Hihi!
I'm back from my break! After watching/reading too many sappy, sad things, I have poured it all out of me into a side story for 'Melodia Di Disperazione', which I have titled 'Note Di Miseria (Musicali)', to show the dad's side of things. Unfortunately for you guys, not all the sappiness has been appeased and I am sad to say that two-thirds of the content for this chapter is unadulterated, pure Tsuna and Gokudera friendship fluff. So if you're not a fan of the friendship theme (don't look at me that way, there are peoplelike that, coughHibaricough.) I suggest that you stop at the warning marker. It's rated T and for goodness' sake, ITS NOT BL. I swear.
And on another note, I'm getting discouraged because every time I relog on to FF, another bug appears. This time, I can't simply upload a doc because it will have no spacings and no brackets. It even gets rid of a few words in between. So basically I have to re-edit everything inside the Doc Manager. It gets REALLY annoying.
(to Rekishichizu): I did research, it wasn't popular until a forty-fifty years after Primo's time. Till then, all sweet breads were considered 'cakes'.
(to Kitty Neko): Wow, those are rough sketches. You need a reference? Sure! I'm sorry to everyone that I haven't posted the poster that was supposed to be up by the 50th review, but I'm having trouble drawing chibi!Gokudera. His face is too...wide in the anime. So far I've drawn in Tsuna, Chrome, Lambo and Hibari.
(to Corvino the VIII): Thanks. Well, if you didn't notice, the last chapter was titled 'Shiftgear', which meant that the story was shifting its gears into action. The fights will begin in Infante Del Cielo Parte Undici. Well, quick random fact, I always title my chapters in the document manager in Italian.
(to hiyomi): Hoh, just you wait. She will be more involved.
(to 10th Squad 3rd Seat): But of course. Would you really want to wake up with the desire to head out, only to be halted by stacks of DREADED paperwork? =)
(to Saturnblue): No, unfortunately, he won't. He will use it, because I'm evil.
And so here it is, Parte Dieci!
Enjoy!
Tsuna was starting to believe he was cursed. Every time he celebrated his birthday, something bad lurked over the horizon.
The day had been fine, by Tsuna's standards anyway. The First Generation had taken them out on a tour around the village, with Daemon making unannounced appearances occasionally just to get a rise out of Tsuna. Gokudera then had to be held by the cloak to prevent him from socking Daemon in the face. (Of course, I don't think his punches and kicks can reach Daemon's height.) Then they were approached by cooing, admiring townsfolk who thought the babies were the children of the first generation. Giotto badly wanted to facepalm as G fought off their increasingly scandalous comments. ("Gyah, Primo's son is so cute!" and "WOW, they can speak fluent Italian! As expected of the Vongola's children, they're all kid geniuses!") Tsuna didn't think he could blush any harder. Then Hibari got pissed off by the senseless crowding and a scuffle broke out, only to be exacerbated by a cheeky Mukuro. Thank God, no one got maimed by the end of the day.
Or at least, that's what Tsuna thought before a uniformed messenger burst the doors open and was held back by protesting guards. Giotto gave them the signal to release him.
"Primo!" The messenger ran through the doorway in a frenzy, getting down to one knee. "Sorry for the intrusion, but I have urgent news! A village in the south was attacked and burnt down by assassins! There are no known survivors and the damage is appalling."
The others gasped and Tsuna blanched in horror. This had happened much sooner than he expected it to. He was too late.
"What?" The anger in Primo's voice was unconcealed, and if possible, caused the messenger to shrink back further.
"What are your orders to the troops?" He asked, trying to keep his voice level.
"Take Alaude's squad and investigate. I want the attackers found and captured. They will be brought here for interrogation." Giotto ordered.
"Yes, sir!" The messenger scrambled to his feet and took off.
When he was out of sight, Giotto slumped into a chair. "How could this have happened?"
"The people of the southern village were very peaceful and had no known enemies over the borders. Who would do this?" Asari said, shaking his head in remorse.
Giotto pinched the bridge of his nose in distress. "That was the village G and I grew up in…"
"Those figlio di puttana will not go unpunished, I assure you, Giotto." G hissed.
"I have to agree that they will need some torture when they arrive here." Daemon gave a callous smirk that promised suffering on those attackers.
Giotto gave a dejected glance at Alaude, who was silently seething with anger, (he could tell with Hyper Intuition), but was keeping it in.
"I'll bite them to death for disturbing the peace." Hibari added in a dangerous tone.
"Oya, ova, why the pale face, Sawada Tsunayoshi?" Mukuro enquired, drawing attention to the guilt-stricken baby on the table.
"Juudaime?" Gokudera had an arm extended, as if about to catch and protect his precious Tenth.
"It's nothing." He insisted, but his inner thoughts were in turmoil.
[Tsuna and Gokudera friendship-ish fluff! You have been warned!]
Later that night, Tsuna rolled around in his sheets, careful not to stir Gokudera, whose little body was curled up on the table a little to his right. (He wants to be the right-hand man even in his sleep.)
He couldn't stop thinking about how he could- should have prevented the massacre.
Then a horrible thought struck him. What if they started looking in other villages?
He had no right to be selfish. For the others' sake, he had to know what was in the near future and stop it.
Easing out his breath, he put a hand on his pacifier, and tried hard to concentrate flames into it. It wasn't working, even when he built up a resolution to save his friends.
