Welcome to Lambo's Corner!
Is it too late to say a happy new year to everyone? Happy New Year!
Many, many thanks to howlingblackwolf, alexa-chan me, Ray-raihan. Fi Suki Saki, ilovecartoonsgirl, and tsuna27shika for their reviews. I hope this makes up for the long wait. I even made it extra long just for you! Enjoy!
WARNINGS: Mafia behavior and language, accidentally drugged Lambo, angry Tsuna, etc. Also, probably full of mistakes. Thanks, Grammarly for trying!
Without further ado, O is for...
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"It is not that difficult once you understand the basics. Here, let us go over it once more,"
Lambo groans dramatically as he drops his head on his homework, papers flying out and landing on the floor in a heap. "I give up, just kill me now. We both know Haya-nii is going to kill me once he sees my grades."
"Lambo, you are trying your best, we all see that. Haya-nii won't kill you; maybe yell but that will be all he does."
The thirteen-year-old sighs. I-Pin's right, he has been studying hard these past few weeks and his Famiglia would need to be blind not to see it. Ever since he heard his cousin, Timo, was excelling at university, he decided to step up his efforts to not fall behind. He may have been kicked out from their Famiglia but he was still a Bovino, the sibling rivalry he had with Timo was still going strong. Although, he wanted to be better to show his new Famiglia they had not inherited a useless kid, especially Gokudera.
"He thinks I'm stupid," Lambo hadn't meant to say that but he knew I-Pin wouldn't tell anyone what they spoke about. She was his best friend for a reason; they trusted each other with their lives.
"He does not. Nobody does,"
"Then why does he always get mad at me? He yells and calls me names and tries to kill me all the time." That was a valid point, right?
"Perhaps because you do not listen to what he says and are always causing trouble for him?"
Hm, her point has merit and Lambo concedes. "I'm a kid, I'm supposed to keep them on their toes, otherwise they'd all turn into bitter old men and I think one Reborn is enough." He immediately looks around, thinking the toddler is going to shoot him for that comment.
I-Pin laughs. "You are no longer a kid, you are thirteen. Instead of math, I should be teaching you about obedience. I am sure Haya-nii will be quite pleased if you did as you were told."
"Pft, like that's ever going to happen. I'm sure Psycho-nii and Mukuro will become best friends before that happens."
"Lambo-san, are you ok?"
Lambo looks up at his door to see a member of his Famiglia looking around his room with suspicion. That's when Lambo notices the activity outside of his room; people rushing around. "Ito-san, what's going on?"
The man who can't be over twenty looks hesitant but he answers, "Sawada-sama has activated Code E-547. We're doing a parameter check but everything seems to be ok. Please, stay inside and let anyone know if you see something suspicious."
The man leaves and Lambo looks at his laptop where I-Pin's concerned face stares back. "What's a Code E-547?"
"Lambo, you were supposed to learn the codes months ago!"
The teen stands from his bed then walks over to his open door to close it. "There's too many of them!"
"I will hang up and call your phone. The line will be more secure that way."
While I-Pin hangs up, Lambo puts his phone on vibrate and heads out of his room. If there's something going on then his siblings will more than likely be gathering for a meeting to figure out what to do. Of course, like always, he will be the only guardian excluded from said meeting so he needs to be sneaky to know what's happening.
He makes his way downstairs to the kitchen and stealthy moves inside the large pantry of the Vongola Estate. A few weeks after visiting his siblings for the first time, Lambo had stumbled into a secret passageway in the pantry that leads to Tsuna's office. Since then, he uses it to listen in on secret meetings. He quietly pulls out the bottom drawer and lifts off the loose floorboard and jumps inside, pulling the board back in place. Lambo feels his phone vibrate and he takes it out to answer I-Pin. "I'm in the catacombs, expect silence until I'm in the clear."
Lambo giggles. He always feels like a spy when he crawls through the small tunnel. So cool!
"Maybe you should go back to your room. Code E-547 is an enemy attack possible. It sounds serious because Master went to his room to join the meeting through video chat."
