Haru walked into her science class feeling more confident. Not only had Tsuna reassured her that she was good enough for him, he'd told her firmly that he wanted to marry her. She kept having to repressed squeals of delight every time she thought about it. It had been the first time he'd come out and actually told her his feelings.
On top of that, she found out that she shared her last three classes with her new friend Sangia. After the two had finished salvaging Haru's uniform, they'd spent the rest of the lunch hour together in the school's courtyard, chatting about nonsense stuff. Haru still had to smile at that. When the bell had rang for lunch hour to end, she'd caught sight of Tsuna and the others watching over her protectively from a classroom window before they dodged out of sight.
The girl beside her seemed friendly enough. They had quite a bit in common, both being non-combatant students at Don Girarde. Haru had found out through their talk that Sangia was actually the second daughter of the boss for the Kuneri Family. Since her elder sister had taken the role of boss-apparent, Sangia had been pretty much left in the cold. Until two years ago, she'd been just like Haru, merely living a normal life unaffected by the mafia world. Then her father had decided she might have a use and pulled her away from her foster parents without a single explanation. So now, she was going to school with mafiosos at her father's will.
From what she told Haru, Sangia had a rough time her first year, too. No only had she been totally clueless like Haru, but she'd been defenseless. Not even other members of her father's Family had really cared what happened to her here. Yet she was forced to come, day after day, without ever getting a reason why. Sangia had laughed sadly when she told Haru the stories about all the times she tried to run away and was dragged back.
Haru couldn't help but feel empathy for the girl. It was almost like a fairy-tale without a white prince. At least Haru had chosen to come here under her own free will and had the support of Tsuna. Sangia hadn't had a choice and she didn't have a prince. Haru finally realized that had been the reason the girl had been in the bathroom during lunch. Sangia had been hiding.
"Why don't we both bring our lunches tomorrow? We could eat it out in the courtyard together," she asked the other girl.
"What...?" Sangia replied, sitting down in her chair in surprise.
"I'm used to bringing my own lunch anyway. It'll probably be more fun than sitting in the cafeteria with snobs and everyone else staring at us," Haru pleaded.
"But no one--"
"Exactly!" Haru cheered. "We'll have the courtyard all to ourselves!" Haru waited in anticipation, hoping for her to say yes. Sangia thought it over. It actually wasn't a bad idea. The only reason Sangia hadn't done it by herself was that she was scared of being out in the open alone and becoming a target.
"It's probably faux pas," she said sadly. Then she smiled and turned to Haru with excitement, "But let's do it anyway!"
Haru gave her a bright smile as the teacher walked in. Haru faced him with determination. She had a friend and her first plan to getting through tomorrow. But first, she had to finish getting through today. She would be a mafia boss' wife. She would not let anything stop her anymore.
Haru smiled to herself as she changed out of her work-out clothes and left the locker room with Sangia beside her. The rest of the day had went smoothly, all things considered. Her science teacher happened to be related to Lambo, so she'd spent half the class telling the teacher how the little boy was doing instead of him telling her about the wonders of science. Sangia and the rest of the class had merely watched in amusement and she'd ignored the whispered conversation that they'd started having about what had happened in the cafeteria.
After that had been etiquette. This was Sangia's second time taking this course, since she'd failed it the previous year. Haru got by with the skin of her teeth with Sangia's whispered clues. Haru could make it through a tea ceremony, but finding the right fork for salad had been extremely hard.
Finally there had been her Fitness course. The coach had been a strange woman. She'd checked over Haru's muscles like she was a horse before sending her on a warm-up run. After that, Haru had been allowed to have fun on the balance beam. She didn't even think Tsuna knew how much she'd practiced her gymnastics over the past few years. It was one thing she was proud of.
As she caught sight of Cheri and the boys, she couldn't help but wave in greeting. Tsuna waved back, true to his word on not caring what others might whisper anymore. While they crossed from their gym over to hers, Haru asked Sangia out of curiosity, "Why would there be a fuss if me and Tsuna are together, but not for him and Cheri?" Sangia smiled at the question.
