Author's notes: Double upload! Be sure and review previous chapter before reviewing this one!
"Why did you have to hit him so hard?!" Gigi shouted while she hovered over Suoh in worry. They were in Papa Paolo's office, where the man had hidden Suoh in order to question him himself once he woke. At the moment, they were dealing with the police out front so that he wouldn't be found and they were trying to throw off the description of Gabriel's attacker so that Suoh wouldn't be put in jail. The Family dealt with their own problems and Tsuna had hit them with a huge one by nearly beating Gabriel to death in the middle of the restaurant. "Hasn't he been through enough?!"
"If you expect me to believe that cock-and-bull story, then you can forget it," Isaac spat. "He busted three tables, beat Papa Paolo's son, and forced us to shut down for the day. He's lucky that I left him alive. Traitors don't get a trial."
"Gabriel's the traitor!" Gigi exclaimed. "Is rape something that you people overlook, just because of who did it?!"
"Accuse Boss of rape one more time," Isaac growled in warning, looking like he wanted to punch something simply for the insult. "So help me--" Gigi gasped and backed away from Suoh at the same time that Isaac broke off in surprise. The reason for the surprise was the flame flickering into life on Suoh's head. When he looked up, Gigi felt her stomach sink. There was no hint of the Suoh that she knew twinkling inside.
"I'm alive?" Suoh asked while he blinked slowly in open disorientation.
"Of course you are, sweet-cheeks," Gigi soothed worriedly. "Papa Paolo wouldn't kill you."
"Papa who?" He asked, shaking his head slowly while he looked around the room with a complete lack of recognition. "Where am I? Why have you kidnapped me?"
"S-Suoh...?" Gigi gasped when Suoh surged out of his chair.
"Nice try, asshole," Isaac growled, completely unable to grasp that Suoh wasn't faking. It should have been obvious, but Isaac didn't see the signs. Not only was there the Flame and the look in Suoh's eyes, but he was speaking English with an Italian accent. Suoh wouldn't imitate something like that at a time like this. Gigi didn't think that he could, even if he wanted to. He'd lived in the city so long that he spoke like a native under normal circumstances. "Sit back down," he ordered. Gigi choked when Isaac reached out to push him back down in his seat. Then she found her mind go blank when Isaac's hand was hanging broken before either of them saw Suoh move.
"I don't take orders from underlings," he growled in return, his eyes flashing with a light that Gigi had never seen before. "What Family are you from? I demand to see your Boss."
"Calm down," Gigi exclaimed, reaching out to stop Isaac before he could get over the shock of having his hand broken so easily. "We're not your enemies! Don't you remember, Suoh?! I'm your friend and Isaac is your coworker!"
"Who's Suoh?" He asked with narrowed eyes. "What do you mean by 'coworker'? I don't remember anyone with the audacity to claim such a title."
"Y-You don't remember?" She asked in misery, her face falling completely. She slowly came to understand that the Suoh she loved had been cracked so much by Snicker abandoning him that he'd lost himself. This wasn't Suoh anymore. This... This was someone else entirely. Suoh wouldn't break someone's hand so easily. Suoh wouldn't speak with such a condescending tone.
"Enough," he ordered with a tone of command that Suoh would have never used. "Where's your Boss? If he's not before me in two minutes, I'll tear this place down until I find him. I want some answers and I want them--" Suoh broke off as the door to the office opened and Papa Paolo walked in with Autumn behind him. They both looked haggard and inverted, having something far different on their minds than Suoh's current issue. "Don Martelli," he identified, his gaze becoming even sharper. Papa Paolo froze and his eyes immediately darted to the flame on Suoh's head. It was the same place that Autumn's eyes flew in surprise. "Godfather to an East Coast American Family, current status of neutral, current size is four hundred and fifty-three. Your Family has never once come out of the hole that you've dug for yourselves. May I ask what the meaning of this is?"
"V-V-Vongola the... Tenth..." He murmured in shock while the door quietly fell shut behind him.
"Who else would I be?" He asked with a frown of open displeasure. It was one that seemed to deepen while he suddenly looked down at his hand in order to inspect the glove hiding his retractable blade. "What kind of farce is this? Where's my other glove?"
"F-Forgive my impudence," Papa Paolo said carefully, making everyone's jaws drop with the sole exception of Suoh. "But may I ask what the last thing you remember is?"
"That information is classified," he snapped in return. "Unless you can give me a compelling reason to tell you."
"It would give me a place to start, Don Vongola," he replied politely. Alongside everyone else, Gigi stared at Papa Paolo like he was insane. He was acting like he was confronting another Mafia Boss instead of his errand boy! Then Gigi grimaced, understanding what the others didn't know yet. Papa Paolo had caught on immediately. This wasn't Suoh standing with them. It really was another Mafia Boss. "Please sit," he added graciously. Suoh looked down at his chair again, giving it a look of open distaste before walking around the desk to take Papa Paolo's larger and more comfortable chair. Autumn choked, but Gigi saw that Papa Paolo seemed completely unsurprised by the move.
"Sit," Suoh ordered as if it were his office instead of someone else's. Isaac started to bristle at the tone used, but was silenced almost immediately by a small gesture from Papa Paolo. That almost wasn't enough to hold him back when Suoh smiled quietly in open amusement. If there was one thing that Isaac hated, it was to be looked down on and Suoh was looking down on all of them. "Why don't you send your arm candy after some refreshments? She might as well be useful if you're going to keep her present for our little discussion." Suoh raised an eyebrow in prompt to tell Papa Paolo to clear the room, but the prompt only made Autumn bristle next to Isaac. They both looked ready to explode.
"Autumn is my rightful daughter and heir," Papa Paolo corrected quietly as the woman's head started steaming over being called 'arm candy'.
"Ah," Suoh murmured, blinking rapidly in surprise. "My apologies, then. I hope you'll take my mistake as a compliment toward her beauty. She faintly reminds me of my second wife, may she rest in peace." Gigi felt dizzy for a moment at how smoothly Suoh talked his way out of an insult. Such ease was something that the Suoh she knew could have never accomplished. "May I ask you to introduce the others if you are not to dismiss them? I would not wish to make any more grievous errors."