"That means it's going to be an important mission for the incredible Lambo-san. I need to know what's going on if I want to complete it successfully."
A sigh. "This is why Haya-nii gets mad at you,"
Lambo climbs the small steps through the narrow tunnel, making as little noise as humanly possible. After a couple of minutes, he reaches the end and sits down on the last step. He hasn't mentioned this secret spot to anyone aside from I-Pin and Fran so it's considered their most well-kept secret. I-Pin dubbed it the catacombs after some weird underground thing. She explained what it was but Lambo hadn't exactly paid attention. They think one of the previous Vongola heads used it to sneak into the kitchen for snacks since it leads from the main office but it hasn't yet been proven.
"-we're still gathering information as it comes out but they're out for blood." Lambo hears Gokudera say.
Hm, somebody out for blood is never good for anyone let alone in the mafia. Mafiosi are worse than sharks and will not stop with one person's blood, they'll keep going until there's nobody left to fight back.
"Do we know how they got into their base?" Tsuna asks. While Lambo can't see them, he can picture his big brother sitting at the head of the table, arms crossed over his desk looking ever the perfect boss.
"According to our source, it was somebody from the inside. They've been dealt with but nothing came out of that interrogation. It's not known which famiglia the traitor gave the drug to so everyone's on edge."
Lambo shivers. Traitors were dealt with about the same way in every famiglia. He remembers one time when somebody gave away Bovino information by mistake, the boss had made (then) four-year-old Lambo watch the interrogation. It was a scene he would never forget no matter how much he wished he could. Thankfully, nobody has thought of betraying his family as of yet. He knows any of his siblings would deal with any threat against their family but none would enjoy it, not really. Well, maybe Mukuro and Hibari would.
"And we're sure the product has made it here?"
"Yes, Romario himself confirmed it. From what he found, we don't believe it was a lot but it must be valuable to have the Bovinos in such a way."
Bucking Horse Dino was involved as well, huh? Wait...Lambo swallows, had Dino said Bovino? If they were involved then it must have something to do with their weapons but Lambo thought it had to do with drugs?
"Hibari said the base was completely destroyed. Whatever was taken is probably the only of its kind. All their research and work are gone so it can't be reproduced for a while. It appears to be a powerful weapon, one of a kind and very dangerous in the wrong hands even though it wasn't finished."
"Not finished?"
"The Bovinos were heard saying it wasn't finished, they were still trying to work out some kinks or something so it's incomplete,"
After a moment of silence, Tsuna speaks once more. "Alright, Chrome, you're on recon. Keep to the shadows and report back anything of importance. Whether to get rid of it or to leave the country, somebody is going to be drawing attention to themselves."
"Hai, Bossu,"
"Takeshi, Ryohei, help Hayato patrol the streets as usual. If somebody is causing trouble we don't want civilians getting involved. Kyoya and Mukuro should be fine in Japan but…"
"I will offer my assistance, Tsuna," Dino says and Lambo can hear the smile behind his voice.
"Tsk, good luck with that," Gokudera adds.
"I will not be asking,"
Lambo can't help but smile himself. Hibari and Mukuro will never get along perfectly but he knows they have each other's back. At least, they won't let the other die. Maybe. He really doesn't understand why Tsuna would leave them together by themselves but his brother is trustful like that.
"Thank you, Dino, I appreciate it." His brother clears his throat. "Alright, let's get to work. Fon, a word, please?"
Lambo is about to start his way down the steps but decides to see what Tsuna wants Fon for. It might involve I-Pin, after all. She seems to know as well.
"Lambo, perhaps you should leave,"
"In a minute," He whispers back.
"I hate to ask but we might need somebody to go undercover."
"Of course, Tsuna. I will inform I-Pin of what is happening and will head to Italy promptly. I am sure she is eager for another mission."
Lambo has heard enough. He quietly and quickly makes his way down the tunnel and back into the pantry all while ignoring the voice on his phone.
"Lambo, listen to me. I did not want to keep this from you,"
"No, no, it's ok. Now I know why you always take Stupidera's side. You're one of them, you're included with what they do so you don't know how it feels to be left out. No, you left me out."
