Chapter 2

Timoteo, better known as Nono, ninth boss of the Vongola, was filling out paperwork late into the afternoon when his phone rang. "Hello," he said as he answered it.

"Ciaossu," said the voice on the other end.

"Reborn, why are you calling me so soon? And so late? Isn't it almost midnight over there?"

"I need you to arrange a hotel room for me."

"What's the matter, his mother not go for the home tutor thing?"

"She's dead."

Nono froze shocked. "W… When?"

"Two years ago."

"I swear if Iemitsu wasn't already dead I'd…"

"I know."

"Doesn't he have any legal guardians?"

There was silence. "No."

It was unnecessary to say more. Timoteo could tell what Reborn meant right away. "I see. I'll arrange something right away."

"We also need to take care of those sorry excuses for human beings."

"Of course."

"And we need to arrange a new guardian for him. The government won't accept an infant. Plus, as much as I hate to admit it, I can't handle this situation on my own.

"Do you have any ideas?"

"Yes actually."

Tsuna awoke in the hotel room. He still couldn't believe that he was free of those two things that called themselves guardians. Not that it mattered. It was only a matter of time before this infant started to do it as well. Either that, or he'd end up with a new so-called family that'd start the whole thing over again. He was useless. The only thing he was good for was being a punching bag, and punching bags don't need to speak. He got up, got dressed, and prepared himself for another day of school. "Where are you going?" The infant said as he headed towards the door.

Tsuna turned around and tilted his head before fishing out the notepad from his bag. [School.]

"You're not going today."

[Why?]

"We have some legal matters to attend to."

[Hibari doesn't like it when students skip school.]

"I'll make sure he understands. Come with me."

Tsuna followed the infant to a government building. They headed inside and eventually reached a room that had a government official waiting for them. "You must be Tsunayoshi," she said. "Please would you follow me for a second." Tsuna followed her to a tinted window. "Show him." The window went clear and on the other side were the two guardians he just escaped from. His eyes widened in horror and he immediately bolted for the door, but the infant blocked his path. Tsuna turned back towards the two with eyes full of fear. The window went dark again. "It looks like you were right. Thank you for bringing this to our attention Mr. Timoteo.

"You welcome," said an older man with gray hair, brown eyes, and a mustache. "However this is even worse than I had expected. I can't even imagine what they must have done to him."

Tsuna's eyes widened when he looked at the old man and he gave a small smile. It was his grandfather. Whenever his deadbeat of a father would finally come for a visit, Tsuna's grandfather would usually come too. Unlike his dad, his grandfather not being around made sense so Tsuna never grew the same resentment to him as he did towards his dad. "Do you recognize me?" Tsuna's grandfather said. Tsuna nodded. "I can't believe it. It's been such a long time." his grandfather gave a warm smile. "Can you tell me what happened? I'd like to help you in any way I can."

There was silence for a moment. "He refuses to talk." the infant told him.

"It's that bad?" the government agent said with a look of horror before regaining composure and clearing her throat. "Well, we looked over your recommendation for the new guardian. We usually like to have two guardians, but it's nice to have someone on such short notice. He also seems to be pretty exceptional, despite his young age. Though his age may turn out to be a benefit, as Tsunayoshi may feel more comfortable with someone closer to his own age. It may help him get over all this. However, we will be sending an agent to check up on him daily. And once we find an appropriate candidate, we will also have him attending weekly therapy appointments. Do I make myself clear?" Tsuna's grandfather nodded. "Good, now would be a good time to show him to his new home."

The three left. "I have to go, Tsuna," Tsuna's grandfather said. "But I'll be sure to come back soon, okay." Tsuna nodded. "Okay Reborn, you can take it from here."

Tsuna looked at the infant and fished out his notebook. [So your name is Reborn?]

"Oh, yes," the infant said. "I can't believe I forgot to introduce myself." Reborn over dramatically cleared his throat "Ciaossu, I am Reborn and I will be your home tutor."

Tsuna just tilted his head. 'Seriously,' he thought.

"Come on, follow me. We shouldn't keep your new guardian waiting."

Tsuna followed Reborn through the streets and came to a very familiar neighborhood. "Here we are," Reborn said. They stopped in front of a house that had a for sale sign covered by a sold sign. Tsuna's eyes widened. It was his old home. The home he shared with his mother. The last place he had happy memories of. "Come inside."

The first thing Tsuna noticed was a man in a suit wearing glasses with black hair, eyes and mustache stocking the refrigerator. "Ignore him for now," Reborn said. "He's just a subordinate."

