Lesson 37: Her Mother Taught Her to Grasp

"I cannot make you understand. I cannot make you understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself."

-Franz Kafka, The Metamorphosis

"So," Reborn chirped, his pitched voice a striking contrast against the gloomy air his representatives were emitting, "Let's hear about the results from the first day of the battle. What kind of fights did everyone get into? I'm excited," the hitman said, eyes glinting as he reviewed the group, "to find out."

Chrome barely shifted as the hitman's gaze passed over her, before her own eyes reviewed her fellow teammates. She seemed to be the only one looking up at the Arcobaleno, with Gokudera looking down at the floor, Yamamoto at the surface of the table, Ryohei, head leaned back and looking to the ceiling, Tsunayoshi looking into his lap (and with such an uncomfortable, dare she say frightened expression? With him, she was concerned), and even Dino, who's arms were folded on the table with his head resting in the them, was averting his gaze. Surprisingly, he was the first one to speak, addressing her.

"Chrome…" he murmured, voice muffled by the fabric of his jacket, "Chrome I need you to promise me something…"

"Y-yes, Dino-san…?" She ask hesitantly, unsure of the direction this was going.

"Please," he said, hand reaching out to grab her own hands (which were lightly clasped together, resting on the table), and gently gripped them, with urgency, but not with force, "Please, do not," he enunciated, finally lifting his head to look at her, eyes pleading and tired, "turn out like him. Please."

Chrome blinked, her mouth opening once, before she spoke, questioning:

"Like who…?"

"That monster of a kid," Dino answered, letting go of her hands just so he could put his on either side of his head, "that Ausil trained. I mean, really! How can he be that vicious! I've never really had to fight him, I mean, not like this! He's a beast! And Ausil trained him!? I can't figure out if he chilled out because of that, or if she made him worse!"

And with that outburst, he allowed his head to the table once again (with a thunk).

"That woman was right about Hibari," Gokudera clicked his tongue, eyes stormy, annoyed, "He was Fon's representative after all. A betrayal!" he spat venomously.

"Speaking of Ausiliatrice," Tsunayoshi spoke up, quieter than usual, "Where is she?"

All eyes were suddenly on Chrome, and biting back shyness, she spoke.

"Well, after the battles…. Ausiliatrice," Chrome struggled, eye fluttering to the side momentarily as she struggled for the word,

"She wasn't in the best mood, exactly."

Chrome spun her trident, cutting Belphegor's wires and stepping out from where she had moved to dodge them. Enma, behind her, dealt with Leviathan and Lussuria, catching Lussuria's leg and throwing him to the side with his gravity orbs before surrounding himself with one, deflecting Leviathan's attack. Enma jumped as his back touched Chrome, but relaxed, recalling he had allies in this fight.

Or rather, an ally.

"Where's Ausiliatrice?" Enma asked, turning his head to ask, and then nearly squeaking, breaking apart from Chrome just as Squalo separated them. The swordsman sneered, eyes quickly going between to two to decide the larger threat before he looked to his watch, checking the time (only six minutes left, and these brats still aren't dead; an annoying fact entirely due to the illusionist and their lack of). He growled, annoyed further when his swing at Chrome hit mist, and he turned to see the girl quickly pull the boy to the side. He stepped forward to pursue, but then quickly dove the side as well, just as a fiery blast of flames nearly melted the area where they once stood.

Two large beast then tumbled into the still smoldering landscape, rolling violently and lashing out with their claws. Atalanta roared as she pinned Bester down, only for the Liger (covered in stripes at this point) roared back, grabbing her neck and throwing her to the side. The lioness rolled and caught herself, and as she did, the fur shifted and changed, sporting spots and now armored. Meleager, larger now and more muscular, attacked Bester again, taking the Liger with far more force now.

