So I just posted a side chapter for this story under Serendipity, for those of you interested in more Tsuna/Hibari. It doesn't have anything to do with the main plot so if you don't read it, you're not missing anything about this particular story.
Also I'm afraid that the updates might slow down a little more; I have a lot going on right now and I kind of have to put this on the back burner. Hopefully one every two weeks, or if I have time I can just sit down and write a bunch and just keep uploading every week or so.
Additionally, there may be a few typos floating around on here; I tried to fix the ones I noticed as I reread it, but there are also multiple copies of this chapter so I'm not sure if I fixed all of them on this particular copy. If you see one, just let me know!
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Even though Tsuna disagreed with his methods, Tsuna could see where Reborn was coming from, in that he wanted Ietsuna to learn on his own. As a result, there had already been several incidents where Reborn had arranged for Ietsuna to be harassed, and then shot Ietsuna with a Dying Will Bullet.
Ietsuna hated it the same every single time.
Tsuna tried to help his brother where he could, often providing a buffer between Ietsuna and Hibari.
One day, as Ietsuna was having some sort of Dying Will-fueled showdown with Mochida in the Nami High gym afterschool, Tsuna had even tried to distract Hibari in his office, by walking up and kissing him.
"You're a terrible liar." Hibari informed Tsuna immediately.
"I didn't even say anything!"
"You have a nervous energy." He had kissed Tsuna back, snaking a hand into Tsuna's fluffy hair. He had taken to scrunching his fingers in it when they had a spare moment. Tsuna would wrinkle his nose. The first time, it elicited a real, genuine laugh from Hibari that caused the younger boy's cheeks to burn. "What are you hiding from me?"
Tsuna was walking along the road one day, heading home after school.
When a long-haired woman on a motorcycle pulled up to him. She pulled her helmet off, rosy hair cascading down her shoulders. She was beautiful, blowing him a kiss, and then tossing Tsuna a can of soda, winking.
She was also Gokudera's older sister, Bianchi. The Poison Scorpion.
Tsuna held out his phone and took a photo of her. She blinked, suddenly.
"What the hell?"
"You're looking for Reborn, rightt?" Tsuna asked. Gokudera had informed him of Bianchi's tryst with Reborn, which Tsuna had a lot of questions about. Questions he did not actually want answers to.
He knew that Reborn only appeared to be a baby...but he still looked like a baby!
"Um, yes." Bianchi seemed taken aback.
"I guess I skipped a few steps; you're Poison Scorpion Bianchi, right?" Bianchi stuttered.
"Um, yeah." Tsuna held out a hand to shake hers.
"I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi, but you can call me Tsuna. It's really nice to meet you, Bianchi-chan, if I may call you that."
Maybe she was a hitwoman, but she was also Gokudera's older sister, and Tsuna wanted to make a good first impression.
Bianchi shook his hand.
"You have good manners." She commented. "Too bad I'm gonna have to kill you."
"You're actually looking for my older brother, Ietsuna. He's the one Reborn is tutoring." Bianchi blinked again.
"Oh, I see. Sorry for the mix-up." She shifted on her motorcycle again, before glancing at the soda in Tsuna's hand. "By the way, don't drink that."
"Oh, I wasn't going to." Tsuna tossed it into a nearby trash can. "See you later, Bianchi-chan." She waved and rode away.
Tsuna texted the photo of Bianchi to Ietsuna, with the message,
Do not eat or drink anything from this woman!
On another note, Gokudera had said the experience of eating his sister's food was horrible and violent, but he had not quite conveyed how traumatized by the experience he was.
So later that day, when the chaos in the kitchen was occuring, Tsuna and Gokudera walked in.
Gokudera immediately clutched his stomach, groaning, and collapsing as Bianchi fussed over him.
"Nee-chan..." He groaned, before passing out.
Bianchi still came around pretty often; she just wore goggles most of the time so Gokudera could look at her without going unconscious.
On the bright side, with Reborn's focus on Ietsuna, Tsuna could still sneak around and work on his own flames. They mainly kept it to late night practice sessions, either on the roof of Nami Middle, Yamamoto's family dojo, or occasionally, the yakuza building Tsuna almost burned down. They weren't as welcome there, but the yakuza were too frightened of Hibari to say anything.