"From what I hear, their spars are enough to ward off that kind of innuendo. She's more like one of the guys than one of the girls."
"That's silly," Haru said as the group joined them. Haru turned to Cheri while Sangia looked at Tsuna a bit warily out of the corner of her eye. "Do you want to join us for lunch tomorrow?" She asked with a smile. Cheri looked at her with a raised eyebrow, so Haru explained while they walked. "We're going to bring bento and eat in the courtyard."
"Isn't that against some unwritten rule?" Cheri asked, re-braiding a pigtail. "I don't want to stand out anymore than I already do because of sparring practice." Haru smiled in return.
"If it's not a written rule, then there's no reason we shouldn't." She looked up at Tsuna, curious as to what he thought. He smiled down at her softly.
"We'll come too," he offered. "The more the merrier, right? Plus, it's been a while since I had a real bento." He smiled as a thought occurred to him, but he just shook his head at her questioning glance. "That okay with you guys?" He asked to his two shadows. They both nodded with wide grins on their faces. They didn't like the crowded cafeteria any more than he did. The only reason they went there for lunch was because of Tsuna. The only reason Tsuna did was because he wasn't allowed to hide and eat alone. But the courtyard was public enough to satisfy his orders. "It's settled then. I'll ask Cress to talk to the cook for me."
"Nope!" Haru said, twirling around in place. She stopped in front of him with her hands on her hips. "Haru will make bento for Tsu-kun!" She declared firmly. He smiled again at her enthusiasm.
"Just don't drive the kitchen staff crazy," he warned with a laugh. "I'd rather not have them mad at me. Goodness knows they'll get Bianchi to help cook our dinner if you make them mad." Haru scrunched up her face at the insinuation that she'd drive anyone crazy, making Tsuna and the boys chuckle.
"You're normal," Sangia said suddenly, bringing everyone's attention to her. She was looking at the group, shaking her head in shock.
"You're the girl that helped Haru out, aren't you?" He asked curiously. She nodded silently, still trying to come to grips with something. "Thank you," he said with a warm smile. Sangia seemed to become even more surprised when he held out his hand in thanks and introduction. "I'm Tsuna," he said formally when she took the proffered hand with wide eyes.
"Tsuna," Yamamoto said in warning. Tsuna looked around, realizing that they'd walked through the courtyard without noticing it and Xanxus was waiting impatiently next to his car. He dropped the girl's hand.
"Let's fucking go already, kid," he growled, seeing that they'd finally noticed him.
"Who's that, Tsu-kun?" Haru asked hesitantly. The man was scary but he seemed to know Tsuna.
"I'm sorry, Haru," Tsuna said sadly. "I-I've got to go to work." He looked over at Cheri before Haru could ask him what he meant. "Please, take care of her for me. A car should be here for her in a while." When Cheri nodded, Tsuna didn't give Haru time to ask for an explanation. All three boys broke away from the group and headed for a separate car. By the time Haru got over her surprise, they were gone, the cars pulling swiftly away down the street. Cheri grimaced when Haru turned to her in askance.
"All I can tell you is that you might not want to be there when he first gets back." She refused to say anything more, regardless of how Haru tried to pull the information out of her. By the time they reached Prescott's, Cheri was at her wit's end with Haru's continued attempts. "Look, Haru," she said, trying to restrain her irritation. "He's a mafia boss-apparent. Use your imagination on what he has to do for work."
Haru fell silent for a moment before softly asking, "Things that will give him more nightmares?" Cheri and Sangia looked at her in surprise for a moment at the unwitting confession that Tsuna had nightmares. Cheri's surprise was overwritten with sadness when she nodded.
"Yes, Haru, the things that gives him nightmares," she said softly in agreement. Haru fell silent, following Cheri and Sangia quietly into Prescott's to wait until her car came.