The owners of the beast followed in suit, mirroring their box weapons with violent lashes and vibrant shots of flames, coming into close contact before breaking apart and attacking at a distance again. Both Ausiliatrice and Xanxus bore bloodthirsty grins as they exchanged blows, liberated with this battle and neither holding back. Although Xanxus clearly had more power in flame, Ausiliatrice held tact with her weapons and delivery, evening the playing field between them.

The others watched (almost in awe) as the couple passed, and as quickly as they came, interrupting? They were gone, moving on once again, their battle both vibrant, beautiful and ferocious.

"There she is," Chrome breathed out, having wisely used that moment to catch her breath. Enma blinked, expression a picture of disbelief, before he was roughly thrown back into the fray of the battle.

"We need," Chrome eventually stated upon her and Enma reconvening a minute or so later, the two pivoting and switching opponents in order to hold their own against the Varia, "to get to Ausiliatrice and work together!"

"No offense or anything, Chrome," Enma said, stepping out and throwing his arms up, stopping other knives from reaching them before they were both forced to retreat due to Leviathan's lightning, "but it looks like Ausiliatrice is… enjoying herself?" he said, looking to the side and seeing large flares of flames in another area of the construction site they were fighting in. Chrome made a face, seeing the undeniable truth of his words.

Her mind raced, and for a moment, Chrome felt panic seize her, as her blocks become sloppier. Enma, noticing this, sent a worried look her way. And that? Seeing his deep concern and realizing that someone needed her (knowing what Ausiliatrice expected of her, knowing that Ausiliatrice left her on her own for a reason, because she trusted Chrome), the illusionist forced confidence into her voice.

"We can do this!"

"We can?" Enma said, still in disbelief, "And how exactly are we going to do that?"

"We defeated Daemon Spade, didn't we?" Chrome reminded him with an awkward, small smile of reassurance, "and we only have four minutes left, so as long as we – move!"

She quickly pushed him to the side, and raised her trident, meeting Squalo's blade just in time. Enma went to help her, but was occupied by the remaining members of the Varia, effectively pushing him back,

and separating him from Chrome.

"You brats think you can win?" Squalo sneered as Chrome braced her trident against his sword, clearly struggling. He scoffed, pushing further, "Pathetic. You don't have a fucking chance, baby trash. You can't win against us."

"We might not…" Chrome mutter, defiant as her eye looked over his shoulder, "But she can!"

Immediately, Squalo's eyes widened, and he turned, bracing himself as Ausiliatrice come toward him. He blinked in surprise however, as her form dissipated into mist. He yelled out, and turned, seeing Chrome running away from him, spinning and waving her trident in a wide arc, her form disappearing with this movement.

"God dammit," Squalo spat before stalking forward, set on hunting down the illusionist.

Enma, meanwhile, wasn't having the same luck as Chrome. And Skull? He was panicking as well, watching his guardian mercilessly beaten by the Varia.

"What am I going to do?!" Skull relented, holding both sides of his helmet in distress, "That girl is distracted by the silver haired guy, that bitch is fighting that scary guy, and that creepy blonde is going to have Enma pinned any minute! At this rate, he's dead!"

He glanced down at his watch, noticing the little time they had left, and even then? Enma was pinned down, arms tied against his sides and his opponents? They were readying their final attack. Skull looked around again, seeing neither Ausiliatrice nor Chrome coming to Enma's aid.

"He's all alone! They're going to kill him!" Skull yelled out, finding his own legs carrying himself forward. Skull glanced down at his watch once again, recalling a memory, something that the man that gave them the watches had told him. Wasting no time, he yelled into his watch,

"Present, please!"

And without even recognizing that his body was changing,

He threw himself in front of Enma, blocking him from the Varia's attack.

Chrome blinked, her illusionary world disappearing around her and Squalo as she noticed a bright light. She paled, seeing their attack aimed right at Enma, realizing that she was too far away to help him.

