Mia Tempesta

Summary: Reborn never liked being a (secondary) Sky, but he can't deny his nature forever, so one day he starts collecting his Elements. Except now there was a tiny Storm that packs quite a punch that he doesn't know what to do with. Denial leads to trouble, trouble leads to possessiveness, possessiveness leads to ... something else much more tender. Throw in Checkerface and the Arcobaleno Sky into the mix and things get quite complicated.

"So," Skull drawls that night as he and Reborn play Tablanet in the latter's room on the cruise ship taking them back to Japan. Kyoya had a connected room to Reborn's but the teen was for once throwing a teen tantrum because none of the three Arcobaleno who had been at Mafia Land wanted to tell him anything about his newest little fascination. "When are we finally going to tell the kid about the Trinisette? I mean, sure, he knows vaguely what it is, or rather why it's so important, but we've never told him about our connection to it. Shouldn't he know?"

"He'll know," Reborn replies as he makes his move, picks up three cards with a king of hearts, namely the ten, four and another king, leaving only one card left on the table between them. Skull has nothing to pick it up with and throws down a two.

"When?"

"Preferably, the day after never," Reborn replies and picks up the two and four with a six, forcing Skull to throw down another card. Reborn places down his last card, too, before reaching over to deal out another hand for them each. Right off the bat, Skull snatches up the two cards from the last round and Reborn placed down one of his own, to which Skull also places down a card. Reborn picks them both up on his next turn.

"But isn't that a bit unfair towards the kid? I mean, Kyoya kind of helps operate a third of our overall activities since we left the kid in Namimori five years ago-"

"Six, now."

"That's even worse!" The former civilian claims even as they continue the game. "Besides Viper and Lal, he's basically the brain behind every operation we lead, be it for 'our organizations' or for the Arcobaleno. Isn't it impairing his ability to help us, not to mention straining our relationship with him, the fact that we're keeping something this huge from him? Reborn-senpai, I know you love him, we all do. You even see him as a son! But, while we may all still call him 'kid', 'brat' and 'tyke' jokingly, he's not a kid anymore. The only reason Fon hasn't told him about the Trinisette is because you don't want him to know."

"That's where you're wrong, lackey," the hitman said with a glower. "The only reason Fon wants to tell the kid is because everyone else agrees with the notion. One of three reasons why I don't want to tell Kyoya is because Fon doesn't want him involved." The other two were because Reborn doesn't want him involved and because it's too dangerous. Kyoya has enough shit to worry about as a Hibari, one of the last two in the whole world. The Trinisette is for the Arcobaleno to worry about until it is sealed away into the deepest, darkest corners of Vendicare Prison, where no one can find or access it, to be protected for eternity, and even that much is only because they've agreed to assemble it for Bermuda because they can move about far more inconspicuously than mummified, heavy coat and top hat wearing men with chains can.

The Arcobaleno were more than popular and famous, but Vindice are even more so.

A blind man could spot the infamous enforcers of mafia law and run.

(Sort of, but you know what he means.)

Reborn wants every piece of the Trinisette locked away so he doesn't have to worry about it all anymore and maybe then he will tell Kyoya about it. Maybe. Then again, maybe he'll just wait for the day Kawahira is dead before he lets Kyoya hear a word about the Trinisette and what the real meaning behind the name 'Arcobaleno' had once been. Kyoya doesn't need to know that his adoptive family have just barely escaped being cursed as immortal infants, destined to die a slow, cruel death by being sacrificial lambs for the ungrateful world

Kyoya might actually try to go off and destroy the Trinisette to make sure Reborn, Fon, Colonello, Lal Mirch, Skull, Verde and Viper can never be exposed to such a risk again and that simply won't do. The Trinisette must continue existing for the world to be in balance.

Bermuda had worked hard and the Arcobaleno had risked so much - not to mention how many Vindice and actual Arcobaleno had sacrificed - for them to come up with a satisfactory solution for it all to work out like this.

