Hel was ten years old when the Vongola crumbled.
...
Despite that, it hadn't been Tsuna's first thought to destroy the Vongola.
That had been: someone else can have it.
Someone like Xanxus, who had wanted it for a very long time. Dino had once told Tsuna about what Squalo had told him during the Ring Battles, and though that had been a long time ago-
If Xanxus wanted it, then Xanxus could have it – Tsuna would find a way to circumvent the blood rule himself, if that was what it took. So he had sought out Xanxus to ask him if he still wanted to lead the Vongola, to which Xanxus had told him exactly what he thought about the Vongola, and made it clear that the Family could go fuck itself. He had cut his ties with it, had found that he liked it this way, and the Zabini had treated him better in six months than the Vongola had done in nearly thirty fucking years, so no – Xanxus wanted nothing to do with that circus.
Which.
Fair enough.
But if Xanxus didn't want the Vongola, then it was on to Plan B – destroying the Vongola.
...
Because if there was no Vongola, then it wouldn't need a Boss.
…
(To Dino, the day Tsuna had shown up at the Cavallone Estate looking so unlike himself – very lost in thought, but resolved, and with a gleam of orange in his eyes that spelled something ominous… was a day he wasn't likely to forget about anytime soon.
It had been about a month since Sawada Yoshimune had been born at that point, and once Dino had herded Tsuna inside, having assured him that they would have privacy in the office, the Vongola Heir had confided in him: he'd told Dino that he intended to leave the Vongola, and that he needed help.
So. Dino could either help him… or he could refuse, and watch the Alliance burn down to a crisp right alongside a soon-to-be leaderless Vongola.
It really hadn't been a hard decision to make.)
...
Contrary to what a teenage Tsuna might have thought about it, the Vongola didn't just fight and kill people – it was a business. It had several civilian business fronts that all earned them money, alongside ample land and buildings, which they rented out and collected tithes on. Then there was the CEDEF, the Vongola Estate, and every other building owned, maintained, and ran by the Vongola, each with its own staff, and people who worked there.
There was also the Varia.
It wasn't as black-and-white as it had once seemed, even without bringing up the fact that the Vongola was the centre of the Vongola Alliance, so Tsuna destroying the Vongola wouldn't just affect this Family either.
The waves would be felt. People would be affected.
And getting Yoshi killed shortly after getting him away from the Vongola was definitely not what Tsuna and Kyoko wanted, so they had realised early on that they would have to tread carefully. Would need allies, accomplices, and greased wheels. Things would have to change before they left, people would have to find their way into the employ of other Families, or would otherwise at least have to be compensated fairly. The Vongola Tsuna left behind would have to be diminished, because he couldn't bring it down as it was now.
And while while having no real power, Tsuna couldn't do even that. Couldn't even start working on it, because for as long as Don Vongola held the reins in hand, Tsuna would not be able to move freely. He would question and demand an explanation for Tsuna's every move, and might even undo his work, or order Tsuna to give it up completely.
It was within his power as Don Vongola to do that.
In the end, it was Dino who had suggested they approach the Zabini. Tsuna didn't know Ignazio Zabini all that well, but even he had heard the rumours – that the Zabini had a knack for making impossible things possible, just as long as you were willing to look the other way and not ask questions.
It was Aurelia Zabini who had provided the poison, but it had been Kyoko who had administered it. Slipped it into Don Vongola's food and drinks. Little by little, drop by drop, until he grew too frail to leave his bed, and Tsuna was sitting in his office – the new Don Vongola.
Grandpa never suspected it.
Neither did anyone else.
But then again, who would suspect Kyoko? Sweet, lovely Kyoko – who was Tsuna's real Sun and Yoshi's mother, and not nearly as sheltered as people seemed to think she was?
…
The real work started after that: the meetings with other Dons, the negotiations, the trying to keep the peace while still presenting a reasonably united front to the Alliance's enemies. If the Vongola was to be destroyed, someone would have to step up and fill the space left behind – and if the Alliance was to do it, how should they divide the work and spoils?
How should the new Alliance be organised?
Who should be in charge?
And what would become of the Varia?
To try and figure that out, Tsuna had arranged a meeting with Eir, so as to keep the Head of the Varia in the loop, and lay the options out on the table. Being the sole patron of the Varia was an expensive business, and although Dino and the others could keep selling Vongola property to keep them going for a while, that was in no way a permanent or long-term solution.
Eventually, the money would run out, and then what?
No Family in the Alliance wanted another Family in the Alliance taking the Varia under their wing, either, but having the Varia answer to multiple Dons could and probably would get messy really fast. Half the Dons were convinced the Alliance would be better off without a Varia, and about three quarters were scared shitless of them either way, so what was Tsuna supposed to do about that?