"Enma!" She yelled out, running to him anyways, despite her watch beeping loudly, signaling the end of the battle just as the attack hit a figure, jumping in front of the redhead just before it hit Enma. At first, Chrome become more worried, thinking that it was Ausiliatrice who had taken the blow for Enma. But soon, she looked to the side, realizing that Ausiliatrice and Xanxus had ended their fight as well, and were looking with curious expressions at the person that now lay twitching on the ground (possibly dead?).

"Is he…" Chrome said, putting a hand over her mouth as she neared, relieved that Enma was fine, but now concerned about the stranger, unmoving on the ground.

"He's alive," Ausiliatrice answered, jumping down from the unfinished building and walking to Chrome's side.

"The hell?!" Squalo said, observing the body as well, "No fucking way! You pieces of shit used your rings, didn't you?"

"Of course," Belphegor tutted, inspecting his ring, "We went with your plan, after all. Should have annihilated him."

"No one could have survived that," Leviathan concluded, and yet? The body suddenly jumped up, as if just to spite the man. Strangely, as he rose, his body shrunk, revealing the Arcobaleno Skull, albeit worn for wear, but alive and complaining loudly.

"That fucking hurt!" He screamed out, falling back to roll on the ground, shouting out more complaints.

"Cloud flames," Ausiliatrice murmured, ignoring the childish yells of the Arcobaleno, "Because of his flames, he could absorb the attacks easily. But this also means –

"The Arcobalenos can enter the fights," Xanxus finished, radiating ferocity as he came up behind them.

"How interesting," Ausiliatrice tutted, her abyssal eyes strangely stormy, deep in thought. Xanxus turned, shooting at the presence that suddenly appeared, hidden behind the little remains of the construction site.

"Hohoho! Play nice now!" A man chided in a childish voice as he dodged, revealing himself. Xanxus scowled, clearly offended, but managed to quell himself with a glance towards Ausiliatrice.

"Tsunomichi, was it?" the dark-skinned woman addressed, reviewing him careful, recalling Dino's description of the man that gave them the watches.

"Ohoho! Someone is smarty-warty!" The man cooed, causing a spark of annoyance in Ausiliatrice, her own hand itching to raise her gun. Tsunomichi, however, seemed to feign ignorance at this, and continued;

"I see that the Arcobaleno Skull had discovered his present from Checker Face! During the battle times, the present allows all the Arcobaleno to remove their curse for a period of time! Three minutes to be exact, so be careful!"

"He's right!" Skull exclaimed, looking at his watch, "The bottom number changed to two minutes and seven seconds!"

"All the Arcobaleno…" Ausiliatrice muttered, her eyes looking to the side. Chrome frowned, noticing this, and stepped forward with a hesitant arm reaching, but was distracted as Adel ran into the scene, going straight for Enma and embracing him warmly, only distancing herself in order to mother him, making sure he was fine.

"Hey," Xanxus addressed Ausiliatrice, who looked back at him with narrowed eyes, "I'm not fucking done with our fight yet."

"You think I'm satisfied?" she shot back, clicking her tongue, "Ten minutes isn't enough time for us to go all out."

"Obviously," he retorted, lifting his gun, but was surprised, as she stepped forward, pushing it down and grabbing his wrist in one movement. He pulled it away, but still kept his pace beside her, giving her a questioning look.

"We're both fucking pissed, right?" She addressed, "So let's get a fucking drink. I need alcohol."

And Xanxus clicked his tongue, but followed her none the less.

"Fine."

Squalo rolled his eyes, and called for the Varia to regroup and retreat. Chrome, who had been distracted by Adel and Enma (and Skull, who had naturally offended Adel and was knocked to the side when he attempted to place his head between her breasts), looked up, surprised to see Ausiliatrice and Xanxus walking off together. Chrome considered going after her tutor, but after noticing the aura both Ausiliatrice and the boss of the Varia were putting off, she decided against it, knowing that the older woman needed time to cool down.