"Okay, well, what if he finds out on his own, hm?" Skull challenges, even as they close up another round and their last hands are dealt out. "You know how good he's gotten at that intelligence collecting shit over the years. Viper, Fon and Lal and even you have all done a far too good of a job there for him not to eventually learn about it. How do you think he will react then? He'll feel betrayed, that's how! He might lose all faith in us!"

"He's not you, Skull," Reborn feels the need to remind the Cloud, rolling his eyes even as he takes up four of the five cards between them with an ace. "He's rational and will understand why we didn't want to get him involved. He might even be grateful to us for not bothering him with our own issues." Which, he knows, would be the truth if they were literally anyone else. But they were Kyoya's family, so Kyoya will be pissed about being kept out of this matter for so long. Well, too bad. If the matter isn't solved by the time Kyoya hits seventeen, which is the age their youngest member had been when the 'strongest seven' had first learned of the issue, then Reborn might be okay with Kyoya learning about the Trinisette and what had nearly become of the group calling themselves today the Arcobaleno.

"That's bullshit and you know it," argues the stuntman and former commander of the Carcassa. Yes, former. Skull's pulling the 'I'm an aloof Cloud and you've been restraining me' card that he's learned from Kyoya because that kid is a true cloud, aloof and proud and hating crowds and restraints. Reborn had honestly seen dozens of less Cloud-y Clouds than Kyoya get away with some serious bullshit over the years with such an excuse, so he had told Kyoya to coach Skull in Cloud-y behaviors so he can get away with whatever bullshit he needs.

In truth, though, Skull was leaving the Carcassa for a total of four reasons: one, he had just ruined an attack fleet at Mafia Land, which as a result, besides the financial problems, will cause massive dissatisfaction from numerous other famiglia because you just don't attack Mafia Land, whether you're allowed to have a vacation there or not; two, the boss was becoming unhappy with how 'sloppily' Skull was handling the troops and missions given to him; three, that resulted in him talking with his scientists in how likely it would be for them to manage to dissect Skull and replicate what his Cloud Flames can do; and, finally, four, Skull was bored and homesick so he wanted out.

That last one was, quite possibly, the most Cloud-like response and reasoning Skull had given for just about anything in his entire life.

Reborn was unexpectedly proud of him for it.

Either way, Skull was pulling out and whether it was by way of an official resignation - which was, effectively, as polite as a 'Fuck you!' in the mafia - or by faking a death at the hands of two pissed off Arcobaleno remains to be seen. Both could be effective, because surely even the immortal stuntman, Skull de Mort, can't survive the ire of the world's greatest hitman and another of the strongest seven, never mind that he was also one of those same strongest seven.

Reborn can't wait to see what his Cloud had decided, because the stuntman refuses to say.

So here they were, Skull sneaking his way back to Japan, sharing a room with Reborn, sleeping on the couch, with a pissed off teenager in the room connected to theirs. Tablanet had been Skull's - very foolish - idea, because apparently the idiot had forgotten the game was math based and Reborn loved crunching numbers when he was bored and Skull hated it. So, of course, after five games, Reborn had won all five, with only one game being a near win for Skull, the difference being literally by one point.

Now, in their sixth game, Skull thought it was the right time to start talking about Kyoya and the Trinisette.

Probably because the teenager had tried interrogating him about it the second the two Clouds had met up. And Skull had had to face Kyoya's demon prefect of Namimori side that the Arcobaleno had never been on the receiving end of. And, well, Skull might have toughened up a bit over the years as a Carcassa commander, but he was still a lackey at heart and they all loved him for it.

Reborn could only shrug at Skull's words. "We'll see." He snatched up the last cards between them and Skull groaned as they reached for the cards they'd collected to start counting. After a few moments and announcing both the number of suits and the overall number of cards each of them had, Skull was sulking and Reborn had to chuckle because, really, his Cloud should know better by now that no game based on numbers is a game Reborn will lose. Maybe to Verde, because they were both grate with numbers, but not to just about anyone else.