"They were secret missions, otherwise I would have told you,"
"You've been going on missions with them, that explains why you're busy when they're out. But undercover? Really? You?" He doesn't need to see her to know she's glaring at him.
"What is that supposed to mean? I am efficient and am able to go on missions with the others because I know how to follow orders. I do not disobey knowing I might cause somebody to get shot,"
Lambo flinches at the reminder. During a previous mission, he'd been told to back off but he'd thought he could handle it. He would have gotten shot if Ryohei hadn't stepped in and taken the bullet himself. He'd been grounded and the lectures had lasted for quite some time. It was still a sore subject and I-Pin knew it.
"I will not apologize for being good at what I do but I am sorry you feel hurt by it."
"Have you told them about the catacombs?"
"Of course not, this is our secret,"
"That's true, and you're great at keeping secrets."
"Lambo,"
"Good luck on your mission, I-Pin," He says before hanging up. The thirteen-year-old forces the tears back. He will not cry, he doesn't deserve to cry. He knows I-Pin is right. The reason he's not allowed on missions is that they don't trust him. They think he isn't up to the challenge or is too weak to help. Well, he'll show them. He's going to find the weapon everyone is looking for first, he'll show them all. Lambo is done being treated like a kid who is nothing but trouble.
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He's in trouble, he's in trouble! Lambo thinks as he climbs the stairs to the fourth floor of the warehouse. He's sweating underneath the black mask but he knows better than to take it off while being chased by some very, very bad people. Not to mention some of those bad people are his brothers. How the hell did this happen?!
After his conversation with I-Pin, Lambo had done what he does best, be an annoying little brother. Nobody paid attention to him then because they were so used to him being annoying. They just brushed him off and basically let him do whatever he wanted while they tried to keep their mission a secret. That also meant Ryohei lowered his guard around the teen and left mission files around without thinking Lambo would get into them.
Lambo learned the Bovinos had developed an ultra-secret weapon in liquid form, something that was dangerous if given to a human. The details as to what it did once a human came into contact with it were still unknown but everyone figured it was bad. Really bad if everyone was freaking out over a single vial.
Chrome discovered there was somebody trying to get into Slovenia and willing to pay a lot of money to do so but nobody knew why. It was a lead, not a very good one, but a lead nonetheless. The person was looking for somebody to get him across but things were too hot for just anybody to take the job. The Mafia was everywhere looking for something and nobody was crazy enough to get in their crossfire. This person would need somebody crazy enough to go against the Mafia and Lambo knew exactly who that person was.
What his family failed to remember is that Lambo had been born into the Mafia. He may be only thirteen but he had been taught to infiltrate, taught to track and find the enemy. He'd found Reborn in places nobody would have thought to look in with his talent. Sure, he'd never been able to catch or kill the hitman but this was Reborn he was talking about.
Everybody thought Lambo was just a stupid kid and that was their mistake. Ok, he actually was a stupid kid but he could be mafiosi when he wanted to be. Most of the time at least. Which is how he'd found Filippo Moretti, aka Caronte. Nicknamed after Hades' ferryman, Charon, who crossed souls into the world of the dead for a small fee. Of course, Caronte's fee was much bigger. Much, much bigger. Especially during times when it was dangerous to do so.
Lambo had been with the Varia when he'd stumbled into their mission by accident and had somehow ended up lost. He'd run into Caronte by complete chance while the man had been in the middle of a transaction. He'd been wearing a skull mask but had taken it off after the client had left which is when Lambo asked if the man could help him run away if he ever needed to. Lambo had asked questions no normal eight-year-old would have thought off and Caronte had been amused. He'd admitted to not being one to kill kids and had promised to help Lambo one day if the kid promised not to say anything about him. Apparently, nobody knew what Caronte looked like...except Lambo.
Whenever Lambo visited Italy, he'd make sure to find the man and ask how business was going. Tsuna would have a heart attack if he knew how many shady connections the pure-hearted Lambo had. Most, if not all, by accident but that wasn't relevant.
