Chapter Ten

My feelings are too loud for words and too shy for the world

I like dogs, I really do. Even when they're growling at me, or trying to bite me, I'll still somehow find them cute. However, in this life, there was this one particular dog that I just couldn't stand. I really was hate at first sight, seeing that the first time I met this dog was when it was trying to harm a child for no good reason. Forgetting that I, too, was a child, I had gone up to the dog and tried to coax it to stop being so aggressive.

It bit me and I had to be sent to the hospital for stitches.

From that day on, I detested that particular dog, and it abhorred me. Basically, we had a mutual hate relationship. Every time I walked past it, I would give it a glare. Every time it saw me, it would bark and try to bite me.

Usually, it never did succeed in harming me, due to the chain attached to its collar that restricted its movement. However, this particular day…

Well, you probably got the idea by now.

As I was running down the street, trying desperately to escape the horribly ferocious dog, I passed by a child in red, walking on the wall. Now normally, I wouldn't have paid much attention to her since I was, y'know, running for my life. However, this particular child managed to hop off the wall with a somersault and proceeded to kick the dog's ass without even touching it. Understandably, my attention was captured. And I was weirded out.

Was this baby like Reborn…?

I crouched down in front of her – well, at least I think she was a her – and gave her a smile. "Hey, thank a lot! What's your name?"

The child scowled at me, but I didn't detect any hostile intent. So why was she frowning? I waited patiently for an answer, smile still fixed on my face. She looked down at the ground and muttered out something. I tried my best to listen to her, but I couldn't quite make out her words. "Yi-Ping?" I guessed. That did not sound like a Japanese name at all. Perhaps it was Chinese?

The child shook her head again and repeated what she said in a louder, clearer tone of voice.

"Oh. I-Pin." Still sounded Chinese. "That's a nice name for a cute girl like you," I laughed and patted her on the head. She seemed to be shaking a little, and was sweating profusely. I frowned, concerned. "Are you alright, I-pin-chan? Do you need any help?" I picked her off the ground and held her up so I could see her face. She was biting her bottom lip and frowning. Suddenly, nine circles, three rows of three, appeared on her head. I stared at them, wondering why they seemed so familiar.

The nine circles faded to eight circles, two rows of four, and I recognized it. It was the circle suit from Mahjong! But why was it appearing on this girl's forehead?

She suddenly moved out of my grasp and attached herself to me, her arms wrapped tightly around my neck. I slowly wrapped my arms around her trembling form, wondering what was wrong. Soon, the number of circles reached one, and then…

Boom!

"I-pin is an assassin from Hong Kong. She's also known as the human bomb."

I stared at Reborn with deadpan eyes, unamused. I would have given him a retort if my throat, along with my vocal chords, hadn't been affected in the blast. Thankfully, the doctor said that I would recover quite quickly, and without scars too. The doctor seemed strangely foreign, though, and I was willing to bet that he was an underground doctor Reborn called over. Also, I really wanted to know exactly how I survived the explosion…

Currently, I was lying in a hospital bed – in a private room! – and listening to Reborn giving me a lecture on why I shouldn't trust random strangers I saw on the street. I didn't need this talk, Reborn! I already knew that taking candy from men in white vans was bad news or they would abduct me and bring me to aliens so that the aliens would be able to uncover the secrets behind how humans domesticated cows…

Wow. The morphine must be affecting me more than I thought it would. It was probably time to turn down the dosage.

I-Pin walked back into the room and set my phone down on the table. I had lent it to her so that she could call her mentor for whatever reason. Reborn translated her words for me, and said it was fine, so who was I to reject the child's request? My stomach growled and she offered a steamed bun to me and I shook my head. The doctor told me I couldn't eat solid food for a while, or talk, if I wanted a quicker recovery, so I listened to him. He was the doctor after all. I-Pin seemed a little confused as to why I was refusing, so Reborn explained my situation to her. She listened in silence for a while and I could see her slowly withdrawing into herself. I gently lifted my arm – the one without that blasted IV drip connected to it – and pulled her closer to me for a hug. I tried to wordlessly convey to her that I forgave her, and I hoped she got the message.