Tsuna was getting better, honestly. He could stay in his own Dying Will state longer. He could move faster. On one memorable occasion, he had attempted flight and it had worked, jerky and off-putting as it was. The collective excitement from his friends as he shot into the air was golden, the whoops of excitement. Even Hibari had looked up, stunned, as Tsuna hovered above him.
Actually, Tsuna would say he had hovering down cold. Flight? Was a little harder.
The problem though, was that it was quickly becoming clear that Tsuna possessed a destructive power that was too great to use on the rooftop of their middle school or in the dojo. Tsuna would need a much bigger space to really test the limits of his power.
"You could always ask Reborn." Gokudera had suggested after one night on the rooftop. He was taking apart the contraption on his wrist that he had built. It allowed him to fire his dynamite with much more accuracy and power. He had even started to build in a flamethrower-type feature, but there were some kinks in the design still.
Tsuna stilled at the suggestion.
Hibari had been the first to notice that the normally honest, open, younger boy had not confessed everything to the tutor and his brother. And that it went beyond a lack of explanation; they were meeting in secret to train and Tsuna would even take extra pains to make sure he wasn't followed.
"You don't trust him." Tsuna scratched his head at the suggestion.
"I just...I know that my brother didn't tell me the full truth. He didn't even mention Dying Will Flames. And he must have them, right? All Vongola bosses do." Tsuna took a deep breath. "I know one of us will have to tell the other eventually, but..." Tsuna shrugged. "I don't know, maybe I just wanted to keep something to myself."
"I'm not judging you. I don't like or trust your brother." Hibari responded flatly. "And while I would love to fight that cursed baby one day, he's not here to act in your best interest."
It wasn't the first time someone in Tsuna's friend group implied Tsuna being a viable candidate for Vongola might cause problems. Not that Tsuna thought Reborn would attack Tsuna. But the smaller boy was certain that there was some devout psycho in Vongola who would.
It was even worse that devout psycho might even be Tsuna's father.
"I just want to keep this to us, for a while longer. If that's okay with everyone." Tsuna glanced around. There were no protests from his friends.
XXXX
When Tsuna got home from school, he immediately knew that things were about to go sideways.
And that was going to happen before Hibari got there. Tsuna had talked him into coming over later to do their respective school and/or paperwork together while they watched a movie and maybe held hands.
Probably a lot more than holding hands.
So what if it was a date with his boyfriend?
Kyoko had even graciously offered to take I-Pin and Lambo to the park with Ryohei, so he could manage them and they could have some time like normal children. Tsuna had, on one occasion, attempted to explain his odd situation to Ryohei, but wasn't sure how much of it Ryohei totally understood. Then, Tsuna lit up his hand and showed it to the boxer.
"Oh!" Ryohei had exclaimed. "I see!" Like it was totally obvious.
Kyoko and Hana knew, though. Not all the details, like the Dying Will Flames. But about Tsuna's older brother.
They also did not care very much for Tsuna's father.
But the reason Tsuna knew things were going to go sideways was because there was a line of men dressed in black suits lining up outside Tsuna's house. They all wore sunglasses and stood stoically along the path to the door.
Reborn suddenly bounced into Tsuna's hair.
"Reborn." Tsuna said, and since the children weren't there he didn't watch his mouth. "What the fuck is this?"
"Watch your mouth, Dame-Tsuna." Reborn pulled on Tsuna's hair. "Walk faster."
"You can't pilot me like a Jaeger." Tsuna said.
"Or like the rat from Ratatouille." Reborn chirped. Tsuna huffed.
"You know, I had plans today." Reborn was dismissive.
"You can make out with your boyfriend some other time, Dame-Tsuna." He said, tugging on a lock of Tsuna's hair again. Tsuna's face was crimson.
"Except I can't, really, because this kind of stuff is consuming my life." He protested.
"Boohoo." Tsuna sighed.
"I'm gonna cancel, before he comes over and starts knocking heads together." Tsuna said.
