Okay so I'm trying to keep up, but I would say probably expect another two weeks before the next chapter, just because I'm having a particularly busy next few weeks. But I do know where I want to go, I just legitimately do not have a lot of time to sit down and write things out. Hopefully, things will slow down soon.

In the meantime, the front half of this chapter is plot, the second half is straight shenanigans.

XXXX

They were settled in the living room, Ietsuna sitting across the room in a chair and eyeing the spectacle before him hesitantly. Dino was sitting on the couch, leaning forward while Tsuna sat on a pillow on the floor, opposite. Hibari's head was in his lap, the older boy draped across him like a cat. He had his eyes closed, but was awake. Occasionally he would crack an eye open to glare at Dino and would gently trace circles on Tsuna's knee. Tsuna rested one hand on the top of Hibari's head, tangled in his hair. The other was carding through it and rubbing his neck and shoulders.

"Is this what you came over here to do?" Tsuna asked his boyfriend when he had first settled into position.

"Mhm." Hibari muttered against Tsuna's torso, turning in to press his face into Tsuna's stomach. "And something else, but it can wait." He said.

"You lazy bastard." Tsuna said. Hibari ignored him. He sighed, and looked up to Dino. "So what is a Sky?" He demanded to know. Dino looked hesitantly at Reborn and Ietsuna.

"Wouldn't you rather explain this?" He asked Reborn.

"I'm not his tutor and I was given explicit instructions not to train him how to use flames of any kind." That had been the order tacked on by Iemitsu, who knew that Reborn was vying for another candidate.

"But the kid is bursting at the seams with them." Dino was confused. "It would be dangerous not to."

"Tell that to Nono yourself."

"What are you all talking about?" Tsuna asked. "Please, someone. Just tell me." Dino rubbed his head.

"What do you know about Dying Will flames, kiddo?"

"Just that I have them. I didn't know what they were for a long time. I can make them hot or not and they're...strong." Tsuna confessed. "I can use them to make my hits a lot stronger. I didn't know what they were called until Reborn shot Ietsuna with the Dying Will Bullet." Tsuna scratched his head. "And that the Vongola bosses have all had them. Hayato told me that there are different types, but that the Vongola line is known to use them." Dino nodded.

"All of that is true. There's just...more." He said. "The Vongola line is extremely powerful; you have a natural talent for them that is unrivaled. There are seven types. Storm, Cloud, Lightning, Rain, Mist, Sun, and Sky." Dino said. "Sky is the rarest and most powerful. All Vongola bosses are Sky."

"Is it hereditary?" Tsuna asked. Dino considered his question.

"I mean...yes and no. It is determined by one's personality and innate nature, is what we've gathered. So yes, sometimes parents and children or siblings have the same flame, but there's no gene for it that determines what you get, if that's what you're wondering." Dino explained. "Except for the Vongola; they seem to be special. It seems to run along the Vongola bloodline and it's practically unheard of, to have so many Skies in one family." Tsuna sighed.

Of course, even among people who somehow projected fire from their bodies, Tsuna was the weird one.

"So there are just tons of people spouting flames?" Tsuna asked, tired. Dino sat up straight.

"What?"

"You know. The flames." Tsuna said.

"You mean, you can actually produce a flame? With just your bare hands?" Dino demanded. Tsuna glanced behind him to see Ietsuna, open-mouthed.

"Yes?"

"Show me." Dino demanded. Tsuna held out a hand tentatively and the bright orange flame burst from it. Dino's jaw went slack. "Holy shit." Even Reborn looked somewhat surprised.

"What?" Tsuna asked. "I'm confused. What's wrong?" Dino rubbed his jaw.

"There's nothing wrong, kiddo." He was fascinated by the flickering flame. "You're really able to produce a controlled flame with nothing but your bare hands? And use this offensively?"

"I said that earlier, didn't I?"