Reborn observed us for a while before he sighed. "They're coming," he warned. I stared at him in confusion? Who was coming?

And then the door to the hospital burst open, and a bunch of people came tumbling in. I winced at the noise they made and hoped that the terrifying nurse didn't hear it. God knows what she would do to me if she heard the loud ruckus.

"Tenth!"

"Tsuna!"

"SAWADA!"

"Tsuna-kun!"

Alright, so I might have expected the first two people, but why were Sasagawa-senpai and Kyoko here?

"Tenth!" Hayato was the first by my side. I instinctively shifted I-pin away from him and his chaotic energy when he started babbling about assassins and "protecting the tenth". I stared at him blankly, waiting for him to stop before I could try gesturing my story across to him. I wasn't even going to rely on Reborn since there was a possibility he'd twist the story into something really strange.

Takeshi stood behind Hayato, staring at me with a conflicted expression. "We shouldn't have let you walk home by yourself," he said. "We should have protected you." My eyes widened. Oh god, not this again! I had been functioning fine without constant surveillance for years! I didn't need two teenagers to protect me!

I started shaking my head rapidly, trying to convey to Takeshi that I was fine by myself. He backed down, but didn't seem convinced. I could see the same speculative glint in Hayato's eyes as well, and I resolved to take great care of myself for the next few months. Even a paper cut would be used by them as proof I needed their protection. It really, really frustrated me. I was a grown human being! Well, mentally that is. Even so, I was a physical teenager, just like them. I wasn't some defenseless baby that needed their protection! What did I even look like to them?

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn't notice Reborn talking to Sasagawa-senpai and Kyoko. Neither did I notice that Haru had entered the room with Lambo in her hands.

"Tsuna-san, you're a hero!" Haru's excited voice jerked me out of my thoughts and I stared at her blankly. Hero? What?

"Yes, Tsuna-kun! Reborn-kun told us how you saved I-Pin-chan from a bomb! That's why you're in the hospital!" My eyes widened as I snapped my gaze to Kyoko. What the hell? I didn't save I-Pin from a bomb! I-Pin was the bomb!

"SAWADA! YOU'RE AN EXTREME MAN!" Reborn, what the hell did you do?

I turned to glare at him but he was sleeping. Great, just great. How in the world was I able to clear up this horrible misunderstanding without the ability to talk? I could only settle for shaking my head rapidly once again, but I couldn't get through to them. Dammit, Reborn! I know getting 'family members' for this shitty Mafia thing was important, but why should you lie to them?

I felt a headache building.

When Sasagawa-senpai and Kyoko left, Haru walked forward and placed Lambo on the bed. I looked at her questioningly and she smiled. "Lambo-kun said that he wanted to see Tsuna-san, so I brought him here!" she explained. I nodded and gave Lambo a smile. He was about to hug me when he finally noticed the presence of another child on the bed. I-Pin had also turned around and the two children stared at each other. The air was tense and everyone waited to see what would happen next.

"Yēcàiguàiwù!" I-Pin suddenly shouted out, pointing to Lambo. I blinked, wondering what she just said.

"I-Pin just called Lambo a broccoli monster," Reborn translated. Oh, he was awake.

"Broccoli monster?!" Lambo's jaw dropped open and I winced. It seemed that I needed to have a talk with I-Pin about name calling. "Gotta… stay… calm…" he muttered under his breath and I was afraid he was going to start crying when Lambo suddenly made a funny face and started chasing I-Pin. I-Pin back flipped off the bed and the two started to engage in a strange form of tag. I kept a concerned eye on them, worried that they would trip over something and fall. Haru sat down beside me with a small smile.

"Tsuna-san is very concerned about the children, isn't he?" she asked. I nodded in agreement. Hayato and Takeshi pulled up some chairs and took seats next to my bed, and started chatting about random things to pass the time. It seemed that they would be here until visiting time was over. I wasn't complaining.