"Good idea."
Tsuna pulled out his phone to shoot Hibari a text.
Have to cancel. Lots of weird people at my house.
There was a ... as Hibari began to respond to his message immediately.
What the fuck
Tsuna snorted.
"Reborn, seriously though. What's going on?" Tsuna asked. "Where's my brother?"
"Oh him?" Reborn said. "He's inside with one of my old students." Tsuna blinked, thinking back to Gokudera's words when Reborn had just arrived.
"Dino...Chivarone?" Tsuna asked. Reborn knocked on his head. Tsuna winced.
"Dino Cavallone, stupid. People always get that wrong."
"Why is he here?" Tsuna wanted to know. "Doesn't he like...have stuff to do?" Reborn sighed.
"Oh, he definitely does. My No-Good student is surely already behind on his work. But as for why Pipsqueak Dino is here, you'll just have to find out, Dame-Tsuna." Tsuna walked up to the door, peering around at the stoic men once again. Not a single one seemed to falter at his presence.
"This is really weird. I want you to know that." Tsuna said, before he pushed the door open.
He heard voices arguing in the kitchen and cringed immediately.
"That isn't good." Reborn commented.
"Ietsuna-nii?" Tsuna asked, as he slid his shoes off by the door and peered into the kitchen. "What's going on?" The two figures in the kitchen froze. Ietsuna's hand was outstretched, jabbing at the other man, but paused in midair.
In front of Ietsuna was a blonde man. His hair was shaggy, perhaps a little overgrown, but honey-blonde and windswept. It had a charming quality about it, like a teenage skater boy. The man wasn't just taller than Ietsuna; he was huge in comparison, broad-shouldered, thick-thighed, with massive hands. Tsuna noticed the blonde man's weapon of choice holstered at his side, visible underneath his green jacket. It was a whip. Underneath the jacket, the man was wearing a tank top and Tsuna could swear he saw the edges of a tattoo. This was Dino Cavallone, Tsuna guessed.
"Um, nothing, Tsuna." Ietsuna glared at the man in front of him. "I already told you, your tutor is here against my will." He said. Dino huffed.
"You're very unappreciative of an excellent tutor." He said. "And rude. You didn't even introduce this new guy!" Tsuna waved a little.
"Hi, I'm-,"
"That's because you aren't supposed to talk to him!" Ietsuna exclaimed, a hardness coming into his eyes. "I'm trying to keep my little brother out of the mafia. Not introducing him to people in it!" He got upset whenever Tsuna got involved in any of the mafia related incidents that took place around Namimori. Tsuna got the impression that his brother already felt crushing guilt for what had occurred in Tsuna's childhood, and even more so about being unable to protect him as a teenager.
Tsuna was getting worried about the older boy; he had become even more withdrawn and angry lately, getting highly combative with Reborn. Tsuna had tried to suggest that maybe his brother should see a professional, as this lifestyle was highly stressful, and he was still dealing with the loss of a close friend. When he had suggested that, completely earnest and only wanting his brother to feel better, his brother had startled.
He had even wanted to know if Tsuna had seen a professional for his own traumas.
Tsuna had not, and admitted so, though he was almost tempted to lie just to get his brother to seek help. He still hadn't addressed the fact that he had been shot, stabbed, and killed a mafioso when he was twelve.
Maybe he should also seek professional help, Tsuna had thought to himself.
"Oh, this is your little brother?" The blonde man asked, peering down at Tsuna who had walked closer. "He's so...cute!" Dino exclaimed. Tsuna made a face, but his cheeks flushed regardless. Dino reached out to ruffle Tsuna's hair.
"Stop that!" Dino ignored Ietsuna.
"I'm Dino Cavallone, also known as the Bucking Bronco." He said with a cheerful smile, jerking a thumb at himself. "I'm the current boss of the Cavallone family. Reborn also tutored me." Tsuna held out a hand. Dino seemed nice, he thought.
"I'm Sawada Tsunayoshi, but you can call me Tsuna." Dino's big, calloused hand grasped Tsuna's. Maybe Dino was a little handsome. "Can I get you something, Cavallone-kun?" Tsuna fought the flush in his face, determined to act normal. Dino waved a hand.