They continued into the living room and there Tsuna saw a man with blond hair and brown eyes. He wore a green jacket and red shirt that had a tattoo sticking out from behind the collar. He couldn't have been older than twenty-two.

"Ah, you must be Tsunayoshi," the man said. "I'm Dino, and starting today I'm also your new dad. The man in the kitchen is Romario and he's a good friend of mine. It's a pleasure to meet you." Tsuna looked at the man more and saw a whip on his waist. He started shivering and backed up, not once taking his eyes off the whip. Dino followed Tsuna's line of sight and noticed he was staring at the whip. "Oh, don't worry. This is just for self defense. I'd never use it on you." Tsuna didn't trust those words. A whip as a device for torture, and Tsuna know that all too well. Dino sighed and grabbed the whip. Tsuna froze, and then Dino threw the whip out of reach. Tsuna finally relaxed a bit, at least he was safe for now.

"Okay, let's get a few things out of the way," Dino said. "For starters, do you prefer Tsunayoshi, or Tsuna? Or maybe you want me to call you by your last name, Sawada." Tsuna remained silent. It didn't matter. It was only a matter of time before it was 'brat', or 'useless child', so what he was called now had little importance.

"He won't answer," Reborn said.

"Why?" Dino asked. "Did I say something wrong?"

"No, but he refuses to speak."

Dino had a face that had a look that was a cross of pity and disappointment. "And I really wanted to hear your voice." Dino shook his head and straightened up, putting his friendly smile back on. "Okay, let's try it this way. Is it okay if I call you Tsuna?" Tsuna nodded. "Okay. Now what do you want for lunch? How about sandwiches?"

Tsuna finally dug out his notepad, knowing his answer would not come up in Dino's yes or no questions. [I'm not hungry.]

"You need to eat," Reborn said. "You're way too thin."

[So what?]

"It's not healthy," Dino said.

[And why do you care?]

"Because I'm your new dad!"

"And I'm your tutor," Reborn said. "I can't help you with anything athletic in this condition." Tsuna sighed. "Dino, he'll need something easy to swallow. Make some soup."

"Okay," Dino said and headed towards the kitchen. However, after only two steps he tripped on air and implanted his face in the floor.

Reborn facepalmed. This was not good for first impressions.

However, Tsuna stared at the man in awe and began writing something on his notepad. "Dino look," Reborn said.

Dino looked over and saw Tsuna's notepad. [That happens to you too?]

"Um… occasionally," Dino said.

"Without one of his subordinates, he's even clumsier than you," Reborn said and noticed Tsuna give a slight smile. 'Progress," he thought.

Tsuna headed towards the door, but was stopped by Dino. "Tsuna, we decided to keep you home from school one more day." Dino said.

Tsuna took out his notepad. [Why?]

"We need to go shopping. Your room needs to be refurbished, and you need some new clothes, as well as a new school uniform. The one you have is beyond saving."

[Hibari will be mad.]

"Don't worry about it," Reborn said. "Nono got a note to excuse your absences"

Tsuna sighed. [Fine.]

The first stop they made was to get furniture, as it would take time to be delivered. Still, it wasn't easy getting what they needed. Money was no object, as Dino was the boss of the Chiavarone mafia family, a close ally to the Vongola. Still, Tsuna looked at everything as if it was too good for him. It seemed he was afraid that no matter what he chose, it would be taken away from him without warning. Dino made numerous recommendations, but Tsuna just shrugged at each one. It seemed that the decision was up to Reborn and him. Dino wanted to spoil Tsuna, as he was sure it was something that the boy hadn't experienced before. However, almost every choice he made was shot down by Reborn, mostly for the reason that it would take up too much space. Eventually they settled on a fairly fancy desk, dresser, bookshelf, and end table, as well as an extremely expensive bed. The bed, however, was the most important, as Tsuna's frail body needed as much comfort to sleep as possible, not to mention the nightmares he's been having.

Clothes shopping wasn't much easier. However, through subtle body language, Dino found out that Tsuna was partial to the color orange. Doing his best to read Tsuna's nearly emotionless face, Dino bought alot of outfits he thought Tsuna would like.

The final stop was to the school to see the principal. They need to fill out paperwork regarding Tsuna's change in guardian and address, as well as get Tsuna a new school uniform.

"So, Mr. Dino Cavallone," the principal said, "you're telling me that you're Tsunayoshi Sawada's legal guardian now?"