"This is Isaac, my chef and my heir's right hand," Papa Paolo replied while he carefully sat down. "And this beauty is Gigi."
"And his reason for being here?" Suoh asked with a raised eyebrow.
"That would be because he is your right hand," he answered carefully.
"Gokudera Hayato is my right hand," he shot back almost instantly, his eyes narrowing in like a hawk with prey in sight. "Explain the meaning of your words."
"For me to explain, I need to know how far you remember," he countered with a grimace. "I mean no slight to you, Don Vongola, but much has happened."
"The last thing I remember, eh?" He mused, leaning back in his usurped chair with a sigh. "If I am to tell you, I must have an Oath of Omerta. There are many in my own Family who do not know of what has passed."
"I swear for myself and those under my keeping," Papa Paolo replied solemnly, reaching out to silence Autumn once more when she looked ready to blurt something stupid.
"There's no helping it," Suoh sighed, putting his elbow on his armrest to hold up his head in what looked to be habitual grace. It definitely wasn't a motion that Suoh ever used. Suoh was never in a chair long enough to sit like that. "The last thing I remember is dying."
"C-Could you expand on that?" Papa Paolo asked politely. "I need more of a waypoint to use if I am to explain properly."
"Alright," he agreed with a small smile, seeming to take immense pleasure in how easily he captured everyone's attention. Then his amusement seemed to dissipate while his hands absently clutched onto the armrests. He bowed his head, his unhappiness and anger almost palatable. "My home was invaded by the Todd Family and I foresaw my own death. Rather than lose the lives of my men in their raid, I surrendered. I was taken hostage and tortured in effort to retrieve the codes for the Vongola Master Database. I refused. They kidnapped my wife Kyoko and tortured her before me. I admit that I broke under the pressure. I gave them the codes, knowing that enough time had passed that my Outside Advisor should have already noticed my absence and reacted accordingly. When the codes wouldn't work, they came back and decapitated her before handing me over to Ari."
"And Ari is...?" Papa Paolo prompted quietly, his face completely pale when he thought of himself being in such a position.
"Ari is the most vile and corrupt creature that I have ever had the misfortune to meet," he growled while a fierce killing intent filled the room. It was strong enough that Gigi felt her knees give out and Isaac looked to be barely standing under the force of Suoh's anger. Papa Paolo looked ready to kneel over and Autumn looked ready to faint. They'd never felt anything like it before. He pulled it back almost instantly, but Gigi thought she could almost see it radiating just under his skin.
"Ari was the leader of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse and my greatest enemy," he continued in a monotone voice. "She entrapped my soul and stole my body, using it as a puppet to try to destroy my Family. Mukuro freed me after several months and I went to confront my physical counterpart. Due to unfortunate circumstances and my Lightening Guardian's clumsy nature, it was sent ten years in the past where it lived and bred with my body until it had the poor luck to come in contact with me. It was an unfortunate time paradox that I was not able to correct with hindsight. That is why I am currently at a loss for my existence. I killed my body in the past and buried it. The last thing I remember is plunging past Limbo to ensure that Ari could not escape death's jaws a third time. I still have the memory of the Lake-Dwellers tearing my Flame and my spirit into pieces. How it has come to pass that I'm still alive when I should not be is something I wish for you to explain to me, Don Martelli. I would also like you to explain these filthy garments that I'm wearing, my missing eye, and my missing glove."
"I-I'm not sure where to start," Papa Paolo replied with far more fortitude than Gigi would have given him credit for. She felt like her own head was spinning from all the information that Suoh had just unloaded. Half of it didn't make sense, but she got enough to know that Suoh had been part of something epic.
"Start at the beginning and we'll go from there," Suoh replied, looking up with a bright smile. It was as if everything he'd just said was a routine work-day that he was completely unconcerned about.
"For starters, you've been living in this city for three years," Papa Paolo said, standing up abruptly to go to a locked filing cabinet on one side of the room. He started rifling through it and it only took a moment for Gigi to see that he was looking for Suoh's file. "You were already going by the name Suoh when you got here. I had my eye on you for a while before you joined the Martelli Family, so I can--."
"I what?" Suoh asked with another menacing growl.
"Here you go," Papa Paolo panted running back to the desk with Suoh's file in hand. "Most of it is all in there. I've been keeping an eye on you, son. I've done my best to keep you out of trouble but--"
"Go back to the part where you said I joined your Family," Suoh interrupted with his nose flaring in anger.
"You didn't want to go back," Gigi found herself saying from her seat on the floor next to Papa Paolo's chair when the man started gaping like a floundering fish. "You said you couldn't remember anything that happened from the time that you were fifteen. You ran away from home because you didn't want to kill and hurt people. You've always been afraid that they'd find you and force you to get your memories back so that you would become a murderer again."
"Oi," Tsuna groaned, slapping his face over his hand to hide the look of pained understanding on his face. "That sounds like something I'd do. I never wanted to be a Mafia Boss to begin with. I can just imagine how I reacted if I woke up with the mind of my fifteen-year-old self. Although, now that you mention it, I can't seem to remember anything before the Ring Battles. Alright, say I believe this. You still haven't explained my glove, my eye, nor why I haven't been returned to my Family."
"I don't understand what you mean by your glove," Papa Paolo said when Gigi shrugged without understanding herself. In answer, Suoh held up the glove that didn't have a knife hidden in it. It morphed and melted across his hand, gleaming like mercury until it seemed to solidify as a full glove. On the back was a dull and lifeless, cracked and blackened dome which seemed to take even Suoh by surprise.
"No," he moaned while he stared at it in horror.
"W-What's wrong?" Autumn asked in a trembling voice.
"There is no greater proof," he answered with his distress plain on his face. "My ancestors have seen my betrayal and have punished me. The power that they granted me is broken. I have worked so long and so faithfully, yet I have turned traitor to my own Family. Why did I turn my back to them? Tell me Mr. Martelli."