"I…" Chrome looked back, blushing lightly when she realized that Adel was addressing her.

"I want to thank you, both of you," Adel expressed, her eyes going to Ausiliatrice's retreating figure, "for fighting with Enma. For helping him despite… Thank you."

"So Reborn decided to help us!" Skull said triumphantly, running back to the group (but wisely keeping his distance from Adel).

"Oh, no," Chrome said, putting her arms up, "You don't need to thank us, really. And as for that… well, Ausiliatrice, she um, kind of went against her father's wishes–"

"Reborn has a daughter?!"

"And I'm sure," Chrome continued, brushing over that, "that she wouldn't take your thanks… Really, she just sensed the Varia and came, so it was coincidence that you were here….?" She finished rather lamely and blushing deeply.

"Well," Enma said, scratching the back of his head and cheeks twinged lightly as well, "Still, I'm glad you were here. I don't think I could have held out as long without you."

"Thank you," Adel said solemnly, "for taking care of Enma. Please, express this to Ausiliatrice as well. In the future battles, the Shimon will be sure to return this favor if the opportunity comes."

"Does that mean that the rest of the Shimon is fighting for Skull?" Chrome asked, surprised.

"Hell yeah!" Skull yelled out, sticking his tongue and pulling the skin under his eye down, "So tell Reborn to watch out! Team Skull is going to kick ass now!"

"... and that's really all that happened with us," Chrome concluded.

"So Enma's not alone anymore? That's good," Tsunayoshi said with a relieved smile.

"The information about our present will definitely come in handy," Reborn said, hand on his chin before letting it fall, nodding to Chrome, "Thank you, Chrome. And as for everyone else? Dino," he addressed his oldest student, eyes glinting again, "Care to tell us what happened with Hibari?"

"Do I really have to?" The man sighed, propping his head on his arms, "It's actually a little embarrassing…"

"Out of all the times to disappear," Dino tutted as he regained his composure, complaining lightly despite standing confidently, retrieving his whip from under his jacket as the watch counted down, "She picks now, huh?"

"I suppose you'll do to sharpen my fangs," Hibari Kyoya hummed, looking over Dino with slight interest.

Despite Dino's slight hesitation (nervousness) to fight someone trained by Ausiliatrice, the don felt confident in this upcoming battle, or at least confident in his ability to hold his own.

"For Ausil's sake," Dino teased, "I'll try to go easy on you."

"Don't pity me," Hibari snarled, causing Dino to laugh.

"You really are her student!"

And yet, Dino's confidence did not take into account the single fact that none of his men were around at the time. Then again, Dino never took this into account did he?

Hibari Kyoya was already going into this battle disappointed, due to the fact that his original prey (and ultimate objective) had evaded him. And witnessing this new, possibly interesting opponent fall flat on his face due to tripping over his own whip? Disappointed did not even begin to cover what Hibari Kyoya felt.

(Anger? Rage? Perhaps more accurate words)

But he was surprised, when a horse burst in a flurry of sky flames from Dino's hand the moment Hibari decided to end this and go for his watch. It was almost sad that the horse proved to be more a adversary than the owner.

"Scuderia?!" Dino exclaimed, surprised that the animal emerged on his own. The horse snorted, and seemed to roll its eye, motioning to its back with its head. Understanding instantly, Dino scrambled up, barely dodging Hibari's attacks as he struggled to mount the house. As soon as his owner was secure, Scuderia reared upwards and shot forward, taking Dino through the hallway with Hibari in hot pursuit.

"Slow down, slow down!" Dino called, gripping Scuderia's mane and turning his head, seeing if Hibari was following. The horse snorted, and Dino was almost sure it rolled its eyes again. Dino nearly squeaked, jerking his body as the steed took a sharp turn and burst through door, leading them outside.

"I'm pretty sure you weren't this stubborn in the future, Scuderia!" Dino yelled out, making a distressed noise as the horse rose again, dumping Dino off of him. Scuderia snorted, and looked back to Dino, clearly judging. "What?" Dino challenged, holding his arms up in question. Scuderia merely snorted in response.