With the knowledge of the Bovino thief needing a ferryman, Lambo knew it was only a matter of time before somebody led the man to Caronte. Lambo was honest and had told Caronte about the drug and how dangerous it was. He'd asked if he could have the drug to which the ferryman agreed. All he cared about was making sure the client would get to Slovenia, the client's possessions were not his concern.
Everything had been going fine until the Bovino stormed the warehouse followed by other mafiosi. Gunfire erupted, bodies fell, chaos everywhere. Caronte had fled as soon as he realized the client had been followed. Lambo, on the other hand, had managed to take the vial from the thief and draw everyone's attention to himself. Which is why he was currently running to the roof of the warehouse being chased by his brothers and who knows who else. He was grateful he was dressed in all black and for the mask. He'd have to thank Caronte for it later because there would be no way his brothers could recognize him.
Once he reached the roof, he ran to the end and jumped to the other building, glad it was right next to him. Unfortunately, when he landed on the other roof, he forgot he was carrying the vile and smashed it on the concrete...with his hand. He held in the cry of pain as he hurried to his feet and continued his escape. His hand is throbbing and he can see blood beginning to seep through his glove but he can't stop. Well, at least now nobody has to worry about the drug getting to the wrong hands; it literally got into his. After taking the fire escape down to the streets, he manages to lose his brothers and the other mafiosi by using the busy people around him. He takes off his mask and ducks into a restaurant to use their restroom to clean himself off.
His hand is bleeding into the sink, his hand pulsing from the cuts but he's sure the burning pain is from whatever got into his bloodstream. He's not stupid, he knows this is bad. He knows he needs to call Tsuna and get help immediately before the drug does whatever it's supposed to do.
"But I don't want to get grounded," He whines as he pulls off his black sweatshirt and pants then tosses them in the trash. He stays in his black and white tee and matching shorts; grabbing some paper towels to use as temporary bandages. He sneaks out the back of the restaurant and heads home hoping his family doesn't find out because they will definitely kill him...if the drug doesn't do it first, that is.
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Lambo walks into the estate and is surprised to see everything looks calm. There's no sense of alarm which is expected since he took the damn drug. He wonders what his family is going to do next.
The teen makes it to his room and pulls out the first aid kit from his closet. He cries as he cleans his still bleeding hand but it doesn't look that bad. It's just a few cuts and none are too deep so that's something at least. He knows better than to bandage it, his brothers will ask questions and he doesn't want anyone to be suspicious. Instead, he applies a bandaid across his right palm then tiny, clear square-shaped band-aids to the smaller wounds on his fingers. Yup, nothing suspicious about it.
He throws away the bloodied paper towels and alcohol wipes, making sure they won't be found. He looks at himself in the mirror, wondering if he'll turn green or something but he looks the same; normal. It's been about an hour since he was exposed to the drug but he doesn't feel any different. Maybe it was a dud and everyone was worried over nothing. He scoffs. No, he's never that lucky but for now, everything seems fine.
He changes into something more comfortable and decides to get something to eat. After the day he's had he's worked up quite an appetite. He carefully puts his hands into his sweatpants pockets, not wanting anyone to see his band-aid covered hand as he makes his way downstairs. He's slightly surprised to see Gokudera and Yamamoto talking over some coffee. One would think they'd be trying to figure out who had run off with the drug.
He ignores them as he reaches the fridge, using his left hand to open the door. He looks around and settles on a slice of leftover crostata. He carefully grabs the plate with his left hand and closes the fridge with his hip. He places the plate on the counter and grabs a fork which he stabs the slice with to easily carry back to his room.
"Oi, brat. I haven't seen you all day, what have you been up to?" Of course, Gokudera has no idea he'd been chasing Lambo just an hour ago.
"None of your business, Stupidera,"
Gokudera glares back, a fiery reply on the tip of his tongue but Yamamoto stops him. "Hayato, we've had a long day. How about ignoring him just this once?"