There was a muted thump that made me jerk in surprise, and I immediately looked over to the children. I-Pin looked fine, but Lambo seemed to have fallen from a chair. He was rubbing a bruise on his head and sniffling. "Gotta… stay… calm…!" He started bawling and reached into his hair to pull out… a pink bazooka. He aimed it at himself and I tried to move out of bed to prevent Lambo from shooting himself. What was he doing anyway?! Bazookas are dangerous things and shouldn't be in the hand of any child! What the hell?!

Reborn held me back with all the strength of his infant self. Which was quite a lot, to be honest.

Lambo pulled the trigger and pink smoke filled the room. I started coughing and waving it away. When the smoke cleared, Lambo was nowhere to be found. Instead, a charming teenager with wavy, messy black hair and green eyes stood in the place he once was. His right eye was closed, and there was a strange marking under his left one. Green eyes scanned the room before the teenager's gaze landed on me. I stiffened up as his eyes widened and he moved to my bedside at an unimaginable speed.

"Tsuna-nii! What happened? How did you get hurt? Was it an assassin? You're fine now, right?" he babbled out.

"…" I replied. He seemed to calm down a little and took in his surroundings.

"Oh, it seems that I was brought back ten years with the ten years bazooka. Goodness," he sighed. Ten years bazooka…? Was it that pink thing? And he said he was brought back. Could it mean…?!

The teenager smiled at me, as if he had guessed my thought process. "I'm Lambo. Thanks for taking care of me, Tsuna-nii."

You have got to be kidding me.

I looked annoyed and Lambo laughed. Yeah, he definitely knew what I was thinking about.

"Your height has always been one of the things you hated," he mused. See? He knew. I looked at him expectantly, and he gave a mischievous grin. "Sorry, Tsuna-nii. You'll never grow past a hundred and sixty-two centimetres."

Dammit.

I pouted and Lambo ruffled my hair. I shot him a glare, but otherwise didn't do anything else. He looked around and smiled at everyone, greeting them politely but warmly. I was a bit happy to see that everyone was getting along so well in the future. Lambo suddenly glanced down at his watch and sighed. "Five minutes are almost up. I have to go now," he informed me and promptly disappeared in a cloud of pink smoke. The child Lambo reappeared, holding a piece of paper in his hands. He walked up to me and placed it in my lap.

"Tsuna-nii told me to give it to Tsuna-nii," he explained. Huh, that's weird. I should probably know better than to reveal the contents of the future to my past. From what I could see of teenage Lambo, the future wasn't bad at all! Why would the future me feel the need to give me a letter?

Everyone crowded around me as I unfolded the piece of paper. In it was a simple message, but it was enough to make me inhale sharply in surprised.

'You belong here. You'll see.'

The piece of paper dropped from my hands and I closed my eyes.

(Do I really belong here?)

(Or am I just lying to myself?)

Future me is wrong. I don't belong here, and that's the truth.

Diet ideas: Eat whatever you want, and if anyone tries to lecture you about your weight, eat them too.

I had promised to go out with Haru a few weeks after my release from the hospital, so here I was, in front of Namimori cake shop. If this was the cake shop Haru often frequented, it meant she had great taste.

We walked into the shop and Haru started her large order with cakes such as black forest and chocolate raspberry diva. I settled for a small slice of oreo cheesecake, seeing that I wasn't too hungry. After placing my order, I saw that Haru was staring at the display case with an expression of intense concentration on her face. I walked over and pointed at the chocolate marshmallow pie. "I recommend that, Haru-san. Have you tried it before?" Haru shook her head.

"Thank you, Tsuna-san! I'll definitely place an order for that too!"

"Ah, Tsuna-kun?" a familiar voice called out from behind me. I turned around to see Kyoko and waved to her.

"Hello Kyoko-chan! It's nice to see you!" Kyoko nodded and seemed a bit panicked.

"Um, I only do this once a month!" she burst out. I blinked. Eh?

"I've decided that I could eat as many cakes as I wanted for every third Sunday of the month!" she explained. "It's not like I eat three whole cakes every day!" I made a noise of understanding. Ah, so that's what she was talking about. I really don't see why she should explain this to me. No actual human being could eat three entire cakes every day.