"I thought you infused your body with them, like I do. I didn't think you actually produced them like this." Dino whistled, low. "Christ, kiddo."

"You said you were a Sky too, right?" Tsuna extinguished the flame. Dino blinked and nodded.

"Yeah, I am."

"And that's why you're fireproof?" Tsuna asked.

"Yeah, that's why I wasn't as affected by the temperature rising." Dino said.

"What about Ietsuna-nii?" Tsuna wondered. "I thought he was a Sky too." The Italian suddenly turned bright red. Tsuna twisted to see his brother, who was looking away, embarrassed. Dino coughed into his hand. "What? Have I said something?"

"It's because you two are so much stronger than Stupid Ietsuna." Reborn said. "If Stupid Ietsuna would train like he's supposed to, maybe he would be fireproof too."

"Reborn!" Ietsuna snapped. Reborn shrugged.

"You were chosen because you showed great promise to be Decimo. And despite all the tutoring, the years of training, you are being outpaced by your little brother by leaps and bounds. Because you refuse to learn."

"That's not very nice, Reborn." Tsuna said quietly. Reborn shrugged.

"I'm not nice." Reborn pivoted back to Ietsuna. "It's not that you don't have talent or promise. It's that you refuse to use it." Tsuna winced.

"I've only told you a thousand times that I don't want to be-,"

The front door flew open with a bang.

"What the fuck?" Hibari sat up, bleary-eyed. Tsuna had almost forgotten the skylark was laying in his lap. Tsuna stifled a laugh, and reached out to pet down some of his boyfriend's hair that was sticking up on one side. It was kind of cute.

One of Dino's men, burst in.

"Boss!" He shouted. "There's a suspicious man at the gate." Dino stood up suddenly, shrugging his jacket back on. His hand immediately went to the whip at his side. Hibari narrowed his eyes and sprang to his feet. He was out of the door before Dino was.

"Kyoya!" Tsuna shouted. "Did we not just talk about this?!"

"We never technically finished the conversation!" Came the shout back. Oh, Hibari thought he was funny.

"That doesn't-, ughhh." Tsuna sprang to his feet, chasing after his boyfriend. "Get back here!"

"Stupid Ietsuna, this is why you're not going anywhere." Tsuna heard Reborn say to his brother, who had remained seated.

"Because I don't want to run headfirst into danger?" Ietsuna snapped back.

"Because you won't."

Tsuna didn't hear the rest of the conversation.

When he got outside, Hibari was weaving through the army of men that were standing protectively by the house. They parted for Dino, who was chasing after Hibari, both heading towards a man standing at the edge of the street with a crooked smile on his face and a gun in his hand. Tsuna sprinted out after them, but was getting a strange feeling.

When he looked into the man's eyes, which were almost hidden by his fringe, he felt like something about them looked...odd. He wasn't sure what, but the more he focused, the more he was sure there was something off about them. Hibari had sprinted ahead with no hesitation.

He attacked, getting close into the man's personal space, almost too close for the odd man to use his gun. The man blocked his blows, countering Hibari's movements with a surprising speed. Hibari did manage to get a strong blow to the man's sternum that would have certain cracked it, knocking him onto his back in the dirt. Tsuna could swear he caught the intruder's eyes for a moment, and then the intruder fired a shot at Hibari. The skylark easily dodged.

Crack!

Dino's whip curled through the air, ripping the gun out of the intruder's hands with ease, bringing it back to Dino's. The Italian handed the gun to a subordinate and pressed onwards, widening his stance. He opened his mouth to speak, but Hibari attacked the intruder again, striking him in the face. The intruder rolled to his side, out of the way, getting to his feet and darting between Hibari's furious blows. Hibari caught him with his leg and cracked the man in the knee in a move that certainly would have caused significant damage.

The intruder winced, but did not go down.

In fact, he even dodged Hibari's next flurry of blows, which was only making the skylark angrier. He got him again, this time in a blow that certainly would have broken the intruder's clavicle.