"Dino?! Is that you?"

Both owner and horse turned their heads, seeing Yamamoto, Gokudera, and Ryohei approach.

"Have you seen the Tenth?" Gokudera immediately asked upon approaching Dino.

"No, not yet," he answered immediately, "But listen, right now I'm getting chased by–"

"What's this?" Hibari tutted, stepping out of the school, "More prey for me to bite to death?"

"So you did betray the tenth after all?!" Gokudera accused, noticing his watch and scowling.

"Betray?" Hibari retorted, lifting his chin, "You can't betray something you were never a part of. I joined Team Fon for one reason one reason only," He said, eyes glinting as he reviewed them,

"Because your team is full of people I want to bite to death."

".. And then he destroyed my watch! Everyone supported me, but I still lost!" Ryohei relented, slamming his fists against the table. Chrome leaned over, giving him a reassuring pat on the back, and a small, shy smile. Yamamoto sent a sympathetic smile as well before continuing.

"But from there, I basically used Kojirou to help us escape, and stop Hibari from chasing us," Yamamoto finished, rather smugly, "So, Ryohei aside, we managed to get away with our watches in one piece, but while we looking for Tsuna, the time ran out."

"The Bronco was useless! When we ran into him, he was running away!" Gokudera snapped, sparking Dino to apologize profusely.

"Sorry, Sorry! I told you, I was off my game! And I didn't want to hurt Ausil's student," Dino lamely excused himself.

"Bullshit!"

"Wait, where is Ausiliatrice anyways?" Tsunayoshi perked up, looking to Chrome again, "You said she was, mad right, and then went off on her own?"

"With Xanxus," Chrome corrected him gently. A moment, and then reactions (strong reactions) from the boys. Dino and Reborn seemed to be the most reserved with this, with Dino simply frowning, and Reborn mirroring this with an echo of confusion.

"Why the hell would she go off with him?" Gokudera snapped, nearly scandalized.

"They're friends right?" Ryohei spoke up, "I thought I saw them together at the Inheritance Ceremony?"

"Like together, together?" Yamamoto asked, confused.

"Not like that," Chrome corrected quickly, and then blushed deeply when all eyes were once again on her, "I mean," She quickly back tracked, "I don't know for sure, it's Ausiliatrice's life and choice, and she doesn't… I just saw them walk off together. That's all," she concluded, her face red. She quickly folded her hands, looking into her lap right after ending.

"If that's all there is to discuss," Reborn voice cut through the awkward atmosphere, "then you're all dismissed. Be ready for tomorrow's battle. And Dino?" The hitman said, fixing his eyes on his former student,

"I need to talk to you."

"Is… Is this about Ausil?" Dino asked, looking over to Reborn as they made they're way back to the hotel.

"What do you think about her and Xanxus?" Reborn asked bluntly, "Does that intimidate you?"

Dino was silent for a while, before speaking.

"Shouldn't you be the one concerned?" Dino asked instead, "I mean, isn't that how fathers are supposed to react to something like this? At least somewhat worried?"

Reborn's eyes barely narrowed, knowing that Dino was referring to something specifically. And for the world's greatest hitman, it didn't take him long to figure it out.

"He was the one. The who burned her face in the future."

Dino blinked, stopping in his tracts to look over at Reborn.

"You didn't know? She didn't tell you?" Dino's inquiry, however, only caused Reborn's scowl to deepen. He reached up, tugging his fedora down in order to shadow his features. Leon shifted on it, clearly uncomfortable.

"No. She didn't tell me," he said simply. Dino looked at his tutor, eyebrows drawn, confused at his sudden anger at this situation, both Reborn's and his own. He turned his head, and his leg twitched as if to step forward and move on and away from this. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to do that.