"Call me Papa Paolo if you wish to speak informally, son," Papa Paolo said quietly, smiling slightly when Suoh seemed to take on a more Suoh-like expression.
"I am Tsuna," he replied softly.
"Tsuna," he repeated, sagging slightly as the tenseness seemed to flow out of him entirely. "From one Boss to another, I think you know why you did what you did. Suoh was naive when he came to me. He still had that pure light in his eyes and that untainted spirit. From what I can gather, you were barely into getting your feet wet and then you woke up to what you'd become seven years later. I've seen my own daughter grow much in the past year, so I know that seven years can turn an innocent man into a cold-blooded killer. You saw what was at the end of the road you were on and you decided to jump ship. Without the experiences and memories of what you probably went through during those years with your men, the bond between you was weakened. You saw too much and you weren't prepared to handle it. It's as simple as that."
"I can imagine," he sighed sadly, his eyes seeming to suddenly hold so many secrets. "I do not know the person that I was before, but I know that I have went through much in the years that I remember. Each scar that I bear is a testament to those years. I could not imagine what I would be like without them."
"If you want to know, it's all in that file," Papa Paolo prompted, pointing to the closed folder on the desk. Tsuna blinked and hesitantly reached out to pick it up. Opening it, he quietly read to himself for several minutes until a sudden burst of laughter caught everyone off-guard. "What's so funny?" Papa Paolo asked for everyone.
"Ah, it's nothing," he chuckled with a spark of amusement dancing in his eyes. "To see that Xanxus found me and bought me was just a bit of a surprise. He always was one to get his own way. It took much work to break him of that habit and it seems that my efforts were wasted upon my death." Then his eyes narrowed and his amusement was wiped away when he read past that. "I was raped and beaten?" He prompted with a look of displeasure. "I assume that the culprit was identified and dealt with?"
"In a manner of speaking," Papa Paolo confirmed with a pale face. No one argued with the statement, finding something else to look at rather than let him know that it'd happened a second time. Tsuna looked suspicious at the answer, but mollified when he turned to continue reading. He flipped through several more pages before pausing once more to look up at Papa Paolo unhappily. "Is something wrong?"
"I'm your errand boy," he stated blandly. Papa Paolo turned as pale as death. "You've known all along who I was and you chose to make me into an errand boy and a dishwasher."
"Yes, I did," Papa Paolo confirmed, not denying the truth in the least.
"I like your audacity," Tsuna exclaimed, instantly going from unhappy to merry with a fit of uncontrollable laughter. "Oh my! Me! An errand boy! I wish more Bosses had your guts!" Tsuna continued with his breathless laughter while Papa Paolo gaped in surprise. Gigi didn't feel much different. Of all the reactions that she could have imagined, acceptance and amusement wasn't in the list. "Seriously," he panted with a wide grin, wiping tears out of his eyes while he started to calm down. "You're definitely a man that I could call friend under different circumstances. We're not that much different. I, too, had my moments of audacity. Why, I even turned the most feared hitman in northern Italy into a... a nanny..." Tsuna froze, his face taking on a look of utter shock that left Gigi and everyone else faintly confused. "My kids," he breathed, racing through the rest of the file in a panic. "What happened to my kids? What about Hotaru and Ieyasu? You said that three years have passed. What happened to my children in that time? How is my dear Haru faring? What about Hayato and Takeshi and Ryohei and Lambo? Where's the information on my Family?!"
"Calm down!" Papa Paolo exclaimed. Standing up, he reached across the desk and boldly grabbed Tsuna's hands. He had no fear anymore and there was no hesitation. For all of them, the mighty tiger had suddenly turned into a scurrying mouse. "Vongola is fine!" He soothed, instantly getting Tsuna's attention. "Your son, you said his name was Hotaru?"
"Yes," he gasped, nodding frantically. "What's become of Hotaru?"
"He's still firmly in place as Vongola the Eleventh," Papa Paolo said with purposeful eye contact. "I've been doing my best to keep an eye on them for you. From the outside, everything has been running smoothly. There's a few things that might surprise you, but there's no reason to panic. I have an informant permanently stationed in Venice Row. She sends me all the rumors that she comes across, so I can stay up to date. You might even know her. She goes by the codename of Pink at her bar."
"P-Pink...?" Tsuna gaped, blinking rapidly in surprise. "You know Pink?"
"Yes," he nodded. "She's one of my God-daughters and she's been in place for years. I can't stay neutral if I can't get information. She's good at picking up on small cues and she never spills a secret once she's promised to--"
"I know Pink," Tsuna interrupted with his own pale face for once. "I worked for her under the code-name of Orange for a while. I was a bouncer at her club on the weekends."
"You have my condolences for such an experience," Papa Paolo said sadly. There was no hint of mockery in his voice. He was sincerely sorry, which made Gigi wonder what kind of things went on in the club named.
"An arm and a leg was nothing compared to the assignments I received from the Ninth," Tsuna replied. "Tell me. Tell me everything. I beg you."
"There's no need to beg," he said like an admonishing parent. "I'll tell you. Just sit and listen, son." Tsuna sat at his direction, for once looking incredibly uncomfortable in the chair that he'd usurped. "I'm not sure where to start," he mused in thought upon taking his own seat. "Your son is keeping the throne under his own power. The Vongola Guardians of the previous generation have mostly all retired or scattered. You wife, Haru, was declared a widow. I'm afraid that current gossip has her engaged to a Mr. Hibari Kyoya."
"Hibari would be the only one to dare," Tsuna commented with a faintly hurt expression. "Haru always was one to be drawn to strength, as well. I'm honestly not surprised if they think that I'm dead."
"Pink has told me that Gokudera Hayato was important to you," he continued after a moment to grimace in sympathy. "He's currently working as the president of Vongola Corp until your son comes of age. Yamamoto Takeshi and his son have both retired to Japan. I do believe that she said he was playing some kind of sports now."
"Baseball," Tsuna supplied with a soft smile. "So, he got to follow his dreams after all."