"Oh, please call me Dino. And I'm good, thank you for asking!" Dino pivoted to Ietsuna. "How did I not know you had a younger brother?"
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but do you two know each other?" Tsuna asked. Ietsuna bit his lip.
"Yeah, the Cavallone are allies of the family. I met Dino a few times at various functions." He explained. "And you didn't know about my younger brother, because we were trying to protect him." A shadow of guilt came over Ietsuna's face. "A lot of good that did, though." Dino blinked.
"Did someone try and mess with your little brother?" He asked, voice filled with genuine concern. He looked back at Tsuna. "Do you need help?"
"Oh, don't worry, Dino-kun." Tsuna said, honestly. "I figured out how to handle it myself."
"I know he's just cute as a button," Reborn pulled on Tsuna's cheek.
"Ow, Reborn!" Tsuna's voice was garbled.
"But I saw him dislocate a hitman's kneecap and then break his jaw." Reborn said, almost proudly. "Dame-Tsuna has some tricks up his sleeve." Tsuna rubbed his cheek where Reborn had pulled.
"Your little brother is pretty cool," Dino decided. He walked over, and clapped Tsuna on the back. "You know, I was just coming to harass you about giving me my tutor back, but I gotta be honest, I like your little brother so much I might hang out for a little while." Dino grinned down at Tsuna, eyes twinkling.
"Reborn, why did you let this guy come here?" Ietsuna demanded.
"I thought you could learn a few things." Reborn said, hopping onto the table. "Tsuna, could you make me some espresso?" Tsuna nodded.
"Of course. And Dino-kun, one for you as well? Or any of your men?" Dino smiled and took a seat.
"I'll take one." Tsuna hustled over to the kitchen counter. He started some boiling water for tea as well, for his brother. "So what's this about you not wanting Reborn to tutor you?" Dino demanded.
"He's brutal." Ietsuna said. "I feel like I haven't learned anything at all." Reborn's cutesy voice cut in.
"That's because you're unwilling to learn, Stupid Ietsuna." Tsuna cringed, but didn't butt into the conversation. "It's like you don't even want to be Decimo."
"I don't!" Ietsuna snapped. Tsuna's eyes widened, but no one could see him. "Is it so difficult to believe that this is hard for me?"
"This is about your Rain Guardian, then." The bronco said softly.
"It isn't, not at all." Ietsuna insisted. He got up from his chair again, pacing around the kitchen. "It's about this being what my father wanted. Not what I want. And that my family could have gotten hurt." Tsuna readied the espresso, gently setting it down in front of Dino and Reborn, who thanked him. He stepped back, leaning against the counter while he waited for the tea, curious as to what Ietsuna had to say.
Tsuna could tell Ietsuna wasn't happy about his situation, but he had not heard him speak about this so explicitly.
"I didn't want to be a mafia boss either, Ietsuna." Dino said. "But I had to step up for my family. Reborn chased me down and pushed me to be not just a better boss, but a better person. He made me see that my choice wasn't about myself alone. It was about the other people that belonged to the Cavallone family."
"You mean your subordinates." Ietsuna said, fidgeting.
"No, I mean my family." Dino said sternly.
"Pipsqueak Dino here ran away from me multiple times." Reborn said. Pipsqueak? "I see your shocked expression, Tsuna." Tsuna covered his mouth.
"Um, sorry Dino-kun." Dino laughed.
"No, don't worry. I was a little guy for a while, until I hit my growth spurt." So there was still hope for Tsuna, maybe.
"But no matter how many times Pipsqueak Dino ran away from me," Reborn hopped onto Dino's shoulder, grinning menacingly. "I found him." Dino shuddered, before recovering to speak to Ietsuna.
"Reborn is the best possible tutor you could have, Ietsuna." Tsuna reached out to press Ietsuna's tea into his hands. Ietsuna took it, surprised that Tsuna had made it unprompted.
"Uh, thank you, Tsuna." He held the cup tightly. "And I am sick of Reborn putting me in shitty situations." He said. "And shooting me with those Dying Will Bullets!"