Eir had listened to all of this with impeccable calm and composure, had nodded, and informed Tsuna that she would be in contact.
Because the Varia was the Varia, and they were all terrifying, Eir had indeed got back in contact with Tsuna to let him know that he shouldn't worry about the Varia. They had sorted themselves out.
Which was even more ominous than not knowing what to do with the Varia, honestly.
For the sake of his own sanity, Tsuna had decided not to think too hard about it. There were lots of other things to keep him occupied, even within Tsuna's own circle. Coordinating with family and Guardians, figuring out the when's and how's of their departure, and also contacting Kyoya, so they could figure out living situations.
For the first time in what felt like years, Kyoya was actually working with him again, and it was wonderful. Tsuna knew that he and his Cloud had problems – that Kyoya had been furious at Tsuna over his indecisiveness, for allowing himself to be pushed around by the Vongola, and dragging him into that entire mess – but his decision to finally do something seemed to be earning him a measure of Kyoya's respect back.
Tsuna wondered if he dared hope he might not be bitten to death immediately upon his return to Namimori, but that might be a bit too optimistic of him.
But maybe…
If all the stars aligned and Kyoya happened to be in a very good mood.
(Or maybe not.
Either way, it was a problem for future Tsuna to deal with).
…
Another few months later, the Italian underworld woke up one day to find Sawada Tsunayoshi gone, Talbott's Vongola gear smashed to pieces, and all of the Don's closest friends and family nowhere to be found. Having been at the Zabini Estate at the time this news broke out, Xanxus was one of the first people to know about it.
He wasn't surprised.
Beyond the fact that anyone with half a brain should have been able to tell the Vongola's days were numbered when Sawada Tsunayoshi had become Decimo and dismantled the CEDEF within a year of that, Xanxus had actually received some prior warning on account of Sawada actually approaching him, only months after his own split from the Vongola, to ask if he still wanted to lead the Family.
Nothing had come of it, but to Sawada's credit, he'd not filched once during Xanxus's entire rant about the Vongola. He'd accepted Xanxus's decision, had thanked him for his time, and left. Half a year after that, Sawada had become Don, and it had been the beginning of the end for the Vongola.
This hadn't surprised Xanxus.
What had surprised Xanxus, was Don Zabini returning from his meeting with the other Alliance Dons on the day the Vongola crumbled, with some very strange news.
The Varia had disappeared. The entire fucking thing – building, private jet, equipment, assassins and all – there one day, gone the other.
And no one knew what had happened.
…
As it turned out, Xanxus didn't have to wait long to find out what had actually happened to the Varia.
Why?
Because Bel was grinning.
Now, coming from Bel, this wasn't what Xanxus would call unusual behaviour. However, having known the man in front of him for as long as he had, Xanxus knew a thing or two about how to discern between the different types of grins his Storm Guardian threw around.
This wasn't a 'I'm about to paint the walls red with your freshly-spilled blood' type of grin, nor was it a casual 'I'm content and entertained' grin. No. This was Bel being smug. His 'I know something you don't know' grin, with a possible sprinkle of 'and your reaction will be the highlight of my day' mixed in.
Experience indicated that this could go either way, so Xanxus simply raised an eyebrow.
Next to him, Mila glanced up briefly from the essay she had been grading as well. Unlike Squalo, whose expression plainly conveyed his suspicion, his Cloud didn't look particularly bothered. She turned over the page she'd just finished reading, and didn't even look at Bel as she spoke:
"Don't keep us in suspense, Cousin."
"Yeah! Get it over with, voi!"
Bel pulled out a sheet of paper, and led on with-
"You know how nobody knows what happened to the Varia…?"
Bel's grin widened.
No way.
No way.
"You don't mean-"
Before Squalo could finish that thought, Xanxus had snatched the paper from Bel. It was stiff, and official-looking, bordered by a thin, black line, while a faded, familiar crest in the background took up most of the page. It was the lion of the Varia.
And right there, on the top centre part of the page, there was a bright red Flame seal.
"The Prince has been sitting on this for quite some time now, but as you can see, he has acquired a little something while the Alliance was looking the other way." His Storm explained smugly into the silence, "Eir approached him with the proposition months ago."
Xanxus read the words several times over, just to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him – but no, there it was – so he burst out laughing. Squalo, who had been reading over his shoulder, cursed fluently in Russian.
Bel, with the entire Varia at his beck and call? When he'd been destructive enough while only in charge of one sixth of it?
God save them all.
The world was doomed.
A/N: Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, followed, or added this story to their favourites! If you liked this story, please leave a review and tell me your thoughts about it, I love to read them!
As promised, the first chapter of Princess Hel's Guide to School is now also up.