"That's the same as Haru!" Haru said from behind me excitedly. I turned slightly to look at her. "Every third Sunday is 'Haru appreciation day', and I get to buy as many cakes as I want to treat myself!" Wow, what a coincidence. Now that I think of it, that sort of idea doesn't seem too bad.

"I think this store's mille-feuille is unbeatable," Haru shared.

"Yeah! The cream puffs too!" Kyoko replied. I rolled my eyes.

"Everything in this shop is great. I've yet to find anywhere that could beat it. I'm actually quite partial to the macaroons they make, though," I added in. Both girls nodded in agreement and we went into a deep debate about the best macaroon flavours and what sort of drinks went with them. Unconsciously, we drifted to a table in the shop and sat down to eat and continue our conversation. Soon, the conversation turned to unfamiliar territory.

"So, Kyoko-san," Haru began, "Do you like anyone?" Kyoko blushed slightly and her eyes flickered to me for a moment.

"Maybe."

"Ah? Who is it? Tell us!" Haru pressed. Kyoko remained tightlipped about her secret and Haru sighed. I tried to make myself as small and inconspicuous as possible. This sort of conversation was foreign to me, and I was quite uncomfortable hearing it.

"How about you, Haru-san? Who do you like?" Kyoko asked. Haru beamed at her and suddenly grabbed my arm, pulling me to her side.

"Haru likes Tsuna-san!"

"What?"

"What?" Kyoko and I both gaped at her.

"I thought you liked Hibari-senpai!" I blurted out. Haru looked at me strangely.

"The one Haru likes is Tsuna-san. Haru doesn't know who Hibari-senpai is."

"I…" Wow, this was awkward. Both girls looked at me, anticipating my reply. I had absolutely no idea how to phrase this to them. "It's not that I don't appreciate your feelings to me, Haru-san," I started, "But I don't even know you that well. Also, I'm not interested in these sort of things."

"Tsuna-san… is not interested in girls?" Haru looked a little scandalized. I shrugged awkwardly.

"Not really? Ah, don't get me wrong; I'm not too interested in guys either. I guess I'm not interested in romantic relationships in general." I forced a smile on my face, hoping that the girls understood. They looked at each other, seeming to have a mental conversation, before they turned to me and smiled.

"We understand, Tsuna-kun," Kyoko said cheerfully.

"Yeah! Tsuna-san's secret is safe with us!" Haru added in. She was a little downcast that her feelings were not reciprocated but it didn't seem to affect her much. She was still the happy, upbeat person she always was, and I took that as a win. I didn't really know what kind of secret they were talking about, but something told me that I didn't want to know. Oh well.

I think you're a general offence and everyone should hit you

I've heard rumours of pickpocketing going about the neighbourhood recently, and my first thought was to be concerned about my mother. She would be so upset if her wallet got stolen while she was marketing. Hence, I decided to follow her today. Haru had requested (begged) me to let her play with Lambo and I-Pin today, so I wasn't quite concerned about them. Haru would take good care of them, after all.

Hence, on that Saturday morning, my mother, Reborn, Bianchi, and I set out to the marketplace. I had requested some help from Bianchi when I had found out about the pickpocketing incidents and she had agreed without much hesitation.

"It's good that you want to protect mama. It is a man's job to protect a woman, after all," she told me. I frowned at her.

"I don't believe so. In my opinion, women are quite capable when they're by themselves. In fact, it's the men they need protecting from," I retorted. Bianchi stared at me for a while with an unreadable look and I fidgeted. "Well, that's my opinion anyway. The reason I want to protect my mum is because she's precious to me; not because she is a woman. I'd do the same for my dad, to be honest."

Bianchi continued staring at me for another few uncomfortable minutes before finally turning away. We never really resumed the conversation, but throughout the day, I could sense her giving me strange, contemplative looks. Was it really so strange? Was the society in Italy really that different?