And yet, the intruder remained standing.

Despite a blow to the sternum that certainly cracked it and should have forced all the breath out of his body. That should have made him weak.

A blow to the knee that should have left him unable to walk.

And a fractured clavicle, that should have made any movement unbearable.

And yet the intruder only smiled, and kept going. He was moving slower now, jerkily and Hibari was getting him more and more, but nothing seemed to send him down.

Dino grabbed Hibari by the back of his shirt and pulled him away, realizing that their opponent was no normal man. The whip cracked through the air again, wrapping tightly around the intruder. Tsuna could see where it was cutting into the skin, curled around the intruder's body.

"Who are you?" Dino asked. "What do you want?" The man grinned back.

"To obtain Decimo." Tsuna stared at him from the steps.

What was it, about those eyes?

The intruder looked directly at Tsuna.

And it was like a mist cleared from his eyes. One of them was a deep crimson, growing darker around the edges and the pupil was a strange shape.

It looked like a kanji.

The intruder winked at him.

"Dino-," Tsuna started, just as the intruder blinked hard, the red eye disappearing, and his eyes rolling back in his head. In the same moment, Dino ripped the whip away, blood spraying through the air as it sliced through the skin and jerking the neck of the intruder.

The unconscious body fell to the ground, crimson soaking through his clothes, limbs at odd angles.

The intruder was alive, but Tsuna could see a version of that whip pulling away where Dino snapped the intruder's neck.

If Dino had intended to kill this man, it would have been over the moment Dino's whip left its position, curled at his side. As Dino coiled his whip back up, he turned to his men and beamed at them.

"Are you okay, guys?" He was met with profuse compliments.

The skylark turned to glare at Dino.

"That was my prey." He snapped. Dino laughed weakly.

"There will be more, Hibari."

"Wait, Dino." Tsuna said. Ietsuna and Reborn had come out onto the stoop sometime during the brief fight. "Did you see that?"

"That he wouldn't go down, no matter how much your boyfriend put the hurt on him?" Dino asked. Tsuna nodded, but paused.

"His eyes. Did you see his eyes?"

"I mean I saw them." Dino said, blinking. "What about them?"

"I'm surprised you noticed that, Dame-Tsuna." Reborn bounced onto Tsuna's hair.

"I saw what he wanted me to see." Tsuna said, shaking his head. "The red eye. With the kanji." Dino turned to Tsuna, brow furrowed.

"I didn't see that."

"That's because Pipsqueak Dino is as perceptive as a spoon." Reborn added. "But I agree. He showed you that."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Hibari said. "His eyes looked normal. Crazed, perhaps. But normal." He was still eyeing Dino. "You will fight me." He demanded. Dino rubbed the back of his head.

"Aw, I don't know about that, Hibari." The chairman took a step further, punctuating his statements with a jab at Dino's chest.

"You will fight me. You are stronger than you are showing. You will show me." Dino glanced between Tsuna and Hibari. Tsuna held up his hands.

"I'm not getting involved." Dino turned back to Hibari, and tilted his head curiously. Tsuna could see Dino working through something in his head. And then, the Italian grinned, his hand jamming into his pocket.

"Only if you can handle...this!" He pulled some sort of object out of his pocket, shoving it into the skylark's face.

It promptly bit Hibari's nose.

A turtle. Dino had shoved his little turtle into Hibari's face and it had bitten the chairman on the nose, before releasing him. It didn't break skin, but there was a red mark where it happened.

Tsuna watched his boyfriend's brain short-circuit with rage.

He had to physically restrain Hibari from trying to crack Dino's skull, while Dino laughed and pet his turtle.

"You're a funny guy, Kyoya." He commented. Tsuna was on Hibari's back, struggling to hold his arms down. Hibari immediately froze.

"Did I give you permission to use my name, bronco?" He snapped. Dino shrugged.