"So, fucking brat, did you have fun on your shitty trip?" Xanxus said, making his version of small talk while the car pulled away. "I see you brought back a piece of ass." Tsuna glared at him, wanting to rip Xanxus' throat out for calling Haru something like that. Xanxus smiled cruelly, sensing the blood-lust coming off of his partner. At Xanxus' smile, Tsuna merely tossed him a chunk of zero-point ice into his lap in warning. Xanxus' smile disappeared. "Didn't mean to piss you off, kid," Xanxus said for his version of soothing. "Fuck, you went on a shitty vacation to relax and you came back with a stick up your ass."
"Who's this?" Tsuna asked, changing the subject. He nodded with his chin to the sweating man in a black suit sitting across from them.
"The old man's new training," Xanxus said, turning to business. "He wants you to slowly get to know ever single piece of trash in the Family from bottom to top. So, we'll be having a new helper every day until you've met them all."
"Oh, that's all," Tsuna sagged in relief. "I was afraid you'd went and done something stupid like bringing the target along with us." Xanxus growled at the idea that he'd do something that stupid, but Tsuna ignored him. He gave the man across from him a reassuring smile.
"Nice to meet you...?" He prompted with a handshake.
"Edward Turney, sir, Tenth," he amended nervously. "I'm one of the Family's lower-ranking hitmen, Tenth, sir," he explained. Tsuna laughed.
"You can call me Tenth, Edward. I bet it's kind of awkward calling someone so much younger than you 'sir'." Edward looked at Tsuna nervously, trying to return Tsuna's reassuring smile with his own faltering one. "So why did you join the Family, Edward?" He hoped that being called by his first name would help relax the man, but it seemed that the last question did it instead. The man instantly pulled out his wallet and ignored the rolled eyes Xanxus gave him.
"This is my wife and daughter, Tenth," he said, showing Tsuna the picture nestled within. "Me and Gina will be married six years next month and Emily will be nine later this year. Three years ago, the Ninth saved my wife when she was kidnapped by an underground slave ring." Tsuna looked at the man in surprise and he smiled, all nervousness forgotten. "I wanted to do something in return, so I got myself attached to one of the reserve squads."
"I see," Tsuna said softly. This man likely was only called in during dire emergencies or when they were just short of helping hands. He likely hadn't been sent on more than a handful of assignments in the past three years. Tsuna handed him his wallet back and looked over at Xanxus.
"What's the assignment?" He asked, hoping this man wouldn't have to witness a torture. Xanxus smiled knowingly.
"Only a simple punishment, shit for brains. I heard you had plenty of practice in information gathering during your trip," he said callously. Tsuna bowed his head, unhappy at the reminder. He listened quietly while Xanxus briefed them on the target and assignment.
"Lets get this over with as fast as possible, so that Edward can get back to his Gina and little Emily," Tsuna said with determination when the car finally came to a stop. He took the lead, not seeing behind him the cruel smile on Xanxus' face or the look of sudden devotion that Edward gave him. He was too focused on trying to get in and out before the man saw something that would give him nightmares. It was bad enough Tsuna had them, he didn't want others to have to get them as well.
Tsuna snuck out of his bedroom suite, closing the door carefully to keep from waking the satiated and sleeping woman inside. There was something he wanted to do, but he didn't want her to find out about it until he knew whether or not it he could manage it.
After finishing the job, Tsuna had left Xanxus and went to Mafia Row. Unfortunately, he'd been unable to find a single jewelry store open in the whole area. It had been his last hope after coming to terms with the fact he wouldn't be free to go shopping in normal places anytime soon. Nothing would be open before school and had to work with Xanxus after school. He doubted the Ninth would let him out of his work with Xanxus for a day so he could go shopping, considering the man's warning the first day they'd come back. His training must continue unimpeded.
Tsuna didn't want to wait until he was allowed time to go buy Haru a ring. He wanted to be able to give her one right away so that he could be free with his relationship with her. So he could enjoy being with her without the haunting knowledge that he was disobeying his Family. He didn't want to hurt them with innuendo and he didn't want Haru hurt by gossips. But, when he was honest with himself, he really didn't want to wait because he just really didn't want to wait. He wanted to give Haru a ring as a symbol of how much he cared about her. How much he loved her. So that every time she looked at it, she would know what she meant to him. So that never again would she feel unworthy out of uncertainty.