"You're being a baby." Reborn sniffed. Ietsuna turned red.
"No, I am not! I already figured out how to use-," He glanced at Tsuna. "-that, and I don't need to go back to the basics."
"Oh, we haven't even gotten to the basics. As much as I have tried."
"Nii-san, I do think you might be overreacting." Tsuna suggested softly. "Reborn is just trying to teach you." Ietsuna huffed at Tsuna.
"Until you've been shot, Tsu-,"
"I have." Ietsuna's head snapped to the side. He dropped his cup and it shattered on the ground, tea leaking out onto the floor. Tsuna reached to grab a towel, about to bend to clean it up, when Ietsuna's voice stopped him.
"Tsuna...what are you talking about?" His brother was pale. Tsuna shrugged.
"I've been shot." He loosened his tie and unbuttoned the top few buttons of his school uniform, pulling his shirt open with his hand so that Ietsuna could see the nasty, textured scar on Tsuna's shoulder. There was the wound from the gunshot itself, as well as the thick, ropey line from where they the bullet had been dug out of his shoulder. Ietsuna covered his mouth in shock. Dino looked pale as well. "It's okay; it was a while ago. Besides, this wasn't the worst of it, anyways." Tsuna said with a shrug. He bent down to clean up the spilled tea, but Ietsuna grabbed his hand and pulled him up.
"What are you talking about, Tsuna?" His older brother's lips were trembling.
"I pissed him off. So he cut up my back, too. I think I might have gotten away before he cut up my back. But I had never been shot before. Jesus, it hurts." Tsuna shook his head. "And he tried to cut my tongue out. I'd lost too much blood to really fight back, at that point." Tsuna informed them blithely. It struck him that most people didn't handle horribly traumatic incidents as well as he did.
Ietsuna was beginning to hyperventilate.
"What happened?" Reborn asked curiously, unfazed. "Clearly, you still have your tongue."
"Uh, Kyoya saved me. I don't remember a lot. I know he got there, and then I woke up in the hospital." Tsuna said, rubbing his jaw.
"W-who did this?" Ietsuna stuttered. His brother's initial shock was turning to rage.
"What happened to the guy that did this?" Dino asked, quietly. But there was a seriousness in his eyes that wasn't there before. Tsuna waved a hand dismissively.
"Don't worry about it." Dino tilted his head, eyes filled with concern.
"Tsuna-," Tsuna let out a breath.
"No, I mean, Kyoya killed him." Everyone in the room froze. "Well, I guess he wasn't dead dead. But Kyoya left him brain-dead in an ICU in Tokyo. I'm sure they pulled the plug on him a long time ago."
"Who's this Kyoya?" Dino asked.
"He's the Disciplinary Committee chairman. Hibari Kyoya." Reborn said. "Him and Tsuna are very close." Tsuna fought the blush coming to his face. Ietsuna completely missed the implication, oblivious.
"Mind your own business, Reborn."
"I have never, in my life, minded my own business."
"So this guy is a student?" Dino asked incredulously.
"They make 'em different in Namimori, Pipsqueak Dino." Reborn said absently. "You said your back was injured as well. What do you mean?" Tsuna waved a hand.
"It doesn't matter. Here, just let me get the tea on the floor..." He went to bend down again, but Ietsuna grabbed his wrist. "It's a slipping hazard, nii-san." Tsuna insisted.
"You don't have to do everything for everyone, Tsuna." Ietsuna said, looking pained.
"Yes, but you look like you're about to pass out." Tsuna pointed out. He pulled out a chair for his brother. "Please, sit down, nii-san." Ietsuna collapsed into the chair, hands shaking. Tsuna bent down and started to clean up the mess on the floor.
Ietsuna was shaking his head.
"Why didn't you tell me this?" He wanted to know. Tsuna shrugged, carrying the soaked towel over to the sink. He flicked the electric kettle back on, grabbing the broom.