"So, you're mad now?" He asked his tutor, confronting him, "You're going to act angry and offended by this now?"

Reborn found himself surprised by his student's tamed outburst, but only expressed this by barely looking up.

"You've grown bold Dino," Reborn said simply, and that was all it took for Dino's own words to dawn on him. Suddenly, Dino found himself flustered, and felt as if he had overstepped a boundary. And then, following that feeling, he felt fear, realizing just who he was talking to.

"I- I mean, Reborn I'm- " Dino stuttered out, before simply falling flat and silent, watching as Reborn jumped from the wall he had been walking on, heading the opposite way of before.

"About time you grew a backbone," Reborn remarked, titling his hat down once again, leaving a long, tall shadow as he walked into the sunset.

(Always, always, with the sunsets)

"These battles are suspicious, right?" she said, eyes on her drink as she stirred it. Xanxus scoffed, taking his recently refilled drink and bringing it to his lips before answering.

"Fucking course they are," he shot back, "You didn't have to get me drunk to talk about it though."

"There's no point in getting you drunk," she said, "when you're already drunk 90% of the time." He chuckled, a low gruff sound before he allowed it to fade into the walls of the small, private booth they had asked for.

"That why you had us take the watches off?" He asked, gesturing with his head to the closed door.

"You can never be too careful. But you already know that," Ausiliatrice said before immediately moving on to the meat of the subject, "The Cervello. How did you come into contact with them for the ring battles."

He took his time recalling, red eyes reflected, ambered in the pools of his glass.

"They… just kind of showed up."

"And you weren't suspicious of that?" She asked, raising as eyebrow, voice harsh.

"Fuck off!" He spar immediately, "It's not exactly like I was…" he scowled, and took another swig before continuing, "The fuck is your point?"

"There's an order to it," Ausiliatrice started slowly, allowing him time to calm before she poke again, "Have you noticed? The Vongola Rings, the Mare Rings, and now the Pacifiers? The Cervello were involved with both the Vongola Ring Conflict, and the battle in the future, when the Mare Rings showed up."

"You think they're connected to the Tri-ni-set," Xanxus stated, seeing her point, "And this Checker Face?"

"A possible ring leader. Even now, he's partly in the shadows, with that bastard Tsunomichi speaking for him most the time," she said, recalling how they had only heard Checker Face's voice when he was reviewing the day's battle (and with Mukuro's team in the lead. Ausiliatrice suspected it had to do with that young illusionist he took under his wing, and the addiction of Verde's genius. Truly, they were a major threat in these battles).

"Why," Xanxus asked, as carefully as he could get (but there was an edge, roughness, as always when he spoke), "are you telling me this?"

"I'm afraid," Ausiliatrice admitted, truthful and without shame, "Each time the Cervello appeared, each time the Tri-ni-set is involved…. It's a way of choosing. The Vongola Conflict, them giving Byakuran the rings, the entire Tri-ni-set rejecting his control…"

She thought back to her conversation with Aria, to the woman herself, both her happiness and her sadness, and her strange (blasphemous, to Ausiliatrice) acceptance of her fate.

"How do you think the Arcobaleno are picked?" she asked Xanxus, thinking of her father, thinking of her mother, thinking of existence, her life (a strange hope, that if he weren't an Arcobaleno, if he wasn't cursed, then maybe, maybe).

Xanxus was silent, thinking.

"I may be assuming," Ausiliatrice admitted, gripping her glass tightly, enough for cracks to splinter its sides, "but I don't…. I know the life of an Arcobaleno, and the life of those connected to them. And I don't want to see that happen to anyone else. Not in front of my own eyes."

(her father's eyes)

(She had Aria to thank for this revelation. Perhaps, she should visit Uni sometime)

"We need fucking proof," Xanxus told her, "We need something solid."

"Like I don't know that," she found herself snapping back. She sighed, and put down her drink, deciding she had enough for one night. A breath, and she spoke again, "It's a theory. But I have it being tested. At least, one part of it."