"If I'm ever gonna train you, we'll have to get to know each other!" Hibari lurched forward and Tsuna dug his heels into Hibari's ribs, struggling to hang on.

Later, Dino had decided to stay the night and his men had left, as he insisted he was capable of taking care of himself. Tsuna had offered him the guest bedroom anyways, and already called Nana to let her know they had two extra guests for dinner.

"Are you staying as well?" Tsuna had asked Hibari, who muttered something angrily in Mandarin to himself, eyeing Dino who waved back cheerily, still holding Enzio. Hibari so strongly believed that everything about Japanese culture was superior that Tsuna often forgot that the Hibari family had Chinese roots, and that the chairman's first language was not, in fact, Japanese. Tsuna had once been present when Hibari picked up a phone call from his mother, answering in Mandarin. Tsuna's jaw had dropped. Hibari had informed him that his mother was of Chinese heritage and that he had said too much already.

"Yes, for dinner." Hibari responded. Tsuna informed his mother that Hibari was going to stay, and she was immediately thrilled, insisting she would make his favorites.

They were all settled in the living room once again, this time Hibari taking his place in a chair, arms crossed and hackles raised like an angry cat. They were discussing the man that had attacked the house. Tsuna was insisting that there was something bigger at play and while it seemed like Dino certainly believed Tsuna, he had not seen what Tsuna saw.

"I just don't know what they would be doing in Namimori." Dino confessed. "It seems so odd. To send...a scout? I don't know." Hibari and Dino had already had it out over who would get the unconscious hitman; ultimately, Dino had ended up taking the hitman though not without Hibari fighting tooth and nail for it.

"Perhaps now is the time to speak on what I came here for." The chairman spoke.

"Besides taking a nap?" Tsuna snickered. Hibari rolled his eyes.

"What I intended to speak to you about was the series of attacks that have been taking place in Namimori. On DC members." Tsuna froze.

"What?" He asked, voice filled with concern. Hibari nodded.

"Initially, no one was seriously injured and the first thought was that it was simply some locals who took issue with the committee." The skylark's eyes betrayed nothing, even though Tsuna knew that HIbari must be furious. "But the last few have stepped up in intensity. It seems as if they are...seeking something in particular."

"And you think this has something to do with the man who came to the door earlier?" Hibari shrugged.

"I do not know. But this man was clearly some sort of scout. He did not attack. He intended to draw us out. To get a good look at Decimo." Hibari was pensive. "I do not know for certain if these instances are connected, but we cannot afford to dismiss that possibility." Dino considered Hibari's words.

"That's interesting, Kyoya." Hibari's eye twitched. "I'll let you know what we find out."

"How about I show you where you'll be staying tonight, Dino?" Tsuna suggested. "You can follow me." Dino nodded and got up from his seat. Tsuna led him over to the stairs. "Sorry if the room is a little messy; we cleaned out the other room when nii-san moved back in-," Tsuna was mid-sentence, when suddenly, Dino's face contorted, and his arms windmilled out.

What the-?

"Ah!" Dino shouted, grabbing onto Tsuna and pulling him back. Tsuna squeaked as they went tumbling down the stairs with a series of thuds.

Tsuna's life flashed before his eyes.

They landed at the bottom of the stairs, Tsuna on top of Dino, who laughed nervously.

"Sorry, Tsuna. I don't know what happened." Tsuna groaned.

Reborn bounced over to peer down at the two of them.

"Dino's usefulness decreases by over 50% when his subordinates aren't around." He informed Tsuna. Tsuna smacked his forehead, and when he removed his hand, Hibari's scowling face swam into view.

"I'm staying." Hibari informed him. "Or this fool might kill you." He reached down and grabbed Tsuna by the shoulder, hauling him up, glaring at Dino, who rubbed his head. Tsuna reached out to try and help Dino up but Hibari smacked his hand away.

"Kyoya!" Tsuna exclaimed.