"It's just a part of my life." Tsuna said. "And I didn't want to make you feel any guiltier than you already do." He swept up the ceramic. Thankfully, it had broken into large pieces, so it was easy to clean up. "I don't blame you, nii-san. You were just a kid when Dad brought you to Italy." Ietsuna's face flushed, but he seemed almost angry this time.
"Stop forgiving me!" He shouted. "I'm not a kid anymore. I should have realized sooner, I should have come home as soon as I was able!"
"Ietsuna, calm down." Dino said sternly, reaching out to touch the blonde teenager's arm. Ietsuna ripped it away.
"I'm your big brother, Tsuna. I'm supposed to protect you." He insisted. Maybe it was Tsuna responding to his brother's energy, but he was starting to get a little heated as well.
"Ietsuna, I don't need you to protect me." He said, crossing his arms. "I don't need anyone to protect me. When this happened-," Tsuna tapped his shoulder. "-was the last time I needed help. And I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that if I needed it, my friends would protect me. But I don't." Ietsuna laughed.
"I'm supposed to be the fucking boss of Vongola." He shook his head. "I'm supposed to protect this huge family. How useless am I if I can't even take care of you?" Tsuna felt heat in his neck.
"I'm not the meter stick by which you measure yourself." Tsuna said. "And now I want to stop having this argument, before I get angry." Dino laughed, and Tsuna blinked at him. "What?"
"It's hard to imagine you angry." He confessed. Tsuna's mouth quirked in a smile back.
"If you ever meet Hibari Kyoya, ask him about that. I'm sure his answer will entertain you."
"Stop talking to my little brother." Ietsuna snapped. Tsuna felt a rush of anger wash over him, but he ignored it, pushing it down. Dino sighed, and stood up, crossing his arms.
"What are you so angry about?" Dino wanted to know. Ietsuna gestured at Tsuna.
"You heard what he said! I should be angry!" Dino narrowed his eyes.
"You're not angry that he got hurt. You're angry about what you did or didn't do. Your behavior isn't on his behalf; it's about how you're affected by this." It was true, but Tsuna was a little irritated Dino was the one saying it. Maybe he would have felt differently if it was coming from Reborn. But Reborn was just sitting back, sipping his coffee, and watching the show. Amusement was flickering on his face. Tsuna shot the infant a look, and Reborn just shrugged. "You're being selfish."
"You don't know me. And you don't know my family." Ietsuna said. He looked to be feeling hot, and he reached up to pull off his tie from his uniform and loosen the top of his shirt.
"Apparently, you don't either." Dino pointed out. Ietsuna flushed.
"Where do you get off, lecturing me on this?"
"You don't seem to be listening to anyone else, Ietsuna. That's why I'm here." Dino rubbed his forehead, exhaling. "Reborn asked me here because he wanted you to meet another one of his students. Because I understand what you're going through more than anyone else." Ietsuna whipped around.
"Is that true?" He wanted to know. Reborn shrugged.
"Those are not my words, no." Reborn just wanted to cause trouble.
"It's what he meant." Dino insisted. "You're proving harder to whip into shape than I was."
"I know all of the mafia etiquette and history. Nono and my dad taught me all about Vongola." Ietsuna hissed back. Tsuna wanted to leave the room, but felt responsible to stay, almost like something bad would happen if he didn't. He sighed to himself, ignoring the headache their fighting was giving him. Dino shed his jacket, revealing the tattoo that was inked up the length of his arm. Tsuna focused on that.
"But you are so behind in combat ability." Dino said. "It's egregious. You need to know these things."
"I can fight just fine!" Ietsuna insisted. "I've been taught how to since I was a kid."
"No, you can't. I bet half of your little brother's friends could take you on." Really all of Tsuna's friends, Tsuna thought to himself. Even Kyoko, who preferred not to fight. But Ryohei would never let his little sister grow up without learning how to kick ass.
"Why do you even care?" Ietsuna spat.
"Because I don't want to see you get killed." Dino said. There was the sound of the door flying open, and then familiar footsteps stalking in.
Kyoya?
The skylark appeared out of the doorway, looking irritated.
"Tsunayoshi." He stopped at the entrance to the kitchen. "Why are all these herbivores crowding at your house?"