Still, he sighed as he thought back on their short conversation he had done his damnedest to cut short. Kyoya won't be resentful of them for keeping it a secret. He'd call them all herbivores and be cross with them for about a week before he either grew bored or decided he was acting herbivorous for holding a grudge. It could go either way, really, depending on the teen's mood when he finds out. But the point was that Kyoya would get over it incredibly quickly and would move on. Maybe he'd throw it in their face if they ever try to scold him over something, but they all do that to each other, anyways, so it's practically a deep-seeded family tradition already.

But his reasoning to keep Kyoya out of the matters of the Trinisette beyond him knowing of its existence and what parts make it up are still standing. Kyoya is the type of person who would not hesitate to remove a threat before it could really become one. Reborn didn't know if that was part of Kyoya himself, a part of his Hibari blood or if it was his upbringing that had instilled such a response in him. Could be any one of those, could be a combination of them all. But the Trinisette was not something Kyoya can destroy without destroying them all. It's why the Vindice will spend an eternity protecting it, just to make sure there will never again be another generation of Arcobaleno sacrificed to the Pacifiers.

And Reborn knows that, no matter who or what tries to change the current status quo, will be killed mercilessly.

"Reborn-senpai," Skull told him after he'd put everything away and moved towards the bed as if he was about to go to sleep. The hitman stopped but didn't look over his shoulder to his only present Guardian. "He won't do anything stupid, you know. You said it yourself - he's rational. He may be a bit ... rash and passionate, but he'd understand. We're just pushing him away this way and he can feel it. He's a Mist too, remember? I don't understand it all that much, but Viper-senpai always says that Mists are rather sensitive to the thoughts and emotions of others. It's where Skies get it from."

"Do you have a point, lackey?"

"I'm just saying that Kyoya, while young and rash, isn't stupid. If we tell him everything, he won't do anything stupid."

"Except we can't be sure of that, Skull." He could feel his Cloud tense up at the sound of his actual name instead of the affectionate, teasing - and sometimes demeaning, but only when the stuntman has done something incredibly stupid or has managed to piss him or one of the others off - 'lackey' that's his norm. "Kyoya is passionate, he is possessive and whether he admits it or not, he's afraid he'll lose us. He understands enough about the Trinisette already to know we'd put our lives in danger because of it once, even if he doesn't know how or why. We are literally all he has left. He's of the same mindset, all the time, as we had been back then. Until he matures a little bit so he doesn't overreact, I don't think it's a smart idea to tell him. Won't you lose all will to live if something were to happen to him that we could have stopped simply by not having a certain conversation?"

Skull remained quiet, so Reborn went about preparing for bed, even though he could just tell this will be one of those nights where sleep just won't come. So much has happened, has been revealed, in such a short amount of time as just a measly twenty four hours. And even with one of his Guardians coming back home with him, he can't relax. With Tsuna possibly facing the Varia leader for the throne of Vongola, the possibility that the Cervello were behind it all - the deaths of the three other heirs - and now Kyoya asking about the Trinisette ...

It's nights like this that he really missed Fon, the days before they learned about the Man in the Iron Hat. Kawahira had brought so many complications into their lives, it wasn't even funny. Reborn knew they can't truly relax until all pieces of the Trinisette are gathered and handed over to be protected by the Vindice.

"Do you believe in destiny, Reborn-senpai?" Skull asked what felt hours later, as they just laid on the bed and couch respectively, staring up at the ceiling - or possibly the opposite wall, in the stuntman's case - and unable to fall asleep.