"Who else is there?" Papa Paolo murmured, scratching his chin while he tried to pull up another tidbit that Pink had sent him. "Ah, your mother had a little boy. She named him Timoteo."
"Mother did?" He asked quietly. "She must have artificially gotten herself pregnant."
"How did you know?" Papa Paolo asked in surprise.
"Because the man at her side is incapable of having children," he replied, bowing his head to hide his expression once more. "I made sure of that so that there could be no confusion. What of Lambo?"
"Ah! He's studying at Don Girarde. He's due to graduate this year."
"Ryohei?"
"I don't know that name, son."
"Fuuta?"
"I don't know that name, either."
"Matsu?"
"Red-headed guy, right? Pink said that he retired to Japan, too. He's some kind of liaison now."
"Sakura?"
"He's at your son's side. He's still working as a top-notch physician and he's still one of the only pacifists left in the Mafia."
"Xanxus?"
"That's a tough one," Papa Paolo grimaced, making Tsuna lift his head up. "Not because I know too little, but because I know too much. It seems that Xanxus is one of Pink's regulars. He goes in several times a week to see a little councilor girl that they got working there."
"White," Tsuna supplied with his face seeming to crumple. "Poor Xanxus. I was just getting him to open up to people. Now he's not just lost his father, but he thinks that he lost me, too. He never had anyone else but me and the Varia."
"She said that he's taken to isolation when he's not going in for his appointments," Papa Paolo continued in sympathy. "She said that he's also taken to keeping a two-tailed dog at his side and a hovering mini-bot with him at all times. Frankly, I'm not sure if I believe her on that part. She says that he has a that can dog can sit on a chair and drink from a cup like a person. Supposedly, he trades shots with the beast. The mini-bot seems to be a link with someone at his headquarters from what she told me. The thing supposedly talks to him and translates for the smart dog."
"Ginger and Pandora," Tsuna supplied with a lopsided grin, trying to hide the tears in his eyes. "The information is accurate. That tells me that he kept my tanuki and they're still working on Pandora's body. She's the AI for the Vongola Database. What about Mukuro? I saw what you had in the report, but what's the truth? Why did he disappear on me? I can't even feel my connection to him and the Chain isn't responding to my summons."
"He's locked up in a Vendiche prison," Papa Paolo answered, shaking his head slightly to brush away the confusion about Tsuna's comment. "From what I'm told, they got him tied up in a shielded room so that he can't use any of his strange abilities. I'm afraid that my information stops there. Pink tried digging more when he went missing on you, but they warned her off."
"They're afraid of what he'll do without me to keep him in line," Tsuna sighed, the hurt in his eyes seeming to get even deeper. Gigi instantly hated that look. It was a look that seemed to dive straight into Tsuna's core. No person should carry such heartache. It made Gigi want to cry and she didn't even know why he was hurting so much. "Everything is wrong. This isn't the happy future that I was promised. Without true closure with my death, everything is askew. This isn't the future that I chose."
"What are you talking about?" Gigi asked worriedly.
"My death was foretold," he answered mournfully. "Vongola has information sources that you couldn't possibly understand. I was told that I was to die and I accepted it. I accepted it because I believed in the strength of my Family and I saw the future that they were going to receive for their loss. I did my best to prepare, but something went wrong. I was supposed to die when I pulled Ari down into the depths. They shouldn't have been able to save me after that point, but I am here when I shouldn't be. My death was a necessary factor and I failed them by living."
"How sure are you that you had to die to get the future that you wanted?" Papa Paolo asked curiously, instantly getting everyone's attention. "The reason I ask is because they do believe that you are dead. Or did your magical foresight tell you that you couldn't come back?"
"I--" Tsuna paused and clamped his lips shut while he thought about it. "It's possible," he admitted quietly. "He only said that I was dead. He never specified how or when, so it's very possible that he didn't know. If that's the case, then..."
"Then?" Autumn asked with a dose of calm that Gigi didn't expect from the woman.
"Then I can't go home," he said miserably. "Not until ten years have passed from the day of my wedding and my wedding was in the summer before my twenty-first birthday."
"You just turned twenty-five a few months ago," Gigi supplied at his questioning look, slowly standing now that her legs were willing to work again. "It's January now. I... I don't know how to tell you this, b-but you just celebrated your first anniversary last week."
"My anniversary?" Tsuna blinked in total shock, staring down at Papa Paolo's desk and the folder on it. Then his eyes softened slightly. "I didn't read closely enough. That man that I teamed up with. It's him. Isn't it? Snickerdoodle or whatever his name was."
"Yes," Gigi confirmed carefully while Autumn and Papa Paolo held their breath in waiting for his reaction.
"He has suffered because of me," Tsuna stated softly. There was no question to the statement. He stated it like it was a fact, even though he knew nothing of their relationship. "For his sake, he should leave me. No good comes from forming an attachment with me. Only those who know me distantly can ever find joy in my presence. People blind themselves to what is around them and only find misery when they keep their eyes on the Sky. You. You said that you were a friend to me?"
"Yes," she nodded, feeling incredibly disturbed at Tsuna's comments. "We live together at the Dojo and I've--"
"Get away while you can," he murmured without looking at her. "I say this for your own sake. I am grateful that you have helped shelter me while I've been asleep, but one day I will return to my Family. Four years has already elapsed. In six, you will lose me completely. It is better that you let go now. There's no need for you to suffer for befriending me unknowingly. The same goes for any of--" Tsuna broke off in shock at the hand that smacked across his face. The sound seemed to echo in the small room, making everyone else choke and nearly foam at the mouth. Gigi didn't care. She wasn't about to sit and listen to Tsuna-- No! Suoh! She wasn't about to sit and listen to Suoh say such things about himself!
"Now, you see here!" She roared. "I don't care if you're Vongola the Tenth, the President, or the Queen of England! I go where I want to go and I make friends with who I want to be friends with! If you don't like me being your friend, then just say it, but I'm not going to sit here and listen to you talk about yourself like you're cursed! I've had enough of that today, thank you very much! Now, you're either going to get it in your head that you're stuck with me or else I'm going to bend you over my knee and spank you until you squawk like a plucked chicken!"