"And?" he asked, taking his drink back after she filled it for him.

"As for the Cervello," Ausiliatrice said, "I have someone looking into it."

"Look for the Cervello, she said," Shamal grumbled, holding his jacket out as his mosquitoes retreated back into it, "You're good at stalking women after all, she said," he further mocked, rolling his eyes as he walked past multiple bodies, their mouths foaming and blood trickling from their eyes and noses, "Do me this one favor, she said," he finished, nudging one of the bodies and then stopping, finding the man's wallet and taking wads of cash from it.

"What I do for women," Shamal sighed dramatically before walking from the alley way, having finished his small interrogation.

He recalled his younger years of being a hitman, and was almost disappointed in himself, seeing that it took a couple of hours to find who he was looking for. But considering his age, and the fact that he found them at all, Shamal was fairly pleased with himself.

"A lady such as yourself," He said, sliding into the booth across from a hooded figure, "shouldn't be in such a filthy place like, this, don't you think?"

"… Trident Shamal," a raspy voice called out, "Why can't I move."

"If you know my name," the doctor said, holding his finger out for a mosquito to land on, "then you already know the answer. Usually, I'm not the type to use such methods on women, but there's a far more beautiful and dangerous woman that gave me a job, and she will possibly maimed if I disappoint her. Well, if she's anything like her mother," he added quietly.

"Anyways, I'm here to ask you about your boss. Janus? Ring a bell?" Cold, raspy laughter leaked from under figures hood.

"Former boss," the figure said, "If you're curious, you can take away this hood and see why."

Shamal blinked, unimpressed, before sighing leaning back comfortably.

"You Cervello have a flair for the dramatics, huh?" He said, acting bored, "Let me guess? Bad lip job? Nose job? I heard you guys go far for aesthetic."

"I didn't exactly pass Janus's test for beauty," the figure scoffed, "And let's just say that the surgeries they had us go through didn't work for me. I wasn't with the Cervello for long. Didn't fit in."

Shamal huffed, and then leaned forward easily pulling the fabric away, revealing awfully marred and thick, uneven skin, mostly orange in color, but patchy, almost calicoed. Their hair was patchy and almost entirely gone, string like strings of pink clinging to their scalp, their eyes almost covered by swelled mounds of flesh, and mouth torn and never mended. Their throat, obviously tampered with, and Shamal recalled how all the Cervello had sounded the same as well.

"I'm a doctor, honey," he assured her with a charming smile, "I've seen worse."

They scoffed at this, the noise further mauled by their damaged vocal cords.

"After I reacted to the surgeries," they said these words as if mocking them, "I was thrown away. Useless. And I doubt I'll be useful to you."

"Oh, but, according to my sources," Shamal said, reaching into his pocket and waving a mall notebook lazily in the air before opening it, taking his time looking at his notes, "you were with them… let's see, around the start of the ring battles? Vongola Ring battles to be specific, but then again, what other ring battles are there, right? According to my sources that is, which of course, were incredibly hard to find," he said with a chuckle. He snapped the notebook closed, and looked back to the figure.

"But thanks to this timeline…. Well, and the fact that all the other current Cervello have conveniently disappeared, you're my only option. And I have a hunch that you'll give me something useful. So, let's just make this easier for both of us, and you can just sing with that pretty voice of yours, okay?"

The figure was silent in return. Shamal sighed in response, and clicked his tongue, feigning disappointment as he returned the notebook to his pocket, retrieving a small red capsule from it instead.

"I hate to do this, truly…. But then again, you're not that pretty, are you?"

"I thought you would be here."

Tsunayoshi nearly shrieked, whipping around to see Ausiliatrice sitting at Yamamoto's kitchen table, illuminated by the dim light of the open fridge behind Tsunayoshi.

