at them and sighed. He grabbed one of the cans of soda, opened it and took a long drink before setting it down. Both boys gave him the time he needed to collect himself… the Storm wasn't exactly into spilling secrets easily. "Sawada-san has been extremely decent to me… moreso than I deserve."
Unseen by the bomber, Yamamoto opened his mouth to argue and Tsuna held up a hand, silencing him. He wanted to hear this out… they could argue later.
"It pissed me off, knowing that your dad was just ignoring her. She deserves better than that, ya know? I mean, I know she's not my mother, but… she's a lot like her."
Tsuna reached out, resting his hand on Gokudera's forearm. Yamamoto's hand went on his shoulder and he squeezed it gently. "Sawada-san has kind of been a mom to all of us. I think that's why I don't find this weird at all… nothing's changing."
"Tch, you thinking is what's changing, baka." But he smiled a little.
"Gokudera-kun… you know you're always welcome here, right?"
The bomber nodded, and Yamamoto laughed brightly, a 'brilliant' idea coming to him.
"Ha ha ha, I've got it! Your old man is out of the picture, so we don't have to worry about him anymore… so why not ask Sawada-san to officially adopt Gokudera! She's been thinking about doing it for Lambo and I-pin anyway… what's one more?"
"Yakyuubaka, she can't adopt me!"
"Why not, Gokudera-kun?"
"B-because… it wouldn't be right, Juudaime. How could I be your right-hand man then?"
"HIE?! Gokudera-kun, are you STILL worrying about that? Family is family. You're always going to be my right-hand man, and Yamamoto is always going to be my left." He sighed after he got it out… there was no longer a point in arguing with their future. They'd seen it plain as day.
"J-juudaime… do you really mean that?"
"Of course he does, Dera! So, are you in? We'll talk to Sawada-san tonight!" Yamamoto clapped the silveret on the back, almost knocking him over.
"Damned jock, be careful." He shoved the hand away. "If it's all right with Juudaime… then… yeahIguessthatsoundsgood."
That night, after the kids got put down to bed, Tsuna sat at the kitchen table with his mother, the Yamamotos and Gokudera. He had made tea for everyone, ignoring his mother when she offered to help, and they were all enjoying a companionable silence after a chaotic day.
After a few minutes, Tsuna leaned back and looked at his mother. "Kaa-san, what are we going to do with all these kids? They're going to have to go to school soon, you know."
"Hai, Tsu-kun… I wasn't sure I'd be able to take them in…" She looked down at her cup, an abnormal frown on her face. "I mean… I want to, but with your father…"
"One, he's not my father. Reborn and Yamamoto-san have been better fathers to me than he could hope to be. Two, he's not part of the equation anymore." Tsuna leaned forward, putting a hand on his mother's, and making her look at him curiously. "What do YOU want to do, Kaa-san?"
Again, the strawberry-blonde was struck by how grown-up her son had become. She turned her hand up, wrapping her fingers lightly around his. "I can't stand the idea of anyone being alone, Tsu-kun."
He nodded. "Then we'll adopt them. It's not like they don't live here anyway." He laughed brightly. "We've got room for a few more, right?"
"Ara? What do you mean, Tsu-kun?"
"Well, Gokudera lives by himself… it'd be nice for him to have a legal family, wouldn't it? I mean, Bianchi's an adult, and she's a great sister," he ignored the snort from his Storm, knowing that even if he wouldn't say it, he still agreed, "but…"
"Oh, Tsu-kun, you could have just asked. Of course we'll take in Haya-kun as well."
Yamamoto's sharp bark of laughter immediately followed Gokudera's face turning bright red. He growled at the baseball player, trying to get him to shut up without resorting to his normal tactics.
"What exactly is so funny, Take-kun?" Nana's eyes twinkled as she winked at Tsuyoshi. The younger Yamamoto choked on his laughter, staring at her in surprise. "S-sawada-san…"
Tsuyoshi nodded at her, smirking at his son's shock. "Well, YOU were the one who said you and Tsuna would actually be family…"
Suddenly, Tsuna started laughing. Bright peals of laughter echoed through the room and it was several minutes before he settled, wiping his eyes and catching his breath. "Y-you win… Reborn…" He giggled softly, not at all surprised when the Arcobaleno walked into the kitchen and hopped onto his shoulder.
"Don't I always, dame-Tsuna?"
AN: If you absolutely cannot figure out what's going on at the end, PM me and I'll explain... or you can wait for the next chapter, where all will be revealed. ;)