"I wish I had an answer." Tsuna said. Hibari frowned.
"And why is it so hot in here?" He flicked his eyes over to Dino and Ietsuna, clearly locked in some sort of argument. "We had plans." He said impatiently.
Tsuna almost smiled. Of course, Hibari was peeved about Tsuna cancelling on him and had showed up anyways.
"Why is he here?" Ietsuna demanded to know. He didn't like Hibari very much, not understanding the relationship at all between his little brother and the chairman. Even though he should have been glad that Hibari had trained Tsuna, he seemed to be somewhat jealous of the closeness Tsuna had with the skylark and resented Hibari, not just for ruling Nami High with an iron fist, but for being the one to protect Tsuna. "To beat me up?" Hibari narrowed his eyes. Ietsuna was especially irritated now.
"No, but I can." He snarled back.
"Stop fighting." Tsuna said suddenly. He pointed at Dino as well. "All of you. You're giving me a headache." Dino reached out and put a big hand on Tsuna's back. He moved closer to Tsuna.
"Sorry, little brother. I didn't mean to start a fight in your kitchen." He ruffled Tsuna's hair.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Reborn said, sipping his coffee and grinning under his hat.
"Aw, but he's just so cute."
"Stop touching him." Hibari snapped, and Tsuna caught the burning look in Hibari's eyes.
Shit.
Hibari was...possessive.
Tsuna hadn't seen Hibari jealous, really, since Shoichi had flirted with Tsuna. In the time of their relationship, Hibari allowed plenty of other people to hug Tsuna, ruffle his hair, even pull Tsuna into their laps. It didn't seem to bother him, and when Tsuna had asked why, Hibari had rolled his eyes and informed Tsuna he was not threatened by Tsuna's friends because they were all herbivores.
And Tsuna realized that this muscular blond man, who exuded strength and vitality?
Hibari picked up on it and did not like it. It didn't help that he did not know Dino at all and obviously didn't trust him.
Dino blinked back.
"What?" Hibari took a step forward, but Dino did not seem to understand what was happening. "Tsuna, are these the scars on your back?" He asked, his finger tracing along the criss-crossed scar through Tsuna's shirt. Tsuna flushed red at the feeling; it was something only Hibari or Yamamoto had done.
"I told you to stop." Hibari snapped again, taking another step forward.
"God, what is your problem?" Ietsuna responded, rising from his chair.
Great, another person getting involved.
Tsuna's head hurt, and bit back the urge to shout.
"Be quiet, herbivore." Hibari barked at Ietsuna. "This doesn't concern you."
"Of course it concerns me!"
"Hey, no need to shout." Dino tried to placate the angry teenagers.
"Shut up!" Ietsuna responded. Ietsuna looked like he was sweating, he was so angry. Hibari slid his tonfas out of his sleeves, snarling back. He shed his jacket. "You psycho! I have no idea why my brother hangs around with you; you don't deserve him!" Hibari moved to hit Ietsuna, but there was a crack that caused Tsuna to jump.
A whip was curled lightly around Hibari's arm and tonfa, freezing it in midair. Dino was casually holding the other end of the whip. Tsuna was shaken; he hadn't even seen Dino go for his weapon.
It obviously was not Dino's full repertoire of tricks, but Tsuna was beginning to get a sense of how strong Dino was.
"Now, Hibari, there's no reason this has to end in violence-," Hibari yanked on the whip as hard as he could, causing Dino to stumble. The skylark leapt forward, snarling, but Tsuna darted forward and grabbed Hibari around the waist, physically restraining the skylark. He dug his feet into the wood.
"STOP!" He shouted. Hibari immediately froze, and Dino released the whip. Tsuna stood in between them, facing Hibari. "You need to pull yourself together." His face was close to Hibari's now, as he glared up at him. Hibari pursed his lips. "What the hell was that?" A look of guilt passed over Hibari's face.
"Tsunayoshi-,"
"Don't interrupt me." Tsuna snapped. "You're so headstrong, you always have to charge into things without thinking, and you're such a- are you sick?" Tsuna stopped himself. Some sweat had broken out on Hibari's forehead.