"Ausiliatrice!" Tsunayoshi squeaked out, hand clutching his chest. He relaxed, and bent over. Ausiliatrice allowed him to catch his breath, an amused glint in her eye. She spoke again once he was sitting at the table, after he had taken a few sips of the milk he had ventured down to get in the first place.

"You…." Tsunayoshi struggled, calmer but still slightly startled and confused, "So, you just broke into Yamamoto's house?"

"Dino told me that you lost to your dad. I thought you might want to talk about it."

He grew somber suddenly at this statement. He was reserved and drew in on himself. She waited, patiently, until he grew courage, finding the words and forcing them from his mouth (hesitant, but she waited, she waited).

"I… I don't want to fight my dad… Well, I do," Tsunayoshi admitted, then grew more confused, "But I don't? I mean, he's family, right? But he's awful! And he's lazy, and he left me and Mom for so long, and then just comes back and acts like everything is normal, and he lies, he's lied for years! And I know Mom is sad, but he willfully ignores it, so I hate him, but I don't? Because he's family, but – but he's strong! And he beat me today and he's strong, apparently? And even if I do fight him, can I even win? But I don't want to fight him?!" Tsunayoshi finished, clutching his head before looking up at her.

"I mean…" he said, quieter, grabbing his milk again and lifting it, inspecting it nervously "What do I do?"

She blinked, nodded, and took a drink of the water she got for herself.

"Just kick his ass," she said simply, the with a shrug, added, "Fuck, I know I want to kick Reborn's ass."

Immediately, Tsunayoshi spit his drink out, spewing it across the table.

"What?!" She blinked, having leaned slightly to the side due to his small outburst, and titled her head.

"Fight your old man. Go all out. He fucking deserves it, and as annoying as it is, he can take it," she said with another shrug, "Sometimes you just have to fucking knock some sense into men. And with Iemitsu? Well, I actually don't know if he has any sense to begin with, so it wouldn't hurt. Much."

"You want to fight Reborn?" Tsunayoshi clarified. Ausiliatrice gave a blank, almost disappointed look.

"Of course. He's the strongest hitman in the world, cursed body or not. And you know, that will help work out some of our issues, I guess," she tacked on rather callously.

Tsunayoshi blinked, and scrutinized Ausiliatrice, suspicious that she was acting so callous and open about this subject. He opened his mouth, and then closed it, inspecting Ausiliatrice's features closely, and seeing slightly more color in her cheeks than usual.

"Are… Ausiliatrice are you drunk?"

"… a little."

(but Xanxus was far more drunk, which was the important thing)

In the morning, Tsunayoshi was just glad that Yamamoto Tsuyoshi was so happy to have a teacher of his son's come in so early for breakfast (easily believing her when she said that his son was the one to convince her to come, and due to her busy schedule, this was the best time for her to stop by), and that Yamamoto was so good at adding to the lie and fully convincing his father.

But Tsunayoshi still felt guilty for not telling him that Ausiliatrice spent the night as well.

(And so the second day of the Representative battles begins)

"I was meant to a warrior, fight something amongst me, leave here victorious."

-Macklemore (Make the Money)

AN:

So, shorter chapter? Sorry, Design and Clay have been taking up a lot of my time (but I've been having fun, so that's chill). I feel like not much happened? A lot of the action happens on the second day and after, just due to the time limit, because Fuck man, ten minute is barely enough time to do anything.

I decided I'm going to do the AUs as their own chapter thing? So here's a list of the ones I have so far, and feel free to Message or Review if you want to see more, or if you have any specific ideas for any of these:

Harry Potter

Naruto

RWBY

Avatar

One Piece

School (like Mafia school with Xanxus and Squalo, whoo because someone mentioned it once)

College

Marvel (Black Panther)

Disney Princess (but plot twist, the princess is Dino lmao)

So let me know if you guys have any other ideas or AUs (and it doesn't have to be other "worlds/stories" it can be plain ole AUs too~

-Evenly