The smoke bomber grunts but doesn't say anything. The Rain Guardian looks at his other brother, "Lambo, apologize to Hayato, please." He asks with a smile knowing the teen won't do so. That would be like asking Hibari to take it easy on anyone.
"I'm sorry, Haya-nii,"
Lambo isn't sure who's more surprised, his brothers or himself. Never in a million years would Lambo had apologized for something so common between them. He hadn't even planned on apologizing, why did that come out of his mouth?
"What?" Gokudera asks, not bothering to hide his shock.
"I-I'm not repeating myself. Just leave me alone, will you?"
"You look a little flushed, are you feeling ok?" Yamamoto asks stepping over to their youngest brother. Lambo dodges his brother's hand and steps to the side.
"I'm fine, I'm just tired."
Gokudera scoffs, "Let him check you over,"
Lambo immediately walks over to Yamamoto and does as he's told. The Rain Guardian looks confused and maybe a little worried but he feels for a fever nonetheless.
"You feel a bit warm but not enough to worry just yet. Does anything hurt?"
Lambo shakes his head. "I'll tell you if anything does. Can I go now? I'll eat and take a nap afterward."
"What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing, dumbass," The teen mutters before making a quick getaway. What the hell just happened?
"Hey, come back here!"
Like hell, he's going ba...why is he going back? Lambo feels a slight pang in his head but he hides the wince from his brothers. "What?" He asks with more bite than he'd intended.
"Watch your fucking language," Gokudera tells him at the same time Yamamoto asks if he's ok.
"I'm sorry, Haya-nii, I will make sure to watch what I say. And I'm fine, Take-nii, sorry for worrying you."
He ignores their stunned looks and rushes back into the hallway. What the hell had just happened? His head feels a bit weird but he ignores it. He takes the stairs up to the third floor and runs into Ryohei, his big brother looking through a file and doesn't notice the younger Vongola until he almost bumps into him. "Lambo! I feel like I haven't seen you in a long time. Are you doing ok? Still studying to the extreme?"
"Yeah, I was just taking a break, Ryo-nii."
Ryohei ruffles Lambo's hair, a warm smile on his face and the teen can't help but feel the love from his brother. "That's great! I've seen how hard you're working, I'm proud of you, Lambo,"
The teen can't help his own smile. It feels good when somebody he looks up to says they're proud of him. "Thanks, Ryo-nii,"
"Is that the last slice of crostata?"
Lambo nods, "Do you want some?"
"No, you eat it," Ryohei watches with wide eyes as Lambo does exactly that. The teen takes the fork with his bandaged hand and eats the slice in record speed, his head beginning to ache as he does. Ryohei notices the wince.
"Are you ok, Lambo?"
The teen finishes his crostata and nods. "I have a slight headache but it's nothing."
"Ok, tell me if it gets worse,"
Lambo feels the reply coming before he says it and tries to stop himself from saying it but it doesn't work. "It's worse," His head is pounding now, that can't be normal.
Ryohei takes the plate and fork from the teen and moves his head towards Lambo's room. "Go get in bed. I'll get you something for the pain and you can tell me what happened to your hand then."
Without a second thought, Lambo heads to his room even though he tries to stop his body from doing so. His headache is worse, his temples feel like they're going to burst from the pain; he falls to his knees before he reaches his room. He takes some deep breaths, knowing Ryohei will be back any second to check on him and the last thing he wants is for his siblings to know something is wrong.
"Lambo!"
Oh, damn it all. Chrome kneels down to his level and she looks so worried, Lambo feels guilty.
"I'm ok, just felt a little dizzy,"
Chrome doesn't seem to believe him but she nods anyway. "Can you stand?"
He accepts her help and manages to stand, his legs feel like jello but he doesn't fall again. "Thanks, Chrome-nee,"
"It's nothing. Let me help you to your room."
Lambo wants to say he's fine, that he can get himself there but instead, he nods. "Ok,"
If Chrome is surprised by his quick reply, she doesn't show it. Instead, she helps him to his room where the teen falls into his bed. He feels sick.