"He's a safety hazard." Tsuna reached out again, starting to pull Dino to his feet, when Dino started to slip again, eyes widening. Tsuna squeaked, but Hibari was faster.

He grabbed Dino by the front of his shirt with an iron grip and pulled him to his feet.

"Thank you, Kyo." Tsuna muttered, embarrassed. Dino gave them a pained smile.

"I don't know what Reborn is talking about! This is just silly stuff." Reborn clicked his tongue and shook his head.

"He's also in deep denial." Hibari released him, and then pivoted to point a finger at Tsuna.

"Do not go up the stairs at the same time as him." Tsuna held up his hands defensively.

"I didn't know!"

"Where's Hibari going to sleep?" Ietsuna finally spoke. Everyone looked at him at the same time. Horror crossed his face. "Oh fuck no!"

The front door opened, and Nana walked in, one arm filled with a paper bag of groceries.

"Tsu-kun! Ietsuna-kun!" She exclaimed happily when she saw them. She smiled. "Hibari-kun, it's very good to see you." Hibari nodded back stiffly. Her eyes eventually fell onto the blonde Italian man in front of her, who was smiling sheepishly. "And who is this?"

"This is Cavallone Dino, Mom-," Tsuna began to introduce him, and Dino reached out a hand to shake Nana's. Hibari was eyeing him like he was a bomb about to go off.

"Nevermind that!" Ietsuna waved a hand, eyes the size of dinner plates. "Mom, are you really okay with Hibari sleeping in Tsuna's bed?" Nana giggled, blushing.

"Ietsuna-kun, you don't want to embarrass your brother and Hibari-kun! Besides, Hibari-kun is a gentleman." She winked at Hibari. Tsuna stifled a laugh. Nana reached out and shook Dino's hand, smiling sweetly. Dino leaned down and kissed the back of Nana's hand. She flushed and giggled again. "You're very charming, Cavallone-san." Dino smiled back.

"Dino, please." Nana giggled, walking off to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

"I'm not a gentleman, but you have nothing to worry about, herbivore." Hibari said dryly to Ietsuna. "I'm not going to fool around with your brother in a house full of screaming children." Ietsuna turned bright red, and Tsuna turned his head to hide the flush in his own cheeks.

"Kyoya!" He hissed.

"They aren't even here right now!" Ietsuna said. Hibari raised an eyebrow, and then gestured at Ietsuna and Dino.

"I'm talking about you two."

"Tsuna, your boyfriend is a dick."

XXXX

Somehow, Tsuna managed to survive the rest of the night, even with Dino's almost dangerous level of uselessness at every turn.

When the kids got back, I-Pin had taken one look at Hibari, who she had a massive crush on, and darted upstairs immediately. Tsuna had gone up to try and comfort her and bring her some food, but she refused to even look at Tsuna. Not until Tsuna had leaned down and whispered to her that he had a big crush on Hibari too, and she had finally accepted the food but refused to come back downstairs for dinner. Tsuna couldn't really fault her, not with the Pinzu Time Bomb and all.

He had left screaming downstairs, Ietsuna and Dino bickering, Lambo whining about something or other, and Hibari judging them all silently from one end of the table. And when Tsuna got back, Ietsuna and Dino were still arguing, but Lambo was oddly quiet.

The little guy was sat in Hibari's lap, cheerfully munching on his dinner, one of Hibari's arms curled around him. Tsuna probably should have guessed; Hibari had a weakness for small animals and the normally crying cow child certainly qualified. The skylark was idly petting Lambo's fluffy hair, Nana cooing over both of them. Tsuna took his seat next to them, shooting his boyfriend a curious look and bending down to be eye-to-eye with Lambo.

"Lambo-kun, are you enjoying dinner?" Tsuna asked, smiling softly. Lambo nodded, and uncharacteristically, finished chewing his food before he spoke.

"It's really good, Tsuna-nii!" It was unusually obedient. Tsuna was skeptical.