Mother and I chatted with one another as we walked along the streets, when I suddenly sensed an unpleasant presence. I turned slightly to lock eyes with Bianchi and she gave me a nod before flipping her long pink hair with her right hand. It hit a shady looking guy in a hoodie and he fell to the ground, moaning in pain.

"Oh dear!" I said in mock surprise as I knelt down in front of him. I made sure I was looking at him in the eyes before I continued speaking. "It's not very nice to steal things, mister!" I smiled brightly, but sharply, making the man in front of me shiver.

"Wh-what do you mean?" he stuttered out. I tilted my head to the side and narrowed my eyes, smile still fixed on my face.

"Oh, I'm sure you know what I mean. Now, please don't do this again, mister, or it'll be time-out for you." My tone was still cheerful and light, but my eyes conveyed a different story. I didn't bother to elaborate my words, allowing the man's mind to come up with his own horrifying versions of what 'time-out' was, and merely stood up and walked back to my mother. At her questioning look I merely shook my head and she nodded hers. We then continued walking forward, uncaring of the petrified man on the ground.

Reborn jumped on my head, facing my mother. "Does this happen often?" he asked her. My mother turned to him, a contemplative look on her face.

"Pickpockets don't target me often, but when they do, Tsu-kun always intercepts them. He normally does this to help other people, though." Reborn and Bianchi blinked at her words.

"You knew he was a pickpocket?" Bianchi asked, slight amazement in her tone. I was the one who answered her.

"Of course mum knew he was a pickpocket! She's the one who taught me how to spot them!" I said proudly. Mother once told me that it was a skill father taught her, so that she could protect herself. She didn't practice it much, though, until I was six and accompanying her one day. I noticed someone pickpocket her and tried to chase after him. Of course, I failed quite spectacularly and hurt myself. It wasn't anything too serious, but mother seemed to change a little that day, becoming more aware of everything around her, and a little more protective of me.

"I see…" Reborn hummed and fell silent.

"Ah yes!" I turned to Bianchi. "Could you teach me some of that special cooking of yours? Also the costume making. I thought the sea urchin chestnut thing you made for Reborn was really cool. Is there any chance…" Bianchi and I fell into a comfortable discussion of the best ways to make poison out of everyday items. Mother didn't seem the least bit bothered about my conversation, since I had already expressed interests in many strange things ever since I was (physically) a child. She was fine with anything I did, as long as I was happy and didn't harm myself. My mother's style of parenting wasn't really very good for a normal kid, but it worked fine for me, so I didn't complain.

I sidestepped a man carrying a huge vase, not even brushing against him, when the vase dropped to the ground. I jumped back, away from the shattered pieces, and stared at them in shock. What the hell?

"Hey! That cost a few million dollars!" the men yelled at me. I shrunk back in slight apprehension.

"Um. I didn't even touch you," I tried to defend myself. The man didn't seem to want to listen to me and carried on ranting about paying back the cost of the vase. I took a deep breath and decided to speak once more. "I didn't even touch you, mister. There is no way that I caused the vase to drop," I said in a firm tone of voice. The man narrowed his beady eyes and raised his hand, as if he wanted to hit me. I tensed up, getting ready to step back, when a gloved hand caught the man's arm.

"My, my. Hitting a child? How crude." There was an amused smile on his face, but purple eyes were cold as a blizzard. Those purple eyes flickered to my face and warmed up considerably. "Good morning Tsunayoshi-kun. Fancy meeting you here."

I gave him a little wave. "Hi, Byakuran-san." My eyes flickered to the auburn haired boy beside him. "Hi Irie-kun."

"Sawada-kun." His eyes flickered to the man and flashed with annoyance before it focused back onto me. "Are you alright?"

"Hm? Yeah, I am. Oh." I turned back to my mother who was waiting patiently for me to be done socializing. "Mum, this is Irie Shouichi. Irie-kun, this is my mother. Also, this is Bianchi and Reborn." Irie greeted all three of them politely. My mother smiled.