"I'll let Shamal-sensei you're not well,"
"Don't bother, Ryo-nii already knows. He's probably on his way up with something for my headache."
"Did you not eat today?"
"I ate some crostata,"
She raises an eyebrow and damn if she doesn't look like Mukuro more and more. She needs to find another lunatic to hang around with.
"Lambo, you know that doesn't count. I want you to go and eat something nutritious," She's barely finished speaking when Lambo is making his way out of the room and down the stairs.
Chrome is saying something about she didn't mean now but he doesn't answer. He thinks he's figured out what the drug does and he does not like it.
He's almost to the main floor, ignoring the questions from Chrome, when she says, "Stop right there, Lambo,"
She had no way of knowing what her command was going to do. He stops mid-step, losing his balance and tumbles down the remaining steps. He groans once he reaches the bottom. His head feels like it's been split open and the blood running down his face says it probably did.
"Lambo! Ryohei-san, we need you!"
Lambo blinks once then twice. When had his day gone to hell? Oh, right. When he'd decided to act stupid which led to him getting drugged with something that made him obey each and every command.
He can hear several voices now but he doesn't care. He should just go to sleep and let them figure out what happe-
"Lambo, wake up!"
His eyes immediately open but his mind is a bit too fuzzy to understand what's going on. Tsuna is looking at him with so much worry, Lambo feels terrible for ever doubting the Tenth's judgment. He knew Lambo wasn't ready for a mission, he'd been right.
"We need to get him to the infirmary, he might have broken something and I need to know what." Ryohei states with a solemn look directed his way.
"I'm fine, you all know I've had worse," He says pushing himself to his feet.
"Don't get up, yet," Tsuna tells him, nobody expecting the teen to listen. Which is why they all stare when Lambo sits right back down.
"He might have a head injury,"
"I'm fine,"
"Takeshi, let Shamal know he's needed in the infirmary immediately, please. I have a feeling I might need his help."
"I'm fine,"
Of course, nobody listens to him. He's taken to the infirmary where everybody waits for a diagnosis. Shamal and Ryohei take a couple of x-rays which thankfully show everything is fine, no broken bones. He has a slight concussion but nothing too serious. It's when Shamal tries to take some blood for testing that Lambo protests.
"I'm fine, keep that needle away from me!"
"Men, so cowardly. This is why I don't like treating them."
"Lambo, it won't hurt much and it'll be over quickly. We need to make sure you're ok."
"No, you can't make me, Tsuna-nii,"
Gokudera growls, "Sit down and let Shamal take your damn blood!"
Lambo immediately sits and hands his arm over with wide eyes.
"Why is he being so obedient? Shamal, is he going to die? He's actually obeying, that's not normal."
"Shut it, Stupidera!"
"Make me, brat,"
The worse thing to say. Shamal had just started to insert the needle when Gokudera told Lambo to make him which is what the teen tries to do. He jumps on Gokudera, ignoring the sharp pain in his arm where the needle is pulled out.
"Guys, stop it!" Tsuna shouts. Gokudera obviously expects Lambo to keep swinging because he aims at the teen but instead of blocking or dodging, Lambo comes to a full stop. He falls back with a cry when Gokudera's punch lands on his face, mentally cursing his need to be included for everything that's happening to him.
"Hayato, what the hell?"
"He just stopped! Why'd you stop?"
Lambo blinks away the blurry vision as he sits up, leaning back on his elbows. "Because Tsuna-nii told me to, duh…"
Tsuna wipes a hand down his face in obvious frustration. Lambo doesn't blame him, he's frustrated, too. He's been cornered and everyone knows something is going on with him, he needs to leave as soon as possible.
"Can somebody fill me in? How did Lambo end up in the infirmary and why does he look like he's been put through a grinder?"
Lambo takes the hand offered and stands up, giving Shamal a quiet thanks. There's no way he's leaving without telling them what's going on, they won't let him. He sighs. "I've been studying a lot and I may have missed a meal or two." He shrugs as if this is hard to say.