"Lambo-kun, are you afraid of Kyoya?" Lambo shook his head. Hibari scoffed, and Tsuna sat back up. "I don't know how else to explain what I'm seeing."

"Hibari just has a commanding aura, Dame-Tsuna." Reborn said, snatching Tsuna's food off his plate. Tsuna rolled his eyes, but didn't fight it. "You let these kids walk all over you." Tsuna wrinkled his nose in response.

"I do not."

"You absolutely do." Hibari added dryly. Tsuna made a noise, and was about to shove some food in his mouth, when Hibari leaned forward and snatched it right out of Tsuna's chopsticks with his teeth. Tsuna blinked.

"Hey!"

"Tsuna-nii!" Lambo cried. "I wanna play!" Hibari tugged gently on his hair.

"Finish your food first." He ordered, not harsh, but certainly commanding. Lambo immediately closed his mouth and returned to the task at hand, feeding himself.

Which, one would think is easy, but Dino had just dropped his chopsticks for the third time across the table. It didn't help that the Italian wasn't particularly skilled with them in the first place.

"Dino, can I get you a fork?" Tsuna offered. Dino shook his head.

"No, I can use chopsticks just fine! I just can't seem to hang onto them right now." Dino laughed sheepishly, and reached forward, subsequently knocking his glass off the table and onto the floor. It shattered, loudly. Ietsuna groaned.

"This is ridiculous." He said.

Dino broke much more of their dinnerware than necessary before the end of dinner.

Later, when going up the stairs, Tsuna was afraid Dino was going to slip and die on them. He wanted to help him up, but Hibari had literally grabbed Tsuna and separated him from Dino, before hauling Dino up the stairs by the back of his shirt and tossing him into the guest room.

"Kyoya!" Dino pouted. Hibari slammed the door in his face. Tsuna immediately opened it again to poke his head in and tell Dino where the bathroom was, and that he would get him some towels momentarily.

When Tsuna came upstairs, he initially couldn't find either of them, until he heard Dino's cries of pain from the bathroom. He caught Hibari twisting Dino's hand and forcing the man to his knees, with Dino's turtle in his other hand, looking enraged. If Tsuna hadn't walked in, he was pretty sure Hibari would have started strangling Dino.

"Kyoya! You can't kill your mentor." Hibari twisted Dino's arm harder.

"He's not my mentor."

"Not with that attitude." Dino wheezed. "Alright, alright. I see what the problem was." Hibari narrowed his eyes at Dino, before releasing him.

"What's going on?" Tsuna was almost afraid to ask, but did so anyways. The dark-haired boy turned to Tsuna, presenting the turtle.

"This idiot," He hissed. "Claims his turtle grows in water and was about to leave it in the bathtub. In water." Tsuna blinked.

"I see." He answered. "That sounds like a bad idea." Hibari held up the turtle.

"I'm confiscating this until you become competent again."

"Enzio!" Hibari pulled the turtle away before Dino could grab it.

"You may collect him in the morning." Dino sighed.

"You're such a strict disciplinarian, Kyoya." Hibari huffed.

When Tsuna eventually got all the kids to bed, including Dino, he got into his own. His boyfriend climbed in after him, grabbing him around the waist and pulling him close. His hands snaked under the loose shirt Tsuna wore to bed. Tsuna felt the skylark's breath against his neck.

"I should set an alarm-," Hibari made a noise and pressed his face against Tsuna's neck.

"Go to sleep." He muttered.

Tsuna was never really cold anymore, not since learning how to utilize his flames. In fact, one might say he emitted heat like a furnace. So when he woke up alone, some time in the middle of the night, it wasn't because he was cold. But he was curled up as if Hibari was still pressed against him, and that comforting weight was gone. Tsuna sat up, rubbing his eyes as they adjusted to the dark room. There was some moonlight streaming in through the window for Tsuna to see by, but it still took a second. He creeped out of bed, walking gingerly as to not wake up any other residents. The bathroom was clearly empty; the door was open and the lights were off. All other doors were closed, so Tsuna crept to the stairs, yawning to himself. He could swear he heard something from downstairs, so he descended, finding it odd that he saw no light on.