"Gigi--" Autumn choked.
"Oh, I'm just getting started," Gigi warned, taking a deep breath before continuing. She'd been silent long enough! "I also think you owe Isaac an apology for breaking his hand and your smooth talking still isn't the same as apologizing to Autumn for calling her 'arm candy'! You two bicker enough without you insulting her like that! You also need to apologize to Papa Paolo for being so rude and taking his chair, plus you need to thank him for taking care of you all this time! He's been nothing but good to you and you just ran right over him like you're a freaking freight train! And another thing--!"
"I'm sorry," Tsuna interrupted with a formal bow. Gigi froze with her mouth still hanging open, having thought that she'd only get to say a few more sentences before he exploded over being slapped. This reaction, like all of his others, threw her completely by surprise. "You perfectly correct in your summary," he added as he rose back up. "In my own defense, I was in a rather perilous situation in my last memory. I'm far too used to using my title and power as Vongola the Tenth to deal with rival Bosses. When I woke, I truly believed myself to be in enemy hands. Now that I have seen otherwise, allow me to apologize for my high-handed attitude. It was deemed necessary at the time, but that does not excuse such behavior in light of all you have done for me."
"A speech fit for a Mafia Boss," Papa Paolo chuckled with a crooked grin. "I have to admit, I see where the rumors about you came from. At the same time, you're nothing like I could have imagined."
"My training was thorough," Suoh replied. "But that is in the past. For now, I must admit that I'm at a loss for what to do. I have six years to wait out in order to ensure that the prophecy comes to pass. Vongola must not know that I have survived until that time, so I have no aid from that quarter. It might be troublesome for you, but I fear that I must request asylum."
"There's no need for that, son," Papa Paolo said with a small shake of his head. "Whether you accept it or not yet, you're still part of my Family. You passed the trial and that's all I need to know. It might be demeaning to you, but you've already got a life to wait your time out with. You've got a name and a husband. You've got a job and friends and a purpose here. You've done a lot in these past few years and it'd be a shame to throw all that away."
"True," he murmured with a slow nod. "Alright. I'll continue with whatever life that my younger self created for me. Gigi, I'm afraid I'll have to ask your assistance. I know nothing of this city nor of the people in it."
"No problem," Gigi smiled. "Maybe you'll remember something while I show you around. Just..." She grimaced, but there was one thing that had to be dealt with before anything else. "Do you think you can turn the fireworks off? It's kind of eye-catching."
"Fireworks?" He repeated. Then he looked up, nearly going cross-eyed in order to look at the Flame still brightly flickering on his head. "That's odd," he mumbled. "I don't remember releasing it. Give me a second and--" Suoh's body crumpled into Papa Paolo's chair at the same moment that the Flame on his head went out. Gigi was first to his side, calling his name urgently in worry while she tried to wake him.
"What happened?" Autumn asked with wide eyes.
"Hell if I know," Gigi growled. "This boy throws me for more twists and turns than a rollercoaster. Why don't you-- Oh. He's coming around. Sweet-cheeks? Err, Tsuna? Are you okay?"
"Ngn," he groaned as his eyes flickered open. "Gigi? Did Snicker come back?" Gigi stared at Suoh in shock, her jaw slowly dropping when she heard his accent return to normal instead of that Italian smooth-talking voice he'd used before. She could see it in Suoh's eyes as he slid out of the chair and to the floor. He was back. The Suoh that knew her and the Suoh that was so adorably devoted to Snicker was back! Without even thinking, she threw her arms around him in relief and started crying in joy. She hadn't wanted to say anything, but she hadn't been sure if it would have felt right to care about the changed Suoh. That didn't matter now, though. This was the Suoh that she loved and counted as a friend! He was back to normal and...
And crying.
"Suoh...?" Gigi asked, pulling back her own tears and her joy at the sound of his weeping into her shoulder.
"Snicker was supposed to come back," he cried, reminding Gigi of the other issue that still had yet to be resolved. "I made Gabriel go away so that he'd come back, but he didn't come back! What did I do wrong, Gigi?! What can I do so that he'll come back?!"
"Suoh," Papa Paolo called, quickly grasping the situation while Isaac and Autumn simply stood in dumbfounded confusion. Suoh stiffened in Gigi's arms and his sobbing stopped so quickly that he hiccupped. He was terrified upon realizing that Papa Paolo was in the room. "Come here, Suoh," he ordered quietly. Trembling the whole way, Suoh pulled out of Gigi's arms and slowly stood. It was almost painful to watch him walk around Papa Paolo's desk in order to stand before him. Compared to the strong and seemingly unbreakable person that he'd presented himself as a few minutes ago, this Suoh seemed frail and shattered. "Suoh," he said carefully, reaching out to grab Suoh's shaking hands from where he was seated. "Do you remember how you got in this office?"
"N-No," he answered with a shudder. "T-The last thing that I-I remember is Isaac h-hitting me."
"I see," he murmured in thought. "In that case, I want you to tell me why you attacked my son. Be honest with me."
"I-I--" Once more Suoh shuddered, but this time it released a spate of silent tears down his face.
"Did he hurt you, Suoh?" Papa Paolo prompted.
"Y-Yes," he answered, his shoulders and chest shaking from the effort to hold himself together.
"Was he the one that hurt you in that alley?" He asked, craning his neck to keep eye contact when Suoh bowed his head to hide his face once more.
"Y-Yes," he admitted. "H-Him and h-his friends cornered me. I-I didn't know h-how to fight back then."
"And you've kept it secret all this time," Papa Paolo stated. "Why?"
"H-He's your s-son," Suoh answered in a small voice. "Y-You wouldn't have b-believed me."
"Why did you attack him now?" He asked mercilessly. In response, Suoh clenched his eyes shut before sending a glance toward Autumn and Isaac. He didn't want either of them to hear. His pride and dignity was already damaged enough. "Both of you get out of here," Papa Paolo ordered. "Isaac, go get that hand looked at by Jules. Tell no one of what you've heard or seen in here." Both of them nodded before quietly leaving the room. Once alone, Gigi walked forward to put her hands on Suoh's shoulders in support.