"I'm glad to see that Tsu-kun has such nice friends. Would the both of you come over for tea? I would be glad to get to know the both of you more," my mother invited. Irie nodded and turned to Byakuran to ask him if he would accept the invitation as well. Byakuran paused in his talk with the man and smiled brightly, nodding as well. He gave one last look to the pale, shaking man, and walked towards us.

"Good morning, Sawada-san. It's nice to see you again," he greeted with a close-eyed smile. I could feel that Reborn and Bianchi didn't like him much, and were already on guard. I, on the other hand, didn't sense much hostile intent, so I guess he was playing nice for now. I doubt he'll try to kill me with my mother here too.

"Oh hello, Byakuran-kun! Are you shopping as well?"

I tuned out their conversation as we walked back home. Mother said that she talked to Byakuran before, and he never harmed her when she was alone. Why would he harm her now? We were safe, probably. Now, I just had to pay attention and intercept if…

"Byakuran-kun, what do you think of taking Tsu-kun as your–"

"Hey mum," I quickly cut into their conversation. "What are we having for dinner? Can I help?"

"Oh, we'll be having…" I gave a sigh of relief. Crisis adverted. Byakuran raised his eyebrow and I refused to meet his eyes. He chuckled and turned back to the front, humming a strange tune. I really hope that he wasn't aware of what my mother was going to say. I was sure that I'd never live through the embarrassment.

The doorbell rang in the middle of tea. Mother made to stand up to get the door, but I beat her to it. Opening the door, I saw a well-dressed man carrying a suitcase and wearing a plastic smile. I carefully kept a grimace off my face. Ugh, door-to-door salesmen. Don't get me wrong, I had nothing against them. It's just that I couldn't really stand how pushy they were…

"Hello!" he smiled brightly, "I'm selling teaching materials that will highly boost your grades. Is your mother or father home right now?" His face seemed a little familiar and I got a bad vibe from him. Something in me told me that I shouldn't listen to him, that I shouldn't even let him into the house.

I dug in my pocket for something and stretched out my arm, dropping a sweet onto the palm of the man's hand. "That's a very nice costume," I told him in a total deadpan. "A bit early for Halloween though. If you'll excuse me…" I turned around, ready to shut the door, when my mother came up behind me.

"Who's this, Tsu-kun?" she asked. I tried to gesture something to her, but she didn't get the message. She then turned to him. "Why don't you come in and talk?" Dammit, mum. This was the very thing I was trying to avoid!

He walked into the house and I sighed. I just needed to find a way to get him out.

"Nice to meet you, ma'am," the man stuck to his plastic smile. "I'm selling some teaching materials for your son."

"Oh, no thank you. We've already got a home tutor!"

"Heh," the man smirked, and I instantly recognized his face. "Everyone becomes satisfied once they have a home tutor, but what can you expect–"

"You!" I pointed at the man. Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at me. I glared at him. "I recognize you! You're that guy who was in cahoots with that pickpocket!" It was strange that I remembered that incident from eight years ago. A man with light brown hair pickpocketing my mother, a bald man who tried to hold me back, and that black haired man that pushed me in the path of an oncoming bicycle to stop me. It was the first time I failed in protecting my mother. Like hell I'd let him take advantage of my mother a second time.

The black haired man started sweating a little, and his eyes flickered away from mine. "That's not a very nice joke to make," he managed to say. His voice wavered a little. I glanced back to my mother to see whether she recognized the man and, judging from the strange smile on her face, she did.

"I'm not joking. And really, I want you to leave. Please," I forced out through gritted teeth.

"Ma'am, your son is really…" he trailed off upon seeing the look on my mother's face. A second passed and he seemed to regain the courage to appeal to my mother again. As he opened his mouth to speak, I stepped in between my mother and him.

"Mister, if you don't leave this very moment, I'll rip off your arm and shove it up your arse. Then, I'll reach down your throat and shake your hand," I said in a monotone. The man swallowed nervously and began to shake. I took a step forward and he shrieked, stumbling backwards and out of the door. I gave an annoyed sound as I shut the door and locked it. When I turned around, everyone was staring at me with various shades of incredulity. Except for my mother, of course. She was looking at me like I scored a hundred marks on an exam paper.