"Yes," Dino said.

"What about Mr. and Mrs. Durmi?"

"As you can probably see, they weren't treating him right."

The Principal eyed Tsuna for a few seconds, who refused to make eye contact. "Yes, but you seem way too young, you can't expect me to believe that…"

"Here's the certificate." Dino handed the principal some papers. "They thought that he might respond better to someone closer to his age."

The principal looked over the papers and grunted. He muttered something too quiet to hear. Dino, however, was able to make out the words 'not worth it' though. "I need you to fill out these forms." The principal handed Dino his papers back, along with some others.

"One more thing."

"Yes."

"Tsuna needs a new school uniform. As you can see, the one he's got on is beyond saving."

The principal grunted and mumbled something again. However Dino was able to hear it all this time. He said, "What a waste of a perfectly good uniform." Dino had to use all his strength to prevent himself from losing composure. The last thing Tsuna needed was another reason for the principal to dislike him.

"How much would it cost to get it replaced?" Dino asked.

The principal smiled. "For the full uniform, one hundred thousand yen." Dino knew that the principal spiked the price to try and get as much off this 'useless child' as he could in order to make it 'less of a waste of a uniform'. Needless to say, Dino was not happy. "What's the matter," the principal said, apparently noticing Dino's mood. "Is that too much?" The principal gave a devious smile and Dino realized that it was worse than he thought. This man wasn't raising the price to get more money. He was trying to prevent Tsuna from getting the uniform.

"Not at all," Dino said with a smirk that would make Reborn proud as he wrote a check.

The principal's face soured. "Thank you." I'll see if I have a uniform that'll fit his small stature.

"We'll be coming with you, just to make sure it fits of course." Dino was sure that if he let the principal go alone, all uniforms that would fit Tsuna would 'mysteriously disappear'. After they got Tsuna's uniform and finished the paperwork, they headed back home just in time for the furniture to arrive. Reborn brought Tsuna to the living room and gave him some soup while Dino and Romario brought the furniture into Tsuna's room. After they finished arranging the furniture, they put away Tsuna's clothes. When going through Tsuna's box of things to see if there was any clothes worth saving, Dino found a small photo album. He opened it up and saw images of Tsuna with his mother, smiling. If only he could bring out that smile now. These last two years most have been worse than anything anyone could imagine for Tsuna to end up this way. Dino put the photo album on the bookshelf along with the notebooks that were in the box and headed back to the living room, Where Tsuna was staring blankly at a magazine.

"Trying to get him to read something Reborn?" Dino asked.

"Emphasis on trying," Reborn said while massaging his temple. "With that face, I can't tell if he's reading it or sleeping with his eyes open. It doesn't help that he still won't talk."

Dino sighed. "Come on Tsuna. I want to show you your new room." Tsuna blinked and put the magazine down before following Dino back upstairs. "Here you go. Is it to your liking?" Tsuna quietly walked around the room and ran his fingers across the furniture. He then turned around and looked at Dino before giving a small smile and a slight bow. "Are you sure? I can still rearrange it if you want."

Tsuna shook his head and took out his notepad. [It's fine.]

"Well that's good to hear. Anyway, it's getting late. Try to get some sleep. If you need anything, anything at all, don't hesitate to ask me. I'll be in the next room over."

Tsuna looked around his room. He'd never seen such expensive furniture until today, and that's what Dino decided to buy him. He didn't want to get too used to it though, as it would inevitably be taken away. Dino may be clumsy as well, but he must be some kind of major success to be able to throw around that kind of money, and a success was one thing Tsuna would never be. This whole caring family thing was too good to be real. Dino even had a whip, and it was only a matter of time before he used it. Even so, he could at least enjoy it while it lasted, right?

He noticed his photo album on the bookshelf, figuring that Dino must have put it there. He was glad it was okay. He had to hide it from his last 'family' as they would most likely have torn it to shreds. He grabbed it off the shelf and started reminiscing of the time he spent with his mom in this very house. His few happy memories. Then a thought occurred. Soon the memories of this house will be tainted by negative ones. When Dino turns on him for being useless, this house too will become a hell hole. He wasn't sure he could take it. Even so, what choice did he have. He just had to try and enjoy the time he had before Dino found out just how useless he was. He would also have to find a new hiding spot for his photo album. If he was lucky, he figured he'd have a mouth. Since he was never lucky, he guessed a week and a half, tops. Even so, a week of having a real home to return to was a paradise to him.

To Be Continued…