"Go ahead, Suoh," Gigi encouraged gently. "I'm here for you and Papa Paolo will hear you out fairly."
"I will," he confirmed with a small nod. "Tell me. What crimes has Gabriel committed against you?"
It was slow at first. It was both slow and painful to watch as Papa Paolo dragged the truth from Suoh. She could see it, though. The longer that Papa Paolo went without condemning him and the more that he heard Papa Paolo's sympathetic tone, the more that Suoh seemed to get his strength of heart back. He was still weak, but telling someone who could make a difference and being believed made a huge difference. There were still tears and there were still moments that Suoh looked ready to faint, but he slowly seemed willing to talk about it without being forced.
"What you did is going to take some work to cover up," Papa Paolo murmured while Suoh sniffed and hiccupped in the chair that he'd been given. "It's the least that we can do for you after such a gross oversight on my part. I can't begin to tell you how apologetic I am that my son took part in such a--"
"You believe me?" Suoh asked in shock.
"Suoh," he replied quietly. "You are the same young man who came to me and said 'I want to be good.' Aren't you? I can't see you making such a claim unless it was the unvarnished truth. I can't see you attacking my son unless he had reason to be attacked. In short, yes. I believe you, son. Gabriel's hobbies have always disturbed me, but I thought it was still innocent rough-housing and boyish pranks. I didn't know that he'd escalated into such misdeeds. I hope that you can forgive me for--"
"Forgive you?" Suoh squeaked with wide eyes. "For what? Gabriel's the one that hurt me! It wasn't your fault! I-I should have trusted you sooner. I just... I didn't want... I couldn't..."
"That is what I should apologize for," he said softly. "You believed that I would hold blood to be thicker than water. That means that you don't truly feel that you are part of my Family, because all of my Family is my blood. You are just as much a son of Martelli as Gabriel is and I'm not a man who picks favorites between my children. I want you to know that, Suoh. If I'd made you understand that sooner, perhaps I could have kept Gabriel in line better."
"You can't be everywhere," Suoh objected with another sniff while he rubbed his eyes with the handkerchief that he'd been given.
"Go home," he ordered gently. "Get some rest and I'll see what I can do about finding Snicker for you. If I have to, I'll tie him up and talk some sense into him personally now that you've told me the truth of yourself. Don't worry," he added. "I'll keep it secret. I can see why you've hidden it from me until now. Gigi, see what you can do about getting him a solid alibi for this morning. I--" All three of them froze at the whirlwind that burst through the office door, knocking everyone speechless in a heartbeat. Before Gigi could even register who it was, he was gone with Suoh thrown over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "W-Was that who I think it was?" Papa Paolo asked belatedly, his eyes going as round as dish-plates over the sudden kidnapping.
"Yes," Gigi laughed. "I guess he's made up his mind. It's about time. He really was starting to worry me. This is the longest that he ever took to realize how much of a moron that he's been."
"That's a relief," Papa Paolo sighed. "That boy needs some good news after all of this. Well, go see what you can do about his alibi and I'll go see what I can do about getting the restaurant open for dinnertime. After that, I need to figure out how to deal with Gabriel. Oh," he added with a twinkle in his eyes. "And tell Snicker to knock next time."
"Will do," Gigi replied with a quirkily salute and a wide grin. Walking out of the door, she stretched slightly as she walked through the restaurant and out the front doors. Despite everything, the sun had come out and was shining high in the Sky. For some reason, the fact made her smile. No matter what happened and no matter how dark things seemed, things always looked brighter once the night was over.
And today looked like it was going to be a very bright day.
"I lied about drinking that case of beer."
"Eh?" Tsuna gaped, trying to understand what was going on. One minute, he was sitting in Papa Paolo's office and in the next, he was slung over Snicker's shoulder. Snicker didn't even give him time to feel relief or joy. He has simply thrown him over his shoulder and bolted out of the place before anyone could stop them. It wasn't as if Tsuna wanted to stop him. Snicker could do anything he wanted. What made him gape was to hear Snicker toss out such an off-the-wall comment while he found himself carried down alley after alley without pause.
"I lied about eating the last of the mint ice cream," he added with a firm nod, which only confused Tsuna even more. What was he suddenly saying? "I was the one that taped over your favorite show, too. It wasn't Eric. I also lied about bleaching your favorite shirt. That wasn't Dedra. I meant to tell you the truth, but she covered for me. The truth is that I wanted to do your laundry myself and I got the detergents mixed up. I also lied about Peanut eating your comic book. I made that up because I spilled chili on it and didn't want you to know."
"S-Snicker...?"
"Hush," he ordered, bouncing Tsuna on his shoulder to silence him. "I ain't done yet. I lied about going to play basketball with the guys. The truth is that we went down to a titty bar to make Tracer blush. I lied about getting you those plane tickets. I really just wrote you a dirty limerick to make you laugh, but Summer slapped me upside the head and told me what to go get instead. I lied about saving my money back for that, too. The truth is that everyone pitched in and got them for you when I said that I was broke from spending everything at the titty bar. I lied about being allergic to cats so that you wouldn't let the strays in that you've been feeding. I lied about Gigi borrowing your bath salts and spilling them. I didn't want you to know that I'd been using them because I thought you'd tease me. I lied about Leo wiping the computer by accident. You know I ain't good with that kind of stuff. I lied about Ollie breaking that tea set that you got for your birthday. The truth is that I was playing pool with Ore and my jump shot went flying a little too much. The ball landed in the sink and broke damn near every dish that Dedra had been washing."
"Anything else you want to tell me?" Tsuna asked tonelessly while Snicker burst through the Dojo doors and practically stormed through the place with Tsuna still on his shoulders.
