December 11, 2016: Betaed by Pure Red Crane.
Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn! So don't sue me…
Chapter 5
He was just drying his face with the towel when he was hit by mallet, a mallet he didn't notice because his eyes were closed. And it hurts to be hit by that thing!
"Why did you hit me?!" he shouted, a scowl on his face after turning his head and finding the crazy baby Reborn standing near the sink, sitting cross-legged on the floor and suffering another painful bruise. 'Getting hit by a baby Mafioso is damn weird!'
Reborn merely looked at him in boredom while the mallet turned back, or was it turned, into a green chameleon. Tsuna sighed in resignation at the sight. There was no denying that the chameleon perched on Reborn's fedora was a shape-shifting little monster, which should be physically impossible, but he was seeing it with his own eyes. Maybe he should just ignore how it was possible. It would surely lessen his headache. Wait, back on the matter at hand - he should really stop getting distracted so easily since it usually ended worse for him. Reborn didn't deign to answer his demand. A bullet passed him by and hit somewhere behind him, maybe the wall, making him shriek with fear.
"Hie! What was that for?!" He stared the gun the baby was now holding with apprehension because damn, this baby was so crazy. Who would shoot him without any warning whatsoever? There was silence after his outburst, then another gunshot. "Hiee! Are you insane?!" And the response was the same answer of silence, plus a happy smile on Reborn's face.
Fuck, he knew he didn't do anything wrong, so why was this baby so violent all of the sudden?! Or was he a messed-up baby with a personality like one of those sadistic villains on those television series with cops? Wait! Maybe Reborn was one of those trigger-happy sadistic psychopaths...He shuddered, fear evident on his face as he grew pale with every passing second, which felt like an eternity of suffering. Reborn was a sadist! 'Somebody, please stop him!' he inwardly cried at the trauma he was suffering from and he moaned in misery, "Why is this happening to me?"
He remained in his miserable pathetic whimpering self even when Reborn didn't add any more action. Then the infant suddenly hopped in front of him with his gun lowered, thank you for small mercy. Of course, the lowered gun was then pointed at his face, making his eyes widen even more, like they wanted to leap from its socket while he shook his head in vain attempt of saying please don't shoot me! The gun remained pointed at him and it didn't even waver for any second while the brunet's gaze was darted to every direction, searching for any escape route. He was snapped from his planning when Reborn finally said something,
"We're going back to Namimori, Dame-Tsuna." His voice held that dangerous quality, daring him to oppose so something painful would happen to him. And he couldn't help but believe that Reborn meant it, and that thought was scary because Reborn was only an infant! But he wouldn't surrender.
"I don't want to! You can't make me!" he shouted with all the courage he could muster while his eyes flashed into an orange hue without him realizing it. Reborn paused, and the brunet immediately latched onto that once in a lifetime chance to run far, far away from the danger in all his reckless glory. Like hell he would let go of any chance to run away from dangerous Mafia babies.
However, it was a mistake because in that moment, the gun changed back into a chameleon and into a stun gun.
Before he knew what hit him, he was knocked unconscious with a zap. He only managed to get a glimpse of Reborn looking at him with a satisfied glint in his eyes and hint of sadistic amusement before he passed out. His last agonizing thought was, 'Just why the hell is this happening to me...?'
When he woke up, he met the sight of a very familiar ceiling, blinking owlishly, his mind still blank at the moment. The onslaught of his last memory hit him, making him jerked from the bed. He soon realized that he was back in his room in Namimori.
'Who carried me back to Namimori?!' he thought in panic. Reborn couldn't possibly be the one who dragged him back while he was unconscious. 'Wait...What did Reborn use to knock me out?' he idly wondered. The last scene he remembered was a zapping sound and Reborn's dangerous expressions. He shuddered when he remembered that sadistic amusement flashing in the baby's eyes. He also didn't want to know just what hit him. He would live in ignorance for the time being, and forget about Reborn altogether.
Anyway, he didn't want to be back in Namimori...yet. And to think that his opinion was dismissed and he was forced back here grated on his nerves.
He looked around his room to take things off his mind, immediately noticing that it was already noon based on the grumbling of his stomach. He decided to get up and check his kitchen. He wanted to get back to Tokyo, but...he guessed that he would go when summer break officially started – he also didn't want any chance of seeing that man again. However, it didn't mean he would forgive that crazy baby Reborn for dragging him back. He still felt a bit stiff and sore when he got up, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. It was light compared to normal but it annoyed him that it was all Reborn's fault.
Upon arriving at the kitchen, he did the first thing he should do. He opened the fridge and checked all the food that should be thrown to the bin and salvage ingredients that were still usable. He was almost done with his chore when a squeaky voice greeted him.
"Ciaossu." It snapped him into attention, making him jerk his head towards the direction of the voice. Reborn was standing atop of the fridge.
"R-Reborn!" he said in a startled tone, surprised by Reborn suddenly appearing on top of the fridge. He didn't even want to know where Reborn came from and he was silently wishing that Reborn wouldn't even appear anymore, like never, at all. So much for wishing. When the baby Mafioso was peering down at him, the brunet could only sag in annoyance.