"I've been feeling a little dizzy and fell over... a couple of times. I realized that was pretty stupid so I'm taking more breaks in between studying to make sure I eat a proper meal. I'm sorry,"
Tsuna looks at him for a few seconds, obviously trying to figure out if their youngest brother is lying. Before he can zero in on the lie, Lambo adds, "You've all been too busy to notice so I took advantage of your distraction to work on my own. I knew what I was doing was wrong and for that, I apologize,"
Tsuna knows he's telling the truth now but doesn't know what Lambo is actually apologizing for. The boss sighs once more, lifting Lambo's chin. "What am I going to do with you?"
The guilt hits Lambo hard and it takes all of his strength to stop from confessing. They loved him, there was no doubt about that, but Lambo wanted to be one of them. He wanted to be useful to them just like I-Pin. That's all he was doing, trying to help. It backfired and now he's an obedient dog but at least he tried.
Lambo gives his brother a small smile, "Let me take a nap?"
Tsuna shakes his head fondly. "First, dinner. After that, we'll talk about what you've been up to since you came over. I know we haven't spent much time together."
Uh, no. Lambo does not want to talk about what he's been up to. He needs a way out of this, he needs to get them to focus on something else. He blurts out the first thing he can think of. "But shouldn't you be looking for the drug thief?"
Wow, he really is that stupid. The room goes silent, Tsuna's warm smile turning into a cold frown. The Tenth looks at his present guardians silently asking who told their youngest about their recent mission. When it looks like nobody did, he turns back to Lambo. "How could you possibly know about a drug thief?"
Lambo groans out loud, hiding his face in his hands. This is why they always go with I-Pin for missions, she knows how to think under pressure! He stands and tries to run out but Yamamoto easily grabs his shoulders and spins him around to face them all. "Nice try,"
"Lambo, tell me what you know,"
The teen tries so hard to keep his mouth shut but it's no use. Against his will, he tells them what he knows. "Somebody broke into the Bovinos, stole a drug, tried to get away, got caught, somebody else took it, he vanished but accidentally dropped the drug." Phew, he was able to leave his name out of it.
He whimpers when his head begins to hurt again. If he's not mistaken, his head begins to hurt when he tries to fight the command given. He has no choice but to do as told and if he tries to stop his head hurts. Well, this sucks.
"Is that all?"
"Yes,"
"Don't lie to me, is that all you know?"
Lambo falls to his knees from how strong the headache is. He's fighting against everything to keep his mouth shut but he still answers, "No, that's not all." He says through clenched teeth.
"Shamal, what's going on with him?"
Lambo can't even open his eyes, it hurts so much. "Tsuna-nii, please, make it stop,"
He feels arms wrap around his body, a soft voice telling him it's going to be ok. "You're going to be fine, it's ok."
He shakes his head, this is ridiculous. He can't keep doing this, he needs to come clean; otherwise, each time somebody gives him a command, he's going to lose more brain cells until his brain melts away. Bad mental picture.
"I'm sorry,"
He feels somebody placing him on one of the beds and the lights are dimmed to help with his headache. After a few deep breaths, he's able to open his eyes and swallows. He needs to tell them everything.
"Tsuna-nii, I-"
"Lambo, what happened? Are you ok?"
The teen looks to the infirmary door where his best friend has just burst through followed by Fon. "Hey, I'll be fine. I just have a small headache."
"Fon, I-Pin, welcome home,"
"Tsuna-nii, I managed to find the information for, uh," I-Pin looks from Tsuna to Lambo then back. Tsuna understands what she's asking and he smiles.
"Go ahead, he apparently knows everything."
"The Bovinos were working on a psychedelic drug but somehow it turned into something else. It's supposed to brainwash a person into following orders without question. It wasn't complete, though. It had many negative side effects and caused the person to experience terrible headaches, bloody noses, seizures, and in some cases, they ended in a permanent coma."
I-Pin wonders why they've all stopped looking at her and are now paying very close attention to Lambo. He's currently trying to stop a bloody nose with his hand and looks terrified, his color has changed to a deathly pale.