Tsuna had an idea. He couldn't give Haru diamonds or gold at the moment, but he could give her a piece of himself. He'd make her a ring using his own flame. Whether it worked or not depended on how well he could learn to control his flame and the zero-point breakthrough during the night. At first, he'd shrugged off the idea, knowing how stupid it sounded even to himself. Haru wouldn't feel comfortable with a ring of ice around her finger. Plus, a chunk of ice as thin as a ring would need to be would be fragile. Yet, after thinking about it harder, he realized he could maybe solve those problems.
Ice with the zero-point breakthrough was highly-compressed negative flame that was already incredibly hard if it was thick. If he could compress it even further, he could make it harder than steel no matter it's size. Then, if he could make it into layers and insert a wisp of sky flame between those, it might keep it warm enough to be wearable. It was a chance. The only chance he'd have to give her a ring anytime soon.
Tsuna turned off the surveillance in the room that had been set aside for Hibari, knowing this would be the last place anyone would think to look for him. Once that was done, he sat down in the unused sitting area and got to work. Pushing his concentration to the limit, he began by creating the smallest sliver of zero-point ice he could.
"Too big," he mumbled to himself, tossing the sliver aside. He tried again.
And again.
Dozens of times over the course of the next hour he tried again.
This time it came out as thin as he needed, but not strong enough. It broke in half with the slightest bit of pressure due to it's fragile thickness. He concentrated harder, focusing on making it stronger. He had to do this for her. He wanted to do this for her. He tried again.
And again.
Dozens of times over the course of the next couple of hours he tried again.
Before long, there was a growing pile of slivers and shards on the carpet next to the couch he was sitting on. Still, he couldn't compress it enough. He got close a few times, but in the end, they were all easily broken with the butt of his Glock.
"More," he mumbled. This time he focused his will with all his emotion and love he had for Haru, feeding it into the flame as he compressed it more and more before emitting it. He smiled. The sliver was hard enough to withstand all his attempts to break it. He tossed it aside, going on to the next phase; the form and the layers.
He focused, once again feeding all the emotion and will he could into the flame. Concentrating on four things was incredibly hard. Size. Shape. Compression. Layers. He growled to himself when he lost it and a rock-shaped lump of ice came out. He tried again.
And again.
Dozens upon dozens of times over the course of the next several hours he tried again.
He stopped, realizing that he was starting to loose consciousness. Looking over at the pile of shards that had covered the floor and now half of the very couch he was sitting on, he could understand why. All of the shards scattered around him had not only highly-compressed negative energy, his energy, but half of them had easily four times the normal amount of his energy compressed into it. Yet he couldn't give up yet. Looking at the clock, not even half the night had passed while he'd worked, repeatedly focusing on his goal instead of the thousands of mistakes covering the sitting area.
He decided to take a break and get a post-midnight snack to replenish his energy. Ever so quietly, he snuck down to the giant kitchen for the Headquarters. The night-cook caught him with his hands in the fridge, making him give a sheepish grin. The poor man, he hadn't recognized Tsuna at first and had chased him three times around the kitchen with a broom before realizing who he was. Tsuna couldn't blame the cook. He'd almost taken the cooked beef intended for tomorrow's stew by accident.
Tsuna was glad when the man recognized who he was. Tsuna was even happier when his rumbling stomach sent the man to work instead of begging for forgiveness after recognition. The man had simply laughed and pulled out fixings for an extra-large midnight meal. While he cooked, Tsuna sat on a stool and kept trying to get the ice to obey him like he wanted.
"What's that, Tenth?" The cook asked curiously, pointing with a spatula at the growing pile of ice shards on the counter after finally overcoming his surprise at Tsuna creating ice out of nothing. Tsuna sighed, giving up temporarily while he explained.
"I'm trying to make a ring," he said simply.
"Out of ice? Wouldn't that be a wee bit cold?" He said, going back to the stir-fry and noodles he was whipping up; Tsuna's normal night-time craving.
"Well, I'm trying to layer it so that I can put my flame between the layers to keep it warm. I can do that since this ice can't be melted under normal circumstances." To show the cook, he grabbed one of the larger slivers and held it over the cook stove's open flame.