"What?" Hibari said. "No."
"You're sweating." Tsuna pointed out.
"Your house is sweltering." Tsuna blinked.
"No, it's not." He reached up to touch Hibari's forehead. Something like realization passed over Hibari's face and he quickly grabbed Tsuna's arm, before jerking his hand away with a noise of pain.
Hibari's palm was red.
"Tsunayoshi. You're raising the temperature of the room." Tsuna was slow to catch on, but when he glanced back to see Ietsuna absolutely drenched in sweat, staring at Tsuna. Dino had shed his own coat as well, and seemed sweaty even in his tank top, though less affected than Ietsuna. Reborn was watching, curious.
Horror passed over Tsuna.
"I burned you." He stumbled back. He'd hurt Hibari. Tsuna clasped his hands over his mouth, tears springing to his eyes. "I hurt you." Hibari reached a hand towards Tsuna, but didn't touch him.
"It is barely red." His boyfriend insisted. It was bright red. Tsuna shook his head, making a noise of distress. Ietsuna coughed in the heat behind him.
"Did the temperature just go up again?" His brother's voice was raspy.
"Oh, I believe it did." Reborn commented.
"Oh my god." Tsuna said. Hibari reached out towards him again, and Tsuna backed away. "Don't touch me!" He cried. He wouldn't be able to stand it if he hurt someone like this.
"Has this happened before?" Dino asked.
"Not like this." Hibari responded. "But something similar, yes." Sweat was beading on the skylark's forehead now. Horror and fear was washing over Tsuna.
Dino grabbed Tsuna by the shoulders, and Tsuna immediately started squirming.
"Stop! I'll just hurt you!" He cried out. Dino held on tighter.
"No, you won't." He bent down so he was eye to eye with Tsuna, and showed him his palm. "See." It looked completely normal. Tsuna calmed down a little, but his heart was beating so fast in his chest and he couldn't fight the feeling of distress. "You can't burn me. Benefits of being a strong Sky; we're fireproof." Tsuna was shaking like a leaf in his grasp.
"What?" he asked.
"You might not have experienced it until now, but sometimes these things come out as you get older. Especially when you hit puberty and start to grow." Dino informed him. "Things like this can start to happen."
"A-are you talking about the flames?" Tsuna forced himself to ask. Dino's eyes widened briefly.
"Yes; so you've seen them before." Tsuna nodded.
"Y-yes, but I have them under control." Tsuna was so terrified he completely missed the look of glee on Reborn's face and the horror passing over Ietsuna's. "Nothing like this has ever happened."
"It's okay." Dino said, softly. "It happens as you get older, and you get stronger. If you bottle them all up, sometimes they start to affect you and everyone else in unexpected ways. Now, you need to calm down, Tsuna. Take a deep breath."
"What did you mean when you said you were a Sky? And that I am too? What are you talking about?"
"Tsuna." Dino said. "Take a deep breath. Close your eyes." Tsuna obeyed. "Now, another." Dino continued on until the temperature in the house seemed to drop. After a few minutes, Tsuna opened his eyes again. "There." Dino said, releasing Tsuna. He grinned, and ruffled his hair. "Better?"
Tsuna exhaled shakily. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and whirled around. It was Hibari. Tsuna felt himself get teary.
"Aren't you afraid of getting hurt?" He asked, shaking. Hibari rolled his eyes.
"Do you know nothing about me?" Tsuna let out a shaky laugh, and stepped closer to Hibari. "You're an idiot." Hibari said. Tsuna let his head fall onto Hibari's shoulder.
"I know." Tsuna felt his boyfriend wrap an arm around him. Hibari tucked Tsuna under his chin silently.
"Ohhh." Dino exclaimed behind him. "I get it now!"
"Get what?" Ietsuna demanded, voice raspy.
"Your brother and Hibari are dating!"
"WHAT?"
XXXX
So there's more Dino content to be had. I definitely still want to angle this as Dino eventually becoming a mentor to Hibari, no matter how much Hibari hates it. As you might be able to tell, I'm diving into the Mukuro arc, which will be a little different and then it should be straight to the ring battles.