Until he peeked his head into the kitchen.

The only light was from the moonlight coming in through the window over the sink, where Hibari was leaning, shoving food into his mouth, eyes bleary. He looked half asleep, hair a bird's nest, the sight of him eating straight out of a container in pajama pants and a loose t-shirt almost comical. Tsuna stifled a laugh.

"What are you doing?" He hissed. Hibari blinked and turned towards him, shoving some food unceremoniously into his mouth.

"Eating." He said. "Obviously." Tsuna glanced at the stove clock.

"It's 2 am!"

"I was hungry." Hibari said, as if that explained everything. "I eat when I'm hungry." Tsuna rubbed his face.

"You sleep when you're tired, you eat when you're hungry. Do you have a schedule at all?" Tsuna demanded. Hibari had one scheduled nap per day, after lunch, but other than that, Tsuna had noticed the erraticness in Hibari's schedule. He snacked at odd times in the day, occasionally just closed his eyes and went to sleep in the middle of paperwork, and Tsuna had never been able to pin down Hibari's standard dinner time. Probably, Tsuna was guessing, because it didn't exist.

"No. Why should I?"

"Were you raised by wolves?" Tsuna wanted to know. Hibari shrugged, and shoved some more food in his mouth. Tsuna walked over, and leaned his head against Hibari's shoulder. He put one hand on his boyfriend's back and rubbed circles. "Come on. You're going back to bed." Hibari swallowed the rest of his food, setting the container in the sink. He blinked, and then stuck his head under the faucet, chugging water. "You're an animal!" Tsuna was horrified. For someone who seemed so prim and proper and kept everything in his life so organized, Hibari radiated feral energy.

Hibari leaned back and wiped some water off his face.

"I see no need to dirty a cup." He explained, yawning.

"Is this why I haven't been to your house?" Tsuna wanted to know. "Because even though you're a neat freak about everything else you actually live in a feral, chaotic nightmare?" Hibari yawned again.

"No. You can come to my house." He said absently. Tsuna sighed and ran his fingers through Hibari's hair, tilting his own head up. "I'm just never there."

"Where do you sleep?"

"Wherever is most convenient, really. Depending on how tired I am."

"Just like, on roofs?" Hibari shrugged again. Tsuna wanted to shake his boyfriend. How had they been dating for months already, and Hibari was still such a mystery? Getting personal information out of him was like pulling teeth. "Kyo, please, for the love of God, stop sleeping on roofs. I will say this explicitly; this is an open invitation to sleep and eat here whenever you want. There is plenty of food, even if you want to eat it over the sink at 2 am like a feral animal." Hibari blinked back. Tsuna tugged on his shirt, and started pulling him out of the kitchen.

"Okay." Tsuna looked up at his boyfriend, whose eyes were already half-closed, sleepy. He reached up and cupped Hibari's face in his hands, stifling another laugh. It was ridiculous. The Hibari Kyoya, the demon chairman of the DC, terror of Namimori. In his pajamas, hair a ridiculous, mussed tangle, sleepy eyes, and water on his shirt from where he had stuck his head under the faucet to drink and the water had dripped off his jaw. "What is so funny?" Hibari wanted to know, but started yawning again.

"You're so cute." Tsuna said.

"I am not." Tsuna brushed a piece of hair out of Hibari's eyes.

"Yes, you are." He leaned up and kissed him gently. He pulled his boyfriend upstairs and climbed back into bed. Hibari settled back in, shoving his face against the back of Tsuna's neck. By the time Tsuna shifted to reach back to grab the skylark's hand, Hibari was already dead asleep. Tsuna snorted to himself. He was going to get Hibari a heated blanket for the holidays.