"How did I get back here?" he asked the infant, still confused about that.
"Who knows?" Reborn cheerfully dismissed Tsuna's question before shrugging his shoulders. Then Reborn hopped onto the brunet's left shoulder, "Finish your chore faster, Dame-Tsuna."
Before Tsuna could turn to face Reborn and give him a piece of his mind, Reborn pinched his left ear, hard, making his shoulder tense and a hiss pass his lips. "Ow! What was that for, Reborn?!"
"Punishment for being slow."
'What the fuck is wrong with him?!'
"You're just making excuses to hurt me." he said with a miffed tone instead of yelling at the baby. The silence he received and the smug aura he could feel emitting from his shoulder was proof, making him overall annoyed, 'Stupid Mafia baby.'
Tsuna sighed in annoyance and decided that he should definitely finish his current task so he could prepare food. Dealing with this crazy baby Mafioso made him hungry. He ignored the presence on his shoulder while hoping that when he finally got to eat, his mood would be better and maybe he could think better, or at least stop getting surprised at any supernatural events regarding Reborn.
(His mother loved cooking, and Tsuna wanted to help her in any possible way he can. At the age of nine, he already received his title of Dame-Tsuna, but it didn't completely hurt him because his mother was here with him, smiling at him with so much love. They could dislike him all they wanted. As long as his mother didn't hate him, he would be fine. She also didn't look at him with disappointed eyes like those teachers at school gave him, instead looking at him with encouragement. It made him try harder. Every time he saw his mother cook any kind of dish, he always saw that she glowed. He loved to see his Mother smile the best. He noticed that since his mother loved cooking. Maybe he should learn from her. Tsuna wanted to cook for his mother, to make her proud that he could cook her favourite dish. It would surely make her happy and it would make him happy to see that.
"Mother?" he called out nervously while fiddling with the hem of his shirt.
"What is it, Tsu-kun?" his Mother asked with a smile on her face. Pulling all the courage he could get, he took a deep breath and asked with an embarrassed blush on his face.
"W-Would you teach me how to c-cook?" He peered up at his mother with shy expectancy. Then his lips unconsciously curled upward into an ecstatic smile when he saw the way his mother's eyes glowed as if he had asked the most wonderful thing in the world.
"Of course, Tsu-kun." His mother looked like an angel in that moment. He could feel his heart bursting with happiness for making his mother smile like a bright sun.)
His mother taught him how to cook. Sometimes he thought when he cooked at his home, making him sad, or bitter or even happy because he could remember that the kitchen was…is his mother's domain. This place was her haven and he shared a lot of happy memories within the walls of the same kitchen: the frustration when he made mistakes, when he helped his mother in the kitchen, when he got teary-eyed every time he messed up cooking a dish or even getting the ingredients ruined due to his clumsiness, and when he jumped with joy once he finally succeeded in cooking a decent meal without hurting himself, knocking tools, tripping on empty air or messing with the cooking procedures.
The kitchen was filled with memories of his loving mother. The place was filled with so many precious memories. Sometimes it overwhelmed him with bitterness because his Mother was gone and would never come back, angry that his mother was now absent in his life. He even smiles to himself like some kind of lunatic when he vividly remembered when his Mother was here, or he would be hysteric, crying, sobbing and wailing because it was painful, which usually happened in his early years. Now though, it gave him a sad nostalgic feeling.
"Dame-Tsuna, stop spacing already or you'll burn what you're cooking." Reborn called him out before pulling down on the brunet's hair, making him wince in pain.
It took him a few seconds to register those words and blinked of confusion before he responded. If Reborn noticed how true his statement, he didn't flaunt it.
"I'm not spacing!" he denied loudly then complained, "And why are you still sitting on my shoulder?! I am not your chair!"
Reborn disregarded his complaint and merely responded in an impatient tone, "Finish cooking in one minute."
The 'or else' laid thick and clear in the air, but he ignored it by protesting in an irritated tone, "That's not enough time!"
Then Reborn pulled his ear again in a painful bruising grip and demanded – more like threatened - "Finish it." He immediately heard the 'or die' loud and clear, making him mumble something along the lines of crazy Mafia baby, resulting in another painful tug on his ear.
"Ow, ow! That hurts!" he yelped in pain. Why was he getting abused by a baby?!
Tsuna had just finished homework, though he answered the questions with Reborn telling and hitting him with a green cane whenever his answers were wrong, which was on every question. He wouldn't have even done his homework – or at all if he could since the result would still be the same - if Reborn hadn't bound him to the chair, rendering him helpless and forced to answer or he would be forever strapped. But...why was Reborn smart?!
'Why is this happening to me again?' He cried miserably after getting hit after answering a wrong answer again. Since his hands and legs were tied behind the chair, he couldn't bang his head on the desk even if he wanted to. "I just want my normal life back..." He mumbled pathetically as he tried to twist his arm to get free, but to no avail. "Studying is useless and...I don't need it." he mumbled to himself with a frustrated voice.