"I got a shit-ton," he answered as he rushed up the stairs to their bedroom. "But I'm probably already in enough trouble with all of that. The point that I guess I'm trying to make is that you've only lied to me once and I've lied tons more. My little white lies might not have seemed that bad while I was telling them, but they pile up. I'd say they about rack up even to one year's worth of one big lie. Don't you think?"
"Eh?" Tsuna gasped when Snicker tossed him on the bed without a single grunt of warning. His breathe caught in his throat, forming a lump that silenced him when he looked up to see Snicker hovering on all fours over him before he could even think of getting back to his feet. More important than Snicker being on top of him, though, was his expression. His face was covered in regret, pain, and apology.
"I'll admit that it hurt to hear that you lied to me," Snicker said solemnly, bowing his head while he tried to find the right words to explain. "It also hurts to hear that you're one of those sat--" Snicker broke off immediately upon seeing Tsuna's own hurt expression. They both knew what he was going to say. "Sorry," he amended quietly. "I guess I shouldn't say things like that anymore. It hurts to know that you have to take part in that kind of stuff because I didn't watch your back good enough. I--" Snicker held up a finger of warning when Tsuna tried to immediately object, silencing him long enough so that he could finished. "I want you to know that Poe is wrong, though. Even if you're damned or cursed or whatever you guys like to call it, I've decided that I don't care. I might be sleeping next to the damned, but you've been sleeping next to a damned fool all this time."
"Joshua..."
"Now that I've said that," he said with a firm nod to himself, his expression darkening almost instantly. "I want you to stay here where it's safe while I go have a nice talk with Gabriel. That bastard has a lot to answer for."
"Wait!" Tsuna choked. Snicker paused in the middle of pushing himself off the bed at the two small arms that Tsuna sat up to throw around his waist.
"Don't stop me, Suoh," Snicker mumbled around a kiss to the top of Tsuna's head. "I'm not going to sit back while he hurts you anymore. You made me promise not to do anything last time, but it's different this time. Not only did he hurt you, but he even dragged my son into his schemes. He's not going to get away with it."
"He's already in the hospital," Tsuna replied quietly, burying his face into Snicker's chest so that he could wash away the scent of everything else. It was like aromatherapy for his heart. Snicker had such an earthy scent that it was calming and fortifying. It made him feel safe and protected while it wiped away all the pain and the misery of the past day. "I beat him up and then I told Papa Paolo everything, Snicker. I thought Gabriel was why you weren't coming back, so I took care of him."
"Y-You what?"
"I took care of him," Tsuna repeated, squeezing Snicker even tighter. He wouldn't let go. Not when Snicker was so close and he'd said such things with such sweet intent. He'd wanted Tsuna to not feel bad about having lied, so he'd owned up to his own white lies. He had already had time to figure out the reasons for himself and had come to understand Tsuna's decision to hide it. He'd accepted it and had moved onto the bigger issue of accepting that Tsuna was a werewolf. For him, that was the biggest hurdle to leap. Lobat made him act like a school girl faced with a sewer rat. Poe gave him nightmares and chills. It wasn't because of who they were. It was because of what they were. From what he'd explained, anything that sucked blood terrified him. They terrified him, but he'd said that he wasn't going to let that deep-set fear stop him. Even more touching was his declaration and intent to protect Tsuna. He wasn't thinking about consequences or circumstances. None of that mattered in the face of his feelings. "I won't let him get between us anymore."
"You confronted Gabriel?" Snicker asked in dumbfounded shock, his whole body stiffening at the thought. "By yourself?"
"I didn't plan to," Tsuna sighed in Snicker's arms. He barely noticed Snicker's reaction to his words. All that mattered was his warmth, his smell, and his kindness. As long as Tsuna had that, nothing could stop him. "I was waiting outside for you and then Gigi said it was time for me to go to work. I figured that you'd expect me to be there, so I went. A-And then Gabriel touched me again." Despite himself, Tsuna shuddered in Snicker's arms at the memory of that touch. The memory made him feel slimy and tainted. It made his skin crawl so badly that he quickly had to hold back the desperate urge to shower so that he could get clean again. "It's hard to remember what happened after that. I got really mad because I thought he was the reason that you weren't back yet. I-I remember hitting him. I hit him a lot of times before Autumn jumped in. After that, I blacked out. When I woke back up, Papa Paolo said that Gabriel was in the hospital and made me tell him everything. That's when you showed up to steal me away."
"I don't understand," Snicker objected while his arms protectively clutched Tsuna's shoulders. "You were always scared of him before. How did you--?"
"I started to think that I lost you," Tsuna answered, pulling back slightly so he could look up into Snicker's weathered face. "I can't do anything about being a werewolf, but I thought you'd come back if I made Gabriel go away. Since it was for you, I wasn't scared at all."
"Suoh, you--"
"Can we go take a shower?" He interjected in a small voice, feeling his skin crawling even worse simply by hearing and saying the man's name. "I can still smell him on me and pickled olives make my stomach upset."
"Pickled olives?" He repeated in confusion.
"Um, yeah," Tsuna confirmed, biting his lip over the fact that Snicker could actually know about his sense of smell now. "Everyone smells different since I got turned. Gabriel smells like pickled olives and Poe smells like peppered beef and cinnamon rolls."
"I-I see," he replied with a raised eyebrow. "Do I want to know what I smell like?"
"Beefcake and brown gravy," Tsuna supplied with a wide grin. "Your sweet side is candied-apples."
"I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not," Snicker commented with a bewildered expression. Tsuna chuckled slightly at him, seeing that he was trying to imagine himself in such terms. It obviously wasn't as easy as he thought. Then his expression changed and there was a hesitancy that immediately caught Tsuna's attention. "Suoh, I-I...uh...how do I say this?"
"What's wrong?" Tsuna asked curiously, seeing his face alternate between green and red until it was almost as if he was a Christmas tree.
"I want you to bite me," he finally blurted while his face decided that red was the color to go with. "You don't have to bite Poe anymore. I-I've got to admit that it scares me, b-b-but I'd rather--"
The sound of Tsuna's roar of laughter interrupted him. He couldn't help it. The image of Tsuna offering himself to Poe popped in his head and he wondered if he had been so adorably earnest at that time. Just like he had been, Snicker was frightened by the idea, but willing to submit anyway because of the strength of his caring. At the same time, he was embarrassed due to all the depictions of vampires being sensual beings when they bit.