"What's got you asking that kind of question, lackey?" The Sun/Sky asked back instead of giving an answer. It's best to know a person's mindset before you even begin thinking of a reply on questions like that. Faith, destiny, religion, the horoscope, the afterlife, whatever else that falls into that category ... It all needs to be considered carefully before you give an answer, no matter your own opinion, because some people cling to various beliefs just to get through their every day. Now, Reborn knew Skull wasn't depressed or having any serious issues, but one doesn't need to be in such a situation for the loss of those beliefs to shatter one's entire world. Hence his wanting more info before he says anything.

And people dare say he's egocentric.

"Dunnow," the Cloud mumbled, barely heard despite how silent the room was. "It's something I've been thinking about for a while now. I mean, we fought our fate, right? But we didn't escape our destiny."

"I don't believe in fate," Reborn said after a long moment of trying to understand what Skull was trying to get at. "So I'm afraid I don't really understand what you are talking about."

"The Arcobaleno." Despite himself, Reborn stiffened. Because while they had named themselves, brazenly, Arcobaleno as a final Fuck You to Kawahira and Luce, there was a different tone they all used when they said 'Arcobaleno' and Arcobaleno. Skull was now saying that word with the meaning and tone of the latter, thinking of cursed infants they had almost become and the Pacifiers that were necessary but required sacrifices until just sixteen years ago. "I mean, that crazy Luce lady said we were, what? Destined to become Arcobaleno? That we can't escape our fate? But we didn't run from fate. We fought it and we didn't get cursed, right. But, still, somehow, we ended up being Arcobaleno anyway."

"It's only a name, Skull."

"Is it, really?" Skull half challenged, sitting up and looking towards Reborn's bed, where the hitman had propped himself up so they can meet eyes even if it was still pitch black in the room. They required no light. The bond between them conveyed everything way better than mere sight ever could. "I mean, the main purpose of the Arcobaleno is to protect the Trinisette, right? Isn't that what we are still doing now? So, obviously, while our fate has changed, by our own doing, our destiny remains the same. Did we really stick it to Checkerface or are we all still dancing to his tune?"

Reborn went to retort that of course they'd won against Checkerface, but then stopped as he thought about the rest of what Skull had said. "You've really thought this whole thing through, huh."

"It's been bothering me for a while," Skull admitted, looking away from his Sun and Sky. "I mean, they said that we can't escape being the protectors of the Trinisette,and we really didn't. Sure, the Vindice do the actual protecting, but we're kind of a part of it, too, because we're the ones finding the other pieces and collecting them so they can all be safe, right? What did we do, in the end?"

He thought about it before a wane smirk stretched over his lips. "We changed the meaning of the word Arcobaleno. We ensured that our generation is the last one that will ever have to worry about it. We stopped Checkerface from ruining and sacrificing more lives. You could even go as far as to say that we've created true balance, because the Pacifiers will always have the same amount of Flames and won't depend on people. We did a lot, Skull. And after all of the pieces are assembled and sealed away, we can rest and enjoy our lives in peace, knowing we've created a better world for Kyoya. Fate and destiny? Even if they did exist, I don't care about that shit. I always want to live my life so I have no regrets when I die."

Reborn had learned a lot about regret in his life. It's what led to him and Leon creating a Deathperation Bullet in the first place. Dying Will is the strongest force on earth. Reborn uses Deathperation Bullets on his students not because Dino and Tsuna are weak. They were both young when he came to train them, even if he's used to people being freakishly strong at their age due to the people he knows and his own experience growing up. Not everyone's a monster like the Skylarks or the Arcobaleno.

No, Reborn uses Deathperation Bullets to draw out their Dying Will because every time they meet that deep part of themselves, they learn something new, learn how to be stronger by finding out why they might want to be stronger. That's what 'hopeless cases' like Dino Cavallone and Sawada Tsunayoshi need. They are lost and they need a light to guide their way, something to strive for, something to care for, to love and protect, to cherish. Reborn's first goal, after he had assessed his students, had been to help them find that something which is precious, something they cannot give up.

Kyoya called it pride. Reborn doesn't know where he got that thought from, but it sounded strangely fitting.