Mother moved towards me and patted my head. "Isn't Tsu-kun so cute?" she asked. Irie nodded slowly, as if he was in shock, while the other three didn't move at all. Mother turned back to me and tilted her head to one side. "Ah, but wouldn't it be better to pull his arm out instead of shake it?" I blinked and shrugged.

"True."

The both of us giggled, totally unaware of the disbelieving thoughts of the four other people in the house.

Taking a nap is always so risky, like when will I wake up?

When I came home from a long day at school, there was a crowd of men in black suits milling in front of my house. At this point, I was already too tired to care and merely continued walking forward to get back home. Of course, I was stopped by one of the men in the black suits. I bit back a sigh.

"You shall not pass. Only members of the Sawada family can pass through right now," he told me. I stared up at him with tired eyes.

"I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi."

At my words, all the men's attitudes changed and they quickly fell into two neat rows, allowing me to pass through the middle. I leisurely made my way into the house, up the stairs, and into my room, skilfully ignoring all the foreign men in the house. As I opened the door, Reborn was the first one who greeted me.

"We've been waiting for you, Tsuna," he said. Wow, if that wasn't ominous, I don't know what was. Also, why was there a large leather roller chair in my room?

"Yo, Vongola Decimo," the person sitting in the chair said. His back was facing me and I couldn't help but think about how rude he was. "I've travelled from afar to pay you a visit. I'm…" He paused and slowly spun around in his roller chair.

"Cavallone Family's tenth boss, Dino," he announced dramatically. Upon seeing his face, I took a step back. My breath caught in my throat and my heart rate sped up. I brought a hand up to my face and covered my mouth and nose. I could feel that I was trembling badly, and I couldn't breathe.

"No," I muttered to myself. "No, it's not him. It can't be him." My trembling got worse and I fell to my knees. I heard Dino cry out in alarm, and Reborn move beside me, talking to me. I couldn't make out what he was saying. I couldn't hear anything.

"It can't be him. He's dead. He can't be dead." I knew there was no way Dino could be him. My eyes flickered back to Dino's face, but all I saw was my brother. I closed my eyes and the world around me faded away into nothingness.

Author's note

Technically, Dino's in this chapter as well. Technically. Also, is it Chiavarone or Cavallone? I guess it's Cavallone, since cavallo means "horse" in Italian. Don't worry, Dino's not tsuna's younger brother. He doesn't even look exactly like him. All will be revealed next chapter. (If tsuna's muttering doesn't make sense to you, it's fine. Don't bother about it.)

I was literally just staring at I-Pin's words in the manga, trying to make sense of it, when I realised it was just cursive Chinese (also known as grass script. Which is pretty weird imo). It still is pretty hard to read, though. Like. Extremely hard. (They're freakin' squiggles for goodness' sake.)

So. I may or may not have written a new KHR story. An All27 one, about Tsuna as a magical boy. Um. So that may be the reason I'm not updating so much. (Also that and school work ughhhh academic writing)

(Shameless self-promoting: Please read my new story, Ragazzo Magico, Vongola Decimo! Thank you~)

((also I'd be very happy if you left a review. It motivates me to write even more, haha ah…))

Reviews

Laevo I'm glad to hear you've enjoyed this story! Sorry, but I won't really make it blatantly All27. There will be hints, but they can be taken as platonic.

Quotes

"My feelings are too loud for words and too shy for the world." ― Dejan Stojanovic

"Diet ideas: Eat whatever you want, and if anyone tries to lecture you about your weight, eat them too." – someone on tumblr whose account was deactivated. I can't find the source. Will update when I do.

"Me think'st thou art a general offence and every many should beat thee." – William Shakespeare

"I break a dining room table over his head. Then I rip off his arm, and I shove it where the sun don't shine. Then I reach down his throat and shake his hand." – Rosa Diaz, Brooklyn Nine-Nine

"taking a nap is always so risky like when will I wake up? in thirty minutes? in 2 hours? in 7 years? no one can be sure" – emmysaurus on tumblr