"What do you want to do with your life, Tsuna?" Reborn said conversely, airily as if the topic was a general gossip he was used to hearing. He remained silent at that question, his head hanging downward and a frown placed on his face. He definitely looked like his normal dame-self.
"Your average score is 23.5. You are barely passing." Reborn drawled on. Tsuna lifted his chin and peered to look at Reborn, who was facing him and standing among the pile of his scattered homework, holding familiar test papers with bold red glaring marks of 25, 20, and 24. His eyes widened at the sight of his failing scores, and he felt embarrassment at someone flaunting all his failed test scores in front of his face. He wanted a hole to swallow him up, to bury and forget the current humiliation he was feeling. He opened his mouth to protest, to deny his accusation because his grades were always like that, yet he was still passing. Before he could utter a single denial, Reborn continued talking as if he didn't care if the brunet responded or not. "If this continues, you would need to attend summer remedial class."
"No." he said lowly. It was barely a whisper, but Reborn heard it, yet he didn't outwardly show he did.
Tsuna wouldn't attend summer remedial class. Even if he was failing, by some miracle – or in which his classmates taunted and told him that he must have bribed their teachers - he still managed to score enough points to get him off any remedial classes. He even resorted to begging his teachers if it wasn't enough. Though he admitted he tries to look like a kicked puppy every time he begged, they would begrudgingly pass him. However, he wouldn't attend summer remedial class, summer was summer and it must be used to have fun with all those dazzling jazz, not to be holed in some school building and the sweltering summer heat. He refused such possibility.
"No." he repeated, this time louder and with conviction. He didn't notice his eyes glow that same orange hue. It immediately diminished after its sudden appearance. Reborn raised his eyebrows inquisitively at his word, as if asking him to elaborate on the subject matter, but Reborn must have known what he meant by that, so he didn't clarify. His reasoning was glaringly obvious. It didn't need to be spoken aloud.
"Why is that, Tsuna?" Reborn said questioningly, imploringly. There was a genuine curiosity behind those uttered words. Tsuna wanted to answer that question, to explain, because there was no harm in telling a baby why he didn't want to attend summer remedial classes or any remedial classes at all, or how he could skip by with bribing his teachers with his puppy-kicked look, or how easy it was for teachers to let him off the hook because of his cute innocent appearance. Yet he didn't...
("My true line of profession is a hitman. I'm the World Greatest Hitman.")
...Because he suddenly remembered those words Reborn said to him. And now looking at him, with that questioning and harmless look on the baby angelic face, Tsuna could see that maybe Reborn was, in fact, not kidding and his gut merely hummed with satisfaction and few slight uncomfortable feelings. This was plain weird and suspicious. It had been a long time since his gut feelings did that, so it brought to question why it reacted to Reborn like that. Was it because he was a harmless child – he conveniently forget that the same harmless child had shot him many times already, always inflicting physical pain on him – or maybe he was secretly a masochist?
"You wouldn't understand." he answered with a happy bounce in his voice. It was oddly playful. He paused after that, and then added as an afterthought, "And I don't want to talk about my life with a baby." There wasn't a hint of humour to his words, but he found it somewhat funny. Tsuna softly chuckled.
Reborn looked at him shrewdly and Tsuna burst out laughing. Nothing was funny, yet he just suddenly laughed. He wondered why he found it all funny, but at the moment, the brunet didn't care. It had been a long time since he last laughed like this; a hysterical laugh bordering into a sob-like sound. He immediately stopped laughing when he heard what sounded like sobbing and then breathed in air to calm his nerves.
He let his head hang limply, his bangs covering his eyes after his little episode. "I am really pathetic."
"Yes, you are." Reborn said in agreement, and by those sudden words, Tsuna lifted his head to look at him. He could see the sincerity behind those words, and something more. "But as your home tutor, I will eradicate any inadequacy and turn you into a respectable and astounding Mafia Boss befitting of the Vongola Family."
...Why was there suddenly a warmth blossoming in his heart? He didn't want to be a Mafia Boss, like never at all! So...why did he feel happy because of those words?
He gulped down. At that moment, he could see the conviction on those words uttered for him. He stared at Reborn, who was still smiling that devilish smile and looking at him in the eye. Tsuna could feel his eyes drilling holes into him, burying words through eyes alone and seeing his soul. It was overwhelming. The unreasonable happiness and the growing uncomfortable feeling of Reborn's gaze was too much.
"I don't want to be a Mafia Boss!" he yelled suddenly to disperse every other emotion, letting his irritation and anger leak from his voice. He didn't want to be a Mafia Boss. And damn it, he is not going to be a Mafia Boss!
"I don't tolerate failure, Dame-Tsuna." Reborn said after hitting him on the head with his green chameleon-turned-mallet, resulting in another set of bruise.
Reborn hit him. It was painful. He was annoyed because shouldn't the happy feeling disappear by now?
...He wasn't a masochist, was he?!
To be continued…
A/N: Kindly leave a review *inserts smiley here*