"Lambo, what did you do?" Tsuna asks. I-Pin has never heard him sound so angry but she can still see how concerned he is.
"Nothing! Why does everyone assume I've done something?"
"I will not ask again, tell me what you did. Everything!"
Tsuna has never once raised his voice in anger at Lambo. Sure. he'd yelled at him but never with this kind of fury. It scared him. With tears in his eyes, he tells them everything. He didn't even think about fighting the drug. He didn't want a headache on top of everything else happening. He told them about the catacombs, his jealousy at I-Pin being involved, his own spy work, his connection to Caronte, his running away from his brothers, accidentally smashing the vile and getting the drug into his body. He tells them everything in between tears and sobs.
When he's finished, Lambo keeps his head down in shame. He doesn't want to look at anyone, he knows what he's going to see. He doesn't want to see their disappointment especially after all the work he put in to make them proud. After a couple of minutes, he hears Tsuna speak and it breaks his heart.
"Shamal, do what you need to do to make sure he'll be ok. Ryohei, let me know if there's any change. Everyone else, come to my office."
That's it. No hug, no reassuring words, not even a gentle pat on the head. Lambo listens to the footsteps leave, he hears the door close; his brother's left him. Tsuna hates him.
Lambo curls into himself, pulling his knees up to his chest as he cries. He messed up. He messed up bad. He feels a pat on his shoulder but he doesn't look at his remaining brother.
"Lambo, you're not a kid anymore. You're going to be fourteen this year, you're old enough to know what you did was reckless, extremely dangerous, and there will be severe consequences. You put yourself in danger over jealousy, we expected more from you. We trusted you,"
Lambo flinches as if the words had physically struck him. He really messed up. He almost got himself killed, (might very well still die) and went behind his Famiglia's back to do something alone. This could be seen as a betrayal. Oh, no...if he was labeled a traitor, he'd be killed! Or worse, be forced to leave.
"Do I have to leave Vongola?" He asks in a whisper. If he was told he was no longer Vongola he'd...he had no idea what he'd do. Vongola was more than mafia, it was more than a group of people working to make life better for others; Vongola was family. His family. He needed them to live.
"Never, you're one of us, Lambo. You're our brother and nothing you do will make us throw you out. But you need to know how serious this is. This is more than just a bad prank or not following orders. You deliberately put not only your life but ours at risk over some petty jealousy. The trust we had in you has been broken, how can we trust you again?"
Lambo feels sick to his stomach. Ryohei was right, he'd lied to them, he'd gone behind their backs, he'd involved people outside of the family without permission, he failed as a Vongola. He didn't deserve to be one of them but they still accepted him like that. He didn't know what to say, there was nothing to say. All he could think of was, "I'm sorry,"
"I know you are. Shamal's going to take some blood to see what you got inside, ok? We'll keep an eye on you and make sure you don't get worse."
"Does Tsuna-nii hate me now?"
"No, of course not. Nobody hates you, I need you to understand that, nobody hates you. He's upset, angry because he knows how easily you could have died. He needs time to process everything but he'll be back soon. Just give him some time to cool off, ok?"
Lambo nods. Shamal has him sit up and draws a few vials of blood from his left arm while Ryohei heals his right hand, getting rid of the ugly cuts.
"Get some rest, I'll be back in a few minutes."
"Are you going to see Tsu-uh, the Tenth?"
Ryohei doesn't bother correcting Lambo. He knows the teen is hurt and confused as to his place with them but they'll work on that later. "Yes, I need to tell him what we've learned and to make sure he's doing alright."
Lambo nods. "Can you tell him I'm sorry?"
"I will. Go to sleep,"
Lambo misses the panicked look on Ryohei's face when the teen suddenly falls back on his pillow, eyes closed as he surrenders to sleep.
.
.
.
Ta-da! Don't worry, this continues in 'P' which I am working on as you read. I will hopefully have it up tomorrow or the day after at the latest. I'm on a roll right now and will not lose my mojo!
Thank you in advance for the reviews! You all know they're the only thing keeping me coming back.
See you next time in Lambo's Corner! You do not want to miss it!