"Well, I'll be," the cook said in appreciation and amazement when the ice didn't melt. Tsuna smiled. He forgot sometimes that stuff like this wasn't your average fare. "So what's the problem?" The cook asked, scrapping the stir-fry and noodles onto a plate and handing it to the starving boss-apparent.
"I can make it hard enough. I can make it small enough. But when I try to layer it and make it into the right shape, I can't keep focus on everything I'm needing it to do," he sighed again around a bite of food.
"So you know all the ingredients, but you can't get it to come out right," the cook said, leaning over the counter while he thought. Tsuna smiled, doubting the man could help any, but appreciative of the thought. He stopped, fork of food halfway to his mouth at the man's next words. "Have you tried taking one of the steps out? I know when I'm in a hurry to get a fancy cake done, I make it look like there are layers when there really aren't." He smiled at Tsuna's look of non-comprehension. "Normally, I make several cakes and then stack them on top of each other with frosting between them like mortar. But when I'm in a hurry, I make a whole, large cake and use a special pan to leave small holes where the frosting would be in a layered cake. Then I inject the frosting inside the holes." He smiled when Tsuna's blank look cleared.
Tsuna thought about it. He'd been trying to make the ring by first worrying about size, shape and hardness, then adding layers so that he could add his flame later between them. If he took out the layers and just changed the shape a bit, it might work. He could make a ring with a hollow inside, insert his flame, then close the hole. He looked at the cook with surprise and amazement, wondering why he hadn't thought of it himself.
"It just might work." The cook smiled widely, proud even someone like him could help Vongola the Tenth. Tsuna scarfed down the last of his food, wanting to get back to work. After a hurried yet genuine thanks and farewell, Tsuna dashed back to Hibari's empty room, careful not to get caught by anyone that might be wandering around this late.
He sat down, rubbing his hands together to warm them before he got started. He stared at his fingers, focusing everything he could on what he wanted to do. Size. Shape. Hardness.
He growled, tossing the first one aside. The shape was all wrong.
The next one was too big and the exterior wasn't smooth enough.
The one after that seemed perfect, but shattered in his hand when he tested it.
He tried again.
And again.
Dozens upon dozens of times again.
He focused everything he could in getting all three parts to come out right at the same time. Finally he thought he had one. He held it up to the light, looking at it closely. It was as clear as glass, smooth and without imperfection. He smiled.
His smile fell when he tried to insert his flame. It only reached around halfway through the ring before hitting a blockage of ice in the hollow core. He tossed it aside and tried again.
And again.
Thousands of times again.
He tried until the couch and floor was covered. He tried until the pile he started throwing behind him rose up and started sliding down his back. He tried a countless amount of times throughout the night. He ignored how tired he became. He ignored the cold that began to seep into him as the room grew chilly from the sheer amount of ice that surrounded him. He ignored everything until finally...finally as the moon set, he created it.
He looked at it in satisfaction, cradling it in his hand. He smiled, closing his fist around it before finally giving in to the darkness creeping around the edges of his vision.
He had made Haru a ring.
"Have you seen Tsu-kun?" Haru asked Gokudera. She had gotten up early to make Tsuna's bento and he'd already been gone. She was worried about him, because he hadn't shown back up by the time she finished getting ready for school. Even Cress had said he didn't know where he was before disappearing on her. Gokudera shook his head at her question.
"Lets go ask Yamamoto and lawn-head," he offered, stepping out of his room and leading her down the hall. Neither of them knew where Tsuna was either. They found out from Yamamoto that he'd missed the target practice that Gokudera had accidentally slept through again, which was unlike him. They looked at each other, wondering if maybe they should call an alert. Before anyone could actually suggest it, Cress came running.
"I've found Lord Tsuna," he said, running past them. The others fell in behind him as he continued running. "I checked the security footage for last night and found out where he went. The room's been in blackout since he went in." He led them into a room they passed multiple times a day. Hibari's room.