Dino's pride were his men.

Tsuna's pride were his friends.

That's what makes them good bosses. That's why Reborn is so proud of them for being his students, even if they were dame dame.

If their people are the reason their Dying Will will burst into beautiful and pure Flames, then Reborn was doing something good.

Reborn lives so he can die without any regrets. Creating a world where there are at least a couple of Skies who won't bother Kyoya, who will maybe fight to break the mold of tradition, who will go against the stereotypes that haunt Flame users, will let him do so because he will know his son will live in a better world. He knows, should something happen to him, his Guardians will live in a better world, where no one will try to hunt them down, either to bear Pacifiers or to have Harmonization forced on them because of their pure, strong Flames and their skill.

Reborn is selfish. Saving the world is not his ideal here. 'Protecting' the Trinisette ... He did it for selfish reasons. He only wants those he's come to love and claim as his family to be safe and happy. The rest of existence can go to hell as far as he's concerned.

But because one can't go without the other, he does what he can. So maybe Skull is right. Maybe they hadn't changed their destinies. But that had never been the goal. No, changing their preordained 'fate' had. Because maybe they were destined to become Arcobaleno, this way or that, but they had changed the meaning of that word. The Arcobaleno are still the strongest seven of each generation, the chosen ones to protect the Trinisette, but they are no longer sacrifices. Perhaps Bermuda will one day enlist people to keep watch on the outside world, keep an ear to the ground outside of Vendicare Prison so they can always be informed if someone hears something about the Pacifiers and decides they want them for their own nefarious purposes. Maybe those people will be 'Arcobaleno', too.

But no one will ever be forced to endure such a cruel fate as was the original one for the Arcobaleno.

That, to say the least, is the Arcobaleno's greatest achievement.

"That sounds nice, I guess," Skull replies, mulling the words over. Eventually, he nods, mollified, and lowers himself down back onto the couch. "I want to live like that, too, Reborn-senpai. I've always wanted to live like that. I guess I should try harder. And I guess you might be right about the whole Kyoya thing, too. A couple of more years can't make that big of a difference if we haven't told him by now."

"I'm always right, lackey," Reborn huffed in good humor, laying down himself.

Skull snorted. "You sound like one of those pompous famiglia Skies, senpai."

They both gag in disgust. (Why, yes, Reborn's opinions on famiglia Skies have rubbed off on his family. Even Shamal, who is only occasionally with them, is hesitant to be around any mafia-raised Skies if he doesn't absolutely have to. In fact, Reborn's pretty sure Kyoya has been teaching his Disciplinary Committee the same thing.)

"Good night, Reborn-senpai."

"Good night, lackey."

00000

In the room over, Hibari Kyoya finally turns off the eavesdropping device that had come in the army-like set of high-tech (Possibly COMSUBIN) equipment that had been Colonello's birthday gift to him, putting down the pen on the little notebook of notes and closing it. The teen looks over the words he had encircled or underlined with various symbols only he would understand. It was all written in his personal shorthand, so only he can read his notes, which was a good thing, because if his babbo, chichi or any of his uncles or aunt were to read them, they'd wrap him in bubble wrap, stuff him in the underground panic room beneath the Hibari Compound's main house and then go on a panicked hunt to destroy just about everything and anything that might pose as even a slight threat to him, the overprotective herbivore-acting carnivorous idiots that they were.

There would be no reasoning with them whatsoever if they enter overprotective mother hen mode.

And babbo had the gall to call him rash.

Kyoya snorted and shook his head as he packed up his things carefully so that his ever perceptive babbo would never get even a hint that he had such things on him or in his luggage. He looks to his pet bird, who is watching him with interest, and huffs. "I guess it doesn't matter if they want to tell me or not," he tells Hibird. "We'll be visiting a realtor's shop in the nearby future, anyway."

Hibird just chirped and settled for bed.

Kyoya followed soon after.