Some Sky Arcobaleno he was turning out to be.
Suddenly, Tsuna felt the energy being sucked out of him and into the pacifier, which started to emit a steady and strong glow.
"Juudaime?" A drowsy-sounding voice called from beside Tsuna.
"A-ah! Gokudera-kun." He nearly jumped in fright and spun to face the baby who was rubbing his half-lidded eyes. 'Calm down! Or I'll sound suspicious!' He thought quickly as he quickly stopped the exchange of flames.
"U-uhm, why are you up? You should go back to sleep, you'll need it, haha…" He said, eyes darting furtively to avoid Gokudera's sleepy gaze.
"Juudaime, what was that bright orange light?" Gokudera asked, ignoring Tsuna's question.
"Wh-what orange light?" Tsuna acted dumb, all the while sweating nervously. He didn't like the serious look on Gokudera's face.
"Juudaime, please don't lie to me. You've been using your flames, haven't you?" Tsuna felt as if Gokudera's eyes were searing right into his.
He gulped. "Gokudera-kun, I-" He was cut off when Gokudera grabbed his boss's shoulders. (Even as a baby, Gokudera has larger hands than Tsuna.)
"Why, Juudaime? You know what will happen if you continue to use it!" He exclaimed, shaking Tsuna desperately.
"It's necessary!" He yelled, as a weak defense.
"Please don't tell the others, Gokudera-kun. That's an order." He said, turning his head around.
"NO! I'm sorry, but I-we won't allow you to do this!" Gokudera said firmly, and Tsuna faced him again, shell-shocked. This is the third time Gokudera has defied him.
"Gokudera-kun, you don't understand! There's too much at risk here! You guys, Reborn and the others, Kyoko, Haru and Mother-all the people in this world and ours- they'll all die!" Tsuna cried, trying to pry Gokudera's hands off his shoulders. "If I can change something and predict the enemy's moves…you'll all be able to go back to the future safe and sound!"
"And what about that? Do you think we'd want to return to such a future?" Gokudera tried to reason with his boss. "Do you think we'd be fine returning to a future without the Tenth? I thought you were the one who told me that, Juudaime, that it wouldn't be a victory-it would be pointless if someone was sacrificed, much less the boss!"
Tsuna badly wanted to facepalm. Why couldn't Gokudera see things his way?
"All the more I should- you know the boss is responsible for protecting his subordinates, that's what Reborn always says!"
"I'm sorry, but Juudaime, please keep quiet for a while." Gokudera apologized, clasping a small hand over Tsuna's mouth. Tsuna let out a muffled gasp.
"Juudaime, we are not called 'guardians' for no reason. We are entitled to protect you. We're all going to go back to the future, alive. The yakyuu-baka, shibafu-atama, Ahoshi too, that Hibari bastard and the pineapple-heads…we're not going to going to let you die like that incident," Gokudera lets out a pained hiss in the memory. "And we're not going back to the future without you. The chocolate bananas and fireworks wouldn't be the same otherwise." Gokudera finishes, with that resolute glint in his eyes.
He was quite taken aback when his boss buried his head in the shoulder of his cloak.
"I'm scared I'll screw up, Gokudera-kun. I hate it every time I have to sit back and let you guys get hurt." (Like during the fight in the forest with Byakuran, or when he had to wait for the X-Burner contacts while eating a lollipop.) "And it's all my fault those people died. I knew- I knew it was going to happen and yet I-I couldn't warn the First Generation! The village was attacked because they were looking for me, Gokudera-kun!"
Gokudera hesitantly placed his small hand on the Tenth's brown mane. "It wasn't your fault, Tenth…I've never heard you mention this before, but I don't think you knew which village it was."
"You've been crying…haven't you, Tenth? The front of your cloak's wet."
"H-have not!" He said, muffled by Gokudera's cloak. Gokudera could already feel his boss' face warming up.
"Aaah! I'm sorry for embarrassing you, Tenth!"
Unbeknownst to them, Giotto had long been woken up by their squabbling and listened intently to Tsuna sighing and trying to appease a flustered Gokudera. A small smile made its way to his lips, but he frowned when he heard Tsuna's mumbling about being at fault for the village's attack.
The Sky Arcobaleno shows more emotion than anyone else.
A man was fidgeting impatiently about in his cushioned throne, constantly adjusting his steel hat as if it would burn to a crisp if it were a degree lower or higher.
"*BEEP*-sama (I don't want you to know his name just yet)." A masked man kneeled before the one seated on the throne.
The man instantly sat up and his frown turned upwards. He clapped his hands in the mannerisms of an excited child.
"Curio, what news do you bear?" He could barely hold back his excitement.
"*BEEP*-sama, I have photos that were taken in a village in northern Sicily, near Giuseppe."
The man flicked through the photos absentmindedly, but lit up when he saw a particular one.
"Hoh, is that so? Well, prepare to move the 'base'. I think we've found what we've been looking for." He said, grinning like he'd struck gold.
"What shall we do with the traitor? She was captured after helping the villagers, on you order, *BEEP*-sama."
"Oh, her? Yeah, well, throw her in the dungeons and move her too. Whatever." He said disinterestedly.
"Very well. Curio shall live to carry out your orders."
And there we have it. It's in the dead of night now so I shall be going. Please keep the reviews strong!
Bye!