"What the hell happened here?" Yamamoto cried. The corner of the room holding the sitting area was covered in a large pile of ice. Yamamoto's cry woke Tsuna and the ice shifted as his head emerged from the pile that had fallen down around him during the night.
"Hunh?" He said sleepily, trying to stand and finding himself stuck deep in the pile of ice shards and nuggets. He looked around for help, automatically getting it as everyone ran forward.
"What's with all of this ice, Tenth?" Gokudera said, grabbing Tsuna's closed fist and pulling him free. He stumbled a bit, taking a bit longer than normal to catch his balance. When he looked up, they all could see him working hard to keep his eyes focused. His face was pale and colorless except for his bright red nose and ears, bringing worried looks from everyone.
"I wad ma'ding dumding," he said. He sniffed, trying to clear his stuffed up nose. "I was mak'ng someding," he managed when he tried again. "I muda fell adeep."
"You were making something and you fell asleep?" Yamamoto looked at him like he was crazy, but Tsuna didn't notice. He nodded, looking a bit unsteady.
"Wha' time id it?" he said, sniffing again before letting out a sudden sneeze. After wiping his nose with a handkerchief Gokudera supplied, he looked out the window and realized that it was already daylight outside. "I gotda get t' targed practid--"
"You've already missed target practice, Tenth," Gokudera said, tossing Tsuna's arm over his shoulder when he began stumbling to the door instead of walking to it. Yamamoto went to Tsuna's other side to help. "We need to get you into a bed. You're freezing. You probably caught a cold from sleeping in a place like this, Tenth."
"I dan't," he mumbled as Gokudera pulled him along. "I got da go da dhool," he said. Haru put her hand to his head when Gokudera stopped at the door to catch his balance.
"You've got a fever, Tsu-kun," she told him in worry. She felt his arms and reached past his sleeping robe to his chest. "And Gokudera's right, the rest of you is freezing. You need rest."
"'Aru?" He asked with a sudden smile, his eyes unfocused again due to his fever. "I dot you dumt'ing," he freed his arm from around Yamamoto, holding out the fist that had been closed ever since he woke up. Since he obviously refused to go to bed until he gave whatever it was to her, she held up her hand. He smiled wider, putting his fist on her open hand and opening it. Something small and warm fell into her palm as Gokudera and Yamamoto tried once again to pull him to his room. Haru's gasp of surprise turned them back around.
It was a ring. It was a smooth and warm ring of impervious zero-point ice. It was as clear as glass with a bright sky flame trapped in it's hollow core. Holes that were so small as to be invisible allowed the warmth of the flame inside to dispell the cold. Looking at it, several of them wondered how he'd managed to trap the flame so that it wouldn't be sucked up by the zero-point ice. It must have taken him hours to get the flame and ice just right so that they wouldn't touch each other.
After a moment, they all looked at Tsuna in suprise and shock. Whether surprise that he'd made something so beautiful or shock that he'd stayed up all night and foolishly fell asleep in ice after making it. He merely smiled at his accomplishment, uncaring of their reactions.
"I dope you dike it, 'aru," he said as best as he could.
"Tsu-kun," Haru said with tears in her eyes. "I love it." She closed her hand around the ring and held it to her heart while she looked at him lovingly with a wide smile of joy on her face. Then her face became tinged exasperation at his single-minded caring, "But you didn't have to stay up all night and let yourself get sick to make me a ring."
"I dunted doo," he said. He sniffed, trying again. "I wand-wanted to. Cause I dove-love you and I wand do marry you."
"Baka," she said, reaching up to where he hung between Gokudera and Yamamoto to kiss him, regardless of his cold. After she broke off, she waited for his eyes to focus again before saying, "I love you, too."
He smiled happily, almost drunkenly, as the two boys dragged him to bed. The whole way he continued trying to tell them around his stuffy nose that he had to go to school because Haru was going to make him a bento. They chuckled at his pleas, dragging him to rest whether he liked it or not. Haru smiled at their chuckles and couldn't blame them. He could barely stand with his fever and he thought he should go to school for Haru's bento!
Behind them, Haru smiled again, silently putting the ring on.