XXXX

The next day, Tsuna had cheerfully seen Dino out. He liked the older man; he was almost like his mafia big brother. And Dino had leaned in and grabbed his shoulder with one strong hand and confided in Tsuna that he would be in touch, and that he would help show him the ropes of the mafia world. This, naturally, infuriated Ietsuna, who threw up his hands and stormed off, frustrated. Hibari had said that he hoped to "never see this fool again"after he returned Enzio to his owner. Dino had just laughed, and said "You're so prickly, Kyoya."

Hibari slammed the door shut in response, leaving Tsuna and Dino outside with Reborn and Dino's men.

"I'm sorry about that." Tsuna apologized. "He's more sensitive than he lets on." Reborn snorted.

"That's not what I would call it." Tsuna leaned in to give the strong blonde a hug.

"Please, come by any time, Dino-nii!" Dino folded Tsuna into an almost crushing hug back. He pulled back and ruffled Tsuna's hair, giving him a boyish grin.

"Of course, little brother. I had a great time here with you. If you ever need help with anything, including your Sky flames-," Dino leveled with him seriously. He had already put his number into Tsuna's phone. "Give me a call. I'm happy to help." Tsuna nodded.

"I will!" He promised. "I better get back inside before they destroy the place between them." He rubbed the back of his head and smiled, slipping back inside the house. When the door closed, Dino pivoted to Reborn.

"I have some questions." Reborn tilted his hat and smiled.

"That seems to be a common theme with Tsuna, yes." Reborn said.

"Why isn't he Decimo?" Dino wanted to know. "I mean, I know Ietsuna was chosen a long time ago. But the sheer combat talent Tsuna has..." He shook his head. "The magnetism, the intuition. I don't know if all the training in the world could help Ietsuna keep up with his little brother." Ietsuna wasn't an untalented mess; he had fallen far from where Dino remembered him, but Ietsuna had Sky flames. He had combat ability. He had some leadership skills. And all of it, had been a perfectly respectable, reasonable level for a seventeen year old boy.

But Tsuna was gifted. Sure, he was smaller, seemingly more timid than his brother. Sweet, with a gentle heart.

But with the ability to produce a corporeal flame Dino was certain could have scorched that house to nothing. A corporeal flame with no ring, no Dying Will Bullets or pills, no method to channel it through. It was rare, and powerful. The only Vongola Dino had ever seen produce that much firepower unassisted was Xanxus himself. And Xanxus didn't, and never would have half the empathy Tsuna did.

"Reborn, he's a prodigy." Dino was dumbfounded. "Never mind the fact that he's the spitting image of a young Primo. When he grows up, it's going to be deeply uncanny."

"Iemitsu." Reborn said. Dino blinked.

"What?"

"That's the answer to your question. Iemitsu. Iemitsu is why Tsuna isn't Decimo." Reborn shrugged. "I was given explicit instructions not to even attempt to train Tsuna."

"Isn't it dangerous not-," Dino cut himself off, shaking his head. "I'm going to tell Nono what I think. He'll ask, when I return to Italy."

"Please do." Dino sighed.

"Even if they don't want him as Decimo, I don't see why he isn't being groomed for CEDEF." He crossed his arms over his chest. "They're throwing away an asset. Nono has to at least let me bring Tsuna to Italy to teach him some control." Reborn shook his head.

"They'll never let that happen, Pipsqueak Dino. You already think Tsuna is the second coming of Primo. Imagine what everyone else will think." Reborn said. "Imagine, if everyone else in Vongola questioned Nono's choice of candidate like you are right now." Dino threw up his hands.

"I hate this!"

XXXX

So Hibari is kind of a feral child, really. Just thought that would be fun to include. Mukuro is very much becoming an active player, so that will pick up soon. I also have an interesting vision for how Tsuna officially becomes Decimo. I don't intend to kill of Ietsuna to do it, though.