His naivety left Tsuna with no other option but to fall back onto the bed and laugh.
"Sorry, sorry," he gasped while he tried to regain control of himself. Snicker had a dumbfounded look on his face, having been completely thrown off balance by Tsuna's reaction to his offer. "It's just your face-- and then you said-- and then--" Once more, Tsuna devolved into a fit of laughter that left him gasping for air. He'd seen Snicker's naive side plenty of times when they'd first gotten together, but he never though he'd see this level of innocence from the man. He was acting almost virginal again, which was definitely a reason to laugh.
"I'm being serious, damnit!" Snicker exclaimed with an even brighter blush, which only made Tsuna laugh harder. "It's not funny! I don't want you biting Poe when I'm right here!" At that, Tsuna's laughter faltered. Snicker's expression was quickly taking on a hurt tone. He'd been trying to give Tsuna a token of his caring with the offer and Tsuna had laughed at him. It made Tsuna want to slap himself.
"I can't eat you," Tsuna replied in concern for how he'd hurt Snicker's feelings. Snicker froze while Tsuna slowly sat back up on the bed with Snicker still straddling his lap. "I wish I could, but I'm not a vampire. I Changed differently when I was turned. I'm a werewolf, Joshua. I can't feed from just anyone like Poe does. I've already tried and it doesn't work. I have to feed from a vampire to keep my sanity and Poe is the only one in the city. I've never had a choice in that. If I did, I probably would have told you about it earlier."
"Oh," he said disconcertedly. "Then last night...?"
"It was just like I told you," Tsuna smiled. "We weren't doing anything other than biting. Poe has no interest in me as anything other than food nor do I have any interest in him other than for my sanity. We are friends with a codependency, Joshua. Nothing more."
"And you can't bite me instead?" Snicker asked, trying to ensure that he perfectly understood the situation.
"I didn't say that," he murmured with a playful smile. "I just said that I couldn't eat you." Tilting his head backward in effort to illicit a kiss, Tsuna grinned widely at the flabbergasted look on Snicker's blushing face. As always, seeing Snicker act in such a hesitant and innocent way brought out the strangest desires in Tsuna. "If you give me enough incentive, I still might bite, Kuma-kun."
As if the pet name was a spark, Snicker fell forward with a groan in order to pin Tsuna to the bed with a hungry kiss. It was wonderful and delightful. It was full of desire and passion. It was desperate and floundering. Snickers lips were warm and moist while they hungrily chomped on Tsuna's very breathe.
The world spun while he tried to fight the bruising lips that crashed against his wet face.
Gasping, Tsuna broke off with a shudder at the memory that surfaced. Hiding his disorientation and the faint queasiness that resulted from it, he tried to ignore the cold lead in his stomach so that he could enjoy making up with Snicker. That was what made arguments and marital spats worth the effort. They got to make up afterwards and strengthen their feelings for one another. He wanted to give himself to Snicker as a token that his lapse was forgiven. He wanted Snicker to take him so that he would know that he was completely forgiven in return. He refused to let--
His mind went blank for a moment when Snicker's hands rambled up his arms so they could clasp Tsuna's hands and his lips went for the sweet spot on Tsuna's neck. It was the same spot that Poe had told him repeatedly that it didn't actually taste sweet.
While three men held him in waiting of something, Tsuna felt his bile rise as vertigo set in. After that, he felt what they were waiting on. He felt it as soon as he breathed in to sneeze from the drug that had been blown into his face. His heart started racing faster and the room started spinning more randomly. With every second that passed, he could feel a heat and a sweat building in his body. The feeling scared him, making him put in more effort into an attempt to get free. Someone sat on him. He couldn't tell who. He couldn't see straight and someone had put the world on mute. He felt that he was going to begin heaving with every second that passed. He couldn't get his senses straight and the pressure between his legs scared him. He wanted to kick and scream and cry, but his arms and legs couldn't even tell which way was up or down anymore. Everything seemed to be in slow motion and he couldn't comprehend what was happening. Then a set of lips pressed against his throat and it was as if someone hit his gag reflex.
Shoving Snicker off of him entirely and with a force that was only slightly short of brutal, Tsuna barely rolled off the bed in order to stick his head in the bedside trashcan. He heard Snicker spluttering behind him over the sudden rejection, but it was drowned out when Tsuna started heaving a mere millisecond later. As he did, he started crying. It wasn't fair. He'd finally beat up Gabriel, but the fear and disgust and feeling of violation was still etched into his body. The memories were still embedded into his mind, tarnishing more than he thought possible. It wasn't just his pride and dignity this time. It wasn't just his reputation and his sense of security. Gabriel had invaded into even his intimate moments with Snicker. It wasn't fair! What gave him the right to destroy such a precious thing?!
"It's okay, Suoh," Snicker murmured into his ear with a voice laced with understanding. Wiping his mouth when his stomach finally started to settle, Tsuna turned in order to cry into the shoulder that presented itself so readily and to try to take comfort in the protective arms that carefully wrapped around him. "I was afraid that this would happen," he soothed mournfully while Tsuna sobbed out the lingering pain inside him. "You shouldn't have tried to hide it. You're not alone and I'll help you through it just like last time. That bastard can't hurt you anymore. I'm right here with you and we'll make this right. It doesn't matter how long it takes. I can be patient, so don't try to hide it when you're feeling upset. I can wait for as long as you need. I'm here for you, Suoh."
It was something of a relief to hear Snicker's words. The honesty and understanding showed that even if he had a thick skull at times, Snicker had a soft heart that would always hold Tsuna close. Even though there were times of jealously and times of mistrust, they were always there for each other when they were in need. Because, as they had sworn to each other...
To have and to hold...
For richer or poorer...
In sickness and in health...
To love and to cherish...
Until death do they part.
.
